Following nearly annihilating the world, the relatives are friends’: a gripping podcast featuring JFK and Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

In the month of October 1962, humanity edged closer toward destruction more so than ever during recent history. This transpired when an American surveillance plane identified the fact that Soviet atomic missile sites were under construction in Cuba, less than 160 kilometers from the US mainland. In response, President John F Kennedy ordered a naval task force to establish a naval blockade encircling the island. The next phase constituted nearly two weeks of impossible tension.

An Unthinkable Threat

The danger remained obvious. If President Kennedy, or the Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, had fired against the other side, a cascade involving worldwide nuclear strikes followed by retaliatory strikes would have followed, plunging mankind into all-out destruction.

The Cuban missile crisis has been documented endlessly, through volumes, films, and TV documentaries. However, in its latest installment, a prominent audio documentary series titled "The Bomb" introduces an unprecedented perspective to the story. It is co-presented by Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, family members of the leaders that, for 13 days, held the destiny of the world in their hands.

"What were the Russians planning? What were the American side planning?" asks Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor of international affairs.

In her view, the strength of the podcast lies in its attempt to explore: "How can individuals detest one another and go against each other?"

"It was not lost on me how profound the fact that humans can be friends or have the potential to be total adversaries," adds Kennedy, son of RFK, related to JFK and now a writer as well as attorney. "We see this over and over when nations enter into conflict, and it just illustrates how unbelievably stupid involved to fight."

A Precipice of Catastrophe

What’s striking about this event is that, because it transpired so publicly, people worldwide were able to observe almost as it happened as it crept closer to catastrophe. Nonetheless, the danger of annihilation came closer than what most people understood at the time.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike and an invasion," says Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck the Cubans with the naval blockade, there is no question Soviet forces on the ground would've deployed a tactical nuclear weapon at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would've obliterated the aircraft carriers as well as destroyed America's largest and most important naval force. And, the U.S. would have retaliated with an overwhelming counterattack which would have ended most life on the planet."

The reality it didn’t highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in remain calm and engaging in diplomacy at a time when many advisors in their governments was pushing for action. As a result, Khrushchev removed the missiles in the Caribbean island while President Kennedy (although not reported then) removed American similar weapons from NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, as was a feeling of optimism.

A Different Perspective

Still, during those two weeks in October, the tension was palpable globally. The podcast's presenters were born shortly after these events, with Khrushcheva being taught about the crisis through the Soviet education system, which portrayed an alternative narrative of what happened.

"You said your father remembers it, describing it as a frightening day," Khrushcheva notes. "However for Soviet citizens, people were largely unaware a great deal about it, because it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was always wonderful or positive."

Inside the Khrushchev household, however, the perspective was distinct. "They told me that it was a triumphant occasion it was, as it represented a direct confrontation. They were able to resolve it, thus avoided the war, which was a positive thing," she adds. Later on, though, that view was not held by everybody. "For decades in Russian politics, it was considered a failure for Khrushchev, simply he refrained from destroying America."

An Unprecedented Collaboration

The Bomb is so balanced , well produced so much so that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget the known outcome. This effect is, in part, due to contributions from renowned scholars. But, truly, the most significant aspect is the participation of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it would be inconceivable that descendants of the heads of state of the United States and the Soviet Union to appear side by side. That these two individuals are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, has to be a symbol of hope.

"We are not the pioneers," notes Nina. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we were strangers prior to this project," clarifies Max. "Which is a shame since we connected really well and we’re friends, which is wonderful. Finally, following nearly six decades of almost destroying the world, our lineages have become friends, so I think the world is more secure, somewhat."

Modern Parallels and Present Dangers

Is that truly the case? One reason the reason this series seems so urgent is that we once again find ourselves living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to midnight in its history, in part because today's statesmen don’t seem to be able to grasp