Following nearly annihilating our world, the relatives are friends’: the gripping audio series from JFK and Khrushchev’s descendants.

In the month of October 1962, the world edged nearer toward destruction more so than ever during the contemporary era. This occurred when an American reconnaissance aircraft identified that Russian nuclear missile installations were under construction in Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers from the United States. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy ordered a naval task force to enact a maritime blockade around Cuba. What followed was nearly a fortnight of impossible tension.

The Unthinkable Danger

The danger remained obvious. Should Kennedy, or else his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, had fired against their enemy, a cascade of worldwide atomic strikes and counterstrikes might have ensued, plunging civilization toward total oblivion.

The October crisis has been documented endlessly, in books, films, and TV documentaries. But, in its latest installment, the audio documentary series titled "The Bomb" presents a completely new dimension to the story. It is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy alongside Khrushchev's descendant, relatives of the men who, over two tense weeks, grasped the fate of humanity in their hands.

"What were the Russians thinking? What were the United States considering?" ponders Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also an academic of international affairs.

For her, the unique appeal of the podcast is its attempt to explore: "Why do nations hate each other and oppose one another?"

"It was not lost on me how remarkable it is that individuals can be friends or have the potential to be total enemies," adds Max Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to JFK and now a writer and lawyer. "We see this repeatedly in instances where countries have gone to war, highlighting the sheer folly involved to fight."

A Brink Towards Catastrophe

What is remarkable regarding this event was that, since it transpired in the global spotlight, individuals worldwide could watch almost as it happened while it moved towards disaster. However, the risk of destruction was more imminent than what anybody understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike followed by an invasion," explains Kennedy. "If we had attacked Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, there is no question Soviet forces stationed there would have deployed a tactical nuclear weapon at the US Sixth Fleet, which would've sunk our naval vessels and destroyed America's largest and most important fleet. In turn, we would have responded through massive retaliation that would have ended all life on the planet."

The reality this did not occur is a testament to Kennedy and Khrushchev, who succeeded in exercise restraint while engaging in diplomacy when hawkish elements around them were advocating military action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the missiles from the Caribbean island and President Kennedy (although not reported at the time) withdrew his missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was palpable, matched by a feeling of optimism.

A Different Perspective

Yet, for those two weeks of October 1962, the fear was felt globally. The Bomb’s presenters were born in the years following these events, and Nina being taught about it via the Soviet school curriculum, which portrayed an alternative version of events.

"You said your parent remembers it, describing it as a scary day," she says. "But for Soviet citizens, the public were largely unaware a great deal about it, since it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was constantly wonderful or positive."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, though, it was distinct. "I was informed that it was a triumphant occasion for the USSR, as it represented a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to resolve it, thus didn’t start a global war, seen as a positive outcome," she adds. Later on, though, that view was not shared by all Russians. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a failure for the Soviet leader, because he refrained from destroying the United States."

An Unprecedented Collaboration

This podcast is so even-handed , expertly crafted that Khrushcheva quips she nearly forgot the known the ending. This effect is, partly, due to contributions from renowned scholars. But, truly, the most groundbreaking thing remains the involvement of the descendants. Not so long ago, it would be inconceivable for relatives of the heads of state of America and Soviet Union would appear side by side. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and exhibit such warmth with each other, must be seen as a sign of progress.

"We are not the first," notes Khrushcheva. "After 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we were strangers before the podcast," adds Kennedy. "That is a shame since we got along immediately and now we are friends, something that is wonderful. Ultimately, following almost six decades of almost destroying the world, our families are now allies, suggesting the world is more secure, somewhat."

Modern Echoes with Current Dangers

Is that truly the case? Part of why this series feels so necessary is that we once again are living living through dark times. The Doomsday Clock is closer to midnight in its history, in part because world leaders appear not to be able to learn