You Had To Be There

On Sunday, June 1st, 1980, Ted Turner pressed a button—and CNN went live, beaming 24/7 news into homes across America and changing the media landscape forever, while shrinking time and space forever. In this episode, we sent Julia Thompson to track down and interview people who were at CNN’s Atlanta headquarters on day one. What follows is the story of a visionary who dared to build a 24-hour news...

In May 1997, the world watched as Garry Kasparov, the greatest chess player of all time, faced off against IBM’s supercomputer, Deep Blue. It was man vs. machine—a defining moment in the evolution of artificial intelligence and a turning point for chess. To revisit this historic showdown, we’ve given producer and director Julia Thompson a 48-hour challenge: track down and interview someone who was...

To celebrate the 45th anniversary of Team USA’s stunning ice hockey upset over the Soviet Union, better known as the ‘Miracle on Ice,’ we’ve given producer and director Julia Thompson a 48-hour challenge: find and interview someone who was at that historic game in Lake Placid on February 22, 1980. This episode features interviews with: Curt Chaplin Gerald Eskenazi John Harrington  Denice Frederick...

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Jaws, we've given producer and director Julia Thompson a 48-hour challenge: track down and interview someone who was on set during the famously chaotic production of Spielberg’s groundbreaking film on Martha’s Vineyard between May and October 1974. This episode features interviews with: David Bolen Bill Petrotta Jude Villa CREDITS 'You Had To Be There' is a Hi...

Producer and director Julia Thompson takes on a 48-hour challenge to track down and interview someone who witnessed the iconic September 19, 1985 Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee hearing where Twisted Sister's Dee Snider, Frank Zappa, and John Denver defended their lyrics before Congress and the PMRC. This episode features interviews with: Larry Stein Mark Weiss Chuck Eddy Ke...

Producer and director Julia Thompson sets out on a 48-hour mission to track down and interview someone who attended Fleetwood Mac’s iconic reunion concert, The Dance, on May 23, 1997—the show where Stevie Nicks’ unforgettable Silver Springs performance became a meme for the ages. This episode features interviews with: Maureen Ryan  Bruce Rodgers  Stacy Burcham Analese Alvarez  CREDITS 'You Had To...

Producer and director Julia Thompson embarks on a 48-hour mission to track down and interview someone who was on the field for the historic 1999 Women’s World Cup Final at the Rose Bowl, where the United States defeated China in a dramatic penalty shootout, capped by Brandi Chastain’s iconic game-winning shot. This episode features interviews with: Michelle Akers Robert Beck Anthony DiCicco Lindsa...

Producer and director Julia Thompson goes on a 48-hour journey to find and interview someone who was at DJ Kool Herc and Cindy Campbell's Back to School Jam at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx on August 11, 1973—a moment that is commonly known as the birth of hip-hop. This episode features interviews with: Frantz Barosy Paradise Gray Joe Conzo CREDITS 'You Had To Be There' is a Hi Barr production...

Producer and director Julia Thompson embarks on a 48-hour journey to find and interview someone who attended the midnight premiere of The Blair Witch Project at the Sundance Film Festival on January 23, 1999. This episode features interviews with: Allison Rose Carter  Michael C. Williams Rachel Cohen Hilary Brougher CREDITS 'You Had To Be There' is a Hi Barr production. Created by Hi Barr. 'The Bl...

Producer and film director Julia Thompson goes on a 48 hour journey to find and interview an eyewitness to Apple's introduction of the Macintosh computer by Steve Jobs on January 24, 1984. This episode features interviews with: Colette Askeland Steven Levy D. Griffin Jones CREDITS 'You Had To Be There' is a Hi Barr production. Created by Hi Barr. ‘Steve Jobs Introduces the Macintosh in 1984’ was w...

Producer and film director Julia Thompson goes on a 48 hour journey to find and interview an eyewitness to Nirvana's iconic performance on MTV Unplugged in New York City on November 18, 1993. This episode features interviews with: Alex Coletti Jon Vesey Jim Ahearne Bill Toce  Web Barr CREDITS 'You Had To Be There' is a Hi Barr production. Created by Hi Barr. ‘Nirvana: MTV Unplugged in New York’ wa...

Producer and film director Julia Thompson goes on a 48 hour journey to find and interview an eyewitness to the legendary 2008 Wimbledon final between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal—a match widely hailed as the greatest in tennis history. This episode features interviews with: Jon Wertheim Donna Floyd Fales Ingrid Löfdahl Bentzer Sally Phillips Elise McCave Scott Milnor Lucy Malone CREDITS 'You Had...

Producer and film director Julia Thompson goes on a 48 hour journey to find and interview an eyewitness to Kerri Strug's gold medal-winning vault at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. This episode features interviews with: Katherine Lieberson Teeny Lieberson  Alice Thacker Stacy Cook Jon Sigger John P. Lopez Charlie McCullors  Linda Wyatt Molly Wyatt CREDITS 'You Had To Be There' is a Hi Barr pr...

Former professional skateboarder and filmmaker Monihan Monihan goes on a 48-hour journey from Seattle to Kathmandu to find and interview someone who was at the 1979 NCAA Basketball Championship game featuring Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. This episode features interview with: Joan Mills Aimee "LeeLee" Monihan Judy Monihan Dan Cherry III  Wez Wezenheimer Dr. Ryan Ernst Mark Perry Mike Clark Sr. Tom...

Artist, actor, writer and musician, River Ramirez goes on a 48-hour journey to find and interview someone who was at WrestleMania I in 1985. This episode features interview with: Keith Elliot Greenberg Brett Davis CREDITS You Had To Be There is a Hi Barr production.  Created by Hi Barr. “WrestleMania I” was hosted by River Ramirez. Produced by Julia Thompson and Web Barr. Story written and produce...

Journalist and writer, Brandon Sneed goes on a 48-hour journey to find and interview someone who was at the final tribal council in the first season of the blockbuster reality show Survivor in the summer of 2000. This episode features an interview with Survivor: Borneo winner Richard Hatch. Timestamps (00:00): Introduction (06:48): Test (14:35): Test 2 (19:09): Test 3 CREDITS ‘You Had To Be There’...

Musician and artist Jen Goma goes on a 48-hour journey to find and interview someone who was in one of the hotel suites during one of John Lennon & Yoko Ono’s Bed-Ins for Peace in 1969. This episode features interviews with:  Jerry Levitan Nico Koster  Hana van der Kolk Jillian Goma Ethan Kiermaier Casey Coleman Louise Mittelman Betta de Boer van der Kolk Linda at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth Mont...

In celebration of Pulp Fiction’s 30th anniversary, Hollywood producer, Adam Karp is sent on a 48-hour journey to find and interview someone who was in attendance at the Cannes Film Festival in 1994 when Pulp Fiction took home the Palme d'Or. This episode features interviews with:    Rory Kelly Howie Movshovitz CREDITS You Had To Be There is a Hi Barr production.  Created by Hi Barr. 'Pulp Fiction...

Comedian Naomi Karavani goes on a 48-hour journey to find and interview someone who was in NASA's Mission Control when Apollo 11 landed on the moon in 1969.  This episode features interviews with (in order of appearance): Jeff Simmermon Lois Rosson Rick Sternbach John M. Logsdon Rushmore DeNooyer, Producer-Director-Writer CREDITS 'You Had To Be There' is a Hi Barr production. Created by Hi Barr. “...

Actor and comedian Tommy Kang, goes on a 48-hour journey to find and interview an eyewitness to the night when Garth Brooks hosted Saturday Night Live and performed as Chris Gaines. In 'Saturday Night Live-Garth Brooks', Tommy talks to 30+ year old SNL vet, Wally Feresten aka SNL's "Cue Card Guy" about Garth Brooks, Sinéad O'Connor, Ashlee Simpson and more! This episode includes interviews with: S...

Producer and film director Julia Thompson goes on a 48 hour journey to find and interview an eyewitness to Martin Scorsese’s iconic concert film The Last Waltz.  This episode includes interviews with: Nadia Szold, Nicole McCormick, Steven Prince, Jonathan Taplin, Bartees Strange, and Mike Dubois. CREDITS You Had To Be There is a Hi Barr production.  The Last Waltz was written & hosted by Julia Tho...

'You Had To Be There' is a first-of-its-kind podcast where we’re taking listeners back to iconic moments in pop culture history where…you had to be there. This isn’t your run-of-the-mill interview show; it’s a journey to the past in a race against time to land the interview and get the story.  Each episode, we’re giving a different host an assignment: Find & interview an eyewitness to an iconic mo...