A Nazi on Wall Street Podcast

A Nazi on Wall Street podcast by Elusive Films is almost here!   Are you bewildered by current events? Do you wonder where this is all headed? We talk to historians & scholars to understand where we've been, where we're going, and how we might build a better future. Because every time history repeats, the price goes up. (Episode photo by Alessandro Cerino on Unsplash )

What a long, interesting spring it’s been! Elusive Films recorded a 10 episode series and we are excited to start sharing it with you. In the first episode EJ and Jay talk about dogs, Joe Biden, the American Rescue Plan, and the concept of the “first 100 days” of a presidency. We invite Dr. Allan Lichtman to discuss FDR and the New Deal to get an expert perspective. Looking back just a few weeks e...

What is the backstory of A Nazi on Wall Street? In order to tell the story of Nazi spies in New York in 1940, we started with FDR and the New Deal last episode. Now, we take on Henry Ford. And, of course--always with an eye toward what's happening in the present day. In this second episode by Elusive Films , EJ Russo and Dr. Jay Weixelbaum discuss the current problem of "fake news,"...

The A Nazi on Wall Street Podcast isn’t just to promote our film project; it is also a conversation about the parallels between our current era and earlier histories of America. In order to understand the world of the 1930s and 1940s, we have to talk about antisemitism. Hate against Jews has cropped up periodically, but discrimination used to be codified in U.S. law, as well.   Dr. Jay Weixelbaum...

The A Nazi on Wall Street podcast discusses current events and explores their historical context with experts. We want to help listeners understand an earlier time in the American 20th century. In this case, Jay and EJ talk about a disturbingly relevant and familiar parallel: white nationalist gangs. Just like the Proud Boys today, groups led by Nazi admirers like Gerald LK Smith espoused antisemi...

The A Nazi on Wall Street Podcast is a discussion about current events, their historical context, and building the world in which the A Nazi on Wall Street story takes place. Even though the Civil Rights Movement primarily takes shape after the 1940s, the Elusive Films team made a conscious choice to include this topic in our series after the historic Black Lives Matter marches inspired in part by...

Like Covid, populism cannot be reasoned with. It dresses itself in slogans. It's fixated on outrage. It won’t be won over by facts. It’s inherently suspicious of expertise. It wallows in conspiracy theories. And it's been with us for a long time.  Populism can present itself as both right- and leftwing varieties, but the most dangerous version is fascism, which is a key topic in the A Na...

This episode is a blast from the past. Recorded in March of 2021, Dr. Jay Weixelbaum and EJ Russo discuss the disturbing 2018 summit in Helsinki between Trump and Putin.  In this meeting, Trump infamously told the world that he believed Putin when he said Russia had not attacked the US 2016 election, even though some of Trump's own campaign officials would later be convicted for such activiti...

Continuing the theme of exploring rightwing populism, Dr. Jay Weixelbaum and EJ Russo discuss the anti-socialism and anti-communism at the heart of this ideology with Austin Clements, a PhD candidate at Stanford University. What they discover is that fascists and the far right use some of the same rhetoric today to attack everything they don't like as they did generations ago. Join Jay, EJ, a...

This one is a blast from the past! In preparation for our final episode of the season, the A Nazi on Wall Street Podcast crew wanted to share with you an early recording made at near the beginning of 2021. In this episode, Dr. Jay Weixelbaum and EJ Russo compare the Trump administration of 2020 with the Herbert Hoover administration. In both cases there was a spiraling crisis, which was met by mos...

There’s only one thing historians know for sure: times change. But how would you know if a new era was unfolding before your very eyes? Join Dr. Jay Weixelbaum and EJ Russo as they discuss the idea of “paradigm shifts” and what they mean for our current times. It’s also the end of an era for the Nazi on Wall Street Podcast--this is the final episode of Season One! Jay and EJ tie together everythin...

The A Nazi on Wall Street Podcast returns for a second season! In this premier, EJ Russo and Dr. Jay Weixelbaum take on a topic on everyone’s mind these days: Midterm Elections. We’re living in a time of change and it seems like the issues we care about are culminating all at once. What can we expect in November? And what were midterms like during the 1930s and 1940s at another time when it seemed...

EJ Russo and Dr. Jay Weixelbaum sit down with former journalist and law student Megan Geuss for an impromptu live discussion about our reaction to the Dobbs v. Jackson decision and what we can do moving forward. 

One of the consistencies of rightwing extremism is the intertwining of Christian ideology with hypernationalist violence. The U.S. is no stranger to this scourge, and other western nations face this danger, too. To solve a problem as deep and pervasive as this one, we need to dig in and understand it better. EJ Russo and Dr. Jay Weixelbaum unravel this topic with Dr. Thomas Lecaque, an expert in C...

Last year, Dr. Jay Weixelbaum and EJ Russo closed the first season of the A Nazi on Wall Street podcast talking about what it’s like to live in a paradigm shift: when fundamental changes in the world lead to a “new normal.” Back in 1940, the world was in cataclysmic change -— and many would say we are today, too. In fact, things are changing so rapidly that EJ and Jay decided to record another epi...

For a while now, the A Nazi on Wall Street podcast has been building toward a conversation about the role of the US media in the existential battle between democracy and fascism. This episode, EJ Russo and Dr. Jay Weixelbaum are blessed not with one expert, but three! Dr. Weixelbaum interviews Mark Jacob, Cliff Schecter, and John Stoehr in an entertaining and nuanced discussion about our current m...

Following on our last episode on the media in the battle between the forces of democracy and fascism, the ANOWS podcast takes on Fox News-one of the largest platforms for rightwing and fascist messaging on the planet. EJ and Jay talk with Juliet Jeske, an expert in grassroots fascist groups and producer of Decoding Fox News, which deeply analyzes how rightwing propaganda on that station operates....

We made it! Jay and EJ process the unfolding results of the 2022 US Midterms as the so-called "Red Wave" fizzles out. Has there been a democratic resurgence? This episode explores election ramifications for the House, the Senate, and what might be in store for US politics in 2023. Tune in and get up to speed on the state of play in America's existential struggle against fascism.  [i...

The A Nazi on Wall Street Podcast has been going strong for nearly two years! As we near the end of our second season, we cover a topic that has affected all of us during this period: the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to his work as a historian, Dr. Jay Weixelbaum works with scientists all over the world for his day job and shares some insights about COVID-19 research in this episode. EJ and Jay...

Whether historians like it or not, our identities and histories are often tied up in intense contests of competing narratives—which greatly affect the way we talk about history in public, such as at museums and historic sites, and in our entertainment and media. The A Nazi on Wall Street Podcast is public history, too--but what does that really mean?  Dr. Jay Weixelbaum and EJ Russo talk with John...

EMERGENCY PODCAST: Jay and EJ digest the news of twice impeached former president Trump’s indictment and pending criminal charges. As every news agency under the sun has observed, this is an unprecedented moment—but perhaps a predictable one. This is a rapidly evolving story and by the time you hear this, there may be more indictments, charges, or unpredictable reactions. Tune in!  (warning: salty...

ANOWS PODCAST SEASON 2 FINALE We’ve been teasing this one for a while now.  Want to know how you go from a crazy idea to preparing a professional pitch for Hollywood producers? Jay and EJ talk to Justin Isett about developing the A Nazi on Wall Street project. Spies, G-Men, femme fatales, and more! You don’t want to miss this one.  Photo by Gemma Evans on Unsplash