History Happy Hour

This week on History Happy Hour: No Guest – Just Us! By popular demand, Chris and Rick reserve the hour on this Sunday after Thanksgiving to just chat with each other – and you! What would you like us to talk about. FDR’s leadership? Our favorite WWI books? Who should have won the War for Independence? Send an email to info@historyhappyhour.net with your questions, topics and sug...

This week on History Happy Hour:   According to US Secretary of War Henry Stimson, the "most shocking single event" of World War II was not the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, but rather the fall of France in the spring of 1940. In recognizing Vichy, the US not only demonstrated panic and moral ineptitude but also nearly ruined the alliance with Britain. Chris and Rick will explore this topi...

This week on History Happy Hour:   Did submarines play a bigger role in the Battle of Midway than is generally believed? That's the argument from naval historian Mark Allen, author of Midway Submerged: American and Japanese Submarine Operations at the Battle of Midway, May–June 1942. Chris and Rick will talk to Mark about what each side expected from their submarines, and how well...

This week on History Happy Hour:   From 1792-1815, Europe was consumed by the Napoleonic Wars. But their impact reverberated around the world, altering the political and military landscape on six continents. To explore this global story, Chris and Rick welcome Alexander Mikaberidze, author of The Napoleonic Wars: A Global History . Why the Napoleonic Wars may have been the most important thin...

This week on History Happy Hour: The gripping true story of a group of American paratroopers who were dropped behind enemy lines on D-Day, only to disappear without a trace. In this encore episode, Chris and Rick welcome Stephen Rabe, author of The Lost Paratroopers of Normandy . His book brings to life the harrowing struggles and ultimate fate of these forgotten heroes – one of whom was his...

This week on History Happy Hour: The most remarkable journey any president’s wife has ever made.  In August 1943, under a veil of secrecy, Eleanor Roosevelt began a risky five week tour to the South Pacific to experience what American GI’s were experiencing...and report back home. Her journey soon became front page news, as she visited, Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand, and Guadalca...

This week on History Happy Hour: The story of Anna May Wong, a Chinese American movie-star who battled racism and sexism as she emerged from turn-of-the-century Los Angeles to become Old Hollywood’s most famous Chinese American actress. Chris and Rick welcome Yunte Huang, author of Daughter of the Dragon: Anna May Wong’s Rendezvous with American History. The remarkable and sometimes tr...

This week on History Happy Hour: Anna Rosenberg was a Hungarian immigrant who became one of FDR’s closest advisors and, according to Life Magazine, was “the most important official female in the world.” Her influence on 20th-century America, from the New Deal to the Cold War, was remarkable. Chris and Rick explore her life with Christopher Gorham, author of The Confidante: The Un...

This week on History Happy Hour: What exactly can pie tell us about American history? It’s no half-baked question! In this encore episode, Chris and Rick welcome Rossi Anastopoulo, author Sweet Land of Liberty: A History of America in 11 Pies . We’ll serve up the delicious details on how pies are woven into our history, from the first Thanksgiving to the lunch counter sit-ins in Greens...

This week on History Happy Hour: The 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion. They were the only the only predominantly all-black US Women's Army unit sent overseas during World War II. Their mission: raise soldiers morale by improving the disastrously backed up mail. To tell their story Chris and Rick welcome Col. Edna Cummings, U.S. Army (Ret) who has produced a documentary about the unit...

This week on History Happy Hour: Canada’s bloodiest battle of World War II. In September 1944, the Allies liberated Antwerp, Europe’s largest port. But Antwerp would be of little unless the 12-mile-long West Scheldt Estuary linking it to the North Sea was also captured. In his greatest blunder of the war, Field Marshal Montgomery turned his back on the port, leaving the First Canadian...

This week on History Happy Hour: Chris and Rick welcome back distinguished (and sometimes disruptive!) oral historian Peter Hart to talk about his new book Footsloggers: An Infantry Battalion at War, 1939-1945 . He’ll share the story of a single British infantry battalion during WWII. From North Africa to Italy and Greece, the 16th learned their military skills the hard way facing determined...

This week on History Happy Hour: A close-up look at daily life in a small Bavarian village during the years of Nazi Germany. Chris and Rick welcome Julia Mead, co-author of the new book, A Village in the Third Reich: How Ordinary Lives Were Transformed by the Rise of Fascism. An intimate portrait of German life during World War II, shining a light on how people in this picturesque village were cha...

This week on History Happy Hour:   Union general George G. Meade guided his forces to victory in the Civil War's most pivotal battle. But he is often dismissed or left out when commentators discuss the great leaders of the Civil War.  Did he lead his troops to victory, or was he just along for the ride?   This week Chris and Rick talk about Meade with Kent Masterson Brown, auth...

This week on History Happy Hour: Prior to World War II, Josephine Baker was the highest-paid female performer in Europe, renowned for her singing and dancing, her beauty and sexuality. When the Nazis seized her adopted city, Paris, she vowed to stay and fight. Overnight, she went from performer to Resistance spy. In an encore episode, Chris and Rick welcome renowned historian Damien Lewis to talk...

This week on History Happy Hour:   Last year we welcomed Kevin Hymel to talk about the first volume of his new Patton biography. Now we welcome him back to talk about the second volume, Patton's War: An American General's Combat Leadership, Volume 2: August–December 1944 .   We'll be covering the period starting when Patton took command of the 3rd Army. It includes h...

This week on History Happy Hour: It has been almost exactly 2,500 years since Athens, the birthplace of democracy, fought off the mighty Persian empire. What possible relevance does this have today? Our guest this week is Stephen Kershaw, author of the new book Three Epic Battles that Saved Democracy.   A fun conversation exploring three epic campaigns - Marathon, Thermopylae and Salamis - th...

This week on History Happy Hour:  A new book takes a sweeping look at the resistance movement that grew up in Europe against Nazi oppression. Chris and Rick welcome historian Halik Kochanski, author of Resistance: The Underground War Against Hitler, 1939-1945 , to bring to life the thrilling exploits of fighters who risked everything to strike back against the tyranny of Hitler's regime....

This Week on History Happy Hour : During America’s War for Independence, nearly 30,000 German soldiers came to the Colonies to fight for Britain. Collectively known as Hessians, they served everywhere from Canada to Cuba and shared in every significant British triumph and defeat. What were their experiences and how did the war look to them? Chris and Rick welcome historian Friederike Baer, w...

This Week on History Happy Hour : Recent archeological digs have uncovered the remains of two dozen soldiers who fought at the Revolutionary War battles of Camden, South Carolina, and Red Bank, New Jersey. British, American and Hessian soldiers have been unearthed nearly 250 years after the guns ceased. Chris and Rick welcome Steven Smith, principal investigator on the Camden project, as well as W...

This Week on History Happy Hour : Bass Reeves was born into slavery, and never learned to read or write. But he nevertheless became one of the most feared lawmen in the west who carried out more than 3000 arrests and killed 14 men while carrying out his mission as a deputy Federal Marshall. Art T. Burton has spent years digging into his story. Chris and Rick welcome Art to talk about his book Blac...

This Week on History Happy Hour : This week on History Happy Hour: Chris Anderson and Rick Beyer look back on the D-Day landings with a 90-minute encore presentation of our 2021 D-Day Special. Rick hosted the show live from the National D-Day Memorial, and three distinguished guests joined us for a D-Day discussion. The show begins with author Giles Milton, and a look at his riveting account of th...

This Week on History Happy Hour : More than one million Black men and women served in World War II. Black troops served in segregated units and performing unheralded but vital support jobs, only to be denied housing and educational opportunities during and after the war. Without their crucial contributions, the United States could not have won the war. And yet the stories of these Black veterans h...

This Week on History Happy Hour : The Ranger attack on the German gun batteries at Pointe-du-Hoc in the early morning hours of D-Day is the stuff of legend. Chris and Rick welcome vaunted D-Day historian Steven Zaloga comes to the show to talk about his new book, Smashing Hitler’s Guns: The Rangers at Pointe-du-Hoc D-Day 1944. We’ll walk through the legends, and the questions, and see...

This Week on History Happy Hour : The evacuation of more than 300,000 soldiers from the Belgian port of Dunkirk in 1940 was the stuff that myths and legend are made of. But how did it look from the German perspective? Chris and Rick welcome acclaimed British historian Robert Kershaw, author of the new book Dunkirchen 1940: The German View of Dunkirk . Kershaw draws on German interviews, diaries an...