World War II with Tom Hanks

In the winter of 1944, as American and British armies are advancing across western Europe, Hitler plans one last major offensive attempt through the Ardennes forest - the Battle of the Bulge - to swing the tide of the war back in Germany’s favor. Meanwhile, the Soviet Red Army is swiftly moving across Eastern Europe to fulfill Stalin’s ultimate wish of taking Berlin.
This episode features interviews with (in order of appearance):
Robert Citino, senior historian, National WWII Museum
Dan Carlin, podcaster, Hardcore History
James Holland, military historian and author
Dr. Peter Lieb, military historian and author
Martin Morgan, military historian and author
Geoffrey Wawro, professor, University of North Texas
Paul Woodadge, author and Normandy battlefield guide
Colonel Douglas Douds, professor, US Army War College
Michel Paradis, professor, Columbia University
Sarada Peri, presidential speechwriter and political analyst
Alexandra Richie, professor, Collegium Civitas
Sean McMeekin, professor, Bard College
Simon Sebag Montefiore, historian and author
Jon Meacham, presidential historian
Dan Snow, historian and broadcaster

In 1944-45, as Allied victory in Europe seems all but assured, the fighting in the Pacific intensifies. The U.S. and Japan suffer terrible losses in the Philippines and on Iwo Jima. Roosevelt understands what ordinary Americans are only beginning to realize: in a clash between a nation which demands unconditional surrender and a nation which refuses to surrender, the worst is still to come.
This episode features interviews with (in order of appearance):
Jon Meacham, presidential historian
Robert Citino, senior historian, National WWII Museum
Jonathan Parshall, military historian, US Naval War College
Dan Carlin, podcaster, Hardcore History
A.J. Baime, journalist and author
Bradley Hart, military historian, National WWII Museum
Noriko Kawamura, professor, Washington State University
Christopher Harding, cultural historian, University of Edinburgh
Dr. Rebecca Grant, national security analyst
Anand Toprani, military historian, U.S. Naval War College
Colonel Douglas Douds, professor, US Army War College
Sarada Peri, presidential speechwriter and political analyst
Martin Morgan, military historian and author

Resistance to Nazi occupation and oppression has been a constant throughout the war. In the summer of 1944, two cities revolt against the Nazis but meet very different outcomes. And some, living and dying through the Holocaust, take their fate into their own hands and mount organized resistance in the direst of circumstances.
This episode features interviews with (in order of appearance):
Colonel Douglas Douds, professor, US Army War College
Robert Citino, senior historian, National WWII Museum
Dan Snow, historian and broadcaster
Alexandra Richie, professor, Collegium Civitas
Michael Neiberg, professor, US Army War College
Marco Aterrano, associate professor, University of Naples Federico II
Martin Morgan, military historian and author
Simon Sebag Montefiore, historian and author
Anand Toprani, military historian, U.S. Naval War College
James Bulgin, historian, Imperial War Museum
Rebecca Erbelding, historian, United States Holocaust Museum

As the tide begins to turn against the Axis powers, the leaders of Germany and Japan deploy opposite strategies on their home fronts. Hitler and his propaganda minister do everything in their power to shield the German people from the war, while Hideki Tojo asks the Japanese to sacrifice more and more to support the war effort. But both governments’ demands of their people will grow more intense – and deadly.
This episode features interviews with (in order of appearance):
Robert Citino, senior historian, National WWII Museum
Alexandra Richie, professor, Collegium Civitas
Nicholas Stargardt, historian and author
Martin Morgan, military historian and author
Colonel Douglas Douds, professor, US Army War College
Sheldon Garon, professor, Princeton University
Yuki Tatsumi, senior director, Institute for Indo-Pacific Security
Christopher Harding, cultural historian, University of Edinburgh
Dan Carlin, podcaster, Hardcore History
Jonathan Parshall, military historian, US Naval War College
Jeremy Yellen, historian and author
Noriko Kawamura, professor, Washington State University
Bradley Hart, military historian, National WWII Museum
Louise Young, professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison

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June 6, 1944. As thousands of Allied soldiers prepare to storm the beaches of Normandy, they climb down rope nets into small wooden landing craft bobbing in the dark waters of the English Channel. Within hours, these boats will carry them into the largest amphibious invasion in history.
The craft are known as Higgins boats, named for their inventor, Andrew Higgins: a hard-driving New Orleans boatbuilder who built his reputation designing vessels that could speed through swamps, crash through obstacles, and go places other boats couldn't. Higgins was stubborn, abrasive, and relentless. The Navy repeatedly dismissed his ideas. He refused to go away.
How does a small-time New Orleans boatbuilder force his way into the military industrial complex? And what exactly is so special about these boxy little Higgins boats?
Special thanks to Dr. John Curatola, Samuel Zemurray Stone Senior Historian at the National WWII Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana. His book is Armies Afloat: How the Development of Amphibious Operations in Europe Helped Win World War II.
You can find the rest of the books we used to research this episode at historythisweekpodcast.com.