Kennedy on the Buildup of Arms in Cuba
On October 22, 1962, in a national statement, President John F. Kennedy discloses that U.S. spy planes discovered the placement of Soviet offensive missiles in Cuba.
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Kennedy on the Buildup of Arms in Cuba
Kennedy on the Buildup of Arms in CubaAudio Clip (7:35)
Audio Clip (7:35)
On October 22, 1962, in a national statement, President John F. Kennedy discloses that U.S. spy planes discovered the placement of Soviet offensive missiles in Cuba.
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Reagan on Neutron Bomb Production
Reagan on Neutron Bomb ProductionAudio Clip (0:41)
Audio Clip (0:41)
In address to the nation, President Ronald Reagan defends his decision to authorize production of the controversial neutron bomb as a warhead for missiles and artillery.
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Lyndon Johnson Considers Troop Increase in Vietnam
Lyndon Johnson Considers Troop Increase in VietnamAudio Clip (5:02)
Audio Clip (5:02)
In June 1965, shortly after a coup in South Vietnam led to the 10th change of government in the war torn country, an attack by the North Vietnamese destroyed three U.S. aircraft at Danang. During a recorded telephone conversation with Defense Secretary Robert McNamara on July 2, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson contemplates whether the war can be won.
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Franklin D. Roosevelt Delivers D-Day Prayer
Franklin D. Roosevelt Delivers D-Day PrayerAudio Clip (3:37)
Audio Clip (3:37)
In a national radio broadcast on June 6, 1944, as 160,000 Allied troops land in Normandy in an attempt to liberate France, President Franklin D. Roosevelt asks America to join him in a prayer.
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Truman Announces Japan's Surrender
Truman Announces Japan's SurrenderAudio Clip (1:57)
Audio Clip (1:57)
On September 1, 1945, in a radio address to the American people, President Harry Truman announces the unconditional surrender of Japan, formalized aboard the U.S.S. Missouri.
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Eisenhower Weighs Chance for Peace in the Cold War
Eisenhower Weighs Chance for Peace in the Cold WarAudio Clip (3:40)
Audio Clip (3:40)
On April 16, 1953, after the death of Russian Premier Joseph Stalin, President Dwight D. Eisenhower delivers what is known as his “Cross of Iron” speech before the American Society for Newspaper Editors, contrasting the philosophies of the Soviet Union and the United States.
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Kennedy Speaks Before Meeting Khrushchev
Kennedy Speaks Before Meeting KhrushchevAudio Clip (1:09)
Audio Clip (1:09)
At a May 31, 1961, Paris press conference, President John F. Kennedy describes his principal aim for meeting with Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev at the Geneva summit, the first between the two superpowers since 1960.
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Reagan Supports Poland's Solidarity Movement
Reagan Supports Poland's Solidarity MovementAudio Clip (2:41)
Audio Clip (2:41)
In late 1981, in an address to the nation, President Ronald Reagan condemned the recent communist crackdown on the Solidarity Movement in Poland.
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Ronald Reagan on Iran-Contra Hearings
Ronald Reagan on Iran-Contra HearingsAudio Clip (2:56)
Audio Clip (2:56)
In 1987, Congress held 40 days of public hearings on the Iran-Contra affair during which they listened to 28 witnesses give more than 250 hours of testimony. On August 12, 1987, in a live broadcast from the Oval Office, President Ronald Reagan comments on the recent congressional hearings now that they are over.
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John F. Kennedy on Coup in South Vietnam
John F. Kennedy on Coup in South VietnamAudio Clip (6:06)
Audio Clip (6:06)
On October 29, 1963, President John F. Kennedy meets with the National Security Council to discuss whether to support the overthrow of South Vietnam's President Ngo Dinh Diem. During the secretly recorded conversation, Secretary of State Dean Rusk and the president craft a detailed plan involving Henry Cabot Lodge, ambassador to South Vietnam, Gen. Paul D. Harkins and the general of the South Vietnamese military, hoping to avoid setting off a civil war in the country.
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Russia Withdraws Cuban Missiles
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Footage from sea of the conclusion of the Cuban Missile Crisis.
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Kennedy Responds to Berlin Wall
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President Kennedy's diplomatic resolve was tested as tension mounted at the Berlin wall.
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JFK Sets Goal for Man on Moon
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John F. Kennedy's sets the goal of the United States to land a man on the moon and return him safely to Earth.
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Lincoln's War Machine
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Twenty-four thousand miles of railroad replenishes troops and supplies for the North and delivers disaster to the South.
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Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis
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President Kennedy avoided nuclear war during the Cuban Missile Crisis and gained the trust of the nation.
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JFK's Road to the White House
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John F. Kennedy sets his sights on the White House.
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Castro Urges Nuclear Attack on America
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During the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962, America and the Soviet Union were on the brink of nuclear war. Fidel Castro urged the Soviets to attack first.
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The Seawolves
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A surprise phone call reunites two Vietnam war veterans, George Heady and Al Billings, with films of their service in the Navy Seawolves helicopter unit.
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Arthur Wiknik
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As an 18-year-old draftee, Arthur Wiknik was rushed through officer candidate's school. After one month in Vietnam he found himself in the middle of the battle of "Hamburger Hill"--one of the most notorious battles of the war.
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A Soldier's Story: Hamburger Hill
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In 1969, Arthur Wiknik found himself in one of the Vietnam War's most notorious battles.
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Vietnam War: Leaders
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View images of the Presidents, politicians, and military leaders who influenced American involvement in the Vietnam War.
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