Eyewitness History

In this second interview, we discuss what it was like being liberated by the Red Army in 1945, as well as how the Holocaust has affected his faith, and what it was like being reunited with his family. It was quite a pleasure. Once again, more of an honor than anything else. And I hope you find it fascinating. I know I did.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the spring of 1944, a teenage Gene Klein and his family were taken from their village in Hungary and thrown into the infamous Nazi extermination camp known as Auschwitz.His father was taken straight to the gas chamber. Klein was forced into slave labor until liberated in the spring of 1945, and he spent two years as a refugee before his and other family members were allowed to immigrate to the United States.Now living in The Villages, Fla., Klein has been speaking out about the Holocaust for more than three decades. Writing for The World Post in July 2016 as a memorial to Elie Wiesel, Klein noted that he, unlike Wiesel, was silent for decades about the Holocaust.“Eventually, I decided that, like Wiesel, I needed to be public about being a survivor and that, in my own small way, I should contribute to the mission of educating the world about the Holocaust,” he wrote.“I will tell our story,” he continued, “and I will speak — especially in these times — about the tolerance and compassion necessary to prevent what happened to us from happening to others.”Klein has inspired audiences around the world with his powerful and touching presentation on the continuing relevance of the Holocaust and the necessity of fostering the capacity for empathy, instead of allowing hate to flourish.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This episode we hear from David Paventi.David Paventi was in a conference room on the 82nd floor of the World Trade Center’s North Tower when the first plane struck the 93rd floor. “After that kind of thing happens to you, you focus on some things differently,” he told the Weekly in 2005. By then, he had opened Paventi's Pizza and was about to start a wealth management company with his former boss, who also survived the 9-11 tragedy. He reveals how the plane sounded when it hit, the conditions inside the stairwell as he was making his way to the lobby, and much more.If you have a story from history that you would like to share, I would love to hear it!Go to https://www.speakpipe.com/eyewitnesshistory and tell us your story!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Col Anderson is a WWII Triple Ace fighter pilot and a veteran military experimental test pilot.During WW II he served two combat tours in Europe in the P-51 Mustang, Nov 1943 through Jan 1945. He flew 116 combat missions (480 hrs) and destroyed over 16 enemy aircraft in aerial combat and another one on the ground. Bud was the highest scoring ace in the 363rd Fighter Squadron.Col Anderson was decorated 25 times. His awards include 2 Legion of Merits, 5 Distinguished Flying Crosses, the Bronze Star, 16 Air Medals, and the French Legion of Honor, among many others.The legendary flying ace, Chuck Yeager describes Anderson as ”...the best fighter pilot I’ve ever seen”. Bud turned 100 on January 13, 2022, and is the highest-scoring living US Fighter Ace and the only surviving US Triple Ace. To find out more about Bud, visit https://toflyandfight.com/.If you have a story from history that you would like to share, I would love to hear it!Go to https://www.speakpipe.com/eyewitnesshistory and tell us your story!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This episode we hear from Professor Hope Harrison, Professor Harrison was in the air on her way to Berlin when the Berlin Wall fell, and she spent 10 days thereafter in the city, absorbing the experience. She has since become professor at George Washington University, teaching history. And she's written a number of books, including After the Berlin Wall: Memory and the Making of the New Germany, 1989 to the Present. Here, she gives her experiences.Professor Harrison is the author of:The Berlin Wall: A World Divided (Audible/The Great Courses, 2021)After the Berlin Wall: Memory and the Making of the New Germany, 1989 to the Present (Cambridge, 2019)Driving the Soviets up the Wall: Soviet-East German Relations, 1953-1961 (Princeton, 2004)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today’s guest is Bill Taylor, author of On Full Automatic: Surviving 13 Months in Vietnam.In the book, eighteen-year-old Marine recruit William V. Taylor Jr. and his brother Marines are assembled into a new reaction force that is immediately tested in the fire of a bloody conflict known as Operation Beaver Cage. After a traumatic first fight, they push through back-to-back operations with little time to rest or reflect. Those who survive will return home ensnared by everlasting memories of a real, but an entirely surreal nightmare. Now after more than fifty years of holding everything in, Taylor shares his experience in explicit and often horrific detail and with a reverent honor for those Marines who did not live to tell the tale.Bill is a U.S. Marine Veteran and his new book has hit a chord with readers with nearly 5 stars on Amazon, 850 reviews, and 25 weeks straight as a #1 Amazon bestseller in three separate categories. Find out more about Bill and the book at https://williamvtaylor.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to Eyewitness History, where we collect stories of people who encountered history's most important events firsthand.The stories that you will hear on this podcast will take one of two forms: 1) They will be a long-form interview or 2) They will be recording oral history testimonials!Do you have a story from history that you want to share?Go to https://www.speakpipe.com/EyewitnessHistory , and click "Start Recording", you can record up to 10 minutes of audio and then hit "Send" and it will send me a file of your story!My name is Josh Cohen. I am a writer and podcaster. I am also a history nerd. I am currently the managing editor for History On The Net.I also have another podcast called Unfiltered with Josh Cohen. On it, I have had the pleasure of interviewing amazing people from all walks of life. All with the shared goal of hearing amazing stories. I once got to ask Tal Bachman, the creator of the hit song “She’s So High” what exactly it was like having a song hit #1 in the country. I also got to ask famous corporate whistleblower and FBI informant, Mark Whitacre, what it was like having Matt Damon play him in the movie “The Informant”. I even got to ask the famous author, James Reston Jr, who was David Frost's Watergate adviser for the historic Nixon interviews, what it was like to hear Nixon say he let the American people down.I couldn't be more excited to focus my passion for storytelling and interviewing through the lens of History and to have the opportunity to share them with you!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Introducing Eyewitness History with Josh Cohen!Tune in to hear eyewitness accounts from citizens across the globe on all thing history, ranging from Holocaust survivors and war veterans to Saturday Night Live writers and Grammy-winning music producers!Don't know where to start? Check out one of these killer episodes:Queen Keyboardist Spike Edney: https://apple.co/3Ocx6dR / https://spoti.fi/3OhXLGgHolocaust Survivor Gene Klein: https://apple.co/3EhOIQK / https://spoti.fi/3g7VGQARonald Reagan's Former Assistant Peggy Grande: https://apple.co/3TNHxFI / https://spoti.fi/3OtCKZjWWII Veteran Vince Speranza: https://apple.co/3gh33VN / https://spoti.fi/3tAxTM29/11 Firefighter Michael O’Connell: https://apple.co/3AppAql / https://spoti.fi/3TJhAHtSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.