Our American Stories

The Story of Bad and Boring History Has Been Taught in Our Schools—and the Cure For It (w/ David McCullough)

13 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, historian David McCullough brings generational talent to those studying the wild realities of America's indep...

President Reagan's Greatest Speech You've Never Heard: His July 4 Speech in NY Harbor

13 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, just moments before the biggest fireworks display in American history, President Ronald Reagan spoke in front...

...My Love Could Kill Her—A Mother's Reflection on Her Kids (And A Baby Eagle)

13 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, ...and a reflection on the sparrow she tried to kill for tapping on her window. Our American Stories' regular...

John Moses Browning: The Mormon Inventor Whose Firearms Changed the World

10 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, John Moses Browning invented the mechanism used in virtually all modern pistols, created the most popular hun...

“Peeping Tom” and the Wonderful Origins of Everyday Expressions (Pt. 14)

10 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Andrew Thompson shares another slice of his guide to understanding the baffling mini-mysteries of the English...

The Black Pitcher and White Catcher That Made the 1964 World Series Unforgettable

10 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, in the 1964 World Series the St. Louis Cardinals played the mighty NY Yankees. On the pitcher's mound for the...

The Story of the Four Immortal Chaplains

10 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, on February 3rd, 1943 the USS Dorchester sank into the icy waters of the North Atlantic within 20 m...

The Story of How Star Wars Toys Revolutionized Movie Merchandising (Part 1)

10 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the "Nostalgia Awakens" is a Star Wars action figure exhibit from enthusiast and museum curator Jarrod Roll. ...

How 2 Engineers Created the Highest-Rated Gag Gift on Amazon

09 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, since the company’s inception in 2005, Liquid Ass has been a popular product amongst pranksters across ...

A Man Recounts Surviving a Mass Shooting

09 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, a mass shooting took place on November 7, 2018, in Thousand Oaks, California, at the Borderline Bar & Gri...

How Boston Embraced the Brothers of John Wilkes Booth Following Lincoln's Assassination

09 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, John Wilkes Booth wasn't the only famous member of his family when he assassinated President Lincoln—hi...

The Story of How British Aristocrats Turned Benjamin Franklin into an American Patriot—In Less Than an Hour

09 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, on January 29, 1774, Benjamin Franklin was called to appear in Britain before a select group of the King's ad...

From Animal House to Belushi and Seinfeld: Mark "Neidermeyer" Metcalf's Story

08 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Mark Metcalf is best known for his role as the sadistic ROTC officer Douglas C. Neidermeyer in the 1978 comed...

The Story of the Youngest Soldier To Serve In The Civil War—John Clem

08 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, John Lincoln Clem was just 12 years old when he picked up a drum and marched into battle becoming the younges...

What Happened When an American Armored Car Battled Nazi Germany's Largest Tank 

08 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, The History Guy tells the story of one of the most extraordinary David vs. Goliath tank battles of WW2, which...

The UFO Incident at Exeter

08 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, our next story has been considered one of the most spectacular and best-corroborated UFO close encounters of ...

One Mother’s Escape From A Sudanese Death Sentence...to America

07 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Mariam Ibrahim lives in Virginia—but her story begins far from there and under very different, and dire...

The Late, Great Stephen Ambrose on the Boys Who Flew B-24s in WWII

07 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the late historian Stephen Ambrose tells a short story from his terrific book The Wild Blue: The Men and...

A Deal with the Devil: FDR’s WWII Pact With Stalin

07 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the subject of FDR’s relationship with Joseph Stalin during WWII is for many observers, a puzzle. How c...

The House Built By Chewing Gum?

06 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, William Wrigley, Jr. was a brilliant businessman, but his ingenuity was outshined by his love for his wife. H...

He Was Elvis' Biggest Competitor in the '50s: Pat Boone on His Two Loves, Music and His Late Wife, Shirley

06 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Pat Boone got engaged on a Saturday and married the next day (by his high school principal)—at 19! Here...

When Character Stood Tall: How My Fraternity Brothers Put Their Reputations On The Line to Fight Hatred Against Me

06 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, despite being generally liked by the fraternity he was rushing, some boys' parents expressed their dismay at ...

How One Man Went From Unknown Shirt Salesman to The Oval Office: The Story of Harry S. Truman

06 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Harry S. Truman was never supposed to be President—but that's exactly what happened when Franklin Roose...

The Redemptive True Story of a Cocaine Drug Lord

03 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, after running the North American cocaine trade for the cartel in his early 20s, Jorge Valdes found salvation ...

The Olympic Marathon Where Drinking Water Was Banned

03 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Professor Susan Brownell shares how the Olympics ended up in St. Louis in the first place—and culminate...

The One Book I Never Thought I Would Write

03 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, regular contributor to OAS, and author Leslie Leyland Fields tells her story of how she came to write her own...

The B-25 In My Dad's Backyard

02 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Wally Soplata tells the story of his eccentric union carpenter father who collected rare and vintage WWII air...

What To Do When Your Grandfather Is a World-Famous Songwriter

02 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Albert Brumley wrote classic hymns like “I’ll Fly Away” and “Turn Your Radio On,&rdqu...

How One Man's Faith Moved Him to Fight for A Wrongly Imprisoned Man

02 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Jim McCloskey grew up in church, but as he got older, he wanted nothing to do with his childhood faith. After...

Yogi Berra: An American Success Story (by George Will)

02 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, George Will's volume on baseball is one of the most acclaimed sports books ever written. Here he is to tell t...

Otter Box’s CEO: One of Our Employees Got More Applause Than Peyton Manning

01 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, and that’s not a knock-on Peyton. It’s a testament to ethics being lived out heroically at this g...

Basketball Legend "Pistol Pete" Maravich Shares His Life Story... Just Days Before His Death

01 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, just days before his death, the 40-year-old Maravich shared his story to a small audience about his life purs...

The Man Who Was a Founder AND Mascot: KFC's Colonel Sanders

01 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Colonel Sanders did something no other restaurant founder dared to do — he became his company’s m...

A Museum Dedicated To...Mustard? 

31 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, find out how Barry Levinson went from arguing cases in front of the Supreme Court to operating the largest mu...

I Was Detached About My Family's Holocaust Story....Until I Went to Buchenwald

31 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Dana Mitch tells the story of her trip to Buchenwald, the largest concentration camp on German soil, and how ...

A Marine Mourns the Death of His Tough-as-Nails Marine Father

31 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, in this episode of the Mclalan Files, Bob brings us the story of his father’s death. Support the show (...

How a Fake Doctor Ran Carnival Sideshows and Saved Thousands of Infants and Changed Medical History

31 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Dr. Martin Couney carried a secret with him, but the results are unimpeachable. It was Coney Island in the ea...

Uncle Nearest: The Former Slave Who Taught Jack Daniels How to Make Whiskey

31 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Fawn Weaver happened upon the story of Uncle Nathan "Nearest" Green, the former slave who taught Jack Daniels...

Dwayne “The Rock" Johnson's Eulogy to His Father

30 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Rocky 'Soulman' Johnson was a WWE Professional Wrestling Hall of Famer and the father of Dwayne 'The Rock' Jo...

The Story of the Western Movie Star Who Quit Hollywood to Bomb Tokyo During WWII 

30 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, in a career spanning more than four decades and appearing in 149 movies, Western star Tim Holt could be seen ...

One Cop's Take on Mental Illness, Homelessness, and Crime

30 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Senior Lead Officer Deon Joseph shares vivid, compelling stories of one constant struggle for police, and for...

My Battles in Fallujah to the Battle for My Soul: The Good, the Bad, and the Ultimate Victory of an American Hero

30 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, our next story comes to us from a veteran of the U.S. Army. He served with the 82nd Airborne Division in both...

Theodore Roosevelt: That Damn Cowboy

27 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, it was the West that molded Theodore Roosevelt into a man. Also, it was here where he learned to "carry a big...

From Golden Gloves to Priesthood: The Story of Father Stu

27 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Father Stu is a motion picture starring Mark Wahlberg (who plays Father Stu) and Mel Gibson. It is based on t...

The Day a Soviet Nuclear Attack Submarine Rammed an American Aircraft Carrier

27 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1984, during a period of Cold War tension, a Soviet submarine collided with a United States aircraft carri...

50 Inventions That Shaped the Modern Economy: The iPhone, RADAR, and TV Dinners

27 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, did you know "radar" is actually an acronym? It stands for RAdio, Detection, And Ranging—created in 194...

Zuzu’s “Wonderful Life”: The Story of the Child Actress Who Starred in Frank Capra's," It's A Wonderful Life"

26 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, our next storyteller has the privilege of being in one of the most beloved movies of all time (It's a Wonderf...

The Real Stories Behind Our Cherished Christmas Traditions

25 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, before it became a Federal Holiday—June 26, 1870—the way we celebrated Christmas would be unrecog...

A Family Man's Search for the Perfect Christmas Tree

24 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, OAS listener Jim Johnson shares the story of his search for the perfect Christmas tree. Support the show...

Christmas, 1776

24 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, it's called the first “American” Christmas because the Declaration of Independence was created th...

How "A Charlie Brown Christmas" Almost Didn't Happen

24 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Dealing with a small budget and with a short deadline, A Charlie Brown Christmas was released to critical acc...

A Bible Reading 200,000 Miles from Earth

24 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the crew of Apollo 8 and Steve Kates (AKA Dr. Sky) tell the story of the Christmas time mission to the moon&m...

How Elvis Was Coaxed into Recording a Christmas Album—As Told by a Man Who Was There

24 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Greg McDonald got his start in show business as a teenager after meeting Elvis Presley and his manager, Colon...

Karl Marlantes: How I Came to Terms with my Navy Cross

23 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Karl Marlantes, the award-winning author of Matterhorn and What It Is Like To Go To War, tells...

The Day a Teenage Boy Met Elvis and the Colonel and Began Working with Them for the Rest of His Life

23 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, doing maintenance in mansions, you could meet anyone, talk about anything - even find your career as an agent...

ILLEGAL: Shooting Bunnies from a Motorboat...The Story of Weird Laws. 

23 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, regular contributor to the show and author Winter Prosapio dives into some of the strange laws we have....and...

Why the Nativity? (w/ Dr. David Jeremiah)

23 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, in his book-turned-docudrama Why the Nativity? Dr. David Jeremiah looks in detail at the people and...

Getting Prepared to Go Face-to-Face with the Toughest Admiral in Navy History

23 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Bill Toti, former captain of the USS Indianapolis submarine, tells the story of his experience with...

The Frederick Douglass Story

20 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Frederick Douglass escaped slavery when he was 20 and went on to become one of the most important Americans t...

The Most Important Churchill Speech You've Never Heard: His Christmas Address to Congress Weeks After Pearl Harbor

20 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, only weeks after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Prime Minister Winston Churchill made an all-important ...

“Son of a Gun & Steal My Thunder” and the Wonderful Origins of Everyday Expressions

20 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Andrew Thompson shares another slice of his guide to understanding the baffling mini-mysteries of the English...

Memorable Christmas Stories in U.S. Military History

20 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, The History Guy remembers the forgotten stories from U.S. military history. You won't want to miss this one! ...

Hess Trucks: The Holiday Tradition That Started at a Gas Station

19 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, for nearly 60 years, Hess trucks have brought smiles to children, and adults, up and down the East Coast. The...

An Aussie Discovers American Wings

19 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Colin Bettles loves buffalo wings, which isn't that odd—many people do. However, the thing that makes h...

Davy Crockett Died at the Alamo, But the Story of How He Lived Remains

19 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, for more than 150 years the story of Davy Crockett has captured our imaginations and inspired us to celebrate...

The Real Story of U2 Spy Pilot Gary Powers—As Told by His Son

18 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, on May 1st, 1960, spy pilot Gary Powers was shot down over Soviet Russia resulting in massive controversy.......

The Story of How George Washington Surprised the British Army, the Hessians, and the World on Christmas 1776

18 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Dr. Larry Arnn, President of Hillsdale College, tells the remarkable story of how George Washington turned th...

The Backstory of Robert E. Lee—America's Most Controversial General 

18 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, most people's knowledge of Robert E. Lee starts with his decision to reject command of the Union Army and end...

The Woman Who Voiced Rudolph

18 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Billie Mae Richards is a Canadian actress best known for voicing Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer in the 1964 s...

The Chicago Maintenance Man Who Wrote a Hallmark Christmas Movie

17 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Rikk Dunlap has always been a writer, but he never dreamed that his work would eventually become a regular fe...

The Man Who Spent All of His Christmas Savings Building Beds for Needy Children

17 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Luke Mickelson, founder of Sleep in Heavenly Peace, tells how a meeting in his church turned into a Boy Scout...

"I Was in A Wheelchair—So I Started Buying Cars Sight Unseen from The Public"

17 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Mom died, the dog died, the wife took off, and John Clay Wolfe became paralyzed all in the short span of about a year. Then came the worst news: someo...

“Put A Sock in It” and the Wonderful Origins of Everyday Expressions (Pt. 18)

17 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Andrew Thompson shares another slice of his guide to understanding the baffling mini-mysteries of the English...

"Bless You" and the Wonderful Origins of Everyday Expressions (Pt. 6)

16 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Andrew Thompson shares another slice of his guide to understanding the baffling mini mysteries of the English...

My Hero-Father Needed No Star and No Cape

16 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, a son's story about his father, from our regular listener/contributor Roger Latham, from Fort Worth, Texas. S...

President Reagan's Greatest Speech You've Never Heard: His July 4 Speech in NY Harbor

16 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, just moments before the biggest fireworks display in American history, President Ronald Reagan spoke in front...

A Young Lady’s Run-in with Frank Sinatra

16 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Our American Stories listener Patty Kingsbaker shares this "knockout" Frank Sinatra story. Support the show (...

Hollywood Goes to War: How Acting Legend Eddie Albert Served Our Country in WWII

16 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, he was twice nominated for the Academy Award for his 1954 performance in Roman Holiday, and the sec...

The History of the Christmas Tree

16 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, The History Guy recalls the forgotten history of Christmas trees. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanst...

The Story of the Mason-Dixon Line: The Colonial-Era Border Battle That Defined the Civil War

13 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the Mason-Dixon Line defined the American "house divided" between antislavery and pro-slavery. Yet this borde...

Silent Night: The Story of the World’s Most Famous Christmas Carol

13 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, from its humble beginnings in an Austrian chapel in 1818, 'Silent Night' has become one of the most popular C...

The Baileys' Story: A Daughter, a Drug Dealer, and a Miracle

13 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, after Mike and Deborah Bailey lost their daughter to a drug overdose, what they did next is nothing short of ...

Zuzu’s “Wonderful Life”: The Story of the Child Actress Who Starred in Frank Capra's," It's A Wonderful Life"

13 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, our next storyteller has the privilege of being in one of the most beloved movies of all time (It's a Wonderf...

The Story of Alvin York: The Tennessee Farm Boy Who Went from Pacifist to One of America's Greatest War Heroes

12 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the story of Sgt. Alvin York is a celebrated chapter in American history. Though he tried to avoid war for re...

Everett’s Last Christmas Carol

12 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Our American Stories listener and regular contributor Jim Johnson finds peculiar friends wherever he goes. T...

As Watergate Separated Americans, This Speaker of The House United Them

12 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Carl Albert was known as the Little Giant from Little Dixie. He would become the Speaker of the House during ...

"Gung-ho & Cheesy Smile" and the Wonderful Origins of Everyday Expressions (Pt. 8)

12 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Andrew Thompson shares another slice of his guide to understanding the baffling mini-mysteries of the English...

The Story of America's Alliance with Stalin—And How It Brought About the Downfall of Hitler (w/ Stephen Ambrose)

12 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, the late great Stephen Ambrose shares a WWII story that begins in January 1943 and ends with the Allied solut...

Remembering The Day Steve Jobs Gave Us The iPhone

11 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, on January 9, 2007, Apple co-founder Steve Jobs—already a legendary pitchman—put on what many consider th...

Acting Legend Jimmy Stewart Goes to War

11 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, despite all his Hollywood fame and acting acclaim, Jimmy Stewart always said the greatest honor of his life w...

When America's Greatest (And Last) Bareknuckle Boxer Challenged America to A Fight

11 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1893 John L. Sullivan's "Knockout Tour" traveled America. The challenge? Could any man in America last 12 ...

The Stories You've Never Heard About Your Favorite Christmas Songs

11 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Ace Collins, the author of Stories Behind the Best-Loved Songs of Christmas tells the stories of people you...

The Race that Forever Sealed Secretariat's Legacy: The Story of the 1973 Belmont Stakes

10 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, no horse had won the Triple Crown in horse racing in a quarter century. Heading into the third race of the Tr...

"No! No! No! Who the Hell Boos Santa Claus?!" The Story of the Time Eagles Fans Pelted Santa with Snowballs

10 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1968 19-year-old Frank Olivo decided to attend a Philadelphia Eagles game dressed as Santa. Instead of bei...

Were All Japanese Americans In Internment Camps? One Woman's Story

10 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, Mary Mikami was a Japanese American born in Alaska. Here's her story of what happened to her when World War I...

The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of Major League Baseball’s Legendary Slugger—Darryl Strawberry

10 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, he made eight consecutive all-star game appearances and captured four World Series championships, but his tal...

16, Addicted, Pregnant: My Motherhood Story

09 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, drug culture—the kind where your parent is a dealer—wrecked Teri Neal's life. Hear how her son inspired a...

An Our American Stories Listener Remembers His Jazz Playing Father

09 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, one of our listeners, George Gozzard, shares the story of his big band trumpeter father, Harry Gozzard Suppor...

Final Thoughts: Justice Kagan Remembers Her SCOTUS Colleague, Justice Scalia

09 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, for our 'Final Thoughts' series, Justice Elena Kagan, who viewed the Constitution differently than Justice An...

Stephen Ambrose: 1941 and the Steps Leading Up to the U.S. Entering WWII

09 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode of Our American Stories, in honor of the anniversary of the Attack on Pearl Harbor, the late great historian Stephen Ambrose tells the...