Panic in Year Zero: Nuclear Apocalypse & the Nuclear Family

As always there are spoilers ahead!

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There is a trigger warning for discussion of rape in this episode. I have marked the beginning of that part of the discussion with a beep and the discussion lasts for four minutes and four seconds after the beep if you wanted to skip past it.

Last week we told you "Don't Panic!" but this week we focus in on the panic.

Panic in Year Zero was directed by and stars Ray Milland and is about a father taking his family on the road to do some camping. One the way there a nuclear bomb is dropped on Los Angeles and the world starts to fall into disarray. Not because of the bomb causing devastation or radiation but because of how human s are absolute nutters given the slightest chance.

This film has a very 1950s sensibility but with a Jazz laden soundtrack that hints at the unruly decade ahead.

The Federal Civil Defense Administration in the US in the early 50s was set up by President Truman to educate and prepare the public in case of an attack on US soil. The short film mentioned in the discussion The House in the Middle can be viewed on YouTube here.

This episode we talk not just about the film but the human fascination with apocalypse. I have the perfect guests for the task.

Steven Schlozman is a psychiatrist and a writer of books including the novel The Zombie Autopsies which was being adapted to film by George Romero before his death in 2017.

John Wills is a Professor of American Media and Culture at the University of Kent. He has written lots about popular culture including 1950s American and Nuclear film.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction

01:52 The non-nuclear nuclear film

07:10 Nuclear drills in schools

10:07 USA nuclear prep: Civilian education and CONELRAD

16:33 Jazz music and sociopaths

20:05 Daddy's gaze

26:39 The fun of Armageddon

32:02 The developmental stage of apocalypse fantasy

37:35 Ann is always wrong

39:21 Sexual violence

43:27 A pre-cursor to zombie apocalypse

48:25 Legacy

52:45 Recommendations for the listener

Recommendations

Steven: The Day After (1983) is a made for TV film.

John: The book Every Home a Fortress: Cold War Fatherhood and the Family Fallout Shelter by Thomas Bishop

NEXT EPISODE!

Next episode we will be discussing The Day of the Triffids! Although we will be using the 1963 film as a starting point there will be a lot of discussion about the original novel and the differences between the theme heavy book and the fun 50s style scifi of the film.

The film can be found on Fubo, Roku, Pluto and Plex and a few other online streaming platforms in the US and UK. The Just Watch website is a good resource to find where the film may be available in your region.