

The History of the Twentieth Century
Mark Painter
A chronicle of the history of the twentieth century, including art, music, popular culture, science, religion, and, of course, politics and war.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 20, 2023 • 45min
335 Pay Him in His Own Coin
Benito Mussolini wanted to prove that Italy was an equal partner with Germany in the Axis alliance, so he began a war with Greece.

Aug 13, 2023 • 43min
334 Stalemate
Germany found that it could not defeat the British on their home island; the UK was unable to fight the Germans in Europe. So what next?

Aug 6, 2023 • 48min
333 The Hand That Held the Dagger
When France collapsed, Roosevelt redoubled his effort to aid Britain. But there was also a Presidential election to think about; Roosevelt won an unprecedented third term.

Jul 30, 2023 • 42min
332 God Help Us All
America was preoccupied with domestic issues during the run-up to the war. When the war came, the Roosevelt Administration looked for ways to aid the Allies despite the limitations of the Neutrality Act.

Jul 16, 2023 • 59min
331 Caped Crusaders
More on various genres of pulp fiction, and how they led to the development of comic books.

Jul 9, 2023 • 56min
330 Amazing Stories
Pulp fiction was an important form of entertainment in the twentieth century, peaking in popularity around 1940. Pulp fiction came in a variety of genres and was the birthplace for a new one: science fiction.

Jul 2, 2023 • 1h 6min
329 Dawn of a New Day
The 1939-40 New York World's Fair.

Jun 25, 2023 • 55min
328 The Battle of Britain
When the Churchill government showed no willingness to talk peace, Germany attempted the world's first purely aerial military campaign, to weaken Britain in preparation for invasion, or perhaps even to defeat the enemy entirely by air.

Jun 11, 2023 • 44min
327 Radio Detection and Ranging
Theories of strategic bombing in the 1930s suggested that it alone might be enough to win a war. But the development of radar meant that the bomber might not always get through after all.

Jun 4, 2023 • 48min
326 War in the Air
We examine the advances in aviation technology between the World Wars.


