Eyewitness History

Greg Marinovich is co-author of The Bang Bang Club, a nonfiction book on South Africa’s transition to democracy that has been translated into six languages. He is a Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer and filmmaker. He spent 25 years covering conflict around the globe, with his writing and photographs appearing in magazines and newspapers worldwide. Specifically conflict zones within Apartheid South Africa, which we center our discussion around. His 2012 award-winning investigations into the Marikana massacre of miners by police was called the most important South African journalism post-Apartheid, the book will be published early in 2016. Perhaps one slight health warning to you, listener, is that we do discuss in detail very violent events that occurred within apartheid South Africa. So I will let your listener decide if this one is for you and now I give you Greg Marinovich.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

John Wolfram was a Navy frogman.John assisted in the Apollo 10 astronaut and space recovery and was the first frogman in the water to rescue Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins after their historical moon landing.John is the author of Splashdown, The Rescue of a Navy Frogman first published in 2008.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I am ecstatic to share that Eyewitness History has surpassed 100,000 downloads! This is an exceptional milestone and I wanted to celebrate with you!I wanted to showcase some of my favorite interview moments from the show. They're with people ranging from an Oscar-winner to a 9/11 survivor.Thank you so much for letting me help tell these stories!HEAR THE FULL EPISODES: Oscar Winner Doug Drexler: https://apple.co/3PX6GzJ / https://sptfy.com/OmF49/11 Survivor Anne Marie Principe: https://apple.co/3rw2TPG / https://sptfy.com/OmF5Podcaster & North Korea Expert Jordan Harbinger: https://apple.co/3JXYmfe / https://sptfy.com/OmF6First Podcaster Adam Curry: https://apple.co/3Df7jgn / https://sptfy.com/OmF7Vietnam Veteran Bill Taylor: https://apple.co/3DcGbhR / https://sptfy.com/OmF8GET SOCIAL WITH US: Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/EyewitnessHistoryFacebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/historyunpluggedTwitter: https://twitter.com/EyewitnessPodInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/historyonthenetwebsiteSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mike Drucker is an Emmy-nominated writer and comedian. He has worked on Saturday Night Live, Adam Ruins Everything, and much more! He was also a writer for The Onion.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

John Feal was not an activist; he was a carpenter and a demolition specialist from Long Island, New York. He was a 9/11 responder, and while at the site on September 17, a piece of steel crushed his left foot. He twice applied for compensation from the September 11th Relief Fund, and was denied—even though his injury had been deemed “life-threatening and catastrophic.” Because it occurred ninety-six hours after the initial event, he didn’t qualify for assistance. "I had to eat a lot of humble pie to realize that I’m fallible and I can get hurt and I can lose half a body part and I can bleed.” -John on recognizing his own vulnerabilities and how that fueled his desire to help others. The experience made John realize that he was vulnerable—and so were other injured 9/11 responders. “When I got hurt on September 17, that was, at the time, the worst day of my life. Little did I know it’d probably be the most important day of my life,” he told me. “My injury was gruesome and horrific. And I know now that it pales in comparison to those who are deathly ill or who have passed away. I am so minute and so small compared to these men and women in uniform and non-uniform that are dying every day or every week from 9/11-related illnesses.” For the past fifteen years, John has been working tirelessly for health benefits for 9/11 responders who suffered devastating injuries and illnesses in the aftermath of the cleanup work they did at Ground Zero. FealGood Foundation: https://fealgoodfoundation.com/ Source: https://www.purposefulbook.com/john-fealSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

James Lampley is an American sportscaster, news anchor, film producer, and restaurant owner. He was best known as a blow-by-blow announcer on HBO World Championship Boxing for 30 years. He also had covered a record 14 Olympic Games on U.S. television, most recently the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. From a national talent hunt, the network interviewed 432 candidates for the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and Lampley got the job. That launched a unique 46-year odyssey in the worlds of television network and radio sports, news and entertainment during which Lampley fulfilled contracts with ABC Sports, ABC News, CBS Sports, CBS News, NBC Sports, Turner Network Sports, and a variety of radio stations and networks, TV syndicators and motion picture studios. Among an interminable laundry list of identities and accomplishments in commercial media, Lampley’s fourteen Olympics television assignments, most of them as a studio host, are the largest number for any American broadcaster. In his last and most beloved television arc, he spent 31 years as host of boxing and Wimbledon tennis for the incomparable content curator, HBO, and as senior reporter for that network’s Realsports won the last two of his five Emmys. Source: https://comm.unc.edu/people/department-faculty/jim-lampley/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

James Fenelon is the paratrooper-turned-author of Four Hours of Fury, the untold story of the American 17th Airborne Division’s combat jump over Germany’s Rhine River in March 1945. His most recent book, Angels Against the Sun, follows the 11th Airborne Division’s campaign through the Pacific and their eventual landing in Japan as the vanguard of the occupation forces. As an author, Fenelon leverages his military service to provide readers with engaging accounts of average GIs swept up by events beyond their control. His desire to give readers a “boots on the ground” perspective is reflected in his narrative-driven writing style. Fenelon’s avid interest and dedication to the study of WWII combat has taken him to numerous battlefields and historically-related sites, including those in France, Italy, Britain, Holland, Belgium, Egypt, Greece, Germany and Crete. He is a regular contributor to World War II magazine and has been previously published in FlyPast, Britain’s largest selling aviation magazine as well as ARMY and Military History. With his expertise in military history, he has consulted as a technical advisor for video games, screenplays and documentaries.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Serving as a covert operations officer for the CIA, Valerie Plame kept her occupation and identity a secret, even from her closest family and friends. All that changed in 2003 when a conservative columnist, at the direction of senior White House officials, leaked her true identity. It was payback for her then husband, Ambassador Joseph Wilson, questioning the administration’s primary rationale for the Iraq war. It ended her covert career and set off a political scandal that rocked the Bush/Cheney White House. ​These days, this mother of college-aged twins is a best-selling author, public speaker, consultant, and advocate for the elimination of nuclear weapons. Find out more about her “Spies, Lies, and Nukes” conference this November at: https://www.spiesliesnukes.com/ Valerie’s Website: https://www.valerieplame.com/ Full “Real Time with Bill Maher” Source: https://rb.gy/qm0mrSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Eugene Smith joined Peoples Temple in 1973 and lived in the Temple’s San Francisco commune before leaving for Jonestown in fall 1977. He was in Georgetown on November 18 clearing items from customs. Numerous members of his family – including his mother, wife, and infant son – died in Jonestown. Eugene is the author of the 2021 book, Back to the World: A Life after Jonestown.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Allan Havey is an actor, comedian, writer, and talk show host. He was the host, writer and executive producer of Night After Night with Allan Havey, which aired on The Comedy Channel from 1989-1992. He’s known for portraying Lou Avery on AMC’s “Mad Men” and Karl Allerd on Showtime’s “Billions”. He made numerous appearances on the David Letterman show (on both CBS and NBC) and created two Cable Ace Award nominated performances for HBO, “One Night Stand” and “Command Performance”. Find out more about him at: https://allanhavey.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.