Roundup

Levee disaster warnings circa 1929

"When The Levee Breaks," a Memphis Minnie & Kansas Joe song, was later covered by Led Zeppelin: "If it keeps on rainin', levee's goin' to break,/ If it keeps on rainin', levee's goin' to break,/ When the levee breaks, all these people'll have no place to stay."

World War II's effect on a generation of men

Tom Mathews' father was a veteran of the 10th Mountain Division in World War II. His book, "Our Fathers' War," explores how the conflict affected filial relations for the men who served. Linda Wertheimer talks with Mathews about the book, which combines his own story with those of nine others whose sons were indelibly marked by their fathers' experience as soldiers.

The Mississippi flood of 1927

In 1927 the Mississippi's floodwaters reached from Illinois and Missouri all the way down to the Gulf of Mexico. Nearly one million people were left homeless. John Barry, author of "Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927," describes the epic disaster.

Katrina creates apocalyptic scenes

Robert Shortt, RTÉ Washington Correspondent, reports from the Gulf of Mexico on the devastation, and the break-down of society.

Is this really America?

The government's flawed response to Hurricane Katrina has failed the poor, reports Gary Younge from Mobile, Alabama.

Jimi Hendrix -- Made in London

Johnnie Walker presents a profile of Jimi Hendrix and his arrival in 'swinging' London in 1966, where Jimi began to change the sound of rock guitar forever. Although born in Seattle, Jimi Hendrix was always most at home in his adopted city of London. Shy and retiring, 23-year-old James Marshall Hendrix arrived at Heathrow in September 1966 as an absolute unknown, and returned to the USA in June 1967 as a cock-sure, homecoming hero ready to don the mantle of America's first black rock superstar.

Library of Congress manuscript historian

The Book Guys -- book appraiser Allan Stypeck and Washington DC radio host Mike Cuthbert -- welcome John Earl Haynes, Manuscript Historian at the Library of Congress and a specialist in the history of the Communist Party in the USA.

Scotland's local history

Got an historical itch to scratch? Then look no further than "Past Lives" for help! Mark Stephen sets out across Scotland to answer listeners' questions about the country's past -- from Wick to Dumfries and Vikings to Mods, his curiosity knows no bounds. In the 2nd programme of the new series, Mark visited Wick and found, among other things, the Trinkie Baths, another outdoor swimming pool to add to his collection. But Mark's escort for the day, Harry Gray, took Mark off to his own bel

Hurricane Katrina

Rocketboom Houston TX field correspondent Tyson Root uploads raw video footage of Katrina disaster aftermath.

New Orleans' levees: Past, present, future

How did the levee system around New Orleans come to be? And can it be improved to prevent the city from becoming flooded in a future storm? We look at the history -- and future -- of the levees around New Orleans. Guests: Craig Colten, author of "An Unnatural Metropolis: Wresting New Orleans from Nature," and professor of geography at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge; and Philip Davis, NPR correspondent.

Katrina vs. Andrew

Roundtable topics include the aftermath of Katrina compared to Hurricane Andrew, which devastated Florida in 1992, and a look at the cost burden of the recovery and how other cities are pitching in. Guests: Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX); economist and author Julianne Malveaux; and Roscoe Warren, mayor of Homestead, Fla.

Comparing New Orleans to Bangladesh

Host Ken Bader speaks with the BBC's Sabir Mustafa, who covered the cyclone that killed more than 131,000 people in Bangladesh in 1991.

Historian: Government relief efforts to 1927 Mississippi flood faster than Katrina

We go back to the spring of 1927 when the Mississippi River flooded after weeks of incessant rains. While the federal government response was well-coordinated, African Americans were rounded into work camps by land owners and prevented from leaving as the waters rose. Amy Goodman is joined by Pete Daniel, author of "Deep'N As It Come: The 1927 Mississippi River Flood." He's the curator of the Division of Work and Industry at the National Museum of American History.

Extraordinary 100th family reunion

Summer is the traditional season for family reunions -- and this summer, "Day to Day" reporter Karen Grigsby Bates returned to her roots for the 100th-anniversary gathering of her extended clan in North Carolina. The story begins in 1906, when John Wesley Roberts and his cousins Wesley Mauney and Eli Borders Roberts sought to reconvene families scattered by slavery and then by Emancipation. The three men, born into slavery, gathered their nearest relatives and began to trace their comm

Battle of Leuctra

History Professor Bob Packett discusses the watershed Battle of Leuctra, 371 BC, in which the Thebans, under Epaminondas, defeated the Spartans. "History According to Bob" is a daily podcast from Professor Bob, of Maple Woods Community College, Kansas City MO, who loves to tell stories of the real people behind the often sterile descriptions found in history texts. His conversational style, filled with anecdotes, quips and humor, will bring to life the characters of history. Now, throu

World War Two ends, September 2, 1945

The Second World War ended today in 1945 with the formal surrender of the Japanese Empire. The war that had lasted, according to most Western historians, six years and one day had finally come to an end. It was then, and remains today, the mostly costly and deadliest war in history -- History with an opinion, the past with an attitude, from Matt Dattilo.

On This Day 1945: Japan signs unconditional surrender

Japanese officials have signed the act of unconditional surrender, finally bringing to an end six years of world war. In the presence of 50 Allied generals and other officials, the Japanese envoys boarded the American battleship Missouri in Tokyo Bay to sign the surrender document. Within half-an-hour of the signing, a convoy of 42 US ships entered Tokyo Bay and landed 13,000 American troops. The Supreme Commander of the Allied powers, US General Douglas MacArthur, briefly addressed the dignitar

The "Ginsburg Precedent"

Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Courts, talks about "The Myth of the 'Ginsburg Precedent.'"

The Colonel of Tamarkan

Julie Summers knew that her grandfather had been in a prisoner of war in the Far East and that he had undergone certain experiences that made him particularly touchy about his children and grandchildren wasting food. But her grandfather resolutely refused to discuss what those experiences were with those around him. It wasn't until she began to research her book "The Colonel of Tamarkan" that she began to uncover the real story of the man whom she knew simply as Captain Bush and who ma

September 1st 1983: Korean airliner 'shot down'

The United States has accused the USSR of shooting down a civilian airliner which is missing off Russia's eastern coast. All 269 people on board the Korean Airlines flight KAL 007 are presumed dead. Moscow has so far only admitted to an incident with an "unidentified aircraft" in Soviet airspace. The Boeing 747 was flying from the USA to Seoul via Anchorage. It is believed to have strayed north of its scheduled course towards the Soviet island of Sakhalin. The US Secretary of State, G