Rattlesnakes on the practice field, fist fights on the team plane, bounced checks, paternity suits, house bombings by the Ku Klux Klan, stadium fields covered in circus elephant dung, one-legged trainers, humiliating defeats, miraculous wins, All-Pro quarterbacks getting drunk at halftime, sex in a phone booth, and even a future Hall of Fame coach stealing a taxi cab. Sounds like the craziest football fiction movie that Hollywood could come up with. Well, it was all true. The 1952 Dallas Texans are nearly lost to history. This single season in the most football-mad region of the U.S., is a kaleidoscope of every larger-than-life Texas football folktale. David Fleming perfectly captures the zaniness of the zaniest team in NFL history with his new book, A BIG MESS IN TEXAS: The Miraculous, Disastrous 1952 Dallas Texans and the Craziest Untold Story in NFL History,#nfl #dallastexas #dallascowboys #davidfleming #authorpodcast #speakingofwriters #books #bookpodcast

In its duration, geographical reach, and ferocity, World War II was unprecedented, and the effects on those who fought it and their loved ones at home, immeasurable. The heroism of the men and women who won the war may be well documented, but we know too little about the pain and hardships veterans endured upon their return home. Drawing from veterans’ memoirs, oral histories, and government documents, acclaimed historian David Nasaw illuminates a hidden chapter of American history—one of trauma, resilience, and a country in transition in THE WOUNDED GENERATION: Coming Home After World War II. Nearly 16.4 million Americans served in the U.S. Armed Forces in World War II. This book “is an account of the aftereffects that lived on in the bodies, hearts, and minds of those who fought, those who awaited their return, and the nation that had won the war but had now to readjust to peace.”As Nasaw makes evident, the veterans who returned to America were not the same people as those who had left for war, and the nation to which they came back was not the one they left behind. Contrary to the prevailing narratives of triumph, here are the largely unacknowledged realities the veterans—and the nation—faced, radically reshaping our understanding of this era as a bridge to today, as we mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.Nasaw presents a complicated portrait of those who brought the war home with them, among whom were the period’s most influential political and cultural leaders, including John F. Kennedy, Robert Dole, and Henry Kissinger; J. D. Salinger and Kurt Vonnegut; Harry Belafonte and Jimmy Stewart. In The Wounded Generation, Nasaw illustrates the indelible stories of veterans and their loved ones as they confronted the aftershocks of World War II.David Nasaw is a historian, two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist, and bestselling author of The Last Million, named a best book of the year by NPR, Kirkus Reviews, and History Today; The Patriarch, a New York Times Five Best Non-Fiction Books of the Year; Andrew Carnegie, a New York Times Notable Book of the Year and the winner of the American History Book Prize; and The Chief, winner of the Bancroft Prize. He was the Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr. Professor of History at the CUNY Graduate Center and the president of the Society of American Historians. In 2023, he was honored by the New York Public Library as a “Library Lion.” Nasaw’s father served in the Army Medical Corps in Eritrea during World War II. He lives in New York City.#worldwar2 #authorpodcastPhoto Credit: Alex Irklievski

The epic of the American West is America’s great creation myth—and one whose telling is now as contested as oncewas the land. From a widely accepted tale of progress, redemption, and glorious conquest a new, darker story emerged: one of ghastly violence, racism, and environmental exploitation. In THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY: Triumph, Tragedy, and the Shaping of the American West (Dutton),acclaimed historian Paul Andrew Hutton gives readers a masterful narrative of both soaring triumph and terrible tragedy to reveal a new, surprising epic that defines America and its people.

Paul Andrew Hutton, the author of The Apache Wars and Phil Sheridan and His Army, is an American cultural historian, award-winning author, documentary writer, film consultant, and television personality. He is also Distinguished Professor of History Emeritus atthe University of New Mexico, a former executive director of the Western History Association, and former president of the Western Writers of America. He currently serves as interim curator of the Buffalo Bill Museum at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West, in Cody, Wyoming.

In Running Deep: Bravery, Survival, and the True Story of the Deadliest Submarine in World War II, Clavin profiles the USS Tang—the one submarine that outfought all other boats in the Silent Service. Its captain, Richard Hetherington O’Kane, long an overlooked war hero, also gets his due. This is the true story of death and survival in the high seas—and of the submarine and her brave captain who would become legends.Tom Clavin is a #1 New York Times bestselling author and has worked as a newspaper editor, magazine writer, TV and radio commentator, and a reporter for The New York Times. He has received awards from the Society of Professional Journalists, Marine Corps Heritage Foundation, and National Newspaper Association. His books include the bestselling Frontier Lawmen trilogy—Wild Bill, Dodge City, and Tombstone—and Blood and Treasure, The Last Hill, and Throne of Grace with Bob Drury. He lives in Sag Harbor, NY. #authorpodcast #podcast #worldwar2 #submarine

Life often appears darkest just before the dawn of a new day.In Menagerie in the Dark, Chris Kauzlarich immerses us in a speculative journey that explores the darker aspects of the human condition before bringing us back to the surface with the light of a new day. Through fourteen stories, this menagerie of characters faces trials of sorrow, death, loneliness, regret, deception, murder, delight, wonderment, and bliss, revealing what will either strengthen them enough to survive or plunge them to their demise. A boy’s home burns down, forcing him to confront a terrifying new world. A man enters a door where he witnesses his wife’s death, leaving him devastated; yet, he cannot stop returning to the scene, convinced he can save her. A nurse’s patients continue to perish under her care, but she harbors a dark secret—an administered cocktail for nefarious purposes. These and other stories will stretch the limits of your emotions, from heartbreak to horror, leaving you yearning for more.

Chris is the author of the short story collection, Menagerie in the Dark, and the suspense horror novella, LAZARUS. He is also a member of The Authors Guild, AWP, and the Chicago Writers Association. In addition to writing and reading extensively, he enjoys hiking, playing video games, binge-watching a good show with his husband and daughter, and simply being a dad. He graduated from Purdue University and lives between Chicago, IL, and Naples, FL, or on the open road in their RV.#ChrisKauzlarich #shortstories #podcast #authorpodcast #authors #speakingofwriters #books

WILLING PREY is the perfect mix of spicy and sweet, making it the ultimate dark romance that’s easy to dive into for newcomers to the genre. Allie expertly balances intense, kinky chase scenes with clear, consistent consent and boundaries. The heroine knows exactly what she wants, and her love for primal play creates a sizzling, erotic dynamic. Allie Oleander writes spicy contemporary, dark, and monster romances with kink exploration and characters ages thirty-five and up. She loves anything with chase scenes, the marriage-in-trouble trope, and monsters (of both the spicy and un-spicy variety). When she's not writing, she's in the woods, trying to arrange a meet-cute with Bigfoot.#allieoleander #willingprey #authors #novels #romance #romancebooks #podcast #authorpodcast

Between May 21 and June 16, 1791, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison went on a trip together through Upstate New York and parts of New England on horseback. This "northern journey" came at a moment of tension for the new nation, one in whose founding these Virginians and political allies had played key roles. The Constitution was ratified, and President Washington was in his first term of office. Whether the country could overcome regional and political differences and remain unified, however, was still very much in question. Hence why some observers at the time wondered whether this excursion into Federalist New England by the two most prominent southern Democratic-Republicans, both future presidents, had an ulterior motive.In A Journey North: Jefferson, Madison, and the Forging of a Friendship, Louis Masur writes that Madison maintained that the journey was for "health, recreation, and curiosity." That he and Jefferson needed a break from their public responsibilities, so off they set. #thomasjefferson #jamesmadison

Bogart and Huston: Their Lives, Their Adventures, and the Classic Movies They Made Together Between 1941 and 1953 director John Huston and actor Humphrey Bogart made one classic film after another: The Maltese Falcon, Across the Pacific, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Key Largo, The African Queen, and Beat the Devil. All of them would be at home on any list of the best movies ever made. They were the result of a close but often combative friendship between the two disparate men: the actor and his best director. Bogart was a homebody who acted tough but wasn’t; Huston was a quiet presence who masterminded storms. This book reveals how they worked with each other and how they took on the world. It covers nine marriages, three wars, the blacklist, one cult, and explains why their collaborations stand the test of time. The text includes biographical information, the histories of making their films, and appendices that enrich the narrative.Nat Segaloff is a writer, broadcaster, teacher, film historian, and raconteur with a varied background in motion picture publicity, journalism, producing, and covering up other people's mistakes. Having begun his career during the exciting transition between the old studios and the film generation of the New Hollywood, he provides both perspective and commentary on a wide range of subjects, many of them having to do with movies. He also tries to return phone calls. Ever since Covid he has been holed up in his secret fortress writing books and recording audiobooks in the companionship of his faithful Italian greyhound, Louie the Wonder Dog. #humphreybogart #johnhuston #natsegaloff #themaltesefalcon