The latest Carolina Journal Poll offers a new look at North Carolina's political landscape with less than two weeks until Election Day David Larson of Carolina Journal joins the program to break down approval ratings for President Donald Trump and Gov Josh Stein along with voter preferences in legislative and congressional races The October survey shows Trump with approval and Stein at while Democrats hold a six-point advantage on both generic ballots Larson also examines favorability ratings for Republican Michael Whatley and Democrat Roy Cooper along with voters' views of the Democratic Socialists of America In North Carolina's U S [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories in as the Missouri Crisis stirred national debate over slavery and westward expansion a private conversation between John Quincy Adams and John C Calhoun became something much larger Calhoun defended slavery as a necessary institution Adams left the conversation deeply shaken and newly committed to abolition This moment would fuel his work after the presidency where he became a leading voice against the Gag Rule and argued for the freedom of the Amistad captives Historians James Traub and Dr Robert Elder share how a single exchange shaped one of the most important abolitionist [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories when -year-old Hector Boiardi arrived at Ellis Island from Italy in he couldn't have imagined that his face would one day appear on supermarket shelves across America After becoming a celebrated chef he turned his restaurant's most popular takeout meals into one of the country's most recognizable food brands forever changing the way Americans ate Italian food During World War II Chef Boyardee's factories stopped making food for grocery stores and began producing military rations around the clock making his company one of the largest suppliers of meals to American and Allied troops [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories Rudyard Kipling became one of the most famous writers of his age giving the world The Jungle Book Just So Stories Gunga Din and If In he became the youngest person ever awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature But behind that success was a life marked by an abusive childhood controversy and devastating loss The History Guy shares the story of Kipling's remarkable rise from colonial India to literary fame the years he spent writing in Vermont and the deaths of two of his three children including his son John during World War [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories America entered World War I late but its arrival helped change the course of the conflict By the fall of more than a million American soldiers were fighting through the Argonne Forest as Allied forces pushed Germany toward collapse On November the guns finally fell silent The United States and its allies had won the Great War but deciding what should come next would prove far more difficult As part of our ongoing Story of Us Story of America series Dr Bill McClay author of Land of Hope shares the story of America's [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories in Rhode Island grower Joe Jutras set a world record with a green squash weighing pounds earning a place among the largest fruits and vegetables ever grown Reaching that milestone took years of experimenting with soil science and meticulous care from planting to harvest Joe explains how patience timing and an understanding of growth cycles can turn an ordinary garden into a contender for the world's biggest fruit Support the show https www ouramericanstories com donate Support the show https www ouramericanstories com donateSee omnystudio com listener for privacy information [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories you may not know Tommy Tedesco's name but chances are you know his guitar As one of the most in-demand session musicians in Los Angeles Tedesco played on thousands of recordings working with artists including the Beach Boys Frank Sinatra Elvis Presley the Mamas the Papas and countless others He was also part of the loose collection of studio musicians later known as the Wrecking Crew whose playing helped define the sound of American pop music in the s Tommy's son filmmaker Denny Tedesco tells the story of his father's remarkable career from [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories you've probably heard that during his famous midnight ride through the Massachusetts countryside to warn Samuel Adams and John Hancock of the impending British occupation of Lexington and Concord Paul Revere shouted The British are coming But that's not quite true Sabrina Bhattacharjya a -year-old history enthusiast and founder of Lex shares the real story and brings to life the first day of the American Revolution We'd like to thank Constituting America for turning us on to this story Support the show https www ouramericanstories com donate Support the show https www ouramericanstories [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories by the late s something was happening at Malibu Surfboards were getting lighter and faster the waves were crowded with a new generation of riders and a loose fraternity of beach bums craftsmen competitors and characters was beginning to create a culture that would soon spread far beyond the California coast Our regular contributor Roger McGrath returns with the story of surfing's golden age He remembers characters like Terry Tube Steak Tracy the Malibu surfer who helped inspire Gidget along with Phil Edwards Mickey Dora Marge Calhoun and others who gave the sport [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories for veterans struggling with PTSD stress or simply the difficulty of quieting the mind sometimes a guitar can provide a few hours of peace GuitarsforVets org pairs veterans with free guitar lessons patient instructors and eventually an instrument of their own Veterans and volunteers share how learning to play can build confidence create community and offer a welcome escape from the pressures of everyday life Along the way the program has provided thousands of lessons and guitars to veterans across the country Our regular contributor Jesse Edwards shares the story Support the show [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories in Thomas Jefferson sent Robert Livingston and James Monroe to France hoping to secure New Orleans Instead Napoleon offered them something far bigger the entire Louisiana Territory For million the United States acquired roughly square miles in one of the largest land deals in history Hillsdale College's Brad and Dedra Birzer explain how the Haitian Revolution Napoleon's ambitions constitutional doubts and America's hunger for the West all came together in the Louisiana Purchase and why Jefferson believed the nation's future depended on securing the land beyond the Mississippi Support the show https www [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories Millions of Americans first learned about the tragic fate of the USS Indianapolis from Quint's famous monologue in Spielberg's classic Jaws While the film certainly took some liberties with her story one part remained sadly true After the war Captain Charles B McVay III a decorated and experienced combat veteran was court-martialed for failing to zigzag and spent the rest of his life carrying the blame for one of the worst naval disasters in American history He eventually took his own life in at the age of his legacy nearly forgotten Decades later [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories Andrew Thompson our regular contributor returns with another installment of our ongoing series exploring the curious origins of everyday expressions Drawing from his book Hair of the Dog to Paint the Town Red The Curious Origins of Everyday Sayings and Fun Phrases Andrew explains where familiar sayings such as white elephant wear your heart on your sleeve up the ante the upper hand and wait for the other shoe to drop came from Support the show https www ouramericanstories com donate Support the show https www ouramericanstories com donateSee omnystudio com listener for [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories Milton Hershey failed again and again before he ever became America's chocolate king After a struggling candy shop in Philadelphia bankruptcy and years spent learning from confectioners around the country Hershey finally found success with caramels Then at the height of that success he took another enormous gamble chocolate Don Papson of the M S Hershey Foundation and Amy Zeigler of The Hershey Story Museum share the story of how Hershey learned to mass-produce affordable milk chocolate built a factory and community around it in Pennsylvania and ultimately gave much of his fortune [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories Jack Marucci didn't set out to create a sporting goods company he was simply trying to find a wooden baseball bat for his son When he couldn't find one small enough he opened up his shed and made one from scratch Then another kid wanted one Then another Before long the bats that had started as a project for his son were finding their way into the hands of Major League players and gaining a reputation as some of the best in the game Marucci shares how that backyard hobby grew into Marucci [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories a century ago much of the American South was brutally uncomfortable in summer skyscrapers could only rise so far and keeping track of thousands of products in a store was a slow manual job Then a handful of inventions quietly changed how people lived and worked Air conditioning helped transform entire regions of the country A safer elevator made the modern skyscraper practical And a pattern of black lines printed on a package changed the way nearly everything we buy is tracked and sold Economist and bestselling author Tim Harford author of Fifty [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories in February Buck O'Neil and Bob Kendrick were packed and ready to fly to Florida for what they believed would be a Hall of Fame celebration Instead O'Neil fell one vote short Kendrick was devastated Hundreds of supporters gathered at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum were angry Buck responded differently Bob Kendrick president of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City Missouri remembers how O'Neil celebrated the Negro Leaguers who had been elected comforted everyone grieving on his behalf and then went to Cooperstown to honor them Fifteen years later Buck O'Neil [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories George O'Brien became one of Hollywood's biggest leading men after starring in John Ford's silent epic The Iron Horse But long before Hollywood made him famous O'Brien had already served in the Navy during World War I and when Pearl Harbor brought America into World War II the -year-old husband and father volunteered to serve again As part of our ongoing Hollywood Goes to War series Roger McGrath author of Gunfighters Highwaymen and Vigilantes Violence on the Frontier shares the astonishing story of how O'Brien went from silent-film star to Navy beachmaster serving [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories it was the Cold War on ice and no one expected Team USA to win But in a ragtag group of college kids stunned the world when they beat the seemingly unbeatable Soviet Union at the Lake Placid Winter Olympics Our own Greg Hengler and Mike Eruzione himself captain of the U S men's hockey team and the man who scored the game-winning goal share the inside story of one of the greatest upsets in sports history Support the show https www ouramericanstories com donate Support the show https www ouramericanstories com donateSee [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories in May three enslaved men Frank Baker Shepherd Mallory and James Townsend escaped from Confederate labor at Sewell's Point Virginia and crossed to Union-held Fort Monroe When their enslaver demanded their return General Benjamin Butler faced a problem Sending them back would mean returning three men to work on Confederate defenses aimed at his own fort Our regular contributor Jon Elfner and historian Kate Masur author of Until Justice Be Done share the story of how Butler's decision to hold the men as contraband of war helped open Union lines to hundreds then [... more]