John W. Spencer is the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute
John W. Spencer currently serves as the chair of urban warfare studies at the Modern War Institute, codirector of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project Podcast.
He served over twenty-five years in the Army as an infantry soldier having held ranks from private to sergeant first class and second lieutenant to major. His assignments as an active duty Army officer included two combat deployments to Iraq as both an infantry platoon leader and company commander, Ranger instructor with the Army’s Ranger School, Joint Chiefs of Staff and Army Staff intern, fellow with the chief of staff of the Army’s Strategic Studies Group, and strategic planner and then deputy director of the Modern War Institute where he was instrumental in the design and formation of the institute.
He currently serves as a colonel in the California State Guard with assignment to the 40th Infantry Division, California Army National Guard as the director of urban warfare training.
Andy Storey is a Retired Royal Navy Officer and Harvard Business School Graduate
Andy Storey is a retired Royal Navy officer and Harvard Business School grad with a wide range of ops, tech and policy senior leadership experience from Government Service, Barclays and Facebook / Meta.
Career highlights included navigating a nuclear submarine to the North Pole as well as bringing a new icebreaker into service and deploying to Antarctica. Andy also led an academic department at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis.
Peter Eellenstein (Director) is Producing Artistic Director of the New Los Angeles Repertory Company
Peter is a multi-award-winning director, producer, new play midwife, and educator, whose work has been seen all over the country. For thirteen years, Peter was Artistic Director of the William Inge Center for the Arts in Kansas, served sev- en years as Producing Director of the original Los Angeles Repertory Company, for whom he direct- ed the LA Premiere of Assassins, Odets’ Rocket to the Moon, and many other acclaimed productions. He was Interim Artistic Director of both the Gretna Theatre in Pennsylvania, and the Jerry Herman Ring Theatre at the University of Miami in Florida. Peter has a decades long artistic relationship with Richard Hellesen and has directed the premieres of many of Richard Hellesen’s plays.
Richard Hellesen (Playwright) Author of the new one man play Eisenhower: This Piece of Ground
Richard is the author of numerous plays and musicals for adult and young audiences. His work has been seen at the Denver Center, South Coast Repertory, Los Angeles Repertory Company, Sacramento Theatre Company, Geva, Florida Stage, Gretna Theatre, Sundance Children’s Theatre, Imagination Stage, People’s Light & Theatre, City Theatre in Miami, B Street Theatre, and Ford’s Theatre in Washington DC, where he is an Associate Artist. He has received playwriting awards from the National Theatre Conference, the Beverly Hills Theatre Guild, the Philadelphia Festival Theatre for New Plays, and PEN USA-West; his two-dozen short plays include five finalists for the Actors Theatre of Louisville Heideman Award. A member of the Dramatists Guild, he has twice been Playwright-in-Residence at the William Inge Center for the Arts in Kansas.
John Rubenstein (Actor) plays President Dwight D. Eisenhower in the new one man play Eisenhower: This Piece of Ground
This playallows John to join his extraordinary theatrical skills with his passion for helping create a better future. And his ability to embody General Eisenhower, commanding the stage in moments ranging from the pointedly political to the intimate and personal, has already begun to resonate with audiences—inspiring them to think and question, moving them from laughter to tears, and leading them to leave the theatre with optimism.
John’s career has been varied and always brilliant. He originated the title role in the Broadway musical Pippin, directed by Bob Fosse, and won the Tony and Drama Desk Awards for his performance in Children of a Lesser God. Other Broadway appearances include Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Ragtime, Hurlyburly, M. Butterfly, The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial (Drama Desk nomination), Get- ting Away with Murder, Fools, Love Letters, and the 2013 Pippin revival. He appeared off-Broadway in Counsellor-at-Law (2005 Lucille Lortel Award, Outer Critics’ Circle and Drama League nominations), Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, Urban Blight, Cabaret Verboten, and Morning’s at Seven. Regionally: Wicked in LA, and the international tour of the Pippin revival. He starred in the TV series, “Family” (Emmy nomination), and “Crazy Like A Fox,” and over 300 episodes. Films include “Being the Ricardos,” “Hello, I Must Be Going,” “21 Grams,” “Red Dragon,” “The Boys from Brazil,” “Someone to Watch Over Me,” “Daniel, Zachariah,” and “Get- ting Straight.” He directed the world premiere of A. R. Gurney’s The Old Boy, and Counsellor-at-Law, Company, Brigadoon, Macbeth, The Three Sisters, Phantasie, Nightingale, The Rivals, A Little Night Music, Guys and Dolls, Into The Woods, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, and The Rover. He composes film and TV music (“Jeremiah Johnson,” “The Candidate.” “The Dollmaker,” “China Beach,” among others), hosted two classical music radio programs, played keyboards in a rock band, and has re- corded over 200 audiobooks, most numerously Jonathan Kellerman’s Alex Delaware series of Los Angeles crime novels.
Karen Slade
Screenwriter/Director of the Kent State Feature Film
After a successful 15-year career in as a creative strategy director for an array of global/national brand campaigns – for 2012 Olympics, Citi Bank, Nautica, Donna Karan, Jennifer Lopez, Ciroc, Tanqueray, and non-profits such as Berkshire Natural Resources Council – KAREN SLADE has shifted her focus to feature films.
Her stories center on injustices and their long term impact on our lives. The Kent State screenplay earned Karen an invitation to workshop her script at Stonybrook Writer’s Lab with Christine Vachon and veteran script coach Annette Handley Chandler. In addition to Kent State, she has written the female- led political action thriller Outboard, which received Official Selection at the Mass Indie Film Festival Screenplay Competition.
Karen has written and directed three narrative shorts. D.U.M.B.O, (Down Under the Manhattan Brooklyn Overpass) was her first, shot in 2005 by Cybel Martin, NYU Tisch’s first African American female cinematography graduate. In support of a feature script of the same name, Dumbo is about a mother who becomes unwittingly involved in her own son’s abduction. Her second short, The Failure, is a Science Fiction thriller about a human-caused crop failure apocalypse. Starring Wayne Pyle, Madison Fitts and Ian Slade and shot by award- winning cinematographer Richard Sands.
Karen has an MA from Harvard in Cultural Anthropology. She lives in Brooklyn and the Berkshires.
High Timber
The Offical London Bar of Hidden History Happy Hour
Three things come together to create High Timber; London’s most experienced South African restaurateur, Stellenbosch’s most awarded wine estate and one of London’s most prominent up and coming chefs Bartek Wegzryn.
Synergy between soul and soil as Gary and Kathy’s Jordan Wine Estate’s philosophy is carried through the service and food at High Timber. Owner operated by Neleen.
Check out High Timber
Meet Jeffrey George Moline
Listen to his episode: The Ancestors Sing with Terry Franklin and Jeffrey Moline And that Spy Balloon
Jeffrey George Moline grew up in Austin, Minnesota. The best of his childhood was spent on horseback with his friends – with horses and ponies he trained. His grandmother, a church organist, nurtured his love for music.
Jeffrey understood he was different long before he heard the words faggot and queer – as his homelife grew more violent he retreated into music and singing to survive. At eighteen, Jeffrey left his home and his family, escaping to Los Angeles. Jeffrey got a day job bartending at the NCO Club, which opened the door to a twenty year career as an openly gay Labor Negotiator with the Department of Defense at the height of ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell’.
Jeffrey has performed at festivals across the globe, produced LGBT theater in Los Angeles and Sydney, Australia, produced and directed two short films and two EPs of original songs, studied at the Los Angeles Film School, and has co-written four screenplays, earning a Nicholl’s Academy quarter-final award. His current project is “The Last Will of Lucy Sutton” with Terrence Franklin and John Meeks.
Meet Alan Harlan
Listen to his episode: Ukraine Groundtruth Episode: Programmers By Day, Warriors By Night
Alan is a Technology Executive with progressive global operations, consulting, merger & acquisition, business management and global sales experience. His companies have provided SDLC (Software Development Lifecycle) services, Enterprise Software, and IT Outsourcing. He has extensive European, Americas and Asian Market Experience with over half of his work time devoted to physical onsite management.
Alan is based in Dallas, TX, where he owns and operates Axis Software Dynamics and is a partner with Teamlogic IT Solutions. These companies provide Custom Software Development and IT Services for the southern United States. Alan is the Chief Financial Officer for quantum-resistant encryption company Theon Technology, LLC. He also serves on Verso Logistics’ advisory board, a supply chain management platform built on blockchain.
Meet Professor Buzzkill
Listen to his episode: Gun Rights, Modern Military Mishaps, The Dog’s Bollocks, & Special Guest Professor Buzzkill
In real life, “Professor Buzzkill” is Dr. Joseph Coohill, is a “Historian for the Public.” He works tirelessly to explain complicated yet compelling historical analyses to diverse audiences. He often speaks to civic, government, non-profit, and business organizations about the nature of history and about how historical misunderstandings and mythology hurts public discourse and policy decisions. He offers clear and concise solutions to such problems, using examples from history. Among his most popular talks are “Churchill Leadership Myths vs. Churchill Leadership Reality: Lessons for Business and Organizations” and “New Sh*t Has Come to Light! The Value of Genuine Historical Revisionism.”
Check out the Professor Buzzkill History Podcast
Von Bar
The Offical New York Bar of Hidden History Happy Hour
This dimly-lit bar in New York City with a basement that specializes in craft beer and wines by the glass. It is the most haunted bar in New York!
Check out Von Bar
Meet Chitra Ragavan
Listen to our guest appearance on her podcast, Techtopia, about how technology is changing the telling of history including the war in Ukraine.
Over the past 15 years, Chitra has served as a strategic advisor and C-Suite consiglieri to the CEOs of technology startups including Palantir, Gem, and Elementus. And she advises, serves on Boards, and invests in startups through her boutique advisory firm, Goodstory Strategies. Chitra is a former journalist at National Public Radio (NPR) and US News & World Report magazine (USNews). She has two top-rated podcasts, When It Mattered, (on adversity and leadership) and Techtopia (on how technology is changing then world).
Podcasts: YouTube | LinkedIn: LinkedIn | Twitter: @chitra_ragavan
Meet Mary Beth Long
Listen to her episode: A CIA Spy Talks Ukraine, Putin, & the Legacy of the White Mouse
Read her full bio.
The Honorable Mary Beth Long has over 17 years in intelligence and defense related government service. In her last position under Secretary of Defense Robert E. Gates, she served as the first female confirmed to a four- star equivalent position by the U.S. Senate, as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs. After leaving government, Ms. Long founded two multi-million dollar advisory firms from scratch, advised several Fortune 500 companies, and was key to a client closing over $2 billion in international orders.
Meet Dr. Nicole Roberts
Listen to her episode: Two, Count-Em-Two, First Female Doctors
Dr. Nicole F. Roberts is the Executive Director of Feed A Billion, an international nonprofit that feeds girls around the world to prevent exploitation and the founder of Health & Human Rights Strategies, a health care and human rights-focused advising firm in Washington, D.C. She is also the host of The Global Good Podcast. Roberts contributes to Forbes, contextualizing health, and highlighting ideas, companies and people that are changing the health landscape. Her writing has appeared in numerous journals and publications, and her talks can be found on the United Nations website and various news and sports outlets. Roberts holds a doctorate in public health from the University of North Carolina, a master’s degree in public policy from the University of Chicago and an undergraduate degree from the University of Missouri.
Meet Zak Brown
Listen to his episode: History With a Bullitt
As Chief Executive of McLaren Racing, Zak Brown has overall responsibility for the business, including strategic direction, operational performance, marketing and commercial development. In his role Zak leads McLaren’s direction and involvement in professional motorsport, spearheaded by the McLaren Formula 1 team. Operating at the pinnacle of global motorsport, McLaren uses the white heat of competition to drive innovation and develop synergies across the group.
Born and raised in California, Zak raced professionally around the world for 10 years before developing his skills in motorsport’s business and commercial worlds. In 1995, he founded JMI, which grew to become the largest and most successful motorsport marketing agency in the world. When JMI was acquired by CSM, a division of Chime Communications, in 2013, Brown became the company’s Chief Executive Officer. He then relinquished that post to embark on his journey at McLaren in the winter of 2016.
Meet Myke Cole
Listen to his episodes: Shattering Ancient Greek War Myths & the Plight of Platea with Special Guest Historian Myke Cole, Live From New York!: It’s Caesar, the CIA, Putin, Pirates, and he guest co-hosts Hark! The Three Harolds: The First Battle of Stamford Bridge.
As a security contractor, government civilian and military officer, Myke Cole’s career has run the gamut from Counterterrorism to Cyber Warfare to Federal Law Enforcement. He’s done three tours in Iraq and was recalled to serve during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
All that conflict can wear a guy out. Thank goodness for fantasy novels, comic books, late night games of Dungeons and Dragons and lots of angst fueled writing.
Website: https://mykecole.com/
Meet John M. Barry
Listen to his episode: Remember the Pandemic? What Can We Learn From It?
John Barry is a prize-winning and New York Times best-selling author whose books have won multiple awards. The National Academies of Sciences named his 2004 book The Great Influenza: The story of the deadliest pandemic in history, a study of the 1918 pandemic, the year’s outstanding book on science or medicine.
His books have involved him in two areas of public policy. In 2004, he began working with the National Academies and several federal government entities on influenza preparedness and response, and he was a member of the original team which developed plans for mitigating a pandemic by using “non-pharmaceutical interventions”.
After Hurricane Katrina, the Louisiana congressional delegation asked him to chair a bipartisan working group on flood protection, and he served on the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority East, overseeing levee districts in metropolitan New Orleans.
Website: www.johnmbarry.com
Meet Avi Liberman
Listen to his episode: St. Patrick’s Surprises
Avi Liberman’s quirky style has made him a favorite in comedy clubs from Los Angeles to New York. Born in Israel, raised in Texas, having gone to college in New York, and now living in Los Angeles, his style is a winning combination of life experiences and topical issues told through a varied blend of characters and voices with worldwide expertise.
A successful commercial actor, Avi has appeared in spots for “Mercedes,” “L.A. Cellular,” “Miller Lite” and most recently “Starbucks” and “Net Zero.” He has appeared at the prestigious Montreal Just for Laughs Festival.Since 2001, Avi has successfully arranged widely acclaimed stand-up comedy tours in Israel to help boost morale while donating all of the proceeds to a charity. The successful “Comedy For Koby” tour is now a bi-annual event, benefitting the Koby Mandell Foundation.
Website: www.aviliberman.com
Twitter: @AviLiberman
Meet Willard Foxton
Listen to his episode: Planes, (Battle)Ships (by Mail), Lions & Lakes – and Kink
Willard is a journalist & documentary producer, and has made dozens of films around the world, covering everything from the Whitehouse to Wars to Welsh literary festivals.
Since 2020, he’s worked as creative director of Britain’s biggest audio firm, Novel, making hits for the world’s largest audio broadcasters.
In particular, he developed the Apple number one series HARSH REALITY for Wondery and led the development for several series of the BBC hit SIDEWAYS
Follow Willard on Twitter, he promises it’s worth it: @willardfoxton
Meet Michael Hurley
Listen to his episode: Bonus Mid-Week Ukraine Popup Episode
Michael Hurley is President of Team 3i LLC, a national security and international business strategy company. A veteran retired CIA case officer, attorney, and lecturer, Mike currently serves as a special advisor to Palantir Technologies and Affirm, Palo Alto-based innovative technology companies.
One of the nation’s renowned national security experts, Mike currently continues to advise the co-chairmen of the 9/11 Commission and their Homeland Security Project at the Bipartisan Policy Center. As a Senior Counsel and Team Leader on the 9/11 Commission, Mike directed its counterterrorism policy investigation and co-authored its best-selling final report and remains deeply immersed in the national security and policy implications in the aftermath of the attacks and speaks and advises widely on those critical issues.
Website: http://mikehurley.us/
Meet John Grant
Listen to his episode: Gruesome Goings On Week: The Colorado Cannibal & A Self-Serve Appendectomy
John has been a Doctor Who fan since he was 5 years old, waiting patiently for 20 or so years until the show suddenly became a global hit. Now, he enjoys smugly imparting his extensive knowledge of 1970s television production techniques to new fans. He is grateful to Porter for suggesting this Podcast as an alternative to just yelling facts and opinions about Doctor Who to random people in the street. He wrote a book called The Architecture of Privacy, which he wants to mention here because it doesn’t have a huge promotional budget.
Listen to his podcast: https://mindprobe.show/
Meet Terry Franklin
Listen to his episode(s): A Special U.S. Supreme Court Pop-Up Episode & Honoring Black History
Terrence M. Franklin is an attorney with nearly three decades of trust and estates and probate litigation experience. An active member of the trusts and estates legal community, Mr. Franklin has served as Chair of the Diversity, Equity & Inclusivity Committee of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC), where he is committed to improving the level of membership and engagement among diverse and minority lawyers. He is developing strategies to make the trusts and estates practice area more attractive to minority and young attorneys, and was instrumental in developing a diversity and inclusivity mission statement for ACTEC, a fellowship to support potential future fellows, and a statement condemning racism on behalf of the organization.
Mr. Franklin serves as the host of ACTEC’s video series Planning for a Diverse and Equitable Future. In addition, he serves on the ACTEC California Membership Committee, and previously served on the Fiduciary Litigation Committee and on the Board of Regents.
Instagram: @TerryFranklin Twitter: @TerryFranklinLA
Website: https://lucysutton1770.blogspot.com/?m=1
Podcast: https://anchor.fm/terry-franklin