Rumors of War: The War before Pearl Harbor

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Popular and Topical Songs of World War II.

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The War's Voices

By the late 1930s, having weathered the First World War and the Great Depression, America was now pulled between isolationism and engagement as war loomed again on the world stage. Whether appealing for restraint or urging swift action, world leaders used radio to both strengthen their pleas and rally their nations.

The four radio broadcasts presented here come from original studio transcription disc recordings in the Arthur B. Church - KMBC Radio collection and the J. David Goldin collection in the Marr Sound Archives.

Broadcast #1
First elected in 1932, Franklin D. Roosevelt guided the nation through its greatest domestic crisis since the Civil War, as well as its first major test as a world power. America was officially neutral, but, as war clouds gathered, our involvement became inescapable. By the late '30s and early '40s, Roosevelt was working to skirt the nation's neutrality acts and prepare for war, a sentiment echoed in his third inaugural address, broadcast January 20, 1941, with American involvement less than a year away.

Broadcast #2
Despite the spreading conflict, or possibly because of it, many Americans objected to increased involvement. Opposition came from all corners, representing a gamut of principles from politics to pacifism. In this September 16, 1941 address, less than two months before the attack on Pearl Harbor, former president Herbert Hoover voiced this surprisingly forward-thinking plea to consider the war's causes as well as its symptoms before plunging headlong into battle.

Broadcast #3
Among the most strident anti-interventionists was Charles A. Lindbergh, famous aviator, American hero, and leading spokesman for the America First Committee. Founded in 1940, the 800,000-member Committee championed neutrality and opposed American aid to the Allies. However, as Axis atrocities mounted and American intervention became imminent, the Committee's popularity waned, as did Lindbergh's, who had been branded a racist and Nazi sympathizer. In this speech broadcast from Ft. Wayne, Indiana, on October 3, 1941, with American involvement all but certain, Lindbergh warns of eroding Constitutional liberties as America girded for war. The America First Committee disbanded four days after the attack on Pearl Harbor.            Read a Text Transcription of this Speech

Broadcast #4
One of Winston Churchill's first duties as Prime Minister was the unenviable task of addressing the world following the Allied "re-embarkation" from the shores of Dunkirk. Churchill took office on May 10, 1940; by June 4, 338,000 British troops had been evacuated from France and returned safely to England. Two weeks later, on June 18, 1940, a weary Churchill used this broadcast to put the best face possible on these disheartening events, reminding listeners that there were now nearly 400,000 more battle-tested troops to defend their shores.

Text by Scott O'Kelley, Marr Sound Archives
Digital Audio by Scott Middleton, Marr Sound Archives

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