The Post-War World: The War's Voices

The War's Voices

The pre-war world was used to "hearing" its leaders on the printed page, in newsreels, or through speeches broadcast over radio when possible. However, the unprecedented speed and scope of the war forever changed the way information was shared. When the curtain fell on World War II, up-to-the-minute reporting, on-the-spot interviews, and press conferences tailored to the immediacy of radio were no longer the exception. And, through radio, the world's voices were closer than ever before.

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

Broadcast #1
Upon entering politics in 1922, Harry Truman was an ex-farmer and World War I veteran with a failed men's clothing store in downtown Kansas City. Two decades later, he was president of the most powerful nation to emerge from the Second World War. In his journey from county judge to commander in chief, Truman mastered the intricacies of local patronage, national party alliances, Allied military cooperation, and international diplomacy. On March 5, 1946, less than a year into his first term as president and holding center stage in world politics, Truman introduced fellow statesman Winston Churchill at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri. Truman referred to this occasion as one of the greatest "pleasures and privileges" of his presidency.

Broadcast #2
One of the war's most stirring and eloquent voices belonged to British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, whose words motivated, comforted, inspired, and warned his nation and the world. Despite a reputation for oratory and a global experience, Churchill's most famous speech came after the war at a small college in central Missouri. While attending the Potsdam Conference in May 1945 with Stalin and Truman, Churchill learned that he had been voted out of office. Despondent, Churchill returned to England and spent months in near seclusion. Wanting to console his friend and former ally, President Truman arranged a speaking engagement at Westminster College in Fulton. In this March 5, 1946, speech, Churchill references the "iron curtain which has descended across the continent," essentially introducing the cold war to a post-war world.

Broadcast #3
In 1945, with Germany defeated, Allied victory in the Pacific all but assured, and Churchill's political future in doubt, the editor of the Times of London advised the prime minister to consider retiring gracefully. "Mr. editor," Churchill replied, "I leave when the pub closes." For Churchill, closing time came with the Labour Party's victory in the 1945 elections and the subsequent appointment of Clement Attlee as prime minister. A member of Churchill's coalition government since 1940, Attlee reportedly reigned in many of Churchill's wilder military schemes during the war, and guided sweeping reform after victory. While an equal to the former prime minister in terms of political vision, Attlee was no match for Churchill's oratory prowess, as this V-J Day address from August 14, 1945, reveals.

Broadcast #4
Along with new jobs, new gadgets, and new attitudes, the end of World War II also brought new heroes. Some became movie stars, some became astronauts. One became president. Plain-spoken and instantly likeable, General Dwight David Eisenhower's Midwestern manner was a contrast to the coarse, arrogant, or brash behavior exhibited by some Allied leaders. Texas-born, Kansas-bred, and military-educated, Eisenhower was seen as both the savior of the free world and the ultimate boy-next-door. Although Eisenhower's political aspirations were years away at the time of this June 6, 1945 homecoming to Abilene, Kansas, the general's address (despite his clipped speech, awkward pronunciation, and less-than-compelling tone) sounds tailor-made for the campaign trail.

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

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The War's Voices

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The War's Voices

	Voices of World War II: Experiences From the Front and at Home
	A project in partnership with the Truman Presidential Museum and Library. Audio from the collections of the Marr Sound Archives - Department of Special Collections. Miller Nichols Library - University of Missouri - Kansas City.