Cold War Cast

Cold War Cast

The history and the pop culture of the Cold War with Ryan Lewellin

  1. FEB 9

    Kim Jong Un - Cold War Orphan

    Today we are talking about Kim Jong Un, the current (dear) leader of North Korea. We’ve been discussing current heads of state and how the Cold War has shaped them. Kim Jong Un really is a relic from the Cold War and in many ways still continues that history. We talk about his murky beginnings and his role in the current state, which is a throwback to the days of Mao and Stalin, with some homespun touches

    24 min

  2. JAN 2

    Xi Jinping and the Cold War

    For Xi Jinping the Cold War never really ended. What we saw as a victory of democracy was a failure of weak men and a cautionary tale for Xi and the Chinese Communist Party. In this episode we talk about the chaos and suffering Xi endured in his young life to make him into the man he is today. The Cold War was a visceral experience for him that made him wary of chaos and disorder. I think looking at his Cold War experience helps explain this leader who is elusive to the outside world.

    40 min

  3. 12/13/2025

    Cold War Nicolas Maduro and Venezuela

    Nicolas Maduro is in the news right now. When we look at his history and ideology, we find that he’s pretty much a guy that showed up late to the Cold War. We discuss his humble origins, training in Cuba and the current state of affairs.

    26 min

  4. 11/25/2025

    Cold War Donald Trump

    Part 2 of our series on current world leaders and the Cold War Today we’re looking at how the Cold War shaped Donald Trump and his experiences growing up during a period of peak American prosperity and moral authority, watching it decline then rising back up again. Although he had no military or political experience during this period, he reflected a mood in the country and became the poster child of free market capitalism during the 80’s. We talk about his history and how Cold War thinking shaped his present style of diplomacy. Yes, we talk about the draft deferments too. Like, share, subscribe and check out www.reddragonherbs.com

    42 min

  5. 11/04/2025

    House of Dynamite

    Netflix just released House of Dynamite, a nuclear thriller that brings the looming horror of the Cold War and nuclear war to the present day. Today I’m giving you my off the cuff review of the show and a few things of interest for those of us into this kind of thing

    12 min

  6. 10/31/2025

    Buzludzha - Cold War Halloween Special

    Today we’re talking about one of the creepiest relics of the Cold War, Buzludzha Monument in Bulgaria - an abandoned testament to communism’s unfulfilled ambitions. It resembles a giant concrete UFO on top of a mountain. Not only is it an artifact of a horrific period of history, many claim it’s haunted. We’ll discuss some of the strange things afoot in Buzludzha. In order to turn this into a true Halloween extravaganza, I’ll read Percy Shelley’s “ozymandias” , which this abandoned monument reminded me of. I’ll also bring my Soviet Union-obsessed eight year old on to tell a good Cold War joke he told me the other day. Like, subscribe, share and leave good reviews. Hit me up on instagram or X. Go to reddragonherbs.com to support the show financially

    22 min

  7. 10/27/2025

    Cold War Putin and Zelensky

    Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky both had their formative and life altering moments during the Cold War. In this episode, we discussed their history and how the fall of the Soviet Union, a nation they were both citizens of, affected them. It’s interesting that both leaders had a front row seat to the same series of events and came to such divergent conclusions. Leave a review to help the show grow and visit www.reddragonherbs.com to support financially.

    33 min

  8. 09/23/2025

    The Long Walk - Stephen King

    The film for the Stephen King book The Long Walk just hit the theaters over the weekend. While we have a lot of accounts of the horrors of war, this story is the product of the dread over the prospect of being forced to fight a war from the perspective of a young horror writer. The boomers get a lot of grief for having had it easy, but King captured the horror of having the draft and Vietnam looming over your head as a young man in the 60’s.

    21 min
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4.6
out of 5
30 Ratings

About

The history and the pop culture of the Cold War with Ryan Lewellin

Information

  • Creator
    Cold War Cast
  • Years Active
    2016 - 2026
  • Episodes
    47
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Cold War Cast
  • Show Website
    Cold War Cast