Synopses & Reviews
and#147;Hereand#8217;s a book that would've split the sides of Thucydides. Wienerand#8217;s magical mystery tour of Cold War museums is simultaneously hilarious and the best thing ever written on public history and its contestation.and#147; and#151;Mike Davis, author of
City of Quartzand#147;Jon Wiener, an astute observer of how history is perceived by the general public, shows us how official efforts to shape popular memory of the Cold War have failed. His journey across America to visit exhibits, monuments, and other historical sites, demonstrates how quickly the Cold War has faded from popular consciousness. A fascinating and entertaining book.and#8221; and#151;Eric Foner, author of Reconstruction: America's Unfinished Revolution, 1863and#150;1877
"In How We Forgot the Cold War, Jon Wiener shows how conservatives triedand#151;and failedand#151;to commemorate the Cold War as a noble victory over the global forces of tyranny, a 'good war' akin to World War II. Displaying splendid skills as a reporter in addition to his discerning eye as a scholar, this historian's travelogue convincingly shows how the right sought to extend its preferred policy of 'rollback' to the arena of public memory. In a country where historical memory has become an obsession, Wienerand#8217;s ability to document the ambiguities and absences in these commemorations is an unusual accomplishment.and#8221; and#151;Rick Perlstein, author of Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America
and#147;In this terrific piece of scholarly journalism, Jon Wiener imaginatively combines scholarship on the Cold War, contemporary journalism, and his own observations of various sites commemorating the era to describe both what they contain and, just as importantly, what they do not. By interrogating the standard conservative brand of American triumphalism, Wiener offers an interpretation of the Cold War that emphasizes just how unnecessary the conflict was and how deleterious its aftereffects have really been.and#8221;and#151;Ellen Schrecker, author of Many Are The Crimes: McCarthyism in America
Review
and#8220;As popular reading, it's got the humor and wit of Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation and James Loewen's Sundown Towns and DJ Waldie's Holy Land. By which I mean it's witty and kinda mean, and exhilarating bad fun.and#8221;
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"Wiener's wit and deft grasp of geopolitics make for one of the season's most intriguing historical books."--Philadelphia City Paper
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and#8220;Who knew the Cold War was funny? Wienerand#8217;s adventures in American historical memory are surprisingly lively.and#8221;
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and#8220;A provocative and fascinating new book.and#8221;
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and#8220;A political argument masquerading as a travel yarn. . . . Wienerand#8217;s accounts of his trips to nuclear test sites, missile-launching control centers and fallout shelter exhibits contrast the guidesand#8217; cheerful patter with the prospect of Armageddon.and#8221;
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“Wieners wit and deft grasp of geopolitics make for one of the seasons most intriguing historical books.” Oc Weekly: Orange County News, Arts and Ent
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“A provocative and fascinating new book.” Sarah Rothbard - Zocalo Public Square
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and#8220;A splendid tour de farce of the museums and other memory palaces established largely by the American right in honor of the greatest triumph in human history, the winning of the... oh, remind me, what was it?and#8221;
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"...An account of memory laced with irony and wit..."
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and#8220;Wienerand#8217;s wit and deft grasp of geopolitics make for one of the seasonand#8217;s most intriguing historical books.and#8221;
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"Wiener is a sharp observer."
Synopsis
Hours after the USSR collapsed in 1991, Congress began making plans to establish the official memory of the Cold War. Conservatives dominated the proceedings, spending millions to portray the conflict as a triumph of good over evil and a defeat of totalitarianism equal in significance to World War II. In this provocative book, historian Jon Wiener visits Cold War monuments, museums, and memorials across the United States to find out how the era is being remembered. The authorand#8217;s journey provides a history of the Cold War, one that turns many conventional notions on their heads.
In an engaging travelogue that takes readers to sites such as the life-size recreation of Berlinand#8217;s and#147;Checkpoint Charlieand#8221; at the Reagan Library, the fallout shelter display at the Smithsonian, and exhibits about and#147;Sgt. Elvis,and#8221; Americaand#8217;s most famous Cold War veteran, Wiener discovers that the Cold War isnand#8217;t being remembered. Itand#8217;s being forgotten. Despite an immense effort, the conservativesand#8217; monuments werenand#8217;t built, their historic sites have few visitors, and many of their museums have now shifted focus to other topics. Proponents of the notion of a heroic and#147;Cold War victoryand#8221; failed; the public didnand#8217;t buy the official story. Lively, readable, and well-informed, this book expands current discussions about memory and history, and raises intriguing questions about popular skepticism toward official ideology.
About the Author
Jon Wiener is Professor of History at the University of California, Irvine. Among his books are Gimme Some Truth: The John Lennon FBI Files (UC Press) and Historians in Trouble: Plagiarism, Fraud and Politics in the Ivory Tower.
Table of Contents
List of Illustrations
Introduction: Forgetting the Cold War
Part One. The End
1. Hippie Day at the Reagan Library
2. The Victims of Communism Museum: A Study in Failure
Part Two. The Beginning: 1946and#150;1949
3. Getting Started: The Churchill Memorial in Missouri
4. Searching for the Pumpkin Patch: The Whittaker Chambers National Historic Landmark
5. Naming Names, from Laramie to Beverly Hills
6. Secrets on Display: The CIA Museum and the NSA Museum
7. Cold War Cleanup: The Hanford Tour
Part Three. The 1950s
8. Test Site Tourism in Nevada
9. Memorial Day in Lakewood and La Jolla: Korean War Monuments of California
10. Code Name and#147;Etheland#8221;: The Rosenbergs in the Museums
11. Mound Builders of Missouri: Nuclear Waste at Weldon Spring
12. Cold War Elvis: Sgt. Presley at the General George Patton Museum
Part Four. The 1960s and After
13. The Graceland of Cold War Tourism: The Greenbrier Bunker
14. Ikeand#8217;s Emmy: Monuments to the Military-Industrial Complex
15. The Fallout Shelters of North Dakota
16. and#147;It Had to Do with Cuba and Missilesand#8221;: Thirteen Days in October
17. The Museum of the Missile Gap: Arizonaand#8217;s Titan Missile Memorial
18. The Museum of Dand#233;tente: The Nixon Library in Yorba Linda
Part Five. Alternative Approaches
19. Rocky Flats: Uncovering the Secrets
20. CNNand#8217;s Cold War: Equal Time for the Russians
21. Harry Trumanand#8217;s Amazing Museum
Conclusion: History, Memory, and the Cold War
Epilogue: From the Cold War to the War in Iraq
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index