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What History Leaves Out: WWI’s Other Theater and the Art of Seeing
About this Episode
Tonight I sit down with award-winning novelist Gerald Everett Jones for a wide-ranging conversation on history, storytelling, and the hidden forces that shape our world. We dive into his new novel, Jonathan’s Journal, which springs from a real 1919 soldier’s diary and unravels a lesser-known front of World War I across Mesopotamia, Palestine, and India. Gerald walks us through the “Eastern Question,” the Berlin-to-Baghdad railway, the fall of the Ottoman Empire, and why sea lanes and warm-water ports still drive geopolitics today.
We also swap notes on film craft, acting, and how close observation—Le Carré-style—helps readers see between the lines of both fiction and history. Beyond the pages, we talk creative origins, research rabbit holes, and the personal stories that inform Gerald’s work—from family histories touched by two world wars to Hollywood lore and the evolution of media. If you’re curious about the threads connecting past and present, and how a discovered diary can challenge the way we think about cause and effect, this episode’s for you.
Resources and links: GeraldEverettJones.com • Gerald Everett Jones on Substack • Jonathan’s Journal (releases April 14) • LA Times Festival of Books appearance (Writers & Publishers Network booth) • Get Published Radio podcast.
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Special thanks to:
Executive Producer Wayne Rankin
Executive Producer Rosanna Rankin
Executive Producer Carolina Jimenez
Executive Producer Marisa Lee
Executive Producer Angela Wetuski
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(00:00:48) Live from the Asylum: Opening, music throwback, and show setup
(00:03:15) Weekend recap, Bible study series, and platform shift to Rumble
(00:04:58) History is happening now: Framing tonights conversation
(00:07:12) Guest intro: Award-winning novelist Gerald Everett Jones
(00:08:16) Icebreakers: Calculus, hair, and humor before the deep dive
(00:12:21) From early awards to choosing writing over acting
(00:20:34) Film craft insights: Stars, speeches, and modern pacing
(00:23:28) Shakespeare on screen and the lost art of long dialogue
(00:23:35) Turning to history: Researching art, archives, and mystery
(00:26:28) The found 1919 diary that sparked Jonathans Journal
(00:31:47) Making fiction from facts: A COVID-era professor investigates
(00:35:41) Identity threads: Initials, family secrets, and cinematic mothers
(00:42:10) What really caused World War I? The Eastern Question revealed
(00:46:14) Berlin-to-Baghdad Railway and the Suez calculus
(00:51:42) Geopolitics 101: Warm-water ports, Crimea, and sea lanes
(00:59:17) War at sea: Carriers, LSTs, and a familys Pacific history
(01:01:10) From war to consumer goods: Japans postwar pivot and toys
(01:02:36) Oil, plastics, and the refinery laddera primer
(01:06:20) Whats next: Book launch, LA Times Festival of Books, and future topics
(01:10:01) Influences and links: Le Carre9, site, Substack, and podcast
(01:11:02) Closing remarks and show community shout-outs
(01:13:59) Final reflection: Keep questioning and claim your narrative
- Wayne Rankin
- Rosanna Rankin
- Carolina Jimenez
No transcript available for this episode.
