
Countdown 1960
The Behind-the-Scenes Story of the 312 Days That Changed America's Politics Forever
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Narrated by:
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Dylan Baker
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Chris Wallace
About this listen
A riveting new work and fresh take on the lead-up to the presidential election of 1960, drawing timely parallels to the choice Americans face in 2024
It’s January 2, 1960: the day that Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy declared his candidacy; and with this opening scene, Chris Wallace offers listeners a front-row seat to history. From the challenge of primary battles in a nation that had never elected a Catholic president, to the intense machinations of the national conventions—where JFK chose Lyndon B. Johnson as his running mate over the impassioned objections of his brother Bobby—this is a nonfiction political thriller filled with intrigue, cinematic action, and fresh reporting. Like with many popular histories, listeners will be familiar with the story, but few will know the behind-the-scenes details, told here with gripping effect.
Featuring some of history’s most remarkable characters, thrilling action, and vivid details, Countdown 1960 follows a group of extraordinary politicians, civil rights leaders, Hollywood stars, labor bosses, and mobsters during a pivotal year in American history. The election of 1960 ushered in the modern era of presidential politics, with televised debates, private planes, and slick advertising. In fact, television played a massive role. It allowed voters to see the candidates’ appearances. More than 70 million Americans watched one or all four debates. The public turned to television to watch campaign rallies. And on the night of the election, the contest between Kennedy and Nixon was so close that Americans were glued to their televisions long after dawn to see who won.
The year 1960 was a deeply contentious, perilous time for America. It also was a moment our nation survived due to courage, leadership, and patriotism.
* This audiobook edition includes a downloadable PDF that contains selected photos from the book.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2024 Chris Wallace (P)2024 Penguin AudioListeners also enjoyed...
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Critic reviews
“Chris Wallace unwraps the secrets of the larger-than-life personalities of 1960. With stunning revelations of private and behind-the-scenes alliances, strategies, and romances, we are treated to the histories of an inflection year in American politics in a compelling, page-turning narrative.” —Senator Mitt Romney
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Performance
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From inside the chamber, bestselling author Dana Milbank exposes the petty, inchoate, and dysfunctional state of the Republican House—a confederacy of dunces racing to the bottom, without shame and certainly without the ability to get anything done.
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If you weren't paying attention
- By Jesse Porter on 10-01-24
By: Dana Milbank
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America First
- Roosevelt vs. Lindbergh in the Shadow of War
- By: H. W. Brands
- Narrated by: Mark Bramhall
- Length: 14 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Bestselling historian and Pulitzer Prize finalist H. W. Brands narrates the fierce debate over America's role in the world in the runup to World War II through its two most important figures: President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who advocated intervention, and his isolationist nemesis, aviator and popular hero Charles Lindbergh.
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Throw back in time
- By jimmie l brown on 04-24-25
By: H. W. Brands
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Martin Van Buren
- America's First Politician
- By: James M. Bradley
- Narrated by: Paul Woodson
- Length: 26 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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This new biography of Van Buren—the first full-scale portrait in four decades—charts his ascent from a tavern in the Hudson Valley to the presidency, concluding with his late-career involvement in an antislavery movement. Offering vivid profiles of the day's leading figures (Andrew Jackson, Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun, John Quincy Adams, DeWitt Clinton, James K. Polk), James Bradley's book depicts the struggle for power in the tumultuous decades leading up to the Civil War.
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Excellent
- By Joseph T. Hobson on 05-19-25
By: James M. Bradley
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The Price of Power
- How Mitch McConnell Mastered the Senate, Changed America and Lost His Party
- By: Michael Tackett
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 12 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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In The Price of Power, award-winning journalist Michael Tackett pulls back the curtain on one of the most influential figures to ever set foot in the American Senate, offering you an intimate, personal view of his life and career. Drawing on thousands of pages of archival materials, letters, and more than 100 interviews with associates, colleagues, and McConnell himself, Tackett pieces together the story of McConnell’s early life, his formative battle with polio as a young child, and details his forty-plus-year career as one of the Senate’s most impactful leaders.
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WOW
- By Daisy Mae on 03-22-25
By: Michael Tackett
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Taking Paris
- The Epic Battle for the City of Lights
- By: Martin Dugard
- Narrated by: Samuel Roukin
- Length: 11 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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May 1940: The world is stunned as Hitler's forces invade France with a devastating blitzkrieg aimed at Paris. Within weeks, the French government has collapsed, and the City of Lights, revered for its carefree lifestyle, intellectual freedom, and love of liberty, has fallen under Nazi control — perhaps forever.
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Incorrectly titled
- By Mike From Mesa on 01-11-22
By: Martin Dugard
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All in the Family
- The Trumps and How We Got This Way
- By: Fred C. Trump III
- Narrated by: Fred C. Trump III
- Length: 10 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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For the record…Fred Trump never asked for any of this. The divisive politics. The endless headlines. A hijacked last name. The heat-seeking uncle, rising from real estate scion to gossip column fixture to The Apprentice host to President of the United States. Fred just wanted a happy life and a satisfying career. But a fight for his son’s health and safety forced him onto a center stage that he had never wanted. And now, at a crucial point for our nation, he is stepping forward again. In All in the Family, Fred delves into his journey to become a “different kind of Trump.”
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The excuses
- By Denise on 08-07-24
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A Certain Idea of America
- Selected Writings
- By: Peggy Noonan
- Narrated by: Hillary Huber, Peggy Noonan
- Length: 12 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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For a quarter century, Peggy Noonan has been thinking aloud about America in her much-loved Wall Street Journal column. In this new collection of her essential recent work, Noonan demonstrates the erudition, wisdom and humor that have made her one of America’s most admired writers. She calls balls and strikes on the political shenanigans of recent leaders and she honors the integrity of great Americans, ranging from Billy Graham to the heroes of 9/11.
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off my reading-and admiration-lists.
- By Carol on 11-29-24
By: Peggy Noonan
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The Situation Room
- The Inside Story of Presidents in Crisis
- By: George Stephanopoulos, Lisa Dickey - contributor
- Narrated by: George Stephanopoulos, Peter Ganim, Elisabeth Rodgers
- Length: 10 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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George Stephanopoulos, the legendary political news host and former advisor to President Clinton, recounts the history-making crises from the place where twelve presidents made their highest-pressure decisions: the White House Situation Room.
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A must read for all no matter your politics
- By Lynne on 05-21-24
By: George Stephanopoulos, and others
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Mad House
- How Donald Trump, MAGA Mean Girls, a Former Used Car Salesman, a Florida Nepo Baby, and a Man with Rats in His Walls Broke Congress
- By: Annie Karni, Luke Broadwater
- Narrated by: Karen Murray
- Length: 11 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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The United States Congress has always been messy and far-from-august, but as Annie Karni and Luke Broadwater show here, in scorching, shocking detail, it has reached some kind of chaotic bottom. The anarchy that reigned over Congress’s lower chamber in the wake of the January 6th attack on the Capitol Building—the election of serial liar and con-man George Santos, revenge porn being shown on the floor of the house, and the theatrical high jinks of Lauren Boebert—all were a sign of decay and dysfunction of the highest order.
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The crazy behind the scenes in DC
- By Charles Staten Island NY on 04-28-25
By: Annie Karni, and others
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Ministry of Truth
- Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past
- By: Steve Benen
- Narrated by: Rachel Maddow
- Length: 5 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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For as long as historical records have existed, authoritarian regimes have tried to rewrite history to suit their purposes, using their dictatorial powers to create myths, spread propaganda, justify decisions, erase opponents, and even dispose of crimes. Today, as America’s Republican Party becomes increasingly radicalized, it’s not surprising to see the GOP read from a similarly despotic script. Indeed, the party is taking dangerous, aggressive steps to rewrite history—and not just from generations past.
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Reinforced long held suspicions
- By Dennis M Olson Jr on 08-18-24
By: Steve Benen
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Citizen
- My Life After the White House
- By: Bill Clinton
- Narrated by: Steven Weber, Bill Clinton
- Length: 15 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Citizen is Clinton’s front-row, first-person chronicle of his post-presidential years and the most significant events of the twenty-first century, including 9/11 and the runup to the Iraq War, the Haiti earthquake, the Great Recession, COVID-19, the January 6th insurrection, and the enduring culture wars of our times. Yet Citizen is more than a presidential memoir. This book captures Clinton in a rare and unforgettable light: not only as celebrated former president and foundation leader, but also as a father, grandfather, and husband.
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Thought-provoking and Inspiring!
- By Mark A. Titsworth on 11-21-24
By: Bill Clinton
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SNAFU
- The Definitive Guide to History's Greatest Screwups
- By: Ed Helms
- Narrated by: Ed Helms
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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From actor, comedian, writer, and host of the hit history podcast SNAFU, Ed Helms brings you an absurdly entertaining look at history’s biggest blunders.
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Swinging Spies!
- By Stephen on 05-13-25
By: Ed Helms
If you are familiar with all this, you’ll find little that is new, however compelling the story. If you want a political science book, read Theodore White’s “The Making of a President, 1960.” Written in 1962, It’s a Little dated and clunky in parts, but still a seminal work and a deeper dive.
The reader was good, not great. His Richard Nixon voice was spot on. His JFK, not so much.
Always a fascinating story
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Enthusiastic delivery
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The setting here is on the 1960 race for President; Kennedy versus Nixon, in a race among the closest in history. Wallace goes behind the scene for both campaigns, starting before the primaries and taking into account other world/US events and leaders that play a role in the history of the era.
There is a lot of familiar territory here if you have read anything about JFK or RMN. Wallace does a good job presenting both candidates strengths and flaws, but spends more time on Kennedy and his family, especially father Joe who in Wallace's version paid for the Presidency. JFK's constant philandering is mentioned several times with different women he encountered.
Nixon is the loyal, 8-year VP for Eisenhower who is not really supported much by Ike until the election is just a month away. Nixon also has trouble with some of the Republican leaders, some of who would have preferred Nelson Rockefeller or another candidate besides "Tricky Dick" Nixon.
In the end Nixon is defeated, although several state state electoral ballots were being legally challenged (much like 2020) at the time Nixon graciously conceded.
Countdown 1960 is a very readable look back at the 1960 election that had many firsts, such as the first candidates born in the 20th century; and perhaps more importantly for Kennedy the first to feature a series of televised Presidential debates that helped showcase Kennedy's looks over Nixon's haggard face in the first debate.
The narration is very good and holds the listener's interest throughout the presentation.
Kennedy vs Nixon 1960
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Awesome!
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Well done
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Bad imitations of voices
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Countdown 1960 - Compelling History
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Nostalgia for Baby Boomers
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Chris Wallace’s “countdown” technique is engaging (as it was in Countdown 1945, which I thoroughly enjoyed) and helps make this a page-turner that you don’t want to put down.
The one slight negative to the Audible version, which is the one I listened to prior to reading the hardcover, is that Wallace was not the narrator, as he delightfully was in his prior countdown book.
I could not help but compare how Nixon, whose 1960 “defeat” was truly suspect, placed his country first, versus how Trump, who has never been able to provide legitimate evidence of chicanery, continues his lifelong history of putting himself first and complaining that his many defeats in business and politics were the result of others cheating him.
Bottom line: A great read.
Credible revelations of a dramatic presidential election.
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Political Ping Pong
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