Howard Kingsbury Smith (May 12, 1914 – February 15, 2002)

Louisiana Native

{The following is inspired by one of my journal entries dated Monday 28 November 1983.  It caught my attention because of the current US/NATO proxy war between Ukraine and Russia.}

Howard K. Smith was a native of Ferriday, Louisiana.  Ferriday would also give us Jerry Lee Lewis and Jimmy Swaggart.  Smith was not only a news correspondent and TV news anchor, but also had acting credits for appearing in films and television series, mostly playing himself. Yet, during the 1950’s Red Scare hysteria, he managed to get himself on the Hollywood Black List. He was also the moderator for the first Kennedy/Nixon debate in 1960.

As a journalist in 1940, Howard K. Smith was sent to Germany to report on the Nazi regime.  He interviewed several of the Nazi party’s high command.  With the declaration of war between Germany and the United States, Smith left Germany in 1942.  Within that year he had written a book on his experiences titled Last Train From Berlin.

In 1983, Smith was interviewed on the Louisiana Public Broadcasting show “Louisiana Legends.”  He was asked, if what happened to Germany under Hitler could ever happen again, or if it could happen in the United States.  He replied that it had already happened in Vietnam.  He also said that America could easily become a fortress state if we ever lost a major confrontation with Russia, and Russia became the dominant power.  His opinion was that America would be a fortress state with the military in control, and the people would be for it because of fear and the want for protection.

That was forty years ago.  Will he be proved right?

(The LPB interview can be viewed on YouTube. If you are old enough to remember Smith as a broadcaster notice how different, how congenial his interview voice is compared to his professional voice. I do recommend this delightful video.)