Show overview
Let's Start a Coup! has published 7 episodes, alongside 1 trailer or bonus episode during 2023. That works out to roughly 4 hours of audio in total. Releases follow a weekly cadence.
Episodes typically run twenty to thirty-five minutes — most land between 32 min and 40 min — and the run-time is fairly consistent across the catalogue. Roughly 57% of episodes carry an explicit flag from the publisher. It is catalogued as a EN-US-language History show.
The catalogue appears to be on hiatus or wound down — the most recent episode landed 3.1 years ago, with no new episodes in over a year. Published by iHeartPodcasts.
From the publisher
What would you do if a secret cabal of the nation’s most powerful people asked you to overthrow the President? Weirdly enough – it’s not a hypothetical. It almost happened to FDR in the 1930s, were it not for a very intense, very problematic Marine named Major General Smedley Butler. Join Ben Bowlin, Alex French, and a cast of historical characters brought to life by Joe Kinosian for a darkly comedic – and terrifying – retelling of one of the weirdest forgotten schemes in American history.
Latest Episodes
S1 Ep 6Ep 6 – The Real Coup
The Congressional investigation is, surprise, a farce. Those in office – heavily influenced by their powerful donors – seem determined to prevent any genuine attempt at investigating Smedley’s evidence. The press, controlled by the same forces, dismisses his claims as the paranoid ramblings of an old, no longer relevant relic of a bygone age. Yet the nation is listening. The original gonzo journalist John Spivak digs into the story – and he is able to prove Smedley’s claims. What happens next? LINK: http://coat.ncf.ca/our_magazine/links/53/spivak-NewMasses.pdf (Page 8 for conspiracy board) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S1 Ep 5Ep 5 – Ham on Half
EAs the conspiracy to overthrow the United States government rushes from idea to action, Major General Smedley Butler draws a line in the sand. From what he can tell, the country’s most powerful people have both the money and the political will to betray their own nation. And he knows the plotters' mercenary army could outnumber U.S. forces. Smedley orders a pizza and then blows the whistle, triggering a Congressional investigation. Yet, it seems, Smedley forgot one important thing: the shadowy forces plotting the coup may have already bought Congress.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S1 Ep 4Ep 4 – All Smedleys Considered
EAlex and Ben have done their best to be fair and objective in their exploration of the coup, but one Marine objects. In this week’s episode, Smedley Butler (played by Joe Kinosian) takes the mic to tell the story from his perspective. Looking back on his career as a hard-nosed death-dealer for Big Business, Smedley wonders: What led him to this point? Where will he go next?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S1 Ep 3Ep 3 – Let’s Get Illuminaughty
EYou may say time machines don’t exist… but this week iHeart sends Ben and Alex back to the 1930’s for a gut-busting, guided tour of the dark, smoky rooms where a clandestine crew of ultra-wealthy schemers concocted the Business Plot. Our hosts consult with a cavalcade of sketchy historical figures, leading Ben and Alex to begin connecting the dots of the grand conspiracy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S1 Ep 2Ep 2 – A Man Most Méchant
EWhile history books and Hollywood like their stories in simple black and white, real life is much more complicated. So, what made Major General Butler the ideal candidate to lead a coup? In this week’s episode – against Smedley’s wishes – Ben and Alex dive into the Major General’s dark backstory to explore why the bankers believed he was the man they were looking for.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S1 Ep 1Let's Start a Coup! Ep 1 – A Basket Full of Fascists
Nowadays, most people can agree that fascism is, well, a bad thing. But back in the 1930s, life absolutely sucked for most Americans, and fascism still had a sort of new car smell. Wall Street bankers were convinced they could take their country back from the clutches of ‘class traitors’ like Roosevelt, sink the New Deal and put the United States on a better – meaning more profitable – path. They had the money. They had an army. Now all they needed was a leader. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Introducing: Let's Start A Coup!
trailerSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.