Prompt Cast
Nazi Saboteurs' Failed Operations in the United States during World War II
TLDR Nazi saboteurs attempted to carry out acts of sabotage in the United States during World War II, but their operations were unsuccessful due to their incompetence and lack of research. The saboteurs were quickly discovered by Coast Guardsmen, leading to their arrest and the prevention of further acts of sabotage.
Timestamped Summary
00:00
During World War II, Nazi saboteurs invaded the United States, targeting locations like Armageddon, New York and Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, but their operations went poorly due to their incompetence and lack of research.
06:00
During World War II, Hitler devised a plan to send small teams of saboteurs to the US to wreak havoc, but the plan was ultimately scrapped and replaced with Operation Pastorius, which involved selecting a team of eight German immigrants who had been members of the American Bund to carry out acts of sabotage.
11:25
A team of German immigrants who had been members of the American Bund were selected to carry out acts of sabotage in the US during World War II because they could pass themselves off as regular German Americans and already knew the terrain and culture.
17:07
A team of German immigrants, including Edward Curling and Hermann Neubauer, who had little military experience, were selected to be part of a ragtag group of saboteurs sent to the Abwehr school.
22:20
A group of German saboteurs were given 18 days of training to learn explosive techniques and were assigned to destroy various power plants, factories, and transportation systems in the United States, with the goal of crippling the wartime effort and instilling fear in Americans.
28:01
A team of German saboteurs landed on the shore of Long Island dressed in German military uniforms, but were quickly discovered by Coast Guardsmen.
33:14
A Coast Guardsman named Cullen encounters German saboteur Dosh, who offers him money to forget about their suspicious encounter, but Cullen takes the money and realizes something is going on, leading him to gather his fellow Coast Guardsmen and catch sight of the U-boat that dropped off the saboteurs before finding the buried explosives and military uniforms on the beach, prompting a manhunt by the FBI.
38:27
Dosh and Berger split up in Manhattan, with Dosh planning to go to Washington and meet with J. Edgar Hoover while Berger occupies the other two guys, but Dosh doesn't make it to DC until Thursday morning.
43:36
Dosh arrives in Washington, calls the FBI, and eventually meets with Hoover, leading to the arrest of Burger and the rest of Team Eintz.
48:47
The FBI figures out the names and addresses of the German contacts for the teams and stake them out, leading to the arrest of several members of Team Svi, leaving only Herman Neubauer remaining.
54:03
The trial of the German saboteurs took place in July 1942, and although the prosecutor sought the death penalty, FDR decided to spare two of them and instead sentenced them to hard labor and imprisonment, while the other six were electrocuted; however, the story of the saboteurs did not end there, as there was another failed attempt in 1944.
59:25
A listener shares a cute audio clip of her two and a half-year-old son requesting to listen to the podcast "Stuff You Should Know" before nap time.
Categories:
Society & Culture
