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Thunder from the Prairie: the life of Harold E. Hughes

River to River, hosted by Ben Kieffer

A man of working class origins who overcame severe alcoholism to become the governor of Iowa — on this episode of River to River, the life of Harold Hughes.

Author Jerry Harrington discusses his new book, Thunder from the Prairie: The Life of Harold E. Hughes. In it, he details Hughes’ remarkable rise from growing up in Ida Grove, to facing combat in Italy during WWII, to becoming a transformative governor.

Guests:

  • Jerry Harrington, author
Ben Kieffer is the host of IPR's River to River
Dani Gehr is a producer for River to River and Talk of Iowa. Dani came to Iowa from her hometown in the northwest suburbs of Chicago to attend Iowa State University, where she received a bachelor’s degree in journalism, international studies and French. Before coming to IPR, Dani covered local government in Story County for the Ames Tribune and Des Moines Register.
Caitlin Troutman is a talk show producer at Iowa Public Radio