Operation Paul Bunyan

Summary

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Stuff You Should Know: Operation Paul Bunyan

Podcast: Stuff You Should Know
Hosts: Josh Clark & Chuck Bryant
Episode Date: December 9, 2025

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Overview

In this engaging episode, Josh and Chuck untangle the strange, tense, and at times absurd 1976 incident at the Korean DMZ known as "Operation Paul Bunyan." They dig into the origins and escalation of the event, how a single poplar tree nearly sparked World War III, and the broader historical and political context of the U.S., North Korea, and South Korea at that time. Listeners are treated to insightful explanations, signature witty banter, and reflections on both the tragedy and the surreal spectacle of military brinkmanship over a tree.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Scene: The DMZ and the Korean War (03:43–08:53)

• Division of Korea: After WWII, the Soviets and Americans split Korea; the north became the Communist DPRK, and the south the Republic of Korea. The 38th parallel marked their border.
• Korean War Legacy: The Korean War (1950-1953) ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty. The DMZ (Demilitarized Zone), about 2.4 miles wide, serves as a buffer and de facto border.
• JSA Dynamics: The Joint Security Area (JSA) at Panmunjom was uniquely patrolled by both sides, leading to face-to-face confrontations, intimidation, and even pranks or intimidation tactics across the border.
  • “If you had to defend yourself physically because you were getting beat up, okay, but you did not shoot, you had to be shot at to draw your sidearm.” — Josh (08:11)

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2. The Powder Keg: Backdrop to the Incident (08:53–14:07)

• Military Protocols & Culture: American and UN forces were under strict orders not to escalate violence; North Koreans aimed to provoke them.
• Leadership: Capt. Arthur Bonifas, the company commander, emphasized intimidating presence but calm demeanors: “He wanted big guys down there... But the orders were always to back off if it came to blows.” — Chuck (09:28)
• Previous Incidents: Minor scuffles and provocations were common, but the protocol was always de-escalation.

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3. The Tree That Almost Started WWIII (16:41–23:34)

• Poplar Tree Problems: A large poplar tree near the Bridge of No Return blocked critical sightlines between UN checkpoints. When South Korean workers tried to prune it, North Korean guards aggressively intervened.
• Confrontation Escalates: On August 18, 1976, a 15-man UN team led by Bonifas attempted to trim the tree. North Korean Lt. Pak Chul arrived, escalating tensions.
  • “One of the American soldiers saw Pac take off his wristwatch and put it in his pocket... and tried to warn Boniface, but it was too late by that point. And Pac ordered the attack, basically by saying, like, I think he said, ‘kill the bastards.’ Right.” — Chuck (20:13)
• Violence Erupts: Bonifas and Lt. Mark Barrett were bludgeoned to death with dropped axes; the incident was captured on film from a distance.

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4. U.S. Government Reckons with Response (23:18–27:20)

• National Shock & Deliberations: This was the first killing of American/UN personnel in Korea since the war, igniting a crisis at the highest levels.
• Kissinger’s Hawkish Stance: Secretary of State Henry Kissinger wanted a forceful, possibly violent, response, but was outvoted due to fears of sparking a global conflict.
  • “If you sent a missile into the JSA against the North Koreans, there was a better than even chance probably that you might spark a nuclear war. World War Three.” — Josh (24:33)
• A Calculated Show of Force: The group ultimately agreed to a powerful symbolic act — cutting down the tree, but with overwhelming military backup.

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5. Operation Paul Bunyan: Planning the Showdown (27:25–32:22)

• Code Red Preparations: The U.S. raised forces to DEFCON 3 and staged the largest mobilization on the peninsula since the war. 40,000 troops, nuclear-armed bombers, helicopters, jets, and ships surrounded the JSA.
• Strategic Clarity: The U.S. communicated intentions to China and the USSR, both of whom signaled they would not intervene if North Korea started fighting.
  • “They actually got in touch with China and the USSR and basically said, hey, you know, we're thinking about doing something like this. And China and the USSR both signaled that they were not going to do anything if North Korea started fighting, that North Korea was on their own.” — Josh (35:49)
• South Korean Grit: South Korean commandos brought hidden arsenal, including M16s and even landmines strapped to their chests, without UN command approval.

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6. Operation Paul Bunyan Unfolds (41:01–42:20)

• The Felling: On August 21, 1976, at 7 am, military engineers (unarmed) cut the tree to a 10-foot stump using chainsaws, surrounded by overwhelming force on both sides.
• Surreal Symbolism: The stump left behind reportedly resembled “somebody raising their arms in surrender.” — Josh (41:22)
• No Shots Fired: North Korea did not intervene; the major confrontation was avoided, but tensions remained high.

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7. Aftermath & Legacy (42:20–48:26)

• North Korean Response: Although unapologetic initially, Kim Il Sung later expressed “regret” after Operation Paul Bunyan, signaling de-escalation.
• Protocol Changes: The JSA was reorganized; the military demarcation line is now strictly enforced. North and South patrols are firmly segregated.
• Commemoration: The tree’s stump stayed until 1986, then was replaced with a memorial plaque bluntly recounting the incident.
• Ongoing Significance: In 2022, both sides planted a “Pine Tree of Peace” at the site for symbolic reconciliation.
• Bizarre Trivia: There's now a one-hole golf “course” where the tree was, dubbed “the most dangerous hole in golf” (surrounded by landmines).
• Historians’ View: Circumstantial evidence suggests the attack was pre-planned by North Korea (e.g., near-instant propaganda broadcasts and prepared memos for non-aligned nations).

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the DMZ’s insanity:
  “It was crazy to think that these kind of shenanigans were going on without any further, you know, sort of war breaking out. They all kind of seemingly took it in stride.” — Chuck (07:34)
• Instructions for U.S. soldiers:
  “If you had to defend yourself physically because you were getting beat up, okay, but you did not shoot, you had to be shot at to draw your sidearm.” — Josh (08:11)
• Kissinger on escalation:
  “He wanted his guy Ford, back in there, obviously, so he was outvoted, like he said, thankfully. But he was like, all right, we still need a show of force... they were like, we're cutting that GD tree down.” — Chuck (25:48)
• On the poplar’s fate:
  “I just pictured this poor tree sitting there like, man, I just want to be a tree... I don't want to start World War III or be cut down.” — Chuck (31:42)
• On the tension:
  “It was my estimate, shared by many of the staff, that the operation stood a 50/50 chance of starting a war. And that would have been World War III.” — Maj. Gen. John Singlaub (31:56, cited by Chuck)
• On the aftermath:
  “The plaque on it... just kind of gets across the horrible absurdity of the whole thing.” — Josh (45:46)
• Factoid:
  “The South Korean president, Moon Jae-in, was actually one of the South Korean commandos who took part in Operation Paul Bunyan.” — Josh (46:22)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Intro, DMZ, and Korean War context: 01:49–08:53
• JSA culture and protocol: 08:53–14:07
• The poplar tree incident: 16:41–23:34
• US response & Operation Paul Bunyan planning: 23:18–32:22
• Mobilization and day-of events: 32:22–41:01
• The operation’s execution: 41:01–42:20
• De-escalation and aftermath: 42:20–48:26

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Episode Tone and Style

The conversation is both somber and lighthearted. Josh and Chuck balance grave Cold War realities (“this could have started World War III”) with characteristically wry commentary (e.g., anthropomorphizing the doomed poplar tree). They maintain a tone that is informative but accessible, taking the edge off heavy moments with quick-witted asides and pop culture references.

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This summary provides a comprehensive walkthrough of the episode, giving both the big picture and compelling details, ensuring all listeners—new and longtime fans—walk away well-informed about one of Cold War history’s strangest standoffs.

Transcript

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[Chuck Bryant]

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Welcome to Stuff youf Should Know, a production of iHeartradio.

[Josh Clark]

Hey and welcome to the podcast. I'm Josh and there's Chuck. And it's just us. And that's okay because we can support one another and ourselves. We're grown men and we feel good about about things. Especially us. Well, not especially, but equally with us. And this is stuff you should know.

[Chuck Bryant]

I mean you told me you sent me a text very early that said put on your big boy pants today.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. Cause Jerry's not showing up.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. So I got him out my breeches.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. Are they green jeans?

[Chuck Bryant]

Oh, I've got on green cords.

[Josh Clark]

No, I do.

[Chuck Bryant]

These were kind of my favorites actually. These forest green cords. Great for this time of year.

[Josh Clark]

I don't remember those. I remember some like brownish taupe y kind of shiny taupe ones. Am I making that up?

[Chuck Bryant]

No. I have cords of many Colors much like Joseph.

[Josh Clark]

Are they the thick whales or the thin whales?

[Chuck Bryant]

The thins. I don't get into the thick stuff anymore. That was 90s, Chuck. Probably.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, but I'll bet they're going to make a comeback.

[Chuck Bryant]

I betcha.

[Josh Clark]

Okay, I think we should start talking about this because we probably have some non regular listeners who have military backgrounds who are like, what the hell is this? Who want to hear about Operation Paul Bunyan, which is the point of all this. And I'm guessing just from the title, there's probably a lot of people in the military who. Who know what we're talking about already. It seems to be a fairly widespread, widely known incident that took place in 1976. We're just going to call it an incident at the dmv. Dmz. That was totally unintentional. An incident at the dmz. That's where we're going to start out calling it. We'll eventually maybe refine that over time, but we should probably talk about what the DMZ is in the first place, right?

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. And by the way, I'm looking real quick because I could have sworn this probably came from someone, but I usually make a note, and I'm not seeing that, but I am seeing that Pop Tarts came from Nelson Reynolds. So sorry for that, Nelson.

[Josh Clark]

Sorry, Nelson. Ha ha.

[Chuck Bryant]

But yeah, the dmz. I guess we should set up just sort of the. The deal between North Korea and South Korea and the United States Post World War II was the Soviets and the Americans got together and said, all right, Korea. And Korea obviously got involved and said, we're going to be two nations. Let's confuse everybody and call the Communist North Korea inside the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

[Josh Clark]

Right.

[Chuck Bryant]

And called the Democratic South Korean side just the Republic of Korea. And if you've ever heard of the 38th parallel, that's the famous dividing line between these two.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. And North Korea and South Korea got divided after World War II because there was a power vacuum and the Communists were fighting in the north and they were fighting the US Friendly South Koreans. And the North Koreans were like, this can't stand. We want the whole peninsula. And they invaded. And the Korean War broke out, like you said, and it lasted for three years. I always thought it was Americans who were fighting in Korea, but it turns out there were plenty of American troops, mostly American troops, but they were part of a UN command that was actually fighting the north along with the South Koreans.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, I think it was like 90% American forces. And you said it lasted three years. I think the Korean War is one of those that technically never ended True officially. Because, I mean, that's kind of one of those nitpicky trivia questions.

[Josh Clark]

That's a good one.

[Chuck Bryant]

That, you know, there was never an official treaty ending the war. They came to a truce or an armistice because of a stalemate, basically after three years. But I think, you know, on the books, the Korean War never technically ended.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, that's my understanding, too. Well, good point. So one of the big things about this armistice agreement was that it was like, okay, you guys, we need some separation here. And they literally separated North Korea from South Korea. Like you said, the dividing line runs roughly along the 38th parallel, but on either side of that border of north and South Korea, there's a buffer zone, the demilitarized zone, the DMZ I was referring to before, I think it's 2.4 miles wide. Total 1.2 miles on either side. And that is like, effectively the de facto border between north and South. No one's supposed to come to into that no man zone, no man's land, the dmz. But inside the dmz, there's a little tiny village called the Panmoo Jam. And I know that from Billy Joel.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, I knew he was going to come up.

[Josh Clark]

That was it. And then some of the other Korean town names that came up, like Kaesong and all this. I'm like, how do I know all these? How do they sound familiar? And then I realized watching MASH with my dad.

[Chuck Bryant]

Oh, yeah.

[Josh Clark]

And it's this little tiny militarized spot inside the demilitarized zone. And it's where North Korea and South Korea actually come together physically. Can come together in this. What's called the jsa, the Joint Security Area.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. So if they over the years, have to meet to negotiate anything, that's where they meet. That's where the governments go. There's a very famous bridge there separating the two, the Bridge of no Return. It's a very dramatic. If you look at pictures of it, it's literally like, you know, on one side is one thing, on the other side is the other. And that's where they do prisoner exchanges and stuff like that. And these days, you know, it's. Well, largely because of this incident, I think it's not the same as it was back then. No, it's very separate. Back then, the Joint Security Area was, you know, it was jointly patrolled, like, you know, North Koreans and South Korean soldiers and American soldiers were patrolling the area at the same Time there was face to face contact. They would try to intimidate one another. They would, you know, curse at one another, maybe spit at one another. The Americans would play hopscotch on the bridge. The North Koreans would, you know, drive a truck really fast toward them and slam on the brakes. They would sneak up and bang on their checkpoint barracks at night and stuff like that. It was crazy to think that these kind of shenanigans were going on without any further, you know, sort of war breaking out. They all kind of seemingly took it in stride.

[Josh Clark]

Well, that's what their orders were. The UN command troops, and the Americans in particular had specific orders to, like, if you had to defend yourself physically because you were getting beat up, okay, but you did not shoot, you had to be shot at to draw your sidearm.

[Chuck Bryant]

And.

[Josh Clark]

And that was the most powerful weapon that anyone patrolling the joint security area had. They were often outfitted with axe handles, maybe batons, and that was about it. So the Americans had strict orders not to take the bait. And North Korean troops had essentially strict orders to provoke the Americans into attacking so that they could start a war again. And it would be the Americans fault.

[Chuck Bryant]

Exactly. And this came largely from the guy in charge. I mean, you know, it came from on high, I'm sure, but it was filtered down through Captain Arthur Boniface. He was a Vietnam vet. He was the JSA company commander. He was 33 years old. He was a big dude. He was six, three, apparently super popular, like a five year figure as far as his command went. And the camp there at JSA's name, Camp Boniface after him. So you may see where this is headed. But he, you know, he believed in.

Standing your ground but not taking the bait, like you said. Like he wanted big guys down there. He wanted to kind of intimidate. But the orders were always to back off if it came to blows. And sometimes it would, like, you know, you could get beat up or something and it would not escalate further, which is just crazy to think about.

[Josh Clark]

It is. It's hard to imagine. You said that Boniface was into intimidating without doing it. Like just being physically intimidating. Yeah. If you were assigned to patrol jsa, this was a really, really high stakes area, still is today. Bill Clinton toured it in the 90s and went as far as out under the Bridge of no Return. And he said later that Panmujom is the scariest place on earth. That's a president saying that he's probably been to some scary places and at least knows about him. So that really says Quite a bit. So if you're assigned to this area, it's a big deal. And so you had to be over 6ft tall, but you also had to be laid back by nature and rather cool headed. Like even when provoked. Like they really tested the people who were assigned there.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, they'd walk up and they'd slap you and see what you did.

[Josh Clark]

They would. Apparently while they were interviewing you that you'd have no idea. They just start shouting at you out of the. Out of nowhere to see how you responded. Were they really? Yeah.

[Chuck Bryant]

Oh, wow.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, there's a really. That's a great chance to shout out. There's a Atavist article called Axes of Evil written by Josh Dean and it's. It's a really great, detailed look at this whole thing that we're talking about today.

[Chuck Bryant]

That would be A X, E S in this case, right?

[Josh Clark]

Yep. Very clever.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Hmm.

[Chuck Bryant]

Bit of a. What do you call it? We're recording early, so I can't think of the word.

[Josh Clark]

A foreshadowing.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, maybe that's it.

[Josh Clark]

Play on words, a pun.

[Chuck Bryant]

Nah, foreshadowing is probably it.

[Josh Clark]

Okay.

[Chuck Bryant]

I think people are probably concerned because I couldn't think of foreshadowing.

[Josh Clark]

I couldn't think of chemistry the other day and it drove me crazy. Oh, man. Yeah.

[Chuck Bryant]

Aging is real.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah.

[Chuck Bryant]

And a privilege, as they say. So before this incident that we're about to talk about, there was one example we should mention, when North Korean troops were kind of mussing the hair of a soldier named William Henderson and he did not take it well. I guess he was into his hair or something. He got mad, took a swing and got a, I guess a throat chop or something and got a busted larynx and such. That Bonifas wrote his wife and said, our mission here is to take the verbal abuse, the kicking, the shoving, but to not let it go any further. Major Henderson lost his cool and blew it. It's a natural reaction, but he should have known better.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. And it was a big deal. So I also saw that Henderson was provoked by a journalist who spat at him. When Henderson stood up, the journalist hit him and then finally Henderson hit him back. And then all of a sudden a bunch of North Korean troops jumped on him. But the fact that he took the bait was a big deal because he was a major. That means you're a big deal at a camp already. Like you're fairly high up. So him fighting back was. Yeah, that was a big deal.

[Chuck Bryant]

Maybe an early, earlyish break here. Seems like a good dividing line.

[Josh Clark]

I think we should. We'll take a break and we'll come back and talk about the tree that started the whole thing.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

All.

[Josh Clark]

Right.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

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[Josh Clark]

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[Chuck Bryant]

All right, Josh didn't pick up on my bad pun of the dividing line.

[Josh Clark]

Oh, what was it?

[Chuck Bryant]

I said it's a dividing line. Like, you know, the 38th parallel.

[Josh Clark]

It just is so natural that it's bad. I totally missed it. It's also early for me, too.

[Chuck Bryant]

I couldn't tell. By the way, that short stuff that you sent that we're gonna record later had a bunch of puns in it, and I didn't know if that was intentional or not.

[Josh Clark]

I can think of one, and it was intentional.

[Chuck Bryant]

There were a couple.

[Josh Clark]

Okay, you gotta point them out.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. Boy, what a little tease of a whole different episode.

[Josh Clark]

You're such a tease.

[Chuck Bryant]

So, all right, now we get to the Paul Bunyan. What instigated the Paul Bunyan incident or operation, which was this tree that you mentioned. There was a tree. It was a poplar tree near the Bridge of no Return. And the thing you need to know about this tree, well, there's a few things, but one is that it blocked the view of the line of sight between these two UN command checkpoints. And that was a big deal because you needed an open line of sight between these checkpoints because, you know, there were incidents of like, kidnapping and stuff like that and other shenanigans. And you just. You had to have that line of sight open.

[Josh Clark]

Yep.

[Chuck Bryant]

So they said the UNC was like, we got to get rid of this tree. So they sent a couple of unarmed South Korean workers down there to just sort of figure out the best way to remove it. And the first sort of reaction was the North Korean guards chased them away. So that was sort of the. The line in the sand was, get out of here. Get away from that tree.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. Apparently they tried again a couple days later and got rained out. And then finally on August 18th, they were like, okay, we're just going to go ahead and do this. Those first guys got chased off. So we're going to essentially assign a few men to escort them. I think a 15 man team went over on August 18th, led by Captain Boniface, and they started pruning the tree. Totally.

[Chuck Bryant]

They're just to prune at this point.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, they're just Pruning it back. They just want to make sure that even during summer, they can see Checkpoint three, the loneliest outpost in the world, because like you said, it's very dangerous to man that. So they're just pruning it. Right. And very quickly, the North Koreans came over the Bridge of no Return, because, remember, mind bogglingly, the joint security area was open. Like, the border didn't exist in the Joint security area. So North Koreans and. And UN Command could just go wherever they want. So the North Koreans show up at this site at the poplar tree while it's being pruned, and they're led by Lieutenant Park Chul. He was known as Lieutenant Bulldog by the UN Command troops because he was very confrontational, had provoked confrontation in the past plenty of times. And so he showed up. So you just immediately knew that this could go south pretty quickly.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. And apparently he said, you know, they wanted to keep that tree pristine because Kim Il Sung personally planted it and nourished it, and it's growing under his supervision. So apparently, or at least they said it was a special tree and to stand down.

[Josh Clark]

Yes. Because Kim Il Sung was the. He was the first Deer Leader. Kim Jong Un is his grandson.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. And so the idea that Deer Leader planted that tree, I don't know if that's true.

I never saw that. I just saw it, like, stated here or there. But at the very least, Park Cheol said that, right?

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Yeah.

[Chuck Bryant]

I'm not sure if I buy that, given what we now have sort of suspected about this being a provocation, which we'll get to. But that sounds to me like, hey, let's tell him that, you know, it's a special tree.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. Like, he's like. Park Cheol seemed like the kind who would just load you up on BS just to mess with you.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. So he called for even more reinforcements. I think about 30 more North Korean guards showed up. He ordered Captain Boniface to stop, but he turned his back on him, which I think was, you know, a pretty big insult on top of everything else. And as the story goes, one of the American soldiers saw Pac take off his wristwatch and put it in his pocket, which is, I guess, akin to, like, Fonsi taking off his leather jacket like it's about to happen, and tried to warn Boniface, but it was too late by that point. And Pac ordered. Ordered the attack, basically by saying, like, I think he said, kill the bastards. Right.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. I saw a 1977 Army War College report on the incident, and that's what they Said, so I'm prone to believe them.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah.

[Josh Clark]

But he said it in Korean, obviously.

[Chuck Bryant]

Right.

[Josh Clark]

But right after that, the men attacked. And actually, I saw Lieutenant Park Cheol assaulted Captain Bonifas, who had again, his back to Pak Chul. He hit him with the karate chop in the back of his neck and dropped Captain Boniface. And very, very sadly, Captain Boniface never got to his feet again. Like, immediately, he was set upon by saw five to six North Korean troops just started being beaten by them. And I guess the people who were cutting the tree had a couple of axes, these civilians, and they dropped their axes and ran. And the North Korean troops picked up the axes. And here is where the reason that this is called the DMZ Axe incident begins.

[Chuck Bryant]

That's right. So Boniface was bludgeoned to death by these guys attacking him. And you can watch this like it was caught on film. It's very chaotic. You can't really get. I mean, it's kind of from far away, so you can't get a lot of detail right. But, you know, there are still shots in film of this stuff going on. So he was bludgeoned. First Lieutenant Mark Barrett was also beaten to death. He was chased down over a retaining wall. And, you know, sort of the. I mean, it's sad enough as it is, but Boniface was due to go home to his wife and three kids in three days. So it made it, you know, sort of especially brutal.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. And not like, for a visit. Like, this is his last three days in Korea, where he was murdered by an ax by North Korean troops. It's almost like a parody. Like, it's almost too crazy to believe that that's how close he was to leaving Korea. He was also going to be promoted to major, too. Like, he was. His life was, like, looking up when he was murdered.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. Really sad.

[Josh Clark]

So this was a really, really big deal. As you can imagine, this is the first time that any UN Command troops and any Americans had been killed in Korea since the end of the Korean War. It was a huge provocation. And there was a big question now on the table. What is the United States military going to do so that two of its. Two of its officers were murdered by axe by North Korean troops, totally unprovoked. This was 100% the North Koreans doing this. So much their fault that, like you said, it almost seems like it was possibly set up. We'll talk about that a little bit later. And so there was a big. A big question that needed to be answered and answered really fast. And that Was how are we going to respond to this? Yeah.

[Chuck Bryant]

So on the US Side, at the time, we had Henry Kissinger as the Secretary of State under President Gerald Ford. Like we mentioned, it was 76. So it was the election year between Ford and Jimmy Carter. And Ford learned about the incident when he was at the Republican National Convention. And obviously, as Secretary of State, Kissinger was kind of in charge of figuring out what to do. Calls together the Washington Special Action Group, which was a task force that was formed in 69 out of Vietnam to deal with, like, sort of any emergencies like this that came up. And it's Henry Kissinger. So he's like, we should bomb the barracks. Like, he wants to flatten the barracks of the guards that attack them and react really strongly and send a, you know, a big message that this will not stand.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, I mean, I can kind of understand that impulse. He was apparently the only one in the Special Action Group that wanted to respond with a violent action. And the reason why was because this is such a flashpoint still today. But at this time, I mean, it was like we were still in the middle of the Cold War. So to us, not only was this North Korea, this is also China and the USSR right behind them. Right?

[Chuck Bryant]

Oh, yeah.

[Josh Clark]

So if you sent a missile into the JSA against the North Koreans, there was a better than even chance probably that you might spark a nuclear war. World War Three.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah.

[Josh Clark]

And luckily, cooler heads prevail. But Kissinger had. I think he was probably a little paranoid. I would guess he's very widely reviled, including by me. So I'm pretty sure he was at least a little paranoid. I mean, he started out in the Nixon administration, for goodness sake. But he was also. His position was also that this was a provocation by the north to test America's resolve because it was an election year. They were trying to interfere with the election to make the point of Gerald Ford's opponent, Jimmy Carter, who was saying, we need to get troops out of Korea. We don't have any business being there anymore. So Kissinger thought this is North Korea doing this to basically show that the Americans didn't belong here anymore and just to get out wasn't worth it. Basically.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. And I get the idea. I mean, I was but five at the time, not super into politics yet, but I get the idea that getting American troops out of Korea was probably a pretty popular idea that Carter was laying out.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. Especially after Vietnam.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, well. And Kissinger was still ticked off about Vietnam. So he was like, if we don't do this. It's going to send a message that to other Asian countries and the USSR and China that we have no resolve and that we're going to stand down. And, you know, he wanted his guy Ford, back in there, obviously, so he was outvoted, like he said, thankfully. But he was like, all right, we still need a show of force. Like, we need to do something. And the one thing that everybody in the room agreed on, even if it was. I mean, I know it was somewhat strategical, but it was also symbolic. They were like, we're cutting that GD tree down. No matter what anyone else says, we're gonna cut that thing down. And they were all like, harrumph, harrumph.

[Josh Clark]

So, yeah, they decided, okay, we're not going to actually destroy anything. We're not gonna fire any missiles. We're not gonna kill anybody. But that doesn't mean we're not going to show them that we could do that if we wanted to.

[Chuck Bryant]

Right.

[Josh Clark]

And what they came up with was known as Operation Paul Bunyan, which is one of the better names of any operation I've ever heard.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, totally. It was under command of General Richard Stilwell. He was the commander in chief of the UN command there. And the message, like you said, was to sort of intimidate, show that we could do something if we wanted to. They had 40,000 troops over there that were. I mean, Dave says here it was raised to Defcon 3, which is somewhat counterintuitive because it's raising a number, even though it's being lowered. Right?

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, yeah. Right in the middle between one and five, and one's the highest. It is very confusing.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. So you're raising DEF Con, but the number goes lower. It took me a second to figure that out. But I have seen War Games, so I know how it works. And I did just see the House of Dynamite. Have you seen that yet? The new Kathryn Bigelow movie?

[Josh Clark]

No.

[Chuck Bryant]

I think it's a Netflix movie about sort of a modern, you know, what would happen if nuclear arms were launched. Like, what would we do? So it's a very tense thing, and there's lots of DEFCON talk.

And I liked a lot of it.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah.

[Chuck Bryant]

I mean, I say that.

[Josh Clark]

I can get that. I think she's directly funded by the CIA. Honestly, Kathryn Bigelow? Yeah.

[Chuck Bryant]

She definitely has her niche, you know?

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, for sure.

[Chuck Bryant]

I would recommend it. I didn't care for the third act.

[Josh Clark]

That much, but House of Dynamite, I.

[Chuck Bryant]

Think that's what it's called.

[Josh Clark]

Great name.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Yeah.

[Chuck Bryant]

I mean, you Get Idris Elba as the president. So that's always a good move, I'll say that.

[Josh Clark]

Wait, you're talking about that he's in it with John Cena. John Cena is the American president and Idris Elba is the prime minister, and they actually end up being, like, action heroes.

[Chuck Bryant]

No, Idris Elba is the American president. John Cena, he's nowhere to be found.

[Josh Clark]

I'm thinking of something else.

[Chuck Bryant]

Then you're thinking of something else. Anyway, Operation Paul Bunyan is set up for. I know I'm saying Bunyan, but that's just because of my weird accent. It's Bunyan. August 21st. This is three days after the Axe attack. And what they were going to do was mobilize sort of the largest mobilization of our forces and defenses on the Korean peninsula since that 53 armistice. With some pretty heavy artillery and airships and sea ships.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. I mean, remember when Captain Boniface went to escort the tree trimmers? There were 15 people. Now there's 800 men involved in this tree trimming. And it's not even a tree trimming at this point. Right now. They're aiming to, like, cut the tree down.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, they hate this tree at this point.

[Josh Clark]

Right. They want that tree dead, especially if they think that Dear Leader planted it. Right. This tree has now become super symbolic. Blood has been shed to prune this tree. And you said that there was a ton of artillery and armaments as part of the show of force, and boy, you got it right.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. I mean, they had flying overhead in clear view so everyone could see, you know, what was going on. They had 20 Huey helicopters. They had 12 Cobra gunships, man, 12 B52 bombers, tank Buster, F4 Phantom fighter jets, F111 strategic bombs. I mean, they're pulling out all the stops. And off the coast, they had the usss. Did I say three S's or two? USS Midway, four frigates, and a cruiser and aircraft taking off, flying overhead. I mean, it was a real show of intimidation.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. Those B52s that take the intimidation even further were flying inside North Korean airspace, not too far from Pyongyang. They were also strapped with nukes. There were nuclear missiles in this theater. Now, not just the B52s carrying them, but those F111s were also carrying nuclear warheads as missiles. So the idea is here, as part of Operation Paul Bunyan, is to trim the tree or cut the tree down now and to also show North Korea like, you do not want to mess with us. Do not ever do Anything like that again. And to be prepared that if North Korea did do something, if they were provoked by this tree cutting down, that they would just be essentially wiped off the map as a, as a nation.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, for sure. And, you know, the whole after I was studying all this, right in the middle of it, I got weirdly, very sad for this tree.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, I saw that tree in the middle. I've seen other people refer to as the poor tree.

[Chuck Bryant]

I know, because in the middle of all this stuff, I mean, these, you know, bombers are flying overhead and these troops are amassing this heavy artillery on each side of the bridge. And I just picture that, you know, I know I'm anthropomorpizing. I always say that wrong. Say it for me.

[Josh Clark]

Anthropomorphizing.

[Chuck Bryant]

That's right.

[Josh Clark]

You just said it slowly.

[Chuck Bryant]

That's right, this tree. But I just pictured this poor tree sitting there like, man, I just want to be a tree.

[Josh Clark]

I wish I were a shrub.

[Chuck Bryant]

I don't want to start World War III or be cut down.

[Josh Clark]

I know that tree did not get their wish.

[Chuck Bryant]

I'll grow slower, I promise.

[Josh Clark]

Right here I can just shed a few limbs.

[Chuck Bryant]

So Major General John Singlau. Dave helped us with this, found a quote that just showed how serious this was. And he said it was my estimate shared by many of the staff, that the operation stood a 50, 50 chance of starting a war. And that would have been World War iii.

[Josh Clark]

Absolutely. A nuclear war. This tree tree cutting operation could have sparked World War iii. No joke. Again, that is how tense things are at the dmz even still to this day.

[Chuck Bryant]

All right, should we take a break?

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, let's take a break and then we're going to talk about Operation Paul Bunyan. Commencing.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Support for this show comes from Public, the investing platform for those who take it seriously. On Public, you can build a multi asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, crypto and now generated assets which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index. With AI, it all starts with your prompt. From renewable energy companies with high free cash flow to semiconductor suppliers growing revenue over 20% year over year. You can literally type any prompt and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, buys one of a kind index and lets you back test it against the S&P 500. Then you can invest in a few clicks. Generated assets are like ETFs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable and based on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.comsysk and earn an uncapped 1% bonus. When you transfer your portfolio. That's public.comsysk paid for by Public Investing Brokerage Services by Open to the Public Investing Inc. Member FINRA and SIPC Advisory Services by Public Advisors, llc. SEC Registered Advisor Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is not an investment recommendation or advice. Complete disclosures available at public.com disclosures this.

Is Rob Gronkowski from Dudes on Dudes with Gronk and Jules for the second season in a row, I partnered with T Mobile's Friday night 5G lights, powering up hometown football across America. This year T mobile invested over $4 million in prizes to help schools take their Friday nights to the next level. The votes are in and now it's time to crown our $1 million grand prize winner. Congratulations to Derrick's High school in Derrick's, Arkansas, home of the Outlaws and your 2020 5T mobile Friday night 5G lights champion. The Outlaws and their community rallied to help them score a game changing home field upgrade, a Gronk Fitness weight room makeover, an epic 2026 tailgate party and a VIP trip to the SEC Championship game. To every school that competed posted and rallied your communities. Thank you and to T Mobile for making it all possible. This season may be over, but the story isn't. Stay tuned. But for season three in 2026, congratulations again to Derek's High School Outlaws.

[Josh Clark]

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So Chuck, this is not a reckless thing. As a matter of fact this was really calculated. You mentioned General Stilwell who is in charge of every American troop in in Korea. He personally came up with this plan and he was not a war hawk. But he also it was a really good plan. Especially if all of the troops like followed orders and nobody tried anything provocative and nobody took any bait from the North Koreans. It was a very good plan but the United States was not reckless in carrying out this plan. They actually got in touch with China and the USSR and basically said hey, you know, we're thinking about doing something like this. And China and the USSR both signaled that they were not going to do anything if North Korea started fighting, that North Korea was on their own. I think they blinked twice and pulled their left earlobe and then touched the bill of their cap. And the United States is like, oh, we gotcha. So now it was a little less tense. Even though it could still start a war with North Korea, at least we had this idea that China and the USSR wouldn't immediately intervene.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. I immediately thought of Dr. Strangelove, and I could just hear Peter Sellers on the phone going, well, Dimitri, you see, there's this tree.

[Josh Clark]

That'S perfect.

[Chuck Bryant]

It's so great. I think we didn't mention, too, that the actual tree cutting was gonna be done by unarmed military engineers that they sent forward. Yeah, I mean, the fact that they weren't armed is kind of neither here nor there because there were so many arms. I think the people actually on the bridge supposedly just had, like, these clubs and axe handles and sidearms, but both sides of the bridge were stocked with heavy artillery from both sides. And I also saw that the Korean. South Korean faction that was assisting us, they rolled in and blocked the bridge. And I don't think they were supposed to have anything more than just pistols, but they unloaded a bunch of sandbags and had a bunch of M16s hidden that they took out.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. They also showed that they had claymore mines, landmines strapped to their chests, and they had the detonators in their other hand and were daring the North Koreans to come get them because they would blow themselves up. And the North Koreans. And this had not been passed by the UN Command force or anything like that. No one had any idea that the South Korean commandos were going to do something like that because, again, we're trying to not let this be any more tense than it already is. And all of a sudden, there's essentially suicide bombers on the scenes, like, mocking the North Koreans. So that definitely altered things a little bit.

[Chuck Bryant]

Playmore with claymore.

[Josh Clark]

Oh, yeah, I forgot that. I knew that from being a kid. Where'd you hear that? Is it just from the military and it trickled out?

[Chuck Bryant]

No, I thought it was the Simpsons, wasn't it?

[Josh Clark]

No, I think it was like a. Maybe in a Rambo or something. Like, there's no way I would have known that as a kid otherwise.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Yeah.

[Chuck Bryant]

Okay. I can't remember where I heard it first, but at any rate, it's a very tense scene. I think we've setting that up. And again, you know, we had orders not to provoke. Like, our mission is to cut that tree down, but all hell's gonna break loose if anything happens. And like you mentioned, North Korea had some pretty decent incentive to kind of start some fighting. They didn't want World War iii, but they wanted to, you know, they wanted South Korea still at this point.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. Plus also Kim Il Sung, the Dear Leader. The first Dear Leader. He was a. A communist guerrilla fighting the Japanese in World War II. He was battle hardened and tested.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah.

[Josh Clark]

So he was totally into fighting. He wasn't like a dove or a diplomat at all.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah. And I think we did mention too, that the previous tree trimming, supposedly we had told them that this was going to happen. And so the whole provocation to begin with, if they knew about it ahead of time, then they came down there with that knowledge because they didn't raise any objections, apparently. We were like, hey, we gonna trim this tree so we can have a better line of sight, and you'll have a better line of sight. And no one said anything, you know, to the contrary. So the whole thing was really a provocation by the North Koreans.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, absolutely. That was the first time when Captain Boniface and Lieutenant Barrett got murdered. Right?

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, exactly. Which again, made it sort of seem like it was planned to begin with.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, for sure. So at 0700 hours, that's 7am on August 21, 1976, Operation Paul Bunyan commences. And like you said, I mean, basically what we described there was there was an order not to engage. I mean, essentially if the North Koreans started unloading with sniper fire or machine guns, then yes, we're going to engage. And it was a very tense operation. But they, they got in there. The military engineers cut the tree essentially down to a ten foot stump. They were using, I read, Vietnam era issue chainsaws that weren't in very good shape. So it took them a little while, but it took him about 45 minutes to complete the whole thing.

[Chuck Bryant]

And they should have sent out Leatherface.

[Josh Clark]

He should have.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

He could have gotten that done in 10 minutes.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, but they left this big stump with a two, like it was branching at the top. And one of the soldiers who was at the scene said that it had looked like somebody raising their arms in surrender. Like the North Koreans were surrendering.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, I saw that Kissinger tried to get a carving artist in there to shape it in the form of a middle finger.

[Josh Clark]

Right. Those guys are great, the chainsaw artists, man.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, it's pretty amazing.

[Josh Clark]

I Don't know if the intent was ever to cut down the entire tree. I don't think that that was the plan even in the second time, even in Operation Paul Bunyan. But they left this stump. Everybody on the US side just went back out. They just withdrew. The operation was successful, but things were still quite tense.

It wasn't clear whether North Korea was going to respond still, just because the operation was done and now there weren't a bunch of troops, America or the UN Command, they just kept patrolling the joint security area like it was any other day, because that's what it was supposed to be. Even though this operation had commenced, it was now over. So things were supposed to go back to normal, but we still had no idea what North Korea was going to do.

[Chuck Bryant]

So, you know, pretext to this was they were very unapologetic about the whole incident leading up to that, like after. After Captain Boniface and Lieutenant Barrett were killed. But after Paul Bunyan, they thankfully backed off. There wasn't like an expressed apology, but President Kim Il Sung did express regret for those deaths. So they clearly were sort of backing down at this point, much to everyone's relief. And it was this incident that basically everyone was like, hey, you know what? Maybe we didn't think this through, how this thing operates with these guys all being here in the same place at all times. And so it's set up much differently now. So you. The actual line that runs the length of the DMC is the actual dividing line, even through the gsa, the jsa?

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, that dividing line, the Military Demarcation Line, that is the actual border, as far as I understand, between North Korea and South Korea, with the DMZ buffers on either side of it. And they just ignored it in the jsa. But then they started enforcing it. So now the North Korean troops and the UN command troops do not intermingle, even though their posts are feet away from one another. Yeah, it would be a really big deal for one to attack the other because you would be crossing the border now. There's no free.

[Chuck Bryant]

That's an invasion.

[Josh Clark]

It would be an enormous deal. It'd be an international incident. And in fact, there was something like that in 1984. There was a Soviet exchange student who was on a tour with the North Koreans who ran across the border to defect into the west. And a firefight started that resulted in the deaths of three. Three North Koreans and one UN command South Korean soldier. And it was a huge, again, an international incident because some of the North Korean troops had run across the Demarcation line to chase after the defector.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, for sure. So everyone is, like, pretty happy and considered it a success, except for Kissinger, of course. The North Koreans backed down really quickly. So it really didn't give him any chance during this election year to kind of tout some big victory of America. I mean, it was a victory, but I don't think it was like some huge international news thing. He still wanted them to have blown up the barracks or to have taken out like a warship or two as a big show of force. So everyone was pretty stoked, except for old Henry.

[Josh Clark]

So they left that poplar tree there as a reminder, a monument of sorts, actually, until the 10th anniversary of the axe murder incident on August 18, 1986. They pulled the tree out, stump and all, roots and all, and replaced it with a memorial. And there's a plaque on it that reads, on this spot was located the yellow poplar tree, which was the focal point of the axe murders of two United nations command officers, Captain Arthur Boniface and First Lieutenant Mark Barrett, who were attacked and killed by North Korean guards while supervising a work party, trimming the tree on the 18th of August, 1976. And it's just so plainly put, without any flowery language, that it also just kind of gets across the horrible absurdity of the whole thing.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, for sure. And just a few Years ago in 2022, there was a sort of a joint show of not friendship, but, like, maybe we should kind of literally put this to rest by planting a tree. I think the presidents of the two countries got together in the JSA to plant a pine tree of peace. And they took turns shoveling soil from each side, watered it with rivers from each side, and the pine tree of peace became, you know, and right now is sort of a big symbol of kind of what happened there. And maybe let's try and just chill things out a little bit.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. What made it even more significant was that the South Korean president, Moon Jae in, was actually one of the South Korean commandos who took part in Operation Paul Bunyan.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, it's crazy.

[Josh Clark]

And then there's one other little note that I found pretty interesting. There's a one hole par three. Well, golf, I don't think you could call it a course, but it's like an astroturf. Well, a par three that's surrounded by landmines now, where the poplar tree used to be. And it's called the most dangerous hole in golf from Sports Illustrated.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, and we never really said, you know, we kind of hinted around that this might have been all planned to begin with. And there is circumstantial evidence that suggest that that whole attack was pre planned to begin with. Because I mentioned that we had gotten in touch with them and said, hey, we're going to prune this tree. And no one really said like, no, don't do that. And so that attack seemingly came out of nowhere. But one big clue was, I think three minutes after this incident occurred, Radio Pyongyang, which is the North Korean state radio, they broadcast a very biased report on this, like right after it happened. So it seems pretty clear that it was pre planned. But analysis later on seems to indicate that the Soviets did not know about it and they were kind of acting on their own.

[Josh Clark]

No, I saw one other piece of circumstantial evidence too that kind of is pretty definitive is that within five hours there was a non aligned nation, which were the nations during the Cold War, who didn't choose sides. All of them were meeting in Korea. And within five hours, Korean delegates were at that meeting handing out memos describing this, the axe murders, and totally blaming it on the Americans, like had completely flipped it around in an effort to kind of drum up support to get the Americans out. So that's. It does seem pretty likely that the North Koreans planned the axe murders.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, agreed.

[Josh Clark]

You got anything else?

[Chuck Bryant]

I got nothing else.

[Josh Clark]

This is a good one, man. Hats off to the person or people who suggested it and maybe listen out for a future random episode where we thank you for it.

[Chuck Bryant]

I couldn't find it. I might have found this on my own.

[Josh Clark]

I'll help you look.

[Chuck Bryant]

You know what? I think I was looking for live show topics and came across this.

[Josh Clark]

Oh, cool. Yeah, this would have been a good one, but there's a lot of downers too.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah.

[Josh Clark]

Not a lot of jokey, ridiculous stuff.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah.

[Josh Clark]

Do you have anything else?

[Chuck Bryant]

I do. I do not.

[Josh Clark]

Okay, well, that means it's time for listener man.

[Chuck Bryant]

I'm going to call this the pain of preemption, because that's what Michael called it. Hey, guys. Love the Saturday morning cartoon episode. I was born in 84 and watched them well into high school. Your episode covered a lot, but you left out one thing. The pain of preemption. Local channels carried. The big networks would often cut off the cartoons to show golf, baseball, or other sports. And as a kid, I know I never knew when this was gonna happen. Just suddenly, the joy of cartoon was abruptly halted. Show a golf match that no kid would care about. I never got to see the Christmas special. Christopher the Christmas Tree or the last episode of Ultimate Muscle. I haven't heard of either one of those.

[Josh Clark]

I haven't either, but I still feel for him.

[Chuck Bryant]

He said, I don't want to bring down the room, but it's important to remember that those wonderful mornings could be broken at any time. Thanks for making such a great show. That is from Michael J. Crandall. And I forgot to mention Michael. His initial salutation was dear Mike and Josh.

[Josh Clark]

Wow, he's got himself on the brain. I know. Well, that was a great email, Michael, and thank you to Mike for reading it.

[Chuck Bryant]

Okay, I'll be Mike.

[Josh Clark]

No, you're not Mike, you're Chuck. Everybody knows that.

[Chuck Bryant]

That's my brother's middle name too, though.

[Josh Clark]

So I can apply. Yeah, Scott Mike.

[Chuck Bryant]

Oh, no, no, no. That's his first name. I forget my brother and my sister. Their middle name is their name, which is interesting. I'm not sure why that happened.

[Josh Clark]

This has gotten so confusing to me.

[Chuck Bryant]

He's Michael Scott.

[Josh Clark]

Is he really?

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah.

[Josh Clark]

That's awesome. Why are you not calling him that all the time?

[Chuck Bryant]

I don't know. I probably should. I mean, that's the office guy, right?

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Chuck Bryant]

I never have thought about that until right now.

[Josh Clark]

Well, that's what I'm going to call him from now on.

[Chuck Bryant]

All right.

[Josh Clark]

Okay. If you want to be like Michael Crandall, not Michael Scott, and send us an email, we would love that. Please do. You can send it off to stuffpodcastheartradio.com.

[Podcast Announcer]

Stuff youf Should Know is a production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts My Heart Radio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Support for the show comes from Public, the investing platform for those who take it seriously. On Public, you can build a multi asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, crypto and now generated assets which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index. With AI. It all starts with your prompt. From renewable energy companies with high free cash flow to semiconductor suppliers growing revenue over over 20% year over year, you can literally type any prompt and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one of a kind index and lets you back test it against the S&P 500. Then you can invest in a few clicks. Generated assets are like EFTs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable and based on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com podcast and earn an uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com podcast paid for by Public Investing Brokerage Services by Open to the Public Investing Inc. Member FINRA SIPC Advisory Services by Public Advisors, llc SEC Registered Advisor Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is not investment recommendation or advice. Complete disclosures available at public.com disclosures hey audiobook lovers. I'm Kalpin.

[Josh Clark]

I'm Ed Helms.

[Chuck Bryant]

Ed and I are inviting you to.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Join the best sounding book club you've ever heard with our new podcast, Earsay, the Audible and iHeart Audiobook Club.

[Chuck Bryant]

Each week we sit down with your favorite iHeart podcast hosts and some very special guests to discuss the latest and greatest audiobooks from Audible.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Listen to Hearsay on America's number one podcast network, iHeart. Follow earsay and start listening on the free iHeartradio app today.

What a matchup we got, y'.

[Josh Clark]

All.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

This is that classic HBC non stop action. The band is rocking and the crowd lit. Chance echo drum beat everybody showing that school pride game like this. Yeah, it calls for an ice cold Coca Cola. Ah, crisp and refreshing. That's a game changer right there.

Yeah, that taste always hits the right note. Just like the band at halftime. And just like that, we're back at it. Passionate fans, school colors everywhere and an ice cold Coca Cola. That's a winning combo no matter the sport, no matter the yard. Everybody knows fan work is thirsty work. So grab a Coca Cola and keep that HBCU pride going.

[Podcast Announcer]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[Chuck Bryant]

Guaranteed Human.