The 1930s

The party's over — Wall Street's crash ripples into a global depression as the world braces for hard times.

The Depression deepens as banks fail, empires strain, and the world's tallest building pierces the New York skyline.

Rock bottom — the Depression hits its nadir as hunger marches fill the streets and Roosevelt promises a New Deal.

Roosevelt launches the New Deal while Hitler seizes power in Germany — two radically different responses to crisis.

Dust Bowl devastation and Bonnie and Clyde's violent end — America lurches between despair and a slow, fragile recovery.

Swing is king, Social Security is born, and Mussolini marches into Ethiopia as the world looks the other way.

Abdication, Berlin Olympics, and Spanish Civil War — a year of dramatic upheaval and ominous portents.

The Hindenburg explodes, Guernica burns, and Snow White dwarfs the competition at the box office.

Peace in our time — Chamberlain's Munich gamble buys a year while the world holds its breath.

The lights go out across Europe — World War II begins as Germany invades Poland.