Dan Carlin#Hardcore History

Daniel L. Carlin was born in Los Angeles County, California, on November 14, 1965.{{cite web |title=Daniel L Carlin born on November 14, 1965 in Los Angeles County, California. |url=https://www.californiabirthindex.org/birth/daniel_l_carlin_born_1965_9097333 |access-date=22 October 2023 |website=California Birth Index}} He is the son of Academy Award nominated actress Lynn Carlin and film producer Ed Carlin.{{Cite news |last=Hart |first=Benjamin |date=2015-11-12 |title=America's Best History Teacher Doesn't Work at a School |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/dan-carlin-hardcore-history_us_5643b5b5e4b08cda34875511 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170907061830/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/dan-carlin-hardcore-history_us_5643b5b5e4b08cda34875511 |archive-date=2017-09-07 |access-date=2017-11-06 |work=Huffington Post |language=en-US}}{{Cite news |date=2016-07-15 |title=Political podcaster Dan Carlin has an unusual spin on rage |url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-ca-anger-podcaster-20160706-snap-story.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107055208/http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-ca-anger-podcaster-20160706-snap-story.html |archive-date=2017-11-07 |access-date=2017-11-07 |work=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US |issn=0458-3035}}

Carlin obtained a B.A. degree in history from the University of Colorado Boulder.{{cite podcast |host=Dan Carlin |url=http://www.dancarlin.com//disp.php/csarchive/Show-276---Past-Transgressions/rotest-1960s-radical |title=Common Sense Archive: Show 276 - Past Transgressions |date=8 June 2014 |access-date=10 June 2014 |time=16 minutes |website=dancarlin.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140621034600/http://www.dancarlin.com/disp.php/csarchive/Show-276---Past-Transgressions/rotest-1960s-radical |archive-date=21 June 2014 |url-status=dead}}

Carlin broke into the television news business in Los Angeles in the late 1980s and covered the 1992 Los Angeles riots.{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zgctx6nmCw |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/_zgctx6nmCw |archive-date=2021-12-21 |url-status=live|title=Dan Carlin: "The New Golden Age of Oral Historical Storytelling" {{!}} Talks at Google|website=YouTube|access-date=2017-11-06}}{{cbignore}} He has worked as a television news reporter, an author, a columnist, and a radio talk show host.{{citation needed|date=June 2021}} Carlin has also achieved recognition in internet radio, podcasting, and the blogosphere.{{Citation needed|date=February 2025}}

Carlin lives in Eugene, Oregon, and was formerly a reporter for KVAL-TV.{{cite news|last1=CIPOLLE|first1=ALEX V.|title=Q&A with Hardcore History's Dan Carlin: Print Edition|url=http://www.eugeneweekly.com/20141224/culture/qa-hardcore-history%E2%80%99s-dan-carlin|access-date=1 March 2016|publisher=Eugene Weekly|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180127025222/http://www.eugeneweekly.com/20141224/culture/qa-hardcore-history%E2%80%99s-dan-carlin|archive-date=27 January 2018|url-status=dead}}

Common Sense began in 2005, and is similar in scope to several Carlin-hosted radio programs that aired between 1994 and 2004.{{Cite web|url=http://www.dailyemerald.com/2003/01/06/kugns-un-savage-broadcasting/|title=KUGN's un-Savage broadcasting|last=Archives|first=Daily Emerald|website=Emerald Media|access-date=2016-04-15|archive-date=2016-04-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160423181359/http://www.dailyemerald.com/2003/01/06/kugns-un-savage-broadcasting/|url-status=live}} He has described his political philosophy as "neoprudentist", taking a skeptical approach to evaluation of the current political trends and forces. He fosters discussion by developing and presenting self-deprecating ("Martian") thought experiments on solutions to current problems. The podcasts are said to be broadcast "almost live from the end of runway two here at the Emerald International Airport."{{citation needed|date=December 2022}}

Common Sense was nominated for a Podcast Award in the Politics/News category in 2012 and 2013.{{cite web|title=The People's Choice Podcast Awards |url=http://podcastawards.com/ |website=The Podcast Award |publisher=PodcastAwards.com |access-date=5 May 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100106083424/http://podcastawards.com/ |archive-date=6 January 2010 }} The podcast, as of 2016, generated about 700,000 downloads per episode. Common Sense went through an almost two-year hiatus beginning in May 2018 and ending on April 1, 2020, with episode 319: "A Recipe for Caesar."

{{Main|Hardcore History}}

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|quote = Carlin's podcasts are hardly reminiscent of the dry history lectures you might remember from school. Carlin puts the "hardcore" in Hardcore History by focusing his narratives on the most violent and dramatic moments in human history, filling his show with colorful anecdotes that were most likely left out of your high school history class.

|source = — Christopher R. Matthews{{cite magazine|last1=Matthews|first1=Christopher|title=Despite Being Oh-So 2005, Podcasting Is Drawing Listeners and Advertisers Alike|url=https://business.time.com/2013/08/29/despite-being-oh-so-2005-podcasting-is-drawing-listeners-and-advertisers-alike/|access-date=May 5, 2015|magazine=Time|publisher=Time Inc.|date=August 29, 2013|archive-date=April 28, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150428185239/http://business.time.com/2013/08/29/despite-being-oh-so-2005-podcasting-is-drawing-listeners-and-advertisers-alike/|url-status=live}}

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Hardcore History is Carlin's forum for exploring topics throughout world history. The focus of each episode varies widely from show to show but they are generally centered on specific historical events and are discussed in a "theater of the mind" style. New episodes are released approximately every four to seven months.{{cite news |author=Staff Writer |url=https://www.inlander.com/spokane/the-buzz-bin/Content?oid=17812483 |title=New music, Wanda Sykes, Hardcore History and more you need to know |work=Inlander |date=2019-06-20 |access-date=2019-10-30 |quote=New episodes come out about every six months |archive-date=2019-06-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190621134121/https://www.inlander.com/spokane/the-buzz-bin/Content?oid=17812483 |url-status=live }}

Hardcore History, which has millions of downloads per episode, received over 350,000 downloads in a 24-hour period on May 6, 2015.{{Cite web|url=http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/06/23/obama-interview-sets-download-record-for-maron-podcast/?_r=1|title=Obama Interview Sets Download Record for Maron Podcast|last=Itzkoff|first=Dave|website=ArtsBeat|date=23 June 2015|access-date=2016-04-15|archive-date=2016-05-30|archive-url=https://archive.today/20160530102910/http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/06/23/obama-interview-sets-download-record-for-maron-podcast/?_r=1|url-status=live}} It was nominated in 2012 for a Stitcher Award in the Best Educational & Learning Podcast category.{{cite web|url=http://stitcher.promotw.com/ |title=The 2012 Stitcher Awards |access-date=November 21, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121112090209/http://stitcher.promotw.com/ |archive-date=November 12, 2012 }} In addition, Carlin has received the Best Classic Podcast in iTunes' Best of 2014 awards,{{Cite news|url = http://www.eugeneweekly.com/20141224/culture/qa-hardcore-history%E2%80%99s-dan-carlin|title = Q&A with Hardcore History's Dan Carlin: Print Edition|last = CIPOLLE|first = ALEX V.|date = December 24, 2014|work = Eugene Weekly|access-date = May 5, 2015|via = EUGENEWEELY.COM|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180127025222/http://www.eugeneweekly.com/20141224/culture/qa-hardcore-history%E2%80%99s-dan-carlin|archive-date = January 27, 2018|url-status = dead}} Best Educational Podcast of 2015 from the Podcast Awards,{{Cite web|url=https://www.podcastawards.com/past-winners|title=Podcast Awards - Past Winners 2005-2016|website=www.podcastawards.com|language=en-gb|access-date=2018-11-15|archive-date=2019-12-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191210111901/https://www.podcastawards.com/past-winners|url-status=live}} Best History Podcast of 2018 from the IHeartRadio Podcast Awards,{{Cite web|url=https://www.iheart.com/podcast-awards/|title=iHeartRadio Podcast Awards|website=iHeartRadio Podcast Awards|language=en|access-date=2019-01-23|archive-date=2020-05-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200521201429/https://www.iheart.com/podcast-awards/|url-status=live}} and in a top 25 best podcasts list in anniversary of 10 years of podcasts, Slate ranked Dan Carlin's 2009 episode "Ghosts of the Ostfront", regarding the Eastern Front of World War II, the fifth best podcast of all time.{{Cite news|url=http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/ten_years_in_your_ears/2014/12/best_podcast_episodes_ever_the_25_best_from_serial_to_the_ricky_gervais.html|title=The 25 Best Podcast Episodes Ever|last1=Haglund|first1=David|date=2014-12-14|work=Slate|access-date=2019-10-29|last2=Onion|first2=Rebecca|language=en-US|issn=1091-2339|archive-date=2016-09-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160911142432/http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/ten_years_in_your_ears/2014/12/best_podcast_episodes_ever_the_25_best_from_serial_to_the_ricky_gervais.html|url-status=live}}

Hardcore History: Addendum is an ancillary podcast feed which features "interviews, musings and extra material" that are more short form and deemed not to fit into the main Hardcore History feed.{{Cite web|url=https://dchhaddendum.libsyn.com/|title=Dan Carlin's Hardcore History: Addendum|website=dchhaddendum.libsyn.com|language=en|access-date=2018-07-16|archive-date=2018-07-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180716194914/https://dchhaddendum.libsyn.com/|url-status=live}} In addition to interviewing historians, notable guests interviewed include Elon Musk, Tom Hanks, Malcolm Gladwell and Max Brooks.{{Cite web |title=Dan Carlin's Hardcore History: Addendum: EP19 Asymmetrical Perspectives |url=https://dchhaddendum.libsyn.com/ep19-asymmetrical-perspectives |access-date=2022-05-30 |website=dchhaddendum.libsyn.com |language=en |archive-date=2022-05-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220524002707/https://dchhaddendum.libsyn.com/ep19-asymmetrical-perspectives |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |title=Dan Carlin's Hardcore History: Addendum: EP17 Engineering Victory with Elon |url=https://dchhaddendum.libsyn.com/ep17-engineering-victory-with-elon |access-date=2022-05-30 |website=dchhaddendum.libsyn.com |language=en |archive-date=2022-05-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220530160810/https://dchhaddendum.libsyn.com/ep17-engineering-victory-with-elon |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |title=Dan Carlin's Hardcore History: Addendum: EP13 Gladwell and the Bomber Mafia |url=https://dchhaddendum.libsyn.com/ep13-gladwell-and-the-bomber-mafia |access-date=2022-05-30 |website=dchhaddendum.libsyn.com |language=en |archive-date=2022-05-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220530160811/https://dchhaddendum.libsyn.com/ep13-gladwell-and-the-bomber-mafia |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |title=Dan Carlin's Hardcore History: Addendum: EP12 Wolf Pack Hunting with Hanks |url=https://dchhaddendum.libsyn.com/ep12-wolf-pack-hunting-with-hanks |access-date=2022-05-30 |website=dchhaddendum.libsyn.com |language=en |archive-date=2022-05-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220530160811/https://dchhaddendum.libsyn.com/ep12-wolf-pack-hunting-with-hanks |url-status=live }}

Carlin's debut book, The End Is Always Near: Apocalyptic Moments, from the Bronze Age Collapse to Nuclear Near Misses, was released October 29, 2019, by HarperCollins. The book examines apocalyptic moments from history as a way to frame the challenges of the future.{{Cite web |title=The End Is Always Near - Dan Carlin - Paperback |url=https://www.harpercollins.com/9780062944788/the-end-is-always-near |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190831213610/https://www.harpercollins.com/9780062944788/the-end-is-always-near/ |archive-date=2019-08-31 |access-date=2019-08-26 |website=HarperCollins Publishers: World-Leading Book Publisher |language=en-US}}

In 2019 Carlin developed a virtual reality experience in coordination with MWM Immersive and Skywalker Sound. The "Immersive Memory" is designed to put the viewer deeply into the experience of trench warfare along the Western Front of the First World War.{{Cite web|url=https://www.warremains.com/|title=War Remains|website=War Remains|language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-31|archive-date=2019-08-31|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190831213608/https://www.warremains.com/|url-status=live}} War Remains premiered at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival and subsequently shown in other venues around the United States. The exhibit is now on display at the National World War 1 Museum and Memorial in Kansas City, Missouri.{{Cite web|last1=City|first1=Inscription on the Liberty Memorial Tower in Downtown Kansas|last2=Missouri|last3=U.S.A.|date=2021-04-01|title=War Remains|url=https://www.theworldwar.org/war-remains|access-date=2022-01-15|website=National WWI Museum and Memorial|language=en|archive-date=2022-01-15|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220115224829/https://www.theworldwar.org/war-remains|url-status=live}}

Carlin has referred to himself as a constitutionalist, social libertarian,{{Cite web|url=https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/show-317-shades-of-grey/id155974141?i=1000394112204|title=Common Sense with Dan Carlin: Show 317 - Shades of Grey on Apple Podcasts|website=Apple Podcasts|language=en-ca|access-date=2019-10-29|archive-date=2023-01-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117070139/https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/show-317-shades-of-grey/id155974141?i=1000394112204|url-status=live}} a "radical", "neo-prudentist", "pragmatist", and "political martian".{{Cite web|url=https://www.learnliberty.org/speakers/dan-carlin/|title=Dan Carlin|website=www.learnliberty.org|language=en|access-date=2019-10-29|archive-date=2019-10-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029144740/https://www.learnliberty.org/speakers/dan-carlin/|url-status=live}} He is outspoken on issues like state surveillance, foreign intervention, concentrated power, free speech, education reform, the problems of a two-party system, and civil liberties.{{Citation needed|date=February 2025}}

Carlin stated he would vote for Joe Biden in the 2020 Presidential election, despite not voting for Democrats or Republicans since 1992.{{Cite web|last=Carlin|first=Common Sense with Dan|title=Common Sense with Dan Carlin - Show 320 - Steering Into the Iceberg|url=https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5mZWVkYnVybmVyLmNvbS9kYW5jYXJsaW4vY29tbW9uc2Vuc2U_Zm9ybWF0PXhtbA/episode/aHR0cDovL3RyYWZmaWMubGlic3luLmNvbS9kYW5jYXJsaW4vY3N3ZGNkMjAubXAz|access-date=2020-09-28|website=Google Podcasts|language=en|archive-date=2020-10-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201003101008/https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5mZWVkYnVybmVyLmNvbS9kYW5jYXJsaW4vY29tbW9uc2Vuc2U_Zm9ybWF0PXhtbA/episode/aHR0cDovL3RyYWZmaWMubGlic3luLmNvbS9kYW5jYXJsaW4vY3N3ZGNkMjAubXAz|url-status=live}}

Carlin has made guest appearances on numerous other podcasts, including Roifield Brown's "10 American Presidents Podcast" where he narrated the episode on Richard Nixon,{{Cite web|url = http://www.10usp.com/dan-carlin/|title = Dan Carlin|date = 22 January 2015|access-date = 21 November 2018|archive-date = 21 November 2018|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181121204117/http://www.10usp.com/dan-carlin/|url-status = live}} Daniele Bolelli's The Drunken Taoist Podcast,{{cite web|title=Dan Carlin, The Man Who Makes History Fun|url=http://thedrunkentaoist.com/episodes/episode-23-dan-carlin-man-who-can-make-history-fun|website=The Drunken Taoist|access-date=18 August 2015|archive-date=27 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141027012632/http://thedrunkentaoist.com/episodes/episode-23-dan-carlin-man-who-can-make-history-fun|url-status=live}} and "History on Fire",{{cite web|title=Episode 19|url=http://historyonfirepodcast.com/episodes/2017/4/28/episode-19-featuring-dan-carlin|website=History on Fire|access-date=28 April 2017|archive-date=3 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170503110305/http://historyonfirepodcast.com/episodes/2017/4/28/episode-19-featuring-dan-carlin|url-status=live}} making five appearances on The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast,{{cite web|last1=Rogan|first1=Joe|title=Dan Carlin, Episode 328|url=http://podcasts.joerogan.net/podcasts/dan-carlin-brian-redban|website=The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast|access-date=18 August 2015|archive-date=28 February 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130228190733/http://podcasts.joerogan.net/podcasts/dan-carlin-brian-redban|url-status=live}}{{cite web|last1=Rogan|first1=Joe|title=Dan Carlin, Episode 378|url=http://podcasts.joerogan.net/podcasts/dan-carlin|website=The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast|access-date=18 August 2015|archive-date=6 August 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130806150220/http://podcasts.joerogan.net/podcasts/dan-carlin|url-status=live}}{{cite web|last1=Rogan|first1=Joe|title=Dan Carlin, Daniele Bolelli, Episode 413|url=http://podcasts.joerogan.net/podcasts/dan-carlin-daniele-bolelli|website=The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast|access-date=18 August 2015|archive-date=11 November 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131111224905/http://podcasts.joerogan.net/podcasts/dan-carlin-daniele-bolelli|url-status=live}}{{cite web|last1=Rogan|first1=Joe|title=Dan Carlin, Episode 847|url=http://podcasts.joerogan.net/podcasts/dan-carlin-2|website=The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast|access-date=18 September 2016|archive-date=19 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160919134304/http://podcasts.joerogan.net/podcasts/dan-carlin-2|url-status=live}} two appearances on Smells Like Human Spirit{{cite web|title=Dan Carlin Interview|url=http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/dancarlinhardcorehistory|website=Smells Like Human Spirit Podcast|access-date=18 August 2015|archive-date=17 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151017181016/http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/dancarlinhardcorehistory|url-status=usurped}}{{cite web|title=Episode 153: Dan Carlin on Addiction, Net Neutrality, Edward Snowden, and More!|url=http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/dan-carlin|website=Smells Like Human Spirit Podcast|access-date=18 August 2015|archive-date=10 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150910111438/http://smellslikehumanspirit.com/podcasts/dan-carlin|url-status=usurped}} and on a "crosscast" podcast on Sam Harris's Making Sense (formerly Waking Up).{{cite web|last1=Harris|first1=Sam|title=Shouldering the Burden of History|url=http://www.samharris.org/blog/item/shouldering-the-burden-of-history|website=Waking Up|access-date=18 August 2015|archive-date=18 August 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150818195705/http://www.samharris.org/blog/item/shouldering-the-burden-of-history/|url-status=dead}}

Carlin has served as a panelist on CBS This Morning{{cite news|title=World War I, A Century Later, June 28, 2014|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/world-war-i-a-century-later|access-date=18 August 2015|agency=CBS News This Morning|archive-date=11 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150711072556/http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/world-war-i-a-century-later/|url-status=live}} and was invited to speak at the TEDx Mt. Hood Conference on May 2, 2015.{{cite web|title=Speaker Detail, Dan Carlin|url=http://tedxmthood.com/speaker-detail/?speaker_id=117|website=TEDxMtHood|access-date=18 August 2015|archive-date=15 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151215023946/http://tedxmthood.com/speaker-detail/?speaker_id=117|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|title=The New Media's Coming of Age|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5K57kcs15DY |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/5K57kcs15DY |archive-date=2021-12-21 |url-status=live|website=YouTube|publisher=TEDxMtHood|access-date=18 August 2015}}{{cbignore}} Carlin appeared on season 17 of Real Time with Bill Maher on October 25, 2019, as part of the panel while promoting his book The End Is Always Near.{{cite web |title=Real Time with Bill Maher Season 17 Episode 32 |url=https://www.hbo.com/real-time-with-bill-maher/2019/32-episode-512 |website=HBO |access-date=29 October 2019 |archive-date=29 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029000348/https://www.hbo.com/real-time-with-bill-maher/2019/32-episode-512 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=Submit Your Overtime Questions for October 25, 2019 |url=http://www.real-time-with-bill-maher-blog.com/index/2019/10/22/submit-your-overtime-questions-for-october-25-2019 |website=Real Time with Bill Maher Blog |access-date=29 October 2019 |archive-date=29 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029001135/http://www.real-time-with-bill-maher-blog.com/index/2019/10/22/submit-your-overtime-questions-for-october-25-2019 |url-status=live }}

Carlin's voice was featured as a podcast host in a 2019 episode of The Twilight Zone entitled "Nightmare at 30,000 Feet".{{Cite web|url=https://decider.com/2019/04/01/the-twilight-zone-enigmatique-host-dan-carlin/|title='The Twilight Zone': Who's the Host of the Creepy Podcast in 'Nightmare at 30,000 Feet'?|date=2019-04-01|website=Decider|language=en|access-date=2020-04-13|archive-date=2020-06-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200625034455/https://decider.com/2019/04/01/the-twilight-zone-enigmatique-host-dan-carlin/|url-status=live}}

Carlin has a chapter giving advice in Tim Ferriss' book Tools of Titans.{{Citation needed|date=February 2025}}

• List of history podcasts

{{reflist}}

• [http://www.dancarlin.com/ Official website]
• [https://www.warremains.com/ War Remains Official Website]
• {{YouTube|playlist=PLIJumiHv10VhoiQHAahw2E9ErgZ-jc0tC|title=Dan Carlin Hardcore History}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carlin, Dan}}

Category:1965 births

Category:Living people

Category:American history podcasters

Category:American political commentators

Category:Radio personalities from California

Category:People from Los Angeles County, California

Category:University of Colorado Boulder alumni