The US backed an autocrat in 1953. Shah-nanigans ensued

In 1975, the economy of the richest country on Earth was broken. Unemployment in America was worse in 1975 than in 2020, and at the same time inflation was also out of control. According to rudimentary economics, that’s not supposed to happen. The Vice President gave a speech that year saying one person ought to teach the US government how to run a country, and that was the Shah of Iran.

Iran was a radically different place in the 70s. This Middle-Eastern monarchy was secular, it was urban, women went to universities sporting short skirts and big hair. Some of its social welfare policies were more progressive than Sweden, Sweden, and it was getting rich. The middle class was booming, the Shah was handing out loans to Britain and the United States. The country’s GDP per capita was only seven years behind contemporaries like Germany or Japan, and that gap was closing in fast.

That lasted until 1978. And in 1979, Iran was a dystopian police state at the mercy of a Supreme Leader whose main export is human rights violations. Revolutions are always complicated but this one is… weird.

Music (in order of appearance):
Basspartout - That 70s Sound
Kevin Macleod - Hidden Past
Remstunes - Jazz Swing 70s
Black Sea Music - 70s Disco
Penguin Music - Dark Cinematic Documentary
Orchestralis - The Middle East
Anthem of the Imperial State of Iran
Mohammadreza Shajarian - Gonbad-e-mina

[grandadmiralzaarin]

Jack, you gotta cover the insanity of Mexican President Santa Anna being president and exiled from Mexico 11 times.

[Ali-bulo]

The part where Khomeini said he feels nothing about returning home isn't a joke guys, he really said I feel nothing, speaks volumes of his love for Iran.

[ryancialone]

I’m glad people are starting to recognize the historical impact The Sopranos and it’s characters had on the world.

[alirezaee]

As an Iranian I must say your Khomeini portrayal was on point, Bravo. This series was overall great 👍

[pearlstar]

Did not expect a sequel this quickly, fully expected a 5 year wait like the French history series.

[otavioluis]

"The US backed an autocrat in 1953. Shah-nanigans ensued"
Do You Have the Slightest Idea How Little That Narrows Down?

[alexv]

As shameful as my own country's actions here were, let's never forget the role the British played in the coup. US assistance was basically all at their behest in the interest of British Petroleum

[bottasheimfe]

gotta love the way you described Iran after the revolution. "biggest export is human rights violations" lol

[mmrxaaa]

10:29 - 10:48 these are real words that Khomeini said btw,
he felt nothing after returning to his home country after 15 years of exile

[namebrandmason]

So APPARENTLY the Shah actually bounced around for a few years, but no country wanted to grant him asylum. For a time he settled in Panama. The Panamanian dictator reportedly disliked him, but was under pressure from the US to keep him in Panama. He relented, but appointed a diehard Marxist to be his chief bodyguard. The bodyguard took great delight in lecturing the Shah on how he was a tool of American Imperialism who deserved his fate.

[Sr.Pirulito]

Great video, I especially liked the ending speach of how we should be wary of populists who discourse is primarily oppositional.

[benjauron]

Shah Reza Pahlavi was the first and only Iranian head of state since the Arab conquest 1300 years earlier to not persecute Zoroastrians.

[mcbabwe]

3:55
"Weird thing is; the Shah turned out to be a competent and strangely progressive leader."
This line was hilarious to me for some reason. I guess it's the elementof surprise, it's not what you except of a dictator.

[ThePurpleParis]

Just wanted to clarify that some parts of the video like how khomeini said he felt nothing after coming back, and also him telling the guy who suggested they exile him instead of killing him that he shouldn’t have done that and that he wasn’t going to make the same mistake, may seem like a joke, but khomeini actually did all those things and far worse. Including killing the guy who’s holding his hand and helping him off his plane in the famous picture. Really glad that the majority of the world is finally seeing these guys as the authoritarian dictators and monsters that they really are!

[Just_nerdAli]

Bro you really did a deep research.
As an Iranian I can confirm that many of these speeches were happened 😂😂
Specially those from Khomeini 😂

[sphenodon]

Saw the title, saw the pun, clicked faster than I ever had in my life. god bless you for making such educational content so darn fun

[Confederate-hjdc]

“We knew it meant a lot to you, so we overthrew the government.” 🤣🤣🤣

[roffels-gamingandhistory]

Iranian women during the Shah's rule: "Oh no, we are not oppressed by religious men anymore. Oppress us harder!"

[JosephShemelewski]

Damn Iran has a very complicated history. It sucks so bad that a once prosperous nation has been reduced to well what we see now

[silence_dais]

Khomeini is a fascinating figure. To distill into a basic comparison, he was essentially a conservative Lenin. He wanted the Shah gone, he wanted Islam to be the sole religion, and like Lenin he wasnt shy about using violence to get what he wanted. Thats just a very basic summary, you should definitely look into him outside of a brief Wikipedia glance because theres a lot to dive into about him.