Listening In (51 page)
Authors: Ted Widmer
CAROLINE KENNEDY WITH HER FATHER IN THE OVAL OFFICE, OCTOBER 10, 1962
This book would not have been possible without the help of the extraordinarily talented and devoted team at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, who work tirelessly to preserve history and make my father’s legacy accessible to new generations of Americans.
I am especially grateful to Tom Putnam, the Library’s outstanding director, who gave this project his full support; Chief Archivist Karen Adler Abramson, who made her exceptional staff available to assist with the research and compilation of materials; Maura Porter, who has been overseeing the declassification of the White House recordings since 2001, and whose encyclopedic knowledge of their content was invaluable; Maryrose Grossman, Laurie Austin, and Bill Bjelf of the Audiovisual Archives, who helped find, compile, and duplicate the key recordings and photographs; Audiovisual interns Hannah Weddle and Sara Ludovissy for their help with the sound recordings and scanning of images; and to Stephen Plotkin and Stacey Chandler of the Research Room, who went out of their way to find the best documents and memoranda to give historical context to the recordings.
I am also grateful to Tom McNaught, executive director of the Kennedy Library Foundation, who oversaw every aspect of this project with his customary commitment to excellence, and to Karen Mullen for her help and assistance.
I am particularly indebted to Cliff Sloan for his judgment and legal expertise, and to Rachel Day Flor and Debra Deshong Reed for their expert assistance in promoting and publicizing these historical records.
I always give thanks for Lauren Lipani, whose keen intelligence, good humor, and skillful organization is indispensable in keeping everything on track.
Listening In
is the third book that the Library has done in partnership with Hyperion, and I am grateful to all those who have made these projects successful—most of all to Gretchen Young, who has been a dedicated champion, gifted editor, and wonderful friend.
She was assisted once again by the talented team of Shubhani Sarkar, who brings an inspired sense of design to all her books, and Laura Klynstra, whose cover captures the spirit of this project. The hard production work behind the scenes was so capably done by Navorn Johnson, David Lott, Allyson Rudolph, and Linda Prather. Once again, Jill Sansone did a wonderful job on the audio, and Joan Lee, Maha Khalil, SallyAnne McCartin, and Mike Rotondo made sure this important history was available to the widest possible audience.
—CAROLINE KENNEDY
Ted Widmer
is director and librarian of the John Carter Brown Library at Brown University. Widmer was a speechwriter and senior adviser to President Clinton, and he conducted the oral history project that accompanied President Clinton’s preparation for his memoir,
My Life
. A former contributing editor at
George
, Mr. Widmer has written many works on American history and contributes frequently to
The New York Times
,
The Washington Post
, and
The International Herald Tribune
. He was educated at Harvard University.
Caroline Kennedy
is the author and editor of nine bestselling books on American history, politics, and poetry. She is active in the efforts to improve New York City’s public schools, and serves as president of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation.
The pagination of this electronic edition does not match the edition from which it was created. To locate specific photographs, please follow the page number links provided.
AP Images:
132
Bettmann/Corbis/AP Images:
102
–
103
Bill Hudson/AP Photo:
111
Bettmann/Corbis:
274
(
right
)
Elliot Erwitt/Magnum Photos:
284
John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston:
v
,
vi
,
vii
,
19
,
20
,
21
–
22
,
45
,
59
,
63
(photographer unknown),
148
,
149
,
162
,
190
,
191
,
192
,
193
,
222
,
231
,
237
,
238
(
top and bottom
),
239
,
241
,
249
,
261
,
274
(
left
),
278
,
279
(
top and bottom
)
Jacqueline Kennedy/John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum:
139
Robert Knudsen, White House/John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston:
ii
,
xix
,
15
,
25
,
58
–
59
,
97
,
184
–
185
,
199
,
211
,
227
,
253
,
267
Abbie Rowe, White House/John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston:
52
,
56
,
61
,
66
,
109
,
130
–
131
,
169
,
177
,
195
,
221
,
244
,
257
Cecil Stoughton, White House/John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston:
xvii
,
7
,
29
,
74
,
75
,
85
,
100
,
160
–
161
,
168
–
169
,
204
–
205
,
217
,
229
,
288
U.S. Department of Defense/John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston:
135
,
142
–
143
,
187
Library of Congress, Washington, DC:
170
,
171
,
172
,
173
Jacques Lowe:
i
Rolls Press/Popperfoto/Getty Images:
197
Stanley Tretick/
Look
magazine:
247
1
. Jimmy Carter was the lone exception. After Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson escalated taping even further, recording as many as 9,300 telephone calls and 200 hours of meetings. Following Nixon’s resignation, there was a notable reluctance to record. Gerald Ford barely taped anything, and Jimmy Carter nothing at all. Ronald Reagan increased the use of videotaping, and videotaped small segments of meetings, but nothing on the order of Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon.
2
. Some excisions remain, for reasons relating to national security or deed of gift. In the former category, these reasons include sensitivity relating to ongoing military situations, intelligence matters, or any of the eight topical areas outlined in Executive Order 13526. Deed closures are determined by donors and are typically related to personal privacy. Both forms of restriction are reviewed to determine if the original reasons still hold.
1
. Maude Shaw was the nanny working for then-Senator and Mrs. John F. Kennedy.
2
. Hugh D. “Yusha” Auchincloss III (b. 1927), Jacqueline Kennedy’s stepbrother.