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Transcripts from the Gerald S. and Deborah H. Strober oral history collection, 1989-1996

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Transcripts of oral history interviews of the John F. Kennedy Presidency, 1989-1992 (continued)
Oral history interview with Robert Manning, 1992-01-22 (continued)
Manning discusses his impressions of John F. Kennedy and his work in the Kennedy administration's apparatus. He talks about Vietnam and Diem assassination and the relationship between Kennedy and LBJ and his memories of events surrounding the Kennnedy assassination.
BOX-FOLDER 2/2 Oral history interview with Edwin Martin, 1991-09-04
Interview likely conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on September 4, 1991 ; recorded in Washington, D.C.
Martin was the Assistant Secretary of State for Economic Affairs and Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs (1962-1964?) during the Kennedy administration. He was a key official during the Cuban Missile Crisis and OAS condemnation of Cuba. He later served as ambassador to Argentina (1964-1968).
Martin discusses the diplomatic and economic policy issues between the U.S. and Latin American nations during the Kennedy administration, including the Cuban Missile Crisis.
BOX-FOLDER 2/3 Oral history interview with Louis Martin, 1991-05-03
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on May 3, 1991, in Diamond Bar, California.
Martin was a civil rights activist; the deputy director of the Democratic National Committee, 1960-1969; an aide to Senator John F. Kennedy during the 1960 presidential campaign; and an advisor to President Kennedy as well as Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Jimmy Carter.
Martin discusses his experiences as an aide in the civil rights unit of John F. Kennedy's 1960 presidential campaign and as an advisor to President Kennedy. He talks specifically about the administration's involvement in the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom; the "Catholic issue;" the relationship between John and Robert Kennedy; the "incredible minds" of John F., Robert, and Ted Kennedy; and the role and personality of Lyndon Johnson.
BOX-FOLDER 2/4 Oral history interview with Eugene McCarthy, 1991-08-12
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on August 12, 1991.
McCarthy was a Senator from Minnesota (1959-1971) and an anti-war candidate in the Democratic Party primary elections of 1968.
Senator McCarthy discusses his impressions of the 1960 presidential campaign, including the Catholic issue and his relationship with Lyndon Johnson. He talks about Adlai Stevenson's appointment to the U.N., Dean Rusk, civil rights legislation, the Bay of Pigs and Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Kennedy legacy.
BOX-FOLDER 2/5 Oral history interview with Edward McDermott, 1991-08-13
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on August 13, 1991 ; recorded in Washington, D.C.
McDermott was the Kennedy campaign coordinator for Iowa during the 1960 election. In the Kennedy administration he was appointed Director of the Office of Emergency Planning (predecessor to FEMA) and was a member of the National Security Council.
McDermott discusses his interactions with John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson during the 1960 campaign and about work in the Kennedy White House. He also talks at length about the Cuban Missile Crisis.
BOX-FOLDER 2/6 Oral history interview with George McGovern, 1991-07-30
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on July 29 or 30, 1991 ; recorded in Washington, D.C.
McGovern was a candidate for the Senate in South Dakota during the 1960 elections. He lost in 1960, but was named by President Kennedy to head the Food for Peace Program. In 1962 McGovern won a Senate seat for South Dakota and served until 1981. He was the Democratic candidate for president in 1972.
Senator McGovern discusses his interactions with John F. Kennedy during the 1960 campaign and Kennedy's knowledge of agricultural issues. He relates his opinions on the Catholic issue, LBJ, and Nixon. He talks about his appointment as head of the Food for Peace program. He talks extensively on the Cuban Missile Crisis and Vietnam.
BOX-FOLDER 2/7 Oral history interview with James Meredith, 1989-12-07
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on December 7, 1989 ; recorded in Washington, D.C.
Meredith was the first African-American student to enter the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss), in 1962, creating a civil rights crisis for the Kennedy administration and state of Mississippi.
Meredith discusses his motivations behind applying to the University of Mississippi and the Kennedy administration's reaction to it. He offers his opinions on the Kennedys as politicians, civil rights, and liberalism.
BOX-FOLDER 2/8 Oral history interview with F. Bradford Morse, 1991-12-30
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on December 30, 1991 ; recorded over the telephone.
Morse was a U.S. Representative from Massachusetts (1961-1972). He later served as an Under Secretary General in the U.N. and Administrator of its Development Programme.
Congressman Morse discusses his impressions of John F. Kennedy and his relations with him in the U.S. Congress. He talks about the Kennedy family's influence on Massachusetts politics. He also discusses the Cuban Missile Crisis, Vietnam, and Kennedy's assassination.
BOX-FOLDER 2/9 Oral history interview with Gaylord Nelson, 1991-05-31
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on May 31, 1991 ; recorded in Washington, D.C.
Nelson was the Governor of Wisconsin (1958-1963) and followed that by being elected to the U.S. Senate (1963-1981). He is credited as the principal founder for Earth Day.
Nelson discusses his interactions with the Kennedys in the 1960 Wisconsin primary election, general election, and in the U.S. Senate. He also talks about conservation, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Kennedy assassination.
BOX-FOLDER 2/10 Oral history interview with Maurine Neuberger, 1992-01-03
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on January 3 or 4, 1992 ; recorded over the telephone.
Neuberger was a Senator from Oregon (1960-1967). President John F. Kennedy appointed her to be a member of the Presidential Commission on the Status of Women.
Senator Neuberger discusses the 1960 presidential campgain in Oregon. She discusses President Kennedy's relationship with Congress, and the interactions between Robert Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and Adlai Stevenson.
BOX-FOLDER 2/11 Oral history interview with Esther Peterson, 1991-04-25
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on April 25, 1991 ; recorded in Washington, D.C.
Peterson was a labor and women's rights activist who was Assistant Secretary of Labor for Labor Standards (1961-1969) and Director of the United States Women's Bureau. Later, she served as Special Assistant for Consumer Affairs under Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Jimmy Carter.
Peterson discusses President Kennedy's relationship with labor organizations. She also talks about his relationship with Robert Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson, women in the Kennedy administration, civil rights, and equal rights.
BOX-FOLDER 2/12 Oral history interview with Norman Podhoretz, 1992-01-09
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on January 8 or 9, 1992 ; recorded in New York, N.Y.
Podhoretz was the editor-in-chief of Commentary magazine from 1960-1995 and an influential neo-conservative thinker.
Podhoretz discusses the wide range of issues that were relevant during the Kennedy administration; including Kennedy the man, the 1960 campaign, civil rights, LBJ, RFK, Cuba, Vietnam, Camelot, and others.
BOX-FOLDER 2/13 Oral history interview with Joseph Rauh, Jr., 1989-12-07
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on December 7, 1989 ; recorded in Washington, D.C.
Rauh was Vice Chairman of Americans for Democratic Action (1957-1992) and a life-long advocate for civil rights reform.
Rauh discusses the fullness of the Kennedy administration, highlighting the civil rights disputes. He especially focuses his recollections on the 1960 presidential campaign, the formation of the Kennedy administration, and the Robert Kennedy-Lyndon Johnson relationship.
BOX-FOLDER 2/14 Oral history interview with Manuel Ray, 1992-05-04
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on May 4, 1992 ; recorded San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Ray was an American educated civil engineer and Cuban revolutionary who supported Fidel Castro and Che Guevara against the Fulgencio Batista regime, but later became an anti-communist anti-Castro revolutionary. During the Batista regime he formed the Civic Resistance Movement to oppose the dictatorship and in the early months of the Castro regime he was named Minister of Public Works. In 1960 he formed the Revolutionary Movement of the People to oppose Castro's bent towards communism and had to leave Cuba. At the request of President Kennedy he joined the Cuban Revolutionary Council and participated in the planning for the Bay of Pigs invasion. Afterward the invasion's failure, he continued his anti-Castro political work and resumed his profession as a civil engineer in Puerto Rico.
Ray discusses the early days of the Castro regime in Cuba and the preparation for and fallout after the Bay of Pigs invasion.
BOX-FOLDER 2/15 Oral history interview with Abraham Ribicoff, 1991
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on either August 26 or November 27, 1991; recorded in New York, N.Y.
Ribicoff was a U.S. Representative (1949-1953), Governor (1955-1961), and Senator (1963-1981) from/of Connecticut. In the Kennedy administration he served as the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare (1961-1962).
Ribicoff discusses his relationship with John F. Kennedy from the 1956 Democratic National Convention to his death. He also talks about his relationship with Lyndon Johnson and Adlai Stevenson, and the dynamics of the Kennedy administration.
BOX-FOLDER 2/16 Oral history interview with George Romney, 1991-11-27
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on November 27, 1991 ; recorded over the telephone.
Romney was Chairman of American Motors Corporation (1954-1962) and Governor of Michigan (1963-1969). Later, he served as U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (1969-1973). In 1968 he ran for president in the Republican primary elections.
Governor Romney touches on President Kennedy's relationship with state governments, Cuba, Vietnam, and liberal poicies.
BOX-FOLDER 2/17 Oral history interview with Dean Rusk, 1991-03-13
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on March 13, 1991 ; recorded in Athens, Georgia.
Rusk was the only Secretary of State for presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson (1961-1969). After leaving government he taught at the University of Georgia.
Secretary Rusk discusses his entrance into the Kennedy cabinet and his experiences with Kennedy dealing with the foreign policy crises of the Cold War, with emphasis on Berlin, Cuba, the Middle East, and Vietnam. He also remarks on Kennedy's relationships with RFK and LBJ.
BOX-FOLDER 2/18 Oral history interview with Pierre Salinger, 1992-02-24
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on February 24, 1992 ; recorded London, England.
Salinger was a major campaign aide to John F. Kennedy during the 1960 election and Press Secretary for President Kennedy, and later President Johnson (1961-1964). In 1964 he was appointed to the U.S. Senate by California after the death of Senator Clair Engle. In 1968 Salinger was campaign manager for Robert Kennedy. After government, he returned to his work as a journalist, based in Europe.
Salinger discusses his memories of the 1960 presidential election, including the primaries, the Democratic National Convention, and the debates. He also discusses his role in the major events of the Kennedy administration.
BOX-FOLDER 2/19 Oral history interview with Paul Samuelson, 1992-01-21
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on January 21, 1992 ; recorded in Cambridge, Mass.
Samuelson was a Keynesian economist who advised Democratic presidents on economic policy. In 1970 he won the Nobel Prize in Economics.
Samuelson discusses economic issues during the Kennedy administration and offers his opinions on Joe Kennedy, Sr. and Richard Nixon.
BOX-FOLDER 2/20 Oral history interview with Norbert Schlei, 1991-12-23
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on December 23, 1991 ; recorded over the telephone.
Schlei was an Assistant Attorney General in the Justice Department and Chief of the Office of Legal Counsel (1962-1966). He provided the legal underpinnings for President Kennedy's order for a naval quarantine of Cuba after the discovery of Soviet missile deployment on the island. He coordinated the legal groundwork for the Civil Rights Act and the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964, and the Voting Rights Act and the Immigration Reform Act passed the next year.
Schlei discusses his time in Robert Kennedy's Justice Department, and his recollections of the Cuban Missile Crisis and civil rights struggle.
BOX-FOLDER 2/21 Oral history interview with Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., 1992-05-21
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on May 21, 1992 ; recorded in New York, N.Y.
Schlesinger was an advisor to President Kennedy (1961-1964). He was a Harvard scholar and American historian.
Schlesinger discusses his entrance into the Kennedy White House and his opinions of other Kennedy appointees. He offers his opinions on foreign relations, Vietnam, Cuba, and civil rights.
BOX-FOLDER 2/22 Oral history interview with Robert Seamans, 1989-11-21
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on November 21, 1989 ; recorded in Cambridge, Mass.
Seamans was was an Associate Adiministrator of NASA from 1960-1965; in 1965 he became Deputy Administrator. Later he served as the Secretary of the Air Force (1969-1973) and Administrator of the Energy Research and Development Administration.
Seamans discusses his role as a NASA administrator and the Space Race of the 1960s, especially the Moon Shot.
BOX-FOLDER 2/23 Oral history interview with R. Sargent Shriver, 1992-07-23
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on July 23, 1992 ; recorded over the telephone.
Shriver was married to Eunice Kennedy and thus brother-in-law to John and Robert Kennedy. He was a key organizer during the 1960 presidential election. His major initiative in the Kennedy administration was to champion the creation of and be the first Director of the Peace Corps. Later he would serve as the Director of the Office of Economic Development, ambassador to France, and a vice presidential candidate.
Shriver discusses his relationship with the Kennedys and his roles in the 1960 campaign and subsequent administration. He recollects about his time with the Peace Corps.
BOX-FOLDER 2/24 Oral history interview with Joseph Sisco, 1992-03-31
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on March 31, 1992 ; recorded in Washington, D.C.
Sisco was the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs (1951-1965). Later during the Nixon administration he assumed a chief role in Middle Eastern diplomacy.
Sisco discusses foreign policy issues of the Kennedy administration, with emphasis on his recollections regarding Secretary of State Dean Rusk and U.N. Ambassador Adlai Stevenson.
BOX-FOLDER 2/25 Oral history interview with George Smathers, 1991-08-31
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on August 31, 1991 ; recorded in Washington, D.C.
Smathers was a Representative from Florida (1947-1951) and later Senator (1951-1969). He knew the Kennedys personally before entering government, and served as best man at John F. Kennedy's wedding.
Senator Smathers discusses his relationship to John F. Kennedy and the Kennedy family (he was best man at JFK's wedding) and President Kennedy's rise from Congress to the presidency.
BOX-FOLDER 2/26 Oral history interview with Adlai Stevenson III, 1992-01-15
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on January 15, 1992; recorded in Chicago, Illinois.
Stevenson, III, was the son of Adlai E. Stevenson, Jr., who was the governor of Illinois and Democratic presidential candidate in the 1952 and 1956 elections. During the Kennedy administration, Stevenson, Jr., served as the U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Stevenson, III, served as a senator from Illinois (1970-1981).
Stevenson discusses the Democratic National Conventions of 1956 and 1960, and his father--Adlai E. Stevenson, Jr.'s--relationship with John F. Kennedy. He offers his opinions on what his father thought about Kennedy's foreign policy decisions.
BOX-FOLDER 2/27 Oral history interview with Viktor Sukhodrev, 1991-02-01
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on February 1, 1991 ; recorded at the United Nations Building in New York, N.Y.
Sukhodrev was a Soviet diplomatic official and interpreter for Nikita Khrushchev, Foreign Minister Andre Gromyko, and other Soviet officials.
Sukhodrev discusses his observations of the Kennedy administration as Nikita Khrushchev's interpreter. He discusses Kennedy and Khrushchev's first meeting at the Vienna Summit, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Test Ban Treaty negotiations, and the assassination of President Kennedy from the Soviet perspective.
BOX-FOLDER 2/28 Oral history interview with Phillips Talbot, 1989-11-20
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on November 20, 1989 ; recorded in New York, N.Y.
Talbot was Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs during the Kennedy administration (1961-1965). He later served as ambassador to Greece.
Talbot discusses the Israel-Arab disputes during the Kennedy administration, the State Department's handling of the Middle East and southern Asia, and other foreign policy issues that arose in his sphere of the diplomatic establishment. He offers many anecdotes about foreign policy heavyweights in the Kennedy administration.
BOX-FOLDER 2/29 Oral history interview with James Tobin, 1991-12-17
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on December 17, 1991 ; recorded in New Haven, Conn.
Tobin was a Keynesian economist and member of the Council of Economic Advisors (1961-1962). From 1962 to 1968 he acted as a consultant to the Council.
Tobin discusses President John F. Kennedy's approach to economic affairs and his interactions with Treasury Secretary Clarence Dillon.
BOX-FOLDER 2/30 Oral history interview with Jack Valenti, 1991-07-15
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on July 15, 1991 ; recorded in Washington, D.C.
Valenti was a public relations advisor to the Kennedy administration and a personal aide to Vice President--and later President--Lyndon Johnson. After his government service he became president of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), where he helped create the modern movie rating system.
Valenti discusses the Catholic issue during the 1960 elections, specifically in Texas. He discusses the relationships between John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, and Lyndon Johnson. He also recollects being in the motorcade in Dallas on the day of President Kennedy's assassination and being present at Lyndon Johnson's swearing-in as president.
BOX-FOLDER 2/31 Oral history interview with George Wallace, 1992-03-05
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on March 5, 1992 ; recorded in Montgomery, Alabama. Governor Wallace was deaf at the time of the interview, so the Strobers used written questions--included with the partial transcript--so there is no audio of the questions being asked on the sound recording.
Wallace was a four-term Democratic Governor of Alabama (1963-1967, 1971-1979, 1983-1987) and a four-time candidate for president of the U.S. (1964, 1968, 1972, 1976). His first three terms were characterized by his outspoken segregationalist views, which he disavowed late in life. An assassination attempt during the 1972 presidential campaign left him partially paralyzed.
Governor Wallace discusses the civil rights issues of the 1960s, specifically concerning integration at the University of Alabama. He also offers his recollections of the 1956 Democratic National Convention, the Bay of Pigs, Robert Kennedy, and Lyndon Johnson.
BOX-FOLDER 2/32 Oral history interview with Lee White, 1992-12-21
Interview conducted by Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober on December 21, in either 1989 or 1992 ; recorded in Washington, D.C.
White was Assistant Special Counsel to the President (1961-1965). Before 1961, he served as an assistant to Ambassador Joseph Kennedy and Senator John F. Kennedy. He later went on to serve as chairman of the Federal Power Commission.
White discusses the inner workings of the Kennedy White House. He includes the discussions surrounding foreign events and domestic problems, including civil rights.
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