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Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-MJH-01
In this interview Hillenbrand discusses President John F. Kennedy [JFK] entering office amid the Berlin crisis; working as the Director of the Office of German Affairs with JFK; the Berlin Task Force and the Ambassadorial Group; JFK's attitude towards the German problem and German reactions to the Kennedy Administration; the State Department and Germany; the 1961 Vienna talks with Nikita S. Khrushchev; the erection of the Berlin Wall and the crisis it generated; the Kennedy Administration's reaction and response to the Berlin Wall; talks with Russia over Berlin and the Wall; the press "leaks crisis" on the Germany problem; JFK's working style and approach to problems, according to Hillenbrand; the impact of the Cuban Missile Crisis on the Berlin talks; JFK's German policy and relationship with German leaders; and what JFK accomplished related to Germany, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-BBH-01
In this interview Hickenlooper discusses various meetings with President John F. Kennedy [JFK] on foreign relations; Soviet and American nuclear testing; the nuclear test ban treaty; the Bay of Pigs invasion; Laos and Vietnam; the Punta del Este Conference in 1962; the Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962; Hickenlooper's 1962 reelection campaign; traveling with JFK to Costa Rica; the 1961 Berlin crisis; JFK's congressional relations; and social occasions at the Kennedy White House, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-EDAG-04
In this interview Gullion discusses his impressions of President John F. Kennedy’s [JFK] character; JFK’s attitude toward and experience with disarmament; President JFK and the arts; and JFK’s concept of the presidency, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-ROWK-05
In this interview Komer discusses working with McGeorge Bundy; the “inner circle” of the Bundy State Department; Komer’s major contacts; the intelligence system; the power and responsibilities of the State Department; how Bundy screened what President John F. Kennedy [JFK] would see; relations with other key officials; Robert F. Kennedy and foreign policy issues; the Bundy State Department and White House staff; the “little State Department” in the White House; the bureaucratic role of the State Department; U.S. foreign policy in Asia; relations with key U.S. Ambassadors; handling Arab-Israeli issues; domestic pressures of American-Jewish community on JFK; Arabists in the Kennedy Administration; working with Myer Feldman on Israeli issues; the United States, Saudi Arabia, and oil; filling the power vacuum left by the British; dealing with Congress on foreign aid matters; counterinsurgency; and looking back at programs during the Kennedy Administration, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-WIEK-01
This written statement focuses on William E. Knox’s trips to the Soviet Union and Knox’s meeting with Chairman Krushchev in 1962, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-RFK-03
In this interview Robert F. Kennedy [RFK] discusses the 1962 steel crisis; some major issues and accomplishments of John F. Kennedy’s [JFK] presidency; choosing the U.S. Ambassador to Russia; foreign aid and treaties; the military coup in Peru; the space race during the Kennedy Administration; the 1962 congressional and gubernatorial campaigns; JFK’s dinner for the Nobel Prize winners; the Polaris submarines; problems with the New York Herald Tribune; New York politics; various pieces of federal legislation, 1961–1963; the Dominican Republic; Department of Justice investigations under RFK; the difficulties of being Attorney General; congressional issues in early 1963; the Vietnam War escalation in 1963; American support of the coup in Vietnam; Henry Cabot Lodge as the U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam; the prisoners from the Bay of Pigs invasion; American actions in Cuba; unemployment and civil rights; RFK’s meeting with James Baldwin; JFK’s trips to the South and speeches on civil rights; the nuclear test ban treaty; and JFK’s trip to Ireland and Rome, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-RFK-02
In this interview Robert F. Kennedy [RFK] discusses the 1961 Berlin crisis; American forces, military and diplomatic, in Germany; John F. Kennedy’s [JFK] recommendation for Americans to have fallout shelters; nuclear testing; problems with the Department of State; the start of the conflict in Vietnam, 1961; the Department of Justice under RFK and organized crime; RFK’s difficult relationship with J. Edgar Hoover; the wiretapping bill; new federal judgeships in 1961 and other presidential appointments; the Alliance for Progress; Red China; crises during JFK’s presidency and how he was an optimist; RFK’s move for an income tax increase during the Berlin crisis; RFK’s disagreements with President JFK; indecisiveness over picking JFK’s running mate, 1960; the missile gap; fighting and UN operations in the Congo; Nikita S. Khrushchev’s speeches; RFK’s 1962 trip to Japan, Indonesia, Germany, and other countries; the release of Allen L. Pope; Dutch disputes in Southeast Asia; the 1961 crisis in the Dominican Republic and the assassination of Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina; the 1962 disarmament conference in Geneva; Edward M. Kennedy’s 1962 campaign for U.S. Senate; the Kennedy family national and political reputation; the Justice Department under RFK and civil rights; and the 1962 steel crisis, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-RFK-01
In this interview Robert F. Kennedy [RFK] discusses beginning John F. Kennedy's [JFK] presidential Administration with no political obligations; carefully picking Cabinet members, specifically Secretaries of State, Defense, and Treasury; RFK’s decision on what role to play in JFK’s Administration; JFK’s unhappiness with Dean Rusk as Secretary of State; JFK’s advisers and other presidential appointments; Cabinet meetings; Department of Justice organization under RFK; the first 100 days of the Kennedy Administration; the role of the Vice President, according to RFK; JFK’s relationship with Lyndon B. Johnson and why JFK put Johnson on the ticket in 1960; what JFK was most concerned with as President; domestic programs versus foreign affairs in the Kennedy Administration; Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr.’s role during JFK’s presidency; the Bay of Pigs, the aftermath, and its effect on JFK; how JFK approached problems as President; dealing with Georgi Bolshakov; negotiating with the Soviet Union in Vienna, over Laos and Cuba, etc.; JFK’s relationship with foreign heads of state; State Department staff and U.S. Ambassadors; the military coup in Vietnam; the Berlin crisis of the summer of 1961 and the Berlin Wall; RFK’s 1961 trip to the Ivory Coast; and Soviet and American nuclear testing, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-AHD-01
Dean discusses attempts to negotiate a nuclear test ban treaty and the early stages of the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-JKR-02
In this interview Ruina discusses the background of the nuclear test ban treaty, including the research and development to improve nuclear test detection capabilities; congressional hearings on the test ban and the nuclear detection technology; different political interests in the test ban debate; and some issues in getting the test ban signed, among other issues.
Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-TPH-26A
Dictation Belt 26A contains six sound recordings. Item 26A.1 is a telephone conversation held on August 16, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy and Secretary of State Dean Rusk. In preparation for Secretary Rusk’s press conference, they discuss the prospect of answering a question about France and a treaty banning atmospheric nuclear weapons tests, later known as the Partial Test Ban Treaty (PTBT) or the Limited Test Ban Treaty (LTBT). The recording begins in mid-conversation, and machine noise follows the conversation. Item 26A.1A is a telephone conversation between Personal Secretary Evelyn Lincoln and a White House Operator. The operator brings Lincoln up to date on President John F. Kennedy’s recent telephone calls. Machine noise follows the conversation. Item 26A.2 is a telephone conversation held on August 16, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy and Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson. They discuss the possibility of appointing United States Ambassador to Costa Rica Raymond L. Telles to a new position. They also discuss the prospects of political problems in California, where Latin American groups could resent a perceived favoritism in appointments given to Texans. The recording begins in mid-conversation. Item 26A.3 is a telephone conversation held on August 19, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy and Under Secretary of State George W. Ball. They discuss foreign aid given to countries that engage in merchant shipping to Cuba. They also discuss foreign aid for India and negotiations with the Soviet Union on nuclear test inspections. They also discuss American troops in Europe and German officials’ views on the matter. Item 26A.4 is a brief telephone exchange between President John F. Kennedy and Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. Attorney General Kennedy asks to visit President Kennedy to review an unidentified matter. Item 26A.5 is a brief fragment of a telephone conversation between President John F. Kennedy and an unidentified man. The recording is noisy and ends abruptly. The full conversation (including this fragment) is recorded on Dictation Belt 26B.Transcript included. Each item listed above is also available individually as an excerpt derived from this full-length digitized recording. See Related Records for more information.
Photograph folder
White House Photographs
JFKWHP-1962-10-29-A
ST15
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-225-010
This file contains memoranda and reports from various government departments and agencies regarding support for missile technology and nuclear aid to France. Materials include a Department of Defense report titled, "Policy on Sharing Nuclear Information, Materials and Delivery Systems with France"; a Department of State report titled, "Nuclear Aid to France"; and minutes from a meeting between President John F. Kennedy, Secretary of State Dean Rusk, Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara, and McGeorge Bundy, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-225-008
This file contains Department of State memoranda regarding the "Agreement for Cooperation in the Operation of Atomic Weapons Systems for Mutual Defense Purposes with the Government of France," proposed by the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) to support and maintain NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) forces. The memoranda include advice to President John F. Kennedy regarding requests made by United States Ambassador to France, James M. Gavin, to supply France with enriched uranium for military purposes.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-028-015
This folder consists of correspondence between the office of President John F. Kennedy's secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, and Chester Bowles ("Chet"), the President's Special Representative and Adviser on African, Asian, and Latin American Affairs, and Ambassador at Large. Materials mainly represent Bowles' views and advice on foreign affairs. Topics include foreign aid, nuclear testing, and United States foreign policy in South Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, Latin America and Europe. Of note is a report by Bowles on foreign aid titled "Proposal for a New Operational Framework for Foreign Economic Assistance"; a letter to President Kennedy in which Bowles expresses concern over perceived inaction with regard to his recommendations for foreign policy in Africa, Asia and Latin America; a memorandum summarizing major foreign policy recommendation made by Bowles in 1962; and a memorandum summarizing a conversation between Bowles and Soviet Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Dobrynin.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-323-007
This folder contains memoranda from Walt Rostow, Deputy Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs and later Chairman of the Policy Planning Council in the Department of State, to President John F. Kennedy and McGeorge Bundy, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs. Topics include foreign aid, speech theme suggestions for the President, policy towards the Communist Bloc, and a proposal for domestic and foreign economic policy. Also included in this folder is a transcript of a “Meet the Press” interview with Rostow discussing nuclear weapons, the Soviet Union, Laos, Vietnam, and communism.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-320-018
This folder contains correspondence and memoranda primarily between Henry Kissinger, consultant to the National Security Council (NSC), and McGeorge Bundy, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs. Topics include a conversation between Kissinger and West German Minister of Defense Franz Josef Strauss discussing nuclear weapons and the United States defense policy, landing rights for airline KLM in Los Angeles, and Kissinger’s schedule as a consultant. Also included in this folder is a memorandum from Kissinger to President John F. Kennedy titled, “Major Defense Options,” regarding the U.S. defense policy including strategic planning, and nuclear and conventional weapons.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-320-017
This folder contains memoranda by Henry Kissinger, consultant to the National Security Council (NSC), offering comments and advice on United States defense policy including nuclear weapons and a strategy of deterrence. Also included in this folder is a press release regarding the appointment of Kissinger as a consultant to President John F. Kennedy in areas of national security.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-399-008
This folder contains carbon copies of McGeorge Bundy's outgoing correspondence on various topics, including nuclear weapons and other issues regarding international relations, as well as responses to letters from the public and members of the press.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-399-004
This folder contains carbon copies of McGeorge Bundy's outgoing correspondence on various topics, including nuclear weapons testing, the National Security Council, and Germany, as well as responses to letters from the public and members of the press.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-399-003
This folder contains carbon copies of McGeorge Bundy's outgoing correspondence on various topics, including nuclear weapons and Germany, as well as responses to letters from the public and members of the press.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-399-002
This folder contains carbon copies of McGeorge Bundy's outgoing correspondence on various topics, including nuclear weapons testing, as well as responses to letters from the public and members of the press.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-398-014
This folder contains carbon copies of McGeorge Bundy's outgoing correspondence on various topics, including nuclear weapons, President John F. Kennedy's appearance at the United Nations General Assembly, and the Soviet Union, as well as responses to letters from the public and members of the press.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-398-011
This folder contains carbon copies of McGeorge Bundy's outgoing correspondence on various topics, including nuclear weapons, preparation of reports for President John F. Kennedy's weekend reading, and Berlin, as well as responses to letters from the public and members of the press.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-398-007
This folder contains carbon copies of McGeorge Bundy's outgoing correspondence on various topics, including nuclear weapons, the Boyden Observatory in South Africa, and White House staffing and appointments, as well as responses to letters from the public and members of the press.