{"conversationCode":"021-056","tapeNumber":21,"conversationNumber":56,"identifier":"37-wht-conversation-021-056","startDateTime":"1972-03-13T22:11:00.000Z","endDateTime":"1972-03-13T22:12:00.000Z","startDate":"13-Mar-1972","startTime":"5:11 PM","endDate":"13-Mar-1972","endTime":"5:12 PM","dateCertainty":"certain","timeCertainty":"certain","participants":"Nixon, Richard M. (President); Nixon, Thelma C. (\"Pat\") (Ryan);","description":"On March 13, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Thelma C. (\"Pat\") (Ryan) Nixon talked on the telephone from 5:11 pm to 5:12 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 021-056 of the White House Tapes.","locationCode":"WHT","recordingDevice":"White House Telephone","latitudeEstimated":38.89767,"longitudeEstimated":-77.03655,"chronCode":3,"chronRelease":"Third Chronological Release","chronReleaseDate":"28-Feb-2002","aogpRelease":null,"aogpSegment":null,"lastModified":"2015-07-27T17:04:10.235Z","findingAid":"Conversation No. 21-56\n\nDate: March 13, 1972\nTime: 5:11 pm - 5:12 pm\nLocation: White House Telephone\n\nThe President talked with Thelma C. (“Pat”) Nixon.\n\n[See Conversation No. 683-20/684-1C]\n\n     Pandas\n          -Call to Constance M. Stuart\n          -National Zoo\n          -Climate\n          -The President and Mrs. Nixon\n          -Arrival\n                -Mrs. Nixon’s possible appearance\n          -Possible story\n          -Swearing-in ceremony of Marina von N. Whitman\n                -Council of Economic Advisors [CEA]\n                -Children’s reaction\n\n     The President’s schedule\n          -Busing\n               -John D. Ehrlichman and Edward L. Morgan","filename":["021-056.mp3"],"tapeStart":"02:07:00","tapeEnd":"02:08:26","participantsList":["Nixon, Richard M. (President)","Nixon, Thelma C. (\"Pat\") (Ryan)"],"prevCode":"021-055","nextCode":"021-057","aiSummary":{"text":"President Nixon called his wife, Pat, to inform her that the pandas would be sent to the Washington Zoo and that Constance Stuart's office had been notified. They discussed the pandas' arrival around April 1st, Pat's potential visit to see their habitat, and the excitement surrounding the pandas, even among children. The President also informed Pat that he would be staying late to work on a busing statement with John Ehrlichman and Edward Morgan, and would not be home for dinner.","topics":["Pandas","National Zoo","Washington D.C.","Constance Stuart","Marina Whitman","Council of Economic Advisers","Busing","John Ehrlichman"],"generatedAt":"2026-10-28T16:56:59.372Z"},"topicSlugs":["pandas","national-zoo","washington-d-c","constance-stuart","marina-whitman","council-of-economic-advisers","busing","john-d-ehrlichman"],"audioDurationSec":87,"audioFiles":[{"file":"021-056.mp3","bytes":3468848,"durationSec":86.62,"bitrate":320366,"missing":false}],"audioIsShared":false,"audioProbedAt":"2026-10-28T16:42:54.205Z","audioSource":"National Archives Catalog (open data, RN-WHT)","audioSourceUrls":["https://catalog.archives.gov/medialz/presidential-libraries/nixon/rn-wht/17412458/6852410/37-wht-conversation-021-056-pa.mp3"],"catalogNaId":646310112,"originalFilename":["021a.mp3","021c.mp3"],"transcript":[{"start":0,"end":2,"speaker":"Nixon","text":"Oh."},{"start":2,"end":3,"speaker":"Thelma C. (\"Pat\") Nixon","text":"Yeah. Hi, Dick."},{"start":3,"end":11,"speaker":"Nixon","text":"I just wanted to be sure you knew that uh we called Connie's office and told her that uh it'd be fine when we announce it that uh We announced today that the pandas would go to the Washington"},{"start":11,"end":13,"speaker":"Thelma C. (\"Pat\") Nixon","text":"Yeah, I got the word."},{"start":13,"end":32,"speaker":"Nixon","text":"this place. And I think it's fine. Everybody was pleased with it, and uh the weather's good here. It's so Not quite as cold as it probably ought to- it could be, you know, but it's, but they can live in this kind of weather. And so, it's a good story, and we said that uh you and I both had uh had uh had we had decided that should come here."},{"start":32,"end":47,"speaker":"Nixon","text":"One thought that we thought was very good and when they get here, we don't know when it is, but around the first of April, if you're here, it'd be awfully nice if you'd go out, you know, [crosstalk] and look"},{"start":45,"end":47,"speaker":"Thelma C. (\"Pat\") Nixon","text":"Oh, yeah. I'd like to."},{"start":47,"end":64,"speaker":"Nixon","text":"and uh Well, to see whether they are in the same kind of habitat basically, and you know, and uh it's- it'll be it's it's going to be a hell of a story. When I s- swore in uh Marina Whitman today, you know, the new member of the Council of Economic Advisers, I Her two children were here. And mind you, they were bug-eyed, and I told them about the pandas. They all want to go out and see the pandas. I said, \"Well, they'll be out in April 1st.\" So, that's a big story."},{"start":64,"end":66,"speaker":"Thelma C. (\"Pat\") Nixon","text":"Yeah."},{"start":66,"end":79,"speaker":"Nixon","text":"And uh so, fine. Fine. Okay. Uh I'm going to be I'm going to stay here tonight to work with Ehrlichman and uh and uh Ed Morgan on the busing statement, so I won't be over for dinner, so you can get something there on the TV, or something, or"},{"start":79,"end":80,"speaker":"Thelma C. (\"Pat\") Nixon","text":"Sure."},{"start":80,"end":80,"speaker":"Nixon","text":"anything you like."},{"start":80,"end":81,"speaker":"Thelma C. (\"Pat\") Nixon","text":"Okay."},{"start":81,"end":83,"speaker":"Nixon","text":"Okay. Good. I'll have Manolo come over and pick it up. Okay. Bye."},{"start":83,"end":86,"speaker":"Thelma C. (\"Pat\") Nixon","text":"Okay. Bye."}],"transcriptCreatedAt":"2026-10-28T12:47:49.172Z","transcriptModel":"google/gemini-3.8-flash","transcriptSource":"audio-llm","audio":["https://nixon.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/audio/021-056.mp3"],"url":"https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/021-056","nixonLibraryUrl":"https://www.nixonlibrary.gov/white-house-tapes/021/conversation-021-056","catalogUrl":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/646310112","license":"Public domain (U.S. Government work). AI-generated fields (transcript, aiSummary) are provided as-is without warranty."}