Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 31 › Conversation 031-082

Nixon phone call with an unidentified caller on Billy Graham

Monday, October 16, 1972 · 7:19 PM ET · White House Telephone · 17 sec

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); White House operatorConversation031-082 on Tape 31StartMonday, October 16, 1972 at 7:19 PMEndMonday, October 16, 1972 at 7:19 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 031-082 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon directed the White House operator to place a call to Reverend Billy Graham. During the brief interaction, the President also declined an offer to speak with Stephen B. Bull, noting that he had already received the information he required from another source. This exchange served purely as a logistical coordination of the President's personal and professional communications.

Audio

Download MP3 · 0.4 MB

Transcript (AI-generated)

This transcript was generated automatically by AI (WhisperX) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Names and numbers are often wrong; speakers are not identified. Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

Download transcript (.txt) · JSON data

Could you try Dr. Billy Graham, please?
Yes, and Mr. Steve Bull returns your call, Mr. President.
No, I don't need him.
I got it from somebody else.
Thank you.

NARA Description

On October 16, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 7:19 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 031-082 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 31-82

Date: October 16, 1972
Time: 7:19 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with the White House operator.

        Request for a call to William F. (“Billy”) Graham

        Return call from Stephen B. Bull

Also recorded on October 16, 1972

  • 800-006 6:16 PM · 19 sec — United States Secret Service agents and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House on an unknown date, sometime between 6:16 pm on October 16, 1972 and 7:54 am on October 17, 1972.
  • 031-087 7:14 PM · 9 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson talked on the telephone from 7:14 pm to 7:59 pm.
  • 031-083 7:19 PM · 9 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:19 pm and 7:20 pm.
  • 031-084 7:20 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Tricia Nixon Cox talked on the telephone from 7:20 pm to 7:21 pm.
  • 031-085 7:25 PM · 8 min — President Richard M. Nixon and William F. ("Billy") Graham talked on the telephone from 7:25 pm to 7:37 pm.
  • 031-086 7:37 PM · 20 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:37 pm and 7:41 pm.
  • 031-088 7:59 PM · 15 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:59 pm and 8:00 pm.
  • 031-089 7:59 PM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:59 pm and 8:00 pm.

All 97 conversations from October 16, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 031-082, October 16, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/031-082 (accessed October 24, 2026).