Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 37 › Conversation 037-063

Nixon phone call with Kissinger on Bob Hope and People's Republic of China

Thursday, March 8, 1973 · 3:26 PM–3:27 PM ET · White House Telephone · 58 sec

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Kissinger, Henry A.Conversation037-063 on Tape 37StartThursday, March 8, 1973 at 3:26 PMEndThursday, March 8, 1973 at 3:27 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 037-063 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon consulted with Henry Kissinger regarding the logistical requirements for comedian Bob Hope’s proposed visit to the People's Republic of China. Kissinger confirmed he had already received film footage from Hope and requested a formal letter detailing the specific objectives and materials associated with the entertainer's trip. This documentation was deemed necessary to finalize arrangements and maintain the positive rapport Kissinger had established with Chinese officials.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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

· Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).

Yeah.

Dr. Kissinger, sir.

Yeah.

Hi.

Mr. President.

Henry, I'm talking here to Bob Hope, and I told him that you had discussed the matter, you know, of his visit with our Chinese friends.

Yes.

And I told him, and I just want to be sure that I'm correct, that they'd like to see a copy of the film or something.

Is that right?

I have.

Oh, you've got the film already?

I've got the film already.

All right.

Fine.

Is there anything else that you'd like to get from him?

If he could write a letter to me of exactly what it is he wants to do there.

Fine, all right, good.

And what it involves for them.

Fine, good, good.

But they were getting to be fairly sympathetic.

Yeah, fine.

Yeah, okay, fine.

But you need a letter for him saying precisely what he wants to do while he's in China and what he wants to bring.

Okay.

All right, I'll have him do that.

I know you've talked to him before, but I just wanted to be sure we had it.

Okay, fine.

NARA Description

On March 8, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone from 3:26 pm to 3:27 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 037-063 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 37-63

Date: March 8, 1973
Time: 3:26 pm-3:27 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with Henry A. Kissinger.

[See Conversation No. 872-19B]

       Leslie T. (“Bob”) Hope
               -Kissinger's conversation with People's Republic of China officials [PRC]
                       -Film
               -Visit to China by Hope
                       -Letter
                                               - 43 -

                           NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY

Also recorded on March 8, 1973

872-017 2:20 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at 2:20 pm.
872-018 2:20 PM · 43 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Stephen B. Bull, and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 2:20 pm and 2:50 pm.
872-019 2:50 PM · 41 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Lelsie T. ("Bob") Hope, unknown person(s), H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, White House operator, and Henry A. Kissinger met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 2:50 pm and 3:34 pm.
037-062 3:25 PM · 9 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 3:25 pm.
872-020 3:34 PM · 2 hr 29 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Lelsie T. ("Bob") Hope, John D. Ehrlichman, and Newbold ("Newby") Noyes, Jr. met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 3:34 pm and 4:34 pm.
872-021 4:34 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 4:34 pm and 4:36 pm.
872-022 4:34 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 4:34 pm and 4:36 pm.
872-023 4:34 PM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Stephen B. Bull, and William E. Timmons met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 4:34 pm and 4:44 pm.

All 32 conversations from March 8, 1973 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 037-063, March 8, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/037-063 (accessed October 6, 2026).