Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 39 › Conversation 039-025

Nixon phone call with Keyes on Prisoners of War and POW Dinner

Monday, May 28, 1973 · 10:40 PM–10:44 PM ET · White House Telephone · 4 min

ParticipantsWhite House operator; Nixon, Richard M. (President); Keyes, Paul W.Conversation039-025 on Tape 39StartMonday, May 28, 1973 at 10:40 PMEndMonday, May 28, 1973 at 10:44 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 039-025 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon speaks with Paul W. Keyes to express his appreciation for the successful dinner honoring former prisoners of war (POWs) held in Florida. The two men discuss the positive impact of the event on the attendees, the favorable media reception, and the notable contributions of performers like John Wayne, James Stewart, and Ricardo Montalban. Nixon asks Keyes to coordinate with Stephen B. Bull to arrange for appropriate certificates or gifts to formally recognize the performers for their participation in the historic event.

Audio

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Hello?
Honky.
Hi, how are you?
Paul, I just got back from Florida.
The tent's still up.
They haven't got it down yet, but I wanted to tell you again how much we appreciated that great job you did.
Well, I'm delighted, sir.
I've had such marvelous reports.
General Haig called me, and Ziegler called, and so many people called.
It was just marvelous.
Well, it was a great show, and...
My only regret is that all three networks didn't carry it.
Yeah, well, we're talking ABC now.
You're still talking to them, huh?
They're talking about repeating it.
They ought to.
Yeah, because so many people... Jack Welp called me.
He stayed up until 2 in the morning, and so many people did.
I was delighted because...
I think it was great for the guys.
I know someone who flew back with them.
And all I could do was talk about the evening.
It was great for them.
Oh, yes.
Good newspaper stuff.
I didn't get in to listen to the phone with you the other night because we were so late and we were so rushed.
I don't want to tie you up.
I had written.
I wrote.
Wayne.
Yeah, I know you did.
I could tell that.
Stuart and Montalban.
Yeah.
Because I wanted to get good thoughts about you, but from different directions.
It was great.
And the reason I wrote them wasn't to get them to say it.
I thought they would, but I thought we could get them, you know, from different directions.
I was thrilled to pieces, I gotta tell you.
I thought they were fantastic.
Well, you know, Miriam wore a guy's bracelet for three and a half years, and he was in prison for seven years.
And by God, she danced with him in the White House at 2 o'clock that morning, and that's the biggest drool that's ever happened to her.
Of course.
You know, it was a great, great occasion.
And for him, too, yeah.
It was just great.
Yes, yes.
They went on before, you know.
What's that?
They went on to 4 o'clock.
Yeah, I heard they did.
The dancing did.
Isn't that great?
They did.
God, that's great.
I'm glad you're happy, and I watched you.
You know, you were doing a funny thing.
You were reading Hope's cue cards with him.
Did you know that?
I was watching you from backstage.
Yeah.
It was fun, yeah.
Yeah.
Well, God love you.
I'm delighted that you—listen, if we all gave you—
a couple hours out of all this crap.
I'm delighted just because of that.
Well, don't worry about the crap.
It'll pass, Paul.
You know that.
Yeah, yeah.
It's hard for you.
Oh, well, but that's that kind of stuff, you know.
As far as the decent people in this country are concerned, they're not affected by this kind of horseshit.
Wow.
Let's get it behind us.
That's right.
Don't lose your confidence.
Oh, don't you ever look.
Don't you ever look.
Those guys, Wayne and Stuart and those guys were really up, weren't they?
Oh, God, yeah.
I flew back with them the next day on your plane.
Geez, they were just in another world.
They were just walking around, and they were still trying to believe what had happened.
I think they ought to get something, those performers.
Oh, yes.
Well, we're trying to...
They'll all, of course, get a...
I'm going to send a special letter to them, but we're trying to think of something in the way of a certificate or something, perhaps.
I think that would be nice, because, see, some of them have cufflinks.
Oh, the hell with the cufflinks.
I meant a certificate or something like that, or I don't know.
Some other...
But if you can... You work it out with Steve.
Tell him to work outsizing.
Will you do that?
Yes, sir.
And if we can find some sort of a gift...
The cufflinks are, no, they've got that.
I'd give them something else.
And a little certificate or, you know, something so that they can really feel that, you know, they participated in a great event.
Yes, they did.
They did.
We all did.
Well, we're glad.
Right.
It's a great thing, and I'm glad that you still feel up about it.
You bet your life.
God love you.
Okay, bye.
Take care of yourself.
Bye.

NARA Description

On May 28, 1973, White House operator, President Richard M. Nixon, and Paul W. Keyes talked on the telephone from 10:40 pm to 10:44 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 039-025 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 39-25

Date: May 28, 1973
Time: 10:40 pm - 10:44 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The White House operator talked with the President.

       Incoming telephone call

The President talked with Paul W. Keyes.

       President’s trip to Florida

       Former prisoners of war [POWs] dinner
             -Keyes’s efforts
                     -Telephone calls from Alexander M. Haig, Jr. and Ronald L. Ziegler
             -Television [TV] coverage
                     -Networks
                            -American Broadcasting Companies [ABC]
                            -Jack Webb’s telephone call to Keyes
             -POWs’ reaction
             -Newspaper coverage
             -Statements by John Wayne, James (“Jimmy”) Stewart, and Ricardo Montalban
                     -Keyes’s role
                                             -24-

                   NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

                                                               Conversation No. 39-25 (cont’d)

              -Miriam E. (Kelleher) Keyes
                     -POW bracelet
                     -Dance with POW
              -Duration
              -President’s activities
                     -Leslie T. (“Bob”) Hope
                             -Cue cards

       Watergate
             -Effect on President
             -Popular opinion

       POW dinner
            -Wayne and Stewart
                  -Return flight
                          -Mood
            -Recognition for performers
                  -Keyes’s conversation with Stephen B. Bull
                          -Certificate, cuff links, gift

Also recorded on May 29, 1973

  • 039-022 10:15 PM · 16 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and White House operator talked on the telephone at 10:15 pm.
  • 039-023 10:31 PM · 2 min — White House operator, President Richard M. Nixon, and Julie Nixon Eisenhower talked on the telephone from 10:31 pm to 10:33 pm.
  • 039-024 10:33 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 10:33 pm and 10:40 pm.
  • 929-001 8:30 AM · 23 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:30 am and 8:44 am.
  • 929-002 8:30 AM · 15 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:30 am and 8:44 am.
  • 929-003 8:44 AM · 24 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House from 8:44 am to 9:10 am.
  • 929-004 9:12 AM · 40 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at 9:12 am.
  • 929-005 9:12 AM · 1 hr 17 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the Oval Office of the White House from 9:12 am to 9:48 am.

All 45 conversations from May 29, 1973 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 039-025, May 29, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/039-025 (accessed October 12, 2026).