Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 43 › Conversation 043-133

Nixon phone call with an unidentified caller on Billy Graham

Tuesday, February 20, 1973 · 8:21 PM–10:00 PM ET · White House Telephone · 25 sec

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); White House operatorConversation043-133 on Tape 43StartTuesday, February 20, 1973 at 8:21 PMEndTuesday, February 20, 1973 at 10:00 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 043-133 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon consulted with the White House operator regarding the status of a placed call to Reverend Billy Graham. Upon learning that Graham was unavailable at his hotel in Atlanta, the President declined the offer to leave a message. He ultimately decided to postpone the communication and attempt to reach Graham again the following day.

Audio

Download MP3 · 0.6 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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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

Mr. President, on the call to Reverend Billy Graham, I found that he's in Atlanta, Georgia, in the hotel there, but he doesn't answer in his room.
Do you want me to leave word?
No, I'll try him tomorrow, thank you.
All right.

NARA Description

On February 20, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 8:21 pm and 10:00 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 043-133 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 43-133

Date: February 20, 1973
Time: Unknown between 8:21 pm and 10:00 pm
                                               -76-

                   NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

                                                            Conversation No. 43-130 (cont’d)

Location: White House Telephone

The White House operator talked with the President.

       Unsuccessful attempt to reach William F. (“Billy”) Graham

Also recorded on February 21, 1973

  • 043-125 7:21 PM · 49 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull talked on the telephone from 7:21 pm to 7:22 pm.
  • 043-126 7:22 PM · 19 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:22 pm and 7:30 pm.
  • 043-127 7:30 PM · 11 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone from 7:30 pm to 7:41 pm.
  • 043-128 7:41 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:41 pm and 7:43 pm.
  • 043-129 7:43 PM · 41 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone from 7:43 pm to 7:44 pm.
  • 043-130 7:44 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:44 pm and 7:54 pm.
  • 043-131 7:54 PM · 22 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:54 pm and 8:21 pm.
  • 859-001 8:27 AM · 12 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 8:27 am to 8:40 am.

All 88 conversations from February 21, 1973 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 043-133, February 21, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/043-133 (accessed October 1, 2026).