Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 572 › Conversation 572-014

Nixon, Butterfield & Bull on White House photography and Oval Office decor

Tuesday, September 14, 1971 · 4:40 PM–4:42 PM ET · Oval Office · 2 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Butterfield, Alexander P.; Bull, Stephen B.Conversation572-014 on Tape 572 (tape position 03:34:33–03:36:39)StartTuesday, September 14, 1971 at 4:40 PMEndTuesday, September 14, 1971 at 4:42 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 572-014 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon met with Alexander P. Butterfield and Stephen B. Bull to finalize scheduling and logistical details regarding his daughter, Julie Nixon Eisenhower. The discussion centered on the timing of her upcoming visit and the selection of new, professional family portraits to display in the Oval Office. Nixon directed his staff to review and select the best images from the photographer Ollie Atkins for immediate use.

Audio

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Transcript (AI-generated)

This transcript is incomplete. The transcription skipped stretches of speech — roughly 1 minute of this recording (about 55% of it) is represented by only a few words. Listen to the audio rather than relying on the text below; a corrected transcript is queued.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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· Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).
Oh, my God.
The thing to do then is to wait.
She's going to be up here.
Yeah, for her.
She's going to be up here.
She was going to be up here for 20 minutes.
And have her then.
She's going to have to work that.
She didn't remember that she was going to be up here.
Then if they pick a smiling and a serious, the more serious, the semi-serious, to replace the pictures that we have.
I think so.
I'm not sure.
Let's see how it looks.
I'd like to see both of them blown up before we, well, yeah.
Yeah.
But let her, let's wait for the 20th and now to go and also follow up when she gets here with the family picture.
I always took some.
I think they're fine.
This one was nice.
Quite a dynamic one.
But I think they're fine.
Just use one.
Pick one and use it now.
All right.
The new family picture.
That's good.

NARA Description

On September 14, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon, Alexander P. Butterfield, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 4:40 pm and 4:42 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 572-014 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 572-14

Date: September 14, 1971
Time: Unknown between 4:40 pm until 4:42 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Alexander P. Butterfield

     The President's schedule
          -Julie Nixon Eisenhower
                -Telephone call

Stephen B. Bull entered at an unknown time after 4:40 pm.

     Schedule
          -Barber
          -Meeting with Shultz

Bull left at an unknown time before 4:42 pm.
     Julie Eisenhower
           -Arrival
                 -Timing
           -Photographs
           -Oliver F. (“Ollie”) Atkins
           -Family photograph
                 -Display

Butterfield left at 4:42 pm.

Also recorded on September 14, 1971

  • 572-012 3:37 PM · 1 hr 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Michael J. ("Mike") Mansfield, Hugh Scott, and Clark MacGregor met in the Oval Office of the White House from 3:37 pm to 4:40 pm.
  • 572-013 4:40 PM · 29 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 4:40 pm and 4:42 pm.
  • 572-015 4:45 PM · 22 min — President Richard M. Nixon and George P. Shultz met in the Oval Office of the White House from 4:45 pm to 5:06 pm.
  • 009-003 5:35 PM · 5 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:35 pm and 5:39 pm.
  • 278-034 5:35 PM · 14 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 5:35 pm and 5:39 pm.
  • 278-035 5:35 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 5:35 pm and 5:39 pm.
  • 009-004 5:39 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and William P. Rogers talked on the telephone from 5:39 pm to 5:42 pm.
  • 278-036 5:39 PM · 33 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, William P. Rogers, Henry A. Kissinger, White House operator, Nelson A. Rockefeller, and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 5:39 pm to 6:35 pm.

All 37 conversations from September 14, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 572-014, September 14, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/572-014 (accessed September 26, 2026).