Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 718 › Conversation 718-012

Nixon, Sanchez & Woods on J. Edgar Hoover and John Connally

Wednesday, May 3, 1972 · 12:18 PM–12:35 PM ET · Oval Office · 19 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Sanchez, Manolo; Woods, Rose MaryConversation718-012 on Tape 718 (tape position 02:26:18–02:43:00)StartWednesday, May 3, 1972 at 12:18 PMEndWednesday, May 3, 1972 at 12:35 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 718-012 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon met with his personal aide Manolo Sanchez and secretary Rose Mary Woods to discuss Sanchez’s upcoming knee surgery and recovery timeline. The President and Woods also reviewed various administrative tasks, including correspondence regarding gifts from John Connally, letters from schoolchildren, and condolence messages for the families of J. Edgar Hoover and others. Additionally, they coordinated the preparation of the President’s eulogy for Hoover and addressed general White House scheduling and office logistics.

Audio

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Position in tape: 02:26:18 – 02:43:00

part B, 24:16

718a.mp3
718b.mp3

NARA Description

On May 3, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, Manolo Sanchez, and Rose Mary Woods met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:18 pm and 12:35 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 718-012 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 718-12

Date: May 3, 1972
Time: Unknown after 12:18-12:35 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Manolo Sanchez.

     Sanchez
          -Forthcoming knee operation
                -Amount of recovery time

Rose Mary Woods entered at 12:19 pm.

Sanchez left at an unknown time before 12:35 pm.

     Temperature in Oval Office

*****************************************************************

BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2
[Personal returnable]
[Duration: 2m 42s ]

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2

*****************************************************************

     Gift for John B. and Idanell B. (“Nellie”) Connally

     Decanter

     Letter to Cyrus R. Smith
          -Copy to Connally

     -Gratitude for decanter
           -Thelma C. (“Pat”) Nixon
           -Connally
           -Commemoration of previous World's Fair
           -Nixon Library

Letters to President from Mrs. John Connally III's class
     -President's letter of appreciation
            -Postscript
                 -The President’s and Mrs. Nixon's visit to Connally ranch
Show the rest of the log (48 more lines)
Adele (Langston) Rogers St. Johns's telephone call to Woods
     -H. R. (“Bob”) Haldeman
     -President's statement upon J. Edgar Hoover's death
     -Previous trip by President to Florida
     -Gridiron Dinner
           -President's appearance with John F. Kennedy
     -Hoover's statement about the President

Letter to Miriam Summerfield
     -Form
     -President's call
           -[Arthur E. Summerfield]

Letter to Senator Abraham A. Ribicoff
     -Other form of condolence

Decanter
    -Location
         -Stephen B. Bull
    -John Connally
    -Sanford L. Fox
    -Description

Hoover
    -President's eulogy
          -Location
                -Warren E. Burger
    -President's statement upon Hoover's death
    -Eulogy
          -Preparation

     Julie Nixon Eisenhower
           -Location

     Temperature in Oval Office

     President's schedule

     Sanchez
          -Forthcoming knee operation
                -Recovery time

Sanchez entered at an unknown time after 12:19 pm.

     Weather

The President, Woods and Sanchez left at 12:35 pm.

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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Yes, sir.
What they do now?
.
.
.
.
.
And they say you can take out the fluid today if you need it.
What's up?
What's good?
I don't have nothing.
What's new?
I don't have any kind of bad bacteria.
And why are they not operating?
How long will you be out of action?
Five or six weeks.
Five or six weeks in the hospital?
No, in the hospital, seven days.
And in the hospital, about three or four weeks.
And two weeks in the clinic.
Take me to me it is, if you prefer.
Twisted cartilage.
Well, that's OK.
Yes, sir.
Yes, sir.

— 2 min 55 s with no transcribed speech —

I was going to ask you, that beautiful decanter is in my office right now.
of the, I think it was a mechanic, got what is called, not the finished exhibition, but the finished exhibit at the, it was the finished exhibit at the 1909 World's Fair.
I'm sure that this will work.
This is very smart.

— 1 min 16 s with no transcribed speech —

Also, when we were there, I exposed them to Steve Rivers with his friend.
They commonly got along as a teacher in the first and second grade class.
They wrote letters.
Did you see the very nice letters prepared by some of the students here?
Please tell the members of the class how grateful they are.
It's certainly a fine tribute to their teachers that are something like that.
I think they got over it before.
And then a P.S.
was the next night.
We really enjoyed our visit to Conner Ranch.
Particularly because
the other members, I mean, the undermembers of Americans, which was Andrew Smith's family.
I think it's terrible.
Next.
Bob said that you had a problem with Adelaide, so you had something.
Oh yes, I wrote it out for you.
I didn't think I needed to ask you that couple, but that one was that she called yesterday when she had heard your statement on the air.
I thought it was very eloquent and beautiful.
This was right after you gave it to me in the morning.
And of course she knew it, you know, very well.
She felt very deep with it.
She said that one time he told her about it.
She thinks he, she knows what he said to her about you, but the fact was that he came back from Florida with you for some dinner that she thought it was you and Kennedy had to go to.
He'd come down to Florida and come back with you for dinner?
Well, she didn't know the year.
But at any rate, what he said to her after this,
It sounded like it might have been that he had to go to the grid item dinner.
You didn't go to the grid item dinner, though, as Kennedy was president, did you?
It was something that you and Kennedy had to appear at.
And he said to her, well, I never had any children.
I've got it now and back again.
Because I didn't feel I could make them hostages to my job.
But if I could have had, or if I had had a son, I wish it could have been Dick Nixon.
And she was so, you know, she thought that was very, very nice.
I've got it all.
I've typed it out.
Then there's a letter out there that they wrote to Mrs. Summerfield.
Do you want to send a typed letter to her at all?
He sent flowers, you know, and he sent stamps.
I could bring it in if it's art.
You could put it in art.
I don't really think it's necessary.
I'll look at it.
Oh, it should be a wine letter.
Might as well be it.
I know her.
I know you did before you died.
And so I said, Dear Maryam, it's a good letter.
Well, I'll take it.
Okay.
The other thing is there's a letter, it's a little old now, but one to Rybakov for his wife's death.
We sent flowers, but you didn't know her by her first name, did you?
I didn't know her by her first name, and I just didn't know her by her first name.
Yeah, and you guys did a camera up here to see it, to put in here.
Yeah, I thought that we might have it out there, so come and see it.
Yeah, it's very handsome.
Boxes in will be great when you're ready to show it.
You know what I mean, you'll see it.
try to work on a little eulogy.
Yeah, they're all so hard.
You're going to be the one at the church, aren't you?
Are they going to have one in the cabin?
I understand they're having one that Berger sent to us.
That's what one of the girls out there told me they heard on the radio.
I thought your statement yesterday was just really great.
Just... wonderful.
I hope we get something out of the work out too much.
I hope so.
Well, there's been so much printed and being said on the radio and everything, it's a reality and we get the sound.
No, there's a lot of background on them.
They're just something.
She doesn't have a phone, I think.
You're going to stay here very long.
I don't like the fire.
I think I'll go over.
I'm afraid you're going to catch a cold.
I think I'll go over, actually.
Good luck.
Oh, you're going over.
You're going over.
I'm sure that's going to work.
Because I've seen him.
He's been living quite a while.
Well, he said he's going to have to have an operation.
Maybe he's going to knock him out in six weeks.
I'm afraid he's going to have to have four weeks.
Well, wait a moment.
So if there's a way, it would be harder to be out of the way when you're trying to.
Yeah.
Okay, gee, it's going over the people's knees.
It is the right one, sir.
Oh, it's the right one, sir.
Oh, it's the right one, sir.
And also take care.
Yeah, it looks like he's not going to be able to do it.
Right.
you

Also recorded on May 3, 1972

  • 718-010 12:14 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 12:14 pm and 12:18 pm.
  • 718-011 12:14 PM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Stephen B. Bull, and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:14 pm and 12:18 pm.
  • 718-014 12:35 PM · 43 sec — United States Secret Service agents and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:35 pm and 12:59 pm.
  • 023-130 12:36 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 12:36 pm and 12:40 pm.
  • 335-004 12:36 PM · 12 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 12:36 pm and 12:40 pm.
  • 023-131 12:40 PM · 28 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield talked on the telephone from 12:40 pm to 12:41 pm.
  • 335-005 12:40 PM · 40 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 12:40 pm and 12:41 pm.
  • 023-132 12:41 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 12:41 pm.

All 59 conversations from May 3, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 718-012, May 3, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/718-012 (accessed November 2, 2026).