Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 721 › Conversation 721-001

Nixon & Butterfield on Duke Law School and John Dean

Monday, May 8, 1972 · 8:36 AM–8:38 AM ET · Oval Office · 42 sec

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Butterfield, Alexander P.Conversation721-001 on Tape 721 (tape position 00:00:21–00:01:12)StartMonday, May 8, 1972 at 8:36 AMEndMonday, May 8, 1972 at 8:38 AMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 721-001 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Alexander Butterfield review logistical details and attendance figures regarding an upcoming Duke Law School reunion. They specifically discuss the inclusion of key administration figures such as John Dean, Egil Krogh, and Charles Colson, as well as William Brown of the EEOC. The exchange focuses on finalizing the guest list and calculating the total number of confirmed attendees.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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All right.

How many is that?

That would bring the total to 68, if they all except 101.

NARA Description

On May 8, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:36 am and 8:38 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 721-001 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 721-1

Date: May 8, 1972
Time: Unknown between 8:36 am and 8:38 am
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Alexander P. Butterfield.

     President's schedule
          -Duke Law School reunion
                 -John W. Dean, III
                 -Egil (“Bud”) Krogh, Jr.
                 -William H. Brown, III
                       -Equal Employment Opportunities Commission [EEOC]
                 -Charles W. Colson
                 -Number attending

Butterfield left at an unknown time before 8:38 am.

Also recorded on May 8, 1972

024-001 8:38 AM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John D. Ehrlichman talked on the telephone from 8:38 am to 8:43 am.
721-002 8:38 AM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John D. Ehrlichman met in the Oval Office of the White House from 8:38 am to 8:43 am.
721-003 8:43 AM · 3 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:43 am and 8:54 am.
721-004 8:54 AM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House from 8:54 am to 8:56 am.
721-005 8:56 AM · 31 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:56 am and 8:59 am.
721-006 8:59 AM · 8 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Henry A. Kissinger, and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House from 8:59 am to 9:06 am.
721-007 9:07 AM · 28 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the Oval Office of the White House from 9:07 am to 9:08 am.
024-169 10:45 AM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 10:45 am and 10:47 am.

All 94 conversations from May 8, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 721-001, May 8, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/721-001 (accessed October 9, 2026).