Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 816 › Conversation 816-001
Nixon & Butterfield on Henry Kissinger and Vietnam diplomacy
Wednesday, November 29, 1972 · 2:46 PM–2:48 PM ET · Oval Office · 17 sec
AI Summary
President Nixon met with Alexander P. Butterfield to review the scheduling of upcoming meetings, specifically focusing on a discussion with Henry Kissinger. The brief conversation served to verify the availability of time slots preceding the President’s scheduled engagement with South Vietnamese representatives Nguyen Phu Duc and Tran Kim Phuong. Butterfield confirmed the timeline, ensuring the President's agenda remained organized ahead of these critical diplomatic sessions.
Audio
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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.
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NARA Description
On November 29, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House from 2:46 pm to 2:48 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 816-001 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 816-1
Date: November 29, 1972
Time: 2:46 pm - 2:48 pm
Location: Oval Office
The President met with Alexander P. Butterfield.
The President's schedule
-Meeting with Henry A. Kissinger
-Timing
-The President’s forthcoming meeting [with Nguyen Phu Duc and Tran
Kim Phuong]
Butterfield left at 2:48 pm.Also recorded on November 29, 1972
- 816-002 2:48 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 2:48 pm and 2:52 pm.
- 816-003 2:52 PM · 2 hr 41 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Henry A. Kissinger, Stephen B. Bull, Alexander M. Haig, Jr., Nguyen Phu Duc, Tran Kim Phuong, White House photographer, Zosimo Monson, and Manolo Sanchez met in the Oval Office of the White House from 2:52 pm to 5:32 pm.
- 816-004 5:32 PM · 34 sec — Unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House on an unknown date, sometime between 5:32 pm on November 29, 1972 and 8:34 am on November 30, 1972.
- 816-005 5:32 PM · 14 sec — Unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House on an unknown date, sometime between 5:32 pm on November 29, 1972 and 8:34 am on November 30, 1972.
- 816-006 5:32 PM · 3 min — Unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House on an unknown date, sometime between 5:32 pm on November 29, 1972 and 8:34 am on November 30, 1972.
- 110-006 5:36 PM · 42 min — President Richard M. Nixon and African American administration officials and other staffers, including Robert J. Brown, Art Reid, John Calhoun, Frank Kent, Connie Mack Higgins, George W. Haley, Colston A. Lewis, Alfred Sweeney, T. M. Alexander, Gloria E. A. Toote, Norman B. Houston, Samuel C. Jackson, John L. Jenkins, Stanley S. Scott, Norris Sydnor, Lois Hobson, Samuel P. Singletary, Brig. Gen. Daniel ("Chappie") James, Jr., James E. Johnson, William W. Parker, Stanley B. Thomas, Samuel G. Adams, Jr., Elizabeth D. Koontz, Jerome Shuman, Donald L. Miller, Joseph W. Daniels, Sallyanne Payton, Edward E. Mitchell, Reuben R. Jones, Alfred Edwards, Barbara M. Watson, Jewell S. LaFontant, Theodore R. Britton, Jr., John L. Blake, Thad Ware, Ted Brown, Arthur B. McCaw, Benjamin F. Holman, William H. Brown, III, John D. Ehrlichman, Frederick V. Malek, White House photographer, and members of the press, met in the Cabinet Room of the White House from 5:36 pm to 6:20 pm.
- 110-008 6:20 PM — a White House tour group met in the Cabinet Room of the White House at an unknown time between 6:20 pm and 11:59 pm.
- 110-009 6:20 PM · 1 min — a White House tour group met in the Cabinet Room of the White House at an unknown time between 6:20 pm and 11:59 pm.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 816-001, November 29, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/816-001 (accessed October 12, 2026).