Chapter 18: January 1964 – April 1964
Chapter 18: January 1964 – April 1964
“Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace; where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy.”
– St. Francis of Assisi
“During the Christmas break, I talked with my family over an idea that I’ve had for quite a while now, and they agree with me that is sounds like a real good one and I hope you all agree. Ladies and Gentlemen, I am declaring myself a candidate for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. I’m running because, America, we need a leader with a plan. We need a leader who will reverse the big money and big business domination of government. We need a courageous leader who will stand up and fight the necessary political battle [1] to protect the checkbooks of the average American and remove corruption from our markets. And we need a leader who will and can assure peace at home and abroad, and without falling back on bloodshed to do it. President Johnson has failed at all of these endeavors… As President, I will to withdraw troops from Cuba within 90 days of being sworn in. I will instigate a Senate investigation into Wall Street’s action to determine the true causes of this Salad Oil Recession. I will take a stand in the name of peace and national defense and meet with Soviet Premier Shelepin to work on an agreement to scale back our mutual buildup of nuclear weapons. I will not falter in upholding a national mission of allowing nations to prosper freely and determine their own futures for themselves, without pressure from foreign nations attempting to pull puppet strings. But I cannot do it alone. I will need your support if we are to make the peace of Washington listen to the voices of all of the American people demanding for peace abroad and peace at home. Together, we will make a difference. Together, we can win this. ...Thank you all, and remember – vote Morse, or it’ll only get worse!”
– U.S. Senator Wayne Morse (D-OR), 1/2/1964
PATTERSON CHALLENGES LBJ FOR DEMO. NOMINATION
Birmingham, AL – John M. Patterson has announced his decision to run an active campaign to challenge President Johnson for the 1964 Democratic nomination for President of the United States. Patterson, the fiscally moderate, socially conservative Governor of Alabama from 1959 to 1963, proclaimed “patriots never cower in the face of the toothless snarls of Washington’s fat cats.” Patterson’s national profile was raised in 1961 by his opposition of the Civil Rights Act, and has repeatedly criticized the President since then. The former lawyer and state politicians, who has many connections to the state's biggest political donors, has claimed nationwide integration was “a mistake,” citing last year’s Xenia Riots as an example of “forced legal integration lead[ing] to voluntary social segregation.” Patterson also stated that parts of the country are not yet ready for segregation, and that other regions of the nation “work better with segregation.” A major platform of his campaign is his pledge to “allow segregation to be returned and retained in the places that need it most.” Patterson plans to run in the Democratic primaries in order to “prove that the Democratic voters are not happy with how their party is being run,” and is also reportedly planning to woo over delegates at the Democratic National Convention scheduled for early July.
– The Birmingham News, Alabama newspaper, 1/3/1964
"I ran on the platform purely because I thought it was the only way that I would be able to defeat Johnson at the Convention, become President, and bring our boys home from The Cuban Quagmire unless the island could be won by the Fourth of July, 1965."
Do you regret it?
"I'm an old man. I have lots a things to regret. That's one of them."
– John Patterson, 2001 interview
“I support fairness and equality among the races that make up this great nation of ours, and I support Lyndon Johnson for President.” (public)
“If I play my cards right, 1968 or 1972 will be our year, Lurleen!” (private, according to Lurleen Wallace in a 1981 LBS interview)
– Governor George Wallace, 1/4/1964
5 January 1964: On this day in history, Pope Paul VI of Rome and Patriarch Athenagoras I of Constantinople meet in Jerusalem, marking the first time since the 15tth century that the leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches meet in the same room; they discuss strengthening relations and ways of addressing universal concerns in was is described as a “respectful [and] professional” discussion and meeting.
– onthisday.co.uk
Father had been flying in the Cuba War since 1961, but was shot down and captured in 1962 after being part of the operation that took out the Cuban communist leaders Fidel and Raul Castro. In the POW camp, my father was subjected to intense physical and psychological torture, but after months of imprisonment, he orchestrated an escape plan with the other prisoners-of-war, and successfully fled into the jungle wilderness of the Cuban interior. He finally made it back to American territory in 1963, but was in serious need of medical attention. Due his courageous service he was awarded the Purple Heart, and sent to recuperate at The Chester Nimitz Medical Center at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, which opened in April of 1962 after President Lyndon Johnson expanded medical services available to military personnel in Oahu. Father, still serving in the US Navy, could have easily retired – he had done more than had been asked of him – but, as he would often say, “I was not leaving until the job was over, and defending America is a job that’s never over.”
In January 1964, my mother, Ann Dunham, having finalized her divorce from my biological father (Barack Obama) about one month prior, was set to begin a new set of classes at the University of Hawaii’s East-West Center when she first met Father. They told me they met at a busy water fountain in a park off of the base. Father had been lightly jogging to redevelop his muscles and mother was taking me out for some fresh air. They ended up making small talk with each other while waiting for their turn to drink.
“Cute kid,” he commented on her two-and-a-half-year-old (me).
“Nice medal,” she spotted it around his neck, peaking out from under his white sweat-covered cut-off.
“I usually never went out with men like him,” Mom would later explain, “I hated war and tended to avoid anyone who contributed to it. But John was different. We kept talking and we soon discovered we had a great deal in common – we both came from families that moved around a lot, we both wanted to take charge of our own destinies, we both liked the same things here and there. And he had a great smile. We soon they felt this spark, I guess, and before leaving he convinced me to give him my number.”
Father would later confess that when he first met us, he had assumed Mom was my babysitter. Him “sticking around after learning the truth,” as Mom put it, was a major factor in her going out on more than just one date with him…
– Barack McCain’s Lessons From my Fathers, Sunrise Publishers, 1993
[ pic: imgur.com/u2uQWFc.png ]
– John McCain and Ann Dunham in Hawaii, c. early 1964
On January 8, 1964, Johnson gave his third State of the Union address, which, along with producing a few notable quotes such as “unity will lead to prosperity, and prosperity leads to societal greatness,” focused largely on his thoroughly-researched economic plan to combat the sudden national recession. Prior to the speech, he confided to Jenkins that “[A president] making an economic speech is like a fellow peeing down his leg. It makes him feel warm but nobody else knows what the hell he’s doing.” [2] Indeed, polls taken shortly after the address showed that most polled were still very worried about their jobs and the cost of goods and services. These results demonstrated that Johnson was slipping on domestic policies as well as on foreign policies, including fiscal and economic concerns. Thus, the speech, while receiving fairly positive reviews from pundits, was considered a "failure" by the White House's inner circle for failing to comfort or reassure a worried public…
– Robert Caro’s The Years of Lyndon: Book Four: The Pursuit of Power, A. A. Knopf Inc. New York, 2012
Johnson was facing a massive public loss of faith in the market combined with major companies failing left and right - and all because of one swindler from New Jersey and his lies concerning oils used for salad dressings and mayonnaise. American Express was facing hundreds of millions of dollars in lawsuits and had been forced to place its subsidiary into bankruptcy (reimbursement calls were still being explored at the time). …Eventually, after further, less important details were sorted out, Amex was forced to take a massive loss on their warehouse contracts. Trading firms that were smaller in size but still fiscally wounded by the scandal were eventually snapped up by larger players... The foreign markets that had been closely tied to the US, such as Canada, the U.K., and to a lesser extent France, suffered as well, in an economic version of the Domino Effect. The U.K. suffered a minor recession, along with Canada, because the leaders of those two countries, Douglas-Home and Diefenbaker, respectively, had tightened economic ties with the US under L.B.J.; conversely, other Western states such as the Netherlands and Italy were less affected, especially Germany, due to the 1961-1963 Chicken Tax War... While economists believed the economic struggle’s conditions would lead to a relatively quick recession, it would still be a rather difficult (yet still not unsolvable) recovery…
– Robert Caro’s The Years of Lyndon: Book Four: The Power of the Presidency, A. A. Knopf Inc., 2018
CONGRESSMAN GILLIS LONG WINS DEMOCRATIC NOMINATION FOR GOVERNOR
…Long, 40, achieved roughly 53% of the vote against John J. McKeithen’s 47%. ...Gillis William Long is a member of the famous Long political family of Louisiana; he is a nephew of Governor-turned-Senator Huey Long; when Gillis was in high school, another uncle of his, then-future Governor Earl Long, was running for Lieutenant Governor, and young Gillis gave campaign speeches at Gillis’ school on Earl’s behalf… Long served his country valiantly during WWII, receiving a bronze star, five campaign stars, and the Purple Heart before serving at the Nuremburg trials and retiring at the rank of captain in 1947; military service delayed his graduating from law school by roughly a decade… McKeithen was a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from the 20th district from 1948 to 1952, and has been a member of the Louisiana Public Service Commission since 1955. McKeithen also served his country during WWII, rising to the rank of first lieutenant while in the 77th Infantry Division in the US Army's Pacific Theater of Operations; for his service, he was awarded two Bronze Star Medals and the Distinguished Service Cross…
– The Times-Picayune, Louisiana newspaper, 1/11/1964
12 January 1964: On this day in history, the Zanzibar Revolution results in the predominantly Arab government of Zanzibar being overthrown by African nationalist rebels; occurring in less than 24 hours, the revolution ends 200 years of Arab dominance over the island region in eastern Africa, and heightens fears among western powers that communism is slowly spreading into Africa; the new government’s alleged communist ties lead to British and American citizens being evacuated from the territory, with a United States Navy destroyer evacuating 61 U.S. citizens.
– onthisday.co.uk
…1964 started with San Francisco Giants announcing on the 15th their decision to make champion outfielder Willie Mays the highest-paid player in baseball by signing him on to a new $105,000 per season contract…
– John Helyar’s Lords of the Realm: The Real History of Baseball, Ballantine Books, 1994
Conservative pundit William F. Buckley is the one most often credited with coining the term “Jell-O,” as its first recorded use was when the political commentator appeared on Pat Robertson’s Christian Broadcasting Network on January 18, 1964. Buckley denounced the shoutniks as being “as soft in the brain as the Jell-O their generation grew up on,” only for activists such as Diana Oughton and Bern Sanders to begin using the phrase in a positive manner to suggest that the younger generation was not as "rigid and...stiff as the intolerant leaders of yesteryear," in a jab at continued anti-integrationist politicians (Tumbleweed Magazine, February 1964 issue). Jell-O had reached peak popularity by the start of the decade thanks to its consumption by children born in the 1940s, during and immediately after World War Two. During this time, young mothers didn’t have the supporting community structures of earlier generations, so marketers were quick to promote easy-to-prepare prepackaged foods [3] like Jell-O. The label “Jell-O generation” soon became nationally known, and actually helped the Jell-O company’s earnings, as Jell-O’s sales had begun to significantly decrease in 1962 and 1963 due to multiple factors, including economic issues and changing societal tastes. This boost, however, was only temporary, as sales returned to declination at the start of the 1970s as society's preferred foodstuffs continued to change and evolve. Many Jell-O dishes, such as desserts and Jell-O salads, became special occasion foods rather than everyday items. Marketers blamed this decline on decreasing family sizes, a ‘fast-paced’ lifestyle and women’s increasing employment [3]. In response to this apparent “rejection” by more politically-liberal consumers, many producers of gelatin dessert (with Kraft Brands, holders of the “Jell-O” trademark, being a very noticeable exception) began to appeal to more conservative demographics and in turn develop pro-conservative atmospheres in their workplaces and advertisements, leading to some controversy later on...
– pointlessfacts.co.usa/why-were-shoutniks-sometimes-called-the-jello-generation-question-mark
“A CHOICE, NOT AN ECHO” – GOLDWATER ANNOUNCES BID FOR THE PRESIDENCY
Phoenix, AZ – At a planned press conference held outside the patio of his surprisingly modest ranch home, US Senator Barry Goldwater officially announced early today that he will run in the Republican Presidential primaries, calling for limited government and for Americans to uphold personal responsibility. “We are a strong, independent, and determined people, and the government has no right to hold us back.” The two-term Senator from Arizona also discussed his view on foreign policy, claiming “Cuba is in an awkward state of limbo,” and informed reporters that he supports “increasing military action in Laos to cut off the military activities carried out there by members of P.L.A.F., or People’s Liberation Armed Forces. This is the army branch of the North Vietnam political entity known as the National Liberation Front, also known as the Viet Cong. Their activities in South Vietnam include arming communist insurgents, seeking out American sympathizers, and sneaking troops and various supplies into South Vietnam in order to undermine and destroy democratic and freedom-loving institutions across those areas. The people in control of the White House also need to address the fact that the North Vietnamese government and military are being supplied by Communist China.” …Goldwater concluded the press conference by telling voters to “beware the empty promises of the radical left. The biggest lie you'll ever hear get spewed out of D.C. is 'The Feds are here to help.” ...Polls from Gallup and other polling institutions suggest that Goldwater is a top-tier candidate, and that his biggest opponent in the upcoming Presidential primaries may be Governor Nelson Rockefeller of New York, or possibly even Governor George W. Romney of Michigan or former Vice President Richard M. Nixon of California...
– Associated Press, 1/20/1964
Our 579 locations worldwide produced a net total of US$[REDACTED] in all 1963 sales, giving the company a net gain of US$[REDACTED] from 1962. …Our least successful outlets were the 37 in Mexico, the 3 in Brazil, and the 25 in France. Solutions for rectifying this situation, as suggested by the respective regional managers, are as follows:
Option 1: refocus advertising expenses from well-established regions to Mexico, Brazil and France.
Option 2: perform survey to better understand local wants and needs.
Option 3: cut our losses and close the least productive of these outlets.
– Annual KFC beginning-of-year sales report, KFC headquarters in Florence, KY, 1/21/1964
Execute Options 1 and Option 2. Option 3 would leave those employers jobless and those customers without a high-quality source for quick, hearty food. I’d rather make less profit than no profit at all. Make the people happy, and that will lead to fortune for all.
– Colonel Sander’s response to above report, private memo, KFC headquarters in Florence, KY, 1/21/1964
GOVERNOR ROCKEFELLER MAKES PRESIDENTIAL BID OFFICIAL IN SPEECH
...recent hypothetical polls have suggested that the New York moderate (in the Governor's seat since 1959) could narrowly or comfortably defeat President Johnson in a November head-to-head matchup. Some critics of Rockefeller, though, believe that he will have greater difficulty winning the Republican party's nomination at this summer's GOP National Convention at the Cow Palace in California...
– The New York Daily News, 1/25/1964
– Colonel Sanders celebrating Australia Day in a commercial for KFC Australia, 1/26/1964
INTERVIEWER: Well what about Gordon Lightfoot? The two of you did jam together a few times, yes?
CHONG: Yeah, only a few times. The guy had a lot of talent, we did some collaborations in early 1964 and onwards, but he wasn’t into smoking. To him, music itself was a powerful drug. At least that’s how it started out at first. I mean, Gordie loved what he was doing, but he actually struggled with actually making a lot of his songs. We’d tell him to let loose, but we meant with tokes. Instead Gordie became quite a womanizer as the years went on. But who am I to talk?
– usarightnow.co.usa/culture/interview, 2014
With Pat’s permission, Nixon began 1964 by quietly creating a staff of workers, specialists and advisors to help him run for the US Senate, seeking incumbent Democrat Clair Engle’s seat. At the same time, he supported the notion of a possible Draft Nixon movement in the Republican Presidential race. The Senate primary had just been scheduled for August to redirect focus in the state to both parties’ presidential primary in June, while the R.N.C. was set for July. This scheduling meant that if Nixon put off the Senate run in the face of a rising draft movement, he could jump into the race for the Senate nomination as late as the last minute if the bid for the Presidential nomination failed. Despite losing the gubernatorial primary in an upset two years ago, Shell’s loss caused some Republican supporters to express interest in backing a Nixon-Johnson rematch, given the experience of "buyer's remorse" paired with how close Nixon got to winning just four years prior. Personally, though, Nixon did not believe that any incumbent would lose at a time of war, which is what he called the situation in Cuba even if the Johnson administration refused to acknowledge that Communism still plagued the island. Furthermore, Nixon surmised that Johnson would seek to develop a rally-around-the-flag effect of some kind to overshadow the “buyers’ remorse” type of campaign that Nixon agreed he would most likely run on; still, Nixon wanted to keep all of his cards on the table, and did not confirm or deny any decisions in a concrete manner for a good while. Instead, he simply waited to see how things unfolded along further first…
– John Ehrlichman’s Witness: What Went on Behind Closed Doors, Folkways Books, 1998
THREE MORE STATES RATIFY PROPOSED 24TH AMENDMENT
Washington, DC – …The legislature of President Johnson’s home state of Texas narrowly approved ratification over the weekend, brining the total number of states to 33. …Congress proposed the 24th Amendment on February 10, 1963 and submitted it to the states 30 days later. Only five more state legislatures need to ratify the amendment in order for it to become part of the US Constitution. While the state legislatures of South Dakota, Maine, New Hampshire, Delaware and Missouri and even Georgia are set to attempt ratification later this year, Governor George Wallace is seeking to make Alabama become the next state to ratify despite heavy opposition from his state house of representatives …If ratified, the Amendment will ban poll taxes from all U.S. election, and reinforce the conditions of the 1962 Civil Rights Act and the 1963 Voting Rights Act, “making them rightly ingrained into the U.S. Constitution…” according to US Vice President Hubert Humphrey, whose home state of Minnesota has already ratified the amendment… Poll taxes are still not illegal in Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi, South Carolina and Virginia; this fact means that 38 states must ratify a US Constitutional Amendment because five state governments refuse to pass basic state laws to benefit American voters in those states…
– The Washington Post, 1/29/1964
After surviving the experience of getting shot, Johnson was determined to implement gun reform, only to face a myriad of problems concerning such an endeavor when discussing the idea with several congressmen in late January. First of all, when Congressman Emmanuel Celler brought up mental health, it was shot down by most in his own party as being a moot point, as suspected mentally unwell individuals were kept far away from society and guns via asylums.
Secondly, mail order weaponry would require a strong centralized handling of purchases and transports made across state borders. Conservative congressmen believed that such government overreach would be a severe invasion of privacy and a suppression of businesses. "Attacks" on the most common form of gun purchasing, local purchases at stores, were seen as unnecessary to them due to an assumption the conservative congressmen made – that businessmen would be held responsible for selling weapons to an unwell individual by their other customers shifting to other places of business in the US's free markets.
Finally, the most prevalent obstacle to Johnson's gun reform efforts was a general disinterest in such reform. While Johnson had become the first sitting U.S. President to survive a bullet entering his body, the fact remained that he had survived; in the end, nobody had to mourn. Nevertheless, Johnson’s vocal support for a “nationwide analysis” of America’s gun policies persevered, with its most immediate legislative victory being the Interstate Firearms Shipment Regulation Act, introduced by Senator Thomas J. Dodd in 1965 and signed into law in 1967. But in 1964, the best Johnson could do was focus on the mental well-being of veterans. The President surmised that his would-be killer was unbalanced and argued that Vallee, as a former Marine, should have been more regularly checked on by appropriate medical personnel.
Thus, while gun control measures remained as-is for the time being, the US Veterans Department ultimately saw its 1964-1965 budget double for veterans treatment.
– Journalist Rachel Joy Scott’s The American Gun: A Love-and-Hate Story, Technic Publishing, 2021
February 1, 1964
To: The President
From: Director Dulles
Our men have confirmed that General Nguyen Khanh prevented an assassination attempt on South Vietnam President Ngo Dinh Diem at 2300hrs yesterday. The perpetrators reportedly belonged to the Viet Cong, and Khanh has pursued them into the central highlands. Capture or destruction is likely as Khanh knows the terrain well. I suggest we convince Diem to promote Khanh, as this is the third plot to remove Diem that he has successfully deflected…
– Private telegram from the Pentagon to the White House; discovered, declassified and disclosed in 1992
I said to Lyndon, “It’ll be best for this administration to avoid making the rising conflict in Vietnam another American War. This is their war, the Vietnamese people. We can give them aid, we can even give them advisors and experts. But they must win it or lose it themselves. If it was up to me, I’d be fully prepared to let this be something they lose instead of something that we lose.”
“And let the Chinese take another step in taking over that entire region? F@#k that!” was his response.
“Johnson, if we go in there, we’ll drive the nationalists right into the arms of the communists. We can’t afford to internationalize the conflict by attacking or invading or even bombing the north, [4] because that won’t work, Lyndon. It won’t work.”
Johnson replied, “If we handle the Viet Cong the right way, it will work, Jack. It will work, I tell you!”
Clifford interjected before another shouting match began with “Well first we have to unite the South Vietnamese behind a leader they all like. Diem’s in our pocket, but he’s not in their hearts, so we can either find another stooge or try to win the people over.”
I backed the first choice, but the President went with the second, believing Diem to be too valuable to oust. The situation was precarious, and any changes in command could disrupt alliances and trust, he reasoned.
"So how deeply do you want us to get involved, Cliff," I asked Johnson's advisor when Lyndon wasn't around.
"For the time being, we're going to try and keep the levels of our boys over there as is," he said. I couldn't tell if it was a lie.
– Jack Kennedy’s On the Precipice of Change: The Complete Memoirs of Jack Kennedy, Tangent Writer’s House, 1983
By February, the upcoming trial of Tino De Angelis had become a media circus. Paparazzi invaded De Angelis' home life, hounding his relatives for the inside scoop on "Tino the Trickster," the man that the major companies he had duped were happy to dub a one-man market-wrecker. Photographers and reporters hovered around court houses and lawyer offices like vultures keeping their eyes on a dying animal lost in some hopeless desert, waiting for their next chance to flash their bulbs and barker out their questions. ...De Angelis faced multiple charges, the largest of which were counterfeiting receipts, attempted bribery, and commodities fraud. When bail was set at $200,000, De Angelis claimed he did not have that kind of money. Just weeks later, however, an investigation led by the U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey David M. Satz Jr. revealed De Angelis had hidden over $500,000 in a Swiss bank account. This led to a charge of contempt being tacked onto his list of crimes, since he had already declared bankruptcy. The press ate up the story, along with the follow-up that De Angelis was looking for a new defense attorney after his previous one left over Tino's tendency to lie and deceive even the people who were on his side, either out of mistrust or sheer stupidity...
– John Kenneth Galbraith’s The Salad Oil Recession: The Causes and Effects of the Black Weekend of 1963, Excelsior Publishers, 1971
[pic: imgur.com/MUYzmGV.png ]
– De Angelis’ reaction to hearing the charges brought against him, c. February 1962
EXTRA! MLK AND ASSOCIATES SHOT, WOUNDED IN ATLANTA
– The New York Times, 2/10/1964
Host WALTER CRONKITE: …we take you live to our CBS correspondent in Georgia, who is now at the scene of the melee. Hello? How are things down there?"
CORRESPONDENT: Walter, people are in a state of panic here after snipers began firing at civil rights leaders, uh, Reverend King, and several members, including members of the NAACP and other Civil Rights groups [pause]. Oh, just a moment, Walter, hold on. [pause] I have an update, Walter: according to the medical personnel, Dr. King, and organizers Hosea Williams and James Forman were hit by sniper fire alongside two security guards, whom reportedly moved to protect them during the shooting. That's according to an anonymous source who works at the hospital. Now, it is still unclear, however, how severe each of their injuries are, but they all have been taken to the Atlanta Medical Center, uh, hospital, uh, which you can see behind me, um, and, uh, we’ll soon be heading over there to learn the latest developments in this terrible turn of events. Walter?…
– CBS broadcast, 2/10/1964
…our correspondents in New York City; Washington D.C.; Oakland, California; and other cities are reporting escalating incidents of civil unrest as the nation anticipates the hospital releasing more information concerning the health conditions of the three Civil Rights leaders… In St. Louis, hundreds are taking to the streets in outrage, with peaceniks leading a sit-in at the city's local colleges, and a small riot developing in the northern side of the metropolitan area...
– NBC broadcast, 2/11/1964
“I was walking in the back… Dr. King got nicked in the shoulder thanks to his bodyguard’s ribcage affecting the bullet’s trajectory. Forman survived his bullet to the chest because it slipped right on past the vital organs. But Hosea…Hosea was walking ahead of all of ’em, eager to return to H.Q. to set up plans for combating continuing unfair employment and housing policies. He never got to see how that’d play out.”
– retired politician A. J. Young, ABC interview, 2014
“Hosea Williams was an inspiring and courageous champion for Civil Rights, and the actions of his fierce bravery, his consistent pragmatism, his undying patriotism, and his tragic sacrifice will be felt for generations to come.”
– President Lyndon B. Johnson in a Special Address to the Nation, 2/12/1964
“People who say that violence isn’t the answer aren’t answering the same question as the rest of us! In order to communicate with savages who cannot speak your language, you need to speak their language. And violence is the language of the white man!”
– Malcolm X, 2/12/1964, multiple sources
RIOTS RETURN TO CITIES NATION-WIDE!: Rev. King Urges Peace as Rage Engulfs Urban Areas
...from coast to coast, from Los Angeles to Boston, flames are engulfing communities as civil disobedience takes a violent turn in response to the latest incident of race-based violence...
– The St. Paul Pioneer Press, Minnesota newspaper, 2/13/1964
In February, Jim returned from the Oasis. He saw the escalation of riots in US as a harbinger of the obstreperous rumpus yet to come, and soon called upon his followers to relocate the church to California, where he was certain we would acquire more followers, as the number of people willing to join to escape the turmoil unfolding across America was surely on the rise…
– Marceline Jones (1927-2018), 1990 interview
L.B.J. CREDITS KING, ABERNATHY WITH CALMING ACTIVISTS, ENDING RIOTS: Leaders Expected to Leave Hospital Soon
...the situation is de-escalating in a majority of cities as cooler heads prevail and communities look to what will come next - recovering from the damage brought about over the past several intense and troublesome days...
– The Star-Tribune, Minnesota newspaper, 2/15/1964
DEGAULLE OPENLY THREATENS TO WITHDRAW FRANCE FROM NATO: Demands France Be Given “More Equal” Say in Military Strategies
…Over the years, the French President has butted heads with almost every single founding member of NATO, though tensions with the US over the Suez Crisis have cooled ever since Eisenhower left office. …the announcement has led to some protests and counter-protests at universities in Paris and Nice, with many French students whom believe the nation’s funds should go to improving social programs, not weaponry, supporting the withdrawal. "I dare him to withdrawal," says one political science graduate student from Marseille, "I want to see him call his very obvious bluff"…
– The Sun, UK newspaper, 22/2/1964
SENATE PANEL INVESTIGATION RULES AGAINST CONTRACTOR FOR CHEAP, FOREIGN MATERIAL IN NASA FIRE CASE
Washington, DC – US Senator Clinton P. Anderson, chairman of the US Senate Aeronautical and Space Sciences Committee, handed down a guilty verdict to the companies responsible for the production of NASA’s cockpit materials (primarily, North American Aviation), after the committee determined that the materials, not human error, produced the damage to NASA property and the hospitalization of astronaut Scott Carpenter via a fire that broke out at Cape Canaveral on February 7, 1962. The ruling settled a 24-months-long debate over whom was at fault for the fire… An inspection of the quality of materials agreed to in NAA’s contract with NASA, and a critical review of NAA’s management, delivery systems, and quality services, revealed inconsistencies with the qualities of materials promised and the qualities of still-unused materials that NASA had received… NAA and other companies will likely receive generous fines for what could be viewed as a breach of a federal government contract...
– The Miami Herald, 2/22/1964
MORE TROOPS TO BE SENT TO VIETNAM-LAOS BORDER: L.B.J. Vows to End North ’Nam Aggression; Exact Troop Numbers To Be Announced “Soon”
– The New York Post, 2/23/1964
…In an astonishing move, President Johnson today doubled the number of American troops that will be stationed in Southeast Asia… Many of these soldiers are veterans of Cuba who have re-enlisted, but most of them are soldiers who are being transferred directly from operations in Cuba...
– Chet Huntley, the Huntley-Brinkley Report, 2/25/1964
"Cliff, you son of a bitch!"
– U.S. Secretary of State Jack Kennedy, 2/25/1964 (allegedly)
I’m not alone in worrying about Lyndon’s mental health. Ladybird confided in me today that, very recently, he has begun researching some strange rumor he heard about concerning Presidents dying in office - something called The Curse of Tippy-canoe [sic]…
– Excerpt from the Diary of Mildred Stegall, personal secretary to Lyndon Johnson, 2/29/1964 entry
…The 1931 edition of “Ripley’s Believe it or Not” is the earliest known treatise to document the 20-year peculiarity, and was discussed in newspapers again in 1940, 1945 and 1960. Additional writers, including Ed Koterba in his “Assignment Washington” column, suggested either seriously or in jest that the “curse” stemmed from then-Governor of the Indiana Territory William Henry Harrison’s actions against the Shawnee during the 1810s, culminating in the “prophet” Shawnee leader Tenskwatawa cursing Harrison. The prophet allegedly proclaimed that Harrison, and all future US presidents elected in a year ending with the same last number as the year in which Harrison wins election to the Presidency (1840, and thus the "number" zero), will die in office. The “curse” notion holds little water when one considers how Tenskwatawa had no way of knowing Harrison would become President in thirty years unless he truly was prophetic.
Nevertheless, the "curse" was, at the very least, an imaginative explanation for a real-life statistical curiosity, as everyone who had ever won a U.S. Presidential election in a year ending in zero had in fact died while still serving in that office. Harrison won the Presidency in 1840, then died roughly one month into office; Abraham Lincoln won the Presidency in 1860, then was assassinated while in office; James A. Garfield won the Presidency in 1880, and was assassinated in office less than a year later; William McKinley won re-election in 1900, and was assassinated while in office not too long after; Warren G. Harding won the Presidency in 1920 and died in office in 1923; and Franklin D. Roosevelt won a third time in 1940 and died in office in 1945. And most recently, Lyndon Johnson had won the Presidency in 1960.
The Shawnee, who mainly centered in the Ohio valley at that time that the alleged curse was cast, were then repeatedly relocated westward until ending up in Oklahoma by the end of the nineteenth century. While Johnson was typically a level-headed man when it came to superstitions, he nevertheless may have become convinced that the curse was real after surviving two assassination attempts in 1962 and 1963, and possibly came to believe that the only way to end the curse was to make right the wrong made to the Shawnee. These suspicions would explain Johnson’s major upheaval in federal-tribal relations.
In 1964, only two Shawnee tribes were federally recognized: The Absentee Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma, and the Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma. The Loyal, or Cherokee, Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma was a contender for a third recognition. In early March 1964, President Johnson quietly met with Nipo T. Strongheart (5/15/1891-12/31/1966), a Yakama Nation Native American advocate whom played a role in the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924, for undisclosed purposes. Soon after, for reasons not explicitly known, Johnson called for the federal recognition of four more Shawnee Tribes: the aforementioned "third" Oklahoma Tribe, plus the Piqua Shawnee Tribe of Alabama, the United Remnant Band in Ohio, and the Blue Creek Band of Indiana. This action was praised by politicians on the left, whom saw it as a return to the policy established under FDR and as a rebuke and reversal of Congressional efforts to assimilate Native Americans by terminating the legal standing of dozens of tribes via judging members to be ready to become independent American citizens (efforts that allegedly aimed to destroy Native American languages, histories, and cultures in an attempt to hide the atrocious anti-Native Americans policies and actions of past state and federal administrations).
Upon hearing about the President’s declaration, Congressman Ben Reifel (R-SD), the only Native American in Congress, was inspired to introduce with Congressman Emmanuel Celler (D-NY) the Indian Civil Rights bill. The bill called for the application of the U.S. Bill of Rights to “Indian Country,” a guarantee which Native Americans on reservations had not enjoyed; in short, it would make tribal government more akin to modern American court systems. The true impetus for the bill, however, was most likely efforts to address the noted corruption and disorganization of the tribal courts, and to correct a major legal oversight - that tribes were subjected to the US Constitution while their courts were not covered by the Constitution’s Fifth Amendment.
Regardless of its origin, Johnson was a vocal supporter of the bill and pushed for it to be passed before the year was out. It became law in early 1965…
– Presidential Skeletons: Paranoia, Secrets, Curses and Other Bizarre White House Tales, Penguin Publishing, 1993
DEFENSE SECRETARY REFUSES TO ANSWER VIETNAM QUESTIONS
Washington, DC – US Secretary of Defense Clark Clifford refused to answer questions at a press conference today concerning US military presence in Vietnam. Clifford refused to clarify the short- and long-term goals and purposes of American intervention in the “growing destabilization of the vital region,” as the Defense department has described the situation abroad. The growing split in troop deployment between Cuba and Southeast Asia led to reporters asking which country is “our current top priority.” Other reporters repeatedly inquired "when will our boys return home?” For many questions like these, Secretary Clifford uttered the phrase “I cannot answer that on the grounds of national protection” no less than seven distinct and separate times…
– Journalist Drew Pearson’s critical syndicated newspaper column “Washington Merry-Go-Round,” 3/1/1964
THE SHOUTNIKS GO TO COLLEGE: What Are The Issues Behind The Rise In Youth Protesting?
University of Berkeley, CA - From the conditions soldiers face in Cuba and the Laos-Vietnam conflict, to the rise in racial tensions such as the Xenia riots and Hosea Williams riots sparking nationwide accusations of police brutality, the Shoutniks are being heard. Where they are being addressed, though, depends on who’s hearing them.
For some, these issue are being brought up at the local government level, with sit-ins a mayors' offices or peaceful protests at state capitals. For more academic young minds, it's the many departments on college campuses that are attempting to diffuse tense situations with mediation, negotiating resolutions peacefully in a way one hopes can be replicated on larger scales.
Even sporting events being pulled into the melee. Just last week, shoutnik activists took the field during half-time at a football game at Rutgers University (which the home team, the Scarlet Knights, won 10-2) to demand the audience write to their representatives about defending civil rights.
For other young activists, their audience is of the more political persuasion. For example, this summer, activists David R. Rudd of New York (age: 25) and Mario Savio of California (age: 21) will attend the Democratic National Convention after canvassing swaths of counties to shore up potential Morse voters during the upcoming Democratic primaries.
“Change can begin to happen anywhere in American society, even in politics. At the very least, Morse should be able to influence the party’s platform to make it more pro-peace and less dangerous belligerent to other nations,” Savio explained. "Any small contribution to improving this country's treatment of its next generation of leaders can have a positive and long-lasting ripple effect, and so any little contribution at all is greatly appreciated by people like David and I."
Rudd described to us how even his younger brother Mark is getting involved: he’s running for student body president of his high school to oppose its allegedly "biased" history books and assignments. "He wants to be able to look back on all this with pride. Either pride that he helped change things for the better, or pride that he at least helped to try and change things."
Shoutniks and the political, economic, and social issues of their generation have also been dominating the music scene almost as prevalently as Elvis was not too many years ago, with young performers ranging from the simplistic notes of Tommy Chong and Company and the eloquent ballads of Gordon Lightfoot to the more aggressive energy of the newcomers Frank Zappa and Bob Dylan. These songs often touch on the value of human life, on the beauty of love, and importance of tolerence, history, and cultures around the world.
Regarding publications and literary movements, both musical and political angsts are being related to and expressed through a new journalistic publication called Tumbleweed, which puts the concerns of the young to print. Already catching the attention of the waning House Un-American Activities Committee, the magazine's co-founders express no fear of government reprisals. "We simply direct our critics to the language of the First Amendment," co-founder Bern Sanders curtly tells us in a brief discussion at his office. "These youth activists want to see systemic change to dismantle America's racist institutions and economic reliance on warfare. There is nothing anti-American about wanting to make America better off than it is right now, in this current climate."
Like in recent music recordings, the growing generational divide of our time is also being reflected in the films produced in this past year, causing many parents and older Americans to reject these films due to their unconventional aesthetics. One middle-class father of three explained, “I don’t let my children go to the movies alone anymore because I don't want my children exposed to that junk. You can tell the shoutniks are just socialists in disguise because they openly oppose American authority figures. Never before have I seen a generation behave so disrespectfully to the President, so unruly, so anti-American. Has any country ever had a generation so willing to turn traitor before?”
Bern Sanders offers a different view: “We are told, from the moment that we can comprehend it, that the United States of America is a land of opportunity, where anything is possible. And 'anything' includes making America a land of peace, love, and equality and no longer a land of war, hatred and systematic socio-economic oppression.”
– Time Magazine, 3/2/1964 report
Louisiana gubernatorial general election results, March 3, 1964:
U.S. Representative Gillis Long (Democratic) – 446,478 (57.73%)
Shreveport oil businessman Charlton Lyons (Republican) – 307,964 (39.82%)
Mr. Thomas S. Williams (States’ Rights Party of Louisiana) – 18,948 (2.45%)
Total votes: 773,390
Notes/Trivia:
This was the first truly competitive gubernatorial general election in Louisiana since Reconstruction.
At 40 (but 41 on inauguration day (May 12)), Gillis Long was the youngest person elected Governor since Gillis' uncle, Huey Long was elected in 1928 at the age of 35.
– ourcampaigns.co.usa
LBJ, ROCKY SCORE VICTORIES IN N.H.
Concord, NH – In the first contest of this year’s Presidential campaign, US President Lyndon Johnson (Democrat) and New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller (Republican) won the first-in-the-nation primary elections of their respective parties earlier tonight. Johnson deflected two challengers – Senator Morse, running to the President’s left – and former Governor Patterson, running to the President’s right. Surprisingly, a write-in campaign for an undeclared candidate, former Senator Lodge, defeated Senator Goldwater for second place…
Democratic primary results:
Johnson – 80.11%
Morse – 14.54%
Patterson – 4.82%
Other – 0.53%
Republican primary results:
Rockefeller – 38.12%
Lodge – 36.71%
Goldwater – 20.25%
Nixon – 2.60%
Smith – 1.23%
Others – 1.09%
– The Los Angeles Times, 3/10/1964
…I established Muslim Mosque Inc. on March 12, 1964, just four days after leaving the Nation of Islam, much to the ire of my former allies…
– Malcolm X’s The Autobiography of Malcolm X, New York Grove Press, 1990
…Malcolm X’s life was repeatedly threatened. In February, Malcolm discovered a bomb strapped to the bottom of his car [5]. In March, Elijah Muhammad told Boston minister Louis X that “hypocrites like Malcolm should have their heads cut off,” [6]. The threats and intimidating escalated with threatening phone calls beginning soon afterwards. In March, Malcolm X's house was partially burned in a fire [7], causing Malcolm to relocate his family to a friend’s home for the sake of their safety. In light of these dangers Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. reportedly "saw what could be called 'karma,' but he but took no joy from it," according to his son Martin Luther King III. More directly, King expressed mixed feelings toward Malcolm X, agreeing with his style, calling it highly effective and articulate, but not with his substance, once commenting “I have often wished that he would talk less of violence, because violence is not going to solve our problem.” Furthermore, King believed that with only a message of violence, Malcolm was not “offering any positive, creative alternative…urging Negroes to arm themselves and prepare to engage in violence, as he has done, can reap nothing but grief.” [8] Meanwhile, Malcolm began purchasing more guns in preparation of the intimidation tactics rising even futher...
– Herb Boyd and Ilyasah Shabazz’s Malcolm vs. Martin: Violence and Peace After the End of Segregation, Chicago Third World Press, 2013
And here’s the latest from France… University student groups have organized demonstration across their country today in protest of the French government approving of French President De Gaulle’s move to send further military aid to Cuba’s attempts to quash remaining Communist guerilla fighters in the island nation’s jungle interior. The move comes weeks after De Gaulle ceased rhetoric critical of NATO, which had also stirred up activism reactions among France's academic student bodies earlier this year... With the French markets suffering from the US’s Salad Oil Stock Collapse in the form of numerous layoffs, many of these student activists believe that the De Gaulle government is ignoring the people who are most in need of federal assistance… De Gaulle has been critical of these protestors, and recently dismissed their calls for French withdrawal from assisting the US in anti-communist operations in Cuba by compared Cuba to WWII-era France. “We did not rest until every Nazi was out of France. We will not rest until every Communist is out of Cuba. France will never abandon its fellow lovers of freedom.” ...France’s withdrawal from Indochina aside, the French President remains confident that he still has the support of the people despite his significant drop in recent approval rating polls…
– BBC report, 3/17/1964
…According to Harley Sanders, “They were invited, along with other members of the press, to sample Colonel Sander’s Country Style Ribs--the first new entré” to the company’s standard “core” menu in three years [9]. Upon their overwhelming approval, the Sanders family got right to work releasing the new item to the rest of the populace. The [1964] introduction of the barbecue spare ribs in select KFC outlets saw “tremendous” operating problems [10] during the first few months, only for Harley’s sister Mildred Sanders to “turn things around” by the end of March by ordering newer machinery, developing quicker delivery methods, and utilizing worker input and suggestions to carefully micromanage the production process in order to discover how to best avoid sacrificing quality for efficiency.
Ray Kroc, not wanting to be outdone by the Colonel, sought to copy the Colonel’s ribs’ success, but because his uniform franchises were designed for mass production and not for the introduction of new foods or new food production methods, attempts to implement their own version of it were slow. Early forms of a McRib Burger were eventually released to limited test locations along the west coast in the fall of that year, missing the crucial summer season, when barbeque consumption rates are highest. When the McRib Burger received poor reviews, Kroc quickly cut his losses – he scrapped the entire endeavor, with the remaining McRib Burger meat being sold to local steakhouses and butcher shops for a slight profit…
– Josh Ozersky’s Colonel Sanders and the American Dream, University of Texas Press, 2012
[ pic: imgur.com/iuO4nNl.png ]
– A standard box of KFC Country Style Ribs, c. March 1964
STUDENTS BARRICADE STANFORD DEAN’S OFFICE OVER MILITARY FUNDS
Stanford University, CA – The biological sciences department at Stanford University is at the center of controversy as the dean of the department found himself unable to exit his office today due to a collection of shoutniks blocking the doors and windows. While no violence was reported, the dean nevertheless called the police to the scene of the "disruptive incident," as it was initially reported to police and campus security personnel …Last week, reports revealed that the dean had accepted funds from the US military for “biological research” to be conducted at the university's biological sciences department …The young activists are claiming that the “germ warfare money” is an act of “medical abuse” and have threatened to make a citizen’s arrest if the dean does not return the “blood money” funds. At the time of this publication, the standoff between the activities and local law enforcement is still ongoing…
– The San Francisco Chronicle, 3/29/1964
"I'm proud of those young men and women for actively protesting this academic mistake. They made their voices heard, and in a manner that has resulted in nobody getting hurt."
– US Senator Wayne Morse (D-OR), 3/30/1964
“I think that students definitely have a right to protest, that’s a right protected by the constitution, but like I’ve said in the past, I think they should learn how to compromise and behave in a civil manner when at the negotiating table. There’s something off about being violent for the sake of peace… I think the shoutniks should be more like the beatniks – reasonable and not disrespectful – or neither side will be able to get anywhere!”
– Colonel Sanders during a guest spot on Paul Harvey News and Comment, ABC Radio Network program, 4/1/1964
“It was not until the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-2 in Butts v. Virginia Board of Elections (April 1964) that all state poll taxes (for state elections) were officially declared unconstitutional as violating the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment, and eased the passage of the Twenty-Fourth Amendment.”
– From The 1960s: A History, Scholastic, 2007
PUB BOMB LINKED TO IRA: Act Possibly Influenced By Cuba’s “Cam Bomb” Campaign
…The IRA has increased its level of violence in recent weeks, largely over the U.K.’s financial investments in the Cuba War and quite possibly inspired by events unfolding in France and much of the United States…
– United Press International report, 4/4/1964
YOUTH ON THE WARPATH IN QUEST FOR PEACE: How America’s Next Generation Is Affecting Us Now
…Stanford’s Dean is being supported by the teachers and local community for the job creation, but is being heckled and jeered at by shoutniks for expelling the students whom orchestrated the barricading of him in his office last month. The dean has defended the action, claiming "these youngster must learn that now that they are legally adults, their actions have consequences"… In light of all charges being dropped against the first "round" of students that were arrested, and the return of controversial grant money being hailed as a victory by some on the left, some supporters of the shoutniks are calling the situation a "victory." For example, activist Bernardine Dohm remarked on April 5, “This is a movement not confined to this campus, or even to this state. This is a cultural phenomenon, and it will not go away any time soon.” Additionally, one of Dohm's fellow activists, Ted Gold, was bolder in his summation of recent years, predicting “only good things will come for us from here on out.”
– Newsweek, April 1964 issue
"America is in crisis, folks, but just because President Johnson is doing nothing about it doesn't mean y'all shouldn't do something about it, neither!"
– John M. Patterson (D-AL), campaigning in Kenosha, WI, 4/6/1964
PATTERSON WINS PRIMARY, LIKELY IN REBUFF OF LBJ’S CUBA HANDLING
…In tonight's Democratic Wisconsin primary, former Alabama Governor John Malcolm Patterson won roughly 40% of the vote, defeating the state's "favorite son" stand-in for President Lyndon Johnson, state Governor John W. Reynolds, by 5%. This was possibly a rebuff of Johnson’s Cuba Policy, which reportedly has Johnson backers worried. “This victory,” Patterson declared earlier tonight, “Prove that the people disapprove of the actions of this administration, especially when it comes to the really important issues.” Senator Wayne Morse of Oregon was unable to get on the Wisconsin ballot, but nevertheless received 1.7% of approved write-in votes. …On the Republican side of the night, an “unaligned” favorite-son candidate, US Congressman J. W. Byrnes, surpassed leading candidates Goldwater and Rockefeller with a plurality of the vote…
– The Milwaukee State Journal, Wisconsin newspaper, 4/7/1964
TOM JONES, CELOPATRA DOMINATE OSCARS; Poitier The First Negro Ever to Win Best Actor
Santa Monica, CA – …The Santa Monica Civic Auditorium hosted the 36th Academy Awards last night and was hosted by Jack Lemmon. The film “Tom Jones” swept the categories with 10 nominations and tying for the most wins (four) with “Cleopatra.” …Bahamian-American actor Sidney Poitier won the award for Best Actor for his performance in “Lilies of the Field”… Surprisingly, Ub Iwerks won the Oscar for Best Special Effects for his work on the Alfred Hitchcock film “The Birds”…
– The Los Angeles Times, 4/14/1964
“Boy, what a turnout, huh? Folks, this isn’t the kind of night you see every day!”
– Barry Goldwater at a victory rally in Chicago, IL, 4/14/1964
JOHNSON, GOLDWATER WON BIG IN PRIMARIES LAST NIGHT
Chicago, IL – The President celebrated a resounding victory in last night's Democratic Presidential primary in Illinois by attending a function hosted by Mayor Daley of Chicago. Johnson won roughly 86% of the contest's vote, against Patterson’s 11% (almost entirely from the southern half of the state), and Morse’s 3%. Meanwhile, Republicans waged a battle that came down to the wire, as Goldwater edged out Rockefeller with a slim majority, marking the Senator’s first primary won. “This is a big moment for him. It could mean Midwestern voters could possibly stomach his dangerous brand of conservatism in November,” an anonymous backer of Rockefeller worriedly explained to our reporters at the Rockefeller campaign's state headquarters in Springfield. ...Tonight was also a big night for US Senator Margaret Chase Smith of Maine, who achieved roughly a quarter of all votes cast in the G.O.P. primary. "A percentage this generous demonstrates how greatly social views are changing for the better in this country," says one of her supporters in Peoria, "It shows that the idea of a woman becoming President is no longer a fantasy to be laughed at, but a real possibility that is taken more and more seriously with each passing day"...
– Chicago Tribune, 4/15/1964
JOHNSON UNDERPERFORMS IN STATE PRIMARY; GOLDWATER SECURES SECOND WIN
Trenton, NJ – …The President secured the Garden State's winner-take-all DNC delegation with just under 55% of the vote tonight. The results are far from the landslide predicted in the latest polls. Johnson seemed to lose voters to Patterson, whom surged to 29% in the final results, which is a surprisingly strong showing for the south-based candidate. Factors may have included his strong grassroots support from the southern, more rural half of the state, especially from the more conservative “Pine Barrens” area, and from the state being “socially shaken,” according to Governor Hughes, by rioting in many areas after the assassination of Civil Rights organizer Hosea Williams back in February. US Senator Wayne Morse of Oregon won roughly 15% of the vote, nearly entirely from the urban areas of the state… In New Jersey's Republican primary, which was also held tonight, US Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona won over New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller and the undeclared candidacy of Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. of Massachusetts, with the latter’s write-in campaign coming in second place. With 40% of the primary vote, Goldwater may have benefitted from a split in the state’s liberal Republican voters, who were torn between Rockefeller and Lodge…
– The Star-Ledger, New Jersey newspaper, 4/21/1964
“I respect Johnson because he is our President. But I have to seriously question his leadership skills. Our soldiers are getting killed 90 miles from home, and now we’re sending them off to get killed on the near-exact opposite side of the planet. Blacks and whites are fightin’ in the cities and laborers are livin’ in hell in the countrysides. What in h*ll’s name does Johnson think he’s doing right?”
– Colonel Sanders on Face the Nation, 4/23/1964
TONIGHT’S PRIMARIES: LBJ Bounces Back In M.A. Sweep; G.O.P. Draft Bids Surge In M.A., P.A.
Boston, MA – US President Lyndon Johnson was the runaway victor tonight thanks to his surrogate on the ballot, former Massachusetts Governor Endicott Peabody, predictably besting US Senator Wayne Morse and former Alabama Governor John Patterson. Massachusetts’ long history of espousing liberal philosophy led to Morse winning 25% of the Bay State's Democratic primary vote despite the work of pro-Johnson US Secretary of State Jack Kennedy of Massachusetts and his many statewide connections. Patterson received a paltry 3.9% in a regional rejection of his outspoken conservatism. …On the Republican side of the night, the Draft Lodge movement finally won a primary, with the former Senator winning a plurality in tonight's Republican Massachusetts primary. Undeclared Pennsylvania Governor William Scranton also won his home state’s primary in a write-in campaign. Scranton seems more open to accepting the nomination that Lodge; regardless, one Lodge support noted that the results are a clear sign that “the people are restless and disapproving of the current batch of Republican candidates. They want a new one.” …In the Democratic Pennsylvania primary, Johnson underperformed in the wake of Patterson managing to appeal to some of the rural conservative Democratic voters found across the state...
– The Washington Post, 4/28/1964
– KFC commercial, first aired 4/29/1964
“The youth rebellion is a worldwide phenomenon that has not been seen before in history. I do not believe they will calm down and be advertisement executives by the time they’re 30, as the Establishment would like us to believe.”
– William Burroughs, writer, 4/30/1964 interview [11]
SOURCE(S)/NOTE(S)
[1] These italic bits were pulled from a quote found here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Morse#cite_note-51
[2] LBJ really did say this OTL!
[3] These quotes (italics) pulled from this interesting article: https://slate.com/human-interest/2012/08/jell-o-and-mormonism-the-stereotypes-surprising-origins.html
[4] This quote was spoken (by someone else) in the Vietnam Documentary “In the Year of the Pig,” starting at the 51:25 mark.
[5] Found in Karim, Benjamin; w/ Peter Skutches & David Gallen (1992). Remembering Malcolm. New York: Carroll & Graf, ISBN 978-0-88184-881-6; p. 159-160.
[6] Pulled from Kondo, Zak A. (1993). Conspiracys: Unravelling the Assassination of Malcolm X. Washington, D.C.: Nubia Press, p. 170
[7] Found here: Perry, Bruce (1991). Malcolm: The Life of a Man Who Changed Black America. Barrytown, N.Y.: Station Hill, ISBN 978-0-88268-103-0; p. 352-356.
[8] This MLK Quote is from OTL!
[9] This italicized passage was pulled from here: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1975/05/19/curmudgeon-ribs-chickens
[10] At least, according to Source 56 on the Wikipedia page for the History of Kentucky Fried Chicken.
[11] He said something similar to this in 1968 IOTL.
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