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(Ted and Joan Kennedy - Election Night 1962 - battling the stigma of nepotism)

Going a back a ways today. The legacy of Ted Kennedy, who left us this year, has been remembered of late as a staunch supporter of Universal Health Care - his tireless arguments in favor of reform of our shattered Healthcare system and the uphill battle he encountered for so many years in the process. But we don't spend much time on the early days of Ted Kennedy, the candidate for Senate. His opponent George Cabot Lodge, son of the former running mate to Richard Nixon in 1960. Ted Kennedy had to weather the baggage of being the brother of the President, How would that impact his ability to be an effective member of the Senate, even as a Junior Senator. The questions were frequently asked, even on this episode of Meet The Press.

Ted Kennedy: “Mister Spivak, I want to make my position extremely clear that my decisions in the United States Senate will be based upon my own belief of what I think is in the best interests of the state, the best interests of the nation, and in the dictates of my conscience. I have disagreed with the President before. I imagine I’ll disagree with him in the future. But upon this will be made my determinations about the questions effecting both the state and the nation.”

On October 28, 1962, with the Cuban Missile Crisis on everyone's minds, the Senate seat race in Massachusetts took a serious backseat to the events 90 miles south of the mainland.

But even so, 1962 would be the beginning of the Ted Kennedy years.

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(John McCormack - rumored to have thrown up and fainted when told he might be President in 1963)

The opening of the 2nd session of the 87th Congress - January 10, 1962. A pretty busy year. Former speaker of the House Sam Rayburn had suddennly died, leaving the seat open. John McCormack was voted to succeed him. McCormack had the dubious distinction of informing the House on November 22, 1963 that John F. Kennedy had been assassinated. When told there was a rumor Vice-president Lyndon Johnson may also have been assassinated - the thought he may be next in line as President was a bit too much.

In this broadcast, Senators Eugene McCarthy and Leverett Saltonstall are interviewed to discuss upcoming Legislation. Eugene McCarthy was to become a Presidential candidate in 1968 and 1972 and was an outspoken critic of the Vietnam War. Here he talks about the proposed Medicare Bill - one which didn't pass during this congress, but did eventually pass in 1965.

Eugene McCarthy: “ I do expect that we will have a good fight on the Medical Aid question. This would be drawn I suppose, quite clearly on party lines. In my judgment we can pass a bill which is somehow tied to Social Security, which is the kind of bill I think we ought to pass in the Senate. I’m not sure as to what the response will be in the house, but I do think this is a proposition which the Democratic party and certainly the President are both firmly committed and that we should make a total kind of political fight on this one.”

I am always amazed, listening to these old broadcasts, how civilized two people from opposite sides of the aisle could be towards each other.

Or is it just me?

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(Bourke Hickenlooper - Melvin Laird)

An eerie similarity in recent times, the astonishing lack of specifics in a Republican platform - well, this one was from Meet The Press on June 10, 1962. But you can imagine it from 2009 just as easily. The substance, or lack of it seems just about the same. The only thing different are the characters, the screaming and a bit less noise.Back in the day when "The Loyal Opposition" actually meant something.

Talking about the "Platform" this time is Bourke Hickenlooper and Melvin Laird. Laird, you'll recall, will go on to become Secretary of Defense under Nixon and coined the phrase "Vietnamization", but here he is a congressman.

Bear in mind that in 1962, the Republican Party were still licking their wounds over the 1960 election and the party hadn't been hijacked by the Barry Goldwater contingent until 1964.

Ray Scherer (NBC News): “Congressman Laird, on page four you say that Republicans urged vigorous investigations of fraud at the poles and you recommend corrective action. Is this pointed at a specific instance?

Rep. Melvin Laird: “ Well, it’s pointed at the 1960 elections Mister Scherer. We had certain evidence that Chicago and Texas and Philadelphia and other areas where there was fraud at the poles. And that the Republican minority of the House Judiciary Committee in the so-called Kramer Amendment made certain recommendations. That amendment has not been enacted into law, we believe that it should be vigorously pursued so that the right to vote of each individual citizen is protected."

Scherer: “On the same page you call for effective tax relief for medical and hospital insurance. And you also call for tax relief for financing education. How would this work?"

Laird: “First, as far as Medical and Hospital insurance is concerned, I think you’ll recall that in the Republican 80th Congress and amendment was adopted to the Internal Revenue Code which provided for double exemption over the age of 65. At the present time the Internal Revenue Code there is a three percent provision that you can’t deduct any amount unless it exceeds three percent of gross income. We believe that this provision should be done away with because many people that are buying medical and health insurance at the present time are unable to deduct it from their income taxes. Now in education: We feel that we are opposed to the so-called massive approach of general federal which passed the Senate last year. We are for the selective approach . We believe we can do much more good by giving tax incentives, tax relief. We had some members of our committee that were for a tax credit proposal in this education area. Others for a tax deduction. Our statement gives general support to this idea, but we spell it out as tax relief for the individual paying for the cost of education for himself or for others."

Vague, ambiguous and hoping no one will notice.

Same as it ever was - same as it ever was.

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(Senator Kenneth Keating, 1962 - Politics with a civil tongue)

I don't think it's any surprise that Sunday Morning talk shows have changed dramatically over the years. Formats are no longer the same. Programs like Meet The Press and Face The Nation were only two of the almost dozen programs on most weekends. Usually a panel of three interviewers fielding questions to a single guest. The questions ran the gamut but they were always on point and they always dealt with real issues and real concerns to most people.

The days of news as info-tainment were a long ways off.

One of the more popular shows was a radio-only series run on CBS called "Capitol Cloakroom". This show, typical of their format, featuring George Herman, Wells Church and Nancy Dickerson was from May 6, 1962 featuring newly elected Senator Kenneth Keating (R-New York). The questions were regarding legislation introduced by the Kennedy Administration, including the Medicare Bill (which died the first time in 1962).

Keating gives his assessment of the first year of the JFK administration.

Wells Church(CBS News):

“It would appear to the casual viewer that things are in trouble. What’s the situation, really?”

Senator Keating:

“Well, not only a casual observer but I would think anyone intimately associated with the entire program would realize that the Administration program is in trouble. You could go right down through the list. The Medical Care for the Aged is opposed by the Democratic Chairman, both in the house and in the Senate of the committees that deal with that matter. The tax bill passed the House, but as Senator Byrd, the Chairman of the Finance committee in the Senate has said it doesn’t seem to have the support of anyone – I don’t know of anybody that’s for the tax bill, if the House bill were before the Senate today I’d vote against it."

No drama. No screaming. Nothing shrill. Just solid information about the goings on in Capitol Hill.

Kind of refreshing. Makes you wonder when did it all go wrong.

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(Pres. Kennedy - The Independence Hall address - July 4, 1962)

The first time a President spoke at Philadelphia's Independence Hall since Woodrow Wilson. July 4, 1962

Have a listen while you're setting up the barbecue and breaking out the Buds.

Stay sane everyone!

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(Thalidomide - when wonder drugs went awful)

One of the bigger scandals to hit the pharmaceutical industry came in the form of Thalidomide, a drug marketed throughout Europe in the late 1950's as sedative, pain killer and a morning sickness preventative for pregnant women.

Only it wasn't. By 1960 the drug was widely available throughout the world (even as an over-the-counter item in Germany) and the horrible side effects came to light. Children born with an alarming number of birth defects, most in the area of gross deformities.

By 1961, the FDA instituted a recall of Thalidomide and banned its use. But the question was, why did the FDA take so long to make these horrific discoveries and why did they wait almost a year to get them off the market?

As a result, the FDA utilized more stringent testing - although judging from the amount of drug recalls and related scandals the past several years, it would give pause to the idea that the system is foolproof.

Oddly enough, Thalidomide has made something of a comeback in recent years, not as a antidote for morning sickness but as a treatment for skin lesions and multiple Myeloma and other cancer forms.

This interview, from the ABC Sunday series "From The Capitol" from August 12, 1962 features George P. Larrick, Commissioner of the FDA talking about the Thalidomide scandal and the FDA's role in public safety.

It would be nice if we were out of the woods over future Thalidomide scandals. But that's not likely.

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(Back by popular demand - the whole show)

A few weeks ago I put up an excerpt of a Hollywood Bowl concert from 1962 featuring Dave Guard's Whiskeyhill Singers. It drew a huge response and the overwhelming request was for more. Since I had put up the initial clip before the snappy new Crooks and Liars embed player was up and running, I was only able to use YouTube and their somewhat limiting 10 minute maximum to play the piece.

Now that things are new and improved, I've decided to run the concert complete and without edits or interruptions - just as it happened that night in 1962.

Okay fans, have at it!

A few weeks ago I posted a Miriam Makeba concert from the Hollywood Bowl in 1962. I made mention of the fact that one of the opening acts was the recently formed Dave Guard's Whiskeyhill Singers. I got a lot of response on that, with readers wanting to know when I would get around to posting it. Sorry for the delay, so here it is.

For those of you not familiar with Dave Guard or the Whiskeyhill Singers, Guard had recently left The Kingston Trio, taking with him David "Buck" Wheat, their accompanist bass player. The Kingston Trio was one of the most successful folk acts of the late 1950's to early 1960's, cresting a wave of popularity that ebbed just around the time The Beatles came on the scene. Folk music in general had achieved a great amount of popularity during this time - first as a true exponent of Americana and later as a means of protest, although the protest part had been around for a long time with the likes of Pete Seeger, The Vietnam War seemed to be the galvanizing point from which a lot of protest Folk singers emerged.

Dave Guard's Whiskeyhill singers consisted of Dave Guard, Cyrus Faryar, Judy Henske and Dave "Buck" Wheat.

The group didn't last very long, splitting up shortly after this concert was recorded. They released one album for Capitol, with another as yet unreleased.

So here is a glimpse of a short-lived group, whose members went on to pursue other musical avenues and achieve names in their own right. Their traditional folk approach is evident in the three songs from this portion of the set: 1. Railroad Bill 2. The Oxdriver 3. Salomila

Enjoy.