Kenneth speaks of what an informal situation it was in Washington at the time. One could freewheel around the town in all the government agencies. He had his own phone book that he made up of all the people who were useful to him. So often he could…
The Free Thai movement developed simultaneously among Thai students in Britain and the United States. It was under the direction of the Thai Legation in Washington and probably under the principal military attachés in Britain. Kenneth explains how…
Kenneth gives a detailed description of the fourth day of the Seminar. He describes his daily routine, involving introducing speakers, a staff meeting, and other meetings he might have.
Kenneth tells of the Landon's different career spurts. He describes them as quite fortuitous, as Margaret wrote her book, and the war spurred great interest in Southeast Asia. Kenneth was also fortunate in that he was the only one in the Foreign…
Kenneth tells of a lovely arrangement of flowers. This was during the time of the recordings. The flowers were from Phil Bonsal's wife Margaret, who had sent the flowers to Margaret Landon.
Kenneth remembers the first time he went to the theater, at age eight or nine. Mr. Jenkins, a printer for The Evening Republican, and Bobby Jenkins took him there. He recalls being photographed wearing the dress of Alice Jenkins after a party and…
The whole mob of them would go down the stairs to the floor below where the coffee bar was. Half way down the stairs, there was a huge firehose all coiled up and ready to go in case of an emergency. There was a wheel that you whirled to turn the…
Kenneth gives a detailed description of the fifth day of the seminar. He explains that he has a new librarian, Miss Idol. He also discusses the rapid growth of the library due to requests for documents. He tells his father's chicken story. Word also…
Kenneth describes in detail the Executive Office Building. He goes on about a certain office or two, mentioning Rockefeller's office and open fireplace. He talks about the grandeur of the building, with large rooms, large doors, large…
Kenneth gives a detailed account of the end of the second week in the Seminar. Walt Rostow and the Attorney General both came this day. Kenneth spent some time talking with men from MIT. Kenneth is working on preparing materials for Africa and the…
From Saigon Kenneth traveled to Bangkok and Calcutta to catch a military plane that took him to the Philippines. On the plane from the Philippines there were only two passengers. There was no place to sit, so they simply rolled up in blankets and…
The Dolly Madison saga, which happened in February, 1942. Dolly Madison was Kenneth's secretary, and she was madly in love with a reporter for The Washington Post, and a good one, named George. The man wasn't interested in marrying her, so she…
Margaret wrote Kenneth that Candy, the bulldog Kenneth had acquired as a pet in Richmond, had bitten a child. Kenneth wrote back that he felt Candy should be disposed of. Margaret kept that dog, and two years later, when Kip was a baby, on March 27,…
Kenneth discusses the end of the course. He describes the last two days as the best in the course--these were the days the seminar groups gave their presentations, and he found them to be extraordinarily professional. He was particularly impressed by…
Kenneth gives an account of the Country Team Seminar visiting the White House and meeting the President of the United States. this was a grand time for them, and the President received them quite well. The class was quite enthusiastic about the…
Kenneth now tells of the Chungking project. This was a possible venture in India and China to tap possible sources of information in Thailand and Indochina, and it was to be based in Chungking. Kenneth was seriously considering going out and setting…
Kenneth tells of the first year under the Kennedy administration. As there were no committees or coordination, Kenneth saw the entire U.S. government as chaotic. He also tells of the Buddhist incident, in which Kenneth advised a group to "drive right…
The British couldn't understand why the Americans objected to their twenty-one demands. They pointed out that they had a state of war with Siam, whereas the U.S. did not. But the US won the war in the Pacific, not the British, so the US was going to…
The Board of Economic Warfare was formed just for the war, and its purpose was to figure out how to cripple the economy of the enemy in the war. It was involved in bombing factories, bridges, acts of sabotage, whatever would cripple the enemy's…
Kenneth comments on how much the family's life had changed over the past few years. He had expected to spend his life as a Presbyterian minister, but then he couldn't get a church, so he became a professor at Earlham, and expected that he would spend…
Kenneth discusses the fourth week of the Country Team Seminar. The groups for Southeast Asia and Latin America divided, both focusing on their respective areas. The main speaker was Professor Russell H. Fifield from the University of Michigan.…
Kenneth describes the assassination of Ngo Dinh Diem. He clarifies, once again, that he was never involved. He first describes his relationship with Diem, and then expounds on the results of the assassination.
Kenneth ran the area studies program from 1963 through 1965. He completely reorganized the program, as many found it to be quite insufficient and superficial. Kenneth modeled it along the lines of serious area studies programs he found in various…
Kenneth flew to Kuala Lumpur, and from there to Djakarta. Kenneth was the desk officer for all these areas of Southeast Asia, so here was Ken Landon from the Department of State visiting the new nation of Indonesia. The rate of exchange on the black…
Years later, U.S. News and World Report had a "Where Are They Now?" on Jean Saintenay and Kenneth Landon, asking the question of where they were presently. CBS picked it up, and Marvin Kalb came out to the Landon's home with a big crew to tape…