Conversations with experts, tors of historical sites, and questions from cspans audience, we tell the stories of the first ladies. Now, Lady Bird Johnson. This is about two hours. Lady bird johnson a beautification to my mind is far more than a matter of cosmetics. To me, it describes the whole effort to bring the Natural World and the manmade world into harmony. To bring order, usefulness, delight to our whole environment. That, of course, only begins with trees, flowers, and landscaping. Susan swain thats from a film created by the Johnson Administration with Lady Bird Johnson talking about beautification, her signature issue as first lady. She was a natural campaigner, successful businesswoman, and a savvy political partner to her husband, our 36th president , Lyndon Baines johnson. Good evening, and welcome to cspans first ladies influence and image. Tonight well tell you the story of Claudia Taylor johnson, known to everyone as lady bird, the wife of our 36th president. Here to tell our story tonight are two guests, Cokie Roberts, political commentator for abc news and npr. Shes also the author of two books about womens political history, founding mothers and ladies of liberty. Thanks for being here. Cokie roberts good to be here. Susan swain Betty Boyd Caroli is a first ladies expert. She is the author of numerous books, including first ladies from Martha Washington to Michelle Obama, and shes currently working on a new biography of Lady Bird Johnson. Ladies, id want to start with the beginning, with where we were 50 years ago this week. This is an administration birthed in natural tragedy. What were the immediate challenges for the brandnew first couple on those first terrible days after the assassination of kennedy . Cokie roberts well, theyre enormous. First of all, nobody knew whether there was a widespread plot, and so the country was in terror for a period of time. And then they had to be both taking over and, i mean, making sure that there was a peaceful transition to power without seeming to take over, because of the image of pushing the other the kennedys out of the way, any of that, so they had to be very, very careful in how they handled it. And Lyndon Johnson was very lucky that he had lady bird to help him with that, because she has a good ear for knowing exactly what to say and when to say it. Susan swain and in particular, what did she do during those first weeks. Betty boyd caroli well, she said she felt like she was on stage for a part that shed never rehearsed. But, in fact, i think it would be hard to find a first lady better prepared than she was. And she immediately started taking notes. You know, we have her shorthand notes while she was still waiting to hear whether president kennedy had died. And on the way back, on the plane, she started making plans for putting her Radio Station into some sort of Cokie Roberts trust. Betty boyd caroli blind trust so that they would not be accused of profiting from it. So she really took over very fast. I mean, she was a good study. Susan swain id like to just play off of that idea of her taking notes, because this was an administration, which documented itself extensively. There was a daily diary that she recorded of herself. There were also the Lyndon Johnson phone tapes, which many people Cokie Roberts which are fabulous. Susan swain and who love political history are aware of. And then there was also a naval Television Crew that followed the first couple around and documented. Is this new to this administration . Or had this been going on for a while with president s . Betty boyd caroli i think the amount of documentation is new. She didnt record every day, because some days were just too full, but she had a little recording machine. And on days that were too busy, she would stuff brown envelopes with menus or lists of people she had seen. And then she would get an hour or so some day and she would sit down and record. So those recordings are still being transcribed. Theyre wonderful. I mean, her white house diary, which people may have read, is, i think, 800 pages, but thats only an eighth of what she has on those tapes. So were waiting for the rest of it to come out. Cokie roberts i mean, there were before these recordings, of course. We have some kennedy recordings; we have some roosevelt recordings. And Louisa Catherine adams, John Quincy Adams wife, wrote when she was first lady the autobiography of a nobody, which tells you something about her state of mind at the time. But so there was i think that most first couples have an awareness of the magnitude of the job. But Lady Bird Johnson had such a sense of history that she understood. She said she dared herself to keep a diary. And she understood that that was something special. Susan swain well, in fact, throughout this program, we will see some of the video from the naval crew that followed the couple around to document their days in the white house, and here are some of the clips. Were going to start with one of those. This is Lady Bird Johnson on november 22, 1963, recording that first tragic day that brought them into the white house. [video clip] Lady Bird Johnson mrs. Kennedys dress was stained with blood. One leg was almost entirely covered with it. And her right glove was caked that immaculate woman it was caked with blood, her husbands blood. She always wore gloves, like she was used to them. I never could. And that was somehow one of the most poignant sights, exquisitely dressed and caked in blood. I asked her if i couldnt get somebody to come in to help her change, and she says, oh, no, thats all right. Perhaps later ill ask for mary gallagher, but not right now. And then was something if with a person that gentle, that dignified, you can say had an element of fierceness, she said, i want them to see what they have done to jack. It was decided that he should be sworn in there in dallas as quickly as possible. And there, in the very narrow confines of the plane, with jackie on his left, her hair falling in her eyes, but very composed, and then lyndon, and than i was on his right, judge hughes with a bible in front of him, and a cluster of secret Service People and congressmen wed known a long time, lyndon took the oath of office. Susan swain what are you hearing there that people should understand about Lady Bird Johnson . Betty boyd caroli well, shes very specific. I had really forgotten how she gets so many details. And her description of that, but also before that, when she talks about walking into the hospital, and the kennedy car was still there, and she saw this bundle of pink blossoms and the blood around it, i mean, shes a very astute observer. Wonderful. Cokie roberts shes also a wonderful writer. Betty boyd caroli yes. Cokie roberts and shes aware of that. She writes intentionally. But shes clearly i mean, shes also clearly upset in that recording. You can hear it. And shes trying to both describe the situation, but at the same time, give homage to Jacqueline Kennedy, you know, this very meticulous woman, caked in blood, all of that to, you know, say shes trying to tell you what was happening, but not to, in some ways, sort of sensationalize it. Susan swain and for her following in mrs. Kennedys footsteps, Cokie Roberts referred to that this sort of delicate dance of being respectful, but needing to take control. What was the two womens relationship like . Betty boyd caroli well, Lady Bird Johnson, many people said you must be this is a daunting act to follow. And she said, well, feel sorry for mrs. Kennedy, not for me, because i still have my husband. And i think she made a special effort not to imitate in any way some of the projects that she considered, for example, beautifying the mall. Lyndon johnson had advised her not to do that, because the kennedys had done something similar. But she was an amazing she was amazingly absent. She didnt have envy of anybody. She seemed to consider the kennedys a different generation. And i find her amazing in that regard, that she knew that Jacqueline Kennedy was extremely popular, and yet she knew that she had a lot to offer, too. Cokie roberts and she had filled in for Jackie Kennedy a lot. Betty boyd caroli many times. Cokie roberts i mean, thats something you have to keep in mind. There were lots of times that mrs. Kennedy was she was pregnant, she lost a baby, she wasnt well a lot of times a lot of things she didnt want to do. And mrs. Johnson filled in, so she knew the role well. And she was a quintessential washington political wife. She had been on this scene since the 1930s, and she really knew it well, and she had a cadre of other political wives who were just extraordinary women, and they all gathered around her, and that made that also made that transition somewhat easier. Susan swain we should say at the outset, among those women who gathered around was your own mother. Cokie roberts right. Susan swain can you talk about the friendship between your parents and the johnsons . Cokie roberts well, my father was first elected to congress in 1940. He was 26, and my mother was 24, think of it. And in that that was, of course, before world war ii. And so still the rules were still there of calling, so you had to go calling, and that was, you know, the Supreme Court on monday, the cabinet on tuesday im making up the days, but, you know, the senate on wednesday, like that. And there was my mother, this 24yearold girl, except people were older then than they are now, and so her first day of having to go calling, and the horn honks outside, and she goes running down, and its Lady Bird Johnson and pauline gore, al gores mother, and they took her calling that first day. And the friendship has been very, very warm ever since, to the point, all through their husbands political lives, but then and then when they both became widows, they traveled together and had a wonderful time together. Susan swain were going to step back in time and learn more about the biography of the woman who became first lady on november 22, 1963. But before we do that, a reminder about your involvement. These programs are interesting because of your questions, and we hope youll join in tonight. Three ways you can do it. You can tweet us at cspans website. Its firstladies. Were also already taking questions from people on our facebook page, and you can call in. Here are the phone numbers. If you live in the eastern half of the United States, eastern or central, 2025853880. If you live in the mountain or pacific time zones, or farther west, our number is 2025853881, and well mix your calls and your questions throughout our 90minute program. So, her biography. Where was she born and to whom . Betty boyd caroli she was born in well, you cant really say a town, because its a house outside the town, which is really not much of a town, either, karnack, texas, in 1912, december 1912, in a big house. I mean, one of the things i found in studying first ladies is how many of them married down, that is, they married into families considerably below theirs economically, socially, sometimes even education. And it made a big impression on me to drive past the house where Lady Bird Johnson was born, that 17room house with six fireplaces, and the big white columns, and then go 300 miles its right near the louisiana border and then drive 300 miles west and see that lowtotheground fourroom cabin where Lyndon Johnson was born. So she came from a far wealthier background than he did. Susan swain what are the important things to know about her childhood and what shaped her . Betty boyd caroli well, i think the death of her mother. She was only five when her mother died in what i consider mysterious circumstances. And she was pretty a very lonely child, although she said she wasnt, but how would she know what any other kind of childhood would be like . Her two brothers were she had two older brothers, but they were sent away to boarding school. Cokie roberts and they were a good bit older. Betty boyd caroli they were a good bit older, and they were sent away to boarding school. She particularly, the older one, the tommy, the oldest brother, she said she really never knew him. When he died in 1959 of pancreatic cancer, she said she cried harder than she had ever cried in her life. So it was a lonely childhood, i think. Even her name, you know, lady bird, the typical story is it came from a nurse. But she says in her interview with Mike Gillette that it was really two little africanamerican playmates, the children of hired help who decided to call her that, because they didnt like claudia, but it was not considered somehow acceptable to say that she had africanamerican playmates, so the nurse was brought in, and it was attributed to the nurse, the lady bird. Susan swain and an aunt who Betty Boyd Caroli who was dysfunctional, really. Cokie roberts with the aunt was someone she ended up having to take care of. Betty boyd caroli yes. Cokie roberts and so there she was, this little girl all by herself in this big house with a father who was around, but, you know, had no clue what to do with her, and this, you know, sort of nutty old southern aunt, and some playmates here and there. But the big advantage to that was she became a worldclass reader. Susan swain well, how important was it for southwestern women of that vintage to get an education . Was it unusual that she went to college . Cokie roberts yes, slightly. But by that time, more women were going to college. We were now talking the 1920s and into the 30s, so, yes, i mean, it was more common than it was clearly a generation before that. Susan swain do we know why she was interested in journalism . Cokie roberts i think that for a lot of women do you have an answer to that . Betty boyd caroli well, she did she was interested in high school, so its obviously an early interest. And i think it was part of her plan to get out of that area, to get out of that part of texas. Cokie roberts i also think for a lot of women, you know, they could write. They had learned to write, and that that was something they thought they could do. My mother wanted to be a journalist, too, and they both ended up as politicians. Susan swain the interesting thing about her approach to it here she was from a wealthy family, but she not only got a college degree, but she also got a teaching certificate and learned stenography. Betty boyd caroli thats what a girl did to prepare for all possibilities, right . Cokie roberts but isnt it interesting that she felt the need to prepare for all possibilities with as much money as she had . Betty boyd caroli yes, because she had a good income. I figured that she was inheriting about 7,500 a year in the 1930s, which was about what five School Teachers could make. Susan swain wow. Betty boyd caroli but i think her aim was to get out of there, i mean, she said some faraway place like hawaii or alaska. And remember, she went to the same Journalism School as walter cronkite. In fact, they had the same professor singled out the same professor as a favorite. Cronkite said he was a good professor. I think his name was paul bolton. And she hired him to head the news division, that same professor, when she bought the Radio Station. So i think we forget how very welltrained she was as a journalist. Susan swain how did she meet Lyndon Johnson . Betty boyd caroli well, by chance, supposedly, but it was certainly through a woman that they both knew, and they must have heard something about each other before. It was a september afternoon when lady bird was had dropped into the womans office. Her name was jean behringer, a woman that lady bird had grown up with, although the woman was older than she. And lyndon dropped by the same office on the same day. And it was, as lady bird says in the one of the interviews, it was electric going from the first minute. And the love letters, which are just the courtship letters, which were released by the library last valentines day, everybody should read them online. You know, you just put lbj courtship letters, and you can read the transcripts. They were they were conducting a hot and heavy courtship. Cokie roberts and fast. Betty boyd caroli because he was in washington. Cokie roberts and really fast. He was not going to waste any time. She was either going to marry him or not. Susan swain he was, at the time, a congressional aide . Cokie roberts right. Susan swain so she knew she was going to be selecting a life in politics. Cokie roberts i guess so. I mean, you could be an aide and not run, but he clearly had ambitions, and she was for those ambitions. Susan swain and he seemed like you call it whirlwind, but it seemed like he was if you read the books very directed. He knew he wanted her from the getgo. Was she encouraging this . Did she have any doubts about it . Cokie roberts well, i think from her own oral history, she basically says, you know, hold on here, as anybody would. And he essentially said, well, i mean, are you going to marry me or not . Because if youre not, lets just not see each other. She she didnt want to have him gone, so she finally said, okay. Susan swain did her father approve . Betty boyd caroli he liked lyndon, but he thought it was too fast. They met on, i think, september 6th, and lyndon showed up on halloween. So what is that, seven weeks later . I mean, the time theyd spent together, which was about five days, i think, and he was ready to get married right then. So even the father said, this is a little too fast. And the us and the woman who introduced them thought it was too fast. And aunt effie certainly thought