Downloading Tip: If clicking the link above opens the file in your browser, it may help to hold the "Alt" or "Option" key when clicking on the link. Alternatively, you can right-click and select "Save Link As" to download this file.
About Oral History
Digital Identifier
JFKOH-RH-01
Interviewee(s)
Hilsman, Roger, 1919-2014
Biographical Note
(1919 - 2014) Director, Bureau of Intelligence and Research, Department of State (1961-1963); Assistant Under Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs (1963-1964)
Interviewer(s)
Dennis J. O'Brien
Access Restriction Status
Open in Part
Use Restriction Status
Portion(s) Closed
Description
In this interview Hilsman discusses his initial interactions with John F. Kennedy [JFK]; Hilsman’s appointment to the Department of State during the Kennedy Administration; Foreign Service officers and “hot-seat” jobs; issues with Dean Rusk as Secretary of State; reorganizing the Bureau of Intelligence and Research; the flow of information between the State Department and the White House; staffing the State Department; the use of satellite intelligence; John A. McCone; working with and around Robert F. Kennedy [RFK]; JFK, RFK, and Vietnam; Edward G. Lansdale; Maxwell D. Taylor; the connection between Vietnam and Laos; U.S. action in Laos; the Buddhist crisis in Vietnam; the impact of WWII on Hilsman and JFK’s generation; and the 1963 coup in Vietnam, among other issues.
Date(s) of Materials
14 August 1970
Deed Status
Deeded
Copyright Status
Donated to the United States
Collection
Series
Series 1. John F. Kennedy Oral History Interviews, 1964-2012.
Preferred Citation
Roger Hilsman, recorded interview by Dennis J. O'Brien, August 14, 1970, (page number), John F. Kennedy Library Oral History Program.
Subject(s)
Person(s)
Organization(s)
Use Restriction Note
Some of the archival materials in this collection may be subject to copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Users of these materials are advised to determine the copyright status of any document from which they wish to publish.
Associated Record
Accession Number
OH 1972-049
Transcript
Page Last Updated
October 28, 2023 9:18:57 AM EDT