Scrapbook 3: Eisenhower Bounced by Telstar

EISENHOWER BOUNCED BY TELSTAR

Uncommunicative satellite

BY W. J. WEATHERBY

“The first five and a half minutes are the important ones,” cried an American voice across the River Room of the Savoy Hotel last night. All the assembled newspaper reporters must have felt suitably squashed there, at General Eisenhower’s press conference, by this tribute to Telstar.

These first five and a half minutes were being televised, or Telstarised, whatever the word should be, and this seemed to dominate the proceedings. The lights shone down on the reporters as brightly as if they were being grilled by the police, and the press photographers were asked to restrain their flashbulbs in case they upset Telstar.

“One, two, three — just testing,” droned the voices like a litany of 1984. The general entered in the middle of it, had his picture discreetly taken by the newspaper photographers, and then sat up on the platform to await his cue from Telstar. It looked then more like Telstar’s occasion than the general’s, even though it was announced as being his first press conference—or “news conference” as Telstar preferred it—since he retired as President.

The general was apparently making history, or so the announcer could be heard saying, as he was appearing on Telstar’s first (was it Telstar’s first live news event?) The announcer’s words got lost on the far side of the room as reporters began to ripple their notebooks. The British reporters there had been asked to speak up because—by now we had it almost engraved on our hearts—“it’s being broadcast live in the United States and the last thing Americans want to hear is their own voice.” So, some obviously British voices boomed out co-operatively and we were away.

Gradually, as he spoke up, the general began to win over Telstar. The bright lights seemed to fade before his more human grin and obvious wish to be obliging in his forthright way. Everyone, including Telstar, had been told he was not “disposed” to discuss official United States foreign or domestic policiy. So he ducked a few questions inappropriate for a private citizen on holiday. But he did repeat his opinion that he did not agree that the Russians had “necessarily a space lead.”

The American space programme had, in part, been devoted to other things and so you could not compare the two. He thought the space programme should be devoted to obtaining scientific information and, if that was done, they would get to the moon as a matter of course. Letting it become a spectacular space race was not worthwhile compared with holding a series of scientific explorations, as the Americans had done. The Russians had gone ahead in certain things, particularly in the making of great engines, but the Americans would one day do it, and, in any case, had done it in other things.

Diplomatic

As for the Common Market, that was a very serious problem and he was confident Britain would find the right solution. For many years he had been in favour of freer trade and therefore was in complete agreement with the general policy. No “outsider,” as he called himself, could have been more diplomatic. Questioners tried to get him off his guard as a private citizen about NATO, or about co-operation in space research, or about Berlin, but he was in complete command of the occasion by then.

Where was Telstar? Were those five and a half minutes up, and had it gone off to other continents? He repeated his view that military and economic strength and morale were the key factors in a country’s health and the military should not be allowed to get out of hand and upset the other two. He thought the morale of Western Europe very high.

A word or two about golf, and then he decided to depart. He went off through the crowd with his usual beam as if unaware he had just made history—according to Telstar.

Picture in US, but no sound

New York, August 15

The transmission to the United States by way of Telstar of the London press conference of Mr Eisenhower last night proved only 50 per cent successful. The picture came through very well but there was no sound.

Television network spokesmen here said they understood that this was no fault of the satellite but that the sound failure occurred somewhere between the press conference at the Savoy Hotel and the British transmitting station at Goonhilly Downs, Cornwall.—Associated Press.

Gen. Eisenhower to visit Wexford after all

By our Dublin Correspondent

Mr Eisenhower will arrive in Ireland for a two-day visit on Tuesday—and he will visit Wexford.

This decision, which appears to be final, is the climax of what has seemed at times like a new situation comedy from the Abbey repertoire. About three weeks ago it was revealed that Mr Eisenhower had wished to visit Wexford to place a wreath on the memorial there to Commodore John Barry, the “father” of the American Navy; but the corporation had decided that it could not receive him.

The explanation was that the day chosen for the visit was inconvenient; most of the members of the two town bands would be at work and it would be difficult to give such a distinguished visitor a proper welcome.

When this story was made public, there was an outburst of indignation among the people of Wexford. Some suspected that the corporation was playing Democrats and Republicans—that it was demonstrating its support for Mr Eisenhower’s successor, whose great-great-grandfather emigrated from County Wexford early in the last century.

The corporation met again and reconsidered the matter; an official invitation was sent to the former President. But by now the United States Embassy in Dublin had made other plans for the visit. It was impossible for Mr Eisenhower to fit Wexford into his schedule.

There was a new message from the embassy yesterday, however. Mr Eisenhower had prevailed on the US forces in Britain to lend him a helicopter so that he could visit Wexford and be back in Dublin for lunch.