A loud disturbance in a fine restaurant could not distract The Washington Post’s Katharine Graham from her train of thought. Perhaps you read the commentary about Graham in SCOOP two weeks ago (click here to read). The commentary focused on Graham’s steadfast journalistic values and how much she is missed. Here’s a bit more.
It’s about how Graham interacted with people. Yes, she was warm and engaging, but she spoke to you as if her friends were your friends. She used the first names of notable individuals most of us are unlikely to meet.
In early fall of 1994, during her annual dinner while visiting WPLG in Miami, Graham entered the restaurant, greeted our small dinner party, and said, “You know I had lunch with Nancy the other day and she told me Ronnie does not remember being President.” Legendary WPLG anchors Ann Bishop and Dwight Lauderdale, along with station General Manager John Garwood and the little old WPLG News Director, me, looked at Graham quizzically. The never-shy Bishop finally remarked, “Kay, do you mean Nancy Reagan? You had lunch with Nancy Reagan, who told you her husband, Ronald Reagan, does not remember he was President.”
“Yes!” Graham responded. “Ronnie has Alzheimer’s!”
That news was not public at the time. A few months later, on November 5, 1994, former President Ronald Reagan announced that he had Alzheimer’s disease. He had left the Oval Office just five years earlier.
Katherine Graham was a fascinating dinner companion.
You must be logged in to post a comment.