By the time he suddenly succeeded to the presidency in November 1963, following John Kennedy's assassination, Lyndon Johnson had been secretly recording his private conversations for years--first by having an eavesdropping aide take shorthand notes on telephone calls, and then, as recording technology advanced, by committing conversations to tape. Even on his first night as president, he remembered to make sure that the tape recorder was working. His motives were apparently practical--a kind of hands-free note-taking, and a way to document the commitments he and others had made. Whatever his reasons (and despite Johnson's desire that the documentation remain sealed until at least 2023), the tapes are a boon to students of politics and history. Masterfully edited and annotated by presidential historian Michael Beschloss, they reveal a quintessential political animal at work. It's fascinating to listen in as Johnson works the levers--cajoling, trading favors, calling in chits, twisting arms, and occasionally playing rough--often in a pungent, earthy Texas patois. The book covers the period from November 1963 through the Democratic convention in August 1964, when Johnson was nominated for reelection. Its biggest single revelation is that Johnson believed Fidel Castro was behind Kennedy's assassination; another, less sensational, is that his reservations about the deepening war in Vietnam were greater than previously known. Most importantly, though, these tapes provide an invaluable, uncensored look into a complex presidency--and president.

From Library Journal
These secretly recorded conversations between President Lyndon Johnson and members of his family, his staff, and the troubled nation he was governing constitute one of the most exciting audio programs of the decade, invaluable to anyone who is interested in history, politics, or the workings of human nature. Johnson was the only man to tape his entire term in the Oval Office, enabling us to overhear conversations with Lady Bird, Jacqueline Kennedy, President Truman, President Eisenhower, Robert Kennedy, Martin Luther King, J. Edgar Hoover, Hubert Humphrey, members of the press, and key advisers on the issues of Civil Rights and the Vietnam War. Although this debut of a series covers only the first year of his presidency, the brevity dictated by marketing consultants is its one great flaw: many conversations are faded or cut short, and at times the Johnson excerpts are briefer than the Beschloss narrative connecting them. The inestimable advantage of this program over the unabridged text is that the listener is made truly present while the events of American history are decided. An invaluable study in the psychology of power and as a unique historical document; essential for every collection.?Peter Josyph, New YorkCopyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

The New York Times Book Review, Michiko Kakutani
As expertly selected, edited and footnoted by the presidential historian Michael R. Beschloss, the conversations form a fascinating record of the first nine months of Johnson's administration, providing new insights into his character and a revealing look at the day-to-day workings of his presidency and the crucial decisions he would make on Vietnam and civil rights. Because Beschloss writes so authoritatively about his subject, the reader is left wishing that he had added an introduction or afterward that provided an overview of this period in Johnson's life, something he apparently declined to do so as "not to drown out the subject's voice" with his own. That aside, Beschloss has still done a masterful job of putting together a book that gives us a remarkably intimate portrait of a working president, while at the same time revealing the man behind the myth.

From AudioFile
Presidential historian Beschloss has performed a great service for those interested in politics and/or the 1960's by identifying important selections from the recently released tapes of phone calls made during the Johnson Administration. Recordings from Johnson's first year in the White House include talks with Martin Luther King, Jr., Bobby Kennedy, Harry Truman, Hubert Humphrey, Barry Goldwater and others. The Vietnam War, the Civil Rights movement and the 1964 presidential campaign are among the topics of discussion. The recording quality of these conversations is uneven, and those speaking with Johnson don't know they're being recorded. Beschloss provides useful commentary in an economical fashion, but sometimes his aristocratic voice seems stilted. M.L.C. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine

Review
Steve Neal Chicago Sun Times An extraordinary study of one of the more extraordinary characters in American history. Johnson the man is brought vividly to life in Taking Charge.

Book Description
Taking Charge brings you into the room with an American political legend, still hated and revered a quarter century after his death. We hear Lyndon Johnson as he schemes and blusters, rewards and punishes, and reveals a bedrock core of unshakable political beliefs. The only President to record his private conversations from his first day in office, LBJ ordered these tapes locked in a vault until at least the year 2023. But now they have been unsealed, providing a close-up look at a President taking power such as we have never had before -- from John F. Kennedy's murder in November 1963 to Johnson's campaign for a landslide victory. Taking Charge is filled with revelations about the full-blooded Texan behind the public image. You will hear LBJ: * Revealing his self-doubts and personal anguish over the responsibilities of the presidency * Receiving the frank criticism of his wife, Lady Bird Johnson * Staking his presidency on a revolutionaly civil rights bill * Scuttling Robert Kennedy's drive to be his Vice President * Using the Tonkin Gulf attack to expand the American beachhead in Southeast Asia * Unveiling his private, tortured early doubts that we could ever win a war in Vietnam Taking Charge gives us an unprecedented look into a crucial presidency that continues to shape our lives today. In LBJ's own words, it is history "with the bark off."

From the Publisher, Simon & Schuster

Taking Charge, edited by Michael R. Beschloss, whom Newsweek has called "America's leading presidential historian," brings you into the room with an American political legend, still hated and revered a quarter century after his death. We hear Lyndon Johnson as he schemes and blusters, rewards and punishes, tells tales of Washington, D.C., and Texas, and reveals a bedrock core of unshakable political beliefs.

The only President to record his private conversations from his first day in office, LBJ ordered the tapes to be locked in a vault until at least the year 2023. But now they have been unsealed, providing a close-up look at a President taking power such as we have never had before -- from John F. Kennedy's murder in November 1963 to Johnson's campaign for a landslide victory. Michael Beschloss has transcribed and annotated the secretly recorded tapes, providing historical commentary that allows us to understand fully the people, crises, and controversies that appear on them. Taking Charge, the first volume of The Johnson White House Tapes, is filled with revelations about the fullblooded Texan behind the public image. We hear LBJ telling who he thinks really killed JFK, creating the Warren Commission, staking his presidency on a revolutionary civil rights bill, scuttling Robert Kennedy's drive to be his Vice President, using the Tonkin Gulf attack to expand the American beachhead in Southeast Asia, and unveiling his private, tortured early doubts that we could ever win a war in Vietnam.

About the Author
Michael Beschloss has been called by Newsweek "the nation's leading presidential historian." Author of five previous books on American Presidents, he is a frequent lecturer and a regular commentator on ABC News and PBS's The News Hour with Jim Lehrer. Born in Chicago, he is a trustee of the White House Historical Association, the National Archives Foundation, and the Thomas Jefferson Foundation. He lives in Washington, DC.

FROM OUR EDITORS

The Barnes & Noble Review
October 1997

As seen on "Nightline" and "Larry King Live," and excerpted extensively in Newsweek, the presidential tapes of Lyndon B. Johnson have been unsealed. They are examined in Michael R. Beschloss's Taking Charge: The Johnson White House Tapes, 1963-1964.

The only president to record his private conversations from his first day in office, LBJ ordered the tapes to be locked in a vault until at least the year 2023. But that request has been preempted and the tapes unsealed, providing a close-up look at a president taking power in a way we have never seen before, beginning with John F. Kennedy's murder in November 1963 and continuing through Johnson's campaign for a landslide victory. In Taking Charge, Beschloss, whom Newsweek has called "America's leading presidential historian," has transcribed and annotated the secretly recorded tapes, providing historical commentary that allows us to understand fully the people, crises, and controversies that appear on them.

Significant events and revelations chronicled in Taking Charge include:

The aftermath of the Kennedy assassination, including Johnson's conversations with FBI director J. Edgar Hoover about the killing. Although he publicly endorsed the Warren Commission's lone-gunman findings, LBJ privately suspected that President Kennedy was killed by a conspiracy, probably backed by Fidel Castro. As early as the spring of 1964, while he prepared for possible military action in Southeast Asia, LBJ privately expressed doubts that theUnitedStates could ever win a land war in Vietnam. Johnson feared, after signing the Civil Rights Act, that blacks — inspired by Communists and the man he called "Muslim X" (Malcolm X) — might riot and bring about a national white backlash against civil rights.

The Johnson White House tapes provide us with an intimate look at Johnson's complex, changing relationships with Lady Bird and the rest of his family, Jacqueline Kennedy, ex-Presidents Truman and Eisenhower, and members of the White House staff. Taking Charge is not only a unique exploration of a momentous presidency but also a highly personal look at the private man who took office after an American tragedy and led the nation into some of its most tumultuous years.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Taking Charge, the first volume of the Johnson White House Tapes, is filled with revelations about the full-blooded Texan behind the public image. We hear LBJ telling who he thinks really killed JFK, creating the Warren Commission, staking his Presidency on a revolutionary civil rights bill, scuttling Robert Kennedy's drive to be his Vice President, using the Gulf of Tonkin attack to expand the American beachhead in Southeast Asia, and unveiling his private, tortured early doubts that we could ever win a war in Vietnam. By allowing us to hear LBJ as he applies the 'Johnson treatment' to foes and friends, Taking Charge offers spellbinding insight into how the 36th President used power. Johnson flatters, provokes, and twists the arms of some of the dominant personalities of the times, including Robert Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., J. Edgar Hoover, Robert McNamara, Katharine Graham and other leading media figures, members of Congress, and many others. We come to understand Johnson's complex, changing relationships with Lady Bird and the rest of his family, Jacqueline Kennedy, ex-Presidents Truman and Eisenhower, and members of his Cabinet and White House staff.

FROM THE CRITICS

Michiko Kakutani

A masterful job. A remarkable intimate portrait of a working President, while at the same time revealing the man behind the myth. —The New York Times

Alan Brinkley

Riveting. . . .An incomparable picture of the character and style of one of the most remarkable personalities ever to inhabit the Presidency. -- The New York Times Book Review

Albert Hunt

Anybody who cares about Presidential elections or about American history. . .should read these Johnson tapes. -- The Wall Street Journal

Richard J. Barnet

A fascinating portrait of an imposing. . .and surprisingly vulnerable character. . . Engrossing. -- The Washington Post Book World

Michiko Kakutani