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National Geographic Inside the White House
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It is a simple mansion, |
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a symbol of freedom |
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and great statesman alike. |
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It is like no other place on earth, |
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a house alive with the past and present. |
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I deem this reply a full acceptance |
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...that a strong and a confident |
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and a vigilant America |
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It is an odd place, |
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where the monumental and |
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to provide a nuclear strike capability |
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therefore, I shall resign |
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the Presidency effective |
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It is where the most critical decisions |
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And where any American can visit. |
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And all the things that American |
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Independence means to you |
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My fellow Americans, |
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here the people rule. |
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Now you will journey |
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meeting the people |
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that give this powerful place its soul. |
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For this is more than just an office |
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it is an American idea |
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This isn't the biggest house. |
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Many and most, in even smaller countries |
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This isn't the finest house, |
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It's the best house |
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because it has something |
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numbers of people who serve, |
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far more important than numbers |
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or how big it is, |
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far more important than numbers |
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This house has a great heart, |
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and that heart |
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At the White House, |
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For those who serve inside, |
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These people, stagehands to history |
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are preparing the house for the visit |
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Hi, Brenda, this is Gary Walters |
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How are you today. |
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Fine. |
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Each time a foreign leader |
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the President has an opportunity |
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and heritage of the nation |
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in a setting |
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floorboard, and stone. |
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This is the symbol |
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but in the eyes of the world, |
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Nothing compares to the simplicity |
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nothing, nothing in the world like it. |
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...black tie, the dinner is... |
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will start off |
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Very shortly the Yeltsins will arrive. |
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To insure a flawless visit, |
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there are briefings on the 1000 details |
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Then in terms of the movements, |
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going up to the stage... |
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The high point of the visit |
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Dramatic, entertaining, and essential, |
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the state dinner is the ultimate |
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Not a thing. Not a thing. |
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Okay, we're gonna start |
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More than 200 reporters will cover |
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It will begin in a few moments |
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called the arrival ceremony. |
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Will you repeat the name again please. |
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Ladies and Gentlemen |
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from the South Lawn of the White House. |
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Checking one, two, three, four, |
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ten, nine, eight, seven, six, |
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I'm Mrs. Gore. |
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Inside the White House, |
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the President and the First Lady |
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The only thing I don't remember |
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both coming and going? |
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I hope I don't sneeze... |
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Ladies and Gentlemen. |
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The President of the United States |
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The White House is |
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that it's hard to imagine |
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But almost 13 years |
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had declared independence, |
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the city of Washington |
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was still nothing |
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In 1789, Congress agreed |
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Ridiculed in New York and Philadelphia, |
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the city and the President's house |
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had it not been for one man. |
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Washington wanted the city built. |
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By law it had to be occupied |
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and many forces |
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in the wilderness. |
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Washington wanted it, he wanted it |
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he wanted it on the Potomac River. |
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And he was determined |
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because in having the buildings, |
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Its foundations were dug by slaves, |
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carved by Scottish masons. |
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More than half the workforce were |
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The workers lived at the job site |
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and each morning received a lb. of meat |
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After one especially randy night there, |
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the commissioners overseeing |
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the project closed down the only house |
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to have ever operated |
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When it was finished, it was immense; |
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a bigger home would not be built |
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until after the Civil War. |
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Today, the power of the symbol |
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something every visiting |
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At that moment... |
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...I become the United States |
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And we stand for all of our people. |
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And if this state visit goes well, |
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then it's proof that |
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And we're making a newer |
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And I don't want to mess it up. |
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I want to do it right, |
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Conceived by President Kennedy in 1961, |
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the modern ceremony not only |
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it gives him the distinction |
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Together we have agreed |
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and to shut down |
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Together we can and we will |
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not only for our own people |
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and children all around the world. |
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The receiving line's going on |
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The President and Mrs. Clinton |
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We have a full day, full slate |
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We have some canopies to put up yet, |
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there's a lot of activities going on, |
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See ya later. |
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All right, Jim what else you got? |
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In the White House basement, |
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the first preparations |
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Here the butlers will find some |
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to set tonight's tables. |
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It's one of a hundred different tasks |
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in their push to the dinner, |
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Upstairs, in the entrance hall, |
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a receiving line welcoming |
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Just a few steps away, |
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the china is wheeled into |
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The White House is barely large enough |
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planned for tonight. |
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So this elegant room has been converted |
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so butlers like Buddy Carter |
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There are so many people |
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but I'm one of the few selected |
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So I take a lot of pride |
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Can I speak to Jim please? |
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Chief Usher Gary Walters |
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He directs everyone |
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all the people who serve the family |
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Although he built the house, |
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George Washington died |
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John Adams, intimidated by the expense |
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said he'd prefer a row house instead. |
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But Washington's house held |
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and on the night of November 1, 1800, |
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Adams became the first President |
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Well, he woke up the next morning |
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It seemed to settle in on him. |
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And it's really, you might say, |
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of a President having in that house |
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it is the President's house. |
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It seems almost an afterthought, |
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when he says, you know, |
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may heaven bestow the best of blessings |
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but honest and wise men |
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When the Johnsons |
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the nation was still in mourning |
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One of the times that was |
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for me |
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when I came down to the first floor |
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where all of the chandeliers |
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and to come back and see that gone |
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and the Christmas tree |
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I think we had it in the Blue Room. |
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That was just a... |
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and now we are started, |
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For the first families, |
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life goes on in the public eye. |
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For their own sanity, |
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and at the White House it is upstairs. |
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Only above this stair |
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Never, while the Presidential family |
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may cameras pass beyond this gate. |
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Cameras above the first floor |
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because this is where the families live. |
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The second and third floors |
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where the families |
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At the heart of the second floor |
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which leads to the Truman Balcony. |
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These rooms provide a haven, |
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a place safe from everything |
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For me, I would get so caught up |
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that you forget where you are... |
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But then we'd sit down at dinner |
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and here would be |
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and then it would all just kind |
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here I am in this historic house, |
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While overwhelming, this public housing |
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Living in the White House |
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There's somebody to do everything, |
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and it's not just the wonderful |
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but if you need a plumber, |
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all you do is pick up the phone |
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Well, when President Johnson |
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the Chief Usher call me up and said |
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the President wants to talk to you |
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He says, "Come up," so I came up. |
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The President stepped off |
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going to the Oval Office that morning. |
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So, he told me he wanted more water, |
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"If I have to, I'll go over |
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So the first thing I did, |
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to see what he had over there. |
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And we came back to the White House |
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you know, perfect for him, you know. |
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We had it much better |
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But, he wasn't satisfied with that. |
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He wanted 50 degree cold water. |
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He wanted body sprays around him. |
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And then he told me that |
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he wanted a showerhead |
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He said, "I want a showerhead |
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I said, "Well, you hold your finger there |
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Let me mark that spot." |
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In your home, probably you have |
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of running pressure on your showerhead |
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His was 110 pounds of pressure |
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It was like a mini-car wash. |
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The Chief Usher was Rex Scouten. |
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He said, |
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And it just kind of pinned him |
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The employees are like a family |
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it's like you've got |
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and everything like that. |
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But it's not operated that way. |
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If you see something |
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regardless of which department it is, |
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That's why we say it's like a family. |
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I remember one time teasing a member |
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and they are really like family |
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and I said, |
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I'm going to get you fired." |
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And he burst out laughing and said, |
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"Presidents |
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In 1945, a young electrician |
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For the last 50 years, |
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he has handled the little annoyances |
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like replacing watch batteries |
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You want to do the Ground Floor, right? |
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No one in the history of the House |
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Am I going too fast for you? |
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The man with the longest tenure here, |
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Every Friday, Mr. Muffler |
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in every part of the White House. |
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How many clocks are there in the place? |
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Several. |
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...Mr. President? |
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Yes, it's a beautiful clock. |
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And it still keeps good time. |
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Do all these clocks run, |
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Yes, they all run. |
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We have a special man |
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I'd always managed to be there |
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and one morning he said to me, |
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"Son, do you know why |
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these pictures are all crooked |
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I said, "No, Sir, Mr. President, |
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when they're dusting, |
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He said, "No, no, no, |
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He said, "Would you like to know?" |
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I said, "Yes Sir, Mr. President, |
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And he said, "The rotation |
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And I said, |
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But he went over every morning |
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Oh, I love Mr. Muffler. |
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I can't do anything like program VCRs |
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and so I'm always needing his help |
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but he's a perfect example |
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...dedicated service that people |
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and to Presidents and their families |
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United Nations War Council. |
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President Roosevelt |
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at the White House... |
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Because of what happens here, |
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someone is always on call. |
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Alonzo Fields, |
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developed a unique relationship |
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Around 1:30, I decided that |
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and I was thinking of going... |
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And the bell buzzed. |
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I went in, the Prime Minister |
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...with this scotch in his hand, |
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and saying different things and he says, |
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"We're trying to find out |
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what we can do for them. |
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It's like an iron shade." |
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And then he stopped |
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"Oh, make that an iron curtain." |
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And then he saw me |
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"My poker face didn't fool you." |
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He says, "Yes, my man, |
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He says, "I have a war to fight. |
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So I proceeded and got |
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and poured the Prime Minister |
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"Mr. Prime Minister, |
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And he says, "I don't know. |
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And I said, "Well, Mr. Prime Minister, |
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And he says, "Well, if ever |
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I want you to come to my defense." |
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I says, "Mr. Prime Minister, |
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It's hard to imagine today, |
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during the War of 1812, the British Army |
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and burned the White House. |
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The Madisons were trying to keep |
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and they had a dinner party. |
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And some of the most amusing |
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letters of the Madison paper |
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are regrets to |
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that night in August. |
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Lo and behold, |
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Mrs. Madison finally fled herself, |
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a slave. |
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Jennings was to bank the fire, |
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from burning down. |
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But the British came in |
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They saw the dinner. |
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The officers sat down |
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The furniture was piled up |
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the windows broken out. |
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And about 1 a.m., |
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in a circle around the house |
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The javelins were thrown |
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Mrs. William Thornton a British citizen, |
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"It glowed like a great plum cake." |
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The White House is reduced to ashes |
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that General Washington |
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Upstairs on the Truman Balcony |
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But whenever we have people up there, |
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and I say, |
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I look at it all the time, |
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every time we have any kind |
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When Captain O'Grady was rescued |
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I went out on the Truman Balcony |
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But I'm very aware every day |
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carries the whole story of America |
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and how we're still creating that story |
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Throughout the day during a state visit |
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meetings between the official delegations |
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from room to room |
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...care to respond to |
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Those living here are surrounded |
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...that they are not living |
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"I feel as though I have just turned |
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Jacqueline Kennedy said |
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Grandpa lives in the big White House |
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And Grandma lives there too. |
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And there she is |
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as the entire family |
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to pose for the News of the Day camera. |
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The South Lawn has always been |
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...something between a playground |
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President Wilson kept |
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and he also welcomed |
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Each morning during |
| 00:28:58 |
the Cabinet played an exercise game |
| 00:29:03 |
When Ike installed |
| 00:29:06 |
the stage was set for confrontation |
| 00:29:10 |
Squirrels have created a nutty problem |
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with President Eisenhower complaining |
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that the four-legged vandals are |
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The President, a very earnest golfer, |
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brought on a mighty political storm |
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with his decision |
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even though nobody has found out |
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whether the animals |
| 00:29:33 |
Well, the South Lawn is well inhabited |
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And up at Camp David, |
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I noticed that the oak trees |
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And the squirrels didn't do much |
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So when the day came to go back down |
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I'd fill my pockets with acorns. |
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And there, |
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there would be these squirrels |
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and you'd see them, wham, they'd |
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One occasion, at Camp David, |
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and when I came back, |
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well, I went into the Oval Office |
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I looked and in every one |
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the squirrels were standing |
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and looking through their front legs |
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And they're looking at me. |
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And they literally... |
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"Where are the acorns?" |
| 00:31:00 |
At about 3 p.m., |
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the pianist for tonight's entertainment |
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One floor below, |
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chef Walter Scheib is gearing up |
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In addition to the normal pressure |
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...had to routinely serve seven-course |
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and twenty-course state dinners. |
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The pleasures of these meals |
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who tipped the scales |
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Though a success in the kitchen, |
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the chef's handy work |
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White House bathtubs proved |
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to his consternation |
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the President was frequently |
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White House ushers were sent scurrying |
| 00:32:03 |
When it finally arrived, |
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could hold nearly 65 gallons of water, |
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Tonight's guests will be served |
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one of the legendary |
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the creation of pastry |
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That goes back. |
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This is when I am even more nervous |
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You have to remember, you know, |
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who are your guests? |
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The dining room is filled with |
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people who have been everywhere, |
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and our job is to make sure that |
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feeling that the President |
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receiving the guests, |
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or anybody else, but that |
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That has to be very well understood. |
| 00:33:12 |
I think if you can do that, |
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Mesnier's almond baskets |
| 00:33:26 |
It's the type of culinary touch |
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that has always attracted |
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including Julia Child. |
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While history has recorded the names |
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the names and lives of the kitchen |
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who toiled on the staff |
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In 1909, Mrs. Taft considered |
| 00:34:02 |
because they couldn't be treated |
| 00:34:06 |
She was persuaded not to. |
| 00:34:09 |
Despite the discrimination, |
| 00:34:13 |
created a vibrant world. |
| 00:34:15 |
Their White House positions placed them |
| 00:34:18 |
of Washington's black society. |
| 00:34:22 |
James Coats, Adolph Bird, |
| 00:34:27 |
I remember the first three butlers |
| 00:34:32 |
Lillian Rogers Parks, |
| 00:34:37 |
was introduced to that society |
| 00:34:41 |
a maid to Mrs. Taft. |
| 00:34:44 |
They had their homes |
| 00:34:47 |
and then we had clubs. |
| 00:34:49 |
That was very classy. |
| 00:34:51 |
And that gave them the idea |
| 00:34:54 |
and have a little a club |
| 00:34:56 |
called the Chandeliers. |
| 00:35:00 |
Named for the cut glass fixtures |
| 00:35:05 |
like many social clubs |
| 00:35:07 |
held a ball each year. |
| 00:35:10 |
Though it was not staged there, |
| 00:35:12 |
the White House imprimatur |
| 00:35:17 |
The Marine Band played and |
| 00:35:23 |
But outside the ball, |
| 00:35:26 |
as second-class citizens. |
| 00:35:31 |
In 1902, President Teddy Roosevelt |
| 00:35:35 |
Booker T. Washington, |
| 00:35:39 |
Press reaction in the South |
| 00:35:50 |
Roosevelt was chastened. |
| 00:35:52 |
No black American received |
| 00:35:55 |
to the White House for 28 years. |
| 00:36:07 |
In the entrance hall, |
| 00:36:10 |
for their ceremonial march |
| 00:36:14 |
They are performing a kind of ritual |
| 00:36:18 |
a national shrine. |
| 00:36:23 |
For the occupants of the late 1800s, |
| 00:36:27 |
and not nearly grand enough |
| 00:36:31 |
There were frequent and elaborate plans |
| 00:36:39 |
I don't think the White House |
| 00:36:43 |
had it not been where Lincoln had lived. |
| 00:36:55 |
You think of Lincoln in his nightshirt |
| 00:36:57 |
with the wind blowing |
| 00:36:58 |
and his dreams that |
| 00:37:01 |
and his wife's problems, |
| 00:37:04 |
And it all happened in the White House. |
| 00:37:06 |
And it's from the White House |
| 00:37:07 |
he left in his carriage to go to |
| 00:37:09 |
and it was to the White House |
| 00:37:14 |
It's not too excessive to say that |
| 00:37:23 |
Now those... |
| 00:37:27 |
which is simply water, |
| 00:37:31 |
With only hours to go |
| 00:37:34 |
pastry chef Roland Mesnier is finishing |
| 00:37:40 |
Until you feel that you are... |
| 00:37:45 |
because as you pull it thin, |
| 00:37:48 |
That's... |
| 00:37:54 |
just like a baby, |
| 00:37:58 |
you have to kind of have to tickle it |
| 00:38:03 |
See, look at these. |
| 00:38:05 |
Precision and timing is the key |
| 00:38:15 |
It makes you very nervous because of |
| 00:38:19 |
Some as you can see shatters |
| 00:38:22 |
And, you know, one touch, |
| 00:38:24 |
One wrong move, |
| 00:38:26 |
So I think every state dinner |
| 00:38:33 |
Mesnier's creations represent |
| 00:38:35 |
of the White House staff. |
| 00:38:37 |
But it wasn't always this way. |
| 00:38:45 |
At the end of the 19th century, |
| 00:38:47 |
the President's house reflected |
| 00:38:51 |
not the style of |
| 00:39:00 |
It was a home comparable to many other |
| 00:39:05 |
and then enormous demands came upon it |
| 00:39:08 |
and we've had a rather imperial |
| 00:39:13 |
General Grant, goodness, |
| 00:39:16 |
in the military that was |
| 00:39:18 |
And they had a state dinner and here, |
| 00:39:21 |
and big slabs of roast beef |
| 00:39:24 |
and Mrs. Grant was mortified. |
| 00:39:26 |
These ambassadors didn't know |
| 00:39:27 |
get on the floor and chew it |
| 00:39:31 |
By 1902, a brilliant young man |
| 00:39:36 |
had changed all of that. |
| 00:39:39 |
At Roosevelt's request, he created |
| 00:39:44 |
that redefined the house |
| 00:39:49 |
As part of the new look, |
| 00:39:52 |
the name of the mansion: |
| 00:39:55 |
the new letterhead read simply: |
| 00:39:57 |
"White House, Washington." |
| 00:40:04 |
As part of Teddy Roosevelt's |
| 00:40:08 |
he added a new wing. |
| 00:40:15 |
It is in this Wing, |
| 00:40:18 |
that the most famous room |
| 00:40:36 |
Frankly... and definitely |
| 00:40:41 |
Danger against which we must prepare. |
| 00:40:47 |
We are now prepared to destroy, |
| 00:40:52 |
every productive enterprise |
| 00:40:58 |
We shall destroy their docks, |
| 00:41:03 |
It shall be the policy of this nation |
| 00:41:08 |
launched from Cuba... against |
| 00:41:12 |
as an attack by the Soviet Union |
| 00:41:32 |
Because of the history |
| 00:41:34 |
the White House is the most |
| 00:41:49 |
Inside the symbol with only an hour |
| 00:41:54 |
the White House staff is in a whirl |
| 00:42:00 |
No, no, no. |
| 00:42:05 |
Each of the head people: |
| 00:42:07 |
I've personally checked them... |
| 00:42:16 |
I hope there's nobody here. |
| 00:42:29 |
It's those mundane chores |
| 00:42:41 |
That's part of what the evening's about |
| 00:42:45 |
...is part of setting a mood |
| 00:42:49 |
as well as entertaining guests. |
| 00:42:51 |
We're trying to set a mood which is |
| 00:42:58 |
Since any of these plates |
| 00:43:01 |
each has to be perfect. |
| 00:43:03 |
Though each guest eats the same meal, |
| 00:43:06 |
everyone doesn't get to |
| 00:43:09 |
All of tonight's 151 guests will not |
| 00:43:14 |
so some of them will have to eat here |
| 00:43:19 |
To the Russians |
| 00:43:22 |
someone may have to explain |
| 00:43:33 |
You gotta know what you're doin'. |
| 00:43:36 |
Not just anyone can serve the President |
| 00:43:39 |
Besides careful training, |
| 00:43:41 |
each of these waiters has undergone |
| 00:43:49 |
The State Dining Room, |
| 00:43:54 |
but Gary Walters isn't |
| 00:43:59 |
If the Chief Usher had made a similar |
| 00:44:04 |
he would have found |
| 00:44:08 |
In 1948, the White House |
| 00:44:13 |
The floors that Jackson, Lincoln, |
| 00:44:15 |
and two Roosevelts had walked across |
| 00:44:21 |
After five years of demolition |
| 00:44:24 |
the White House was res rebuilt. |
| 00:44:26 |
The inside of the house was put back |
| 00:44:33 |
Though it was now constructed |
| 00:44:36 |
Jefferson and Lincoln would have |
| 00:44:43 |
And the idea is preserved. |
| 00:44:45 |
That's really what it is. |
| 00:44:47 |
The idea of the house and the symbol |
| 00:44:52 |
And that has remained intact |
| 00:44:54 |
and is really more powerful |
| 00:45:08 |
By the time the President and First Lady |
| 00:45:12 |
everything is ready. |
| 00:45:13 |
All the preparations have |
| 00:45:17 |
now all they need are guests. |
| 00:45:41 |
At night, it's a very different thing |
| 00:45:45 |
of the state visit. |
| 00:45:46 |
We will have worked all day long. |
| 00:45:49 |
And the visit will either |
| 00:45:51 |
or a moderate success |
| 00:45:54 |
but what you want to do at night |
| 00:45:57 |
is to simply seal the best |
| 00:46:00 |
between the leaders of the countries. |
| 00:46:04 |
So at night you really just want them |
| 00:46:06 |
you want them to have a good time |
| 00:46:08 |
to say what they want to say |
| 00:46:10 |
and just be glad that they can be there. |
| 00:46:22 |
In the family's private quarters |
| 00:46:23 |
on the seldom seen Second Floor |
| 00:46:26 |
one of the most critical moments |
| 00:46:30 |
Here, the President and First Lady |
| 00:46:35 |
in the warm atmosphere of a home. |
| 00:46:52 |
The press waits at the foot |
| 00:46:56 |
one of the most formal ceremonies |
| 00:47:00 |
the Presidential entrance march. |
| 00:47:35 |
Ladies and Gentlemen, President of |
| 00:47:39 |
accompanied by the President of |
| 00:48:03 |
The receiving line is charged |
| 00:48:06 |
because famous as the guests may be, |
| 00:48:09 |
they are about to meet the two |
| 00:48:27 |
The rising anticipation of the evening |
| 00:48:30 |
the official toasts are made. |
| 00:48:34 |
President Yeltsin's should be finishing |
| 00:48:36 |
He's going a couple a minutes |
| 00:48:39 |
He's up to about eight minutes now |
| 00:48:47 |
And finally, dinner begins. |
| 00:49:34 |
While dinner continues upstairs, |
| 00:49:38 |
the staff is battling back |
| 00:49:41 |
Working hard. Working hard. |
| 00:49:44 |
Cocktails is serving. |
| 00:49:47 |
After the cocktails |
| 00:49:50 |
Start coming down and after that, |
| 00:49:55 |
Do you kind of forget where you are? |
| 00:49:58 |
No, no. You know you're in the kitchen |
| 00:50:11 |
At the top of the winding stair |
| 00:50:14 |
days of work are about to payoff |
| 00:50:34 |
If you are hungry enough, |
| 00:50:45 |
On evenings like these, |
| 00:50:47 |
dinner is followed by a performance |
| 00:50:57 |
During the civil rights movement, |
| 00:51:03 |
At the end of the evening, |
| 00:51:04 |
a staff member found her sobbing |
| 00:51:07 |
When asked what was wrong, |
| 00:51:09 |
she said, "Nothing is the matter. |
| 00:51:12 |
It's just that 20 years ago |
| 00:51:15 |
I couldn't even get a hotel room, |
| 00:51:19 |
of the United States in the White House- |
| 00:51:22 |
and then he asked me to dance with him. |
| 00:51:25 |
It is more than I can stand!" |
| 00:51:35 |
Tonight, Diva Kathleen Battle |
| 00:52:04 |
I think one of the attractions |
| 00:52:06 |
one of the things that makes it |
| 00:52:08 |
is the fact that a family really |
| 00:52:13 |
That it's a center not only |
| 00:52:18 |
on a global basis, |
| 00:52:19 |
but has that human touch of individuals |
| 00:52:25 |
I guess you might say, |
| 00:52:32 |
Tomorrow it will start all over again |
| 00:52:34 |
and every day for as long |
| 00:52:40 |
Families will come and go, |
| 00:52:44 |
dignitaries and old gentlemen |
| 00:52:50 |
These are the people |
| 00:52:55 |
and as they do, |
