All the Presidents' Movies
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All the Presidents' Movies
@presidentsmovies.bsky.social
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The movies U.S. presidents watched in the White House and at Camp David (by Matt Novak @paleofuture.bsky.social)
Posts Media Videos Starter Packs
President George H.W. Bush watched Curly Sue (1991) at Camp David on October 26, 1991.
Obama wearing the 3D glasses in 2009 really is a great photo to help visualize the theater but it is funny that he was watching the Super Bowl rather than a movie.
President Jimmy Carter watched Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) at Camp David on September 4, 1977, according to the White House projectionist's logbook.
President Bill Clinton watched the movie Space Cowboys (2000) at the White House on September 3, 2000.
President Lyndon B. Johnson watched two documentaries on September 1, 1967:

The President's Country, a propaganda film about LBJ produced by USIA, and Trails Through Texas, produced by the White House Naval Photographic Unit (aka Navy Films) about the First Lady:
Trails Through Texas. MP1091.
YouTube video by TheLBJLibrary
youtu.be
The press made fun of the incident, like in this cartoon from the Washington Post, which ran Aug. 5, 1970.

There's a paper on the subject titled "Trying to Wear the White Hat: Nixon, the Media, and the Chisum-Charles Manson Imbroglio" (2015) by John Soares.

Source: www.jstor.org/stable/westh...
Charles Manson was then on trial and Nixon accused the press of presenting him as a "glamorous" figure.

But Nixon also called Manson "guilty" which is something that presidents historically don't do because it can prejudice a jury (before Trump, of course).
Nixon talked about seeing the movie during a press conference on Aug. 3, 1970 while in Denver.

The president got into hot water while bringing up Chisum (1970) in relation to law and order and the popularity of westerns...
It was actually the second time Nixon watched Chisum (1970) while in office, the first time being July 31, 1970, also at the "Western White House" in San Clemente.
President Richard Nixon watched the John Wayne movie Chisum at his home in San Clemente, California, on August 31, 1970.
President Richard Nixon watched the film Wilson (1944) at his home in San Clemente, California, on August 30, 1970.

The movie, a biopic of President Woodrow Wilson, was a popular one with presidents. FDR watched it at least twice while in office. Carter also screened it at the White House in 1978.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt watched the movie Wilson (1944), a biopic about Woodrow Wilson, at the White House on August 29, 1944.
President Richard Nixon watched The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) at his home in San Clemente, California, on August 28, 1970.
President Jimmy Carter watched the movie High Noon (1952) at the White House on August 27, 1977.
President Jimmy Carter watched Dracula (1979) at Camp David on August 26, 1979.
Nixon missed a long distance call from actor Chuck Connors before watching the movie, according to the White House daily diary.
President Richard Nixon watched the movie El Cid (1961) at his home in San Clemente, California, on August 23, 1971.
President Richard Nixon watched the Alfred Hitchcock movie Dial M for Murder (1954) at his home in San Clemente, California (dubbed the Western White House) on August 22, 1970.
President Bill Clinton watched the movie High Fidelity (2000) at the White House on August 21, 2000.
President Dwight Eisenhower watched the western The Brass Legend (1956) at the White House on August 20, 1958.
President John F. Kennedy watched the movie Expresso Bongo (1959) at the White House with "1 guest" on August 19, 1961.

Typically, the guests are named in the White House projectionist's log book but this one was anonymous. The First Lady was out of town that night.
The White House projectionist's notes indicate the film was screened in 16mm and Kennedy was joined by the "Bradley's," most likely a misspelling of Ben Bradlee, the Washington Bureau chief for Newsweek who became friends with the president.