| It is a little known fact that Nixon had insisted on MHS as
the site
for the 5th and final of the JFK/Nixon debates in 1960. Nixon
arrived the night before and stayed at the Milcroft. Kennedy was
to arrive by helicopter shortly before the 8 PM telecast.
Unfortunately,
Nixon spent most of the day on a barstool at Red's Tavern where he got
into several scuffles with other patrons. At 6 PM all were to
assemble
at the high school auditorium for sound and stage checks. Ted
Kennedy
was JFK's advance man and he was to be a stand-in for the sound
checks. In a further unfortunate situation, Ted had spent the day
shooting pool
and drinking beer (Hudepohl) at Mergard's Bowling Alley. The two
men were both in foul moods when they faced off for the sound
check. Words led to shoves and when Ted made a comment about Pat
Nixon's
"Republican
Cloth Coat" the candidate threw a headlock around Kennedy's neck and
the
two tumbled into the band pit at the front of the stage. Both
camps
agreed to cancel the debate due to technical problems. It was
never
rescheduled.
Richard Nixon (blue suit, brown shoes) and Ted Kennedy (jeans,
loafers)
tumble into the orchestra area |
