Category Archives: Vietnam War

Iconic image of naked and severely burned Vietnamese girl fleeing napalm bombing captured 50 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 8 1972)

1970s, Cold War, Vietnam War


Video: 'The Harrowing Story of Napalm Girl'

(Thursday, June 8, 1972, shortly after 11:30 a.m. Saigon Standard Time; during the Vietnam War, part of the Indochina Wars and the Cold War) — Associated Press photographer Nick Ut took a picture today of a screaming 9-year-old girl, Phan Thi Kim Phuc, as she ran naked and severely burned on her back after a South Vietnamese Air Force jet dropped a napalm bomb onto the village of Trang Bàng, which had been attacked and occupied by North Vietnamese forces. Continue reading Iconic image of naked and severely burned Vietnamese girl fleeing napalm bombing captured 50 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 8 1972) →

U.S. President Richard Nixon asks Congress to approve missile pact with Soviet Union following dramatic return from Moscow 50 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 1 1972)

1970s, Cold War, U.S. Presidents, Vietnam War


Video: 'WATERGATE AFFAIR BBC DOKUMENTATION 1994' (June 1, 1972, at 49:13)

(Thursday June 1, 1972, 9:40 p.m. EDT, during the Cold War) — U.S. President Richard Nixon returned to Washington tonight from his two-week tour of four nations and told a joint session of Congress that his trip to Moscow had laid the basis for “a new relationship between the two most powerful nations on earth.” Continue reading U.S. President Richard Nixon asks Congress to approve missile pact with Soviet Union following dramatic return from Moscow 50 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 1 1972) →

President Nixon orders mining of North Vietnamese ports to reduce flow of arms to enemy armies 50 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (May 8 1972)

1970s, Vietnam War


Video: 'President Richard Nixon Address to the Nation on the Situation in Southeast Asia, May 8, 1972'

(Monday, May 8, 1972, 9:00 p.m. EDT/Tuesday, May 9, 1972, 9:00 a.m. Saigon Standard Time; Operation Pocket Money, during the Easter Offensive, part of the Vietnam War, the Cold War and the Indochina Wars) — In a nationally televised address, U.S. President Richard Nixon announced tonight that the United States would lay mines in North Vietnam’s harbors in order to stop further supply of weapons and material. Continue reading President Nixon orders mining of North Vietnamese ports to reduce flow of arms to enemy armies 50 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (May 8 1972) →

North Vietnamese Army captures South Vietnamese province and city of Quang Tri 50 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (May 1 1972)

1970s, Cold War, Vietnam War


Video: 'The battle for Quang Tri Vietnam April 1972: from the archive'

(Monday, May 1, 1972, afternoon local time; in the First Battle of Quang Tri, during the Easter Offensive, part of the Vietnam War, the Cold War and the Indochina Wars) — The South Vietnamese abandoned Quang Tri, their northernmost province capital, today, giving the advancing North Vietnamese their biggest prize so far in their month-old Easter Offensive invasion. Continue reading North Vietnamese Army captures South Vietnamese province and city of Quang Tri 50 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (May 1 1972) →

John Lennon & Yoko Ono appear at ‘National Peace Action Coalition Rally’ in New York 50 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Apr 22 1972)

1970s, Popular Music 1970s, The Beatles 1970s, Vietnam War


Video: 'John Lennon vs. FBI & Nixon - CBS Evening News - March 22, 1983' (Apr. 22, 1972, at 0:00-0:20)

(Saturday, April 22, 1972) — Former Beatle John Lennon and his wife, Yoko Ono, appeared today at an anti-war rally organized by the National Peace Action Coalition (NPAC) in New York’s Bryant Park, leading 35,000 chilled protesters in a rousing performance of Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance.” Continue reading John Lennon & Yoko Ono appear at ‘National Peace Action Coalition Rally’ in New York 50 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Apr 22 1972) →

North Vietnamese regulars launch Easter Offensive 50 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Mar 30 1972)

1970s, Cold War, Vietnam War


Video: 'North Vietnamese Army, NVA 1972 Easter Invasion'

(Thursday, March 30, 1972, noon Saigon Standard Time; during the Vietnam War, part of the Indochina Wars and the Cold War) — The Easter Offensive, a military campaign conducted by the People’s Army of Vietnam (PAVN, the regular army of North Vietnam) against the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN, the regular army of South Vietnam) and the United States military, began today when an intense artillery barrage rained down on the northernmost ARVN outposts in Quang Tri Province. Continue reading North Vietnamese regulars launch Easter Offensive 50 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Mar 30 1972) →

Ray Conniff singer urges President Nixon to ‘stop the killing’ during White House performance 50 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jan 28 1972)

1970s, Popular Music 1970s, U.S. Presidents, Vietnam War


Video: ‘Nixon Protest Featuring the Ray Conniff Singers | This is the President’

(Friday, January 28, 1972, 10:50 p.m. EST; during the Vietnam War, part of the Indochina Wars and the Cold War) — A young woman in a singing group caused an embarrassed moment at a formal White House dinner tonight when she waved a placard and called to President Richard Nixon to stop the bombing in Vietnam. Continue reading Ray Conniff singer urges President Nixon to ‘stop the killing’ during White House performance 50 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jan 28 1972) →

President Nixon announces 45,000 more U.S. troops will withdraw from Vietnam before Feb. 1, leaving 139,000 there as peace aid 50 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Nov 12 1971)

1970s, U.S. Presidents, Vietnam War


Video: 'CBS Evening News - 1971-11-12'

(Friday, November 12, 1971, 4:02-4:09 p.m. EST; during the Vietnam War, part of the Indochina Wars and the Cold War) — U.S. President Richard Nixon announced today that he would withdraw 45,000 more American soldiers from South Vietnam by Feb. 1, 1972, retaining a force of 139,000 men to strengthen his hand in seeking a negotiated settlement of the war. Continue reading President Nixon announces 45,000 more U.S. troops will withdraw from Vietnam before Feb. 1, leaving 139,000 there as peace aid 50 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Nov 12 1971) →

John Lennon, Yoko Ono complete recording ‘Happy Xmas (War Is Over)’ 50 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Oct 31 1971)

1970s, Christmas, Popular Music 1970s, The Beatles 1970s, Vietnam War


Video: 'HAPPY XMAS (WAR IS OVER). (Ultimate Mix, 2020) John & Yoko Plastic Ono Band + Harlem Community Choir'

(Sunday, October 31, 1971, afternoon/evening EST; during the Vietnam War) — Former Beatle John Lennon and his wife, Yoko Ono, completed recording “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” tonight at Record Plant East in New York City, with overdubs by the Harlem Community Choir – featuring thirty children, most of them four to twelve years of age – in the afternoon and strings in the evening. Continue reading John Lennon, Yoko Ono complete recording ‘Happy Xmas (War Is Over)’ 50 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Oct 31 1971) →

‘Bring the Boys Home’ by Freda Payne peaks at #12 in USA 50 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Aug 7 1971)

1970s, Popular Music 1970s, Vietnam War

(Saturday, August 7, 1971) — “Bring the Boys Home” by Freda Payne peaked at #12 on today’s Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for the first of two weeks. Continue reading ‘Bring the Boys Home’ by Freda Payne peaks at #12 in USA 50 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Aug 7 1971) →