PIERRE SALINGER - TYPED LETTER SIGNED 05/29/1961 - HFSID 1383

PIERRE SALINGER
The Press Secretary to the President writes to the Director of the Department of Veterans' Affairs.
Typed Letter signed: "Pierre Salinger" as Press Secretary to the President, 1 age, 6¼x9¼. Washington, D.C., 1961 May 29. On White House letterhead to Waldron E. Leonard, Director, Department of Veterans' Affairs, Washington, D.C. In full: "I very much appreciate your thoughtful letter of April 27th along with the tickets. They will indeed find a prominent spot in my recreation room and, thanks to you, will add to my personal collection." Accompanied by unsigned White House envelope typed to same addressee, postmarked Washington, D.C., May 31, 1961. Salinger (1925-2004) served as Press Secretary to Presidents Kennedy and Johnson from 1961 to 1964, when he resigned to run for the U.S. Senate. He won the Democratic primary on June 2, 1964. After California Senator Clair Engle died on July 30, 1964, Salinger was appointed Senator on August 4, 1964, but lost the election that November to former actor George Murphy. Later Salinger was an ABC news correspondent and freelance journalist. He committed an embarrassing gaffe in November 1996, when he claimed to have found a document revealing that TWA Flight 800 had actually been shot down by a U.S. Navy missile test. The "document" turned out to be an internet hoax, after which the term "Pierre Salinger syndrome" was coined to describe the tendency to believe whatever one finds on the net. Lightly creased. Otherwise, fine condition.