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Image courtesy of the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum.
Image courtesy of the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum.
I Suggest We Help Him off Before He Falls!
Image courtesy of the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum.
Image courtesy of the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum.

I Suggest We Help Him off Before He Falls!

Artifact ID1973.1.1595
Object Type Cartoon Drawing
Artist (United States)
Publisher (founded 1888)
Gifter
Date ca. March 1967
Medium Ink and grease pencil on drawing paper
DimensionsOverall H 19 1/8 in x W 13 in (48.6 cm x 33 cm )
Physical Description
Physical DescriptionOriginal cartoon drawing. A man (identifiable as Ho Chi Minh "Hanoi") is holding on to the nose of a large bomb ("US Bombing") teetering on the edge of a cliff. Another man (“RFK”) turns and talks to an angry LBJ. Caption: “I Suggest We Help Him off Before He Falls!”. Artist signature lower right: "Brooks The Birmingham Times”.
Inscriptions and MarkingsHandwritten at lower left: “-make 29 picas wide”. Handwritten at lower right: “-Sunday- March 5th, 1967”.
Historical NoteIn August 1964, US ships were seemingly attacked in the Gulf of Tonkin, leading to the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution that allowed President Johnson to take military action. In February 1965, Johnson authorized Operation Rolling Thunder to bomb North Vietnam and in March, 3500 Marines were deployed in Vietnam. Over 1965, President Johnson escalated the conflict to a full-scale war and over 1967, there were 500,000 American troops in Vietnam. Robert F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson each represented a different side to the Democratic Party in the 1960s. Robert Kennedy was the Attorney General under his brother’s administration and became a New York senator during Johnson’s presidency. He disagreed with Johnson’s Vietnam policy and became a prominent war critic. Kennedy would later run for president in 1968 as an anti-war Democratic candidate until his assassination in June 1968.
Additional Details
Custodial History NoteThe item was a gift from the general public to President Johnson during his term in office. It was received by President Johnson, until the President donated it to the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum in 1973.
Credit LineGift of Lyndon Baines Johnson
National Archives Catalog CollectionLyndon B. Johnson Library Museum Collection (National Archives Identifier 192413)
National Archives Catalog SeriesGifts from the General Public (National Archives Identifier 189698395)
Use Restriction StatusRestricted - Fully
Use Restriction NoteCopyright or other proprietary rights are held by individuals or entities other than the Lyndon Johnson Presidential Library and Museum. The Lyndon Johnson Presidential Library and Museum does not warrant that the use of these materials will not infringe on the rights of third parties holding the rights to these works, or make any representations or warranties with respect to the application or terms of any international agreement, treaty, or protections that may apply. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy any copyright or other use restrictions. Pertinent regulations can be found at 36 C.F.R 1254.62.
Person Referenced Lyndon Baines Johnson (United States, 1908 - 1973)
Person Referenced Robert F. Kennedy (United States, 1925 - 1968)
Person Referenced Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam, 1890 - 1969)
In Collection(s)
Not on view
Place Described
Hanoi
Place of Publication
Birmingham
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