GBH Openvault
Vietnam: A Television History; Interview with Harold Robert Isaacs, 1981
Part of The Vietnam Collection.
07/14/1981
An historian who in 1932 was living in China and editing a small communist newspaper, Harold Isaacs was contacted by the Indochinese communist leader who went by the name of Nguyen Ai Quoc, (a pseudonym for Ho Chinh Minh), who had just been released from prison. Isaacs recalls landing in Saigon in 1945 as a correspondent for Newsweek, reuniting with Ho Chinh Minh, and Ho Chinh Minhs attitudes towards both the French and the Russians. Isaacs also attests that the Vietnamese communists reveleaved themselves to be just as tyrannical and corrupt as any other communist leadership; that after Ho Chinh Minhs death, the political finesse Ho had used when dealing with the occupying forces vanished and the remainder of his staff became heavy-handed.
License Clip
- Series
- Vietnam: A Television History
- Title
Interview with Harold Robert Isaacs, 1981
- Series Description
This 13 part series covers the history of Vietnam from France's colonial control, through the 1945 revolution, to the 1975 U.S. evacuation from Saigon and the years beyond. The series' objective approach permits viewers to form their own conclusions about the war. 101--Roots of a War--Despite cordial relations between American intelligence officers and Communist leader Ho Chi Minh in the turbulent closing months of World War II, French and British hostility to the Vietnamese revolution laid the groundwork for a new war. 102--The First Vietnam War (1946-1954)--The French generals expected to defeat Ho's rag-tag Vietminh guerrillas easily, but after eight years of fighting and $2.5 billion in U.S. aid, the French lost a crucial battle at Dienbienphu--and with it, their Asian empire. 103--America's Mandarin (1954-1963)--To stop the spread of communism in Southeast Asia, America replaced France in South Vietnam--supporting autocratic President Ngo Dinyh Diem until his own generals turned against him in a coup that brought political chaos to Saigon. 104--LBJ Goes to War (1964-1965)--With Ho Chi Minh determined to reunite Vietnam, Lyndon Baines Johnson determined to prevent it, and South Vietnam on the verge of collapse, the stage was set for massive escalation of the undeclared Vietnam War. 105--America Takes Charge (1965-1967)--In two years, the Johnson Administration's troop build-up dispatched 1.5 million Americans to Vietnam to fight a war they found baffling, tedious, exciting, deadly and unforgettable. 106--America's Enemy (1954-1967)--The Vietnam War as seen from different perspectives: by Vietcong guerrillas and sympathizers; by North Vietnamese leaders; by rank and file; and by American held prisoner in Hanoi. 107--Tet (1968)--The massive enemy offensive at the Lunar New Year decimated the Vietcong and failed to topple the Saigon government, but led to the beginning of America's military withdrawal. 108--Vietnamizing the War (1968-1973)--President Nixon's program of troop pull-outs, stepped-up bombing and huge arms shipments to Saigon changed the war, and left GI's wondering which of them would be the last to die in Vietnam. 109--Cambodia and Laos--Despite technical neutrality, both of Vietnam's smaller neighbors were drawn into the war, suffered massive bombing, and in the case of Cambodia, endured a post-war holocaust of nightmare proportions. 110--Peace is at Hand (1968-1973)--While American and Vietnamese continued to clash in battle, diplomats in Paris argued about making peace, after more than four years reaching an accord that proved to be a preface to further bloodshed. 111--Homefront USA--Americans at home divide over a distant war, clashing in the streets as demonstrations lead to bloodshed, bitterness and increasing doubts about the outcome. 112--The End of the Tunnel (1973-1975)--Through troubled years of controversy and violence, U.S. casualties mounted, victory remained elusive and American opinion moved from general approval to general dissatisfaction with the Vietnam war. 113--Legacies--Vietnam is in the Soviet orbit, poorer than ever, at war on two fronts; America's legacy includes more than one half million Asian refugees, one half million Vietnam veterans and some questions that won't go away. Series release date: 9/1983
- Duration
01:04:47
- Asset Type
Raw audio
- Media Type
Audio
- Subjects
- Indochinese War, 1946-1954
- Colonization
- Communism
- Vietnam (Republic)
- International relations
- Nationalism and communism
- Self-determination, National
- Vietnam (Democratic Republic)
- France--History, Military--20th century
- China--Foreign relations--Vietnam
- Criminal courts
- Vietnam--History--August Revolution, 1945
- World War II
- Japan--History, Military--1868-1945
- Diplomacy
- Vietnam--Politics and government
- Great Britain--History, Military--20th century
- Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American
- Indochina--History--1945-
- France--Colonies--Administration
- War and society
- Genres
- Documentary
- Topics
- War and Conflict
- Creators
- Ellison, Richard (Series Producer)
- Contributors
- Isaacs, Harold Robert (Interviewee)
- Publication Information
- WGBH Educational Foundation
- Rights Summary
No materials may be re-used without references to appearance releases and WGBH/UMass Boston contract. 2) It is the liability of a production to investigate and re-clear all rights before re-use in any project. Rights Holder: WGBH Educational Foundation
- Citation
- Chicago: “Vietnam: A Television History; Interview with Harold Robert Isaacs, 1981,” 07/14/1981, GBH Archives, accessed April 19, 2024, http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/A_0E78412AC98D47B9B5FDC39E4C97FB68.
- MLA: “Vietnam: A Television History; Interview with Harold Robert Isaacs, 1981.” 07/14/1981. GBH Archives. Web. April 19, 2024. <http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/A_0E78412AC98D47B9B5FDC39E4C97FB68>.
- APA: Vietnam: A Television History; Interview with Harold Robert Isaacs, 1981. Boston, MA: GBH Archives. Retrieved from http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/A_0E78412AC98D47B9B5FDC39E4C97FB68