Have you watched The Residence?
As soon as I started watching The Residence, I wished I’d read Upstairs at the White House: My Life with the First Ladies by J. B. West and Mary Lynn Kotz first. Understanding how the White House staff operates may have helped me appreciate this incredible show even more (if that’s even possible). It did prod me to read it much sooner than I otherwise would have.
J. B. West served as the 6th White House Chief Usher and before that as assistant to the Chief Usher, from FDR up until Richard Nixon. (I’m sure it’s not a coincidence that J. B. rhymes with A. B. — as in A. B. Winter, the Chief Usher in the mini series The Residence.)
I collected some doodles that made me think of The Residence, mostly from Upstairs at the White House.
Before I get to it, let me just gush about the art in the opening credits. [Swoon!] I knew immediately it was painted by Maria Kalman. I included her gorgeous books about Lincoln and Jefferson in my list of Presidential books for kids. If you haven’t watched yet, do not skip through the credits.
Haven’t watched yet?
I don’t think there are any spoilers here but proceed with caution. Maybe don’t read this until you’ve watched. Or stop at the trailer. I’m not going to tell you that JUSTKIDDING killed A. B. Winter or that pretend there’s a spoiler here, but still.
Long-term overnight guests
Like Bess Truman’s mom, Mamie Eisenhower’s mother mostly stayed “quietly in her room.” And, like her daughter, she didn’t get out of bed until noon. They’d talk to each other on the phone from across the hall, with Mamie joking “this is a long-distance call from mother.”
Mamie declared “I believe every woman over fifty should stay in bed until noon.”
Theodore Roosevelt loved birdwatching
The Summer Birds of the Adirondacks in Franklin County, NY was the first book he wrote, along with his friend H. D. Minot.
The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt, by Edmund Morris
Nancy Reagan consulted an astrologer
After the assassination attempt on Ronnie, she insisted his movements coordinated with the planets … under the guidance of her “friend” Joan Quigley.
Redwoods
Speaking of the Reagans… Governor Reagan had no sympathy for Redwoods, even when they were in danger of extinction. Luckily, Congress (with the Johnsons’ help) passed legislation to create Redwood National Park in 1968.
Lady Bird Johnson: Hiding in Plain Sight, by Julia Sweig
Fake redecorating to avoid guests
Jackie once needed to get out of hosting someone at the White House after she’d invited them to stay. She hatched a plan for fake renovations that Mr. West executed with perfection:
Gathering dropcloths
Rolling up rugs
Covering draperies and furniture, etc.
Bringing in step ladders
Scattering the perfect mixture of empty and full paint cans, along with dirty brushes
But what really sold it — the ashtrays and cigarette butts.
Oops. I’ll never remember how to spell “furniture.”
Blair House
Many prominent guests have stayed at Blair House, including the Trumans when the White House was being renovated.
Shower pressure and an embarrassing brother
LBJ was not happy with the White House shower. So many experts and thousands of dollars were thrown at it to try to get the water pressure to match that at The Elms. When he left the White House, he boasted about the water pressure. Apparently, Nixon had it changed back to normal “after the first blast of Johnson-strength spray … almost knocked him right after the bathroom” (in West’s words).
Sam Houston Johnson, the long-term White House guest and the “president’s high spirited brother” seemed to Mr. West as if he was “under some sort of house arrest.” Agents “kept a log of his movements” and he really only interacted with one person… an assistant usher.
Without having done any research…
I’m fairly confident that LBJ’s brother was named after the president of Texas, Sam Houston, a fact that I’m pointing out solely to provide an excuse to show off Houston’s fancy, comically-large bowtie and scalloped vest. So dapper. I refuse to draw him in any other ensembles because this one is amazing.
Zachary Taylor: Soldier, Planter, Statesman of the Old Southwest, by K. Jack Bauer
J.B. West gave Jim Symington his shirt
… after Joe Califano, LBJ’s chief assistant on domestic issues, emphatically gestured and knocked red wine all over Jim’s shirt. He was about to escort Italy’s President Saragat. West gave him his shirt. Symington returned it the next day with a note that said “to J.B. West who literally gave me the shirt off his back.”
Check out the trailer
If you haven’t watched the show yet, maybe don’t scroll past the trailer.
Continue scrolling at your own risk…
PS Neither of these are the Franklin clock.
I saw them during my recent trip to FDR Library & Museum. It’s not Franklin Pierce either on the Franklin clock because who would even want that?
PPS That’s not the official portrait of Grover.
I heard from Grover Cleveland Art Appreciation Society that they heard from Grover Cleveland Birthplace that the portrait shown in The Resident is not the portrait of Grover that’s really in the White House.
Here’s Grover Cleveland’s Birthplace, though I assume it wasn’t the house itself that fact-checked:
A Man of Iron: The Turbulent Life and Improbable Presidency of Grover Cleveland, by Troy Senik
And here’s another portrait of Grover Cleveland that is not the portrait of Grover that’s really in the White House:
Grover Cleveland: A Study of Character, by Alyn Brodsky
Before he left office, Cleveland had his portrait taken down and put in the attic.
More posts that prove I watch far too much TV
To see all of the doodles from Upstairs at the White House, check out this post.
Proceed with caution