NBC Nightly News - 1982-07-02

Channel: malgent

Transcript

Language: English (original, YouTube automatic captions)

[0:00] WSMV, Nashville.

[0:08] >> This is NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw

[0:11] in New York, Roger Mudd in Washington,

[0:14] and commentary by John Chancellor.

[0:17] >> Good evening. The Capitol Hill

[0:19] investigation of sex and drugs, which

[0:21] had existed mainly in the congressional

[0:23] rumor mill, today took on the attributes

[0:25] of a serious and spreading scandal. And

[0:27] as Lisa Myers reports this evening, the

[0:29] inquiry involves both House and Senate.

[0:32] >> The investigation into narcotics

[0:34] trafficking centers on the offices of

[0:36] two senators and 10 House members. NBC

[0:39] News has learned that one congressional

[0:40] employee has told federal investigators

[0:43] that she delivered a quantity of cocaine

[0:46] directly to a congressman in his office

[0:48] in 1981.

[0:50] In the continuing investigation, federal

[0:52] authorities have subpoenaed Capitol

[0:54] Police Chief James M. Powell to turn

[0:57] over his department's records on drug

[0:59] use at the Capitol. Powell refused to

[1:01] confirm the subpoena, but promised to be

[1:03] fully cooperative with federal

[1:05] investigators. In addition, NBC News has

[1:07] learned that five House employees and

[1:10] two Senate employees have been

[1:12] subpoenaed to testify before a federal

[1:14] grand jury probing the suspected cocaine

[1:16] ring. At least four of the employees are

[1:19] to testify next week. Undercover agents

[1:22] have been operating on Capitol Hill for

[1:24] more than a year, and the investigation

[1:26] got a big boost on April 19th when

[1:28] police raided this home in an affluent

[1:30] section of Washington. Arrested in the

[1:33] bust, which netted 19 and 1/2 oz of

[1:35] cocaine, were Robert A. Finkel, a former

[1:38] Senate elevator operator, Troy M. Todd

[1:41] Jr., a high school dropout, and Douglas

[1:43] W. Marshall, shown here as a House page,

[1:46] who later worked briefly in the

[1:47] congressional liaison operation of the

[1:49] Ford White House. Although charges

[1:52] against the three were dropped, Finkel

[1:54] is being held in protective custody by

[1:56] Drug Enforcement Administration

[1:57] officials, and the other two are central

[2:00] to the grand jury probe. Authorities

[2:02] believe Marshall ran a network of

[2:04] elevator operators, doorkeepers, and

[2:06] tour guides who had allegedly delivered

[2:08] cocaine to congressional offices.

[2:11] Meanwhile, the FBI formed a special

[2:13] squad to investigate allegations of

[2:15] homosexual activity between congressmen

[2:17] and teenage pages.

[2:19] One former page, Jeffrey Opp, was

[2:22] interviewed by the FBI last week and

[2:24] gave impetus to the investigation of

[2:26] illicit sex. Opp's father said his son

[2:28] was not personally involved.

[2:31] >> You're You're not worried that he might

[2:32] be involved in the thing at all, are

[2:34] you? With the drugs or the uh

[2:36] >> As far as him having taken them and then

[2:38] participated in the sexual activities,

[2:39] no.

[2:41] >> One congressman came forward after

[2:43] rumors surfaced that he was involved in

[2:45] the case.

[2:46] >> I have always been aggressive and

[2:47] upfront with what I believe in. And when

[2:51] I have people telling me that a whole

[2:52] series of false accusations are made

[2:54] against my character, uh frankly, it

[2:57] makes me mad as hell.

[2:58] >> That Craig felt compelled to react to

[3:00] reports from reporters that he was under

[3:02] investigation is evidence of the sheer

[3:04] panic that reigns in certain corridors

[3:06] of Congress. Lisa Myers, NBC News at the

[3:10] Capitol.

[3:11] >> All the allegations, which still are

[3:13] uncorroborated, have set off three

[3:15] investigations: the FBI, the House

[3:17] Ethics Committee, and the Senate

[3:18] Sergeant at Arms, who supervises Senate

[3:20] pages. Only the FBI investigation is

[3:23] actually underway, and a spokesman there

[3:25] said today the allegations involve fewer

[3:27] than six people. Tom?

[3:30] >> The investigation into the death of John

[3:31] Belushi moved to Toronto today, where

[3:33] Los Angeles police want to question

[3:35] Cathy Evelyn Smith, who was with Belushi

[3:38] the night he died. She's quoted in the

[3:40] National Enquirer saying that she

[3:42] injected Belushi with a combination of

[3:44] heroin and cocaine. Los Angeles police

[3:47] want to question Miss Smith, but they've

[3:49] told Toronto authorities not to treat

[3:51] her as a murder suspect.

[4:02] >> Romance

[4:04] can take you many places, but only so

[4:07] far.

[4:09] Beautiful as it is, it has limits. But

[4:12] desire starts where romance leaves off

[4:15] and bursts into something beyond,

[4:17] something Silhouette Books now captures

[4:20] in a startling new series about love,

[4:22] Silhouette Desire, beyond romance, where

[4:26] the possibilities are limited only by

[4:28] your imagination.

[4:30] Silhouette Desire.

[4:36] >> And cut.

[4:38] Print it.

[4:39] >> With my job, I can't afford to get tense

[4:41] from too much caffeine. So, a friend

[4:43] told me something that made good sense.

[4:46] >> Ah, you got time for a coffee break?

[4:48] >> Here he is. He told me about Sanka

[4:50] decaffeinated coffee.

[4:51] >> I told him Sanka is 100% real coffee.

[4:54] >> Oh.

[4:55] That is good.

[4:56] >> And 97% caffeine-free.

[4:57] >> That's even better.

[4:59] >> Sanka decaffeinated coffee, good coffee

[5:01] that makes good sense.

[5:04] >> Unemployment numbers out today and the

[5:05] rate did not improve during June. It is

[5:07] still 9 and 1/2%. That's the highest

[5:10] since World War II. The unemployment

[5:12] rate for adult men went up to 8.7%,

[5:16] a record high. But the worst news

[5:18] involve black teenagers. More than half

[5:21] of them, 52.6%,

[5:24] are out of work. And the Labor

[5:26] Department also reported today that the

[5:27] number of people who have stopped

[5:29] looking for work all together was up

[5:31] sharply. All of this grim employment

[5:33] news is making a particular kind of

[5:35] selling job easier these days, however.

[5:38] Here's Kenley Jones.

[5:41] >> Uncle Sam still wants you in the armed

[5:43] forces if you have a high school

[5:45] education. Because of the recession and

[5:48] the high cost of a college education

[5:50] these days, more and more high school

[5:52] seniors are joining up. So help me God.

[5:55] >> So help me God.

[5:56] >> Congratulations, you're now members of

[5:58] the armed forces.

[5:59] >> I must say in that direction with jobs

[6:01] are now. I wanted to go to college and I

[6:03] didn't have the money to really pay for

[6:05] it and so I joined the army. Working at

[6:08] a cotton mill in Monroe.

[6:10] Don't care to.

[6:11] >> Is your new job in the Navy going to pay

[6:13] you as well?

[6:14] >> Make about twice

[6:15] >> as much.

[6:15] >> Recruit pay starts at $551

[6:18] a month and recruits are told they can

[6:20] choose the kind of job training they

[6:22] want.

[6:23] >> I'm looking for a job as a computer

[6:26] technician.

[6:26] >> All of the service branches say this has

[6:28] been their best year of recruiting.

[6:30] Quotas filled earlier, more high school

[6:32] graduates since the draft ended in 1973.

[6:36] >> Sky's the limit. It's up to you.

[6:38] >> Even the Army, which in the past has had

[6:40] the most trouble finding new enlistees,

[6:43] expects to wind up its 1982 recruiting

[6:45] this month with 115,000

[6:48] new soldiers. One reason is aggressive

[6:50] recruiting, including moving some

[6:52] recruiting offices from downtown to the

[6:54] suburbs where many bright young

[6:56] prospects live.

[6:58] Another big reason is the Army's college

[7:00] fund program, which can provide a

[7:02] recruit with $15,000 for college after 2

[7:05] years of service.

[7:06] >> Now, I figured I'd join the Army and get

[7:08] my money for college and then I'd go out

[7:10] on the outside and try and get a good

[7:12] job.

[7:12] >> That attitude, which is not uncommon

[7:14] among new recruits, presents another

[7:16] challenge for the armed services. How to

[7:19] convince the recruits, once they have

[7:20] been trained, that they should make the

[7:22] military a career. Kenley Jones, NBC

[7:25] News, Atlanta.

[7:27] >> The Supreme Court ruled unanimously

[7:29] today that the anti-children's

[7:31] pornography or kid porn laws in 20

[7:33] states are constitutional and do not

[7:35] violate the guarantees of free speech

[7:37] under the First Amendment. Justice Byron

[7:39] White wrote that child pornography is a

[7:41] serious national problem requiring

[7:43] greater leeway for the states. Before

[7:46] wrapping up the 1981-82 term, the court

[7:48] also today issued a major ruling on

[7:50] political boycotts involving Port

[7:52] Gibson, Mississippi. Here's Carl Stern.

[7:56] >> These were the alleged conspirators, 91

[7:59] blacks in Port Gibson, Mississippi, who

[8:01] boycotted white-owned stores until they

[8:03] got more jobs in the stores and in the

[8:05] county government. The white merchants

[8:07] sued the 91 and the NAACP for their

[8:09] losses and were awarded more than a

[8:11] million dollars.

[8:13] Mississippi court said the blacks had

[8:14] enforced the boycott illegally with

[8:17] store watchers taking down names and

[8:19] threatening people.

[8:20] A boycotter who is now a sheriff and the

[8:22] newspaper editor differ as to what

[8:24] happened.

[8:25] >> I was there I can't stand and everything

[8:27] else.

[8:28] And there was no force.

[8:30] >> They were threatened either

[8:32] verbally

[8:34] over the phone,

[8:35] property was damaged, car windows

[8:37] smashed.

[8:38] >> Today in a sweeping and unanimous

[8:40] ruling, the Supreme Court said Port

[8:42] Gibson's blacks could not be sued for

[8:43] the economic boycott.

[8:45] Justice Stevens, speaking for the court,

[8:47] said the boycotters could not be held

[8:49] accountable for isolated criminal acts.

[8:52] The court said generalized threats of

[8:53] reprisals or ostracism used to enforce

[8:55] the boycott fall within the right of

[8:57] free speech.

[8:59] News of the ruling interrupted an NAACP

[9:02] convention in Boston.

[9:04] >> The United States Supreme Court

[9:07] in an eight zip decision reversed

[9:11] Mississippi boycott decision.

[9:14] >> Just this week, the civil rights

[9:16] organization voted to resume using

[9:18] economic boycotts. Justice Marshall,

[9:20] long affiliated with the NAACP, took no

[9:23] part in the Supreme Court ruling.

[9:25] Carl Stern, NBC News, Washington.

[9:33] >> There's your refund, but sometimes you

[9:35] need more than a traveler's check

[9:36] refund. You say you'd also like us to

[9:38] help cancel your lost credit card.

[9:40] >> Yeah. Yeah.

[9:41] >> And you'd like a temporary ID?

[9:43] >> Right.

[9:44] >> Right.

[9:44] >> And you'd like us to cash a personal

[9:46] check for $200?

[9:48] >> Uh exactly.

[9:49] >> Exactly.

[9:50] >> Really?

[9:51] >> If you want the only traveler's check

[9:52] with five services to help protect your

[9:54] vacation, American Express is worth

[9:57] asking for by name.

[9:59] >> We should have asked for American

[10:00] Express.

[10:05] >> An Old Spice man always gets a warm

[10:08] welcome wherever he lands.

[10:15] Cuz Old Spice is the clean, fresh,

[10:18] masculine scent so many women love.

[10:24] So even if you love only one woman,

[10:27] you'll love Old Spice. A man's scent so

[10:31] many women love.

[10:33] >> It's a problem of the '80s, occasionally

[10:35] taking your job to bed and not sleeping.

[10:37] >> I'm behind schedule.

[10:40] >> Introducing a sleep aid for the '80s,

[10:42] new Nytol.

[10:44] With DPH, it's fast and safe when used

[10:46] as directed. New Nytol helps make you

[10:48] drowsy, so you can fall asleep fast.

[10:51] When you take your job to bed

[10:52] >> I'll never make my quota.

[10:54] >> reach for a new Nytol with DPH and fall

[10:56] asleep fast.

[10:58] New Nytol with DPH,

[11:00] a sleep aid for the '80s.

[11:04] >> The Reagan administration says it's

[11:05] still on top of the Beirut crisis,

[11:07] although the country's big three foreign

[11:09] policy men are all on vacation. The

[11:11] president in California, the outgoing

[11:13] Secretary of State in West Virginia, the

[11:15] incoming secretary in Massachusetts.

[11:17] Meanwhile, the beleaguered PLO waits in

[11:19] Beirut for another Israeli attack.

[11:21] Here's Jack Reynolds.

[11:24] >> For the second night in a row, Israeli

[11:26] jets swooped low over Beirut in a

[11:28] simulated air raid.

[11:30] They dropped flares.

[11:32] Sonic booms shattered windows.

[11:36] Palestinian anti-aircraft guns

[11:38] responded.

[11:39] Small arms fire broke out.

[11:43] People raced for shelters.

[11:46] These mock Israeli air raids, especially

[11:49] in neighborhoods like this one already

[11:50] demolished by Israeli bombs, have caused

[11:53] panic.

[11:55] The Israelis said again today that they

[11:57] don't want to invade West Beirut, but

[11:59] that they're running out of patience.

[12:01] They want the PLO completely out of the

[12:02] city and quickly. Otherwise, they'll

[12:05] come in.

[12:06] >> Israeli Defense Minister Ariel Sharon

[12:09] suddenly appeared this afternoon in East

[12:11] Beirut and in a hotel about a hundred

[12:14] yards from the line that divides East

[12:16] and West Beirut, he made this statement.

[12:19] >> We came here only for one purpose.

[12:22] And that is to destroy to destroy

[12:25] I take it take this world to destroy

[12:30] the terrorist

[12:32] PLO Palestinian organizations.

[12:36] >> There's a growing feeling of

[12:37] anti-Americanism. People here say it's

[12:40] your weapons the Israelis are using

[12:42] against us and with your approval.

[12:45] Dr. Amal Shamma is a Lebanese-American.

[12:48] She's a pediatrician who now spends most

[12:51] of her time treating wounded. She is

[12:53] bitter.

[12:54] >> Uh all of a sudden there's some some

[12:56] form of American mathematics that I just

[12:58] don't understand anymore.

[12:59] Uh

[13:02] Israel wants safe northern borders and

[13:05] for that uh

[13:06] 14,000 people are killed according to

[13:08] the Red Cross estimates. Tens of

[13:10] thousands are maimed and injured. It's

[13:13] as if

[13:14] the American administration has

[13:15] developed a moral blind spot. Uh as if

[13:18] principles are for use only when they're

[13:19] of use to yourself and to your friends

[13:21] and that's all.

[13:22] >> Wadie Ishaia is 12 years old. Her uncle

[13:25] found some shrapnel in a cluster bomb

[13:27] near their house.

[13:29] He brought it home. It exploded. She

[13:32] still has shrapnel in her body.

[13:35] Nidal Said is nine. He was hit by

[13:37] shrapnel in the chest and abdomen. For a

[13:39] while, doctors didn't think he'd live.

[13:42] His sister, Nesrine, was wounded in the

[13:44] same attack. She is 6 years old.

[13:48] If a political solution is not found

[13:50] soon to the problem of the Palestinians

[13:53] and the problems of Lebanon, people here

[13:56] are afraid that the fighting could drag

[13:58] on for generations.

[14:01] Jack Reynolds, NBC News, West Beirut.

[14:06] >> Prime Minister Begin claims the Israeli

[14:08] army has picked up 66 children aged 12

[14:11] to 13 and armed with submachine guns who

[14:13] who were recruited into the PLO. Begin

[14:16] asked, "Was there ever such an

[14:18] anti-human phenomenon in human history?"

[14:20] Later, however, a spokesman for Begin

[14:22] said he had made a mistake, had read

[14:24] from the wrong paper, and that the

[14:25] correct number was either two or 22

[14:28] child soldiers. Tom?

[14:30] British war correspondents back in

[14:32] London and now free of military

[14:34] censorship say the British had major

[14:36] equipment problems in the Falklands War.

[14:38] Two newspapers reported that British

[14:40] missiles didn't work, and at one point,

[14:42] British troops fired at one another in

[14:44] the dark, and British troops used

[14:46] discarded Argentine weapons because they

[14:48] were better than their own.

[14:51] And on the playing fields of Wimbledon

[14:52] today, Billie Jean King's dream of

[14:54] winning still another championship ended

[14:57] at center court in the semi-final round.

[15:00] Bob Jamieson reports from London

[15:01] tonight.

[15:04] >> Chris Evert Lloyd was only 11 when

[15:06] Billie Jean King won her first Wimbledon

[15:08] singles title. Today, Mrs. Lloyd had to

[15:10] fight the inspired 38-year-old Mrs. King

[15:13] for every point.

[15:17] The oldest woman to play in the

[15:18] semi-finals here in 62 years took last

[15:21] year's champion to a tiebreaker in the

[15:23] first set, but lost it.

[15:25] Then in this NBC Sports coverage, Billie

[15:27] Jean playing superb tennis absolutely

[15:29] demolished Chris in the second set.

[15:42] But in the final set, Chris regained

[15:44] control and her steadiness neutralized

[15:46] Billie Jean's serve and volley game.

[15:50] There was still a tiny hope for Billie

[15:52] Jean down five games to two. She saved a

[15:55] match point.

[15:59] But a sudden downpour at that critical

[16:01] moment, the game at deuce, killed her

[16:03] chances when it caused a 41-minute

[16:05] interruption.

[16:06] >> It's just a pity when you have to be cut

[16:08] off for the rain. You just lose all your

[16:10] the feeling and at my age I don't like

[16:11] to cool down. I like to keep going once

[16:13] once the blood's going and the

[16:15] circulation's going.

[16:16] But uh

[16:17] it's Chris was just too good in the end.

[16:19] >> When they took the court again, they

[16:21] continued to play some of the greatest

[16:22] tennis in Wimbledon history. But will

[16:24] that be enough to bring Billie Jean back

[16:26] next year when she'll be 39?

[16:29] "At my age," said the woman nobody

[16:30] believed would make it so far this year

[16:32] at Wimbledon, "how can I know what's

[16:34] going to happen next year?"

[16:35] Bob Jamieson, NBC News, London.

[16:43] >> When you get it, itchy red skin.

[16:48] When you get it,

[16:50] darn bugs.

[16:53] When you get it,

[16:55] touch of poison ivy.

[16:58] >> Cortaid gently works with your body's

[17:00] natural defenses. It's all you need for

[17:03] the relief of dermatitis and other minor

[17:05] itches and rashes.

[17:06] >> When you get it, itchy eczema.

[17:12] >> A word from your savings and loan.

[17:14] >> No one has to tell you your savings are

[17:16] safe here. I know it.

[17:18] You know it.

[17:19] Just the way we've always known it.

[17:23] And now

[17:24] Congress has reaffirmed it.

[17:26] By backing your federally insured

[17:28] savings and loan account with the full

[17:30] faith and credit of the United States.

[17:33] The full faith and credit

[17:35] of these United States. That said it

[17:38] all. Brought to you by your federally

[17:40] insured savings and loan.

[17:43] >> This jar is in almost every country in

[17:46] the world. And what's in this jar has

[17:48] helped beautiful women all over the

[17:50] world stay beautiful. The cream in this

[17:53] jar is cold cream. The name on this jar

[17:56] is Pond's cold cream.

[17:58] And what's in this bottle is the island

[18:01] secret of softer, younger looking hands.

[18:03] Pond's cream and cocoa butter lotion

[18:06] with natural cocoa butter.

[18:08] Pond's, it helps make the world more

[18:11] beautiful.

[18:13] >> The increase in corporate mergers and

[18:15] takeovers has created a growth industry

[18:17] in Wall Street. It's called insider

[18:19] trading and the Securities and Exchange

[18:21] Commission is making a major move

[18:23] against the inside profiteers. Business

[18:25] correspondent Mike Jensen has put

[18:27] together a special segment on insider

[18:29] trading.

[18:30] >> You'll see a orange ball back here very

[18:33] quickly and then it is in powered

[18:35] flight.

[18:36] >> Thomas Reed was Secretary of the Air

[18:38] Force under President Ford. About a year

[18:40] ago, according to the government, Reed

[18:42] got a hot tip from his father, a

[18:44] director of a big mining company called

[18:46] AMAX, about a possible AMAX merger.

[18:49] Reed called his stock broker and within

[18:51] 48 hours, with an investment of only

[18:53] $3,125,

[18:56] he had turned a profit of $427,000.

[19:01] The Securities and Exchange Commission

[19:03] noticed unusual trading activity,

[19:05] investigated, took Reed to court,

[19:07] charged him with fraud, and made him

[19:09] give the money back.

[19:11] >> It is a little cold back here.

[19:12] >> Hot tips come in all sizes and shapes.

[19:14] When Johnny Carson was thinking about

[19:16] buying the Aladdin Hotel in Las Vegas in

[19:18] partnership with the National Kinney

[19:20] Corporation, according to the

[19:21] government, he told his wife Joanna

[19:23] about it, and she tipped off her brother

[19:25] Peter Ullrich in Buffalo, and an

[19:27] attendant at her exercise parlor in

[19:29] Beverly Hills named Emily Johns.

[19:31] Both Johns and Ullrich bought stock in

[19:33] the company involved, and even though

[19:35] the deal didn't go through, they made a

[19:36] quick profit. The Securities and

[19:38] Exchange Commission took them to court

[19:40] and made them give the money back.

[19:42] Neither Johnny Carson nor his wife was

[19:43] accused of any wrongdoing.

[19:46] >> Trading stock on inside information is

[19:48] illegal. The theory is that it's unfair

[19:50] to all the rest of us who don't have

[19:52] inside information.

[19:53] >> The best way to analogize it is to

[19:56] someone going into a horse race

[19:59] and knowing who's going to win the horse

[20:01] race.

[20:02] >> Stock prices generally shoot up with the

[20:04] announcement of a corporate takeover.

[20:06] It's the biggest single opportunity for

[20:08] insiders. Half the price increases on

[20:11] such deals come before the public

[20:13] announcement, according to a recent

[20:14] study, and the rest come after.

[20:17] >> This study in effect indicates there are

[20:19] an awful lot of insiders trading on

[20:21] inside information and doing it

[20:23] illegally and making large profits.

[20:26] >> The Securities and Exchange Commission

[20:28] says a Kuwaiti businessman named Faisal

[20:30] Fouad and others made over $5 million in

[20:34] 2 weeks because they had a hot tip that

[20:36] the government of Kuwait was going to

[20:38] buy Santa Fe International, an American

[20:40] oil drilling company.

[20:42] Fouad and the others say they didn't do

[20:44] anything wrong.

[20:46] But securities traders in San Francisco

[20:48] lost an estimated $18 million on the

[20:51] Santa Fe deal because they were not on

[20:53] the inside. They were taking orders for

[20:55] future delivery at a low price when the

[20:57] insiders knew the price was going to go

[21:00] up.

[21:00] >> It's uh

[21:01] been a real body blow to each and every

[21:03] one of them.

[21:04] And to have their savings

[21:06] wiped out, their accounts wiped out, and

[21:08] on top of it presented with huge

[21:11] liabilities has

[21:13] been, you know, totally numbing

[21:14] experience.

[21:15] >> The Securities and Exchange Commission

[21:17] says it's cracking down on insider

[21:19] trading.

[21:20] >> We have brought more insider trading

[21:24] actions in the past 4 years than the SEC

[21:28] brought during the preceding 45 years.

[21:31] >> But at Northwestern University Law

[21:33] School, the Dean says the penalties are

[21:35] simply not stiff enough to stop the

[21:37] determined insider.

[21:39] >> If all he has to do is give his money

[21:41] back, then he's not in a position of

[21:44] being deterred at all.

[21:46] >> People can go to jail for insider

[21:48] trading, but David Hall is the only one

[21:50] who ever has. He's a New York attorney

[21:52] who helped arrange mergers. Then he

[21:54] bought stock based on his inside

[21:56] information. He served 26 days, and he

[21:59] refuses to talk about it.

[22:02] >> There have been

[22:02] >> The Securities and Exchange Commission's

[22:04] John Shad argues that jail isn't

[22:06] necessary.

[22:08] >> I think the most important thing is

[22:10] that a person engaged in this sort of

[22:11] activity is is risking his career.

[22:14] >> Not always. Remember Thomas Reed, the

[22:17] former Air Force Secretary who made

[22:18] almost half a million dollars allegedly

[22:21] on a hot tip from his father?

[22:23] A month after he agreed to return the

[22:24] money, Reed was hired by the Reagan

[22:26] administration as a consultant to the

[22:28] National Security Council.

[22:30] He is a top-level architect of American

[22:32] defense policy, and he has just been

[22:34] named a full-time special assistant to

[22:36] President Reagan.

[22:37] Reed has an office in the Executive

[22:39] Office Building right next to the White

[22:41] House. Mike Jensen, NBC News,

[22:44] Washington.

[22:46] >> The stock market is often a peculiar

[22:48] beast, of course, to outsiders. It's

[22:50] very difficult to know just what is

[22:51] going on. In his commentary tonight,

[22:53] John Chancellor offers some stock market

[22:56] clues that may help you understand when

[22:58] the recession is ending.

[23:00] There's a lot of talk these days that

[23:02] the recession has touched bottom, but

[23:04] there is no assurance that recovery is

[23:05] just around the corner. There are

[23:07] various ways of calculating how a

[23:09] recession will end. One way is to watch

[23:11] the stock markets. Usually, stocks go up

[23:14] before a recession ends. In the

[23:16] recession of 1969 and '70, the economy,

[23:19] the gross national product, was stagnant

[23:21] for 10 months before things picked up.

[23:24] But look at the Dow Jones Industrials

[23:25] during that same time period. A steep

[23:27] decline, then a rebound. Here's where

[23:30] the recession ended. Here we see stocks

[23:32] getting healthier much earlier.

[23:35] The same thing happened in the 1973-1975

[23:38] recession. The economy declined quite a

[23:40] bit before it went up. Stocks during

[23:42] that time went down for a while, but

[23:44] recovered sooner. Here's where that

[23:46] recession ended, but here's when stocks

[23:48] started up much sooner.

[23:51] And here's the present recession. The

[23:52] economy has been going down and stocks

[23:54] have been going down. Nobody is sure

[23:56] what will happen.

[23:57] In every post-war recession, stocks have

[24:00] gone up before the recession ended,

[24:02] three or four months before. Maybe it

[24:04] won't happen this time, but it might be

[24:05] wise to keep your eye on those Dow Jones

[24:07] averages.

[24:09] >> In Miami, a young suspected car thief

[24:11] found his own way out of the recession.

[24:13] Police picked up a 17-year-old boy and

[24:15] recovered a car that he is suspected of

[24:17] stealing last week. And in the car, they

[24:20] found nearly $800,000 in cash.

[24:24] They believe there may have been as much

[24:26] as 1 million when the suspect stole the

[24:28] car from a racetrack. The teenager has

[24:30] been going through it as fast as he can.

[24:32] He bought a Jaguar sedan, a Buick,

[24:35] jewelry for his girlfriend, stereos for

[24:37] his friends, a basketball, and eight

[24:39] pairs of sneakers.

[24:48] >> Mr. Columbus, traveling far?

[24:50] >> To the new world.

[24:51] >> Loaded with gold, eh?

[24:53] >> Too risky. We carry BankAmerica

[24:54] Travelers Checks.

[24:56] >> World money.

[24:56] >> BankAmerica Travelers checks?

[24:58] >> Bank of America. In leading world

[25:01] currencies accepted in over 160

[25:04] countries.

[25:04] >> And if they're lost?

[25:05] >> Lost? They would say lost. Besides,

[25:07] they're refundable in 40,000 places

[25:09] around the world. It is round, YOU KNOW.

[25:15] >> BANK OF AMERICA TRAVELERS CHECKS.

[25:19] >> Tell the truth. Did my costume look dumb

[25:22] tonight?

[25:23] >> Of course not.

[25:25] >> Why would you ask a question like that?

[25:30] >> Coffee?

[25:30] >> Mhm.

[25:31] >> Times

[25:33] like these

[25:35] are made for tasters choice.

[25:38] >> When it's time for decaffeinated, now

[25:40] there's new tasters choice decaffeinated

[25:42] fresh brewed to capture coffee flavor at

[25:44] the peak of freshness. First cup

[25:47] freshness.

[25:49] >> Chevy says blow away everything you know

[25:51] about pickups. When you compare standard

[25:53] S-10s and Dodge Ram 50s, Dodge blows

[25:55] Chevy away. Ram 50 gives you 500 lbs

[25:58] more payload, more pulling power, and

[26:01] new Power Ram 50, four wheeler

[26:03] magazine's four wheel drive truck of the

[26:04] year.

[26:05] >> Dodge trucks are

[26:07] Ram tough.

[26:08] >> Now, Ram 50 prices start at 5987. What's

[26:11] more, Dodge gives rebates on all

[26:12] pickups, full size and compact from 300

[26:15] to a thousand dollars depending on

[26:16] model. Your dealer has details.

[26:19] >> There's a special corner of show

[26:21] business in which a beguiling fantasy

[26:23] world is created with a few movements of

[26:25] the hand, some tiny costumes, and some

[26:27] unlikely but delightful characters. And

[26:30] the folks who work in that special

[26:31] corner have been meeting in Atlanta this

[26:33] week. Bill Shackner was there.

[26:37] >> Oh, he's ready for you, he says you're

[26:40] all a soft touch.

[26:41] >> Believe it or not, this is a convention.

[26:43] There's considerable action out there on

[26:45] the floor. Let's listen to the

[26:47] delegates.

[26:48] >> Could I get you to do something with

[26:49] your teeth?

[26:55] >> These string pullers and image makers

[26:57] are the puppeteers of America at their

[26:59] annual festival. On view, everything

[27:01] from 18-footers that come with a

[27:02] three-man crew

[27:07] to 4-in that perch on the knee.

[27:10] Many puppeteers are full-timers, but

[27:12] sprinkled among them, especially at

[27:14] workshops, others smitten by the romance

[27:16] of this art. Ad men from New Jersey.

[27:26] Former government lawyers from

[27:27] Washington.

[27:28] >> I got seduced by puppets. Besides, this

[27:30] isn't the time to work on environmental

[27:32] law.

[27:33] >> And some handing along this tradition as

[27:35] it was passed to them.

[27:37] Alice May Hall is 90. When she was four,

[27:40] her mother took her to a puppet show.

[27:42] She never got over it. She still

[27:44] performs as she has on and off since she

[27:46] was eight. Still creates a fantasy.

[27:48] Still feels a thrill.

[27:50] >> When I see a child embrace him.

[27:53] It costs my heart. You can't help it in

[27:54] things like that. It's wonderful.

[27:57] >> So, Alice May Hall works on, bridging

[27:59] the years, keeping young an art that is

[28:02] centuries old.

[28:03] Phil Schartner, NBC News, Atlanta.

[28:09] >> That's Nightly News for this Friday

[28:10] night. I'm Tom Brokaw in New York. Have

[28:13] a nice 4th of July, Roger.

[28:15] >> I'm Roger Mudd in Washington. Good night

[28:17] and a happy 4th from all of us at NBC

[28:19] News.

[28:33] >> Coming up in just a minute on the scene

[28:35] at 6, the latest statistics show murder

[28:37] in Nashville is down compared to this

[28:39] time last year.

[28:40] And according to police, a fatal

[28:42] shooting early this morning that led to

[28:43] the wounding of a Metro police officer

[28:45] is a prime example of the type of

[28:47] murders that take place in Nashville.

[28:50] >> Also in the news tonight, NLT and

[28:52] American General officials are talking

[28:54] merger instead of takeover. And Sharon

[28:56] Puckett will talk with Vicki Lawrence

[28:57] and Ken Berry, the stars of the new NBC

[29:00] series Mama, to air this fall.

[29:03] >> These stories and more news coming up on

[29:05] the Scene at 6.

[29:10] >> Fred's your key to bringing forth

[29:11] savings at your picnic. Load your

[29:14] holiday table with these bonus buys.

[29:16] Starkist chunk light tuna, the 6 and 1/2

[29:19] oz size, a big 32 oz of plastic

[29:21] hamburger dill chips, Lay's 8 oz potato

[29:24] chips, package of 100 paper plates, or

[29:27] Fred's heavy-duty aluminum foil, 37 and

[29:29] 1/2 sq ft per package. Your choice