The May 23, 1974 was a Thursday under the star sign of ♊. It was the 142 day of the year. President of the United States was Richard M. Nixon.
If you were born on this day, you are 51 years old. Your last birthday was on the Friday, May 23, 2025, 143 days ago. Your next birthday is on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in 221 days. You have lived for 18,771 days, or about 450,523 hours, or about 27,031,434 minutes, or about 1,621,886,040 seconds.
Date: 23 May 1974
By MARTIN ARNOLD
Martin ARNOLD
Article on difficulties faced by press in covering impeachment hearings notes much published information is based on leaks as HR Judiciary Com hearings have been held in closed session; illus of com Chmn Repr P W Rodino Jr with reporters (L)
Date: 24 May 1974
By DAMON STETSON
Damon STETSON
ITU Local 6 and NY Times, News and Post on May 23 reach tentative agreement on new contract that will open way for automated typesetting while protecting printers' job security; new pact is subject to ratification by local members but no date for meeting has been announced; mediator Theodore Kheel says details of settlement will be made known on May 24 at conf at Automation House; describes settlement as major breakthrough in collective bargaining; ITU Local pres Bertram Powers says agreement will solve automation problems and allow for job security; some gen aspects of agreement are: contract is expected to run until 1984, but will have reopeners on wages at 3-yr intervals; wage increases will be related to productivity and cost-of-living increase; newspapers will be free, on basis of proposed schedule, to introduce computerized typesetting and other modern equipment to increase efficiency and econ of their operations; all regular and full-time printers and substitutes will be assured of job security through attrition; provision for printer sabaticals and special bonuses are also reptd to be included; Powers repts that printers who have not worked at News since May 7 will return to work on May 24; bargaining leading up to settlement and strike at News revd (L)
Date: 23 May 1974
By DAMON STETSON
Damon STETSON
negotiators for ITU Local 6 and NY Times, NY News and NY Post on May 22 rev their positions separately as they prepare for critical bargaining session on May 23; mediator Theodore Kheel says he regards meeting as important and possibly decisive; ITU Local pres Bertram Powers says if no agreement is reached on May 22 he will be free to discuss details of offers and counteroffers with union members and explain union's position publicly; ITU pres-elect A Sandy Bevis comments
Date: 23 May 1974
Repr Edward I Koch has proposed 'newsman's-right-to-privacy act' designed to guarantee additional protection for confidentiality of phone records of reporters; under proposal ct order would be needed before phone or telegraph information could be relased by cos
Date: 24 May 1974
White House press sec Ronald L Ziegler criticizes news leaks that he says distort Pres Nixon's characterization of events of Mar 21 '73; HR Judiciary Com members have said Nixon stated at beginning of 15-min Dictabelt recording that Mar 21 had been 'uneventful day'; Ziegler says complete Nixon quotation was: 'As far as the day was concerned it was uneventful except for the talk with Dean'; reference is to conversation with then-White House counsel John W Dean 3d, who told him of Watergate cover-up; Ziegler cites incomplete quotation as example of 'distortion and piecemeal presentation' of this material in stories across US 'leaving all the negative connotations'; says this is why White House is demanding that com hearings be open or that full record of hearings be made public (M)
Date: 23 May 1974
By HENRY TANNERspecial to The New York Times
Egyptian Pres Sadat on May 22 orders new shake-up among editors of nationalized Egyptian press; Al Ahram chief editor Ali Amin announces in his column that he has been asked to transfer to mass-circulation newspaper Al Akhbar; transfer appears to be aimed primarily at preserving Al Ahram's position as high quality newspaper and Amin had made paper more sensational and caused circulation to drop; Amin will continue to write his own column, which he has been using for attacks on lack of pol freedom under late Pres Gamal Abdel Nasser; his new title will be chmn of bd of both Al Akhbar and Akhbar al-Yom; Amin's post is expected to be filled by Ahmed Baha-Eddin; Ihsan Abdel Kuddous, confidant of Sadat, is expected to give up his post as editor in chief of wkly Akhbar al-Yom and to move to Al Ahram; Amin por (M)
Date: 23 May 1974
By SEYMOUR M. HERSH
Fed Judge Gerhard Gesell, presiding over White House plumbers trial, raises possibility that he will be forced to dismiss case if Govt refuses to turn over natl security evidence that is helpful to defendants; says he may have no other recourse if ct rules documents are relevant and material and Govt does not produce them; says there is not going to be any exec privilege or natl security privilege in case; agrees with defendants, in another action involving different documents, that they are entitled to access to their personal files in White House and issues subpoena for them returnable at 2PM May 24; William H Merrill, head of prosecuting team, says he agrees that prosecution will end if Govt refuses to turn over relevant documents; asst special prosecutor Charles R Breyer tells Gesell that he is reluctant to make available Govt information not relevant to case and that is covered by natl security or exec privilege; indicates this information is included in some documents that are of possible value to defense; Breyer agrees to permit defense attys to rev some documents in full before some portions are excised; Gesell also promises to intervene in attempt to obtain any relevant material from Cong; was told that at least 1 com was reluctant to turn over its transcripts of closed-door ints in connection with plumbers unit; tells Andrew C Hall, Ehrlichman atty, that if Hall identifys natl security matters with any kind of particularity 'I'll give you a subpoena'; Gesell por (L)
Date: 24 May 1974
By SEYMOUR M. HERSHSpecial to The New York Times
Peter Maroulis, atty for G Gordon Liddy, on May 23 contends that Pres Nixon severely prejudiced his client's const right to fair trial when he told nation in televised speech on April 29 that Liddy's 'refusal to talk' is 1 of 'obstacles to the case'; urges Judge Gerhard Gesell to dismiss pending criminal charges against Liddy, who he says ho has been 'unfairly branded as being guilty' in trial involving break in at office of Daniel Ellsberg's psychiatrist Dr Lewis J Fielding; Gesell says he will rule later on request; orders defense and prosecution attys to appear in Fed Dist Ct on May 24 when White House is expected to reply to 2 subpoenas for personal files of defendants Charles W Colson and John D Ehrlichman; White House refuses to say whether it will turn over personal materials subpoenaed by Ehrlichman and Colson; Maroulis also accused Asst Atty Gen Henry E Petersen of incorrectly relaying direct order of Nixon; notes that Nixon said on April 29, evening before he released edited transcripts of some key White House tapes, that during conversation on April 15, '73, he had told Petersen to make clear, not only to Liddy, but to everyone that 'everyone in this case is to talk and tell the truth' (M)
Date: 23 May 1974
By BERNARD GWERTZMAN
Bernard GWERTZMAN
comment on relationship between Sec Kissinger and newsmen who are accompanying him on peace mission to Middle East notes that Kissinger seems determined to steer journalists with him on middle course between optimism and gloom; newsman are left with impression that Kissinger feels agreement between Israel and Egypt is in sight
Date: 24 May 1974
By MARTIN ARNOLDSpecial to The New York Times
Va Sup Ct on May 23 orders recess in proceedings of special grand until freedom-of-the-press issue involving jury can be decided by cts; atty for Charlottesville Daily Progress, newspaper that raised issue, and Reporters Com for Press Freedom rept it is apparently 1st time such proceedings have been halted while cts decide what can and cannot be reptd in news media; issue rose out of special grand jury that was convened in Albemarle County, Va, to investigate alleged misconduct of county officials; on May 13 Albemarle County Atty filed motion to quash grand jury proceedings on ground that 7-member special grand jury has been improperly chosen; County Circuit Ct Judge David F Berry then ordered that press not be allowed to publish fact of quash motion; following day held preliminary hearing on motion from which he banned public and press, warning all participants in preliminary hearing not to discuss motion on pain of being held in contempt of ct; Albermarle Daily Progress on hehalf of itself and reporters Benjamin Critzer and Douglas Pardue not only brought suit against Berry's order but also asked Sup Ct to halt grand jury proceedings until issue is decided; decision is hailed as press victory (S)