Monda y, April 23, 1973 KEY BJSCA YNE Presid e nt Nixon flew hack to Key Biscayne toda y J ollot ing an 01 e1•night slay at Grand Cay in the Bahamas. Th e Pre i de n t 's 1· e tu r n c o m in g in th e m i d s t of an o t h e r fl o o d of Wate1 • gate rumors. Those who claim to be in the know are predicting an immine,zt shakeup i,i the President's personal staff. But all de,ry. n ASHING TOI\ In ll"a hin g ton - th Wate, ·ga te affair u a fill topic A. Th e Wa h i 11 g to11 Post c hargi11 g toda y that th e Pr e s id e n t If ' as II a , , 11 e d a s a r l y as las t D ec e m b r t I, a I s o m e o f his sta ff ma _ , haL· e been " dee/)1) ' in v ol ed." The Wasl1ingto,i Star al o charging that President Nixon's /)ersonal la, ; ver , as the care-taker of a secret half- million dolla ' Y cam/)aign f11,11d; some of which was said to ha e been used - "for f,olitical s/)ying and disrut 'ion." Another develofnnent - the attorney for key 1 Watergate defendant G. Gordan Liddy attemf,ting today to withdraw fro , m the case, Thomas Kennelly explaining that Liddy has constantly refused his ad ice - to tell all that he knows. "He's a man I · l f t ·t d " - sa•d Kennelly,· "he 's go~ng 11/) the o surgu ar or i u e • • > 'iv er but he's not taking any captains or lieutenants with him. " TOKYO Th e Watergate Affair is news not only in the U.S. - but also in Japa11, it appears. At any rate . Japan's Minister of International Trade - Yasulriro Nakasone holding a press conference today; he was asked aboi,t the r,ossible effects of Watergate on U.S. and Japanese relations Nakasone saying: If country's broke diplomatic relations over political scandals we wouldn't have diplomatic relations wtth anybody." But, I sure hope - he added - "they didn't use machines from Toshiba or Sony." SAIGON In Southeast Asia - a convoy of eight shit,s - including six tankers - fought its way up the Mekong River today in Phnom Penh. This the first riv " er convoy to reacll '-" the Cambodian capital in eight days . In Vietnam - enemy forces •ere pressing closer to B11e. There •as also more fighting at Tau Cllau - wllere river convoys normally assemble. Saigon - nevertlleless, rep or ting that troop viol a ti ons - Ira ve ,eo., dit,ped to Ila e Ir low es t le v el s i,. c e t la e c ea s e ft re agree m e,. t firs t we,. t i,. to effect. ) - NEW YORK For Henry Kissinger - a brief trip to New York; where he addressed a group of newspaper publishers on the Sflbject of U S policy in E•rol'e. Kissinger saying the President "is adamantly opposed - to 1u1ilateral withdrawals of U S forces from Europe - bad we owe to our people'' - he co1ttin.ued - "a national defeftse postu-re, at the safest size and cost" •ith b•rdeas equitably shared: and that - said he - the question of sha-ring - will be the naah• thrust of the Preside,et 's talks with f oreig• leaders - whe• he travels 10011 to Europe. MERIAN COOPER A I tJO doubt have mentioned from time to time I' ve b ee n "most fortunate in that my work #las gi en me an opportunity lo come in contact roilh, a,ed '"ake friends with, ma,ey of the remarkable huma,e bei,eg• wllo have bestrode this Pla,eet in the past half century. High o,a my list, eve,e above potentates a11d other 11otables. I'd put Meri•" C. Cooper who died this NJeekefld i11 S..11 Diego. It gave me a jolt. when I read this mor,ai,ag's New York Times. Their opeai,ag li11es re•d: "Meri•• Cooper, the writer, director, producer aad author wllo created Khtg Kong." aad so 011. Y he does deserve m ucll credit • s es, cf'eator of oae of the most ........ , motion pict11res ever "'•de. But, I alNJays thiak of hi"' m•iNly as a• Air Force Geaer•l, Chief of St•ff to Flyiag Tiget" Clair MERIAN C DOPER - 2 Clr.ennault, also ad isor to General George Ke h nney w o ran tire Air War in the Pacific under MacArtht1r. o r, I think of World War One in which we both were in v olved, when he was flying in France e en before America entered the war. Also as lite creator of Paderewski's Poli sh Air Force following World War One. "Coop" as he was kno,on to 1,is associates and friends around l11e world, was captured by the Russians, sentenced to be executed, and made a spectacular escape from Russia. Next he and his pal Schoedsack we11t to a remote mountain area in Persia and made a picture of tlle migratio11 of tl,e Bachtiari. Tl,eir film GRASS, overnigllt made tl,em famous. Tllen followed Clla11g a11d Four Features. After that a wleole string of unusually seccessful films, Flying Down to Rio, The Last Days of Pompeii, T•e Qutet Man, Fort A Pach e and otlt ers in NJhich featured C 1 o 1 , 'l Gable. Katherine Ret,burn, Jolin Wayne, Fred Astaire and many more. General Meria• Cooper, wasn't just a remarkable MERIAN COOPER - ~ man, h e w a incredible. All of which was recognized b y tire Acat.'em y of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences with a special award. He married a lovely actress, Dorotlly Jordan, there are two daughters. He was particularly proud of their son Major Richard Cooper on Air Force pursuit Pilot who I presume comes near holding tlle record for the number of totlrs flown . in Ille Soutlleast Asia War. He's still based in Tllailand. On tlae telet,laone a little a,l,lle ago I was chatting witlt GeNeral Edwat"d "Ted" Curtis, one of Ille heads of Eastman at Rocllester, wllo figures tlle cllances of Dick Cooper being alive today stand at about a l11u1dred to one. "Coop" also was aN explorer and a writer, a11d, he was my partner and associate ;,. launchi11g Cir1erama. So, lie Played a major role i11 creating a worldwide screen revolution. For it was Cinerama tllat brought on the Wide I , .. ,·s L I cor,ld ha e been the biog ~ at,her of screen ~ ra. ~ ., n MERIAN COOPER - 4 of Ge,ieral Merian Cooper, a genius - the man who did also create King Kong . QUINCY Heavy weekend rains in the upper mid- ,,,. west led to renewed flooding today in Iowa a,rd Illinois. The st1rging waters of the Mississippi a,rd its tributaries - forcing nearly six thousand persons to • flee their homes. The flood co,aditions hittiflg worst of all - at Q.ci,rcy, llli,rois. With St. Louis - perhaps next. Farther south - a series of thunder storms; leadheg to flash flooding today i,r western Tennessee a•d northern Mississippi. CAIRO The London ref>ort that Egyt,t is plann i ng a new "super Suez Canal" Cairo calls - complete nonsense. An article in the Cairo newst,aper Al Aklibar - today attacked tlae U.S . saying that "every Arab" m11st keel> telling llimself : "America is conspiring again•I me - America is destroying my 1,ome and killing my son and my N1i/e. HARTFORD The Greater Hartford, Connecticut Chamber of Commerce is creating a so-called "downtown attractions task force;" promoting innovations such as - "fire hydrants decorated like toy soldiers - curbs and safety islands painted bright colors - and new stylish t,olice uniforms. They are saying: Bill -"' Hey, we are11f just a gas station between Boston and New York.'" SKRITNII Rear Admiral Vladimir Kruglakov of the Soviet Navy; who served as host to Britain's Princess Anne when she v is it e d I he So v i e t des troy er S k · r it n ii said: A,. n e is ",,er y beautifttl, very clever - why is she not married7t' And so loJ1g until Monday.