Ref: jk00ap15.doc

 

Questions for Jack Keefe: follow up interview 15 April 2000

 

1.         AK:   You have read considerably about the Civil War and Abraham Lincoln.

·        What is it that most concerned or impressed you about that conflict?

·        Specifically about the common families involved?

·        The leadership and questions?

 

2.         You have lived through World War Two and the period after and shared a number of stories illustrative of your family and friends life and times during that period.

You also made repeated attempts to volunteer for active duty and shared your letters etc.

·        Would you care to compare any experience at that time to what you might imagine a young man in New York might have gone though at the time of the Civil War?

 

3.         You were fairly active politically after the WWII, having worked on Adlai Stevenson's Campaign in 1952, Gov. Nelson Rockefeller's Presidential attempt in 1964 and later in Senator Javits Campaign in 1968.

·        Would you like to discuss some of the thinking that led up to a decision to pursue the War in Vietnam and the initial support the policies had across the main political spectrum.

·        You had two sons who served in the Armed forces, and one who served in Vietnam. What was that experience like for you.

·        You had one son who did not choose to serve in the armed forces in part because of the Vietnam Conflict. What was that experience like for you?

·        Did you have mixed feelings concerning his student "activist" activities during that time?

·        The Sports Illustrative Article of 23 March 1987, mentioned that two of the nine children served in the armed forces during the Vietnam War but that the decision of the second son not to serve kept father and son apart for ten years. It also mentioned "that they had reconciled. How true do you think the statement was?

 

4.         In many of your Stories, you seem to find and remember the humorous side.  Do you want to discus why?

·        What have you noticed about people's response to stories?

·        What is your view of history and how does it intersect with people stories?

·        Is there anything you would like to say to those who might be listening to all or a part of these tapes in the years ahead?

 

5.         Do you have any reservations about how these tapes or transcripts from them might be used in the years ahead?