Here's Where It Gets Interesting - Mayhem: The 1970s You Never Knew, Episode 11

Episode Date: December 18, 2023

“You are now leaving Iranian air space!” It was a moment that dozens of hostages and their loved ones longed for with bated breath, for 444 days. Freedom. To be released, and returned home. The Iranian hostage crisis captured the attention of the world, but how did we get there? President Jimmy Carter was in Iran for a New Year’s celebration in 1978, and his infamous toast would have become a viral clip had it taken place today. Little did he know that days later, an Iranian newspaper article would set off months of cyclical rioting, protests, and ultimately the invasion of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, with 66 Americans being taken hostage. Writer, Host, and Executive Producer: Sharon McMahon Audio Producer: Jenny Snyder Writers and Researchers: Amy Watkin, Mandy Reid, and Kari Anton Production Coordinator: Andrea Champoux Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A retired American diplomat, Robert Odie, was supposed to be in Iran for just a few months on special assignment. But he had the bad luck of being in the American embassy in Tehran on November 4, 1979, when thousands of students broke through the gates and took 66 hostages. Odie kept a diary throughout the hostage crisis and his entry on November 4th reads, we were forced to put our hands above our heads and then march to the embassy residence. After arriving at the residence, I had my hands tied behind my back so tightly with nylon cord that circulation was cut off. We were not permitted to talk to our fellow hostages, and from then on, our hands were tied day and night and only

removed while we were eating or had to go to the bathroom. I'm Sharon McMahon, and here's where it gets interesting. If you listened to episode two in this series, you may remember the huge party in the desert when the Shah of Iran declared himself king of kings, had all the riff raff, which he defined as everything from bugs to poor people, removed from sight and partied with world dignitaries and 4,500 bottles of champagne. So yeah, this is the same guy we're about to talk about. And his ostentatious display angered conservative Muslims all over Iran. The Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, had pro-American positions. And as long as Iran kept supplying oil to the US, the Shah's government received support from the Americans.

Lying oil to the U.S., the Shah's government received support from the Americans. An Islamic fundamentalist movement had been gaining momentum throughout the Middle East since the 1960s, and the man who would become known as Ayatollah Khomeini was one of that movement's leaders. Khomeini studied theology and published a 1941 book called Unveiling the Mysteries, and published a 1941 book called Unveiling the Mysteries, The Orders of the Dictatorial State of Riza Shah, which he declared were valueless and all laws approved by the parliament must be burnt. Khomeini said that God has formed the Islamic Republic. Obey God and his prophet and those among you who have authority.

It is the only government accepted by God on Resurrection Day. Some students applauded the book's message, but more traditional mullahs or religious scholars were unnerved. Throughout the 1950s, Khomeini continued to speak out against the Shah and his modernization policies. In 1963, the Shah announced his plans to further modernize Iran, calling it the White Revolution because it was neither a communist or red revolution, nor an Islamist or black revolution. By the way, black flags have historically been used in uprisings, which is why he was thinking that an Islamist revolution would be a black revolution. Women gained the right to vote as well as legal rights in divorce and child custody cases.

Scholarship programs were developed for college students to study abroad and even receive a stipend from the Iranian government for living expenses. A rural literacy corps worked to eradicate illiteracy in the rural provinces, bringing teachers and materials from the cities to the far reaches of the country. And now you might be thinking that all of this sounds very expensive, and you would be correct. The Shah basically seized land all over the country and of course relied on Iran's oil money to finance the billions he was spending on these reforms and on military weapons. As you might imagine, a number of people were unhappy with this arrangement, including Khomeini. Khomeini weaponized this growing resentment in his sermons.

In June 1964, he preached to 100,000 people at a mosque in Iraq, demanding that the army depose the Shah. But when there were protests against the Shah's reforms, the Shah's secret police rounded up those involved, often jailing and torturing them. Ayatollah Khomeini was arrested, which sparked riots of students at Tehran University where they passed out more than 200,000 copies of Khomeini's statements. These were the first direct links between young people and Khomeini, who was forced into exile in Iraq on November 4, 1964. Not incidentally, the prime minister who ordered Khomeini's exile was assassinated a few weeks later by a young man carrying Khomeini's picture. From his exile in Iraq, Khomeini inspired Iranian people who were opposed to the Shah's policies of moving religious life to the proverbial back burner. burner. Because the Iranian government controlled communications within Iran, Khomeini turned to the mullahs, the religious leaders, to help him spread his message. And here's how that worked. Khomeini would call one of the mullahs in Iran. They would record his sermons, denouncing the

Shah using a tape recorder held up to the phone. Big tech. It was the 70s. That mullah would then make multiple copies of the sermon to sell so that people could still get Khomeini's message, and the cassettes also raised money for Khomeini in exile. So thousands of people heard Khomeini's messages in taxis and homes and walkmans. Imagine that system times 10 mullahs and soon you have a network that could cover half of Iran in a matter of days. But the Shah didn't know that he had already lost the public relations war. He thought he had those mullahs in his pocket. Khomeini was also training Iranian dissidents who would become the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, a paramilitary force of his true believers. But in 1977, Khomeini's son, Mustafa, died of heart failure while in police custody,

supposedly with secret police also in the room, which led to suspicion that he had been assassinated. This made Khomeini a martyr who was willing to sacrifice everything for the cause and made the feud between the Shah and Khomeini personal. And these accusations didn't come out of nowhere. Everyone, including the United States, knew that the Shah's regime had been suppressing dissent, monitoring journalists and intellectuals, and torturing and executing political prisoners. President Jimmy Carter was in Iran for a New Year celebration in 1978

and gave a toast that would become infamous. Iran, because of the great leadership of the Shah, is an island of stability in one of the more troubled areas of the world. This is a great tribute to you, Your Majesty, and to your leadership, and to the respect and the admiration and love which your people give to you. The problem was that only the wealthy people in Iran had much admiration and love for the Shah. Just a few days after Carter's toast on January 7th, 1978, an Iranian newspaper article titled Iran and Red and Black Colonization attacked Khomeini and set off a riot.

Rumors circulated that someone in the royal court had written this article at the Shah's request. Some speculated that the article was planted by Khomeini's people to launch the revolution, which would be far-fetched were it not for Khomeini's visit to a famous imam at this time. Khomeini asked the imam for his blessing on the revolution that he was going to start in Iran. The imam said that he could condone something that might involve the deaths of thousands of people. Khomeini said that he was okay with hundreds of thousands of deaths if it meant that the savior of the Shiite people was near. The January 1978 article kicked off a cycle that became known as the 40-40 cycle

in the West. Seminary students in the Iranian city of Qom rioted against the Shah and the police fired on them. The number of students killed is estimated to be at least 100. After 40 days of mourning, riots started again. More protesters were killed. 40 days later, on March 29th, the cycle repeated, this time in Tehran. This cycle of rioting and mourning repeated over and over for months. The Shah panicked and attempted to assuage protesters by lifting censorship and allowing peaceful protests despite his generals wanting to shut everything down. On August 19, 1978, arsonists set fire to a large theater outside Tehran, killing all 422 people inside. Until September 11, 2001, this was the largest terrorist attack

in the world. Khomeini blamed the Shah and thousands of people believed Khomeini. The largest protests yet were held on September 8, 1978, which became known as Black Friday. Somewhere around 100 protesters were killed, and the police were accused of firing into the crowd. But later investigations revealed that people in the crowd had fired on other protesters and then on police, causing the police to fire at them. In November 1978, President Carter sent a message to the Iranian military not to intervene against the protesters on the Shah's behalf. The U.S. government believed that letting Khomeini take over could help avoid an Iranian civil war and help maintain America's strategic interests in Iran, which was mostly oil. in Iran, which was mostly oil. The Carter administration also sent a message to Khomeini to let him know that the United States wouldn't stop him from returning to Iran. But Khomeini

said he would not return until the Shah left. So was it a coincidence that the Shah and his family happened to leave for a vacation in January 1979? Safe to say, no it wasn't. While the Shah's departure was announced as a vacation, most of the world knew that he would likely never return to Iran. His attempts to westernize and secularize Iran appeared to be backfiring in 1979, and the political and religious pressure became too much. And that's why on January 16, 1979, fearing for their lives, the Shah and his family flew out of Iran for the last time. Their first stop was Egypt. The Shah received full military honors and was personally greeted by Anwar Sadat and his wife. A military officer gave him a small wooden chest filled with earth from near the palace to carry with him so that he would always have Iran with him.

Over the next few months, the Shah and his family would travel to Morocco, the Bahamas, and Mexico, where the Shah's health started deteriorating rapidly. He had cancer. Meanwhile, back in February 1979, just weeks after the Shah escaped Iran, Ayatollah Khomeini returned and was met by supporters filling the streets. He formed a new republic and officially became the religious leader of the revolution. On Valentine's Day 1979, the American embassy in Tehran was struck by rocket-propelled grenades shot by anti-American protesters. One of the rockets went right through the wall of Ambassador William Sullivan's office. Two Iranians were killed and two U.S. Marines were injured. Ambassador Sullivan and about 100 employees were held captive for two hours before being freed by Khomeini's military forces. Sullivan was commended for getting his employees into safe

rooms within the embassy and ordering the Marines not to engage despite the heavy fire. No one took responsibility for the siege. The same day that the embassy in Tehran was attacked by rockets, the American ambassador in Kabul, Afghanistan was assassinated. Iran held a national referendum in April 1979 and found overwhelming support for an Islamic republic, Khomeini was named Iran's political and religious leader for life. Iran was the third country in the world to add the words Islamic Republic to their name. For Iran, Islamic Republic meant specific laws and judges enforcing Islamic law. Khomeini used the people's discontent with the Shah to his advantage, stirring things up into virulent anti-Americanism

as Islamic law began to be enforced around the country. Khomeini regularly referred to the U.S. as the Great Satan. And Khomeini began to codify Islamic law. He ordered women to wear full-length gowns and veils. There was to be no criticism of his rule. Khomeini described music as no different than opium and banned it from TV and radio. Through the spring and summer of 1979, the situation in Tehran became even more tenuous. The groups vying for control of what was left of the government in Iran were battling each other in the streets. And as 1979 progressed, it became clear that the student militia claiming to be loyal to Khomeini was wielding the most power.

A Canadian reporter in Tehran at the time compared it to being an on-the-ground reporter witnessing the French Revolution. You know, hundreds of people a day were losing their heads to the guillotine. By midsummer, all non-essential American embassy personnel were told to leave Iran. Embassy personnel numbers in February 1979 were around 1,400, and by October, Ambassador Sullivan had whittled the staff down to approximately 70 people. Ambassador Sullivan had warned Washington, D.C. that the unrest was getting steadily worse. He'd also shared that officials in the revolutionary government had warned about consequences if the deposed Shah were to be allowed into the United States. And yet, at nearly this exact same time, former Vice President Nelson Rockefeller and former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger got permission from President Carter to move the Shah to Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York. The U.S. government did not seem to really understand how deeply the people of Iran still resented the U.S.'s involvement in the 1953 coup that had overthrown their elected prime minister

and installed the Shah. This resentment bubbled to the surface when the Shah was allowed to stay in New York for cancer treatments. There were officials in the revolutionary government and many everyday Iranians who did not believe that the Shah actually had cancer. They thought it was just an excuse for him to go hide in the protection of the United States. So in October 1979, when the Shah was admitted to Sloan-Kettering, there was a massive outcry in Tehran. November 4th, 1979 was the one-year anniversary of one of the protests that had been part of the 40-40 cycle of demonstrations against the Shah. It was also the 15-year anniversary of the day Ayatollah Khomeini was exiled from Iran, and on that day, embassy staff members could see the street filling

with an estimated 40,000 protesters. Early in the afternoon, as the crowds grew even larger, embassy staff began shredding confidential documents, just in case. Soon, students were climbing over the embassy gate. Marines tackled the first few, but then a student on the outside was able to cut the chains, keeping the gate closed. Moments later, the doors to the embassy were forced open, and more than 100 armed students pushed their way into the building, declaring, We are part of the students following the line of the imam. You are in the nest of spies. You're part of an American imperialism and are now our prisoners. The students said they were going to hold the Americans until the Shah

was returned to Iran. 66 Americans were taken hostage in the embassy that day amidst chance of death to America. The hostage crisis dominated world news. Many of you probably remember seeing images of hostage Barry Rosen with nearly his entire face covered by a ragged white cloth accompanying reports like this one. It was another small victory for the activists who are fully backed by their country's supreme ruler, the Ayatollah Khomeini. It seems the Iranian students have the initiative. The next move is evidently up to the United States. In the first 10 days of the hostage crisis, the more moderate leaders in Iran's government resigned, leaving Khomeini with all

of the power. President Carter committed himself to getting all of the hostages safely home. He sent emissaries with a personal note saying that if hostages were injured, the U.S. would disrupt Iranian commerce. But the note carriers were not allowed entry. So the U.S. froze about $12 billion in Iranian assets. No response from Iran. Other countries and Islamic leaders got involved, and it was finally the Palestinian Liberation Organization that negotiated the release of five women as well as eight African-American hostages on November 19th and 20th. Khomeini said that the remaining 53 hostages would be released only if the Shah was extradited from America back to Iran. The Carter administration arranged to have the Shah moved from the U.S. to Panama instead. What most of the world did not know

at this point was that six Americans had escaped the embassy on November 4th, 1979 and were never taken hostage. They came to be called the Tehran Six and they were first hidden in the homes of Canadian ambassadors and officials living in Iran. CIA and Canadian intelligence joined forces to get these six Americans safely out of Iran in what came to be known as the Canadian Caper. Hundreds of Canadian embassy employees were being evacuated from the country after the siege of the American embassy, so the CIA snuck into Iran with Canadian passports and paperwork for the Tehran 6. The strategy was for the six Americans to pretend they were a film crew scouting Iranian locations for a sci-fi film called Argo. The film was never really going to be made, of course,

but they had to make it look real. So they set up an office in Hollywood, took out ads in Hollywood publications, they made fake business cards. They threw a party in LA. And you know what? It worked. Eventually, the six members of this quote-unquote film crew made it onto an early morning flight to Frankfurt, Germany, and then onto the United States. Good news for sure, but most of the American hostages were still in Tehran and the world was watching. The hostage crisis was in every newspaper and all over TV and radio. Unfortunately, listeners right now in 2023 know something about a hostage crisis and how the entire world gets involved. the entire world gets involved. Watching the news today about hostages in Gaza, we can better imagine and understand what it must have been like for the world to wait and hope for American

hostages in Iran to be released. President Carter was beside himself when it came to the hostage crisis. He was running for re-election, but refused to participate in debates until the hostages came home. And still, the hostages remained captive. Here's an excerpt from hostage Robert Odie's diary, read by history professor Peter Hahn. Big demonstration outside the embassy again today, with much shouting of slogans, everything amplified to the highest degree as usual, and also much horn tooting. About 4 45 p.m. we were told to pack up everything as we were being moved to, quote, a much much better room, unquote, and that we should be ready in 10 minutes.

Bruce and I got our things together, which meant gathering up the accumulation of the past two months that I have been in this particular room, and we then proceeded to wait. No one came for us in ten minutes, and after a couple of hours, Hamid came in and told us to take only one blanket and just the essentials for that night, also to take just two books and that everything else would be brought to us within a day or two. This meant going through everything again, as we had taken all the loose items, such as toothbrush, razor, shaving cream, our letters, photographs, etc., as well as our clothing. Hamid told us to leave most of our clothing behind, and that it too would be brought to us later. However, since I don't trust anything he told me, I packed it anyway,

and also the electronic mosquito destroyer and other miscellaneous items, as of course we were not giving any idea where we were going except that it would be to quote, a much, much better room unquote. And from the activity going on in our building, we felt that it would definitely be off the compound, although at first we were under the impression we were just moving upstairs. Then our supper was brought in and we still weren't being moved. Finally, seven hours later, approximately 1 a.m., I was told that I was to sleep in our room and that only Bruce was to be moved. I was so angry I told everyone off and was reminded that, quote, I was not polite. Also that older men should be more polite,

unquote. So it appears that I will again being punished for, quote, being impolite, unquote. And yet the Carter administration had more things to deal with than this terrible hostage crisis. The word stagflation was first coined in 1965 when British politician Ian McLeod gave a speech saying, we now have the worst of both worlds. Not just inflation on the one side or stagnation on the other, but both of them together. Stagflation means that there is slow economic growth combined with inflation and high unemployment. So in other words, both inflation and unemployment aren't comfortably high. In a bid to improve the economic situation in 1979, President Carter appointed Paul Volcker as the new chairman of the Federal Reserve.

At six foot seven inches tall, Volcker was an imposing figure, and he warned President Carter that he would be aggressive about battling inflation. On October 6, 1979, Volker became the first Federal Reserve Chair in U.S. history to hold a news conference. CBS sent a news crew there instead of covering a visit from Pope John Paul II. A CBS producer said, long after the Pope is gone, you'll remember this one. Volcker announced that instead of controlling the interest rates, the Fed would now decide how much cash would be available and the markets would determine the price. Volcker said, we mean to slay the inflationary dragon. we mean to slay the inflationary dragon. Inflation had hovered around 2% for a long time until major events like the Vietnam War and oil embargoes increased government spending. Much

like what has been happening post-pandemic, in the late 1970s, the Fed was increasing interest rates bit by bit to try to calm prices down again. Volcker announced that the Fed would now allow interest rates to increase quite a bit and keep a tighter hold on the supply of money. So the average consumer might be affected by things like higher interest rates on mortgages, credit cards, or business loans. So that same average consumer is likely to spend less, which reduces inflation, but again, also slows economic growth. Volcker's actions created a recession in 1980 and another in 1981. But by 1983, inflation was below 5%. But back in 1980, the Carter administration governed through the recession and kept at least part of its attention turned to Iran.

In February 1980, the Iranian foreign minister requested a meeting in Paris with Carter's chief of staff, Hamilton Jordan. Jordan gave a fake name and bought a plane ticket with his own money so that the trip could not be traced back to the White House. Soon, he was face-to-face with a foreign minister who offered a clear solution, saying, All you have to do is kill the Shah. I'm very serious, Mr. Jordan. The Shah is in Panama now. I am not talking about anything dramatic. Perhaps the CIA can give him an injection or do something to make it look like a natural death. Hamilton Jordan said, no, thank you, and then offered to trade himself, a high-ranking American official, for the hostages.

Khomeini thought it was actually a pretty good idea, but he didn't want the chief of staff. He wanted the U.S. president. Chief of Staff, he wanted the U.S. President. The United States again said thanks, but no thanks to that deal and instead sent in servicemen for a rescue mission called Operation Eagle Claw. The mission did not go as planned. On April 25th, 1980, President Carter made this televised announcement. hostages who've been held captive there since November 4th. Equipment failure in the rescue helicopters made it necessary to end the mission. As our team was withdrawing after my order to do so, two of our American aircraft collided on the ground following a refueling operation in a remote desert location in Iran. There was no fighting, there was no combat, but to my deep regret eight of the crewmen of the two

aircraft which collided were killed. The mission on which they were involved was a humanitarian mission. It was not directed against Iran, it was not directed against the people of Iran. It was not directed against Iran. It was not directed against the people of Iran. It was not undertaken with any feeling of hostility toward Iran or its people. It has caused no Iranian casualties. This rescue attempt had to await my judgment that the Iranian authorities could not or would not resolve this crisis on their own initiative. With the steady unraveling of authority in Iran and the mounting dangers that are opposed to the safety of the hostages themselves

and a growing realization that the early release was highly unlikely, I made a decision to commence the rescue operations plans. It was my decision to attempt the rescue operations plans. It was my decision to attempt the rescue operation. It was my decision to cancel it when problems developed in the placement of our rescue team for a future rescue operation. The responsibility is fully my own. We will seek to continue, along with other nations and with the officials of Iran, a prompt resolution of the crisis without any loss of life and through peaceful and diplomatic means. Carter's popularity dropped to 20 percent, even lower than President Nixon during the Watergate scandal. On July 11, 1980, 51-year-old hostage Richard Queen was released by Khomeini on humanitarian grounds.

Queen suffered from multiple sclerosis and had been hospitalized in Tehran for partial paralysis and balance issues. In another hospital far from Iran, a team of American doctors successfully removed the Shah's spleen. But it was too little, too late. The former Shah of Iran died on July 26, 1980. Anwar Sadat, the president of Egypt, honored him with a state funeral in Cairo as a show of personal respect. And Sadat was assassinated the following year in the middle of a military parade by an Islamic fundamentalist disguised as one of his own guards. On November 4th, 1980, exactly one year after the Americans were taken hostage in Iran, Ronald Reagan was elected as the next president of the United States.

Carter had carried only six states and won 41% of the popular vote. Carter later wrote in his memoir, defeated and would soon leave office as president because I had kept these hostages and their fate at the forefront of the world's attention and had clung to a cautious and prudent policy in order to protect their lives during the preceding 14 months. Before God and my fellow citizens, I wanted to exert every ounce of my strength and ability during these last few days to achieve their liberation. And by January 1981, Carter's administration was finally making progress on freeing the hostages. A few things were working in their favor. Iran had gone to war with Iraq. The U.S. had freed millions of dollars in Iranian assets after

Carter's staff spent hours and days on phone calls to banks around the world. Algeria agreed to act as intermediary because Ayatollah Khomeini's government refused to communicate directly with President Carter or any other American. Negotiations were a complicated web of languages as the Iranians spoke Persian, the Algerians spoke French, and the Americans spoke English. On January 20th, 1981, the last 52 American hostages were finally released after being held captive for 444 days. But another quite significant event occurred on January 20th, 1981. Ronald Reagan was inaugurated. Negotiations with Iran had been through so many delays,

and yet Carter's administration knew they were very close to making a deal. So close, in fact, that historians record that on January 19th, President Carter, quote, told Secretary of State Warren Christopher to warn the Algerians that the Carter presidency would end the next day at noon. After that, he said, neither Christopher nor I could speak for the United States and the entire negotiating process might have to begin anew. negotiating process might have to begin anew. It was 8.04 a.m. on January 20th when the White House got the final word that an agreement had been reached and all of the details were ironed out. Yet President Carter waited in the Oval Office for confirmation that the hostages had left Tehran. The First Lady Rosalind brought in a razor and a barber to make Carter presentable for the inauguration, which he insisted on attending despite some of his staff questioning

whether it was the smart move. It was 12.33 p.m. when the plane carrying the hostages left the ground in Tehran. Many suspected that Khomeini deliberately waited until after Reagan's inauguration speech was over to technically free the hostages as one final insult to Carter. Just this year, in fact, articles in the New York Times and elsewhere have looked into the claims of Texas politician Ben Barnes, who says that in 1980, he traveled with politician John Connolly Jr. to various Middle Eastern capital cities, asking them to deliver this message to Iran. Don't release the hostages before the election. Mr. Reagan will win and give you a better deal. There's proof of these travels, by the way, but no proof that sabotaging Carter was the intent.

Ray Sinclair, an Australian journalist who was in Tehran to see the hostages released, described the hostages as having blank faces and eyes that are glazed, saying he was, quote, quite sure they haven't realized yet that they are free. 444 days, two Thanksgivings, two Christmases. For over a year, nearly 15 months, these 52 people had been locked in Tehran, not knowing when or even if they would ever be free. Hostage Robert Odie wrote the following entry in his diary as they flew to Germany to meet former President Carter and finally, finally board a plane bound for home. He said,

the voice came over the plane speaker, You are now leaving Iranian airspace. What a cheer went up from the American hostages on the plane. This was the moment for which we had waited 444 days. Now we knew we were really free. It's hard to follow up that dramatic ending, but you may be wondering what else was going on in 1979, so here you go. On March 28th, the worst nuclear power plant accident in U.S. history occurred at Three Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania. It was declared a failure of

equipment combined with operator error, which fortunately resulted in no deaths or injuries. Unfortunately, we can't say the same about air travel. One of the deadliest aviation accidents in U.S. history happened on May 25th, when one of the engines of American Airlines Flight 191 detached from the wing, causing a crash at Chicago's O'Hare Airport that killed 273 people. A total solar eclipse was visible from some of the lower 48 states. On February 26th, the next solar eclipse viewable from those states did not occur until 2017. And finally, the McDonald's Happy Meal was introduced in 1979. It was a circus wagon theme and contained a hamburger or cheeseburger, fries, cookie, and a soft drink. None of your stinking apple slices and milk for these 1970s babies.

The special prize in each Happy Meal box was either a McDoodler stencil, a McWrist wallet, an ID bracelet, a puzzle lock, a spinning top, or a McDonaldland character eraser. The cost was $1.15. join us again for our final episode in this series where we will wrap up the 1970s by talking about a disaster you may have never heard of Ronald Reagan's campaign for president and believe it or not the first time this country hears make America great again in a political context. I'll see you again soon. The show is written and researched by Sharon McMahon, Amy Watkin, Mandy Reed, and Kari Anton. Our audio producer is Jenny Snyder, and it is executive produced and hosted by me, Sharon McMahon. If you enjoyed today's episode, we would love for you to hit the subscribe button, leave us a review, or share this episode on your favorite social media platform. Sharon McMahon. If you enjoyed today's episode, we would love for you to hit the subscribe button,

leave us a review, or share this episode on your favorite social media platform. All of those things help podcasters out so much. We'll see you again soon.