1
00:00:01,603 --> 00:00:03,736
Just about any kid
in America could tell you

2
00:00:03,738 --> 00:00:06,339
that's where the president
of the United States lives.

3
00:00:06,341 --> 00:00:09,408
But the real story
of the White House is bigger,

4
00:00:09,410 --> 00:00:11,077
with secrets going deeper...

5
00:00:11,079 --> 00:00:12,411
That's cool.

6
00:00:12,413 --> 00:00:13,946
...than we ever
thought possible...

7
00:00:13,948 --> 00:00:15,747
This looks like
a king lives here.

8
00:00:15,749 --> 00:00:17,216
from little-known facts...

9
00:00:17,218 --> 00:00:19,552
You can see what appears
to be a tunnel

10
00:00:19,554 --> 00:00:22,355
being built deep
beneath the White House.

11
00:00:22,357 --> 00:00:24,022
...to long-held myths.

12
00:00:24,024 --> 00:00:26,958
And check it out --
no red phone.

13
00:00:26,960 --> 00:00:29,962
I'm chasing this
incredible evolution...

14
00:00:29,964 --> 00:00:31,564
Shift. Go.

15
00:00:31,566 --> 00:00:33,231
...from simple stone house...

16
00:00:33,233 --> 00:00:35,233
That just, like,
sends rock everywhere.

17
00:00:35,235 --> 00:00:37,503
...to the world's
most important address --

18
00:00:37,505 --> 00:00:41,573
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

19
00:00:41,575 --> 00:00:43,108
I'm Don Wildman.

20
00:00:43,110 --> 00:00:46,311
I've explored
the world's greatest mysteries,

21
00:00:46,313 --> 00:00:48,781
examined rare artifacts
and epic monuments.

22
00:00:48,783 --> 00:00:50,249
That's amazing.

23
00:00:50,251 --> 00:00:51,651
Now, I'm digging deeper

24
00:00:51,653 --> 00:00:55,388
into some of the most perplexing
and famous cases in history.

25
00:00:55,390 --> 00:00:58,858
My goal --
to get closer to the truth.

26
00:00:58,860 --> 00:01:01,327
It's a totally alien
environment down there.

27
00:01:01,329 --> 00:01:06,465
This is "Mysteries
at the Museum: The White House."

28
00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:14,074
Watch Online Movies and Series for FREE
www.osdb.link/lm

29
00:01:15,543 --> 00:01:18,544
I'm going through
a familiar preflight ritual.

30
00:01:18,546 --> 00:01:20,613
Turn around, please.

31
00:01:20,615 --> 00:01:23,281
But this is no ordinary trip.

32
00:01:23,283 --> 00:01:24,617
We have a special agent
from the Secret Service.

33
00:01:24,619 --> 00:01:26,151
He'll be flying
with you today.

34
00:01:26,153 --> 00:01:27,486
-How are you doin'?
-Good, Don.

35
00:01:27,488 --> 00:01:28,821
-How are you?
-I'm good, thanks.

36
00:01:28,823 --> 00:01:31,324
All right.
Following you.

37
00:01:34,495 --> 00:01:36,362
I'm flying over
the White House.

38
00:01:40,034 --> 00:01:41,299
To book this flight,

39
00:01:41,301 --> 00:01:44,503
I needed clearance
from three federal agencies

40
00:01:44,505 --> 00:01:46,639
and a background check.

41
00:01:46,641 --> 00:01:50,443
And, yes, the Secret Service
is along for the ride.

42
00:01:50,445 --> 00:01:52,211
Whoo.
Here we go.

43
00:01:54,181 --> 00:01:56,582
Washington, D.C.,
has been the capital

44
00:01:56,584 --> 00:01:59,452
of the United States since 1790.

45
00:01:59,454 --> 00:02:02,121
And for much of its history,
the skies above the city

46
00:02:02,123 --> 00:02:06,125
buzzed with airplanes
and helicopters.

47
00:02:06,127 --> 00:02:09,995
That all changed
on September 11th, 2001,

48
00:02:09,997 --> 00:02:13,466
when Al-Qaeda terrorists
hijacked four jetliners

49
00:02:13,468 --> 00:02:15,600
and hurled them
at the Twin Towers

50
00:02:15,602 --> 00:02:17,470
and the Pentagon.

51
00:02:17,472 --> 00:02:22,208
The last plane might have been
meant for the White House.

52
00:02:22,210 --> 00:02:23,376
In the aftermath,

53
00:02:23,378 --> 00:02:26,612
the government shut down
the skies over Washington.

54
00:02:26,614 --> 00:02:30,549
Today, it's a no-fly zone
10 miles wide.

55
00:02:30,551 --> 00:02:34,553
Chopper flights like this
come along once in a lifetime.

56
00:02:34,555 --> 00:02:37,089
And so does the chance
to get a big-picture look

57
00:02:37,091 --> 00:02:39,692
at our nation's
most famous front yard.

58
00:02:39,694 --> 00:02:44,230
Wow. You don't get
this view every day, do you?

59
00:02:44,232 --> 00:02:47,099
We are in front of
the most protected chunks

60
00:02:47,101 --> 00:02:51,103
of air space in the country,
let alone the world.

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00:02:51,105 --> 00:02:53,472
There she is,
the White House.

62
00:02:58,913 --> 00:03:01,246
Just beautiful.
This is amazing.

63
00:03:01,248 --> 00:03:03,115
What a privilege
to get this close in

64
00:03:03,117 --> 00:03:07,119
and see the whole design
of the Mall right before you.

65
00:03:07,121 --> 00:03:09,387
You can see all the monuments --

66
00:03:09,389 --> 00:03:11,457
Washington, Lincoln Memorial.

67
00:03:11,459 --> 00:03:14,927
The Capitol to my left there.

68
00:03:14,929 --> 00:03:18,130
And there's nothing
moving in the sky.

69
00:03:18,132 --> 00:03:20,599
I mean, in any other
major metropolis --

70
00:03:20,601 --> 00:03:23,602
New York, L.A. --
you'd see air traffic teeming,

71
00:03:23,604 --> 00:03:24,937
helicopters and so forth.

72
00:03:24,939 --> 00:03:29,875
This just points out
how secure this city has to be.

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00:03:29,877 --> 00:03:32,678
The Washington flight-restricted
zone is surrounded

74
00:03:32,680 --> 00:03:35,414
by a sophisticated
laser warning system.

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00:03:35,416 --> 00:03:37,883
If a pilot ignores the warnings,

76
00:03:37,885 --> 00:03:42,021
a fighter jet will escort them
to the nearest runway.

77
00:03:42,023 --> 00:03:44,156
And that's if everything
goes well.

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00:03:48,362 --> 00:03:50,629
I mean, that is what
it's all about,

79
00:03:50,631 --> 00:03:53,232
protecting the White House,

80
00:03:53,234 --> 00:03:55,033
the executive branch
of the government,

81
00:03:55,035 --> 00:03:57,169
the president.

82
00:03:57,171 --> 00:03:58,571
And it looks kind
of vulnerable there.

83
00:03:58,573 --> 00:04:03,843
And that's why it needs
to be so secure out here.

84
00:04:03,845 --> 00:04:07,246
It's really an amazing impact
on me as an American

85
00:04:07,248 --> 00:04:09,882
to feel a part of this.

86
00:04:09,884 --> 00:04:14,052
Of course, the flight-restricted
zone is a recent addition

87
00:04:14,054 --> 00:04:16,922
and just one of the ways
the White House adapts

88
00:04:16,924 --> 00:04:20,126
to the ever-changing
needs of the presidency.

89
00:04:20,128 --> 00:04:23,596
This constant evolution
is what keeps the White House

90
00:04:23,598 --> 00:04:26,766
rooted at the center
of our American story.

91
00:04:30,137 --> 00:04:33,071
It was here, in a great
map-covered office,

92
00:04:33,073 --> 00:04:35,407
now used
as the State Dining Room,

93
00:04:35,409 --> 00:04:37,009
that Thomas Jefferson planned

94
00:04:37,011 --> 00:04:40,012
the Lewis and Clark
Expedition in 1802.

95
00:04:42,082 --> 00:04:43,349
60 years later,

96
00:04:43,351 --> 00:04:46,218
the president's office
was upstairs.

97
00:04:46,220 --> 00:04:48,220
Abraham Lincoln tracked
army movements

98
00:04:48,222 --> 00:04:49,488
during the Civil War

99
00:04:49,490 --> 00:04:52,958
with telegraphed
dispatches from the front.

100
00:04:52,960 --> 00:04:55,493
During the Great Depression,
the Oval Office

101
00:04:55,495 --> 00:04:57,896
was connected to every
living room in America

102
00:04:57,898 --> 00:05:00,232
as Franklin Roosevelt
harnessed the air waves

103
00:05:00,234 --> 00:05:03,969
to reassure
a troubled nation.

104
00:05:03,971 --> 00:05:06,171
And in the years after 9/11,

105
00:05:06,173 --> 00:05:09,441
the president was once again
connected to the front lines,

106
00:05:09,443 --> 00:05:11,710
but this time
from the state-of-the-art

107
00:05:11,712 --> 00:05:14,380
Situation Room
under the West Wing.

108
00:05:14,382 --> 00:05:16,915
Here, Barack Obama
watched over the raid

109
00:05:16,917 --> 00:05:19,251
to take down Osama bin Laden.

110
00:05:22,924 --> 00:05:25,123
But for every line
of history written

111
00:05:25,125 --> 00:05:26,458
within these walls,

112
00:05:26,460 --> 00:05:30,596
there are nearly as many myths
and misconceptions.

113
00:05:30,598 --> 00:05:35,267
For example, George Washington
never lived at the White House

114
00:05:35,269 --> 00:05:39,271
because the new capital city
was still under construction.

115
00:05:39,273 --> 00:05:42,607
Abraham Lincoln never slept
in the Lincoln Bedroom.

116
00:05:42,609 --> 00:05:45,210
He used the room as his office.

117
00:05:45,212 --> 00:05:47,812
And Kennedy never spoke
with Khrushchev

118
00:05:47,814 --> 00:05:50,415
on the famous
Oval Office red phone

119
00:05:50,417 --> 00:05:53,952
because the red phone
never existed.

120
00:05:53,954 --> 00:05:55,888
The White House
has been the home

121
00:05:55,890 --> 00:05:58,423
of the president
of the United States since 1800.

122
00:05:58,425 --> 00:06:01,760
But it's easy to forget just
how old this building really is.

123
00:06:01,762 --> 00:06:03,429
When the first
president moved in,

124
00:06:03,431 --> 00:06:06,231
the only bathroom
was a wooden outhouse

125
00:06:06,233 --> 00:06:08,366
right there on the South Lawn.

126
00:06:08,368 --> 00:06:10,769
So how did
a two-century-old building

127
00:06:10,771 --> 00:06:13,038
with no running water
become the nerve center

128
00:06:13,040 --> 00:06:15,240
of the most powerful
nation on Earth?

129
00:06:15,242 --> 00:06:18,344
To find out, I'm going all
the way back to the beginning.

130
00:06:23,384 --> 00:06:26,918
My trip back in time has led me
to an out-of-the-way corner

131
00:06:26,920 --> 00:06:28,654
of Stafford County, Virginia,

132
00:06:28,656 --> 00:06:31,256
40 miles downriver
from Washington.

133
00:06:33,928 --> 00:06:36,729
This is Government Island
on the Aquia Creek.

134
00:06:36,731 --> 00:06:37,996
If you're looking
for the birthplace

135
00:06:37,998 --> 00:06:39,197
of the White House,

136
00:06:39,199 --> 00:06:41,133
this is as close
as you're gonna get.

137
00:06:41,135 --> 00:06:45,804
In 1792, this whole island
was a stone quarry.

138
00:06:45,806 --> 00:06:48,940
The government bought it
and ran it for one reason.

139
00:06:48,942 --> 00:06:51,143
This is Aquia sandstone.

140
00:06:51,145 --> 00:06:54,547
This is the stone
that built the White House.

141
00:06:54,549 --> 00:06:58,283
President Washington required
that the new federal buildings

142
00:06:58,285 --> 00:07:00,619
in the capital
be made out of stone.

143
00:07:00,621 --> 00:07:03,088
The White House
was designed to last.

144
00:07:03,090 --> 00:07:04,690
Look at this.

145
00:07:04,692 --> 00:07:07,626
These are all
quarriers' pick marks

146
00:07:07,628 --> 00:07:10,095
from 200 years ago, okay?

147
00:07:10,097 --> 00:07:13,832
The quarriers were the lowest
skilled laborers on the island.

148
00:07:13,834 --> 00:07:15,367
Many of them were slaves.

149
00:07:15,369 --> 00:07:18,470
These slaves
toiled away cutting stone

150
00:07:18,472 --> 00:07:21,506
that was used on
the president's house.

151
00:07:21,508 --> 00:07:22,708
Hey, Rick.

152
00:07:22,710 --> 00:07:25,444
I've invited local historian
Rick MacGregor

153
00:07:25,446 --> 00:07:29,114
to meet me here on the island
to get a better understanding

154
00:07:29,116 --> 00:07:32,651
of what it was like to be
an 18th-century quarrier.

155
00:07:32,653 --> 00:07:34,987
Are these real
or replica?

156
00:07:34,989 --> 00:07:37,523
That's an original pick that
was found here in this quarry.

157
00:07:37,525 --> 00:07:39,525
-Really?
-Yes. It's about 200 years old,

158
00:07:39,527 --> 00:07:41,593
-handmade by a blacksmith.
-Wow!

159
00:07:41,595 --> 00:07:44,195
And that's a wedge,
handmade also.

160
00:07:44,197 --> 00:07:46,331
Basically,
with these few tools,

161
00:07:46,333 --> 00:07:49,801
very simple tools,
this stone was cut, yeah?

162
00:07:49,803 --> 00:07:51,069
Yes. Yeah.

163
00:07:51,071 --> 00:07:52,404
I'd love to get
a feel for this.

164
00:07:52,406 --> 00:07:53,706
-Absolutely.
-Cool.

165
00:07:56,077 --> 00:07:58,677
I want to be clear --
This is a practice stone

166
00:07:58,679 --> 00:08:00,145
that Rick brought for me

167
00:08:00,147 --> 00:08:03,415
because the whole island
is a historic site.

168
00:08:03,417 --> 00:08:04,816
All right.

169
00:08:04,818 --> 00:08:06,285
Ooh, man.

170
00:08:06,287 --> 00:08:08,954
It just, like,
sends rock everywhere.

171
00:08:08,956 --> 00:08:11,289
Can you imagine doing
this day in, day out?

172
00:08:11,291 --> 00:08:13,358
[ Grunts ]

173
00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:15,360
Sun up, sun down?

174
00:08:15,362 --> 00:08:18,163
And, you know,
this place was, like, hopping

175
00:08:18,165 --> 00:08:20,332
because stone
was in real demand.

176
00:08:20,334 --> 00:08:24,069
So you had all these guys
working like crazy

177
00:08:24,071 --> 00:08:27,639
trying to get the rock
to build the president's house.

178
00:08:27,641 --> 00:08:29,440
Okay.

179
00:08:29,442 --> 00:08:31,376
Okay.
Well, I've had enough.

180
00:08:31,378 --> 00:08:34,046
Thank God for
the Industrial Revolution, huh?

181
00:08:34,048 --> 00:08:35,981
-Thank you.
-All right.

182
00:08:35,983 --> 00:08:40,285
WILDMAN: Quarrying the stone
was only the first step.

183
00:08:40,287 --> 00:08:43,922
It took eight more years
to build the White House.

184
00:08:43,924 --> 00:08:47,926
George Washington personally
guided the process.

185
00:08:47,928 --> 00:08:50,729
But it was our second
president, John Adams,

186
00:08:50,731 --> 00:08:53,998
who would finally move in
in 1800.

187
00:08:54,000 --> 00:08:57,402
Some rooms were
still unfinished.

188
00:08:57,404 --> 00:09:02,741
And only a few years later,
during the war of 1812,

189
00:09:02,743 --> 00:09:05,277
the British army
invaded the capital

190
00:09:05,279 --> 00:09:08,080
and burned the White House down.

191
00:09:08,082 --> 00:09:10,616
But America rebuilt it.

192
00:09:10,618 --> 00:09:15,487
And the White House has been
home to every president since.

193
00:09:15,489 --> 00:09:16,955
Abraham Lincoln's White House

194
00:09:16,957 --> 00:09:21,760
in 1865 looked a lot
like Andrew Jackson's in 1835.

195
00:09:21,762 --> 00:09:24,362
The Civil War was
in its fifth brutal year.

196
00:09:24,364 --> 00:09:27,966
But Lincoln continued his
open-door policy at the house.

197
00:09:27,968 --> 00:09:31,169
In those days, anyone could walk
right in off the street,

198
00:09:31,171 --> 00:09:32,570
enter that door right there

199
00:09:32,572 --> 00:09:34,839
and request a meeting
with the President.

200
00:09:34,841 --> 00:09:38,644
Lincoln's advisors pleaded
with him to limit his exposure.

201
00:09:38,646 --> 00:09:40,579
It was well known that there
were Confederate spies

202
00:09:40,581 --> 00:09:41,980
right here in the capital.

203
00:09:41,982 --> 00:09:46,718
But Lincoln refused to cut
himself off from the people.

204
00:09:46,720 --> 00:09:49,655
On April 14th, 1865,

205
00:09:49,657 --> 00:09:52,791
five days after
the Confederacy surrendered,

206
00:09:52,793 --> 00:09:55,793
John Wilkes Booth snuck
into the president's box

207
00:09:55,795 --> 00:09:58,329
at Ford's Theatre

208
00:09:58,331 --> 00:10:01,733
and shot Abraham Lincoln
at point-blank range.

209
00:10:01,735 --> 00:10:03,935
[ Gunshot ]

210
00:10:03,937 --> 00:10:08,006
Lincoln died at 7:22
the next morning.

211
00:10:08,008 --> 00:10:09,941
The nation was stunned.

212
00:10:09,943 --> 00:10:11,276
It was the first time

213
00:10:11,278 --> 00:10:15,280
an assassin had brought down
an American president.

214
00:10:15,282 --> 00:10:17,950
The legislation creating
the Secret Service

215
00:10:17,952 --> 00:10:21,887
was on Abraham Lincoln's desk
the night he was assassinated.

216
00:10:21,889 --> 00:10:24,289
Then two more presidents
were killed in office --

217
00:10:24,291 --> 00:10:26,357
James Garfield
and William McKinley.

218
00:10:26,359 --> 00:10:31,029
So in 1901, Congress finally
charged the Secret Service

219
00:10:31,031 --> 00:10:34,566
with the duty
of protecting the president.

220
00:10:34,568 --> 00:10:36,835
Today, the Secret Service
has hardened

221
00:10:36,837 --> 00:10:39,237
the White House into a fortress.

222
00:10:39,239 --> 00:10:42,440
But a modern president
is always on the move.

223
00:10:42,442 --> 00:10:44,710
So what happens when
the president ventures

224
00:10:44,712 --> 00:10:46,178
beyond the Beltway?

225
00:10:46,180 --> 00:10:49,047
And more importantly,
how does the Secret Service

226
00:10:49,049 --> 00:10:50,849
get him safely back home...

227
00:10:50,851 --> 00:10:56,588
Turn.

228
00:10:59,126 --> 00:11:01,660
WILDMAN: I'm tracking the ways
the White House adapts

229
00:11:01,662 --> 00:11:03,795
to the president's needs.

230
00:11:03,797 --> 00:11:05,597
After the Lincoln assassination,

231
00:11:05,599 --> 00:11:08,800
the nation clamored
for better security.

232
00:11:08,802 --> 00:11:10,935
Today, the president
is surrounded

233
00:11:10,937 --> 00:11:13,205
by multiple layers
of protection,

234
00:11:13,207 --> 00:11:16,341
courtesy of the United States
Secret Service.

235
00:11:18,345 --> 00:11:20,812
But how exactly
do they do it?

236
00:11:20,814 --> 00:11:23,748
I'm going deep inside
their secure training grounds

237
00:11:23,750 --> 00:11:25,616
to find out.

238
00:11:25,618 --> 00:11:28,486
The Secret Service protects
the president 24/7

239
00:11:28,488 --> 00:11:30,022
wherever he goes.

240
00:11:30,024 --> 00:11:31,756
Now, it's one thing
when he stays inside

241
00:11:31,758 --> 00:11:33,025
the White House security bubble.

242
00:11:33,027 --> 00:11:34,760
But when he ventures outside,

243
00:11:34,762 --> 00:11:36,562
these guys gotta be
ready for anything.

244
00:11:39,366 --> 00:11:42,167
The Secret Service
compound features

245
00:11:42,169 --> 00:11:44,570
full-size mock-ups of Marine One

246
00:11:44,572 --> 00:11:47,906
and the forward fuselage
of Air Force One.

247
00:11:47,908 --> 00:11:49,975
There's also an urban street

248
00:11:49,977 --> 00:11:52,177
for practicing
presidential movements.

249
00:11:52,179 --> 00:11:53,979
It's the Secret Service's job

250
00:11:53,981 --> 00:11:56,581
to get the president
wherever he needs to go

251
00:11:56,583 --> 00:11:59,718
and then bring him back
to the White House safely.

252
00:11:59,720 --> 00:12:02,186
On top of everything else,
these men and women

253
00:12:02,188 --> 00:12:04,323
have to be masters
behind the wheel.

254
00:12:04,325 --> 00:12:07,726
Now I can't show you who
these Secret Service agents are.

255
00:12:07,728 --> 00:12:08,994
But they've agreed
to demonstrate

256
00:12:08,996 --> 00:12:10,996
a little of what they can do.

257
00:12:14,200 --> 00:12:15,400
Whoo, man.

258
00:12:15,402 --> 00:12:18,136
Rule number one for
the presidential motorcade

259
00:12:18,138 --> 00:12:19,137
is to keep moving.

260
00:12:19,139 --> 00:12:20,138
Wow!

261
00:12:20,140 --> 00:12:21,740
That's how fast they're going.

262
00:12:21,742 --> 00:12:22,674
That's amazing.

263
00:12:22,676 --> 00:12:25,477
A sitting car is an easy target.

264
00:12:25,479 --> 00:12:28,680
Okay, so this is a critical
situation they train for.

265
00:12:28,682 --> 00:12:31,083
Now, imagine they're
on a tight, narrow passageway.

266
00:12:31,085 --> 00:12:32,617
They've just been blocked
at the end of an alley.

267
00:12:32,619 --> 00:12:34,152
They got to get out there.

268
00:12:34,154 --> 00:12:36,754
And they reverse.

269
00:12:36,756 --> 00:12:39,157
And without stopping,
whoo, there you go.

270
00:12:39,159 --> 00:12:41,292
Wow.
That's called a J-turn.

271
00:12:41,294 --> 00:12:44,096
That is reversing in a tight
alleyway without stopping.

272
00:12:44,098 --> 00:12:46,765
And they are gone!

273
00:12:46,767 --> 00:12:49,300
Wow.

274
00:12:49,302 --> 00:12:52,370
But how hard is it
to master skills like that?

275
00:12:52,372 --> 00:12:54,106
I intend to find out.

276
00:12:54,108 --> 00:12:55,907
You have to be
in the Secret Service

277
00:12:55,909 --> 00:12:58,443
to actually use
their training facility.

278
00:12:58,445 --> 00:13:00,778
So I found the next-best thing.

279
00:13:00,780 --> 00:13:03,382
Summit Point Motorsports Park

280
00:13:03,384 --> 00:13:07,051
is home to the BSR
Tactical Driving School.

281
00:13:07,053 --> 00:13:09,721
This is where federal officials
and security professionals

282
00:13:09,723 --> 00:13:12,657
hone their chops
behind the wheel.

283
00:13:12,659 --> 00:13:15,127
Today, I'm meeting
instructor Guy Frank

284
00:13:15,129 --> 00:13:16,527
for some driver's ed...

285
00:13:16,529 --> 00:13:18,262
-How you doing?
-Very well, Don.

286
00:13:18,264 --> 00:13:19,331
Good morning
and welcome.

287
00:13:19,333 --> 00:13:20,999
...Secret Service-style.

288
00:13:21,001 --> 00:13:24,802
So I saw the Secret Service
demonstrate how to escape

289
00:13:24,804 --> 00:13:27,138
from an ambush situation,
tactical driving,

290
00:13:27,140 --> 00:13:28,874
-the J-turn, right?
-Yes.

291
00:13:28,876 --> 00:13:30,274
We know the J-turn
very well here.

292
00:13:30,276 --> 00:13:32,143
It's the cornerstone
of evasive driving.

293
00:13:32,145 --> 00:13:34,146
Can a guy like me
learn how to do this?

294
00:13:34,148 --> 00:13:35,314
Absolutely.

295
00:13:36,683 --> 00:13:38,350
Show me how this works.

296
00:13:38,352 --> 00:13:39,751
-Give me a J-turn.
-All right.

297
00:13:39,753 --> 00:13:42,287
So three things to remember --
lift, turn, and shift.

298
00:13:42,289 --> 00:13:43,822
Yikes.
Man, he just went into it.

299
00:13:43,824 --> 00:13:45,757
-So here we go.
-All right.

300
00:13:45,759 --> 00:13:47,292
Here's our lift...

301
00:13:47,294 --> 00:13:48,026
turn...

302
00:13:48,028 --> 00:13:51,229
Whoa! Whoo!

303
00:13:51,231 --> 00:13:52,898
Oh, boy!

304
00:13:52,900 --> 00:13:55,500
Man, that was intense.

305
00:13:55,502 --> 00:13:58,770
How do you keep
that straight, literally?

306
00:13:58,772 --> 00:13:59,638
Practice.

307
00:13:59,640 --> 00:14:02,907
Man, that is wild.

308
00:14:02,909 --> 00:14:05,510
Guy pulls off
a full-speed J-turn

309
00:14:05,512 --> 00:14:07,579
as smoothly as a stunt man.

310
00:14:09,917 --> 00:14:13,184
And it looks like a move
straight out of Hollywood.

311
00:14:13,186 --> 00:14:15,320
These sort of maneuvers
could be critical

312
00:14:15,322 --> 00:14:17,456
for getting the president
out of danger

313
00:14:17,458 --> 00:14:19,391
and back to the safety
of the White House.

314
00:14:19,393 --> 00:14:21,326
-Are you ready?
-Can I give this a shot?

315
00:14:21,328 --> 00:14:22,561
Absolutely.

316
00:14:25,866 --> 00:14:27,799
I didn't think I'd be
so nervous about this,

317
00:14:27,801 --> 00:14:29,067
but I am.

318
00:14:29,069 --> 00:14:31,469
Guy talks me through
the three steps

319
00:14:31,471 --> 00:14:34,005
of a J-turn --
lift off the gas,

320
00:14:34,007 --> 00:14:36,475
turn the wheel hard,
shift into drive.

321
00:14:36,477 --> 00:14:37,609
Here we go.

322
00:14:37,611 --> 00:14:39,878
So it's in reverse,
attack, back away.

323
00:14:39,880 --> 00:14:41,613
All right, let's do this.
You can do this.

324
00:14:41,615 --> 00:14:43,081
Let's go
when you're ready, Don.

325
00:14:43,083 --> 00:14:44,549
WILDMAN: All right.

326
00:14:44,551 --> 00:14:46,017
Keep backing.
Keep backing.

327
00:14:46,019 --> 00:14:47,419
Keep backing.
Keep backing.

328
00:14:47,421 --> 00:14:48,887
Keep backing.
Keep backing.

329
00:14:48,889 --> 00:14:49,754
Lift.

330
00:14:49,756 --> 00:14:53,024
Turn.

331
00:14:53,026 --> 00:14:55,494
Cut.

332
00:14:55,496 --> 00:14:56,762
Turn us around.
Let's go back, try it again.

333
00:14:56,764 --> 00:14:59,297
Oh, boy.
Failure.

334
00:15:02,035 --> 00:15:03,301
Okay.
What happened?

335
00:15:03,303 --> 00:15:05,503
Okay, as soon as you
become uncomfortable

336
00:15:05,505 --> 00:15:06,972
you went
to the comfort pedal.

337
00:15:06,974 --> 00:15:07,973
Everybody comfort
pedal's what?

338
00:15:07,975 --> 00:15:09,341
-The brake pedal.
-The brake.

339
00:15:09,343 --> 00:15:11,976
You try to do what's normal,
but it's not normal driving.

340
00:15:11,978 --> 00:15:13,044
I mean, that's the thing.

341
00:15:13,046 --> 00:15:14,045
You're just trying
to do something

342
00:15:14,047 --> 00:15:15,947
completely
counterintuitive.

343
00:15:18,651 --> 00:15:20,385
-Okay.
-All right.

344
00:15:20,387 --> 00:15:21,752
-Back us up.
-I'm ready.

345
00:15:21,754 --> 00:15:23,989
Here we go.
Keep backing.

346
00:15:23,991 --> 00:15:25,723
Keep backing.
Lift.

347
00:15:25,725 --> 00:15:26,992
Turn.

348
00:15:26,994 --> 00:15:28,860
Shift.

349
00:15:28,862 --> 00:15:31,730
Oh, I braked.
I braked.

350
00:15:31,732 --> 00:15:33,598
[ Chuckles ]

351
00:15:33,600 --> 00:15:36,568
I'll tell you, the scary part
is going backwards as fast.

352
00:15:38,672 --> 00:15:40,739
All right, here we go again.
Oh, boy.

353
00:15:40,741 --> 00:15:42,807
It's the most terrifying
thing I've ever done.

354
00:15:42,809 --> 00:15:43,942
No brake this time.

355
00:15:43,944 --> 00:15:46,944
I'm going right
to shift and gas.

356
00:15:46,946 --> 00:15:48,346
You got it.

357
00:15:48,348 --> 00:15:51,082
Whoo.
Okay.

358
00:15:51,084 --> 00:15:52,951
All right, attack.
Back away.

359
00:15:55,822 --> 00:15:58,289
Keep backing.
Keep backing.

360
00:15:58,291 --> 00:16:00,358
Lift.
Turn.

361
00:16:00,360 --> 00:16:01,159
Shift.

362
00:16:01,161 --> 00:16:02,360
Go.

363
00:16:02,362 --> 00:16:03,895
No bonus points for turning
on the wipers, Don.

364
00:16:03,897 --> 00:16:05,630
-Nice job!
-Whoo!

365
00:16:05,632 --> 00:16:07,365
Yeah!
Oh, my God.

366
00:16:07,367 --> 00:16:10,235
It's a very successful feeling.
Thank you so much.

367
00:16:10,237 --> 00:16:12,270
Secret Service,
here I come.

368
00:16:14,508 --> 00:16:15,841
[ Horn honks ]

369
00:16:17,244 --> 00:16:19,844
But before I celebrate
too much,

370
00:16:19,846 --> 00:16:23,081
Guy has one more Secret Service
technique for me to try.

371
00:16:23,083 --> 00:16:24,916
-What's next?
-Barricade breaching.

372
00:16:24,918 --> 00:16:26,184
Barricade breaching.
What's that?

373
00:16:26,186 --> 00:16:27,518
We're gonna ram our way

374
00:16:27,520 --> 00:16:29,654
through a vehicle
blocking our space

375
00:16:29,656 --> 00:16:31,189
so that we can exit
that attack.

376
00:16:31,191 --> 00:16:32,991
So I went in reverse
at high speed.

377
00:16:32,993 --> 00:16:35,260
-Now, I'm going forward.
-Correct.

378
00:16:35,262 --> 00:16:36,728
-All right.
-Those are our vehicles.

379
00:16:36,730 --> 00:16:38,863
And here's our exercise,
in front of us.

380
00:16:38,865 --> 00:16:40,665
They look lovely.

381
00:16:40,667 --> 00:16:42,000
Why don't you have
a seat behind the wheel?

382
00:16:42,002 --> 00:16:43,134
Okay.

383
00:16:44,538 --> 00:16:47,539
WILDMAN: Guy tells me
a successful barricade breach

384
00:16:47,541 --> 00:16:48,940
comes down to physics.

385
00:16:48,942 --> 00:16:51,409
The key is to align
my car's frame

386
00:16:51,411 --> 00:16:53,745
with the blocking car's axle.

387
00:16:53,747 --> 00:16:55,814
And I want to hit it
at just the right speed --

388
00:16:55,816 --> 00:16:58,683
about 15 miles per hour.

389
00:16:58,685 --> 00:16:59,484
Let's go.

390
00:16:59,486 --> 00:17:00,786
Little faster.

391
00:17:02,823 --> 00:17:05,289
Ram.

392
00:17:05,291 --> 00:17:06,758
Oh, yeah!

393
00:17:06,760 --> 00:17:07,692
Nice, nice.

394
00:17:07,694 --> 00:17:09,761
Wow, right down the gullet.

395
00:17:09,763 --> 00:17:10,595
[ Laughs ]

396
00:17:11,698 --> 00:17:12,631
Ram.

397
00:17:15,235 --> 00:17:16,568
Phew.

398
00:17:16,570 --> 00:17:17,902
How to get out of an ambush.
Thank you.

399
00:17:17,904 --> 00:17:19,704
-Well done, sir.
-I'm well equipped.

400
00:17:19,706 --> 00:17:20,639
[ Laughs ]

401
00:17:20,641 --> 00:17:22,841
I'm getting out
of this car now.

402
00:17:22,843 --> 00:17:25,576
My crash course
in Secret Service training

403
00:17:25,578 --> 00:17:27,179
was exhilarating.

404
00:17:27,181 --> 00:17:29,714
But it's time to get back
to the White House,

405
00:17:29,716 --> 00:17:33,384
to the years after
Lincoln's assassination.

406
00:17:33,386 --> 00:17:35,854
It's hard to believe today
that the White House

407
00:17:35,856 --> 00:17:38,523
was little loved
in the late 19th century.

408
00:17:38,525 --> 00:17:40,058
The building was old
and outdated

409
00:17:40,060 --> 00:17:41,592
by American standards.

410
00:17:41,594 --> 00:17:44,963
President Andrew Johnson wanted
to build a new executive mansion

411
00:17:44,965 --> 00:17:46,131
north of the city

412
00:17:46,133 --> 00:17:48,733
in what is today
Rock Creek Park.

413
00:17:48,735 --> 00:17:51,002
He was impeached
before that could happen.

414
00:17:51,004 --> 00:17:54,805
But that wasn't the last attempt
to reimagine the White House.

415
00:17:54,807 --> 00:17:56,007
The modern White House

416
00:17:56,009 --> 00:17:59,143
only came to be
in the 20th century.

417
00:17:59,145 --> 00:18:01,946
In fact, its most famous room

418
00:18:01,948 --> 00:18:04,415
was just built in 1934.

419
00:18:04,417 --> 00:18:06,351
For its first 100 years,

420
00:18:06,353 --> 00:18:09,888
the White House was plagued
by a fundamental design flaw,

421
00:18:09,890 --> 00:18:12,958
which nearly led
to its ultimate demise.

422
00:18:21,568 --> 00:18:23,301
WILDMAN:
I'm tracing the surprising ways

423
00:18:23,303 --> 00:18:25,369
that presidents have changed
the White House

424
00:18:25,371 --> 00:18:28,239
to meet their needs.

425
00:18:28,241 --> 00:18:30,508
Take the Oval Office,
for example.

426
00:18:30,510 --> 00:18:34,245
This famous room is an iconic
emblem of the presidency.

427
00:18:34,247 --> 00:18:39,317
But the modern Oval Office
was only added in 1934.

428
00:18:39,319 --> 00:18:41,586
So where did the President work

429
00:18:41,588 --> 00:18:44,055
before the Oval Office
was built?

430
00:18:44,057 --> 00:18:47,191
The answer uncovers
an inherent problem

431
00:18:47,193 --> 00:18:52,130
with the building's
original 1792 design.

432
00:18:52,132 --> 00:18:53,931
For its first 100 years,

433
00:18:53,933 --> 00:18:58,336
the White House never
had purpose-built offices.

434
00:18:58,338 --> 00:19:01,005
Each president had to choose
a room to work in,

435
00:19:01,007 --> 00:19:04,409
usually a converted
bedroom upstairs.

436
00:19:04,411 --> 00:19:05,810
That meant official visitors

437
00:19:05,812 --> 00:19:10,882
were just steps away from where
the first family slept.

438
00:19:10,884 --> 00:19:14,885
By the late 1800s, the problem
had come to a head.

439
00:19:14,887 --> 00:19:18,423
The White House
was bursting at the seams.

440
00:19:18,425 --> 00:19:19,824
Peter? Hey. Don.

441
00:19:19,826 --> 00:19:22,027
-Hi. Nice to meet you.
-You too.

442
00:19:22,029 --> 00:19:23,361
Peter Brower heads

443
00:19:23,363 --> 00:19:27,499
the Cartographic Reference
Branch at the National Archives.

444
00:19:27,501 --> 00:19:30,101
Here, among priceless old maps,

445
00:19:30,103 --> 00:19:33,838
you can find original hand-drawn
blueprints of the White House,

446
00:19:33,840 --> 00:19:38,376
some as it is
and some as it might have been.

447
00:19:38,378 --> 00:19:40,979
Look at that.
That is so neat.

448
00:19:40,981 --> 00:19:42,180
Oh, I see. That's...

449
00:19:42,182 --> 00:19:44,115
Yeah, so these are
the first two.

450
00:19:44,117 --> 00:19:47,786
Peter has proof of the
extreme ways presidents tried

451
00:19:47,788 --> 00:19:50,989
to fix the White House
in the late 1800s.

452
00:19:50,991 --> 00:19:54,525
President Chester Arthur
tried to add room by building

453
00:19:54,527 --> 00:19:58,997
a whole new private
residence off to the side.

454
00:19:58,999 --> 00:20:02,467
But it has nothing to do
with what the house originally,

455
00:20:02,469 --> 00:20:03,802
and to this day,
looks like...

456
00:20:03,804 --> 00:20:05,469
-Exactly.
-...as a monument.

457
00:20:05,471 --> 00:20:08,540
It looks like the mansion
of a rich guy, a robber baron.

458
00:20:08,542 --> 00:20:12,009
A decade later, President
Benjamin Harrison proposed

459
00:20:12,011 --> 00:20:13,678
an even grander solution

460
00:20:13,680 --> 00:20:16,347
to the White House's
space problem.

461
00:20:16,349 --> 00:20:18,750
This is a site plan.

462
00:20:18,752 --> 00:20:22,220
And you have the original
1792 mansion there.

463
00:20:22,222 --> 00:20:26,023
And then the idea was to build
a completely enclosed court,

464
00:20:26,025 --> 00:20:28,226
very similar to a castle

465
00:20:28,228 --> 00:20:30,161
or other estate grounds,
like a European setting.

466
00:20:30,163 --> 00:20:31,696
That's what I'm seeing here.

467
00:20:31,698 --> 00:20:33,498
This looks like
a king lives here.

468
00:20:33,500 --> 00:20:36,901
The plan would quadruple
the White House in size

469
00:20:36,903 --> 00:20:39,437
by adding new wings
to house offices

470
00:20:39,439 --> 00:20:41,305
for the president's staff

471
00:20:41,307 --> 00:20:44,642
and an art gallery
for visiting tourists.

472
00:20:44,644 --> 00:20:47,445
But Congress refused
to pay for it.

473
00:20:47,447 --> 00:20:50,181
This drawing dates
from 1905.

474
00:20:50,183 --> 00:20:52,650
This is from Theodore
Roosevelt's administration.

475
00:20:52,652 --> 00:20:54,719
So this is TR's,

476
00:20:54,721 --> 00:20:57,922
his own reimagining
of the whole complex,

477
00:20:57,924 --> 00:21:00,859
which is pared
down to basics.

478
00:21:00,861 --> 00:21:04,062
He's getting back
to the original idea.

479
00:21:04,064 --> 00:21:06,464
In 1902, Theodore Roosevelt

480
00:21:06,466 --> 00:21:10,268
finally did what a century's
worth of presidents could not.

481
00:21:10,270 --> 00:21:13,671
He reorganized the White House
to separate its public

482
00:21:13,673 --> 00:21:16,808
and private functions
and returned the building

483
00:21:16,810 --> 00:21:19,276
to its clean,
original appearance.

484
00:21:19,278 --> 00:21:20,545
Theodore Roosevelt
was famous

485
00:21:20,547 --> 00:21:22,881
for loving the presidency,
you know,

486
00:21:22,883 --> 00:21:24,682
and therefore
loving the White House

487
00:21:24,684 --> 00:21:27,017
and what it represented,
the history behind the office.

488
00:21:27,019 --> 00:21:28,953
But he has done
the pragmatic thing

489
00:21:28,955 --> 00:21:30,688
of separating
from the living space --

490
00:21:30,690 --> 00:21:31,890
I mean,
he has a huge family,

491
00:21:31,892 --> 00:21:33,357
so they have to have
some place to live.

492
00:21:33,359 --> 00:21:36,294
So he's separated
from the president's house

493
00:21:36,296 --> 00:21:39,097
the offices over here
on the West Wing.

494
00:21:39,099 --> 00:21:42,233
Roosevelt's
1902 restoration claimed

495
00:21:42,235 --> 00:21:46,438
the entire second floor
as private living space.

496
00:21:46,440 --> 00:21:50,508
He added new wings to separate
the house's official functions.

497
00:21:50,510 --> 00:21:52,844
The public entrance
moved to the east

498
00:21:52,846 --> 00:21:56,514
and the executive offices
to the western wing.

499
00:21:56,516 --> 00:21:58,583
At last, there was
plenty of space

500
00:21:58,585 --> 00:22:00,985
for the president's cabinet
and staff,

501
00:22:00,987 --> 00:22:03,254
a new office
for Roosevelt himself,

502
00:22:03,256 --> 00:22:06,991
though one with four walls
and four corners.

503
00:22:06,993 --> 00:22:09,260
The Oval Office
as we know it today

504
00:22:09,262 --> 00:22:11,930
would be built
by another President Roosevelt

505
00:22:11,932 --> 00:22:13,798
30 years later.

506
00:22:13,800 --> 00:22:14,999
So interesting.

507
00:22:15,001 --> 00:22:17,601
I mean, you have
right here the White Houses

508
00:22:17,603 --> 00:22:19,204
as they could have been

509
00:22:19,206 --> 00:22:21,872
and then the White House
as it is today.

510
00:22:21,874 --> 00:22:23,341
So cool.
Thanks, man.

511
00:22:23,343 --> 00:22:24,942
All right.
Thank you.

512
00:22:24,944 --> 00:22:27,946
Theodore Roosevelt ended
any plans of replacing

513
00:22:27,948 --> 00:22:29,613
or reconfiguring
the White House.

514
00:22:29,615 --> 00:22:32,016
His restoration
was hailed as a success

515
00:22:32,018 --> 00:22:34,552
and set the tone
for the building's appearance

516
00:22:34,554 --> 00:22:36,621
as it is today.

517
00:22:36,623 --> 00:22:38,823
What Roosevelt didn't know
is that the changes

518
00:22:38,825 --> 00:22:42,427
he made would also help doom
the old house.

519
00:22:52,512 --> 00:22:55,446
WILDMAN: I'm chasing
the incredible evolution

520
00:22:55,448 --> 00:22:56,781
of the White House,

521
00:22:56,783 --> 00:22:59,217
and I've arrived
at a crossroads.

522
00:23:01,321 --> 00:23:03,588
In 1902, Theodore Roosevelt

523
00:23:03,590 --> 00:23:06,124
solved the White House's
oldest problem

524
00:23:06,126 --> 00:23:09,060
and separated its public
and private halves.

525
00:23:09,062 --> 00:23:11,463
But one of the changes
he made would lead

526
00:23:11,465 --> 00:23:14,199
directly to the building's
greatest crisis

527
00:23:14,201 --> 00:23:18,937
and indirectly
to its deepest mystery.

528
00:23:18,939 --> 00:23:21,005
In the late 1940s,

529
00:23:21,007 --> 00:23:22,540
the United States
was emerging

530
00:23:22,542 --> 00:23:25,743
from two decades of war
and austerity.

531
00:23:25,745 --> 00:23:27,678
The economy was roaring.

532
00:23:27,680 --> 00:23:30,281
Millions of Americans
were moving to the suburbs

533
00:23:30,283 --> 00:23:34,152
and buying brand-new homes.

534
00:23:34,154 --> 00:23:37,355
But at the White House,
President Harry Truman

535
00:23:37,357 --> 00:23:41,425
was beginning to notice
the building's age.

536
00:23:41,427 --> 00:23:45,297
In the summer of 1948,
a piano leg suddenly burst

537
00:23:45,299 --> 00:23:48,033
through the ceiling
into the family dining room.

538
00:23:48,035 --> 00:23:50,902
The upstairs
floor had given way.

539
00:23:50,904 --> 00:23:53,170
Truman ordered
a complete inspection.

540
00:23:53,172 --> 00:23:55,506
The results were dire.

541
00:23:55,508 --> 00:23:58,310
The White House
was falling down.

542
00:24:00,380 --> 00:24:04,249
Sagging timbers and leaking
pipes had been hastily patched

543
00:24:04,251 --> 00:24:08,453
and painted
for a century and a half.

544
00:24:08,455 --> 00:24:09,921
But the real culprit

545
00:24:09,923 --> 00:24:13,525
was Theodore Roosevelt's
1902 renovation.

546
00:24:13,527 --> 00:24:15,927
Roosevelt expanded
the State Dining Room

547
00:24:15,929 --> 00:24:17,128
to seat more guests,

548
00:24:17,130 --> 00:24:20,131
which required removing
a load-bearing wall.

549
00:24:20,133 --> 00:24:23,134
The house's frame
had been overstressed

550
00:24:23,136 --> 00:24:25,870
for nearly 50 years.

551
00:24:25,872 --> 00:24:27,805
The engineer's report warned

552
00:24:27,807 --> 00:24:30,475
that the White House
was in danger of collapsing,

553
00:24:30,477 --> 00:24:34,145
claiming it was staying up
by force of habit only.

554
00:24:34,147 --> 00:24:35,880
The easiest solution would be

555
00:24:35,882 --> 00:24:38,149
to knock down the old house
and build a new one.

556
00:24:38,151 --> 00:24:41,152
Some even suggested
moving to a new location

557
00:24:41,154 --> 00:24:42,820
outside the city.

558
00:24:42,822 --> 00:24:44,822
But Truman was having
none of that.

559
00:24:44,824 --> 00:24:47,024
He insisted that
the original White House

560
00:24:47,026 --> 00:24:50,094
be preserved in
every possible way.

561
00:24:50,096 --> 00:24:53,364
The answer was an epic
gut renovation.

562
00:24:53,366 --> 00:24:57,435
Doors, trim and paneling were
carefully cataloged and removed.

563
00:24:57,437 --> 00:25:02,040
Then everything inside
the stone walls was demolished.

564
00:25:02,042 --> 00:25:04,108
A new steel frame was built.

565
00:25:04,110 --> 00:25:06,177
And the old interior
was re-created

566
00:25:06,179 --> 00:25:09,781
with a mix of original items
and modern materials.

567
00:25:09,783 --> 00:25:12,450
But the renovation
would also provide cover

568
00:25:12,452 --> 00:25:15,987
for a huge excavation project.

569
00:25:15,989 --> 00:25:18,423
So what's underneath
the White House?

570
00:25:24,731 --> 00:25:27,332
This is the famous
Off the Record Bar

571
00:25:27,334 --> 00:25:29,867
in the basement
of the Hay-Adams Hotel.

572
00:25:29,869 --> 00:25:32,604
And on the other side
of this wall,

573
00:25:32,606 --> 00:25:35,406
through about 1,000 feet
of earth,

574
00:25:35,408 --> 00:25:37,242
is the White House subbasement.

575
00:25:41,481 --> 00:25:43,548
Truman took advantage
of the renovation

576
00:25:43,550 --> 00:25:45,283
to add some square footage,

577
00:25:45,285 --> 00:25:48,019
mostly in a two-level
subbasement

578
00:25:48,021 --> 00:25:50,288
beneath the original basement.

579
00:25:50,290 --> 00:25:52,990
These subbasements
were mostly for utilities,

580
00:25:52,992 --> 00:25:54,292
service areas, and storage.

581
00:25:54,294 --> 00:25:56,927
But there might have been
more to them than that.

582
00:25:56,929 --> 00:25:57,962
Check this out.

583
00:25:57,964 --> 00:26:00,431
This is a photo
from the excavation

584
00:26:00,433 --> 00:26:02,300
inside the White House in 1950.

585
00:26:02,302 --> 00:26:05,970
And right away, you can see
what a gut reno this really is.

586
00:26:05,972 --> 00:26:07,972
I mean, you could see
the steel structure that's been

587
00:26:07,974 --> 00:26:09,841
added to support the floors.

588
00:26:09,843 --> 00:26:11,643
And you can also see,
interestingly,

589
00:26:11,645 --> 00:26:14,111
the line of
the original foundation

590
00:26:14,113 --> 00:26:15,780
that they are now
digging beneath.

591
00:26:15,782 --> 00:26:17,115
Here, look at this.

592
00:26:17,117 --> 00:26:18,850
So this is the bulldozer,

593
00:26:18,852 --> 00:26:20,318
you can see,
is digging deeper

594
00:26:20,320 --> 00:26:23,121
and deeper beneath
that original foundation.

595
00:26:23,123 --> 00:26:24,388
So they are going down.

596
00:26:24,390 --> 00:26:27,125
So here's a shot from inside

597
00:26:27,127 --> 00:26:29,794
the new subbasement
in late 1950.

598
00:26:29,796 --> 00:26:31,529
And you can see
what appears to be

599
00:26:31,531 --> 00:26:33,464
a reinforced concrete tunnel

600
00:26:33,466 --> 00:26:36,267
being built deep
beneath the house.

601
00:26:36,269 --> 00:26:39,804
And this is inside that tunnel
in the construction process.

602
00:26:39,806 --> 00:26:41,339
And look at all the conduit

603
00:26:41,341 --> 00:26:43,341
that's run along
the floor there.

604
00:26:43,343 --> 00:26:46,878
This last shot is inside
the finished tunnel.

605
00:26:46,880 --> 00:26:48,947
I mean, this
is heavy construction.

606
00:26:48,949 --> 00:26:50,948
Look at the thickness
of this wall.

607
00:26:50,950 --> 00:26:53,284
I mean, this is
all deep underground.

608
00:26:53,286 --> 00:26:55,820
So what's it for?

609
00:26:55,822 --> 00:26:57,088
Hard to say.

610
00:26:57,090 --> 00:26:58,756
What we do know is that

611
00:26:58,758 --> 00:27:01,960
FDR built a bomb shelter
beneath the East Wing

612
00:27:01,962 --> 00:27:03,360
during World War II.

613
00:27:03,362 --> 00:27:04,562
It was never used.

614
00:27:04,564 --> 00:27:11,236
Our national policy
is not directed toward war.

615
00:27:11,238 --> 00:27:14,839
WILDMAN: So could this hallway
have been built by Truman

616
00:27:14,841 --> 00:27:16,974
to connect that shelter
to the house?

617
00:27:16,976 --> 00:27:19,577
Or did he enlarge
Roosevelt's shelter

618
00:27:19,579 --> 00:27:22,981
to create a larger
bunker complex?

619
00:27:22,983 --> 00:27:24,916
Nobody knows for sure.

620
00:27:24,918 --> 00:27:30,187
These subbasements
are not on the White House tour.

621
00:27:30,189 --> 00:27:31,522
We do know this.

622
00:27:31,524 --> 00:27:33,924
The Soviets detonated
their first atom bomb

623
00:27:33,926 --> 00:27:36,027
while the White House
was being rebuilt.

624
00:27:42,602 --> 00:27:44,068
If any of those
underground spaces

625
00:27:44,070 --> 00:27:47,539
were meant to be bomb shelters,
they were suddenly obsolete.

626
00:27:47,541 --> 00:27:49,874
To survive that kind of bomb,

627
00:27:49,876 --> 00:27:52,811
the President was gonna need
a much bigger basement.

628
00:28:02,835 --> 00:28:05,568
WILDMAN: The White House
at the dawn of the atomic age

629
00:28:05,570 --> 00:28:08,171
had come a long way
from the open-door days

630
00:28:08,173 --> 00:28:09,973
of the Lincoln administration.

631
00:28:09,975 --> 00:28:12,375
Already, the house was evolving

632
00:28:12,377 --> 00:28:15,179
into the secure
command center we know today.

633
00:28:15,181 --> 00:28:17,514
So how did the president prepare

634
00:28:17,516 --> 00:28:19,516
for the ultimate
security threat...

635
00:28:22,520 --> 00:28:26,522
a nuclear attack
on the White House?

636
00:28:26,524 --> 00:28:31,261
We know about FDR's
World War II bomb shelter.

637
00:28:31,263 --> 00:28:33,263
And we have photos from 1950

638
00:28:33,265 --> 00:28:36,066
showing heavy
underground construction.

639
00:28:36,068 --> 00:28:38,401
But it's unlikely that
any of this could

640
00:28:38,403 --> 00:28:41,071
withstand a direct
nuclear attack.

641
00:28:41,073 --> 00:28:44,474
So is it possible that
there's another, secret bunker

642
00:28:44,476 --> 00:28:46,944
somewhere beneath
the White House?

643
00:28:46,946 --> 00:28:50,546
In 2011, President Obama
quietly kicked off

644
00:28:50,548 --> 00:28:53,750
a large excavation project
under the West Wing.

645
00:28:53,752 --> 00:28:55,752
Officials claimed
it was an update

646
00:28:55,754 --> 00:28:57,754
of the building's
cooling system.

647
00:28:57,756 --> 00:29:01,090
Whatever it is, it's off-limits.

648
00:29:01,092 --> 00:29:05,428
But I know of a recently
declassified top-secret location

649
00:29:05,430 --> 00:29:07,497
that can give us
an insider's look

650
00:29:07,499 --> 00:29:11,367
at the ultimate
Cold War contingency plan.

651
00:29:11,369 --> 00:29:13,703
I'm in White Sulfur Springs,
West Virginia,

652
00:29:13,705 --> 00:29:16,439
about 200 miles southeast
of Washington,

653
00:29:16,441 --> 00:29:19,643
heading to one of the grandest
hotels in America.

654
00:29:19,645 --> 00:29:24,247
The Greenbrier is a sprawling
11,000-acre resort nestled

655
00:29:24,249 --> 00:29:27,517
in the Allegheny Mountains.

656
00:29:27,519 --> 00:29:30,787
The Greenbrier has a long
connection to Washington.

657
00:29:30,789 --> 00:29:33,122
26 presidents have stayed here.

658
00:29:33,124 --> 00:29:34,391
And the army ran the place

659
00:29:34,393 --> 00:29:36,926
as a military hospital
back in World War II.

660
00:29:36,928 --> 00:29:40,864
But I'm here for
a whole different reason.

661
00:29:40,866 --> 00:29:45,202
In 1955, the Cold War
was heating up.

662
00:29:45,204 --> 00:29:47,004
The United States
and the Soviet Union

663
00:29:47,006 --> 00:29:50,207
had warheads aimed
at each other's capitals.

664
00:29:50,209 --> 00:29:53,410
President Eisenhower issued
an executive order

665
00:29:53,412 --> 00:29:55,545
outlining a plan
for the federal government

666
00:29:55,547 --> 00:29:58,481
to survive a nuclear attack.

667
00:29:58,483 --> 00:30:01,885
The Greenbrier was an essential
part of the plan.

668
00:30:01,887 --> 00:30:03,486
Beneath this hotel
is one of the most

669
00:30:03,488 --> 00:30:06,356
top-secret locations
of the Cold War,

670
00:30:06,358 --> 00:30:09,959
a giant fallout bunker
hidden in plain sight.

671
00:30:09,961 --> 00:30:12,396
Check this out.

672
00:30:20,839 --> 00:30:24,508
The program was code named
Project Greek Island.

673
00:30:24,510 --> 00:30:27,443
The government funded
the construction of the bunker

674
00:30:27,445 --> 00:30:29,379
and built a new
wing of the hotel

675
00:30:29,381 --> 00:30:31,581
on top to hide it.

676
00:30:31,583 --> 00:30:33,316
The whole complex
was designed

677
00:30:33,318 --> 00:30:35,852
to blend seamlessly
with the hotel.

678
00:30:35,854 --> 00:30:38,321
Guests were free
to enter parts of the bunker

679
00:30:38,323 --> 00:30:42,793
completely unaware
of its true purpose.

680
00:30:42,795 --> 00:30:45,796
The bunker had to be kept in
a constant state of readiness.

681
00:30:45,798 --> 00:30:47,998
A group of government
employees posed

682
00:30:48,000 --> 00:30:50,600
as TV repairmen for the hotel.

683
00:30:50,602 --> 00:30:52,469
And one of them has agreed
to meet with me.

684
00:30:55,140 --> 00:30:56,606
Fritz?

685
00:30:56,608 --> 00:30:58,208
Fritz Bugas ran

686
00:30:58,210 --> 00:31:00,543
the undercover team
here for 20 years.

687
00:31:00,545 --> 00:31:03,613
So this is the room
that was really the center point

688
00:31:03,615 --> 00:31:06,282
of the whole
cover story, yeah?

689
00:31:06,284 --> 00:31:07,550
In essence, yes.

690
00:31:07,552 --> 00:31:11,621
This was the Forsythe
Television Repair Shop.

691
00:31:11,623 --> 00:31:15,292
But the repair shop
was really a front, basically.

692
00:31:15,294 --> 00:31:20,230
That allowed us a reason
to be here to start with

693
00:31:20,232 --> 00:31:23,366
so we could do
our maintenance work

694
00:31:23,368 --> 00:31:24,567
in the back part
of the bunker.

695
00:31:24,569 --> 00:31:26,169
Wow.
So this is really

696
00:31:26,171 --> 00:31:30,974
the line between the overt
and the covert, the bunker.

697
00:31:30,976 --> 00:31:32,041
That's correct.

698
00:31:32,043 --> 00:31:33,844
So how do you get
to the covert?

699
00:31:33,846 --> 00:31:37,981
Don, if you'll turn around
and go through this door here

700
00:31:37,983 --> 00:31:38,915
This one?

701
00:31:38,917 --> 00:31:40,984
That leads into a closet.

702
00:31:43,054 --> 00:31:47,390
Now, in this closet,
we had electronic supplies,

703
00:31:47,392 --> 00:31:48,591
cable, et cetera,

704
00:31:48,593 --> 00:31:51,394
things necessary
to repair the television.

705
00:31:51,396 --> 00:31:52,862
Okay.

706
00:31:52,864 --> 00:31:56,065
And if you turn around,
there's a wall behind you.

707
00:31:56,067 --> 00:32:00,003
Now, if you lean
or push against that wall...

708
00:32:00,005 --> 00:32:02,806
This is the entrance?

709
00:32:02,808 --> 00:32:04,808
Oh, that's so neat.

710
00:32:04,810 --> 00:32:06,743
That's cool.
Wow.

711
00:32:06,745 --> 00:32:08,011
So this is the covert.

712
00:32:08,013 --> 00:32:10,947
This leads you further
into the bunker,

713
00:32:10,949 --> 00:32:12,949
into the covert part

714
00:32:12,951 --> 00:32:14,551
Unbelievable.

715
00:32:14,553 --> 00:32:16,953
The Greenbrier bunker
was built to house

716
00:32:16,955 --> 00:32:19,689
the entire legislative
branch of government.

717
00:32:19,691 --> 00:32:21,324
That's 100 senators,

718
00:32:21,326 --> 00:32:25,562
435 members of the House,
plus staff.

719
00:32:25,564 --> 00:32:29,365
The entire facility
could sustain 1,100 people

720
00:32:29,367 --> 00:32:30,766
for up to 40 days.

721
00:32:30,768 --> 00:32:33,236
Look into the door on the right.
You'll see the kitchen.

722
00:32:33,238 --> 00:32:35,572
The refrigeration
was off to the left.

723
00:32:35,574 --> 00:32:36,640
And nobody knew
this was here?

724
00:32:36,642 --> 00:32:38,041
And nobody knew
that this was here.

725
00:32:38,043 --> 00:32:39,242
Crazy!

726
00:32:39,244 --> 00:32:40,844
The plan was for Congress

727
00:32:40,846 --> 00:32:43,647
to arrive by car,
plane, and train.

728
00:32:43,649 --> 00:32:47,250
Three giant blast doors
would seal them inside.

729
00:32:47,252 --> 00:32:51,455
Then the Greenbrier bunker
would become the U.S. capital.

730
00:32:51,457 --> 00:32:54,457
[ Keypad beeps ]

731
00:32:54,459 --> 00:32:58,328
There you go.

732
00:32:58,330 --> 00:33:00,597
So this is the Governor's Hall.

733
00:33:00,599 --> 00:33:03,132
I mean, it looks like
a school auditorium.

734
00:33:03,134 --> 00:33:05,134
But there's enough
seats in here

735
00:33:05,136 --> 00:33:09,872
for the whole
House of Representatives, 435.

736
00:33:09,874 --> 00:33:13,476
Right next door is another
meeting chamber for the Senate.

737
00:33:13,478 --> 00:33:16,079
The Greenbrier bunker
was only intended

738
00:33:16,081 --> 00:33:18,814
for the legislative branch.

739
00:33:18,816 --> 00:33:21,818
So this is the bunker
for the Congress, okay.

740
00:33:21,820 --> 00:33:23,487
There must be
other bunkers as well,

741
00:33:23,489 --> 00:33:25,956
one for the president,
I suppose.

742
00:33:25,958 --> 00:33:27,423
-I would assume so.
-Okay.

743
00:33:27,425 --> 00:33:29,492
But it's part
of a network of bunkers

744
00:33:29,494 --> 00:33:32,095
around the whole
D.C. area.

745
00:33:32,097 --> 00:33:34,497
Well, you have
the executive branch

746
00:33:34,499 --> 00:33:37,099
of government, I'm sure,
has bunkers

747
00:33:37,101 --> 00:33:38,635
that are scattered
around in D.C.

748
00:33:38,637 --> 00:33:40,704
Well, if anybody
should know, it's you.

749
00:33:40,706 --> 00:33:42,772
I do know about
the legislative branch,

750
00:33:42,774 --> 00:33:46,976
that it was designed
and geared for their relocation.

751
00:33:46,978 --> 00:33:49,379
You're still keeping secrets,
aren't you?

752
00:33:49,381 --> 00:33:51,047
No! No!

753
00:33:51,049 --> 00:33:52,382
Not really.

754
00:33:52,384 --> 00:33:53,649
But there's bunkers today

755
00:33:53,651 --> 00:33:57,053
equally prepared, because
the threat is still there.

756
00:33:57,055 --> 00:33:58,855
-I would hope so.
-Yeah.

757
00:33:58,857 --> 00:34:00,657
A vast complex.

758
00:34:00,659 --> 00:34:01,858
You mind if I take
a look around?

759
00:34:01,860 --> 00:34:03,994
-Not at all.
-Thank you, sir.

760
00:34:03,996 --> 00:34:05,928
Honor.

761
00:34:05,930 --> 00:34:07,197
It's easy to imagine

762
00:34:07,199 --> 00:34:08,531
that there are active bunkers

763
00:34:08,533 --> 00:34:10,800
for the president
out there somewhere.

764
00:34:10,802 --> 00:34:14,671
The Greenbrier complex
was declassified in 1992.

765
00:34:14,673 --> 00:34:17,406
But parts of it
still seem ready for action.

766
00:34:17,408 --> 00:34:20,210
This would be the first stop
for the lawmakers at the bunker,

767
00:34:20,212 --> 00:34:22,011
the decontamination showers.

768
00:34:22,013 --> 00:34:24,614
First, they had to strip
off their clothes

769
00:34:24,616 --> 00:34:28,017
and toss them in here
to be incinerated.

770
00:34:28,019 --> 00:34:30,886
Then they moved
through this passageway.

771
00:34:30,888 --> 00:34:35,225
A series of high-pressure
shower heads would wash off

772
00:34:35,227 --> 00:34:37,160
all the radioactive
contaminants.

773
00:34:37,162 --> 00:34:40,896
They could process
up to 120 people per hour

774
00:34:40,898 --> 00:34:42,231
in this place.

775
00:34:42,233 --> 00:34:45,635
Then they move through here

776
00:34:45,637 --> 00:34:48,972
and get their fresh clothes.

777
00:34:48,974 --> 00:34:50,373
And then they're free
to move into

778
00:34:50,375 --> 00:34:52,308
the clean part of the facility.

779
00:34:52,310 --> 00:34:55,512
The bunker contains 153 rooms

780
00:34:55,514 --> 00:34:57,513
on two underground levels,

781
00:34:57,515 --> 00:35:01,317
112,000 square feet in all.

782
00:35:01,319 --> 00:35:03,853
It was designed to be
a wholly contained,

783
00:35:03,855 --> 00:35:07,057
self-sufficient city.

784
00:35:07,059 --> 00:35:08,991
This was the TV studio,

785
00:35:08,993 --> 00:35:11,661
one of the most important rooms
in the entire bunker.

786
00:35:11,663 --> 00:35:14,264
From here, officials could
address the nation,

787
00:35:14,266 --> 00:35:16,132
two available backdrops --

788
00:35:16,134 --> 00:35:18,935
the U.S. Capitol and, over here,

789
00:35:18,937 --> 00:35:22,338
the White House --
you know, to reassure Americans

790
00:35:22,340 --> 00:35:24,407
that everything's gonna be okay.

791
00:35:24,409 --> 00:35:26,743
See, this place
was designed

792
00:35:26,745 --> 00:35:28,144
for the legislative branch.

793
00:35:28,146 --> 00:35:29,646
But the speaker of the House

794
00:35:29,648 --> 00:35:31,548
is the third in line
for the presidency.

795
00:35:31,550 --> 00:35:34,817
So depending on what
was going on out there,

796
00:35:34,819 --> 00:35:38,555
the Greenbrier could end up
housing the president after all.

797
00:35:43,829 --> 00:35:46,496
The Greenbrier bunker
was never used

798
00:35:46,498 --> 00:35:49,599
because nuclear doomsday
never came.

799
00:35:54,573 --> 00:35:56,906
As the arms race heated up,

800
00:35:56,908 --> 00:36:00,176
cooler heads would have
to talk us back from the brink.

801
00:36:00,178 --> 00:36:02,645
[ Alarm blaring ]

802
00:36:02,647 --> 00:36:05,081
Easier said than done.

803
00:36:07,318 --> 00:36:08,351
Oh, that's neat.

804
00:36:17,746 --> 00:36:19,879
WILDMAN: I'm digging deep
into the White House

805
00:36:19,881 --> 00:36:22,815
and have already uncovered
some of the invisible walls

806
00:36:22,817 --> 00:36:25,351
that surround this fortress.

807
00:36:25,353 --> 00:36:26,885
But the modern-day White House

808
00:36:26,887 --> 00:36:29,155
must also be able
to connect the president

809
00:36:29,157 --> 00:36:32,425
to any place on Earth
at a minute's notice,

810
00:36:32,427 --> 00:36:34,494
a lesson we learned
the hard way.

811
00:36:34,496 --> 00:36:37,764
In 1962, the Soviet Union
and the United States

812
00:36:37,766 --> 00:36:39,832
were locked in
a dangerous standoff.

813
00:36:39,834 --> 00:36:44,770
Both nations had stockpiled
massive nuclear arsenals.

814
00:36:44,772 --> 00:36:46,973
If the enemy launched
an attack,

815
00:36:46,975 --> 00:36:48,774
the hope was that
enough warheads

816
00:36:48,776 --> 00:36:50,376
would survive
the first wave

817
00:36:50,378 --> 00:36:52,912
that they could then launch
an immediate counterattack.

818
00:36:52,914 --> 00:36:56,549
This strategy was called
mutually assured destruction.

819
00:36:59,788 --> 00:37:03,189
In October 1962,
American spy planes

820
00:37:03,191 --> 00:37:05,992
found Soviet ballistic missiles
in Cuba,

821
00:37:05,994 --> 00:37:09,329
only 90 miles off Florida.

822
00:37:09,331 --> 00:37:11,931
President John F. Kennedy's
advisors urged him

823
00:37:11,933 --> 00:37:13,933
to launch an air strike.

824
00:37:13,935 --> 00:37:15,335
He refused.

825
00:37:15,337 --> 00:37:18,604
Instead, Kennedy imposed
a naval blockade

826
00:37:18,606 --> 00:37:21,006
while he tried to work out
a peaceful solution

827
00:37:21,008 --> 00:37:24,210
with Soviet Premier
Nikita Khrushchev.

828
00:37:24,212 --> 00:37:26,546
To halt this offensive buildup,

829
00:37:26,548 --> 00:37:28,814
a strict quarantine
on all offensive

830
00:37:28,816 --> 00:37:31,550
military equipment
under shipment to Cuba

831
00:37:31,552 --> 00:37:33,086
is being initiated.

832
00:37:33,088 --> 00:37:36,355
WILDMAN: Nobody knew how
the Russians would respond.

833
00:37:36,357 --> 00:37:39,225
For 13 days,
America held its breath

834
00:37:39,227 --> 00:37:42,028
at the brink of Armageddon.

835
00:37:42,030 --> 00:37:45,031
In the end, the Soviets
removed the missiles.

836
00:37:45,033 --> 00:37:49,035
It's as close as we've ever come
to full-scale nuclear war.

837
00:37:49,037 --> 00:37:51,704
The Cuban Missile Crisis
was a wake-up call.

838
00:37:51,706 --> 00:37:54,040
Messages between Kennedy
and Khrushchev

839
00:37:54,042 --> 00:37:55,842
would take more than six hours

840
00:37:55,844 --> 00:37:58,577
to deliver through regular
diplomatic channels,

841
00:37:58,579 --> 00:38:00,713
way too long
for the nuclear age.

842
00:38:00,715 --> 00:38:04,450
Kennedy knew that fast,
direct communication was the key

843
00:38:04,452 --> 00:38:06,252
to avoiding a future crisis.

844
00:38:11,126 --> 00:38:12,724
The John F. Kennedy Library

845
00:38:12,726 --> 00:38:15,127
displays hundreds
of real artifacts

846
00:38:15,129 --> 00:38:17,930
from JFK's presidency.

847
00:38:17,932 --> 00:38:22,334
But I'm more interested
in something that isn't here.

848
00:38:22,336 --> 00:38:25,204
After the missile crisis,
Kennedy and Khrushchev agreed

849
00:38:25,206 --> 00:38:28,407
to set up
a Moscow-Washington hotline.

850
00:38:28,409 --> 00:38:30,877
The hotline
enabled direct communication

851
00:38:30,879 --> 00:38:35,081
between the two superpowers
for the first time.

852
00:38:35,083 --> 00:38:38,217
The red phone has become
an icon of the Cold War,

853
00:38:38,219 --> 00:38:39,819
a symbol of the thin line

854
00:38:39,821 --> 00:38:43,423
between peace and mutually
assured destruction.

855
00:38:43,425 --> 00:38:45,024
Only there's one problem --

856
00:38:45,026 --> 00:38:48,494
The red phone never existed.

857
00:38:48,496 --> 00:38:51,897
This is a replica
of the Oval Office desk

858
00:38:51,899 --> 00:38:54,367
during President Kennedy's time.

859
00:38:54,369 --> 00:38:57,136
And check it out --
no red phone.

860
00:39:00,641 --> 00:39:01,907
But come with me.

861
00:39:01,909 --> 00:39:06,779
See, the red phone
is a total Hollywood creation,

862
00:39:06,781 --> 00:39:08,647
not the hotline itself.

863
00:39:08,649 --> 00:39:10,716
The hotline is real.

864
00:39:10,718 --> 00:39:13,252
I mean, right over here.

865
00:39:13,254 --> 00:39:17,657
That is the real
Moscow-Washington hotline.

866
00:39:17,659 --> 00:39:20,726
And that is some serious stuff.

867
00:39:20,728 --> 00:39:22,661
The original hotline was a pair

868
00:39:22,663 --> 00:39:25,564
of electromechanical
teletype machines

869
00:39:25,566 --> 00:39:29,067
connected by a 10,000-mile
transatlantic cable.

870
00:39:29,069 --> 00:39:31,137
It became operational 10 months

871
00:39:31,139 --> 00:39:33,539
after the Cuban
Missile Crisis ended.

872
00:39:35,876 --> 00:39:39,145
This was a major breakthrough
in foreign relations.

873
00:39:39,147 --> 00:39:41,280
The hotline agreement
marked the first time

874
00:39:41,282 --> 00:39:44,283
the U.S. and Soviet Union
both took action

875
00:39:44,285 --> 00:39:46,552
to limit the risk
of nuclear war.

876
00:39:46,554 --> 00:39:48,354
The hotline also strengthened

877
00:39:48,356 --> 00:39:51,357
the President's role
in Cold War diplomacy.

878
00:39:51,359 --> 00:39:53,159
Now, thanks to technology,

879
00:39:53,161 --> 00:39:57,430
the White House could connect
with the Kremlin directly.

880
00:39:57,432 --> 00:40:00,566
I want to learn a little
more about the hotline.

881
00:40:00,568 --> 00:40:03,436
To find a teletype machine
that still works,

882
00:40:03,438 --> 00:40:06,372
I'm heading to the Vintage Radio
and Communications Museum

883
00:40:06,374 --> 00:40:07,273
of Connecticut.

884
00:40:09,777 --> 00:40:13,378
Oh, look at that.
She's a beauty.

885
00:40:13,380 --> 00:40:14,780
That's the teletype machine.

886
00:40:14,782 --> 00:40:16,382
That is
a teletype machine, yes.

887
00:40:16,384 --> 00:40:18,184
Founder John Ellsworth
has offered

888
00:40:18,186 --> 00:40:21,520
to give me a quick lesson
on Cold War communication.

889
00:40:21,522 --> 00:40:24,257
Explain to me the technology
behind this -- teletype.

890
00:40:24,259 --> 00:40:25,591
-How does that work?
-What it does

891
00:40:25,593 --> 00:40:27,527
is it sends
typewritten information

892
00:40:27,529 --> 00:40:30,263
over a wire
from point "A" to point "B."

893
00:40:30,265 --> 00:40:32,331
-So does this turn on?
-Yes.

894
00:40:32,333 --> 00:40:34,266
A little switch down here.

895
00:40:34,268 --> 00:40:37,469
Oh, that's neat.
How beautiful.

896
00:40:37,471 --> 00:40:39,338
I happen to know
that the original message

897
00:40:39,340 --> 00:40:42,541
that was sent on that
Moscow-Washington line was,

898
00:40:42,543 --> 00:40:46,879
"The quick brown fox jumped
over the lazy dog's back,"

899
00:40:46,881 --> 00:40:49,414
a message that basically tests
every single key.

900
00:40:49,416 --> 00:40:50,683
Every single key, yeah.

901
00:40:50,685 --> 00:40:52,017
-And then the numbers.
-And then the numbers.

902
00:40:52,019 --> 00:40:53,419
So I'm gonna type
that right now.

903
00:40:53,421 --> 00:40:55,288
So it's the early 1960s.

904
00:40:55,290 --> 00:40:58,357
And here goes
the first one.

905
00:40:58,359 --> 00:40:59,691
There she goes.

906
00:40:59,693 --> 00:41:01,560
It's a nice feeling.
It's got good action.

907
00:41:01,562 --> 00:41:05,030
Yeah.

908
00:41:05,032 --> 00:41:08,300
I feel like I'm
in high school typing class.

909
00:41:08,302 --> 00:41:11,970
One, two, three, four, five,
six, seven, eight, nine, zero.

910
00:41:11,972 --> 00:41:13,505
-Beautiful.
-There it is.

911
00:41:13,507 --> 00:41:16,375
There's the text.
I have typed in D.C.

912
00:41:19,046 --> 00:41:20,245
There she goes.

913
00:41:20,247 --> 00:41:22,782
Here comes the all-important
top-secret message.

914
00:41:22,784 --> 00:41:24,316
Okay.

915
00:41:24,318 --> 00:41:26,852
The quick brown fox
jumped over the...

916
00:41:26,854 --> 00:41:31,724
You know,
that's very satisfying.

917
00:41:31,726 --> 00:41:32,791
Look at that.

918
00:41:32,793 --> 00:41:35,795
So this line of text
I typed in D.C.

919
00:41:35,797 --> 00:41:39,799
gets transmitted
and read in Moscow.

920
00:41:39,801 --> 00:41:43,402
This is nuclear war avoided.

921
00:41:43,404 --> 00:41:45,738
Cool.

922
00:41:45,740 --> 00:41:48,607
The White House has seen
incredible changes

923
00:41:48,609 --> 00:41:50,942
in its 200-plus-year history,

924
00:41:50,944 --> 00:41:56,749
from simple stone house
to state-of-the-art fortress,

925
00:41:56,751 --> 00:41:59,351
from Roosevelt's renovation

926
00:41:59,353 --> 00:42:02,554
to Kennedy's Cold War
command center,

927
00:42:02,556 --> 00:42:06,358
and from analog to digital.

928
00:42:06,360 --> 00:42:09,095
The White House has been
and will always be

929
00:42:09,097 --> 00:42:12,631
an enduring emblem
of freedom and democracy

930
00:42:12,633 --> 00:42:16,002
and the most important
home office in the world.

931
00:42:18,439 --> 00:42:19,372
I'm Don Wildman.

932
00:42:19,374 --> 00:42:20,506
Thanks for watching

933
00:42:20,508 --> 00:42:23,009
"Mysteries at the Museum:
The White House."

933
00:42:24,305 --> 00:43:24,167
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