Khrushchev demands access for women reporters on 1959 visit to Club

"Khrushchev's Visit": It was the depth of the Cold War when Nikita Khrushchev, the Soviet premier, made an historic tour of America in 1959, starting with the largest news conference in National Press Club history.

A special formula was arranged to satisfy Khrushchev's demand that women journalists-- then barred from Club membership--could attend. In his remarks, the Soviet leader predicted that "new and progressive" communism would replace "old and moribund" capitalism. It happened at the National Press Club--where news is made in the nation's capital.

This Club history snippet is one of many put together by Art Wiese, who served as Club president in 1979. He was responsible for the reconstruction of the Club during its renovation in the early 1980s. In his later years, he put together a series of snippets on the Club's history. In honor of his passing last year, the Wire is running one of them each week while they last.