By: History.com Editors

1968

Eartha Kitt speaks out against the Vietnam War

History.com Editors

Published: January 24, 2023

Last Updated: February 18, 2025

On January 18, 1968, Eartha Kitt, the celebrated actress and singer known for playing Catwoman on the 1960s Batman television series and her sultry holiday hit “Santa Baby,” causes a stir during a White House luncheon when she confronts Lady Bird Johnson about the Vietnam War.

“You send the best of this country off to be shot and maimed,” Kitt told the first lady. “They rebel in the street. They will take pot…and they will get high. They don’t want to go to school because they’re going to be snatched off from their mothers to be shot in Vietnam.”

Why Did Columbia University Students Protest in 1968?

Learn how the Vietnam War and the construction of a gym on campus prompted Columbia University student groups to protest the administration in 1968. See how their numbers swelled into the thousands and inspired student protests all over the country.

Kitt had been invited by Johnson to attend the luncheon, held to discuss juvenile delinquency in the streets of America. She noted in her 1989 autobiography that she had grown frustrated that any real talk surrounding the topic was being avoided when she confronted Johnson about the war. “Just because there is a war going on, I see no reason to be uncivilized,” the first lady said in response.

The remarks, reported widely, led to Kitt being blackballed as a performer in America. The New York Times in 1975 reported that the CIA had given the Secret Service a report on Kitt shortly after the event took place.

"I don't think there is anything I have done that I wish I hadn't done,” Kitt told The Washington Post in 1978, in a story chronicling her return performance in Timbuktu!, for which she went on to win a Tony Award. “Because I learn from everything I do. I'm in school every day. My diploma will be my tombstone." She died in 2008.

Timeline

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1778

Captain Cook reaches Hawaii

On January 18, 1778, the English explorer Captain James Cook becomes the first European to travel to the Hawaiian Islands when he sails past the island of Oahu. Two days later, he landed at Waimea on the island of Kauai and named the island group the Sandwich Islands, in honor of John Montague, who was […]

1803

President Jefferson requests funding for Lewis and Clark expedition

On January 18, 1803, Thomas Jefferson requests funding from Congress to finance the Lewis and Clark expedition. Jefferson officially asked for $2,500 in funding from Congress, though some sources indicate the expedition ultimately cost closer to $50,000. Meriwether Lewis was joined by his friend William Clark and 50 others on the journey, including an enslaved […]

1862

President John Tyler dies

On January 18, 1862, former U.S. President and Confederate congressman-elect John Tyler dies at age 71 in Richmond, Virginia. Tyler, who was born in Virginia in 1790, served as a U.S. congressman and as governor of his home state before winning election to the U.S. Senate. state during the 1830s. A Whig, Tyler became the […]

1919

Post-World War I peace conference begins in Paris

In Paris, leaders of the victorious Allied powers—France, Great Britain, the United States and Italy–meet to discuss post-WWI negotiations.

Opening session of the Versailles Peace conference

1950

China recognizes Democratic Republic of Vietnam

The People’s Republic of China formally recognizes the communist Democratic Republic of Vietnam and agrees to furnish it military assistance; the Soviet Union extended diplomatic recognition to Hanoi on January 30. China and the Soviet Union provided massive military and economic aid to North Vietnam, which enabled North Vietnam to fight first the French and […]

1958

NHL is integrated

On January 18, 1958, hockey player Willie O’Ree of the Boston Bruins takes to the ice for a game against the Montreal Canadiens, becoming the first Black player to play in the National Hockey League (NHL). Born in 1935 in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, O’Ree was the son of a civil engineer, in one of […]

1975

“Mandy” is Barry Manilow’s first #1 pop hit

Barry Manilow’s scores his first #1 single with “Mandy” on January 18, 1975. He would go on to sell more than 75 millions records over the course of his career. At the height of Barry Manilow’s popularity, none other than Frank Sinatra himself said of Manilow, “He’s next.” Yet even in his heyday, the more […]

1985

Coen brothers release debut film, “Blood Simple”

The hard-boiled, often gruesome black comedy Blood Simple, the debut offering from the Minnesota-born brothers Joel and Ethan Coen, has its national release on January 18, 1985. The film told the story of Julian Marty (played by Dan Hedaya), a bar owner who hires a private detective (M. Emmett Walsh) to follow his wife (Frances […]

1990

Defendant in McMartin Preschool trials is acquitted

On January 18, 1990, a Los Angeles jury votes to acquit Peggy McMartin Buckey, who was accused of molesting children at the McMartin Preschool in Manhattan Beach, California, of all charges. The McMartin trials, which became a media sensation, had taken over six years and cost more than $13.5 million without a single guilty verdict. […]

1990

Washington, D.C. mayor Marion Barry arrested on drug charges

At the end of a joint sting operation by FBI agents and District of Columbia police, Mayor Marion Barry is arrested and charged with drug possession and the use of crack, a crystalline form of cocaine. At the Vista International Hotel in downtown Washington, Barry was caught smoking the substance on camera with Rahsheeda Moore, […]

1996

MLB owners approve interleague play

On January 18, 1996, Major League Baseball owners unanimously approve interleague play for the 1997 season. The owners’ vote, which called for each team to play 15 or 16 interleague games, breaks a 126-year tradition of teams only playing games within their league during the regular season. In defending the move, acting MLB commissioner Bud Selig […]

2009

GM auctions off historic cars

January 18, 2009, marks the final day of a week-long auction in which auto giant General Motors (GM) sells off historic cars from its Heritage Collection. GM sold around 200 vehicles at the Scottsdale, Arizona, auction, including a 1996 Buick Blackhawk concept car for $522,500, a 1969 Chevrolet Camaro ZL-1 COPO Coupe for $319,000 and […]

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Citation Information

Article title
Eartha Kitt speaks out against the Vietnam War
Website Name
History
Date Accessed
March 28, 2025
Publisher
A&E Television Networks
Last Updated
February 18, 2025
Original Published Date
January 24, 2023

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