Donald Nixon

Francis Donald Nixon (November 23, 1914 – June 27, 1987) was a younger brother of United States President Richard Nixon.

For other people named Francis Nixon, see Francis Nixon (disambiguation).
Donald Nixon
Donald Nixon (second from right)
Born
Francis Donald Nixon

(1914-11-23)November 23, 1914
Yorba Linda, California, U.S.
DiedJune 27, 1987(1987-06-27) (aged 72)
Whittier, California, U.S.
Spouse(s)
Clara Jane Lemke
​
(m. 1942)​
ChildrenRichard C. Nixon
Donald A. Nixon
Lawrene Mae Nixon Anfinson
Parent(s)Hannah Milhous Nixon
Francis A. Nixon
RelativesHarold Nixon (brother)
Richard Nixon (brother)
Arthur Nixon (brother)
Edward Nixon (brother)
Pat Nixon (sister-in-law)
Edward F. Cox (nephew-in-law)
Tricia Nixon Cox (niece)
David Eisenhower (nephew-in-law)
Julie Nixon Eisenhower (niece)
Christopher N. Cox (great-nephew)
Jennie Eisenhower (great-niece)
Sarah Ann Wadsworth Nixon (paternal grandmother)
Samuel Brady Nixon
(paternal grandfather)
Almira Park Burdg Milhous
(maternal grandmother)
Franklin Milhous
(maternal grandfather)

Family

He was the third of five children:

  • Harold Nixon (June 1, 1909 – March 7, 1933)
  • Richard Nixon (January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994)
  • Donald Nixon (November 23, 1914 – June 27, 1987)
  • Arthur Nixon (May 26, 1918 – August 10, 1925)
  • Edward Nixon (May 3, 1930 – February 27, 2019)

Life

Nixon married Clara Jane Lemke (1920–2013[1]) in 1942 and had two sons, Richard C. Nixon and Donald A. Nixon, and a daughter, Lawrene Mae Nixon Anfinson.

Billboard for Nixon's restaurant, Orange County, circa 1955

In January 1957 Howard Hughes lent Nixon $205,000 to bail out his "Nixon's" drive-in restaurant in Whittier, California.[2] The restaurant went bankrupt less than a year later. Questions about whether this was a political favor dogged Richard Nixon during his campaign for president and later when he sought the governorship of California.[3]

Nixon never lived it down, and one of the many speculated motives for the 1972 Watergate burglary that ultimately led to Richard Nixon's resignation was a desire to find proof that the then-Democratic National Committee chairman Larry O'Brien was also secretly working for Hughes.[4] John H. Meier, one of Hughes' former business advisors, in collaboration with former vice president Hubert Humphrey and others, was using Donald Nixon to feed misinformation to his brother, the President. Meier told Donald that he was sure the Democrats would win the election, since they had a lot of information on Richard Nixon's illicit dealings with Howard Hughes which had never been released, and that Larry O'Brien had the information[5]

In 1974 the staff of the Senate Watergate committee disclosed additional information to support the charge that Charles Rebozo gave or lent part of a $100,000 campaign contribution to President Nixon's personal secretary, Rose Mary Woods, and to Nixon's brothers, Donald and Edward Nixon.[6]

Media portrayals

Donald Nixon was portrayed by Sean Stone in the 1995 Oliver Stone film Nixon.

Death

On June 27, 1987, Donald Nixon died while undergoing hospital treatment for pneumonia. He was 72 years old.[7]

References
  1. ABC News. "Politics". ABC News.
  2. DuBois, Larry, and Laurence Gonzales (September 1976). The Puppet and the Puppetmasters. Archived June 23, 2006, at the Wayback Machine Playboy
  3. Stern, Carl (April 10, 1974). Vanderbilt Television News Archive: Howard Hughes Contribution / Kalmbach Version. NBC Evening News
  4. Haldeman, H.R. and Joseph Dimona (1978). The Ends of Power. Dell: ISBN 0-440-12239-2
  5. "Hughes Nixon and the C.I.A.", Playboy magazine, September 1976
  6. Crewdson, John M. (July 11, 1974). Report Questions Rebozo's Account on Hughes Funds. The New York Times
  7. Saxon, Wolfgang (June 30, 1987). "DONALD NIXON, 72, DIES IN CALIFORNIA". www.nytimes.com. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.