Max Schindler

In his two-and-a-half-hour interview, Max Schindler (1930-2022) talks about his early years as a cameraman/production manager in 1950's local television. He describes his foray into network television in the 1960s as an associate director on David Brinkley's Journal and speaks of his subsequent transition to director. He talks about news coverage of important events of the day, including the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Civil Rights Movement, and the Vietnam War. He describes directing news coverage in the days after the Kennedy assassination: capturing the images of the president's coffin being placed onto Air Force One and the newly sworn-in Lyndon B. Johnson speaking his first words as president. Schindler recounts covering other 1960's events, including Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech and the 1968 Democratic National Convention protests. He outlines his two-decade-long association with Meet the Press, which he began in 1965, and shares his preparations for the show and tales of several guests and moderators on the series. He speaks of his work from the 1970s through 2003 covering such events as the Watergate scandal, the returning of the hostages from Iran, and papal visits to the U.S. Finally, Schindler describes his work as a Washington director for the Today show since 1975. Karen Herman conducted the interview on October 13, 2003 in Washington, DC.