M Richard Nixon

Richard Nixon (1913–1994), the 37th President (1969–1974), was a complex figure. He successfully ended American involvement in Vietnam, opened diplomatic relations with Communist China, and signed major environmental legislation. He won re-election in a landslide in 1972, but his presidency unraveled due to the Watergate scandal – a political espionage and cover-up that led Nixon to resign in 1974, the only U.S. President to do so.

Interesting anecdote: One of the most requested photographs in the National Archives is of Nixon meeting Elvis Presley. In December 1970, superstar Elvis showed up at the White House requesting to meet Nixon. The infamous photo of the straight-laced president and the King of Rock ’n’ Roll shaking hands in the Oval Office captures a surreal pop-culture moment in American history.