In Love and War (1987) - full transcript

- Mrs. Stockdale, I'm Dr. Relander.

Please come on in.

Please, Mrs. Stockdale, take a seat.

It's really very comfortable.

- I guess you wanna know why I'm here.

I guess you wanna know why I'm here.

I loved the whole idea of
being married to an officer.

I never thought he might die.

Maybe I was naive but...

Every time I look at the boys,

I see his face and I...



It was the summer of 1964.

That's when it all began.

Jim was a squadron commander

on the USS Ticonderoga.

They were off the coast of Vietnam.

It was August 4th, August 4th.

This is Batter Up 101.

Request immediate launch
without a wingman.

Roger, Batter Up.

We are assessing the situation.

Batter Up, you are
cleared without a wingman.

Switching
to Maddox frequency.

- Maddox, this is Batter Up.

15 miles out, coming straight in.



Batter Up, this is Maddox.

We're tracking what appears

to be North Vietnamese PT boats.

And we are at battle
stations ready to open fire.

Maddox, this is Batter Up.

Level edge, 1,000 feet.

North Vietnamese PT boats

moving across the north.

Maddox, I see your wakes.

Inbound heading 321.

Enemy boat's closing.

From the northeast, ten miles.

Maddox, all I
see is you and Turner Joy.

Torpedo in the water!

Maddox I see you firing.

Coming in for a closer look.

40-0-2-7.

Maddox,
I'm crossing you bow now.

Batter Up, enemy
boat closing from astern.

Maddox,
I'm along side you now.

Batter Up, we're
taking a boat under fire.

Torpedo in the water!

Torpedo from the south,

torpedo in the water!

Maddox, I'll fire astern.

Maddox, I am now firing astern.

Torpedo in the water!

Torpedo in the water!

Maddox,
I don't see anything.

Batter Up,
doing a hard port turn.

Roger, Maddox,
I see your port turn,

but I do not see any other boats.

No other wakes, repeat, no other wakes.

Enemy boats
closing in, 2,000 yards.

Maddox, I see you

and Turner Joy, nothing else.

Enemy boats firing.

- Repeat, Maddox.
- Enemy boats firing!

Torpedo in the water!

- What the hell is going on?

- Well maybe you could tell us.

- I don't know, I'm up
there almost two hours

firing everything I got,
running out of fuel.

- See any boats?

- Nothing.

No wakes, no torpedoes, no ricochets.

I come back here and
everybody's going to bed.

Where the hell is the war?

- Sir, this just came
down from the Maddox.

No enemy sightings, no
visual radar detected.

- Over eager sonar operator now thinks

he didn't see any boats at all.

- It was one big wild goose chase.

- Damn near break my neck

and what the hell kind of...

Micheal, you make sure
that Washington knows

I didn't see any boats, you got it?

I'm gonna hit the sack.

Commander?

Commander?

Commander.

The captain sent me down to wake you, sir.

What time is it?

- 0445, sir.

Sir, we just got a message from Washington

to launch strikes against North Vietnam.

What for?

- Reprisals, sir.

- Reprisals for what?

- For last nights attack
on the destroyer, sir.

The captain wants you
to lead the main strike

against the oil storage
facilities in Vinh.

It's Washington's number
one priority, sir.

Sir?
- Yeah.

- My fellow Americans,

as President and Commander in Chief,

it is my duty to the American people

to report that renewed hostile actions

against United State' ships

on the high seas in the Gulf of Tonkin

have today required me

to order the military forces

of the United States to
take action in reply.

At the White House today,

President Johnson signed
the Tonkin Gulf Resolution

supporting all necessary measures

to prevent further
aggression in Southeast Asia.

In ordering air strikes
against North Vietnam,

the president's national popularity

has jumped 14 points,

an important gain in
his bid for re-election

against Senator Barry Goldwater.

Sybil!

Taylor.

Oh, the giant is about to awake. Ah!

- Sybil!

- I feel this giant getting up.

Diane, help me!

- Come on, let's go.

- Just think if you had
to wait for high tide.

Jim called.

- You?

- Well he couldn't reach you.

He's ready to be picked up
at March Air Force Base.

- Oh good, he got my cable.

- Mm.

- But I thought he'd
go right to his father.

- Oh, well he decided to come home first.

He said he's leaving
for Illinois tomorrow.

- Stan!

Bath time!

- Just one more time, ma.

Now, go on up, Stan.

I'll be up in a minute, come on. Boom.

- I'll get us started.

- And no tidal waves.

- Tidal waves?

- Mother sent them this
book on mother nature

and they decided to make one
in the bathroom this week.

- I wish I was going with you.

- I'll be okay.

Aw, Mom, Taylor got
in the tub with his diaper on!

I'm coming.

- Syb.

- Dad, I miss you.

I felt you right there
next to me this morning

on the train, looking
out across the fields.

Everything seemed so simple and I just,

I thought about it today.

About us taking the
train down from Chicago

to Annapolis my first year.

I remember, I was so scared,

the spit was gone from my mouth

You, you just smiled

and you took me on out
the back of the train

and we watched the rails till the sunset,

just like it was the front porch.

You were so proud

hearing me take that oath.

So I thought today about where I've been

and what I've come to.

And, Dad, I never questioned
that it would all make sense,

only now, it doesn't somehow

in the Gulf of Tonkin.

And I thought if we could just sit

on the back of that train one more time.

There are so many things
left for you to tell me.

But I know what you'd tell me,

"Do your best to be the
best midshipman here."

Oh, Dad, I'm trying.

I'm trying.

- You're supposed to soak.

- You are, huh?

- And then you lie back on a futon

with a little bean filled
pillow under your head.

That's what the woman said.

Promise me.

- Promise?

- At the airport.

- At the airport?

- When we say goodbye,

we just walk away and not look back.

- We should try these, perhaps.

- Jim.

- Yeah, I think so.

Yes.

Beautiful.

I think so.

- We can't afford this.

Thank you.

- Thank you.

- He said we should put
it all in a mutual fund.

Margaret Girster knows
this man in San Diego

who has a brother in New York

who has an investment
firm, but I don't know.

Why didn't you tell me that Tom Henders-

- Syb.
- What?

- Do what you think is best.

- No, I guess we'll just wait

until you come home to decide.

I wish it was now.

- I love you.

Be right back, thanks.

Passengers
boarding for Yokohama,

please be advised, the
flight has been delayed

due to weather conditions.

Check with your carrier
for further information.

- You're all set.

- Why is it always the same?

- Next year we'll be in Washington.

- I love you.

Flight number 221,

now boarding at gate number two.

Will passengers please proceed directly

to gate number two.

- It was his last cruise
as a fighter pilot

before going to Washington.

He was the carrier air group commander,

the boss of all the pilots.

"My dearest Syb, we're heading
south for the firing line,

and I'm about to force myself

to get on with this terrible business.

007, this is Weather Scout.

Zero, zero at the bridge and heavy rain.

Old Salt 2, this is 007.

Flight proceeding to secondary targets.

Roger 007, Old
Salt 2 right behind you.

- Old Salt 2, this is 007 rolling in.

All right, here we go.

Old Salt 2, I'm hit! 007, I'm hit!

Control system's going ape.

Old salt 2, this is 007, mayday, mayday!

Losing altitude, going down to 1,500 feet.

Mayday, mayday, 007.

Mayday, mayday, mayday!

Goodnight, Mommy.

- He ejected at around 1,000 feet.

He was seen landing in a
heavily populated area.

- What about the radio beeper?

- There were no signs of life

after the parachute hit the ground.

- But you don't know?

He'll be listed
as missing for the time being.

- If he's alive or dead?

- Any new information will be
forwarded to you immediately.

- Mom, do you think he's dead?

- Jimmy, I'll always tell you the truth.

I don't know what to think.

Criminals under obligation

to give full and clear
return of all answers

to all questions raised by
the government soldiers.

All attempts and tricks intended

to evade answering further questions

and acts directed to opposition

by refusing to answer any questions

will be considered a manifestation

of obstinacy and antagonism

which is subject to punishment.

The criminals must demonstrate a cautious

and polite attitude towards the officers

and guards in the the camp

and must render greetings when met by them

by bowing all the way down at the waist.

When the Vietnamese officers and guards

come to the rooms for inspection

or when they are required
by the camp officers

to come to the room,

the criminals must carefully

and neatly put on their clothes

and stand at attention, bow greeting,

and await further orders.

The criminals must maintain silence

in the detention rooms.

- Refused to answer

their questions.

We iron

for rope,

suffocating.

- Please, sit down.

How are you feeling?

Is your food adequate?

Stockdale.

You and I voices.

We must join together to
bring this war to an end.

You will help?

You do not realize it now,

but I think you will.

- I want to know why we are being kept

in solitude and filth.

Why medical work on my leg-

- You are not entitled

to question about camp privileges.

You are guilty of bombing
schools, churches.

These are crimes against humanity.

But do not forget, in this country,

we take care of medical problems

only after political
problems are resolved.

- I understand, I just wanna know

if his family will continue
to receive his pay.

Well, what is the Navy's policy

regarding men missing in action?

I see.

Well then, you'll let me
know as soon as possible?

Thank you. Goodbye.

All right, one more I think.

- Mommy, I'm sorry about Dad.

- Me too.

All right, let's get these off

and you can go back to your room.

What have I done?

- We want you to tell your government

to stop this illegal and immoral war.

Even your Senator Fulbright

says America has guilt in their conscious.

Even Fulbright who supported
the trumped-up charges

of the so-called North Vietnamese
attack on your destroyers.

Sit down.

Our country cannot win this
war on the battlefield.

But war is not decided by weapons

as so much by the national will.

And once the American
people understand this war,

they will have no more
interest in pursuing it,

and we'll win this war on
the streets of New York.

This is what you must write.

You are an old man.

You must think of yourself.

Go back to your cell and work on it.

- "The American forces
of imperialist aggression

are wantonly bombing schools,

churches, and pagodas."

This is what you want, right?

Stupid Pidgin English propaganda,

and I'm clean, is that it?

Hm? What's next?

'Cause see I know what's next.

I know what you want me to write,

what you're waiting for me to write

for your war on the streets of New York.

The true story of the Gulf of Tonkin.

You'd like that little
secret, wouldn't ya?

Feed it to America's
conscience, end the war.

The opening ploy is a test.

Tip of the iceberg test, a
silly, stupid, little test.

Do your best to be the
best midshipman here.

- Write it.

- No.

- Write the paper.

Will you submit?

- No.

- Will you submit?

- I submit.

Both of these of the?

- Uh, I don't know which is flip side.

- Commander Hawkins, I
have four boys to feed.

I have a mortgage that is due

at the end of the month.

I want to know right now

whether or not we are going

to receive my husbands paycheck.

And if you cannot give me an answer,

then I am going to call the admiral

in charge of Navy personnel.

Yes, I'll wait.

Special delivery? Thank you.

Sometimes I dream about the way he looked,

looks.

The dark blue uniform, the gold buttons,

the white gloves.

It was eight months,

eight months and I still hadn't heard

anything about Jim.

I tried to fight the fear
by reading about Vietnam,

the climate, the people, this war.

In you go.

- Call me if you wanna go to a movie.

- Yeah, okay, I'll see
if Karen can babysit.

- Great, I'll talk to you later.

- Yup, that was fun.

- Bye.

- Doyen! Doyen!

- What is it, what's wrong?

- These came, one's from Jim.

- He's alive.

- But the other one someone else wrote.

I don't know,

I just don't wanna be alone in the house

when I read them.

- Okay.

- I keep thinking over all the years,

the things I meant to say and never did,

even though reason tells me you understand

how deeply I love you.

I only wish now I had said more,

for you must know you are the purpose

and love of my life.

All my love, Jim.

Hello?

Yes?

Oh, I didn't expect to
hear from you so soon.

Well, I knew Jim would want
the Navy to read his letters.

Yes, there were many confusing things.

Yes, I thought maybe he just forgot.

Um, near you?

Que sera sera, fry me a
cookie in a can of lard.

Well there are others, but I-

I see.

Yes, I suppose so.

Okay. Fine.

I'll let you know, thank you. Goodbye.

- Who was that, Mom?

- A Commander Boroughs
of Naval Intelligence.

Something about Dad.

He wants me to come to Washington.

- When you got to the part where he wrote,

"I wish you'd repay Paul Blake

a couple of stamp books.

Just drop by, he lives right
across from the Shribers,"

what'd you think?

It made no sense.

First of all, it's not like Jim

to worry about a couple of stamp books.

And secondly, Paul lives 400 miles away.

- You know who lives across
the street from Paul Blake?

- No.

- Commander Harry Chadway.

He's been listed as missing.

We think that Jim is trying to tell us

that Chadway is alive in Hanoi.

- I had no idea.

I'd like you
to think about something.

The North Vietnamese are withholding

virtually all information about our men.

Now, we think we can establish a channel

of communications with
our prisoners in Hanoi.

We need your help.

- But isn't that dangerous?

I mean, what if Jim got caught?

They'd kill him, wouldn't they?

And I'd be responsible.

- I'm not gonna lie.

You'd be taking his life in your hands.

That's why I want you

to think it over very carefully.

- Mommy. Mommy?

Is Daddy a criminal?

- No.

- Some kids down at
the beach were talking.

- Your father is a prisoner of war.

Now, that doesn't mean
he's done anything wrong.

You're going to be
hearing a lot of things.

Some of them are true,

and some of them are not true.

But the important thing
is how we feel about Dad

because nothing, not even a
war can change that can it?

- You're mother and I,
we were watching the news

and there's something I
think you should know.

The North Vietnamese,
they say they're going

to try the prisoners as war criminals.

- I had a dream last night.

I was sitting, watching television,

and the boys were next to me.

And we watched as they brought Jim out.

His wrists were bound, he was blindfolded,

and then they put him
up against a stone wall.

He looked so tiny.

Somebody shouted, and the rifles rose

and they shot him dead.

I just sat there and watched.

- Sybil.

I just sat
there and let it happen.

How old is Jim's mother?

- 77.

The thing is about Jim's mother,

she would never make a
surprise visit anywhere.

She's afraid of flying and
she won't go near the water

because she afraid of being drowned.

I figure if I put all of
that in a letter to Jim,

then he'll know somethings up.

It all sounds so simple,

if he doesn't get caught.

♪ Silent night ♪

♪ Holy night ♪

♪ All is calm ♪

♪ All is bright ♪

♪ Round yon virgin ♪

♪ Mother and child ♪

♪ Holy infant so ♪

♪ Tender and mild ♪

♪ Sleep in heavenly peace ♪

♪ Sleep in ♪

♪ In heavenly ♪

♪ Peace ♪

- Stockdale, please sit down.

On the occasion of your religious holiday,

the Democratic Republic of Vietnam

offers you tea

and sweets.

And we offer you a banana

brought here by Cuban visitors.

On the occasion of Christmas

my government presents you

these two letters from your wife.

In here are two photographs,

one of your children,

and one of your mother.

- "Jimmy started prep school in September

just as we had planned.

He sent me a picture of himself

in his varsity football uniform.

And speaking of pictures,

I'm sending you one of your mother.

She surprised us all last week

by flying out on impulse."

We all, flying out?

"We all went for a swim in the ocean

and I took this picture.

She sends you her

enduring love, as always."

Swim in the ocean? Flying out?

This is not my mother.

This cannot be my mother.

I know it's not my mother.

"I stopped by Paul Blake's the other day

and paid back the stamps you borrowed."

Paid back the stamps.

Sybil, you paid back the stamps.

"Paul and I shared a good laugh

remembering your first cruise together.

He sends his regards.

I loved your letters.

How I loved your letters the way I was

when I was your darling,

and you my adoring husband."

Returning
from Hanoi last week,

Reverend Stevers said
one American prisoner

told how, when he ejected from his plane,

he expected to be killed
or tortured by his captors,

but awakened instead
in the care of a nurse.

This report confirms government statements

regarding prisoner treatment.

- Sid, come on.

Women's strike for peace, San Francisco?

"Darling.

Your adoring husband."

You got it.

You got it.

Is that why you came all
the way out from Washington?

- Yeah, it's the message that Jim sent.

You know I promised you I'd
always tell you the truth.

I'll be right outside.

Oh, God.

16 hours a day.

I tried to imagine 16
hours a day being tortured.

And I thought, "Well now,

now the government will go to the press

and tell the world the
truth about North Vietnam."

Because we, the wives,

we weren't supposed to talk to anyone.

That's what the Navy said,

"Help your men by keeping quiet."

Weeks went by. Months.

Nothing happened.

16 hours a day.

Ambassador Harriman,

I think we both know the truth.

- The North Vietnamese

do not acknowledge the Geneva Convention.

But we are doing everything possible

to ensure the humane treatment of our men.

I can assure you.

We are covering a wide
range of activities.

- I want to know what is being done

to help our prisoners of war?

- Unfortunately, I am not at liberty

to give you any details.

- It's been two years since
my husband was shot down.

I have been sitting home,

I have been keeping quiet,

but when I hear that representatives

from the State Department

believe that our prisoners of war

are being held in private homes,

living an easy life teaching English,

then I think it's time

for the public to know the truth.

- August, 1964.

You were where?

- The Mediterranean.

VF 32.

- Stockdale, you are educated man.

And I know you understand the world,

that you could be a force for peace.

Hundreds of Americans are captured now.

You must help me lead
them against the war,

this war brought upon my
country by your government.

The time is nigh.

- The time is nigh, the time is nigh,

what the hell is that supposed to mean?

Major Bui, what is that supposed to mean?

Either way, you figure you'll win right?

Either I'll come around or I'll screw up.

And then what, what will you win?

What, the Gulf of Tonkin?

Well, the bad news is,

you already know the truth about that.

And if you think that I know the truth

and you want me to tell
the whole world about it,

you just roll out the ropes, is that it?

Well, the good news is,

you don't know that I know.

No, not yet.

Not ever.

You will never know.

- Hi.

I'm Mike Haggerty.

- Jim Stockdale.

We are happy today

to share a program with
our American war criminals.

You will read from articles

by the distinguished American
journalist Harrison Salisbury

of the "New York Times"

who has visited Hanoi.

Despite air defense training,

civil defense work, military training,

life goes on in Hanoi.

When an air alert sounds,

the workers take their guns

and their tin hats and rush for the roof

or posts in the open beside
the air-raid shelters.

There they stand with guns at the ready,

scanning the sky for sight
of an American plane.

Hanoi authority said the toll,

the toll of child casualties

in the raids of December 13th and 14th

was unusually high,

because many were small children

left unattended.
- Stop, stop.

At home while their parents were.

- They'll use us against each other.

- The youngsters.
- They'll find a way.

Did not know how
to get in the shelters

or did not realize that the
attacks were in progress.

- Okay.

A pledge is being prepared

for those bad criminals who've assisted

in inciting others to
oppose the camp soldiers.

All the rest of the criminals

must strive to be worthy of amenities,

leniency, and generosity.

Those who repent will be permitted

to go home even before the war is over.

- It's so simple.

Don't you see? It's working.

Everyone is refusing to
read on the camp radio.

He's gone.

- Get it together.

we all refused to obey their demands.

They can't fight us.

- Every time I hear them take someone out,

I don't know.

I keep thinking, "Christmas Day,

they'll have me hang from the ceiling

on the hook upside down.

I refused to write, "I'm a war criminal.

I bombed churches, schools, and pagodas."

I thought, "Hell, you know,

I'll hang here all day.

They could beat me to a bloody pulp.

I'll die before I write what they want."

Then they put me in the ropes.

Well, I was crying like a baby.

It was ridiculous.

I couldn't hold out.

- I know, Mike.

- I just couldn't.

- I know. None of us can.

Believe me, we've all felt a failure.

That's what they want, fear of the pain,

the guilt of giving up

some useless bit of information.

It's the edge they need,

to break us down, take
away our self respect,

make us tools for their propaganda.

But I'm telling you, we can stop it.

- How?

- By saying no.

We must refuse to be reasonable.

We have to make them hurt us

before we give them anything,

day after day, everyone of us forcing them

to pay a price to get what they want.

We need our own system of laws,

our own criteria for right and wrong

to keep our self respect,

to live with the torture.

It's the only way that
life will make sense here.

The two
East German journalists

spent seven weeks in North Vietnam.

They recorded the American prisoners,

who were well treated,

and their daily ration include soup, rice,

vegetables, meat, fruit, and tea.

The camp was said to be so comfortable

that the prisoners call
it the Hanoi Hilton.

The two East Germans claim the treatment

of the prisoners in Hanoi

does full credit to the Geneva Convention.

Sources close to the-

- I have been going through your records.

Your biographical file is
incomplete and misleading.

Your first cruise in the Gulf of Tonkin,

it was in 1965.

Is it not true that you were there

in 1964 on carrier Ticonderoga?

Take these sheets of paper

and write a description
of all the secret meetings

and bombing missions you had flown.

- No.

Do you refuse to obey an order

of the camp authority?

- I'm sorry, Stockdale.

- Stockdale heading for riviera!

No! No!

No!

- When they put him in the ropes

and they wanted him to talk,

he said, "No sir, that is against

my commanding officers orders."

That was all they needed.

The Major was called in,

they cinched up the old ropes.

Spilled his guts, the orders, your name.

They've been taking guys in

trying to find the chain of command.

Paul Townsend, over in Thunderbird,

the guy, I saw him go,

but haven't heard from him since.

He's dead.

- Who is your central company?

- All of us, 212 Americans,

you'll have to kill us all.

- Hi.
- Hi!

- Okay if we stop

at the library?
- Sure.

- I wanna pick up some books

for my class.
- Fine.

- Read this.

- "Dear Captain Stockdale,

you have been selected
for Deep Draft Command?

Please except my most
sincere congratulations

on this achievement.

We will be attempting to place you

in command of your ship at an early date."

- Don't they know where he is?

For God's sakes, does anyone care?

"Yes, Mrs. Stockdale,

of course, Mrs. Stockdale,

we're doing everything
we can, Mrs. Stockdale.

You must understand,"
well it's been nine months

since I have heard from Jim
and I do not understand.

I feel so helpless.

16 hours a day Jim was being tortured.

I wanted to tell the whole world about it,

but if Hanoi found out

that I had inside information,

it might make it worse for him,

so I had to lie.

Now, I could lie to protect him,

but I couldn't lie anymore for my country,

my country that still refused

to tell the truth about out POWs.

- Mom? Mom?

It doesn't mean

that we have to do the same thing.

Hi, Stan. I'm busy now.

I'll talk to you later, okay?

The point is we want someone
from the State Department

to come to San Diego and
tell us what they are doing

to help our POWs, and that
is all we need to say.

- What makes you think
they're gonna answer us now?

We've been writing to them for months.

- Not as an organization.

We'll start by writing
to the State Department.

If we don't hear from them,

then we'll write to
every member of Congress.

We'll keep writing until
somebody gives us an answer.

- Stan.

You wanna play some ball?

- Did Doyen call?

Said she'd pick you up at 4:30.

- Oh, boy.

Sid, this goes in at five.

- Dr. Rossfield's office called.

Stan's new glasses will be ready Friday.

- Oh good.

Coleslaw and beans, okay?

I will try to get back in time,

but don't wait for me.

There's ketchup in the bag.

- Sybil they're ready for you.

- I'll be right there.

- Are you all right?

- Yes.

Would you hold this for me please?

- Sure.

What would the League

like to tell our listening audience?

- We want the Nixon Administration

to denounce the North
Vietnamese government

for it's treatment of the
American prisoners of war.

- You and the other prisoners' wives

have avoided any kind of publicity.

Why are you breaking your silence now?

- We feel that the only way

to change the treatment of the prisoners

is to hold the North Vietnamese government

up to world opinion,
and to tell the truth.

- What is the truth?

- That the International
Committee of the Red Cross

has been denied the right
to inspect the camps,

that there has been restriction
on the flow of mail.

- What about your husband?

Do you hear from him?

- Seven letters in the last three years.

I have written 55, he's
received perhaps four.

His mother died last year,

I have written that information

in every single letter,

and I don't think he still knows.

- There have been conflicting reports

about the treatment of the
prisoners in the camps.

- I think Jim is in solitary confinement,

he's lost weight, his
handwriting, it's deteriorated.

- Do you think he's being tortured?

- No.

- Sybil, I know it's
important what you're doing,

it's just, I don't know,
things have changed.

Oh, and I don't mean seeing your face

in all the newspapers, or here on TV.

I mean you're so caught up in it,

trying to do so much.

- I've heard that, okay?

I don't need to hear it from you.

I saw Dr. Rossfield this afternoon.

The reason Stan can't read,

the real reason, is because he's upset.

He doesn't have a daddy.

and he doesn't have a mommy.

Ready for bed?

Stan.

Come here.

I know you love Dad very much. I do too.

And I'm doing everything
I can to help him.

And because I've been so upset,

I've needed to keep busy.

Teaching, everything,

it's made me feel better,

but I think it's been unfair to you.

So I want you to know
I'm gonna stop teaching.

I'm gonna spend more time with you.

We can't do anything about Dad,

we can only try, but we need each other.

Okay?

What do you say?

Sit.

- I have been going through
your biographical file.

You have never submit a complete report

of your military activity
before being captured.

I understand now there are sometimes

more than 3,000 men on aircraft carrier.

In the Mediterranean, the
pilots in your squadron,

what were their names?

Surely you must remember.

- No.

- The summer of 1964?

- The North Vietnamese have claimed

that they are treating our men humanly.

I am distressed by the fact

that there is clear evidence

that this is not the case.

- Whoo!
- In the meantime,

we appeal to the North Vietnamese

and to the Viet Cong to respect

the human rights of those-
- This is what Mommy's

been working for, Stan.

- Whom they hold prisoners of war.

- Mom?

You can take this to Paris.

- Thank you.

As the wife of the
highest-ranking Naval officer

held prisoner in your country,

I feel an obligation to speak

for all the women who seek to know

whether they are wives or widows.

Will every member of our league

have to come to Paris in person

to make this inquiry?

- That will not be necessary.

We will answer all written inquiries.

- We have written.

- All letters sent to Paris

will be forwarded to Hanoi

and answered by mail.

- A woman called me before
I left to come here.

Her husband is listed as missing.

She has seven children, and she is dying.

She wants to know if she
will leave her children

with the knowledge that
their father will return,

or if she's going to
leave them as orphans.

I'd like to go home with an answer.

- We know all about you, Mrs. Stockdale.

We know that you are the pioneer

of this movement in your country.

We would advise you

to direct your questions
to your own government.

♪ West Side ♪

♪ All around the town ♪

♪ London Bridge is falling down ♪

♪ Boys and girls together ♪

♪ Me and Mamie O'Rourke ♪

♪ We tripped the light fantastic ♪

♪ On the sidewalks ♪

♪ Of New York ♪

- The general staff officer thanks you

for your secret report

on carrier personnel and defense.

You realize that you can be put in prison

in America for giving
such valuable information.

But it will be kept in strict confidence

as long as you are cooperative.

And now, he has suggested
that you be permitted

to take a bath and become more comfortable

for your trip downtown.

There will be many foreign journalists.

They have many questions to ask,

questions raised by American senators

about a so-called North Vietnamese attack

on the destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin.

The whole world is watching America,

trying to squirm out of this illegal war.

- Quickly.

- No, get to your feet!

You are not entitled to the ropes.

You will wear a hat.

- What are we going to do, huh?

What am I going to tell
the general staff officer

about all this downtown?

- You tell the major, "The
commander decided not to go."

- I try to imagine what it's like there,

his day, what he does,

what he thinks about, what he feels.

But I can't.

So I think, "You just have to work harder,

push harder to help, keep focused."

So we opened a national
headquarters here in Washington.

It was a long was from
my dinning room table.

- Mrs. Stockdale.
- Mrs. Stockdale.

It was five years
from when it all began.

Mrs. Stockdale, thank you.

Mrs. Stockdale, what did
the president tell you

in your meeting with him?

- President Nixon assured all of us

that an integral part of
any settlement of the war

must include a satisfactory resolution

of the prisoner issue.

Mrs. Stockdale,

have you received letters
from your husband?

- Yes, but not for a year.

The prisoners are now
allowed only to write

on an official form.

My husband wrote five lines,

Five lines, it's all I have left.

You didn't tell
me you lived in a mansion.

- Well, actually, it's the only house

I could find so quickly in Washington.

Oh, the boys are so glad to see you.

They have everything planned.

We'll go to the Smithsonian.

And I think that I can get
us into the White House.

And how about Monticello?

Oh, Jimmy has always wanted to go there.

And I keep forgetting,

Jimmy's away at school.

- You want to tell me what's going on?

You look like hell.

Have you seen a doctor?

- I'm just tired, all the time I'm tired.

- You're depressed.

- It was a mistake to
move back here, Doyen.

I don't know, Sid came
back from his school

and he didn't feel he belonged.

- Mistakes can be undone.

- Things cost more.

The boys don't have any real friends.

- Move back.

I don't have the money.

I've done everything I can think of to do.

And I still don't have Jim.

- I want you to see a doctor.

- I'm not sick!

- I didn't say you were,

I didn't say you were.

You need to talk to someone.

Sometimes friends are not enough.

- Mrs. Stockdale, I'm Dr. Relander.

Please, come on in.

Please, Mrs. Stockdale, take a seat.

It's really very comfortable.

- I guess you wanna know why I'm here.

I guess you wanna know why I'm here.

- Stockdale, I'm glad you are well again.

You have made for us great difficulties,

but all can be forgotten.

I need someone to talk
with an American professor

who is visiting Hanoi.

I assure you there will be no propaganda,

and all I want you to do is see him.

- You know I won't do that.

- We have much in common, Stockdale.

You and I are the same age, we have sense.

And I just hoped you will do this.

You know, I have a lot of pressure on me,

just as any military man.

- No.

- I'm sorry, there are
certain inconsistencies

in you file.

It could become worse for you.

How long has it been, Stockdale?

- Nearly six years.

- I'm afraid it's going to be a few more.

Mike Haggerty dead.

- What are you doing?

- Just reading some letters.

Just reading some letters from my wife,

what is the problem?

- Wolf Man, Sweet Pea,

Hawk, who are these names?

What is this Thunderbird?

Who are these finks?

This note, it has meany leads.

All have names, details, and the answers.

We will break your system this time.

Sit down.

You will sit in this chair tonight

and you will contemplate your crimes

against the Vietnamese people.

Tomorrow is when you start.

Tomorrow is when you will be brought down.

- I have to stop the interrogation.

I have to stop the flow.

Do your best

to be the best midshipman here.

- You know, with everything I've done,

I wonder if it's really
made any difference for Jim.

I think you've done more

than even you realize.

Always the optimist.

It's just that I don't
know what to do now.

- I have decided,

there will be no interrogation.

You will be moved back to your cell.

- Dad, I stopped the flow.

- I have asked for this radio

and television time tonight

for the purpose of
announcing that we, today,

have concluded an agreement to end the war

and bring peace with honor in Vietnam

and in Southeast Asia.

A ceasefire, internationally supervised,

will begin at seven PM this Saturday,

January 27, Washington time.

Within 60 days from this Saturday,

all Americans held prisoners of war

throughout Indochina will be released.

There will be the fullest
possible accounting

for all of those who
are missing in action.

During the same 60-day period,

all American forces will be
withdrawn from South Vietnam.

The people of South Vietnam
have been guaranteed the right

to determine their own future
without outside interference.

By joint agreement, the
full text of the agreement

and the protocols to carry it
out will be issued tomorrow.

Throughout these negotiations,

we have been in the closest consultation

with President Thieu and
other representatives

of the Republic of Vietnam.

The men will
receive complete medical checkups

and be debriefed here

at Clark Air Force Base in the Philippians

before going on to the States.

This first group of
American prisoners of war

held in North Vietnam was
released today in Hanoi.

Operation Homecoming has
been working around the clock

to ensure the best possible treatment.

- That's him isn't it?

The families
have been kept fully informed-

- Mom?
- By service representatives

and anxiously await-
- Yes.

Word from their loved ones.

Reunions are scheduled to
take place back in the States.

Hello?

Jim?

Syb?

- Yes.

This is Jim, Syb. Syb?

- Can you hear me?

Yes, yes I can. Can you hear me?

- Yes.

I'm proud of you, Syb.

I'm so proud about all you've been doing.

- I love you Jim.

Are you all right?

Well I've got a stiff leg,

I wouldn't worry though,

it gives me a little style.

I said it gives me a little style.

- It doesn't seem possible does it?

No Syb, it doesn't.

I haven't forgotten anything.

- I haven't either.

- I think if it hadn't been for her,

if she hadn't become the
public figure that she did,

the North Vietnamese would have left me

in that puddle of blood
on the floor to die.

So did you ever find out what happened

to that Gulf of Tonkin Resolution?

- I got a few laughs from
the fellas in Honolulu

when I said I was too young to remember.

But they said it became
a political football

while you were in prison.

Senator Fulbright had big hearings.

People became disillusioned with it.

Nixon finally declared
the thing null and void,

but by then it was 1971

and most people wanted to forget about it.

I don't know, it just kinda went away.

- Why don't you pull it tighter Jim?

I got it
tight, it's on the nail.

You gotta pull your end.

- I'm trying, there's a tree in my back.

- Well just hook it on the nail.

That's what I'm doing okay?

A little bit higher, Sid.

- You gotta go high, Sid.

How's that?

- That's fine.

Pull it tighter.

- I am, there's a seam
here, I don't wanna rip it.

You won't rip
it, don't worry about it.

- You can do better than that.

- For the past seven or eight years,

I doubt there was a
prisoner of war in Hanoi

who did not occasionally
hum that old refrain,

"California here we come."

Well, California, we have come.

I'm proud to represent these men.

We fought together,
we've laughed together,

we've cried together, and
we've prayed together.

Sometimes the words were those familiar

to you in this Navy crowd,

"If I am tempted, make
me strong to resist.

If I should miss the mark,

give me the courage to try again.

May I so live that I can
stand unashamed and unafraid

before my shipmates,

my loved ones, and thee."

I think God answered that prayer.

Thank you.

My fellow Americans,

as president and commander in chief,

it is my duty to the American people

to report that renewed hostile actions

against United States ships

on the high seas in the Gulf of Tonkin

have today required me

to order the military
forces of the United States

to take action in reply.

The initial attack on the Destroyer Maddox

on August 2nd was repeated today

by a number of hostile vessels

attacking two U.S.
destroyers with torpedoes.

The destroyers and supporting aircraft

acted at once on the orders I gave

after the initial act of aggression.