1979

1979-- And after the grim years of political unrest and assassinations during the 60’s, there was yet another assassination attempt in 1979 which you may or may not remember. On April 20, President Jimmy Carter was attacked by a rabbit during a fishing trip in Plains, Georgia. The rabbit, which may have been fleeing a predator, swam toward his boat, "hissing menacingly, its teeth flashing and nostrils flared." President Carter was forced to beat off the vicious beast with a canoe paddle. It made front page news and he got a lot of criticism, saying he couldn’t fight off Russia and the Ayatolla Khomeini but he sure knew how to defend himself from a vicious bunny rabbit.

One thing that I do remember is that when Dad and Mom came to OK for our wedding. They got off the train in OKC, Dad looked all around and said, "I never looked so far and saw so little in all my life." He always called me Okie, so I had to reciprocate and call him Yankee.—Joyce Hancock