A Visit to Washington with Mrs. Lyndon B. Johnson on Behalf of a More Beautiful America (1966)

Duration: 58:55:00

Year Published: 1966

Format: 16mm

Sound: sound

Description: In 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law the Highway Beautification Act, providing for outdoor advertising control, junkyard control, and highway landscaping. First Lady Lady Bird Johnson actively supported the legislation, becoming the first president’s wife to directly interact with Congress. As a result, the act was informally known as Lady Bird’s Bill. Following the successful passage of the Highway Beautification Act, Lady Bird starred in this 1966 television special for ABC News. In “A Visit to Washington with Mrs. Lyndon B. Johnson on Behalf of a More Beautiful America,” Lady Bird gushes over the beauty of the capital city and explains the immense planning that went into its design. She next recognizes the potential consequences of an ever-growing population, from pollution and junkyards to encroaching road signs and slums. Lady Bird expresses a hope, however, in extending the beauty of the White House grounds to the rest of the city, and lists a few preliminary steps towards ensuring a more beautiful tomorrow. For as she concludes, “all cities must constantly change, but they need not grow ugly.” Lady Bird received a George Foster Peabody Emmy Award for the special.