Images from the Hoover Institution’s Firing Line collection

Image: 1/9

Image: 2/9

When Mother Teresa was a guest on the episode “Mother Teresa Talks with William F. Buckley Jr.” (program S0818), Buckley announced that he would “be inordinately, gratefully quiet as we listen to her,” 1989. Firing Line broadcasts, Box 130, Hoover Institution Archives.

Image: 3/9

Ronald Reagan made several appearances on the show, including “Is It Possible to Be a Good Governor?” (program S0010), 1971. Firing Line broadcasts, Box 104, Hoover Institution Archives.

Image: 4/9

In “Is America Hospitable to the Negro?” (program S0019), Jesse Jackson appeared “not in jacket and tie but in a boldly patterned T-shirt,” as noted in the program catalog, 1971. Firing Line broadcasts, Box 105, Hoover Institution Archives.

Image: 5/9

Image: 6/9

In 1979, Joan Baez and Ginetta Sagan were guests on the program “Human Rights in Vietnam” (program S0384), which was taped shortly after Baez had sponsored a full-page ad calling on Hanoi to stop its imperialism and torture of political prisoners. Firing Line broadcasts, Box 116, Hoover Institution Archives.

Image: 7/9

The Dalai Lama could understand English well enough but needed an interpreter to speak with Buckley on “The Dalai Lama Looks Back” (program S0619), 1984. Firing Line broadcasts, Box 123, Hoover Institution Archives.

Image: 8/9

Norman Mailer and Kurt Vonnegut were guests on “What Does PEN Have to Offer?” (program S0673), 1986. In his book On the Firing Line: The Public Life of Our Public Figures, Buckley discusses Mailer’s evasiveness during his Firing Line appearances. Firing Line broadcasts, Box 125, Hoover Institution Archives.

Image: 9/9

Cover of a publicity handout, 1967. Firing Line broadcasts, Box 1, Hoover Institution Archives.