David Eisenhower

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David Eisenhower
David Eisenhower by Gage Skidmore.jpg
Eisenhower in 2021
Born
Dwight David Eisenhower II

(1948-03-31) March 31, 1948 (age 77)
West Point, New York, U.S.
Alma mater Amherst College (BA)
George Washington University (JD)
Occupation(s)Author, professor
Known forPartial namesake of Camp David
Spouse
​
(m. 1968)​
Children3, including Jennie
Parents
Relatives Dwight Eisenhower (grandfather)
Richard Nixon (father-in-law)
Mamie Eisenhower (grandmother)
Pat Nixon (mother-in-law)

Dwight David Eisenhower II (born March 31, 1948) is an American author, public policy fellow, television host, and eponym of the U.S. presidential retreat Camp David. He is the grandson of President Dwight D. Eisenhower and First Lady Mamie Eisenhower and a son-in-law of President Richard Nixon and First Lady Pat Nixon.

Contents

Early life and family

Eisenhower, then age 12, poses with a sign in 1960 at the presidential retreat named after him. David Eisenhower in Camp David.jpg
Eisenhower, then age 12, poses with a sign in 1960 at the presidential retreat named after him.

Dwight David Eisenhower II, better known as David, is named after his grandfather, Dwight D. Eisenhower. David Eisenhower was born on March 31, 1948, in West Point, New York, to Barbara (Thompson) and John Eisenhower. He was the Eisenhowers' only son and the eldest of their four children. Eisenhower's father, a U.S. Army officer, would later serve as a brigadier general in the U.S. Army Reserve and as United States Ambassador to Belgium (1969–1971); he was a renowned military historian. His grandfather served as Supreme Allied Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Forces in Europe during World War II, as president of Columbia University (1948–1953), and as the 34th president of the United States (1953-1961).[ citation needed ]

After assuming the presidency in 1953, Dwight Eisenhower renamed the presidential mountain retreat (formerly Camp Shangri-La) Camp David, both after his grandson and after his father, David Jacob Eisenhower. [1]

Education

Eisenhower graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy in 1966. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in history cum laude from Amherst College in 1970 where he sang in the collegiate a cappella group the Zumbyes. [2] [3] After college, he served for three years as an officer in the United States Naval Reserve. [4] During this time, he was assigned to the USS Albany in the Mediterranean Sea. [5] He then earned his J.D. degree cum laude from The George Washington University Law School in 1976. [6]

Career

Eisenhower was a statistician with the Washington Senators during the 1970 season. [7] He was also a Sunday baseball columnist covering the Philadelphia Phillies for The Bulletin from May to August of 1973. [8]

Eisenhower was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in history in 1987 for his work Eisenhower At War, 1943-1945 about the Allied leadership during World War II. [6] [9]

Eisenhower has worked as a teaching adjunct and public policy fellow at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. [10] [11] He has also served as co-chair of the Foreign Policy Research Institute's History Institute for Teachers. From 2001 to 2003, he was editor of Orbis , a quarterly published by the institute. [6]

He is the host of a public television series called The Whole Truth with David Eisenhower, distributed by American Public Television. [12]

Personal life

Julie and David Eisenhower (age 23) in 1971 Eisenhower julie david.jpg
Julie and David Eisenhower (age 23) in 1971

On December 22, 1968, Eisenhower married Julie Nixon, a daughter of then President-elect Nixon, who had served as Dwight Eisenhower's vice president. The couple had known each other since meeting at the 1956 Republican National Convention. Eisenhower had served as Julie Nixon's civilian escort at the International Debutante Ball at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. [13] The Reverend Norman Vincent Peale officiated in the non-denominational rite at the Marble Collegiate Church in New York City. [14] [15]

The Eisenhowers live in Berwyn, Pennsylvania. [16] They have three children: actress Jennie Elizabeth Eisenhower (born August 15, 1978); [17] Alexander Richard Eisenhower (b. 1980); and Melanie Catherine Eisenhower (b. 1984). [18]

In 1970, Eisenhower accepted a request to attend the funeral of Dan Mitrione, an operative whose involvement in training Uruguayan police in torture techniques later caused profound controversy. [19] There has been no suggestion that Eisenhower had any knowledge of Mitrione's controversial activities.

Due to his connection with Julie and President Nixon, Eisenhower was one inspiration for the Creedence Clearwater Revival song "Fortunate Son", released in 1969. [20] The song's author and singer, John Fogerty, wrote:

'Fortunate Son' wasn't really inspired by any one event. Julie Nixon was dating David Eisenhower. You'd hear about the son of this senator or that congressman who was given a deferment from the military or a choice position in the military. They seemed privileged and whether they liked it or not, these people were symbolic in the sense that they weren't being touched by what their parents were doing. They weren't being affected like the rest of us. [21]

References

  1. ↑ "Camp David" Archived 2018-09-17 at the Wayback Machine at Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum, and Boyhood Home" site. Says "Ike re-named it 'Camp David' in honor of his grandson David Eisenhower." Retrieved August 3, 2012.
  2. ↑ "THE 60's COME TO A FULL BOIL 1968". The New York Times. 1977-11-13. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2025-03-11.
  3. ↑ "David Eisenhower - Trivia". IMDb. Retrieved 2025-03-11.
  4. ↑ Time, February 9, 1970.
  5. ↑ snopes (18 December 2015). "Is Creedence Clearwater Revival's 'Fortunate Son' About Al Gore? : snopes.com". snopes.
  6. 1 2 3 "David Eisenhower, Grandson of 34th President, to Address Misericordia Commencement Ceremony" (Press release). Misericordia University. April 9, 2008. Retrieved November 12, 2008.
  7. ↑ "Birds of a Feather Flock to Bob," Sports Illustrated, 2 November 1970. Retrieved 11 August 2025.
  8. ↑ "Eisenhower to Drop Column," The Associated Press (AP), Saturday 25 August 1973. Retrieved 10 August 2025.
  9. ↑ "History (Winners & Finalists)". The Pulitzer Prizes. Columbia University. Retrieved November 13, 2008.
  10. ↑ "Lindback and Provost's Awards: 2003 Winners — Provost's Award: David Eisenhower". Almanac. University of Pennsylvania. April 22, 2003. Archived from the original on September 20, 2011. Retrieved November 12, 2008.
  11. ↑ "David Eisenhower is named recipient of the Provost's Award for Distinguished Teaching". The Annenberg School for Communication at University of Pennsylvania. April 18, 2003. Archived from the original on June 13, 2010. Retrieved November 12, 2008.
  12. ↑ "The Whole Truth With David Eisenhower - Television Series". Archived from the original on 2017-04-26. Retrieved 2017-04-25.
  13. ↑ Yazigi, Monique (January 1997). "The Debutante Returns, With Pearls and Plans". The New York Times. Retrieved December 30, 2017.
  14. ↑ Kunen, James S. (December 16, 1985). "Iowa-Born Actor Fred Grandy, Alias Love Boat's Gopher Smith, Plots a Course for Washington". People . Vol. 24, no. 25. New York: Time Inc. Retrieved July 4, 2017.
  15. ↑ "Portrait of Julie Nixon and David Eisenhower with Maid of Honor and Best Man". Getty Images. Retrieved July 4, 2017.
  16. ↑ Bennett, Kitty (December 22, 2010). "Where Are They Now? Julie and David Eisenhower". AARP Bulletin . p. 1. Retrieved July 29, 2019.
  17. ↑ David Eisenhower at IMDb
  18. ↑ "'Going Home to Glory': Portrait of a general, president, and grandfather". philly-archives. Archived from the original on March 19, 2011.
  19. ↑ "Dan Mitrione, un maestro de la tortura". 2 September 2001. Archived from the original on 11 April 2021. Retrieved 29 May 2009.
  20. ↑ "Is Creedence Clearwater Revival's 'Fortunate Son' About Al Gore?". Urban Legends Reference Pages. Snopes.com. 15 August 2006. Retrieved August 25, 2006.
  21. ↑ Fogerty, John (2015). Fortunate Son: My Life, My Music. With Jimmy McDonough. Little, Brown. p. 190. ISBN   978-0316244565.

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