In the Matter of J. Robert Oppenheimer
Monday, April 12 - Thursday, May 6, 1954

The attorneys representing Oppenheimer were Lloyd K. Garrison, Samuel J. Silverman, and Herbert S. Marks. The AEC case was put by Roger Robb, assisted by Arthur Rolander. The three members of the board were Gordon Gray, president of the University of North Carolina and formerly Secretary of the Army; Thomas A. Morgan, former president of the Sperry Corporation; and Ward Evans, professor of chemistry at Northwestern University.

Of the forty witnesses who testified at the hearing, thirty-two appeared on Oppenheimer's behalf, and eight on behalf of the Atomic Energy Commission. Generally speaking, the Oppenheimer witnesses testified first, although there were some concessions made to the busy schedules of those involved. Throughout the hearing, members of the Gray board were free to question the witnesses. In the list below, witnesses summoned by Oppenheimer's team are marked [JRO] and those summoned by the Board are marked [AEC]. Page references are to the transcript as published by MIT press, In the Matter of J. Robert Oppenheimer: Transcript of Hearing before Personnel Security Board and Texts of Principal Documents and Letters (Cambridge MA: MIT Press, 1971).

Monday, April 12

AEC General Manager K.D. Nichols' December 23, 1953 letter of charges read into the record (Transcript, pp. 3-7)
Oppenheimer's March 4, 1954 response read into the record (7-20)
Preliminaries
Oppenheimer direct examination by Garrison begins (26-49)

Tuesday, April 13

Preliminaries (including Gray's scolding about the release of Nichols letter and Oppenheimer response to the New York Times)

Mervin J. Kelly, President of Bell Telephone Laboratory, NYC [JRO]
Garrison (57-61); Robb (61-65)

Oppenheimer direct examination continues (65-98)

Affadavit from John H. Manley, Professor of Physics, University of Washington (88-92) [JRO]
Manley's affadavit needs clarification, so they will ask for it (93) -- see below, April 27

Wednesday, April 14

Oppenheimer direct examination concludes (101-08)

Oppenheimer cross-examination by Robb begins (108-60)

Thursday, April 15

Leslie Groves, Rand Corp., former General U.S. Army [JRO]
Garrison (163-68); Robb (168-77); Garrison (177-79); Robb (179-80)

Oppenheimer cross-examination continues (180-220)

Friday, April 16

Preliminaries (223-24)

Oppenheimer cross-examination concludes (224-53)

Thomas K. Glennan, President, Case Institute, Cleveland [JRO]
Garrison (254-56), Robb no questions

Karl T. Compton, President, MIT, 1930-48 [JRO]
Garrison (257-58), Robb no questions

John Lansdale, former security officer at Los Alamos [JRO]
Garrsion (259-67); Robb (267-80); Garrison (280); Robb (280-81)

Monday, April 19

Discussion to establish the correct transcript of Oppenheimer's August 26, 1943 interview in Berkeley with Lt. Col. Boris Pash and Lt. Lyall Johnson (285-300)

Gordon Dean, AEC Commissioner May 1949-June 1953 [JRO]
Garrison (300-08); Robb (308-22); Garrison (322); Robb (323)

Hans A. Bethe, Professor of Physics, Cornell University [JRO]
Marks (324-31); Robb (331); Gray (332-35); Marks (335-36); Robb (336-37); Marks (338); Robb (339-39); Marks (339-40)

James B. Fisk, VP of Research, Bell Telephone Laboratory, NYC [JRO]
Silverman (340-42); Robb (342)

Gen. Frederick H. Osborne, Deputy Representative for U.S. on United Nations Atomic Energy Commission, 1947-50 [JRO]
Garrison (342-46); Robb (346); Garrison (346-47)

Tuesday, April 20

Preliminaries

George F. Kennan, Foreign Service Officer, retired [JRO]
Marks (353-61); Robb (361-64); Gray (364-67); Evans (367-68); Marks (368-70); Robb (370-71); Evans (372)

David E. Lilienthal, AEC Chairman, October 1946-February 1950 [JRO]
Silverman (372-75); letters read (376-78); Silverman (379-82)

Afternoon session begins with logistical preliminaries

James B. Conant, former president of Harvard University [JRO]
Garrison (384-88); Robb (388-90); Gray (390-92); Evans (392); Garrison (392-93); Robb (393-94); Garrison (394)

Enrico Fermi, Professor of Physics, University of Chicago [JRO]
Marks (394-96); Robb (396); Gray/Evans (397-98)

David E. Lilienthal testimony resumes
Silverman (398-407); Robb (407-25)

Wednesday, April 21

Sumner Pike, AEC Commissioner, 1946-51 [JRO]
Garrison (429-32); Gray (432-35); Evans (435-36); Garrison (436-37); Gray/Evans (437-38)

Discussion of the classification status of the transcript (438-39)

Norman F. Ramsey, Jr., Professor of Physics, Harvard University [JRO]
Garrison (440-43); Robb (443-48); Gray (448-50); Evans (450)

Isidore I. Rabi, Professor of Physics, Columbia University [JRO]
Marks (451-60); Robb (460-64); Gray (464-66); Evans (466-68); Marks (468-69); Robb (469-71); Marks (471-72); Robb (472-73)

Thursday, April 22

Norris E. Bradbury, Director, Los Alamos Laboratory [JRO]
Silverman (478-82); Robb (482-86); Gray (486-90); Evans (490-92); Silverman (492); Robb (492-93); Gray (493-94)

Walter G. Whitman, Professor of Chemistry, MIT and member of GAC, 1950-present [JRO]
Silverman (495-500); Robb (500-05); Gray (505-06); Evans (506-07); Silverman (507); Robb (507)

Robb (500): "I seem to recall seeing a statement in the press the other day from Mr. Wilson to the effect that he will not have Dr. Oppenheimer over there. Did you see that?"

The text of Secretary of Defense Wilson's press conference is read into the record (501-03)

Hartley Rowe, President, United Fruit Co.; member of GAC, 1946-50 [JRO]
Marks (508-14)

Lee A. DuBridge, President, Caltech; member of GAC 1946-52 [JRO]
Garrison (515-23); Robb (523-29); Gray (529-32); Evans (532); Garrison (532-33); Robb (534)

Friday, April 23

Preliminaries (537-42)

Harry A. Winne, retired VP of General Electric, contributor to the Acheson-Lilienthal Report [JRO]
Marks (542-50); Robb (550-53); Gray (553-55); Evans (555-56); Marks (556-57)

Garrison discusses a recent Drew Pearson column, "Veil Over Oppenheimer Case," and reads excerpts of the Atomic Energy Act's security provisions into the record

Vannevar Bush, former chairman, NACA; former chairman, NDRC [JRO]
Garrison (560-64); Gray/Evans (564-67); Garrison (567); Robb (567-68)

Monday, April 26

Katherine Oppenheimer [JRO]
Silverman (571-75); Gray (575-76); Evans (576-77)

Charles C. Lauritsen, Professor of Physics, Caltech [JRO]
Marks (577-86); Robb (586-91); Gray (591-93); Evans (593-94); Marks (594); Robb (594-95); Marks (595-96)

Jerrold R. Zacharias, Professor of Physics, MIT [JRO]
Marks (596-99); Robb (600); Gray/Evans (600-02); Marks (602)

Oliver E. Buckley, retired chairman of Bell Telephone Laboratories, member of GAC, 1948-present [JRO]
Garrison (603-06); Robb (606-07); Gray (607-08)

Robert F. Bacher, Professor of Physics, Caltech [JRO]
Garrison (608-18); Robb (618-24); Evans (624-25); Gray (625-26); Garrison (626-29); Gray (629-30)

Tuesday, April 27

Preliminaries

Gen. James McCormack, Jr. USAF [JRO]
Silverman (634-36); Robb (636-40); Gray (640-42); Silverman (642-43); Robb (643)

John von Neumann, Professor of Mathematics, Institute for Advanced Study [JRO]
Silverman (644-47); Robb (647-50); Gray (650-53); Evans (653-54); Silverman (654-56); Robb (656)

Wendell M. Latimer, Professor of Chemistry, University of California [AEC]
Robb (657-61); Silverman (661-71); Evans (671); Robb (671-72); Silverman (672)

Affidavit from Walter G. Whitman, correcting his April 22 testimony (672)

Affadavit from James R. Killian, Jr., President, MIT (672-73)

Affadavit from John H. Manley, clarifying statement of February 15, 1954 (see above, April 13) (673-74)

Wednesday, April 28

August 6, 1947 memo from K.D. Nichols read into record (677)

Gen. Roscoe C. Wilson, USAF [AEC]
Robb (680-85); Silverman (685-94); Gray (694-96); Robb (697); Silverman (697)

Kenneth S. Pitzer, Professor of Chemistry, UCLA [AEC]
Robb (698-702); Silverman (702-06); Gray (706-08); Evans (708); Robb (709); Silverman (709)

Edward Teller, Director, Lawrence Livermore Laboratory [AEC]
Robb (709-23); Silverman (723-24); Gray (724-26); Evans (726); Robb (727); Silverman (727)

Thursday, April 29

John J. McCloy, Chairman of the Board, Chase National Bank [JRO]
Garrison (731-37); Robb (737); Gray (737-40); Evans (740-41); Garrison (741)

David T. Griggs, Professor of Geophysics, UCLA; atomic energy section, RAND Corp., chief scientist, USAF, 9/51-6/52 [AEC]
Robb (744-54); Silverman (754-70)

Luis W. Alvarez, Professor of Physics, University of California [AEC]
Robb (771-89)

Friday, April 30

Alvarez testimony continues
Robb (793); Silverman (793-800); Gray (800-02); Evans (802-04); Robb (804); Silverman (804-05)

Gray/Garrison discussion (805-08)

Lt. Col. Boris T. Pash, Army Counterintelligence Branch, 1941-43 [AEC]
Robb (809-26); Silverman (826-29); Gray (829-31); Evans (831)

Agreement on the final text of Pash interview (August 26, 1943); it will be copied into the record (see Monday, May 3; pp. 844ff below)

William L. Borden, Westinghouse Electric Corp. and author of November 7, 1953 letter to Hoover [AEC]
Robb (832-39)

Monday, May 3

Garrison decides not to cross-examine Borden

Corrected transcript of Pash August 26, 1943 interview read into the record; (844-53)
Stipulated table of corrections read into the record (853-63)
Original transcript as prepared in 1943 read into the record (863-71)

Transcript of September 12, 1943 interview with Lt. Col. John Lansdale read into the record (871-86)

J. Robert Oppenheimer re-examination
Gray (887-98); Evans (898); Robb (898-906)

Tuesday, May 4

Vannevar Bush rebuttal
Garrison (909-911); Robb (911-13); Gray (913-15)

Katherine Oppenheimer re-examination
Gray (915-19); Robb (919-21); Silverman (921)

Jerrold R. Zacharias rebuttal
Marks (922-26); Robb (926-29); Gray (929-31); Marks (931); Robb (931-32); Marks (932); Gray (932-33)

Gray wants the Charles Murray May 1953 Fortune article in the record.

Albert G. Hill, Professor of Physics, MIT; Director of Lincoln Laboratory [JRO]
Marks (935-39); Robb (939-40); Gray (939-42); Evans (942-43); Gray (943-44)

Wednesday, May 5

J. Robert Oppenheimer rebuttal
Silverman (949-53); Robb (953-60); Silverman (960-62)

Gray/Garrison discussion

Thursday, May 6

Marks statement (he was AEC General Counsel in 1947 when the clearance was discussed, February-August)

Robb: three documents received yesterday read into record, two re: Chevalier passport application from Paris, one an affadavit from E.O. Lawrence (968-69)

Garrison's summation (971-92)