In the Matter of J. Robert Oppenheimer: Transcript of Hearing Before Personnel Security Board. Washington D.C.: April 12, 1954, through May 6, 1954.

OPPENHEIMER, Robert J.

Published by Washington: Government Printing Office, 1954

First edition of the transcript of the Oppenheimer hearing, the basis of the 2023 film Oppenheimer, which resulted in the loss of his security clearance amid the McCarthy-era red scare. The decision was widely condemned. Lewis L. Strauss, the Atomic Energy Commission chair who had ousted Oppenheimer, ordered the transcript to be published - despite witnesses having been assured their testimony would remain private - believing it would disparage Oppenheimer. In this, Strauss was successful, as the most highly charged passages from the 992-page transcript were seized upon in the press. "Before the transcript was published, Oppenheimer's supporters seemed to have won the battle for public opinion. Release of the transcript turned the tide for the moment, as editorial opinion swung against Oppenheimer" (Pfau, pp. 176-7). The report was typeset and printed in just two days; it is a fragile publication often found rebound or in poor condition. Haakon Chevalier, whose ties to Oppenheimer and apparently to Soviet intelligence were a central part of the government's case, recalled of the transcript that it "has been variously described as one of the most revealing, most fascinating, most dramatic documents of our time. A publisher friend of mine said recently, in a letter to me, 'I've always had the feeling that the nine hundred pages of testimony told almost more about this country's history at a certain period than any other book ever can'" (Chevalier, p. 104). Haakon Chevalier, Oppenheimer: The Story of a Friendship, 1966; Richard Pfau, No Sacrifice Too Great: The Life of Lewis L. Strauss, 1984. Octavo. Original brown wrappers, front cover lettered in black. Light wear, well-thumbed and soiled, still a good copy of a fragile book. Seller Inventory # 184945

Bibliographic Details

Title: In the Matter of J. Robert Oppenheimer: ...
Publisher: Washington: Government Printing Office, 1954
Edition: 1st Edition