Silent Majority, and Others, View Nixon Library After VIPs Depart

A day after dedication ceremonies drew 50,000 people to the Nixon library, thousands more turned out Friday to view the new attraction as the doors swung open to the general public for the first time.

At last, after tours by four Presidents, innumerable VIPs and mobs of journalists, others got their chance to glimpse the inside of the house where Nixon was born as well as reams of photographs, letters and other memorabilia spanning his lifetime.

Even before the library opened at 8:35 a.m., visitors had lined up on the front steps, waiting eagerly to buy admission tickets despite temperatures that were already pushing 90 degrees by early morning.

Attendance soared as the day wore on. Final attendance figures were not available Friday night, but library officials said thousands of people had strolled through the exhibits--a good sign for organizers, who are banking on enough public interest in Nixon to make the institution profitable.

“You never expect anything like this, given the size of yesterday’s crowd,” said Hugh Hewitt, director of the Richard M. Nixon Library and Birthplace. “We are absolutely gratified.”

The admission cost is $3.95 for adults, $3 for senior citizens. Children under 12 get in free.

Many people bought their tickets, signed the guest book, then headed straight for the gift shop, strategically located near the library entrance. It was, by far, the most popular stop, as hordes of Nixon fans stocked up on signature neckties, pens, mugs, sweat shirts and books.

Roberta Craig, 40, of Yorba Linda had come to the dedication ceremonies the day before to see President Bush and former Presidents Nixon, Reagan and Ford. She returned Friday and dropped a quick $125.16 on Nixon mementos. She planned to hand them out as gifts to the officers at a convention for the Children of the American Revolution in Los Angeles.

“It was $3 just for this bag to carry all the stuff in,” she said, showing off her recent purchases that included Nixon playing cards, bumper stickers, mugs and glasses. “With all the money I spent in here, they should have given me that for free.”

Around the corner, crowds hovered around a Postal Service table, snatching up commemorative “Nixon Library and Birthplace” cancellation stamps and postcards depicting the White House and Jefferson Memorial.

“I’m a stamp collector, so this makes it for me,” said Robert Olinger, 64, of Westminster, who bought dozens of postcards. “I came yesterday, but I had a hard time getting anything with 40,000 people here.”

Others lingered next to large plaques featuring their favorite Nixon quotations. They peered through display windows that showcased photographs of Nixon’s parents and handwritten notes from his days at Duke University Law School and an ornament from his wedding cake.

They sat transfixed through a 27-minute film summarizing Nixon’s life. They punched up questions on a computer, triggering an image of the former President to appear on a large screen with the answer.

“It’s just beautiful,” said Mirian O’Connell, 65, who said she knew the Nixon family when he was an assistant city attorney in Whittier. “I knew it would be jammed yesterday, so we thought we’d come today.”

But not everyone who turned out for the opening was a Nixon admirer.

“I think it’s just an awful, grandiose spectacle,” said Mark Zepezauer, 33, who made the trip from Santa Cruz. “It’s a terrible waste of money to glorify this awful man.”

Library officials escorted Zepezauer and a friend out of the building when they began handing out anti-Nixon literature to reporters.

A large number of those who visited the exhibits were former Nixon supporters with fond memories of his presidency, who wanted to be a part of his hoopla, 16 years after the Watergate scandal forced him to resign from office.

Some didn’t bother to listen to the White House tape segments on exhibit in the Watergate room, which featured parts of Nixon’s conversations from the cover-up and scandal.

Those who did said there were few surprises.

“I think it just brought out some points that I had always heard about,” said Rodney Love, 52, of Anaheim Hills. “I think it’s very much like the Kennedy Library in terms of what’s in here. Very impressive.”

Jeff Courvoisier, 15, of Yorba Linda said he was so impressed with the dedication that he decided to bring his mother Friday.

“I figured it looked so good on the outside that there had to be some good stuff on the inside,” Courvoisier said. “I really like the quotes.”

NIXON MEMORABILIA Most Expensive: Black Parker fountain ink pen with Nixon’s signature embossed in gold across the pen and the official seal of the Nixon library on the top: $195 Top Seller: Official envelope with the commemorative seal: $3 Other Memorabilia: Nixon tie, available in navy or burgundy, choose from two patterns: the official seal or the initials RN : $38 T-shirt with the official seal, in either blue and red or bronze and green (official library colors): $12.50 Golf balls with the official seal and initials RN : 3 for $10 Book “In the Arena” by Nixon, autographed: $50 Book “Pat Nixon--The Untold Story” by Julie Nixon Eisenhower, autographed: $50 Brass key chain with the official seal or with the initials RN : $4.50 Crystal paperweight, etched with official seal: $22.50 Coffee mug with the seal: $9.50 Researched by April Jackson