February 22, 1974: The Plot to Kill President Richard Nixon

Samuel Byck

February 22, 1974: Samuel Byck, a 44-year-old native of Philadelphia, kills a police officer at Baltimore-Washington International Airport (now named for Thurgood Marshall, Baltimore native and Supreme Court Justice), boards a Delta DC-9, shoots the pilots, holds the passengers hostage, and is eventually shot by police, finally turning the gun on himself.

It is only later that the Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post columnist Jack Anderson received a mailed tape recording from Byck, telling of his plan to crash a plane into the White House, in order to assassinate President Richard Nixon.

Most likely, he sent the tape to Anderson because of his reporting on the ITT/Robert Vesco scandal, earning him a place on the infamous "Nixon Enemies List" -- and, apparently, a suggestion (never taken up) from Nixon that an attempt be made to kill Anderson (who lived on until 2005).

As hated as Nixon was during his political career, this was easily the closest he ever came to being assassinated (unless you want to count the attack on his car on his 1958 Vice Presidential trip to South America), and it wasn't all that close.

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February 22, 1974 was a Friday. British singer James Blunt was born.

Baseball and football were out of season. There were 7 games played in the NBA:

* The New York Knicks beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 117-110 at the Cleveland Arena.

* The Boston Celtics beat the Buffalo Braves, 116-109 at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium. John Havlicek led the Celtics with 31 points. Bob McAdoo scored 52 points and grabbed 22 rebounds in defeat for the Braves.

* The Detroit Pistons beat the Capital Bullets, 84-83 at Cobo Hall (now Huntington Place) in Detroit. This was the former Baltimore Bullets' 1st season in the D.C. area. The dropped the "Capital" name the next season, becoming the Washington Bullets, and became the Washington Wizards in 1997.

* The Kansas City-Omaha Kings beat the Phoenix Suns, 119-104 at the Kansas City Municipal Auditorium.

* The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Houston Rockets, 122-113 at the Hofheinz Pavilion (now the Fertitta Center) in Houston. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar scored 38 for the Bucks.

* And the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Philadelphia 76ers, 104-103 at The Forum outside Los Angeles in Inglewood, California.

There were 3 games in the American Basketball Association:

* The New York Nets beat the San Diego Conquistadors, 121-113 at the San Diego Sports Arena (now the Pechanga Arena).

* The Carolina Cougars beat the Indiana Pacers, 109-106 at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina. George McGinnis scored 35 in defeat for the Pacers.

* And the Kentucky Colonels beat the Virginia Squires, 115-101 at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Kentucky. Dan Issel scored 34 points.

One game was played in the NHL: The New York Rangers beat the California Golden Seals, 4-3 at the Oakland Coliseum Arena.

And 2 games were played in the World Hockey Association. The Minnesota Fighting Saints beat the Quebec Nordiques, 6-4 at the Colisée de Québec. And the Winnipeg Jets beat the Toronto Toros, 4-3 at the Winnipeg Arena.