Description
Book Synopsis Nearly everyone who played a significant role in the Watergate saga has been scrutinized except one key participant: night watchman Frank Wills.
On the morning of June 17, 1972, in Washington D.C, the twenty-four-year-old security guard was on duty at the Watergate Office Building when he detected a break-in. A high school dropout with only a few hours of formal guard training, Wills alerted the police who caught five burglars, ultimately igniting a national political scandal that ended with the resignation of President Richard Nixon.
The only African American identified with the Watergate affair, Frank Wills enjoyed a brief moment in the limelight, but was unable to cope with his newfound fame, living the remainder of his life in obscurity and poverty. Through exhaustive research and numerous interviews, the story of America''s most famous night watchman finally has been told.
Trade ReviewIt takes generosity of spirit, and often the talents of a fine detective, to find poetry in the life of a common man. Adam Henig has those qualities, and the tale he tells of the life of Frank Wills is both tragic, and illuminating, in his capable hands." —John A. Farrell, author of
Richard Nixon: The Life"Absorbing...compelling biography." —Herb Boyd, author of
Baldwin's Harlem: A Biography of James Baldwin"Adam Henig provides a sensitive look into the life of a unique character in the Watergate scandal." —Joseph Rodota, author of
The Watergate: Inside America's Most Infamous Address"A moving exposition." —Carol McCabe Booker, contributor,
Shocking the Conscience: A Reporter's Account of the Civil Rights Movement"Adam Henig, through his exhaustive research, gives Wills his dignity and honor back." —Don Rhodes, columnist,
The Augusta (Ga.)
ChronicleTable of ContentsAcknowledgments ix
Foreword by JaQwan J. Kelly 1
Preface 3
1. "Impenetrable" Security 7
2. The Break-In 10
3. Savannah 19
4. North Augusta 33
5. Job Corps 42
6. Watergate 50
7. Metro Police 59
8. The Caper 67
9. Opportunity Knocks 80
10. Delusions of Grandeur 90
11. From Bad to Worse 109
12. Downward Spiral 128
13. "I've Done My Work" 144
Epilogue 159
Chapter Notes 165
Bibliography 183
Index 195
