The Preamble with Sharon McMahon
Series: Mayhem: The 1970s You Never Knew
Episode 2 — April 13, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode continues the series’ dive into the tumultuous 1970s, focusing on the pivotal events of 1971. Sharon McMahon unpacks the extravagance and downstream consequences of the Shah of Iran’s desert celebration, the ratification of the 26th Amendment (lowering the U.S. voting age from 21 to 18), and the seismic impact of the Pentagon Papers’ publication. Through captivating storytelling and original audio clips, Sharon illustrates how these moments reverberated through political and cultural history, with threads leading directly to broader shifts in global power and American public trust.

Key Topics & Structure

I. The Shah’s “Party of the Century” (02:51–13:12; 43:10–47:29)

Setting the Stage: Persepolis, 1971

• The Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, organized an opulent three-day celebration for the Persian Empire’s 2,500th anniversary in the desert, at Persepolis.
• Security, image-control, and repression set the context: "He started by rounding up all of the undesirables ... He closed the borders and shuttered all schools and universities." (03:05)
• This celebration became a metaphor for his reign: ambitious, extravagant, and disconnected from the nation’s realities.

Event Details

• Massive transformation of the desert: imported European trees and birds mostly perished, but luxury sprang up overnight.
• "He had 250 bulletproof Mercedes Benz limousines ... elaborate tent city ... star-shaped with a fountain at the end and five points radiating from it, symbolizing the five continents." (04:39)
• Guests: Royalty and world leaders, conspicuously missing Queen Elizabeth, Pope Paul VI, and President Nixon (sent Vice President Spiro Agnew due to security reasons).
• Lavish amenities included air-conditioned tents, 24/7 staff, a banquet produced by famed Parisian restaurant Maxims (which closed for two weeks to serve the event), life-sized replicas, and a secret gambling room.
• "The food was prepared by the staff of Maxims in Paris ... flew out the restaurant's entire staff ... blocks of ice said to be the size of garages ... the menu of delicacies included quail eggs, stuffed peacocks ... served on a seamless hand-sewn tablecloth that took 150 artisans well over half a year to complete atop a 187 foot table." (06:11)

The Backlash and Aftermath

• After the world saw “the greatest gathering of the century," Iranian citizens were outraged.
  • "The entire affair just reeked of excess and self-aggrandizement that ignored the very real needs of Iranian citizens." (44:41)
  • The cost: official figures cited $16 million (about $125 million today), but others estimated $1.2 billion in modern terms.
• "While Iran was suffering a drought, the Shah was pumping hundreds of thousands of gallons of water into the desert." (44:47)
• The tent city’s skeleton left haunting reminders for decades; promises to donate the tents were not kept.

Seeds of Revolution

• Conservative Muslims and ordinary citizens felt both insulted and alienated—laying the groundwork for revolution. As Sharon sums up:

  "If we put that in a political context, the Shah came to power by participating in a coup, and that is exactly how he was taken out. Does the name Ayatollah Khomeini ring any bells?" (45:59)

Memorable Quote

• "It was not camping. It was not even glamping." (05:24)

II. U.S. Political Change: The 26th Amendment (15:55–18:58)

Lowering the Voting Age

• Senator Jennings Randolph fought for decades (nine tries) to lower the U.S. voting age from 21 to 18.
  • Prompted by wartime drafting: "Old enough to fight, old enough to vote."
• Congressional action, Supreme Court pushback, and rapid state ratification set a record:

  "It took three quarters of the states only four months to ratify it, making it the fastest ratification of an amendment to date in history." (17:46)

• Significance: Expanded the electorate at a time when youth activism and civil rights were reshaping the U.S.

Notable Historical Context

• Tied to Vietnam War tension and young Americans' desire for agency in national decisions.

III. The Pentagon Papers: Exposure & Aftershocks (18:58–39:35)

The Whistleblower: Daniel Ellsberg

• Ellsberg, Harvard-educated RAND analyst, former Marine, and close observer of Vietnam’s realities.
• Tasked with helping compile the "McNamara study" (aka Pentagon Papers), "writing U.S. decision Making in Vienna, Vietnam, 1945-1968, which was also known as ... the Pentagon papers." (19:40)
• The Papers revealed "decades of ... Mountains of lies," spanning four presidential administrations.

The Leak and Its Impact

• Ellsberg spent months clandestinely copying 7,000 pages with help from his children:

  "Copying one page at a time, it took ellsberg Months to complete this task. ... They made copies, often with the assistance of Daniel's three kids. One copied, one collated, and the third child cut off the top secret that was stamped on the copied pages." (25:45)

• The New York Times broke the story on June 13, 1971, swiftly followed by other outlets after Nixon administration injunctions.
• Nixon’s initial reaction (audio transcript):
  • Nixon (29:45): "What’s being done about it then? … I mean, you can’t be in a position of having ... a fellow to get away with this kind of wholesale thievery ... Otherwise, it’s going to happen all over the government."
• Supreme Court ultimately sided with the newspapers, a significant First Amendment victory.
• Indictments and a mistrial followed, as the administration’s own illegal actions (wiretapping, “Plumbers” burglary) doomed prosecution and foreshadowed Watergate.

Reflection and Legacy

• Sharon:

  "Daniel told the New York Times that the Pentagon Papers didn't shorten the war by a day, but the criminal actions that the White House took against me led to the absolutely unforeseeable downfall of a president which made the war endable." (39:19)

Memorable Quotes & Audio

• Richard Nixon (29:45–30:45):

  "I know I just start right at the top and fire some people. ... I mean, whoever. Whatever department it came out of, I'd fire the top guy."

• Daniel Ellsberg (25:45):

  "The first time I was at the xerox machine, I looked up at the glass door. There's knocking on it and two police outside. I thought, wow, these guys are good. ... There were a few seconds of thinking, well, this is over."

• Nixon (33:21):

  "We got to get this son of a. ... You can't be in a position of ever allowing ... a fellow to get away with this kind of wholesale thievery ... Otherwise, it's going to happen all over the government."

• Ben Bradlee’s mail (paraphrased audience feedback):

  "...perhaps there's more hope for this country than I realized. I rejoice in your courage and real patriotism." (37:20)

IV. Legacy and Fascinating Footnotes (47:29–48:00)

• 1971 saw the opening of Disney World, first probable HIV/AIDS cases, cultural moments like Johnny Cash’s White House visit and the release of “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.”
• Starbucks opened its first café in Seattle.

Memorable Moments & Quotes

“It was not camping. It was not even glamping. All of this though was in a custom designed tent.” (05:24, Sharon McMahon)

“Old enough to fight, old enough to vote appeared on buttons and advertisements across the nation.” (16:51)

“Mountains of lies. ... these smart men ... managed to lie to the public every day of the war and in bad faith actually pursue a war that they saw had very little likelihood of helping anyone but leading just to an escalating stalemate.” (25:41, quoting Daniel Ellsberg)

"The entire affair just reeked of excess and self-aggrandizement that ignored the very real needs of Iranian citizens." (44:41)

“If we put that in a political context, the Shah came to power by participating in a coup, and that is exactly how he was taken out.” (45:59)

Timestamps for Core Segments

• Shah’s Celebration Backstory: 02:51–13:12
• Aftermath and Legacy of the Party: 43:10–47:29
• Voting Age & 26th Amendment: 15:55–18:58
• Pentagon Papers & US Withdrawal from Vietnam: 18:58–39:35
  • Nixon audio on Pentagon Papers: 29:45–31:31, 33:21–34:02
  • Ellsberg’s story of copying the Papers: 25:45–27:02

Tone and Approach

Sharon delivers with riveting clarity, blending wry asides ("not even glamping") with nuanced contextualization ("Seeds of revolution," "Mountains of lies"). The show continually ties major historical happenings back to their human consequences and current-day echoes, making these “distant” events relatable and urgent for listeners.

For Next Time

Sharon promises a deep dive into another world-shaping event: “a break-in in an office building that changed the course of history”—a clear lead-in to the Watergate scandal.

Recommended for those interested in:

• Untold (and jaw-dropping) stories of the 1970s
• The overlap between global spectacle and political rot
• America’s evolving civic identity
• The human stories behind “headline” history

End of Summary