One day during the Christmas holiday in 1955, President Harry Truman was dismayed to discover his wife Bess at the fireplace, destroying many of the letters which he had written to her over the years. "But think of history!" he cried. His wife's reply? "I have!"

(Fortunately hundreds of these letters were saved, a selection of which is contained in Dear Bess: The Letters from Harry to Bess Truman, 1910-1959, Robert H. Ferrell, ed.)

[Truman's nickname for Bess? "The Boss." His nickname for their daughter Margaret? "The Boss's Boss!"]