When Henry Kissinger went to brief the then Vice President, Lyndon Johnson, at his ranch in Texas, he was given a tour of the ranch. ‘This was Commanche territory’, LBJ told him. ‘You know, you Germans were great Indian fighters.’ Passing some picnic tables, LBJ pointed out that he had them installed along the roadside instead of hot dog stands ‘because you Germans love picnics’. After a while, it dawned on the ambitious foreign policy advisor that LBJ had confused him with the then West German Chancellor Kurt Kiesinger.
