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Carole Mikita ReportingThe community birthday party for President Gordon B. Hinckley is just hours away. His 'old friend', and that's what they call each other, Mike Wallace from '60 Minutes' is in town to pay tribute.
The relationship between Pres. Hinckley and Mike Wallace began with a huge dose of skepticism from each one. All of that changed to what has now become a lasting friendship.
Mike Wallace: "This is a church run by old men."
Pres. Hinckley: "Isn't it wonderful to have a man of maturity at the head? A man of judgment who isn't blown about by every wind of doctrine?"
Mike Wallace: "Absolutely, as long as he's not dotty."
Pres. Hinckley: "Thank you for the compliment."
Mike Wallace was surprised then by the unprecedented access to the leader of a worldwide faith. Now, the depth of feeling for his interviewee has only grown. His perception of the faith, Wallace says, changed from skeptical to intrigued. So, is he interested in joining?
Mike Wallace: "I'm not a particularly religiously-oriented person. I'm Jewish, so maybe I'm one of the lost tribes."
Mary and Mike Wallace made the trip; he joins other guest artists in a celebration of President Hinckley's life. He will narrate, reading a church-written script. He was a bit concerned.
Mike Wallace: "Patsy to the Mormon church, me? Well, because I have the feeling that I do about Gordon B. Hinckley, I figure I'll get a pass on this."
They met this morning without the cameras, but ever the newsman, Wallace asked the president how he felt about the war in Iraq.
Mike Wallace: "He's unhappy about what has happened there, what continues to happen there. He deplores what is going on there."
But the occasion is social he insists, so to reporters he posed a question.
Mike Wallace: "He's an extraordinary man, don't you agree?"
When Tabernacle Choir leaders told Pres. Hinckley Mike Wallace had agreed to come, he got tears in his eyes. Other guest artists include Gladys Knight, Donny Osmond, The 5 Browns, and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
