Now that Anastas Mikoyan has returned whence he came, a lady named Natasha Smith would like a few unkind words.

She was born and reared in Russia and barely escaped with her life during the revolution. She speaks and understands the language.

She watched TV interviews in which Mikoyan answered questions through an interpreter. She knew what he and the interpreter said. She found Mikoyan very sharp and admired his sense of humor.

She is certain, however, that Mikoyan understands some English and used the time taken to translate to figure out his answers, usually evasive or retaliatory.

The reason she is sure of this is that she caught him a couple of times answering questions before they had been fully asked.

Jan. 21, 1959: Matt Weinstock has a roundup of light items, including the visit of Soviet leader Anastas Mikoyan, some poetry, pranks and funny stories. A perfect way to end the day.

Weinstock’s column was published in 1959 in the L.A. Mirror and reposted on latimes.com in 2009. It is available via Archive.org.