Graham remembered as 'quiet revolutionary'

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Thousands of people -- from some of America's most powerful and influential figures to everyday citizens -- came to the Washington National Cathedral Monday to remember Katharine Graham, former publisher of The Washington Post.

"Kay ennobled all of her human relationships," eulogized former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, a longtime friend. "In the pain of this moment, none of us would trade places with those whose lives were never touched by Kay Graham."

Kissinger praised Graham as a "seminal" figure in journalism, a "strong" and "shy" person, a "symbol of the permanent Washington" and a great, warm friend despite political differences.

VIDEO Some of Katharine Graham's famous friends tell CNN what they learned from her and how she will be remembered (July 23) Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media) CNN's Bruce Morton reports on eulogies of Katharine Graham by the famous and family members (July 23) Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media) Graham's appearance on CNN's Larry King Live in 1997, and peers lauding her Tuesday (July 17) Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media) Former First Lady Nancy Reagan remembers Katharine Graham on CNN's Larry King Live Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)   MORE STORIES Katharine Graham remembered by friends and colleagues   TIME.com: A woman of substance   REACTION: Colleagues remember Kay Graham   TIME.com: The best of the best part of Washington     EXTRA INFORMATION Pictorial Timeline: A life in pictures     RESOURCES Message board: Katharine Graham     Notable participants in Graham's funeral service: Eulogies: Henry Kissinger, former secretary of state Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr., historian Benjamin Bradlee, former Washington Post executive editor Members of Graham's family Funeral ushers: Bill Gates, Microsoft co-founder and chairman Warren Buffett, investor Herbert A. Allen, financier Barbara Walters, broadcast journalist Pallbearers: Robert S. McNamara, former defense secretary Barry Diller, broadcast executive Vernon Jordan, lawyer Sen. Bob Graham, D-Florida, Mrs. Graham's brother-in-law Homily: John Danforth, former U.S. senator from Missouri and ordained Episcopal priest Source: The Washington Post

"It is hard to believe that Kay is no longer among us. But in a way, she will never leave us. Her place in this country will not be filled, nor the void her death leaves on the lives of her friends," Kissinger said.

Graham -- known to friends and colleagues as Kay -- died Tuesday at age 84 of head injuries she suffered in a fall while attending a business conference in Sun Valley, Idaho.

Among the speakers was Ben Bradlee, the former executive editor of the Post in the heady times when he and Graham were guiding the paper through the tumultuous years of the Watergate scandal.

Most of all, Bradlee said, she was fun, enjoyed a good joke and did not tolerate boring people. "In my memories, Katharine always seemed to be laughing," he said.

She had the instincts of a reporter, Bradlee said -- "a love for news" and for "a piece of the action."

President Reagan called her one day about a story, Bradlee recalled. Graham was in the shower at the time. Graham bounded out of the shower soaking wet, grabbed a towel and looked for a pencil and paper, "Brenda Starr at the scene and ready to go," Bradlee said, referring to the comic-strip reporter.

"My all-time favorite image of the most powerful woman in the world ensued," Bradlee said.

"Maybe not all of you understand what it takes to make a great newspaper. It takes a great owner. Period," Bradlee said. She was for "fervor, not favor." She believed in the principles of "fairness and courage."

"Great owners," she said, help reporters and editors "shine a light on society."

"She was a spectacular dame and I loved her very much," Bradlee said.

Among those attending the service were Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, the Post reporters who produced the Watergate stories that Graham never failed to support.

Former Defense Secretary William Cohen and former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright were there, and Microsoft founder Bill Gates, New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, Vice President Dick Cheney and former President Clinton.

They watched as the casket with Graham's body was carried down an aisle in the huge building and placed on a table next to a pulpit at the front of the magnificent cathedral. During the service they read prayers and sang hymns.

Historian Arthur Schlesinger gave an overview of Graham's life. Born Katharine Meyer, she grew up in privilege of powerful parents.

"Her mother was an overwhelming force," Schlesinger said. "Her father was emphatic and imperious."

After college -- she attended Vassar College and then the University of Chicago -- she worked at a tabloid in San Francisco and then later at the Post, which had been purchased by her Republican father, Eugene Meyer, and then run by her husband, Phil Graham, who succeeded her father in 1946.

She took over the Post in 1963 after her husband -- a manic-depressive -- killed himself. She edged into the role, in a man's world, and the former housewife became a trailblazer, influencing a generation of journalists. And, in the process, became a "handsome, stylish, relaxed woman."

"She was a quiet revolutionary on behalf of all women," said Schlesinger.

"She helped transform the expectations that so long had cramped and confined her sex. From ending the archaic Washington ritual of separation of sexes after dinner, to breaking into a business that men regarded as their private property, to showing that women could beat men at their own game, she encouraged and emboldened other women to enter hitherto forbidden fields.

Henry Kissinger

"Hers was in a sense a privileged life, but her struggles for a sense of self-worth and fulfillment were those of so many women in her lifetime," he said.

Schlesinger recounted the two most famous stories that the Post is known for -- the publication of the Pentagon Papers and the Watergate coverage, which led to the resignation of President Nixon and his top aides.

"Kay overruled cautious lawyers and directed the Post" to continue publishing the Pentagon documents in 1971, Schlesinger said.

Ben Bradlee

Invoking the nickname of "Deep Throat," the source who fed reporter Bob Woodward information that helped guide his Watergate reporting, Schlesinger drew a laugh among the journalists and politicians in the chapel when he mentioned Deep Throat, "who may sit among us this morning."

She exhibited her courage during the Watergate coverage -- ignoring "the vulgar threats" of the attorney general of the United States.

The coverage, Schlesinger said, led to the resignation and to the "twilight of the imperial presidency."

Arthur Schlesinger

After Schlesinger spoke, cellist Yo Yo Ma played. Her children -- Steve, Donald and Lally -- also delivered eulogies.

According to the Post, the service was to be followed by a private burial at Oak Hill Cemetery, a 19th century garden park cemetery across the street from Graham's longtime Washington residence in Georgetown. Her husband was buried there in 1963. After the burial, the Graham family will host a private gathering at the Graham home.

"I think she left a legacy in setting a tone for the First Amendment," Washington Mayor Anthony Williams said, just before the service began. "We've lost a great one."