For my dad, Roger Ingram
When I was 19 years old my dad took me to see “JFK,” the epic story of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Starring Kevin Costner as New Orleans DA Jim Garrison, the movie details the events leading up to and following the assassination, including the entire breathtaking Zapruder film. The final seconds of that film, shot by Dallas businessman Abraham Zapruder, will stay with me for the rest of my life. See below:
“JFK” has been criticized because it dramatizes things which may or may not have happened, and that’s a legitimate critique. On the other hand, it also brings together an exhaustive collection of evidence that many Americans had never seen before the movie was released. When the final credits ended and the lights came on in the theater, my dad turned to me and said: “Never forget.”
I haven’t.
A couple of years ago, when my daughter was 10, her class studied the assassination of JFK. It was not an in-depth study, of course, we’re talking about 5th graders, but it was enough to plant the seed of curiosity. I was more than happy to water and nourish that seed. We live about 20 minutes from Dealey Plaza, the site of that devastating moment in American history. I have toured the eerie Sixth Floor Museum many times, including with my dad, who had it at the top of his list when he came to visit. I showed my daughter the courtroom scene from “JFK” and then took her down to the scene of the crime. We walked the plaza, stood on the grassy knoll and looked out of the window from which legend says Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone gunman responsible for killing Kennedy.
Her conclusion? It’s possible that Oswald was one of the shooters, but it’s apparent that it took more than one guy to commit that atrocity.
A few key points stuck in my 19-year-old brain when I saw “JFK” for the first time, and they bothered her, too. First, the “magic bullet theory,” which was the theory used to “prove” there was only one shooter, was a fairy tale. How did people believe that at the time?? In case you’re not familiar with it, here’s it is:
In “JFK,” Louisiana Senator Russell Long, portrayed by Walter Matthau, famously says “that dog don’t hunt.” No. No, it doesn’t.
That was the beginning of what has been, for me, a lifelong fascination with the killing of JFK. I’ve poured over books, articles, documentaries and now podcasts exploring the question of what really happened on that day. I won’t presume to even hit all of the highlights here, as it would take too long. Instead, to honor the sacrifice of the man who most assuredly averted global nuclear war, who was truly a hero in the civil rights movement, who was killed because he stood against powerful forces in America and beyond, I offer up some sources of further study for those who are interested.
Oliver Stone’s JFK
First, of course, the movie “JFK” is a stunning work, even given that some of it is dramatized and probably not factually accurate. Still, it’s a powerful jumping off place. It’s currently streaming on Netflix, but is one of the few movies not starring Harrison Ford that I have owned on VHS, DVD and now 4K Blu-ray.
Rush To Judgement
Next, the book Rush to Judgement, written by attorney and civil rights activist Mark Lane, digs into the Warren Report. Purported to be investigating the Kennedy assassination, the commission headed by Supreme Court justice Earl Warren was actually tasked with proving that Oswald committed the murder and that he acted alone. Their path to this final judgement was, shall we say, unique. Lane details the many issues with the Warren Report in this book.
Who Killed JFK?
Rob Reiner (director, The Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally) was on Real Time with Bill Maher last week and mentioned that he has a new podcast out digging into what is currently known about the JFK assassination. The aforementioned Costner film sparked the interest of quite a few other people besides me and much has been discovered since then. Reiner’s new podcast brings those new facts to light in an engaging and fascinating series. Check it out here!
Ultimate Sacrifice
I spent a significant amount of my childhood in Oregon with my dad, and one of the shows he always listened to was the Thom Hartmann Show on local radio out of Portland. Hartmann was later picked up on Air America and now has a podcast, but he always struck me as one of the most brilliant people around. Callers could ask him about anything and I never once heard him stumped by even the most random question. From time to time he mentioned a book he co-authored with Lamar Waldron entitled Ultimate Sacrifice, digging into the conspiracy behind the assassination of JFK. I had the book for several years before I finally read it, mostly because the tome is nearly 1,000 pages long. About five years ago I did finally pick it up and found it very difficult to put down. In my opinion, there is no finer, more in-depth work on the subject, and at the end there are extremely well-researched conclusions drawn about exactly who killed Kennedy and, more importantly, why. Find it here, and I promise it’s the best $12 you will spend this year.
Conclusion
Who killed JFK? Certainly not Lee Harvey Oswald, who was, as he said, “a patsy.” After all, according to eye witnesses he was on the second floor of the Texas Book Depository, not the sixth, immediately following the shooting. So who was it? Why was Oswald set up to take the fall? More importantly, why was JFK killed? Why won’t our own government release their own information on the subject? The answers to those questions have haunted America for 60 years, but a study of the resources listed above can help you start to get a handle on the biggest murder mystery in the history of our country.
(On a side note, if you’d just like a fun read about an English teacher who goes back in time to stop the assassination, pick up my favorite fiction book of all time, Stephen King’s 11/22/63. Yes, there’s a mini-series on Hulu loosely based on the book, but it’s a total waste of time.)
-B
Ishmael's Legacy 