“What do I do?”: Thomas, Robert Kennedy, p. 284. Based on memo from Justice Department aide Harold Reis to the attorney general, June 12, 1964.
“I would like to state”: Letter from Kennedy to Warren, August 4, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
CHAPTER 50
“Mrs. Odio’s reliability”: Letter from Rankin to Hoover, July 24, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
Hoover wrote back: Letter from Hoover to Rankin, August 12, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
“It is a matter of some importance”: Letter from Rankin to Hoover, August 23, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
The commission’s request: Hosty interviews.
After the magazine the Nation: Hoover’s handwritten note found on cable from Dallas field office to FBI headquarters, “TO DIRECTOR FBI, FROM DALLAS,” March 14, 1964, FBI.
“This fellow is just a low”: Hoover’s handwritten note found on memo from FBI Dallas field office to Sullivan, February 13, 1964, FBI.
After an incident: Hoover’s handwritten note on a letter from Rankin to Hoover, March 3, 1964, FBI.
In March, a top Hoover aide: Hoover’s handwritten notes on memo from Branigan to Sullivan, “RE: LEE HARVEY OSWALD INTERNAL SECURITY,” March 3, 1964, FBI.
He said in a later memo: Memo from Rosen to Belmont, March 16, 1964. Also see memo from Rosen to Belmont, “Subject: President’s Commission,” April 4, 1964, FBI.
Hoover seemed to be: Hoover’s handwritten notes on memo from Jevons to Conrad, “RE: ASSASSINATION OF PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY,” March 12, 1964, FBI.
“I place no credence”: Hoover’s handwritten notes on memo from Rosen to Belmont, “Subject: President’s Commission,” April 4, 1964, FBI.
“I want to let you know”: Letter from Hoover to Ford, April 17, 1964, FBI.
DeLoach asked for a background check: Memo from DeLoach to Mohr, April 22, 1964, FBI.
Hoover gave in and agreed to the interview: Memo from DeLoach to Mohr, “Subject: William Manchester, Author of Kennedy Book,” June 4, 1964, FBI.
CHAPTER 51
He worked from his: See the New York Times obituary for McCloy, March 12, 1989. For background on One Chase Manhattan Plaza, see New York Times, June 6, 2013.
But it was possible: Letter from McCloy to Rankin, July 21, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
David Slawson had written: Slawson interviews.
If Odio’s allegations: Unsigned draft chapter entitled “Foreign Conspiracy,” July 15, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA. Also see undated memo from Coleman and Slawson to Rankin, “Subject: Suggested Changes in the Foreign Conspiracy [sic], Dated July 15, 1964,” staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
The staff settled: Warren Report, p. 305.
“I did trust the CIA”: Coleman interviews.
“According to his twenty-five”: Coleman memo, “Oswald’s Trip to Mexico City September 26, 1963, to October 3, 1963,” July 20, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
Arlen Specter felt: Specter interviews. Also see Specter, Passion, passim.
After reading through: Letter from McCloy to Rankin, June 24, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
On August 20, he sent: Letter and memo from Cooper to Rankin, August 20, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
“The evidence of the source”: Letter from Belin to Rankin, July 7, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
“We made every effort”: Belin, Final Disclosure, pp. 213–16. Also see Belin, You Are the Jury, pp. 425–40.
Alfred Goldberg was stunned: Goldberg interviews.
FBI agents who visited: Memo from the FBI’s Washington field office to FBI headquarters, “SAC WFO TO DIRECTOR, FBI RE: LEE HARVEY OSWALD,” September 17, 1964, FBI. Also see memo from Rosen to Belmont, “SUBJECT: LEE HARVEY OSWALD,” September 21, 1964, FBI.
As part of his research: Goldberg interviews.
The New York Times, the Washington Post: New York Times and Washington Post, November 26, 1963.
In July, Barson said he: Memo from Barson and Mosk to Rankin, July 9, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
After figuring that he had spent: Griffin interviews.
“I think it is a mistake”: Memo from Griffin to Willens, “Re: Memo on Ruby Conspiracy Portion of Chapter VI,” August 14, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
CHAPTER 52
His wife, Evelyn, recalled: Evelyn Redlich interview.
“Every once in a while”: Weinreb interviews.
Liebeler’s battles with Redlich: Testimony of Wesley Liebeler, HSCA, November 15, 1977, pp. 209–61.
Rankin sided with Liebeler: Memo from Liebeler to Rankin, August 28, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA. Also see Liebeler testimony, HSCA, November 15, 1977, passim.
In late August: Memo from Liebeler to Willens and Redlich, “Subject: Conspiracy,” August 27, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
He was startled by the news: Memo to Rankin from Hoover, September 3, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA. Also see memo from Liebeler to Willens, “Re: Relevant Property Remaining in Possession of Marina Oswald,” September 2, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
There would be little: Liebeler memo, “Memorandum re: Galley Proofs of Chapter IV,” September 6, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
“There really was no response”: Testimony of Wesley Liebeler, HSCA, November 15, 1977, pp. 209–61.
He described the Senate vote: Associated Press, June 18, 1964.
“Violence and defiance”: Fite, Richard B. Russell, Jr., Senator from Georgia, p. 46.
“Let me tell you again”: Letter from Russell to C. R. Nichols, June 30, 1964, correspondence files, Russell Library.
In May, he had complained: Holland, The Kennedy Assassination Tapes, p. 240.
He read through: Atlanta Constitution, September 28, 1964.
Russell’s former press secretary: Interview with Powell A. Moore, “Oral History Interview #7,” March 6, 1971, Russell Library.
The chief justice: Interview of Barboura G. Raesly, “Oral History Interview #157,” June 16, 1974, Russell Library.
The Dallas Morning News: Dallas Morning News, September 7, 1964.
Russell focused his questions: Testimony of Marina Oswald, September 6, 1964, Warren Appendix, Vol. 5, pp. 588–620.
The investigation was only just: Handwritten note by Russell on United States Senate notepaper, December 5, 1963, personal files, Russell Library.
In mid-September: Draft dissent by Russell, “Assassination Commission,” September 16, 1964, Russell Library.
The news arrived on September 21: Letter from Hoover to Rankin, September 21, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
David Slawson, who had pressed: Slawson interviews.
“In spite of the fact”: Warren Report, pp. 322–24.
Over time, Loran Hall: Testimony of Loran Hall, October 5 and 6, 1977, HSCA, RIF: 180–10118–10115, NARA.
FBI agents in Dallas: See Appendix to Hearings, Vol. 10, “Anti-Castro Activities and Organizations,” March 1979, HSCA, pp. 19–35.
CHAPTER 53
The final contract: “Publishing Agreement between Simon and Schuster and Gerald R. Ford,” October 9, 1964, Warren Commission files, Ford Library. The entire contract and other paperwork related to the book are found at the Ford Library.
Simon and Schuster decided: “Editorial Department Report, Simon and Schuster,” July 29, 1964, Warren Commission files, Ford Library.
“Got Jerry Ford on the telephone”: Letter from Thompson to Peter Schwed, Simon and Schuster executive, July 8, 1964, Warren Commission files, Ford Library.
That summer, it was: New York Times, July 7, 1964.
In a memo on July 31: Memo from Fallon to Ford, July 3, 1964, Warren Commission files, Ford Library.
Ford’s friend Stiles: Memo from Stiles to Ford, September 4, 1964, Warren
Commission files, Ford Library.
In May, a reporter: Ford’s handwritten notes, “Gene Roberts, Detroit Free Press, 5/9/64,” Warren Commission files, Ford Library.
“The FBI did a very substantial piece”: New York Times, February 23, 1967.
By the end of the investigation: Ford, Portrait, pp. 53–60.
The timelines showed: Ibid., pp. 335, 483, 301–14, 90–99.
Ford guessed that Oswald: Interview of Gerald R. Ford, “Oral History Interview by Vicki Daitch,” July 18, 2003, JFK Library.
On September 2, he wrote: Letter from Ford to Rankin, September 2, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
The draft had originally said: Associated Press, July 2, 1997.
Decades later, a congressionally: Testimony of Dr. Michael Baden, September 17, 1978, HSCA.
“It would have been disastrous”: Pearson Diaries, October 1966, Pearson papers, LBJ Library.
“When the word”: Warren, Memoirs, p. 3.
“Warren just wouldn’t”: Interview of Barboura G. Raesly, “Oral History Interview #157,” June 16, 1974, Russell Library.
Although it is not necessary: Warren Report, p. 19.
“Rankin made an effort”: Proposal by Howard Willens for a book to be entitled The Assassination, undated. Willens announced in 2013 that he planned to write a book about his experiences on the Warren Commission, with a new title: History Will Prove Us Right: Inside the Warren Commission Investigation into the Assassination of John F. Kennedy.
“The FBI took an unduly”: Warren Report, p. 24.
The Secret Service: Ibid., p. 26.
“It is conceivable”: Ibid., p. 451.
From his reading of the findings: Article submitted by Ford to the California State Chamber of Commerce, “Why the President Died,” December 30, 1964, Warren Commission files, Ford Library. The article was based on a speech that Ford had given to the chamber.
The only official record: Warren Commission Executive Session, September 18, 1964, NARA.
CHAPTER 54
President Johnson wanted: Holland, The Kennedy Assassination Tapes, pp. 247–51.
“I just worked like a dog”: Slawson interviews.
John McCloy said he was: Interview of John McCloy, “Face the Nation, July 2, 1967,” CBS News.
To no one’s surprise: “The Warren Commission,” Appendix to Hearings, Vol. 11, March 1979 HSCA, p. 78.
Warren said later he refused: Pearson Diaries, October 1966, Pearson papers, LBJ Library.
The staff lawyers said they were: Letter from Oscar Collier to the commission, August 14, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
Like her daughter-in-law: Esquire, May 1964.
“It’s pretty heavy”: New York Times, September 25, 1964.
“We ended up with 26 witnesses”: Ibid.
The headline in the New York Times: New York Times, September 28, 1964.
Time magazine was also: Time, October 2, 1964.
“The central mystery of who”: New York Times, September 28, 1964.
On the day of the release: Ibid.
At his request, his surviving brother: Kennedy, Edward M., True Compass: A Memoir, pp. 211–212.
The polls showed that after: Public Perspective, October–November 1998.
Congressman Boggs: National Observer, October 5, 1964.
He gave an interview: Atlanta Constitution, September 27, 1964.
Hoover attached a note: Hoover’s handwritten note on memo from DeLoach to Mohr, “Subject: THE PRESIDENT’S COMMISSION,” September 25, 1964, FBI.
Gale said it was: Memo from Gale to Tolson, “Subject: SHORTCOMINGS IN HANDLING LEE HARVEY OSWALD MATERIAL BY FBI PERSONNEL,” September 30, 1964, FBI.
“I think we are making”: Memo from Belmont to Tolson, October 1, 1964, FBI.
“We were wrong”: Hoover’s handwritten note on memo from Belmont to Tolson, October 1, 1964, FBI.
In a separate note: Hoover’s handwritten note on memo from DeLoach to Mohr, “SUBJECT: CRITICISM OF THE FBI,” October 6, 1964, FBI.
Hoover complained that the report: Letter from Hoover to Walter Jenkins, Special Assistant to the President, September 30, 1964, FBI.
Hoover’s office instructed: Memo from Rosen to Belmont, “SUBJECT: PRESIDENT’S COMMISSION,” October 2, 1964, FBI.
After reading a flattering: Washington Post, September 29, 1964.
On October 2, Hoover’s office: Memo from Rosen to Belmont, “SUBJECT: PRESIDENT’S COMMISSION,” October 2, 1964, FBI.
The files “contain considerable”: Letter from Hoover to Rankin, October 23, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
He told Hoover that the: Letter from Rankin to Hoover, November 18, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
On December 7, after all: Memo from Eide to Rankin, December 7, 1964, staff files, Warren Commission, NARA.
CHAPTER 55
“All Headquarters components”: “SILVIA TIRADO BOZAN DE DURAN,” undated, Russ Holmes Work File, CIA, RIF: 104–10404–10123. See also “Mexico City Chronology,” undated, CIA, RIF: 104–10086–10001, NARA.
The report, dated October 5: “MEXICAN COMMUNISTS WHO HAD CONTACT WITH OSWALD,” October 5, 1964, CIA, RIF: 104–10404–10332. Also see “SILVIA TIRADO BOZAN DE DURAN,” undated, Russ Holmes Work File, CIA, RIF: 104–10404–10123; “Mexico City Chronology,” updated, CIA, RIF: 104–10086–10001. June Cobb was identified as the informant by the House Select Committee on Assassinations in its “Report on Lee Harvey Oswald’s Trip to Mexico City” by staff members Dan Hardway and Edwin Lopez, undated, HSCA, RIF: 180–10110–10484 (hereafter Lopez Report, as it was known by House staff members).
There had been about thirty: Memo by Legal Attaché FBI, “Lee Harvey Oswald,” December 11, 1964, RIF: 104–10404–10330.
It was not clear from Scott’s files: also “Mexico City Chronology,” updated, CIA, RIF: 104–10086–10001, NARA. The note by the author of the chronology in reference to this material: “WHY WAS THIS NOT SENT TO HQ??”
The thirty-year-old Epstein: Epstein, Inquest, p. 3.
Asked by Epstein how much: Ibid., p. 20.
Epstein would recall: “Wesley Liebeler: The File Keeper, June 30, 1965,” essay available on Epstein’s Web site: http://edwardjayepstein.com/liebeler.htm.
Before publication, Epstein: New York Times, April 24, 1966.
In his introduction: Epstein, Inquest, pp. ix–xiv.
Inquest would be remembered: New York Times, July 6, 1966.
Albert Jenner, who already: Letter from Jenner to Belin, July 13, 1966, Belin’s Warren Commission files, Ford Library.
“Frankly,” he wrote: Letter from Redlich to Andrew Hacker, Cornell University, June 2, 1966, as attached to letter from Redlich to Belin, July 15, 1966, Belin’s Warren Commission files, Ford Library.
He described: In an email exchange with the author in 2013, Epstein said that despite Liebeler’s reported complaints about Inquest, the two men remained in contact and that he “saw Liebeler many times after publication of my book.” Asked about criticism of his book by other members of the commission’s staff, Epstein said that he would “fully discuss the background of my investigation” in his “assassination diary,” which he said was scheduled for publication in September 2013.
Richard Goodwin, a former Kennedy: New York Times, July 24, 1966.
He appeared startled in late June: New York Times, July 1, 1966.
The New York Times said that: New York Times, August 16, 1966.
After the commission, David Slawson: Slawson interviews.
Slawson was also disappointed: See Denver Post obituary of Dolan, September 5, 2008.
Charles Thomas and his wife: Cynthia Thomas interviews.
“Charles was an extraordinary man”: Poniatowska interview.
He recorded Garro’s account: Copies of Thomas’s memos were obtained from his widow, Cynthia. Copies are also found in the archives of the House Select Committee on Assassinations, NARA.
Garro tried to remember: Lopez Report, p. 225.
Ferris sent a memo: Memo from Ferris to Freeman, “INTERVIEW WITH MRS. ELENA GARRO DE PAZ,” December 27, 1965, as found in CIA report entitled “SILVIA TIRADO BOZAN DE DURAN,” undated, Russ Holmes Work File, CIA, RIF: 104–10404–10123.
One of his deputies: Cable to CIA Mexico City to CIA, “CABLE RE; LEGAL ATTACHE MEXI INTERVIEW ELENA GARRO DE PAZ,” December 29, 1965, CIA, RIF: 104–10404–10320, NARA.
CHAPTER 56
Johnson was outraged: Washington Post, October 3, 1966.
“Lou Harris is just owned”: Holland, The Kennedy Assassination Tapes, pp. 312–13.
After being permitted to read: New York Times, December 17, 1966.
Manchester’s book was not: “A Clash of Camelots,” Vanity Fair, October 2009.
“I can’t be in the position”: Pearson Diaries, October 1966, Pearson papers, LBJ Library.
In January 1967: Pearson Diaries, January 1967, Pearson papers, LBJ Library.
Morgan said he agonized: Testimony of Edward P. Morgan, March 19, 1976, Church Committee, RIF: 157–10011–10040.
Warren, he said, “was decidedly”: Pearson Diaries, January 1967, Pearson papers, LBJ Library.
The meeting took place: Testimony of James J. Rowley, February 13, 1976, Church Committee, RIF: 157–10014–10011.
“Lyndon listened carefully”: Pearson Diaries, January 1967, Pearson papers, LBJ Library.
On Monday, February 20: Holland, The Kennedy Assassination Tapes, pp. 389–98.
On March 1, 1967: New York Times, March 2, 1967.
WASHINGTON—President Johnson: Washington Merry-Go-Round, March 3, 1967, available in the Drew Pearson archives maintained by American University. The actual column can be found at: http://dspace.wrlc.org/doc/bitstream/2041/53102/b20f02–0303zdisplay.pdf#search=”.
Pearson was unhappy: Pearson Diaries, March 1967, Pearson papers, LBJ Library.
On March 6: “Central Intelligence Agency’s Intentions to Send Hoodlums to Cuba to Assassinate Castro,” March 6, 1967, FBI, as cited in “SUMMARY OF FACTS: INVESTIGATION OF CIA INVOLVEMENT IN PLOTS TO ASSASSINATE FOREIGN LEADERS,” undated, found in the staff files of Richard Cheney, White House chief of staff in the Ford administration, Ford Library. The document is available online at the Ford Library Web site: http://www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov/library/document/0005/7324009.pdf.
A Cruel and Shocking Act: The Secret History of the Kennedy Assassination Page 70