Presidential Conspiracy Theories: The Zapruder Film
When the Warren Commission released its final 888 page report on September 24, 1964 on the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, among the conclusions reached by the commission, were the following:
1. The shots which killed President Kennedy and wounded Governor Connally were fired from the sixth-floor window at the southeast corner of the Texas School Book Depository.
7. The shots which killed President Kennedy and wounded Governor Connally were fired by Lee Harvey Oswald.
10. The Commission has found no evidence that either Lee Harvey Oswald or Jack Ruby was part of any conspiracy, domestic or foreign, to assassinate President Kennedy.
11. The Commission has found no evidence of conspiracy, subversion, or disloyalty to the U.S. Government by any Federal, State, or local official.
The conclusion that Oswald acted alone, or that the shots were fired only from one location have been hotly contested in the decades that have intervened, and even today, many people doubt this conclusion. Perhaps the strongest piece of evidence casting doubt on this conclusion is what has become known as "The Zapruder Film.
The Zapruder Film is a silent 8mm color motion picture sequence shot by Abraham Zapruder with a Bell & Howell home-movie camera. Zapruder filmed the scene as President John F. Kennedy's motorcade passed through Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963. The film captured the assassination of the President. It was not the only film of the shooting, but is is recognized as being the most complete. It gives a relatively clear view from an slightly elevated position on the side from which the president's fatal head wound is visible. It is one of the most studied pieces of film in history and since 1994, the footage has been preserved in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress
Abraham Zapruder was a Ukrainian born American clothing manufacturer whose office was on the fourth floor of the Dal-Tex Building, across the street from the Texas School Book Depository. Zapruder was an fan of President Kennedy and was a Democrat. He had originally planned to film the motorcade carrying President Kennedy through downtown Dallas on November 22, but he decided not to do so because it had been raining that morning. When he arrived at work that morning without his camera, Zapruder's assistant insisted that he bring it from home before coming in to work because the rain had stopped.
Zapruder's movie camera was an 8 mm Bell & Howell Zoomatic Director Series Model 414 PD. It was considered to be the top-of-the-line when it was purchased in 1962. Zapruder had planned to film the motorcade from his office window but he later decided to choose a more optimal spot in Dealey Plaza where the motorcade would be passing. He chose to film on top of a 4-foot concrete abutment which extends from a retaining wall that was part of the John Neely Bryan concrete pergola on the grassy knoll north of Elm Street, in Dealey Plaza. He filmed from the time the presidential limousine turned onto Elm Street for a total of 26.6 seconds, exposing 486 frames of standard 8 mm Kodachrome II safety film, running at an average of 18.3 frames/second.
Following the assassination, Secret Service agent Forrest Sorrels promised Zapruder that the film would only be used for an official investigation. The two men went to develop the footage as soon as possible. A local television station WFAA had equipment that was not compatible with the format, so Eastman Kodak's Dallas film processing facility developed the film and Jamieson Film Company produced three copies. Zapruder gave two of the copies to Sorrels and they were sent to Washington. The original film was retained by Zapruder, in addition to one of the copies.
A bidding war began for the film and on the morning of November 23, Life magazine purchased it for $150,000 ($1,330,000 in 2023 dollars). In his 2001 book Tell Me A Story, CBS producer Don Hewitt said that he told Rather to go to Zapruder's home to "sock him in the jaw", take the film, copy it, then return it and let the network's lawyers deal with the consequences. Hewitt wrote that he soon after realized how wrong this would be and he immediately called Rather back to countermand the order. Rather later claimed that this story was not true.
Frame 313 of the film captures the fatal shot to the President's head. Zapruder insisted that frame 313 be excluded from publication. The November 29, 1963 issue of Life published about 30 frames of the Zapruder film in black and white. Frames were also published in color in the December 6, 1963 special "John F. Kennedy Memorial Edition", and in issues dated October 2, 1964 (a special article on the film and the Warren Commission report), November 25, 1966, and November 24, 1967.
At least 32 people in Dealey Plaza known to have made film or still photographs at or around the time of the shooting. The Zapruder film frames that were used by the Warren Commission were published in black and white as Commission Exhibit 885 in volume XVIII of the Hearings and Exhibits. Life magazine brought the original to Washington in February for the Commission's viewing, and also made color 35mm slide enlargements from the relevant frames of the original film for the FBI. From those slides, the FBI made a series of black-and-white prints, which were given to the commission for its use.
In October 1964, the U.S. Government Printing Office released 26 volumes of testimony and evidence compiled by the Warren Commission. Volume 18 of the commission's hearings reproduced 158 frames from the Zapruder film in black and white. However, frames 208–211 were missing, a splice was visible in frames 207 and 212, frames 314 and 315 were switched around, and frame 284 was a repeat of 283. FBI director J. Edgar Hoover claimed that frames 314 and 315 had been swapped due to a printing error, and that that error did not exist in the original Warren Commission exhibits.
Before the 1969 trial of Clay Shaw, a businessman from New Orleans, for conspiracy in connection with the assassination, a copy of the film made several generations from the original was subpoenaed from Time Inc. in 1967 by New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison for use at Shaw's grand jury hearing. Garrison unsuccessfully subpoenaed the original film in 1968. The courtroom showings of Garrison's copy in 1969 were the first time it had been shown in public as a film. Garrison allowed copies of the film to be made. Zapruder's film was aired as part of a Los Angeles area television newscast on February 14, 1969.
On March 6, 1975, on the ABC late-night television show Good Night America (hosted by Geraldo Rivera), assassination researchers Robert Groden and Dick Gregory presented the first-ever US network television showing of the Zapruder film. The public's response and outrage to that television ultimately led to the Church Committee Investigation on Intelligence Activities by the United States, and resulted in the House Select Committee on Assassinations investigation.
In April 1975, as part of a settlement of a royalties suit between Time Inc. and Zapruder's heirs arising from the ABC showing, Time Inc. sold the film's initial rendition and its copyright back to the Zapruder family for the sum of $1. Time Inc. wanted to donate the film to the U.S. government. The Zapruder family originally refused to consent, but in 1978, the family transferred the film to the National Archives and Records Administration for appropriate preservation and safe-keeping, while still retaining ownership of the film and its copyright. Director Oliver Stone paid over $85,000 to the Zapruder family for use of the Zapruder film in his motion picture JFK (1991).
Between November 1963 and January 1964, the FBI examined a copy of the Zapruder film, noting that the camera recorded at an average of 18.3 frames per second. It is not clear from the film itself as to when the first and second shots occurred. The film clearly shows that by frame 225 the President is reacting to his throat wound, although no wound or blood is seen on either President Kennedy or Governor Connally prior to frame 313.
The Zapruder film shows the Presidential motorcade led by two open-top limousines proceeding at a stately pace through a street lined with people. It shows the black Lincoln Continental with JFK and his wife, Jackie waving to onlookers as the motorcade heads for what was known locally as “the triple underpass.” As the motorcade approaches, the film shows JFK’s car emerge from behind a sign that had been temporarily blocking the view. Suddenly, JFK clutches his throat. His wife Jackie leans over to attend to him. An instant later, in Frame 313, it looks like a lightning bolt strikes JFK’s head. We see it blown up and thrown back. Mrs. Kennedy frantically crawls over the rear seat of the open car and climbs onto its rear deck grasping at something that has been described as a piece of her husband’s shattered skull.
Conspiracy theorists argue that the sudden force which violently pushes the President's head backward is strong and compelling evidence that the force which caused this originated from a different direction from the Texas School Book Depository, one from somewhere in front of the vehicle. They argue that this strongly contradicts the conclusion that Oswald acted alone, and that there was at least one other shooter, one who delivered the fatal shot that killed the President. They say that this conclusion matches reports from many persons present on that day who directed police and other authorities in a different direction, to the famous "grassy knoll" in front of where the motorcade was at the time.
In 1979, the House Select Committee on Assassinations agreed to publish a report from Warren Commission critic Robert Groden, in which he named other suspected firing points in Dealey Plaza, including the Grassy Knoll. Investigator Josiah Thompson concluded that the shots fired at the motorcade came from three locations: the Texas School Book Depository, the Grassy Knoll, and the Dal-Tex Building. The grassy knoll was identified by most witnesses as the area from where shots were fired. In March 1965, Harold Feldman wrote that there were 121 witnesses to the assassination listed in the Warren Report, 51 of whom indicated that the shots that killed Kennedy came from the grassy knoll, while 32 said the shots originated from the Texas School Book Depository. In 1967, Josiah Thompson examined the statements of 64 witnesses and concluded that 33 of them thought that the shots emanated from the grassy knoll.
Below is a YouTube video of the Zapruder film. TRIGGER WARNING: it contains violent and disturbing imagery. Please don't watch this if you are concerned that it will offend you or cause a traumatic response or reaction.
The Zapruder film remains as the strongest piece of evidence for those who dispute the conclusion that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone in the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Literally hundreds of books have been written on the subject, and it will continue to be one of Presidential history's most hotly disputed subjects.
1. The shots which killed President Kennedy and wounded Governor Connally were fired from the sixth-floor window at the southeast corner of the Texas School Book Depository.
7. The shots which killed President Kennedy and wounded Governor Connally were fired by Lee Harvey Oswald.
10. The Commission has found no evidence that either Lee Harvey Oswald or Jack Ruby was part of any conspiracy, domestic or foreign, to assassinate President Kennedy.
11. The Commission has found no evidence of conspiracy, subversion, or disloyalty to the U.S. Government by any Federal, State, or local official.
The conclusion that Oswald acted alone, or that the shots were fired only from one location have been hotly contested in the decades that have intervened, and even today, many people doubt this conclusion. Perhaps the strongest piece of evidence casting doubt on this conclusion is what has become known as "The Zapruder Film.
The Zapruder Film is a silent 8mm color motion picture sequence shot by Abraham Zapruder with a Bell & Howell home-movie camera. Zapruder filmed the scene as President John F. Kennedy's motorcade passed through Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963. The film captured the assassination of the President. It was not the only film of the shooting, but is is recognized as being the most complete. It gives a relatively clear view from an slightly elevated position on the side from which the president's fatal head wound is visible. It is one of the most studied pieces of film in history and since 1994, the footage has been preserved in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress
Abraham Zapruder was a Ukrainian born American clothing manufacturer whose office was on the fourth floor of the Dal-Tex Building, across the street from the Texas School Book Depository. Zapruder was an fan of President Kennedy and was a Democrat. He had originally planned to film the motorcade carrying President Kennedy through downtown Dallas on November 22, but he decided not to do so because it had been raining that morning. When he arrived at work that morning without his camera, Zapruder's assistant insisted that he bring it from home before coming in to work because the rain had stopped.
Zapruder's movie camera was an 8 mm Bell & Howell Zoomatic Director Series Model 414 PD. It was considered to be the top-of-the-line when it was purchased in 1962. Zapruder had planned to film the motorcade from his office window but he later decided to choose a more optimal spot in Dealey Plaza where the motorcade would be passing. He chose to film on top of a 4-foot concrete abutment which extends from a retaining wall that was part of the John Neely Bryan concrete pergola on the grassy knoll north of Elm Street, in Dealey Plaza. He filmed from the time the presidential limousine turned onto Elm Street for a total of 26.6 seconds, exposing 486 frames of standard 8 mm Kodachrome II safety film, running at an average of 18.3 frames/second.
Following the assassination, Secret Service agent Forrest Sorrels promised Zapruder that the film would only be used for an official investigation. The two men went to develop the footage as soon as possible. A local television station WFAA had equipment that was not compatible with the format, so Eastman Kodak's Dallas film processing facility developed the film and Jamieson Film Company produced three copies. Zapruder gave two of the copies to Sorrels and they were sent to Washington. The original film was retained by Zapruder, in addition to one of the copies.
A bidding war began for the film and on the morning of November 23, Life magazine purchased it for $150,000 ($1,330,000 in 2023 dollars). In his 2001 book Tell Me A Story, CBS producer Don Hewitt said that he told Rather to go to Zapruder's home to "sock him in the jaw", take the film, copy it, then return it and let the network's lawyers deal with the consequences. Hewitt wrote that he soon after realized how wrong this would be and he immediately called Rather back to countermand the order. Rather later claimed that this story was not true.
Frame 313 of the film captures the fatal shot to the President's head. Zapruder insisted that frame 313 be excluded from publication. The November 29, 1963 issue of Life published about 30 frames of the Zapruder film in black and white. Frames were also published in color in the December 6, 1963 special "John F. Kennedy Memorial Edition", and in issues dated October 2, 1964 (a special article on the film and the Warren Commission report), November 25, 1966, and November 24, 1967.
At least 32 people in Dealey Plaza known to have made film or still photographs at or around the time of the shooting. The Zapruder film frames that were used by the Warren Commission were published in black and white as Commission Exhibit 885 in volume XVIII of the Hearings and Exhibits. Life magazine brought the original to Washington in February for the Commission's viewing, and also made color 35mm slide enlargements from the relevant frames of the original film for the FBI. From those slides, the FBI made a series of black-and-white prints, which were given to the commission for its use.
In October 1964, the U.S. Government Printing Office released 26 volumes of testimony and evidence compiled by the Warren Commission. Volume 18 of the commission's hearings reproduced 158 frames from the Zapruder film in black and white. However, frames 208–211 were missing, a splice was visible in frames 207 and 212, frames 314 and 315 were switched around, and frame 284 was a repeat of 283. FBI director J. Edgar Hoover claimed that frames 314 and 315 had been swapped due to a printing error, and that that error did not exist in the original Warren Commission exhibits.
Before the 1969 trial of Clay Shaw, a businessman from New Orleans, for conspiracy in connection with the assassination, a copy of the film made several generations from the original was subpoenaed from Time Inc. in 1967 by New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison for use at Shaw's grand jury hearing. Garrison unsuccessfully subpoenaed the original film in 1968. The courtroom showings of Garrison's copy in 1969 were the first time it had been shown in public as a film. Garrison allowed copies of the film to be made. Zapruder's film was aired as part of a Los Angeles area television newscast on February 14, 1969.
On March 6, 1975, on the ABC late-night television show Good Night America (hosted by Geraldo Rivera), assassination researchers Robert Groden and Dick Gregory presented the first-ever US network television showing of the Zapruder film. The public's response and outrage to that television ultimately led to the Church Committee Investigation on Intelligence Activities by the United States, and resulted in the House Select Committee on Assassinations investigation.
In April 1975, as part of a settlement of a royalties suit between Time Inc. and Zapruder's heirs arising from the ABC showing, Time Inc. sold the film's initial rendition and its copyright back to the Zapruder family for the sum of $1. Time Inc. wanted to donate the film to the U.S. government. The Zapruder family originally refused to consent, but in 1978, the family transferred the film to the National Archives and Records Administration for appropriate preservation and safe-keeping, while still retaining ownership of the film and its copyright. Director Oliver Stone paid over $85,000 to the Zapruder family for use of the Zapruder film in his motion picture JFK (1991).
Between November 1963 and January 1964, the FBI examined a copy of the Zapruder film, noting that the camera recorded at an average of 18.3 frames per second. It is not clear from the film itself as to when the first and second shots occurred. The film clearly shows that by frame 225 the President is reacting to his throat wound, although no wound or blood is seen on either President Kennedy or Governor Connally prior to frame 313.
The Zapruder film shows the Presidential motorcade led by two open-top limousines proceeding at a stately pace through a street lined with people. It shows the black Lincoln Continental with JFK and his wife, Jackie waving to onlookers as the motorcade heads for what was known locally as “the triple underpass.” As the motorcade approaches, the film shows JFK’s car emerge from behind a sign that had been temporarily blocking the view. Suddenly, JFK clutches his throat. His wife Jackie leans over to attend to him. An instant later, in Frame 313, it looks like a lightning bolt strikes JFK’s head. We see it blown up and thrown back. Mrs. Kennedy frantically crawls over the rear seat of the open car and climbs onto its rear deck grasping at something that has been described as a piece of her husband’s shattered skull.
Conspiracy theorists argue that the sudden force which violently pushes the President's head backward is strong and compelling evidence that the force which caused this originated from a different direction from the Texas School Book Depository, one from somewhere in front of the vehicle. They argue that this strongly contradicts the conclusion that Oswald acted alone, and that there was at least one other shooter, one who delivered the fatal shot that killed the President. They say that this conclusion matches reports from many persons present on that day who directed police and other authorities in a different direction, to the famous "grassy knoll" in front of where the motorcade was at the time.
In 1979, the House Select Committee on Assassinations agreed to publish a report from Warren Commission critic Robert Groden, in which he named other suspected firing points in Dealey Plaza, including the Grassy Knoll. Investigator Josiah Thompson concluded that the shots fired at the motorcade came from three locations: the Texas School Book Depository, the Grassy Knoll, and the Dal-Tex Building. The grassy knoll was identified by most witnesses as the area from where shots were fired. In March 1965, Harold Feldman wrote that there were 121 witnesses to the assassination listed in the Warren Report, 51 of whom indicated that the shots that killed Kennedy came from the grassy knoll, while 32 said the shots originated from the Texas School Book Depository. In 1967, Josiah Thompson examined the statements of 64 witnesses and concluded that 33 of them thought that the shots emanated from the grassy knoll.
Below is a YouTube video of the Zapruder film. TRIGGER WARNING: it contains violent and disturbing imagery. Please don't watch this if you are concerned that it will offend you or cause a traumatic response or reaction.
The Zapruder film remains as the strongest piece of evidence for those who dispute the conclusion that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone in the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Literally hundreds of books have been written on the subject, and it will continue to be one of Presidential history's most hotly disputed subjects.