JFK was assassinated on Nov. 22, 1963. President Lyndon Johnson appointed the Warren Commission to investigate the assassination. The commission determined that Lee Harvey Oswald killed Kennedy, he acted alone, and there was no conspiracy. These findings were controversial and even today most Americans think the commission got it wrong. There are many conspiracy theories, myths, falsehoods, and misunderstandings about the assassination. However, there are also facts that can not be disputed. Here are some of the more interesting facts.
- JFK was in Dallas on a campaign swing to improve his chances of carrying Texas in the 1964 election. He earlier in the day gave a speech to the Ft. Worth Chamber of Commerce.
- Jackie did not normally travel with her husband. It was her first extended public appearance since the death of baby Patrick in August. Also in the limousine were Governor of Texas John Connelly, his wife Nellie, and a Secret Service driver Bill Greer.
- The limousine was a Lincoln Continental code named X-100. The car was leased from the Ford Motor Company for $500/year. It had a bullet proof bubble top that Kennedy refused to use (as any President would have also). It was cleaned up after the assassination and put back in service in 1964 and carried Presidents until 1977 when it was retired to the Ford Museum.
- As the limousine turned onto Elm Street, Nellie Connally turned to Kennedy and said: “Mr. President, you can’t say Dallas doesn’t love you”. Kennedy’s reply – “No, you certainly can’t” – were his last words. (There had been worries that the crowd might be unwelcoming, but the reception was positive.) The car was going about 11 MPH.
- Lee Harvey Oswald was an ex-Marine. He was a Marxist. (He was a big fan of Castro.) When he left the Marines, he moved to the Soviet Union. He married and had a daughter. He became disillusioned with life in a less-than-paradise. The State Department loaned him $435.71 to get back to the U.S. That was an exceedingly poor investment. In 1963, he took a shot at a retired Gen. Edwin Walker. Walker was a rabid anti-communist.
- Oswald had been working in the Texas Book Depository for a few months. (The motorcade route was announced on Nov. 18. It was reported in all the Dallas newspapers.) He was living in an apartment as he was separated from his wife. He had ordered the Italian Carcano bolt-action rifle with scope through the mail. It cost him $19.95. He was stationed on the 6th floor by himself. He was seen buying and drinking a coke on a lower floor after the shots were fired. The rifle was found hidden behind some boxes on the 6th floor. He then went back to his apartment and left on foot. He killed a cop named J.D. Tipitt when he was stopped. He ducked into a movie theater without paying for a ticket. The police, chasing a cop-killer, arrested him. He tried pulling a pistol. The movie was “War Is Hell!”
- Abraham Zapruder sold his famous film to Life magazine for $150,000.
- JFK was given last rites. It was the fifth time in his life he was given last rites. 1. When he was 2 years old, he was put in the hospital with scarlet fever. His temperature was spiked and a priest was called in. 2. Due to his Addison’s disease (a serious disease that was kept secret from the public), he got ill in Great Britain in 1947. On the trip back to America on the Queen Mary, he took a turn for the worse and a priest was called for. 3. In 1951, he went into a coma due to Addison’s disease while in Japan. He was flown to a military hospital in Okinawa and arrived comatose. 4. In 1954, he underwent back surgery. He contracted a urinary tract infection.
- Vice President Lyndon Johnson was sworn in on board Air Force One 99 minutes after Kennedy was declared dead. He was sworn in by Judge Sarah Hughes. She was the and only woman to swear in a President.
- Jackie refused to take off the pink dress before returning to the White House. She told Lady Bird Johnson: “I want them to see what they have done to Jack”. The dress was given to the National Archives. Due to a Kennedy family request, it will not be seen until 2103.
- Oswald was shot live on national television by a Dallas strip club owner with Mafia ties. Oswald was being moved from the city jail to the county jail. Ruby shot him in the garage. As he was being arrested, Ruby proclaimed: “I’m Jack Ruby, you all know me.” This was a reference to Ruby being a police groupie. The homicide was the first seen live on national television. When Ruby died of lung cancer, he died in the same hospital that JFK and Oswald had died in.
- Jackie requested the eternal flame. Before internment, Jackie put her wedding ring on her husband. Later, an aide was sent to retrieve the ring. The funeral was on John, Jr.’s birthday. Jackie is buried next to her first husband.
https://www.aarp.org/politics-society/history/info-10-2013/50-facts-about-jfk-assassination.html
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-11-21/ten-unusual-facts-about-jfk-assassination/5099004
https://www.livescience.com/61985-kennedy-assassination.html
https://www.jfklibrary.org/learn/about-jfk/jfk-in-history/november-22-1963-death-of-the-president
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