TOMORROW WITH TOM SNYDER: JFK ASSASSINATION (TV)
Summary
One in this series of late-night topical interview programs hosted by Tom Snyder. This installment, occurring on the 110th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's death, focuses on the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the many ongoing questions surrounding his death. After a brief anecdote about President Ford's unusual visit to the Daughters of the American Revolution, Snyder introduces the panelists: forensic pathologist Cyril Wecht, attorney Bernard Fensterwald, and retired Air Force Colonel L. Fletcher Prouty, who served as Chief of Special Operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Kennedy.
The panelists touch on such topics as: the "second Oswald," a man photographed in Mexico City in October 1963 using Lee Harvey Oswald's identifications; why the CIA knowingly hid this person's existence from the Warren Commission; how the infamous film shot by Abraham Zapruder contradicts the Warren Commission's findings, including details about the speed with which the alleged murder weapon can be fired; the inaccuracy of the "single-bullet theory," which is the "sine qua non" of the Warren Commission's conclusions; Prouty's surprise at the lack of appropriate security in Dallas, including the many open windows in buildings along the parade route; whether the Secret Service knew of a plot against Kennedy, with reference to a similar plot discovered in Miami earlier in 1963; the Secret Service's total lack of knowledge about Oswald until the day of the assassination; a detailed analysis of the still frames of the Zapruder film and how a "supposed reenactment" by the CIA placed the Kennedy and Connally stand-ins in the wrong positions; an examination of the so-called "magic" bullet, which is "almost pristine" when compared to far more damaged bullets fired into cadavers; Prouty's memories of learning about the shooting while in New Zealand and finding that it was improbably "solved in the first hour"; their sense that the Warren Commission sought to prove Oswald's guilt, not to find the killer or killers; New York Times reporter Harrison Salisbury's articles on the assassination; Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter's role as the "inventor" of the "magic-bullet theory"; the newly formed Rockefeller Commission and its staff director, David Belin, who has repeatedly defended the Warren Commission's findings; their agreement that the CIA is not responsible for the assassination itself, but for the subsequent cover-up; how the assassination "controlled" the actions of Presidents Johnson and Nixon, with comparisons to the violent intimidation techniques in "The Godfather" (1972); the need for Congress to move forward in "a meaningful way" in investigating the truth of Kennedy's death; the persistent rumor that CIA officer E. Howard Hunt was in Dallas on the day of the assassination; the "traumatic" effect that a drawn-out, Watergate-like investigation could have on the American people; and why expert forensic scientists must be granted access to Kennedy's remains for study. Snyder closes the program by noting that the Zapruder family is still refusing to allow the film to be shown on television, even for a hefty price. Includes commercials and promos.
Details
- NETWORK: NBC
- DATE: April 15, 1975 1:00 AM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:56:37
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:35504
- GENRE: Talk/Interview
- SUBJECT HEADING: Talk/Interview; Politics; Assassination - Kennedy
- SERIES RUN: NBC - TV series, 1973-1981
- COMMERCIALS:
- TV - Commercials - Alpo dog food
- TV - Commercials - Arm & Hammer baking soda
- TV - Commercials - Brim decaffeinated coffee
- TV - Commercials - Excedrin P.M. painkillers
- TV - Commercials - Mennen Skin Bracer aftershave
- TV - Commercials - Nytol sleep tablets
- TV - Commercials - Pepto-Bismal stomach medication
- TV - Commercials - The Mennonite Church
- TV - Commercials - The United States Air Force
- TV - Commercials - U.S. Department of Health Education & Welfare special education information
- TV - PSA - College funding
- TV - PSA - Jobs for Veterans
- TV - PSA - National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
- TV - PSA - The United Negro College Fund
- TV - PSA - U.S. Department of Labor Wage & Hour Division
- TV - Promos - "Midnight Special"
CREDITS
- Joel Tator … Producer, Director
- Pamela Burke … Program Producer
- Katherine Coker … Staff Producer
- Bruce McKay … Staff Producer
- Tom Snyder … Host
- Cyril Wecht … Panelist
- Bernard Fensterwald … Panelist
- L. Fletcher Prouty … Panelist
- David Belin
- John Connally
- Gerald Ford
- E. Howard Hunt
- Lyndon B. Johnson
- John F. Kennedy
- Abraham Lincoln
- Richard Nixon
- Lee Harvey Oswald
- Harrison Salisbury
- Arlen Specter
- Abraham Zapruder