Overview

It is the most famous home movie of all time, the most closely analysed 26 seconds of film ever shot, the most disturbing visual record of what many have called “the crime of the century.” In 486 frames—a mere six feet of celluloid—Abraham Zapruder’s iconic film captures from beginning to end the murder of President John F. Kennedy in broad daylight. The film has become nearly synonymous with the assassination itself and has generated decades of debate among conspiracy theorists and defenders of the Warren Commission’s official report. Until now, however, no scholar has produced a comprehensive book-length study of the film and its relation to the tragic events of November 22, 1963. David Wrone, one of our nation’s foremost authorities on the assassination, re-examines Zapruder’s film with a fresh eye and a deep knowledge of the forensic evidence. He traces the film’s forty-year history from its creation on the “grassy knoll” by Dallas dressmaker Zapruder through its initial sale to Life magazine, analysis by the Warren Commission and countless assassination researchers, licensing by the Zapruder family, legal battles over bootleg copies, and sale to the federal government for sixteen million dollars. Wrone’s major contribution, however, is to demonstrate how the film itself necessarily refutes the Warren Commission’s lone-gunman and single-bullet theories. The film, he notes, provides a scientifically precise timeline of events, as well as crucial clues regarding the timing, number, origins, and impact of the shots fired that day. Analysing it frame-by-frame in relation to other evidence—including two key photos by Phil Willis and Ike Altgens—he builds a convincing case against the official findings. Without fanfare, he concludes that more than three gunshots were fired from more than one direction and that most likely none were fired by alleged assassin Lee Harvey Oswald. If true, then JFK’s death was the result of a conspiracy, for the Commission’s nonconspiracy conclusion requires a maximum of three shots and one gunman. Wrone, however, does not speculate as to who actually shot JFK or why—or even if Oswald was involved. In fact, he is just as critical of the legion of conspiracy theorists as he is of the Warren Commission (which, he reveals, crushed dissent within its own ranks). Doggedly pursuing the evidence wherever it leads, Wrone has produced a meticulous, clear-eyed, and provocative new reading of this remarkable cinematic Rosetta Stone.

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9780700619436

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Reviews

Wrone's knowledge of the assassination's complex and daunting evidentiary base is unparalleled. --James H. Lesar, founder and president of the Assassination Archives and Research Center

Wrone's knowledge of the assassination's complex and daunting evidentiary base is unparalleled. --James H. Lesar, founder and president of the Assassination Archives and Research Center An important, valuable, and compelling addition to the literature on the assassination that argues convincingly that the film is both authentic and contains evidence of a conspiracy. --Michael L. Kurtz, author of The JFK Assassination Debates: Lone Gunman versus Conspiracy One of the most sober JFK assassination books of any year. Wrone seems to be without an ideologically motivated agenda. He seems interested only in finding and presenting the evidence responsibly. . . . Of all the Zapruder film analyses I have read, Wrone's is the most lucid for a non-expert, and the calmest in tone. Cleveland Plain Dealer Wrone is neither a Warren Commission defender nor an outlandish conspiracy theorist but a careful historian who presents a strong case that the Warren Commission hastily and wrongly concluded that Oswald murdered Kennedy. . . . Strongly recommended. Library Journal

Wrone's knowledge of the assassination's evidentiary base is unparalleled.

An important, valuable, and compelling addition to the literature on the assassination that argues convincingly that the film is both authentic and contains evidence of a conspiracy. Michael L. Kurtz, author of The JFK Assassination Debates: Lone Gunman versus Conspiracy Wrone s knowledge of the assassination s complex and daunting evidentiary base is unparalleled. James H. Lesar, founder and president of the Assassination Archives and Research Center The vivid images captured by the Zapruder film are eminently recognizable, perhaps more so than any other film footage ever captured, so much so that anyone who reflects on JFK s assassination quite likely does so from Abraham Zapruder s vantage point. Walter E. Dellinger III, Maggs Professor of Law at Duke University and former Solicitor General of the United States . . . clearly written and accessible to a wide audience. It will be useful to students of American society, particularly in the fields of criminology and law, sociology, political science, and history. Critical Criminology Wrone has provided a stimulating, clearly written, and well-researched study of an issue that may never be satisfactorily resolved. Journal of Southern History One of the most sober JFK assassination books of 2003 or any other year. . . . Wrone seems to be without an ideologically motivated agenda. He seems interested only in finding and presenting the evidence responsibly. . . . Of all the Zapruder film analyses I have read, Wrone s is the most lucid for a nonexpert, and the calmest in tone. Cleveland Plain Dealer Future assassination researchers will consult this fascinating history of the indelible Zapruder film. Strongly recommended. Library Journal Wrone is neither a Warren Commission defender nor an outlandish conspiracy theorist but a careful historian who presents a strong case that the Warren Commission hastily and wrongly concluded that Oswald murdered Kennedy. . . . Strongly recommended. Library Journal A stimulating, clearly written, and well-researched study. Journal of Southern History

An important, valuable, and compelling addition to the literature on the assassination that argues convincingly that the film is both authentic and contains evidence of a conspiracy. --Michael L. Kurtz, author of The JFK Assassination Debates: Lone Gunman versus Conspiracy Wrone's knowledge of the assassination's complex and daunting evidentiary base is unparalleled. --James H. Lesar, founder and president of the Assassination Archives and Research Center The vivid images captured by the Zapruder film are eminently recognizable, perhaps more so than any other film footage ever captured, so much so that anyone who reflects on JFK's assassination quite likely does so from Abraham Zapruder's vantage point. --Walter E. Dellinger III, Maggs Professor of Law at Duke University and former Solicitor General of the United States . . . clearly written and accessible to a wide audience. It will be useful to students of American society, particularly in the fields of criminology and law, sociology, political science, and history. --Critical Criminology Wrone has provided a stimulating, clearly written, and well-researched study of an issue that may never be satisfactorily resolved. --Journal of Southern History One of the most sober JFK assassination books of 2003 or any other year. . . . Wrone seems to be without an ideologically motivated agenda. He seems interested only in finding and presenting the evidence responsibly. . . . Of all the Zapruder film analyses I have read, Wrone's is the most lucid for a nonexpert, and the calmest in tone. --Cleveland Plain Dealer Future assassination researchers will consult this fascinating history of the indelible Zapruder film. Strongly recommended. --Library Journal Wrone is neither a Warren Commission defender nor an outlandish conspiracy theorist but a careful historian who presents a strong case that the Warren Commission hastily and wrongly concluded that Oswald murdered Kennedy. . . . Strongly recommended. --Library Journal A stimulating, clearly written, and well-researched study. --Journal of Southern History

Author Information

David R. Wrone is professor emeritus of history at the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point, USA.

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