JFK Assassination

1975. Geraldo Rivera on his Good Night America program has two guests on to introduce the 'Zapruder film'. The age of this film is apparent and it has not been remastered.

After a few short comments we see news program footage of president John F Kennedy's motorcade, which is spliced in with Abraham Zapruder's amateur 8mm video. The continuity of this footage shows Mr. Kennedy and wife Jacqueline as they turn into Dealy plaza. We see the motorcade go behind a sign, and when the president emerges he is shot. The film continues to show the shot to the head which assassinated President JFK.

Geraldo Rivera was the first journalist to air the Zapruder film on national TV.

President John F Kennedy was assassinated in 1963.

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1988. Geraldo Rivera on his namesake talk show, here showing an exclusive interview with former governor of Texas John Connally and his wife Nell, whom were both in the same fated car as president John F. Kennedy when he was fatally shot. The segment starts early showing a historic clip of when the bullet hit President Kennedy, before continuing to a press conference Mrs. Connally gave shortly after the event describing what happened. We move on to today in 1988 as first Nell then John Connally describe the events of that day in vivid and grisly detail. Governor Connally refutes some common theories such as the 'single bullet theory' put forth by the Warren Commission.

President John Fitzgerald Kennedy was shot and killed November 22nd, 1963, during his motorcade in Dallas Texas. His assassination continues to stoke extensive debate and conspiratorial theories. Governor of Texas John Connally, shown in this clip, was also shot and severely injured, undergoing 4 hours of surgery before eventually recovering.

We wonder if the JFK files President Trump has promised to release will shed more light on this tragic and fateful American mystery.

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November 18th, 1991. Geraldo Rivera's namesake talk show investigates the killing of America's youngest president as conspiracy continues to swirl 28 years later.

"...that to many people is an example of just how slipshod the official version of history the Warren Commission was..."

This episode begins with historical footage and background, Lee Harvey Oswald is heard saying he emphatically denies these charges, and the scuffle around the time of his shooting is shown. Stasticially, the audience and likely the country largely believe there was a conspiracy to assassinate JFK.

Three eyewitnesses, attendees of the parade that day in 1963, are interviewed. Linda Willis describes the pandemonium breaking out as the shots were heard and graphic detail of what she saw. Marilyn Sitzman stands in the exact spot where she was that day describing it as the best place to film. She was directly next to Mr. Zapruder.

Back in studio we hear from Mark Lane who believes the CIA was behind this assassination. He claims it was JFK's willingness to reach out to Fidel Castro and make peace, as well his ending the war in the Vietnam, that were the real reasons his killing. Of course the 35th president's stance on demolishing the CIA was a final straw for that agency.

A clip of Marita Lorenz is shown claiming she heard agents bragging about the successful assassination, as Mark Lane carries the story on and ties it to when Robert Kennedy was shot. Dick Gregory claims the family must know by now not to mess with the big boys, and he'll never believe the plane carrying Ted Kennedy crashed by accident.

Robert Groden, a Photoanalyst claims that some of the photographs released by the Warren Commission were fraudulent. Every nurse claimed to see a massive exit wound in the back of JFK's head, but he carries the actual photograph with a head clearly intact.

Moving into audience questions, Mark Lane does not think that Lyndon B Johnson was involved. The 'magic bullet' is discussed after an audience member asks, why can't they run ballistics on the rifle itself? Robert Groden explains the discrepancies and says Lee Harvey Oswald's rifle did not kill the president.

Mark North says FBI head J Edgar Hoover was involved in the assassination. There was a mandatory retirement coming up for J Edgar Hoover, unless JFK signed an executive order, which he made very clear he was not going to do. The House Select findings in 1979 are referenced, which point the finger at the Marcello mafia organization and Santo Trafficante.

An audience member has always felt the killing has been a coverup, but all these year laters what purpose does it serve? Any time the truth can be revealed is good for society. It may be too late for justice but it's never too late for the truth.

The granddaughter of Orville Nix, who took the only footage of the grassy knoll, says she feels her grandfather's film shows something the government doesn't want us to see. But there must be a higher reason for the film to have survived. Orville claimed the his film was taken from him by the secret service and when returned a number of the frames were missing.

This day, Geraldo's Television History.

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1975. Geraldo Rivera on his Good Night America program with the facts, controversy and unanswered questions of President John F. Kennedy's death.

"According to the Warren commission, all three shots came from the rifle of a lone assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald..."

This clip begins with an introduction into what is known, focusing mostly on the rifle that Lee Harvey Oswald used. Josiah Thompson author of Six Seconds in Dallas is introduced on set. His extremely technical rebuttal of Warren Commission's report is discussed, pointing out more than one inconsistency, with frame-by-frame analysis of the Zapruder film. The rifle used is also shown, and perhaps the most convincing argument discussed: was the time between JFK getting hit, and Governor Connolly getting hit, far too short to be done with this weapon?

A CIA report released to the public in 2014 found that the agency withheld information and potentially communications with Lee Harvey Oswald from the Warren Commission. It's findings have been disputed and mired in controversy practically since they were released to the President in 1964.

This day, Geraldo's Television History.

This segment has been lightly remastered.

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November 22nd, 1988. Geraldo Rivera's namesake talk show brings us a re-enactment and ballistic analysis showing the Warren Commission's findings suspect.

"..the shirt collar, heavily starched, stopped the bullet. And then five months later under the single bullet scenario they said it went through..."

After an introduction into the Warren Commission's findings a rifle just like the one Lee Harvey Oswald used is shown, before a pathologist supervises the re-enactment explaining that the position of the four people on stage is exactly the position of Governor Connolly to President Kennedy on that day. He explains in detail what the One Bullet Theory says and details the Commission appearing to change their minds on some aspects. We re-visit the trajectory, the analysis from that day, and more in this energized and perfomative example.

This day, Geraldo's Television History.

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1975. Geraldo Rivera on his Good Night America program talks to former assistant White House press secretary Malcolm Kilduff.

"...I wonder why some of us who were that close to it, were not interviewed by the Warren Commission..."

Mr. Kilduff, who was in the fourth car of the motorcade, talks about the time that elapsed between the first shot and those that followed. He goes into great detail about his recollection of events that day. Later in the segment we hear from Mark Lane, JD, an early critic of the Warren Commission. What were the most important questions, left unasked?

President John F Kennedy was assassinated on November 22nd, 1963. Explanations other than the officially sanctioned Warren Commission report have been popular ever since.

This day, Geraldo's television history.

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May 26th, 1992. Geraldo Rivera's namesake talk show brings us a story from the anti-communist past, assassination attempts on Cuba's president.

"I was drugged, and returned to the United States, and then recruited by the CIA....'59, the end of '59."

Ms. Lorenz details her story. She met Fidel Castro on a cruise ship where Fidel came aboard, and their passion started almost immediately. He sent a plane to bring her to Cuba. However the relationship was cut short when the CIA brought Marita back to the United States and convinced her to do the country a service, by assassinating the president of Cuba. The agents reportedly used brainwashing and recommended putting poison in his food.

Marita details another 'assignment' involving the former dictator of Venezuela, and names names, including details about Frank Sturgis and his involvement with the CIA.

Marita Lorenz's testimony has been controversial almost since she began speaking to the press, decades before this appearance. She passed away in 2019.

This day, Geraldo's television history.

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1988. Geraldo Rivera's namesake talk show hears from a man who says multiple eyewitness saw the gun that shot JFK and television analysis is responsible for doubt.

"..there had to be a second gunman...I wrote back to the physicians that treated Governor Connolly, they all said he was hit by one bullet..."

Mr. Belin firmly believes that one bullet caused all of Governor Connolly's wounds. He is firmly convinced that Lee Harvey Oswald was a lone gunman. When asked how he feels that so many people don't believe what he's been saying for so many years, he says those people don't know the facts.

This day, Geraldo's television history.

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December 23rd, 1991. Geraldo Rivera on his namesake talk show brings us the possibility of Lyndon B Johnson's involvement in the assassination of a president.

"..I'm not trying to say that all 200 people were murdered to keep 'em quiet, but when you go down the list...you have to start asking yourself where does coincidence leave off and conspiracy begin?"

Robert Groden begins with answering a question about the movie 'Executive Action', which features claims that most people involved in the assassination have since died mysteriously. Craig Zirbel brings a replica of the gun Lee Harvey Oswald supposedly used, complete with his ballistic analysis. Geraldo gives a live example of what the Warren Commission states happened, 'firing' the gun 3 times in 5 seconds. Would it be possible to make shots through that sort of scope in that sort of time?

This day, Geraldo's television history.

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