Re: LEE HARVEY OSWALD'S "REACTION" DURING HIS MIDNIGHT PRESS CONFERENCE
David Von Pein
AT IMDB.COM, SOMEONE WITH THE USERNAME "ALCOCER-2" SAID:
>>> "That look he [Lee Oswald] gives when told he is being charged with the President's murder is priceless." <<<
DAVID VON PEIN SAID:
I think there might be just a small bit of a "surprised" reaction on
Oswald's face for just an instant after the reporter tells him (for
the second time): "You have been charged" with JFK's murder.
But, in my opinion, the major reaction that I see from Oswald at his
famous midnight press conference is more DISGUST and ANNOYANCE. (Poor
Lee Harvey truly looks annoyed and PUT OUT when he's being removed
from that room right after his brief press conference.)
In other words [simulating Oswald's feelings at that moment]--"HOW
DARE THEY TREAT ME LIKE THIS! ALL I DID WAS KILL THE PRESIDENT AND A
POLICEMAN! I'M GONNA SUE THESE DAMN COPS FOR CHARGING ME WITH AN
ASSASSINATION I COMMITTED!"
Now, when analyzing this a little bit more, since all reasonable
people who have studied the JFK assassination know beyond any and all
doubt that Lee Harvey Oswald shot and killed President Kennedy, this
immutable FACT of Oswald's guilt HAS to mean that Oswald could not
possibly have been VERY surprised by the news that he was being
officially charged with the President's murder.
Knowing that he assassinated Kennedy AND that he had left a popcorn
trail of physical evidence behind on the sixth floor of the Book
Depository Building AND that he had been arrested earlier in the day
on a charge of murdering a policeman, Oswald therefore couldn't
possibly have thought that he WOULDN'T eventually be officially
charged with the President's murder too.
Unless Oswald was completely retarded (which he certainly wasn't), he
had to realize that Presidential assassins aren't normally given just
a light slap on the wrist and a $10 fine for having assassinated a
U.S. President.
Given these undeniable facts regarding Oswald's guilt, there's no way
that Lee Harvey could have been shocked very much (if at all) when the
reporter told him he had already been charged with JFK's
assassination.
Here's my guess (and I fully admit this is just a wild guess, and I
certainly could be wrong about this)---
Oswald looked a little bit surprised possibly due to the fact that a
NEWS REPORTER was breaking the news to him that he was being charged
with the death of the President.
This was probably a very unusual case where the prisoner (being held
in a police station, with policemen and detectives all around him for
ten hours!) first learned of a murder charge against him from a news
reporter, instead of first learning of that murder charge from the
police themselves. This possibly startled and surprised Oswald a
little bit, to hear that news FIRST from a newsman, vs. the cops who
were surrounding him.
Again, that's just a pure guess on my part. But there's no way in
Hades that Oswald truly thought he WOULDN'T be charged with JFK's
murder, in light of the massive amount of evidence he conveniently
left behind (not to mention the circumstantial stuff, such as the many
lies he told the police in those first ten hours of interrogation).
I'll also add this -- It's quite possible that Oswald didn't even hear
the reporter when he said "You have been charged". There was quite a
bit of noise in that room at that particular time, so maybe Oswald
didn't even hear the reporter. On the videotape version of the
midnight press conference, the reporter's words "You have been
charged" are, indeed, quite audible and clear. But from where Oswald
was standing, I'm wondering if he heard those words as clearly as we
do on the videotape? We can never know this for certain, of course.
But if, in fact, Oswald didn't even hear the reporter, it puts a whole
new light on any "reaction" that we see on LHO's face, because under
those conditions, it would obviously mean that Oswald's reaction
wasn't one of "surprise" at all.
=========================================
OSWALD'S MIDNIGHT PRESS CONFERENCE (FILM AND VIDEOTAPE VERSIONS):
http://DVP-Potpourri.blogspot.com/2010/01/lee-harvey-oswald.html
=========================================
David Von Pein
David Von Pein
http://groups.google.com/group/alt.assassination.jfk/browse_thread/thread/0fa15a69798b38c3
http://DVP-Potpourri.blogspot.com/2010/01/lee-harvey-oswald.html
PAT SPEER OPINED:
>>> "David, your response to this reeks of desperation." <<<
DAVID VON PEIN SAID:
LOL. Thanks, Pat.
Now, continue reading and we'll see who the "desperate" one is....
PAT SPEER SAID:
>>> "Outside of Kennedy's back and to the left motion after frame 313, the response of Oswald to being charged is one of the main reasons so many think he was a patsy." <<<
DVP SAID:
Very weak in both instances, Pat. If those two things are the BEST
that the "He Was A Patsy" conspiracy theorists can muster, then Earl
Warren and his Commission's conclusions are home free.
PAT SPEER SAID:
>>> "I remember, years before I ever saw the footage, my mom telling me how Oswald sneered and smirked at the midnight press conference. When I started researching the case, I noticed how men like Posner routinely described Oswald's reaction as a self-satisfied smirk, or some such thing. I even found references to Oswald's smirk in reputable publications within weeks of the assassination. So, when I finally saw the footage, I was absolutely shocked by what I witnessed. Oswald was completely DEFLATED by the news he'd been charged, and almost started crying! The "smirk" and "self-satisfaction" so widely reported was a LIE." <<<
DVP SAID:
Regardless of WHO is doing the examining of Oswald's "reaction" to
being told by a newsman that he had been charged with JFK's murder,
it's always going to be a purely subjective opinion. I fully admit
that, too.
But, in my own subjective opinion, I think Oswald's reaction is more
akin to ANNOYANCE and IRRITATION than it is SURPRISE and/or DEFLATION.
As I explained in my first post, since all reasonable people have got
to know Oswald killed Kennedy, then how on Earth could Oswald have
really and truly been TOTALLY SURPRISED (or SHOCKED) by the news that
he was being charged with the murder that he HAD committed about
twelve hours earlier in Dealey Plaza?
Answer: He couldn't.
But your "almost started crying" remark was a nice touch, though, Pat.
(Maybe Mr. Speer is showing some of that "desperation" he attributed
to me a little while ago. Ya think?)
PAT SPEER SAID:
>>> "Whether Oswald was guilty or not guilty of killing Kennedy, he clearly hoped he would not be charged with the crime." <<<
DVP SAID:
Well, I guess O.J. Simpson also "hoped" he wouldn't be charged with
the two murders he committed in 1994. But a lot of times "hope" and
"reality" don't go together.
So, whether or not Oswald held out any "hope" for not being officially
charged with the crime of assassinating President Kennedy, the stark
REALITY of the situation (based on the EVIDENCE of Oswald's guilt)
certainly indicates that Lee Harvey Oswald should not have been
"surprised" at all by the news he was going to be held accountable for
murdering the 35th Chief Executive.
As an addendum here, I'll include this brief e-mail conversation I had
with Gary Mack of The Sixth Floor Museum At Dealey Plaza:
====================================
Subject: Oswald's "Reaction" At The Midnight Press Conference
Date: 3/1/2010 6:00:14 PM Eastern Standard Time
From: Gary Mack
To: David Von Pein
----------------------
Dave,
The reporter who told Oswald he had been charged was KRLD’s Bill
Mercer, who was kneeling right in front of him. Mercer, like most
reporters in the room, had already heard unofficially from Dallas
Police that Oswald had been charged with killing Kennedy. What they
didn’t know was that the police had not yet notified Oswald, hence his
surprise. I suspect he was just upset that he hadn’t been told.
Gary Mack
====================================
Subject: Re: Oswald's "Reaction" At The Midnight Press Conference
Date: 3/2/2010 12:15:51 AM Eastern Standard Time
From: David Von Pein
To: Gary Mack
----------------------
Hi Gary,
[Your] explanation is pretty close to the one I speculated about in my
Internet article, i.e., Oswald was surprised to hear that news from a
reporter instead of from the police.
Thanks for the Mercer info too. I knew that I had heard (somewhere)
the identity of the reporter, but I could not recall it when I wrote
that online article.
Regards,
David V.P.
====================================
lazu...@webtv.net
American people who can't agree on anything, have always agreed the
Oswald did it alone myth, is full of more holes than the swiss cheese
section of your local supermarket...laz
David Von Pein
>>> "Yes..right..it's just so obvious Oswald killed JFK that 75% of the American people who can't agree on anything, have always agreed the Oswald did it alone myth is full of more holes than the swiss cheese
section of your local supermarket." <<<
What's that got to do with whether the majority of that same 75% think
Oswald fired a gun at JFK?
lazu...@webtv.net
you responded to my last post at 1: O7 AM west coast time?...Laz
David Von Pein
Your clock's messed up, Laz.
David Von Pein
>>> "As someone who has spent some time working with actors, I would deem Oswald's performance [at the midnight press conference on the night of November 22, 1963] unconvincing. Perhaps if he'd been permitted another take and some coaching." <<<
Of course, it doesn't matter one bit whether Oswald was convincing or
not, because the evidence proves Oswald's guilt, not his reaction or
non-reaction at a press gathering.
Plus, let me also add this (which I failed to mention previously):
Oswald had already been charged with one of the two murders he
committed on 11/22/63 (Tippit's) by the time of the midnight press
conference.
He was officially arraigned by Judge Johnston for J.D. Tippit's murder
at approx. 7:05 PM CST on November 22, about five hours before the
midnight conference.
So (here comes my main point here), since Oswald positively KNEW he
would probably burn for Tippit's murder (via yet another popcorn trail
of evidence he decided to leave behind at the Tippit murder scene;
plus the multiple witnesses he had to know saw him at or near the
murder site), why on Earth would he suddenly be SURPRISED and SHOCKED
when he discovered that he was being charged with another one of his
November 22nd murders at the midnight press conference?
A murderer can only be put to death once. And the Tippit murder
actually has MORE evidence attached to it that hangs Oswald than JFK's
murder does -- especially considering the fact that Oswald was caught
red-handed with the Tippit murder weapon ON HIM when he was arrested
in the Texas Theater! (Not to mention all those eyewitnesses.)
David Von Pein
http://groups.google.com/group/alt.assassination.jfk/browse_thread/thread/0fa15a69798b38c3/20211ea1ee923711?#20211ea1ee923711
>>> "I do not see "smirk" or "sneer" EVER in Oswald's demeanor. People really are seeing what they want to see." <<<
I guess it's in the eye of the beholder when it comes to whether
different people think Oswald had a "smirk" on his face while he was
in custody. But, IMO, there are several photos (and films/videotapes)
that show Oswald smirking. Here are just a few examples:
http://top-10-list.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/Lee-Harvey-Oswald.jpg
http://i.telegraph.co.uk/telegraph/multimedia/archive/01349/leeharvey_1349859c.jpg
A lot of the "smirkiness" on Oswald's face, however, is probably just
natural. It's pretty much how he always looked. So the smirk was
probably partially "built-in" from birth.
Maybe his mother Marguerite had the Oswald built-in smirk too. Well,
could be:
I can even see a little bit of a smirk in Lee Oswald's police mug
shots, although not as much as in other photos (but YMMV):
And Lee Harvey was most definitely in a "smirking" mood at the very
end of his midnight press conference, as we can easily see here:
http://DVP-Potpourri.blogspot.com/2010/01/lee-harvey-oswald.html