Although I have a couple of interviews with Madeleine Brown, can someone
post her account of the party from *Texas in the Morning* or *Dallas Did
It*?
Thanks.
Dave
Perpetual Starlight
http://reitzes.www4.50megs.com/
Original fiction, articles, music and more
I will try to scan the stories from Jones and excerpt from Madeline's
book. Where shall I send them?
Martha
Dave Reitzes <drei...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20010702205036...@ng-bj1.aol.com...
Can you post them or e-mail them to me?
Dave
>Dave Reitzes <drei...@aol.com> wrote in message
(Murk-i-son or Murky-son not Murch-es-son)
Clint Murchison Sr. did not live in Dallas in 1963.
The house that the alleged party occurred in was owned
by John and Lupe Murchison. Lupe did not want the
house and preferred to build her own as Clint Jr. had done.
Clint Sr. wanted to keep the house in the family because
of sentimental reasons. He raised his sons there. To get
Lupe to agree to take the house, Clint Sr. agreed that it was
hers to do with as she pleased including remodeling to
get rid of a bunch of gawdy cowboy decorations Clint Sr.
had built into it. She would not have Clint Sr. entertaining
in her home. Even at that, the story you hear about the
party never includes the fact that it was John and Lupe's
home and not Clint Murchison's.
Clint Sr., Sid Richardson, H.L. Hunt and the rest of the
neauveau riche oil field trash were not accepted by
the Dallas high society. They were an embarassment.
They were not civic minded regarding the affairs of Dallas.
John and Lupe on the other hand courted Dallas society and
were accepted. Lupe would not have stood for Clint Sr.
entertaining in her home.
The party story was created by Roger Craig as was told
to me by Penn Jones first wife, L.A. Jones. Got that on
tape around here some where.
I have provided this info in the past when this has come
up but it doesn't seem to stick. I guess with all the experts
running around, there is no reason to listen to me.
Respectfully,
Greg Jaynes
Hi, Greg.
Actually, it was several old posts of yours at Google's archive that
helped get me curious about the subject again.
Martha just e-mailed me some scans of the Penn Jones and Madeleine Brown
accounts, so I'll try to sum up what I know about this story.
BTW, even if Penn Jones's source was Roger Craig, I don't see any evidence
that Craig invented the story outright. Am I missing something?
The first published account of the story appears to have been in Penn
Jones's Midlothian Mirror, which (according to Martin Shackelford) ran the
story in 1969. It was reprised in Jones's *Forgive My Grief, Vol. III.*
Interestingly, the account in that book does NOT mention LBJ.
(quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
. . . The party was held on the night of November 21, 1963, at the
Murchison home, and we think, was the cover for an important conference of
the assassination staff.
We have always felt sure that before the President was killed, a staff
conference was held somewhere, and all the elements of the assassination
plot were present or represented. . . .
When it is realized that the assassination of President Kennedy was even
more important than the Normandy invasion with General Eisenhower in
command, then the conference for the Dallas project becomes essential. The
killing of President Kennedy was the most important takeover of a country
in our world history. All the major forces in this country were involved,
and had to be accounted for at the final conference before the strike.
So a conference was necessary, and the conference was held. Since Richard
M. Nixon and J. Edgar Hoover were in the Murchison home that night, we
feel we should report that the conference was held there in the home --
not in the presence of the party-goers, to be sure, but on the premises.
J. Edgar Hoover, the task force commander, was present to confer with his
troops, to issue last-minute instructions, to review the final plans, and
to give the word to "go" or to cancel as necessary. (Jones, p. 85.)
(end quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
(Thanks to Martha Moyer for providing this citation.)
Jones does not cite his source for the above, but he says, "Admittedly our
information about Hoover's presence was learned second hand, but it is
reliable." (p. 86)
Now, let me repost something from Greg Jaynes.
(quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
From: Greg Jaynes (jay...@flash.net)
Subject: Re: Madeleine Brown and the infamous Murchison party
Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy.jfk
Date: 1998/01/11
This was how I came to investigate the party
story. Jim Marrs told me that Penn Jones told
him that Peter O'Donnel drove Nixon to the party.
But for whatever reason Jones refused to disclose
his source.
Harry Livingstone sat in O'Donnels office all
afternoon and finally left without speaking to him
because O'Donnel was giving him the chump treatment.
In case you are not familar with exactly who O'Donnel
is:
At the time of the JFK murder he was the Dallas County
Republican Party Chairman.
He went on to become the State of Texas Republican
Party chairman.
He was the guiding force behind the political careers of
George Bush who was really just an outsider who moved to
Texas but had important east coast connections. Under the
guidance of O'Donnel , Bush ran for Congress a couple of
times but could not get elected dog catcher. Bush finally
made his way to the Presidency relying on his own
connections, ie getting appointed director of CIA then
ultimately riding in on Reagan's coat tails.
O'Donnel also was very effective in promoting the career
of John Tower. O'Donnel practically built the Texas
Republican party as we know it and Tower was his star.
Tower was elected to the Senate and became Chairman of
the Senate Armed Services Committee. Tower went on to
become chairman of the Tower Commission investigating
the Iran - Contra affair of the Reagan Administration.
The Tower Commission investigation marked the first time
in history that the National Security Council was
investigated by an outside agency.
There are many other Texas State Republicans that you
probably never heard of that were guided by O'Donnel.
He was and is a classic behind the scene kingmaker.
I finally got in touch with O'Donnel and talked to
him as if my interest was in the history of the Republican
Party in Texas. It was he who mentioned the JFK murder and
the effect it had in wiping out many of the gains the
Republicans had made to that point.
Ultimately, I did not ask him about the so called party
because I did not want him to clam up until I could speak
with him more. I told Gary Mack about the progress I had
made in just getting to speak to O'Donnel. Then Gary called
O'Donnel's office and asked to speak with him but he would
not talk. Gary asked O'Donnel's secretary if she could get
O'Donnel to comment on the possibility of the party.
When Gary called back for a response the secretary relayed
to Gary that " Mr. O'Donnel did not recall meeting with
Vice President Nixon at that time."
I know it sounds pretty much like a weak denial. And I
really don't believe that Nixon would be in town and not
meet with O'Donnel. But that is where the O'Donnel
angle is at this time.
Finally, I had enough of all this sneaking around.
I wanted to know what Penn Jones source was and if Jones
was really interested in the truth, why he would not
disclose his source to Jim Marrs. But of course Penn Jones
was too sick to speak with anyone. This is what led me to
ask the people who run the Midlothian Mirror newspaper
how to get in touch with Jones ex wife L.A. Jones.
She knew all about the party story and told me that
Roger Craig had told it to her and Penn Jones.
She said Craig was working as a stocker in a grocery
store and that one of the other stockers told Craig
that his mother had attended a party at Clint Murchisons
home and Hoover, Nixon, H.L. Hunt, LBJ and Peter O'Donnel
were in attendance.
It did not occur to me at the time to ask her when Craig
came up with this story maybe she could set the record
straight on who was the first to talk about this party.
[...]
(end quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
In a newsgroup post of August 7, 1998, Gary Mack adds, "Through his
secretary, Peter O'Donnell denied to me last year that there was any
party, to his knowledge. If there was, he wasn't there."
Years later, Madeleine Brown came forward with the claim that she had
attended this party. She has told the story to a number of researchers and
in numerous print and broadcast interviews. Here (with thanks again to
Martha) is the account from her 1997 memoir, *Texas in the Morning.*
(quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
On Thursday night, Nov. 21, 1963, the last evening prior to Camelot's
demise, I attended a social at Clint Murchison's home. It was my
understanding that the event was scheduled as a tribute honoring his
longtime friend, J. Edgar Hoover, whom Murchison had first met decades
earlier through President William Howard Taft, and Hoover's companion and
assistant, Clyde Tolson.
The impressive guest list included John McCloy, Richard Nixon, George
Brown, R. L. Thornton, H. L. Hunt, and a host of others from the 8F group.
The jovial party was just breaking up when Lyndon made an unscheduled
visit. I was most surprised by his appearance, since Jesse had not
mentioned anything about Lyndon's coming to Clint's. With Lyndon's hectic
schedule, I never dreamed he could attend the big party. After all, he had
arrived in Dallas on Tuesday to attend the Pepsi-Cola convention.
Tension filled the room after his arrival. The group immediately went
behind closed doors. A short time later Lyndon, anxious and red-faced,
reappeared.
I knew how secretively Lyndon operated. Therefore I said nothing . . . not
even that I was happy to see him. Squeezing my hand so hard it felt
crushed from the pressure, he spoke with a grating whisper -- a quiet
growl into my ear, not a love message, but one I'll always remember:
"After tomorrow those goddamn Kennedys will never embarrass me again --
that's no threat -- that's a promise."
I visibly trembled. He said nothing else, but was off in a flash to join a
party at Pat Kirkwood's "Cellar Door," an after-hours nightclub in Fort
Worth.
It was at the same club that night where many of President Kennedy's
Secret Service detail stayed as late as 4 AM. No wonder they were slow to
react a few hours later when the shots rang out in Dealey Plaza.
(end quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
It seems to me that Brown has been consistent in her accounts of the
party, except this is the first time I recall hearing anything about LBJ
and the Cellar Door.
In a newsgroup post of January 9, 1998, Barb Junkkarinen states that
Madeleine Brown "denies ever having spoken to Penn Jones . . ."
In *Killing the Truth,* Harrison Livingstone discussed a confidential
witness who purportedly verified Madeleine Brown's account of the party
and its "guest list." His witness remains confidential.
Next, we have an interesting newsgroup post from Martin Shackelford.
(quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
From: Martin Shackelford (msh...@concentric.net)
Subject: Re: Madeleine Brown and the infamous Murchison party
Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy.jfk
Date: 1998/01/08
Greg:
Former Dallas reporter Connie Kritzberg did some research on the
party for her book in collaboration with Madeleine, Dallas Did It!.
The remark about Kennedy was made at the party, but privately to
Madeleine.
Val Imm, Dallas Times Herald Society Editor, attended the main
party, as did Jeanne Barnes, an editor at the Dallas Morning News.
Others identified as present were J. Edgar Hoover, John J.
McCloy, Clint Murchison Sr., R.L. Thornton, Peter O'Donnell, George
Brown, other Brown & Root executives, and--arriving late--LBJ. There was
a private 20 minute meeting among the men, then they rejoined the main
party, at which time LBJ made his private comment to Madeleine.
Val Imm wrote a column about the party on the women's page, but
it didn't appear in all editions. In later years, she intially confirmed
her attendance at the party. Then she married Parkland doctor Fauod
Bashour, and began denying she had attended it.
Contacted by researcher Larry Howard, Jeanne Barnes confirmed
her attendance at the gathering.
Jane Wolfe's book The Murchisons, mentioned that in the early
1960s, Murchison moved out of "the big house" in Dallas, living mainly
in East Texas. The house went to his son John, but John mostly lived in
New York, so the family used the house for Dallas social gatherings,
even though that wasn't their regular residence.
Martin
(end quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The alleged Val Imm column is an item of considerable controversy.
(quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
From: dli...@earthlink.net (dli...@earthlink.net)
Subject: Re: Madeleine Brown and the infamous Murchison party
Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy.jfk
Date: 1998/01/15
TO ALL:
The reason I said reading this thread was "somewhat depressing" is because
it is an excellent example of a lot of people wanting to believe something
which, if it actually occurred, would have generated a contemporaneous
record. That record does not exist. So skepticism should be rampant.
Instead, there seems to be a will to believe. I think the word
"depressing" came to mind because I personally went through this entire
record, so I know how many reporters were covering this thing, and the
minutiae (sp?) they wrote about.
Here's what my scanning activities consisted of:
Back in 1967, shortly after I made the initial discoveries concerning
surgery on the body, I methodically organized a "media" project---that is,
collecting a reading every single newspaper on microfilm (or, in some
cases, on paper) from anywhere in the country whose coverage was pertinent
to any parts of my overall thesis. I made extensive use of Interlibrary
Loan, and the project went on for years---a bit at a time.
Early on, I located a 10 reel collection of microfilm which had the
assassination coverage of every single paper in the United States, for
that four day period; and in addition I ordered, read, kept notebooks on,
and printed out articles from, each of the 10 Texas newspapers (2 from
each of the 5 cities on the JFK itinerary), not only for November 1963,
but for October 63 (and sometimes before) and December 63.
In many cases (as in the case of the Dallas Times Herald and the Dallas
Morning News) I actually purchased my own copy of the microfilm for
November.
Having read all of these papers---every single one of them---and scanning
for various categories of information (an interview with a Dallas doctor,
anything having to do with trip planning, anything having to do with a
casket team member etc.) I can report that there is no article whatsoever
about this party during that time frame.
Moreover, not only did I examine the print media, I went through all the
hours of Dallas radio station broadcast tapes at the National Archives.
Again, nothing; and one of my categories was "Comings and Goings"---which,
for example, turned up the fact that former CIA director Dulles had been
in Dallas (as I recall) in October 1963. Another example: I found the DRE
story cited by the LaFontaines, back in 1967.
It seems to me that if Hoover had been in Dallas or any kind of social
function such as this occurred, there would be some record. It would be
known. It would be talked about. (And McCloy was supposed to be in Dallas
the night before, and he ends up on the Warren Commission, and that
doesn't get mentioned? Oh, c'mon now.)
It matters not to me that years later someone *says* they attended a
party. Where is the contemporaneous record?
In this regard, I find it particularly amusing that Schakelford, the
compuslive agnostic, is on the bandwagon in this case, toting up the
stories that were generated years later---I stress "years later"---and
calling that "the journalistic evidence"; or subscribing to the notion
that the story was written up that day, but just happened not to make the
microfilmed record. Give me a break. I know that record. I spent hour
upon wearying hour plowing through it, week after week, month after month,
year after year.
I'm sorry. On this one, I'm from Missouri.
David Lifton
(end quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Val Imm has denied to several people that she attended such a party,
including Harrison Livingstone (*Killing the Truth,* [New York: Carroll
and Graf, 1993], p. 484) and Connie Kritzberg (Barb Junkkarinen, Newsgroup
post of January 9, 1998).
Barb also writes:
(quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Val Imm was the society page editor for the Dallas Times Herald. As Connie
wrote in DALLAS DID IT, "She [Madeleine] remember's that Val's column
about the party appeared on the front page of the women's section in its
customary position. Having mislaid the column some thirty years later,
Madeleine called Val and asked if she had a copy. Val told Madeleine that
she was going on vacation but would look it up when she returned. After
her return, Val (now married to Dr. Faoud Bashour, a member of the
Parkland team which worked on the dying President, decided that she hadn't
been there afterall. Madeline was surprised because she vividly remembered
the column, and searched for the column at the Dallas library. The edition
saved on microfilm did not carry the column, a matter that has frustrated
Madeleine for years."
(end quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
In a newsgroup post of August 7, 1998, Gary Mack writes:
(quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
In 1963, Connie Kritzberg worked for the Dallas Times Herald under the
name Connie Watson. She worked in the women's department where her
co-workers were Val Imm and supervisor Vivian Castleberry. Both Val and
Vivian have denied, repeatedly, such a column or party ever took place.
(end quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
In a post of August 4, 1998, Gary Mack writes:
(quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The Sixth Floor Museum has the 11-22 [Val Imm] column, and those of the
following days and weeks. There was no 11-21 column about the party for
it supposedly took place that evening, after the paper was published.
[...]
Yes, it was the first [edition]. The headline reads "Texas Progress, U.S.
Projects Linked, JFK Tells Fort Worth." We have a big blowup of the front
page in our box office, next to The Dallas Morning News from the same day.
The Dallas Times Herald was the afternoon paper. Their first edition
appeared in downtown Dallas just before noon on 11-22. Val's column said
nothing about a party at Murchison's. The same column was repeated in the
other editions that day, for section B was women's news and feature
stories, not hard news.
[...]
. . . [T]he person who has been pushing this story for years, Madeleine
Brown, who's credibility has been questioned, says she saw the article
when it was published but has not seen it since. No one, to my knowledge,
has EVER found such a column or reference to a Murchison party in any
other news story or recollection.
[...]
You are aware, I hope, that LBJ could not possibly have been there until
at least 1am and Nixon could not have arrived until after 11:30pm. That
certainly narrows the window of opportunity for such a grand scheme to
happen, especially since no one would know whether Val was going to write
anything about it all or whether her editor would approve it or whether
space demands would have allowed for a full column or shortened version.
In all likelihood, her Friday column was turned in on Wednesday or
Thursday, so the "party" column could have been written no earlier than
Friday morning for the Saturday editions. Once the assassination
occurred, under your sinister scenario, the editor (or whoever "they"
were) would have killed that part of her column and it would never have
run in ANY edition. But Madeleine says it ran! How can that be?
For the party to have been mentioned at all it would need to have a
purpose for being in the column. The reason, of course, would be the
astounding coincidence that a former vice-president, the current FBI
director, the then vice-president and now new president, and others just
happened to be in Dallas at a post-midnight party just hours before the
Kennedy assassination. That's a major revelation would be of such
interest that it would have been a front page story, not just a society
column mention. In the real world, reporters would have been all over
that story trying to get more information from the participants.
Do you really believe Val Imm or anyone else would willingly keep such a
story quiet EVEN AMONG FELLOW REPORTERS AT EITHER THE HERALD OR THE NEWS,
both of which were connected by ownership to network-affiliated Dallas
television and radio stations (KRLD and WFAA, respectively)? If you do,
then you are clueless about how the news media really operates. Such a
"spiked" story, as it is called, would be well known behind the scenes and
the story's details would have been leaked by a sympathetic reporter to
someone in another newsroom for followup.
(end quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
In *Killing the Truth,* Livingstone writes, "Word of this party was first
mention by Penn Jones, Jr., in one of his books, and he states that it was
one of the rare ones that was not reported by society columnist Val Imm .
. ." (p. 484)
Jones's account in FMG, Vol. III (above) does not say this.
Despite a request or two, Martin Shackelford has not substantiated his
claim that "Contacted by researcher Larry Howard, Jeanne Barnes confirmed
her attendance at the gathering."
Like Gary Mack, David Lifton questions how the story could have been kept
from seeing print:
(quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
From: dli...@earthlink.net (dli...@earthlink.net)
Subject: Re: Madeleine Brown and the infamous Murchison party
Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy.jfk
Date: 1998/01/14
Reading this thread on the party is a somewhat depressing experience.
Obviously, a lot of people would like to believe such a gathering
occured, and maybe it did. But. . .
I do not understand how it is possible for a party like this to have
occurred without it being mentioned, *at the time*, in either the Dallas
Morning News or the Dallas Times Herald. Is the implication that all
these important people were gathered in one room, and no journalist knew
about it?
Moreover, it seems (to me, anyway) there wouldn't be any reason NOT to
publish the fact that there was such a party since (as far as I
understand) it was not overtly conspiratorial. So---assuming it
occurred---it would appear to be "just one of those coincidences". So
the news story might read: "Ironically, just the night before, so and so
was in town, and. . " etc.
So how come there is no contemporaneous news coverage? In a town whose
newspapers were publishing all sorts of tidbits about everything, not a
single reporter knew about this?
For J. Edgar Hoover to be in Dallas on that evening, and at a
social event; would be news. Big news. Especially once the assassination
had occurred.
And not a single mention?
Does anyone who believes that this party occurred have any explanation
for the lack of contemporaneous news report either of the party itself,
or of Hoover's presence in Dallas? (And another matter: where did Hoover
stay? Did he wake up Friday morning, November 22, in Dallas, and then fly
back to Washington? If so, aboard what aircraft? And from what airport?
If not, is he supposed to have flown back to Washington on Thursday
night, November 21?)
Comments, anayone?
David Lifton
(end quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
This is just about everything I can recall seeing about the party, except
for a few unsourced items, such as Robert Morrow's claim that "on the eve
of the assassination, Hoover and Nixon attended a meeting together at the
Dallas home of oil-baron Clint Murchison. Among the subjects discussed at
this meeting were the political futures of Hoover and Nixon in the event
President Kennedy was assassinated." (Robert D. Morrow, *First Hand
Knowledge* [New York: SPI, 1992], p. 195 fn. 12.)
Also, Robert Morningstar cites a Penn Jones account from FMG Vol. IV (not
III), stating that the theme of the party was "A Night in Egypt."
http://www.beyond-the-illusion.com/files/Conspiracy/Assassination/Justice.Jfk/johnson.txt
Cutting through all the haze, Morningstar observes:
(quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
There was another interesting sidelight to Murchison's surprising "Night
in Eypt" for Hoover. It was also attended by a unique astronomical event:
a very rare conjunction of the planets Mars and Venus in the constellation
Scorpio. It is interesting to note that the first assassination in
recorded history, the murder of Osiris, the Egyptian God-King, by his evil
twin, Set, was executed on a similar day, strangely enough, in Egypt.
(end quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
-Stu
"Greg Jaynes" <gregj...@earthlink.net> wrote in message
news:9ul07.686$xp1....@newsread1.prod.itd.earthlink.net...
Penn Jones said Peter O'Donnell was the chauffer who drove Nixon to the
party. He did not say that the chauffer told him the story. He refused to
disclose his source even to Jim Marrs. Marrs relayed it to me as such and
said he would be interested in finding out the details.
He also gave this limited info to Harry who wrote about it in Killing The
Truth how he was waiting in O'Donnell's waiting room for hours to talk him
but he wouldn't talk. I spoke with O'Donnell and he said he didn't
remember meeting Nixon but he would think about it and I should call his
secretary in a couple of days. He never spoke to me again. So I relayed it
to Gary Mack who called O'Donnell's secretary and git the same info I did.
Respectfully,
Greg Jaynes
I believe Madeline had an affair with LBJ. I don't think she has tried to
hurt his reputation per se, just get her name out there.
Personally, I like her very much. But I put truth in history above all
else. She does know a lot of interesting things and was very helpful to me
with info about Fred Bruner. After I dropped a couple of things on him she
had told me, he opened up and talked about things he wouldn't have
discussed otherwise.
Respectfully,
Greg Jaynes
I agree with your assessment of Madeline. She didn't just fall off a turnip
truck. She got me access to Retired Doctors of Dallas Medical Meeting (Dr.
Paul Peters was guest speaker). Billi Sol Estes is still a good and close
friend. Dr. Miller, her constant escort now, was involved medically with
Ruby. She comes from an old and honorable
Texas family. One time when we were entering the Grand Hotel - the doorman
greeted us with a courtly bow and said "well, hello Miss Madeline - so nice
to see you again". She also introduced me to her
friend "Austin Cooke" former owner of Austin's BBQ.
Have you ever been to her home? It is on the Historical Register.
I was properly impressed.
I think she is a real delight.
Martha
Greg Jaynes <gregj...@earthlink.net> wrote in message
news:3b42...@mcadams.posc.mu.edu...
Hi Martha,
Yeah, I have been to her house. It was neat.
What I liked most was the way she talked to
her dogs including the strays that she fed.
She is a very sweet lady. She gets mad at
me sometimes but she is always gracious.
She is the epitome of the southern-ness
of a true Dallas girl.
Respectfully,
Greg Jaynes
-Stu
"Greg Jaynes" <gregj...@earthlink.net> wrote in message
news:3b42...@mcadams.posc.mu.edu...