Dick Bullock USMC

[William Kelly]

I met Dick Bullock at an Elks Club barbeque one weekend afternoon, and wrote this story, which also got a footnote in John Armstrong's book. This article was published in the local weekly Egg Harbor Township Current newspaper. BK

EGG HARBOR TWP ELK OF THE YEAR WAS OSWALD’S BUNKMATE

By William Kelly

Richard Bullock, the 2003 Elk of the Year of the Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey Lodge has a unique claim to fame – he was once a Marine Corps bunkmate of Lee Harvey Oswald, the accused assassin of President Kennedy.

And Bullock has some questions about Oswald’s identity, as he doesn’t believe the guy he saw Jack Ruby kill on TV in Dallas is the same person he knew as “Ozzie” in Marine Air Control Squadron One in Japan.

Born in 1938 on November 10th, the same day the U.S. Marine Corps was founded at Ton Tavern in Philadelphia, Bullock, like Oswald, tried to enlist before he was 17 but was turned away, only to officially sign up on November 28, 1955. As he later learned, Bullock followed Oswald around to the same duty stations, only a few months behind him – Kessler AFB in Biloxi, Miss., then Jacksonville, Florida for aviation training, El Toro in California before Atsugi, Japan, where he served from November, 1956 until February, 1958.

For a number of months his time at Atsugi overlapped with that of Lee Harvey Oswald, who Bullock said, “I knew him as L. Oswald, or ‘Ozzie,’ and he knew me from the name on my shirt: R. Bullock, but he called me ‘Dickie.’ We didn’t know each other’s real names, just what was on the uniform.”

Atsugi is not your normal military post. As a former Kamikaze pilot training center with deep underground bunkers, all of the major intelligence agencies maintained stations there from the end of World War II. Atsugi airbase was also the home of the U2 spy plane, which Bullock monitored on radar.

“I was a radar operator – MOS#6741, which is radar operator, but from what I recall Ozzie was a radio electronics operator. He was not in the radar section as much as he was in the radio communications end of our system.”

Asked if Oswald had access to information on the U2, which he could have passed on to the Soviets once he defected, Bullock said, “I can’t answer that. I didn’t know a thing about it other than watching what they did when it landed. And I didn’t know what his job with the U2 was other than visually watching it when it landed. People would run out on the runway and catch the wings, because it had no wheels, just a wheel at the center and they had to hold it from tipping. But that’s all we ever seen. If he knew more about it than I did, well I don’t know that. Like I say, he was at a different end of things than I was.”

They did share the same Atsugi bunkhouse though. “That was Marine Air Control Squadron One – MACS1 we called it, 75 men in our unit. I was there for 30 months, an extended tour…Oswald operated out of a tent that supplied all the power – the Communications Coordinates Operations Center, and I don’t know what else he did. I worked out of radar operations. I did plotting, communications with the aircraft, we did different jobs, rotating shifts every hour.”

Atsugi , Bullock explained, is the name of the base that’s flanked by two towns – Sagomeoska on the Navy side and Yoma (spelled phonetically) on the Marine Corps side. Bullock doesn’t recall the Queen Bee nightclub that Oswald is said to have frequented or the incidents where Oswald was reprimanded.

“I do know that when we went on liberty, he went his way and we went our way. He was a loner,” said Bullock, “but to be honest with you I don’t know where he went. The rumor had it that he had‘national’ women, and a ‘national’ to me in those days meant a Japanese women.”

Besides serving together at Atsugi, Bullock and Oswald were both involved in a major operation in the Philippines, where they landed in LSTs at Subic Bay.

As a person, Bullock recalls that Oswald, “was always smiling, always happy,” but he didn’t recognize Oswald when he watched him being killed by Jack Ruby in the Dallas Police department on national television on November 24, 1963.

“He was NOT the guy I saw in the picture on TV shot by Jack Ruby,” Bullock says emphatically. Looking at a color mug shot of Lee Harvey Oswald taken shortly after he was taken into custody by the police, Bullock said, “It looks nothing like him. That’s not the man I knew.”

Bullock described the “Ozzie” he knew in the marines as being two or three inches taller, 40 pounds heavier, and a young man who wore thick glasses.

Since Bullock didn’t know him as Lee Harvey Oswald, or recognize him on television, he didn’t put two-and-two together until he was contacted by Readers Digest editor Henry Hurt, who tracked him down through military records. Hurt wanted to know if Bullock had any photos of Oswald. “Sure I had photos,” Bullock said, “pictures of me and Ozzie sitting around in our skivvies on a Sunday afternoon, throwing a football around, and stuff like that. But it was all lost in a divorce when I moved.” Nor has Bullock been questioned by the FBI or any government investigators.

While Bullock didn’t recognize any of the names of the marines who also knew Oswald at Atsugi, he said, “I’ve looked in the various veterans magazines for reunions of any MAC squads, but I haven’t seen any. The guys I was close to having already passed away, and I never had a reunion with any of them.”

Not aware of the books written about individuals impersonating Oswald, such as Professor Richard Popkin’s “The Second Oswald,” or the idea that there were actually two Lee Harvey Oswalds, a theory advanced in John Armstrong’s new book “Harvey & Lee,” Bullock expressed surprise. “You mean I’m not fantasizing?!”

Armstrong’s book, “Harvey & Lee – How the CIA Framed Oswald,” mentions Dick Bullock in a footnote to the profusely documented text that claims that two men – Harvey and Lee, were reared and trained from an early age and their identities merged over a period of years leading up to the assassination, much like Leon Trotski’s assassin Raymond Mercader was fashioned by the KGB.

Dick Bullock doesn’t know what it all means. The way he looks at it, when you live with a guy, work beside him for weeks and months at a time, you get to know him, and the guy Jack Ruby killed in Dallas wasn’t the “Ozzie” he knew in the marines.

[For more info on “Harvey & Lee” see: http://armstrong.jfkreserch.com ]

[Ron Ecker]

The initial problem I have with Armstrong's theory is that the CIA could not choose two kids at an early age for merging of their identities later and know what they would look like when they were grown, much less that they would look like each other.

Supposedly two men, Harvey and Lee, looked so much alike that we are still not sure which one is which when we look at the photos of the grown "Lee Harvey Oswald." That this remarkable likeness could have been foreseen when they were children is simply impossible IMO.

[William Kelly]

The initial problem I have with Armstrong's theory is that the CIA could not choose two kids at an early age for merging of their identities later and know what they would look like when they were grown, much less that they would look like each other.

Supposedly two men, Harvey and Lee, looked so much alike that we are still not sure which one is which when we look at the photos of the grown "Lee Harvey Oswald." That this remarkable likeness could have been foreseen when they were children is simply impossible IMO.

Hi Ron,

I too am skeptical of Armstrong's theory, though the Nazis and KGB did engage in this type of shennangans, and the CIA could have tried to catch up, sort of like they tried to do with the MKULTRA and other similar projects.

Issac Don Levine's book on Trotski's assassin shows how the Russians manipulated the assassin's family.

I just told Bullock's story as he told it to me.

Bullock certainly thinks its possible.

BK

[Jim Hargrove]

John Armstrong just sent out William Kelly’s 2006 article above, as published in the Egg Harbor Township Current newspaper, to a dozen or so of his fellow researchers.  The taller, heavier L. Oswald, or “Ozzie”  Dick Bullock described as his Atsugi bunkmate for several months fits in nicely with the evidence of the taller, heavier LEE Oswald.  LEE was stationed in the radar bubble at Atsugi, not HARVEY.  Bullock describes his Atsugi Oswald (LEE) as being “two or three inches taller, 40 pounds heavier,” than the man killed by Ruby, just as the existing evidence shows. Unexplained are LEE’s glasses and the fact that he didn’t look much like the man killed by Ruby, at least according to Mr. Bullock, unless he was referring more to his height and weight than his facial features.
 

[Dawn Meredith]

Very interesting tale of yet one more witness who only knew LEE Oswald.  Thanks for bumping this Jim.

Dawn

[W. Tracy Parnell]

1 hour ago, Jim Hargrove said:

Unexplained are LEE’s glasses and the fact that he didn’t look much like the man killed by Ruby, at least according to Mr. Bullock, unless he was referring more to his height and weight than his facial features.

Which just proves that you can't believe everything every witness says. You must look at the totality of the evidence. The H&L theory does not do that, it "cherrypicks" what fits and ignores everything inconvenient as in the glasses and lack of resemblance to "Harvey" in this instance. Or perhaps we need a "3 Oswald" theory to explain Mr. Bullock's recollections?

[Jim Hargrove]

Isn't it curious that almost all those witnesses thought the other Oswald was taller and heavier than the one shot by Jack Ruby, matching the USMC medical records of American-born LEE. What a coincidence!!

[W. Tracy Parnell]

2 hours ago, Jim Hargrove said:

Isn't it curious that almost all those witnesses thought the other Oswald was taller and heavier than the one shot by Jack Ruby, matching the USMC medical records of American-born LEE. What a coincidence!!

But did these witnesses also think he wore glasses?

[Jim Hargrove]

Nope.  As I said in my first post above....

"Unexplained are LEE’s glasses and the fact that he didn’t look much like the man killed by Ruby, at least according to Mr. Bullock, unless he was referring more to his height and weight than his facial features."

[David Josephs]

On 6/24/2018 at 8:13 AM, W. Tracy Parnell said:

Which just proves that you can't believe everything every witness says.

Unless they agree with your position as opposed to the one you are countering...

[John Butler]

Jim Hargrove,

Nowhere have I seen any other reference to an Oswald wearing glasses.  Nowhere have I seen any photos of an Oswald wearing glasses.  Is this the only reference you know of saying anything about glasses?

Lee Oswald is hard to find in the visual record.  It is my opinion that he has been edited out.  Most everything we see is Harvey Oswald or Lee edited into Harvey.  Once again I have not seen anything in photos or films showing an Oswald with glasses.

Edited June 27, 2018 by John Butler

[Joe Bauer]

Both Robert and Marguerite Oswald were around Lee Harvey Oswald before he joined the Marines including up until his joining the Marines.

And when Robert's brother and Marguerite's son Lee returned from Russia, they never said this returning Lee didn't look or act different from the Lee they knew.

Did they ever describe their brother and son as 40 lbs heavier than the Lee they knew, or wearing glasses or smiling a lot versus not?

If the Lee Oswald that Dick Bullock worked and bunked with was really that different looking and acting than the Lee Oswald that Ruby shot and killed, then one must assume ( if Bullock is telling the truth ) that someone in our intelligence agencies purposely planted a fake Oswald at Atsugi.

Maybe this was done to establish the real Oswald's military background claims bonafides to help get him into Russia?  Perhaps the real Oswald was back in the states studying the Russian language while the fake Oswald was in Japan?

 

Edited June 26, 2018 by Joe Bauer

[David Josephs]

30 minutes ago, Joe Bauer said:

And when Robert's brother and Marguerite's son Lee returned from Russia, they never said this returning Lee didn't look or act different from the Lee they knew.

Not so much Joe...   the man on the left is not the same person as the man on the right.... and both Pic and his brother knew it...
especially Robert...

Mr. JENNER - Then right below that is a picture of a young man standing in front of an iron fence, which appears to be probably at a zoo. Do you recognize that? 
Mr. PIC - Sir, from that picture, I could not recognize that that is Lee Harvey Oswald. 
Mr. JENNER - That young fellow is shown there, he doesn't look like you recall Lee looked in 1952 and 1953 when you saw him in New York City? 
Mr. PIC - No, sir. 

Mr. JENNER - Commission Exhibit No. 284 do you recognize anybody in that picture that appears to be Lee Oswald? 
Mr. PIC - No, sir. 

Mr. JENNER - There is a young fellow in the foreground-everybody else is facing the other way. He is in a pantomime, or grimace. Do you recognize that as Lee Harvey Oswald? 
Mr. PIC - No, sir; looking at that picture and I have looked at it several times--that looks more like Robert than it does Lee, to my recollection. 
Mr. JENNER - All right. On Exhibit No. 286, the lower right-hand corner, there is another picture. Do you recognize that as your brother Lee in that picture? 
Mr. PIC - Yes, sir; that is about how he looked when I seen him in 1962, his profile. 

Mr. JENNER - Do you recognize the person, the lady to the right who is pointing her finger at him? 
Mr. PIC - No, sir; I don't. 
Mr. JENNER - Exhibit No. 287 is two figures, taking them from top to bottom and in the lower right-hand corner, do you recognize those? 
Mr. PIC - No, sir; I don't. 
Mr. JENNER - Neither one of them? 
Mr. PIC - No, sir. The lower one appears to me to look like Robert rather than Lee. The upper one, unless they tell me that, I would never guess that that would be Lee, sir. 

Mr. JENNER - All right. Exhibit No. 288, there is ill the lower left-hand corner, there is a reproduction of a service card and a reproduction, also, of a photograph with the head of a man. Do you recognize that? 
Mr. PIC - That looks to me approximately how Lee Oswald looked when I seen him Thanksgiving 1962. 

Mr. JENNER - Directing your attention to Exhibit, Commission Exhibit No. 289, do you recognize any of the servicemen shown in that picture as your brother Lee? 
Mr. PIC - No, sir; I do not recognize them. 

Mr. JENNER - Exhibit No. 290, the lower left-hand corner there is a photograph of a young lady and a young man. Do you recognize either of those persons? 
Mr. PIC - He appears to me as Lee Harvey Oswald in 1962 when I seen him. 
Mr. JENNER - And the lady? 
Mr. PIC - She is his wife, Marina, sir. 

Mr. JENNER - Commission Exhibit No. 291, at the bottom of the page, there is a picture of a young man handing out a leaflet, and another man to the left of him who is reaching out for it. Do you recognize the young man handing out the leaflet? 
Mr. PIC - No, sir; I would be unable to recognize him. 
Mr. JENNER - As to whether he was your brother? 
Mr. PIC - That is correct. 

[Jim Hargrove]

13 hours ago, John Butler said:

Jim Hargrove,

Nowhere have I seen any other reference to an Oswald wearing glasses.  Nowhere have I seen any photos of an Oswald wearing glasses.  Is this the only reference you know of saying anything about glasses?

Lee Oswald is hard to find in the visual record.  It is my opinion that he has been edited out.  Most everything we see is Harvey Oswald.  Once again I have not seen anything in photos or films showing an Oswald with glasses.

No, the glasses are completely new to me.

One picture I feel fairly certain is of American-born LEE Oswald was taken in 1958 by his brother Robert and published in Robert’s book, LEE, A Portrait of Lee Harvey Oswald, following page 96.  Here it is:

 

There may well many others, as John and DJ believe.  Unfortunately, I'm not good with faces.

Joe,

No doubt assuming he was being a patriot, Robert Oswald was part of the “Oswald Project,” which was created to give an American ID to a Russian-speaking immigrant in order to eventually send him to the U.S.S.R, where he would pretend to speak little or no Russian, which is exactly what happened.  Robert didn’t realize the “Oswald Project” had become involved in the Kennedy assassination until the day it happened.  Garrison wrote about Robert having to take a long walk to sort things out, which were “far more complicated than they appeared.”

There was a real Marguerite and a woman who posed as Marguerite.  After all, two boys need two mothers.  I’m not sure what to make of the glasses and Bullock’s description of how different his Oswald looked.  Keep in mind, though, that this was an intel operation and so smoke and mirrors and cognitive dissonance were just part of the game.

All your questions and more are answered clearly in John’s book and at HarveyandLee.net.
 

[W. Tracy Parnell]

7 hours ago, Jim Hargrove said:

One picture I feel fairly certain is of American-born LEE Oswald was taken in 1958 by his brother Robert and published in Robert’s book, LEE, A Portrait of Lee Harvey Oswald, following page 96.  Here it is:

The photo was actually taken in 1957:

http://wtracyparnell.blogspot.com/2017/03/the-hunter-photo.html

Another example of believing a witness when it fits the H&L theory. But other times, Robert, who was in on the plot, is a xxxx.