John,
Although no direct reference will be found to the backyard photographs in this post, nonetheless it is fundamentally important to understanding what was outlined in the opening post of the thread. Eventually it may be possible for others to imagine themselves in the role of Marina's husband, and so come to understand why it was he became so cold towards her... what was going on at Neeley St...why Marguerite was not welcome, etc. .... and then why the photographs were taken and LHO's face superimposed.
Please note that in the 'Harvey and Lee' thread we read:
"John's theory goes a bit like this: "Harvey" spoke Russian, may have been the decent of a Hungarian Immigrant, was softspoken in manner and was the Patsy who was captured and executed. "Lee" was more of an athletic build, a hard drinker and was most likely taller? "Lee" would have been the marine, "Harvey" would have been the emigree to Moscow. Witnesses attest that their knowledge of this 'individual' differed, as some who knew him said he preferred to be called "Harvey" while the other would have started a fistfight if you were to have used this middle name."
From the above it is clear, therefore, that it was he, 'Harvey', who defected to the U.S.S.R, he who married Marina, and he who subsequently returned to the United States with her and their infant daughter, June.
Crossfire: A Whirlwind Romance makes the following points:
-In Minsk around March 17, 1961, -Oswald attended a trade union dance at the Palace of Culture.There he met 19-year-old Marina Nikolaevna Prusakova. Marina was a member of the Komsomol, the communist Party's youth movement. Oswald was introduced to her as "Alik" and they danced. Marina said they spoke Russian and she believed "Alik" to be a Soviet citizen, but from the Baltic area - Estonia, Latvia or Lithuania. However, she was greatly surprised to learn that he was an American named Lee Harvey Oswald.
-They married on April 30, 1961, less than six weeks after first meeting.
-Within a matter of days after their marriage, Oswald informed Marina of his desire to return to the United States.
-On July 8, 1961, Oswald flew to Moscow to retrieve his passport at the American Embassy, and it was promptly returned.
- June Lee Oswald - was born to Marina on February 15, 1962.
- On May 10, 1962 the Oswalds were informed by the American Embassy that everything was in order and that they should come to Moscow to sign the final papers.
- Around this time Marina noted a cooling in Oswald's attitude toward her. This increased after they left Russia.
-On May 24, 1962, the Oswalds arrived in Moscow.
- On June 1, Oswald signed a promissory note at the American Embassy for a loan of $435.71, to cover the cost of their journey to the United States. Later that same day, both Oswalds met with Captain Alex ( Alexi) Davison USN , the American Embassy doctoré.( N.B. The address of Davison's Russian-speaking mother, Natasha, - who lived in Atlanta, Ga. - was later to be found in Oswald's address book. Some time afterwards, Davison was identified as the contact man for U.S. intelligence operations involving a Soviet colonel who spied for the CIA). The couple with their infant daughter, June, boarded a train for Holland later that evening.
- -Arriving in Amsterdam, according to Marina, the Oswalds stayed in a private establishment recommended by someone in the American embassy in Moscow. While the official record shows they stayed there only one night, Marina stated that she recalled a three-day stay at the location. However, when questioned later by the House Select Committee on Assassinations, she reacted with quite some confusion about the matter . Nevertheless, she is on record as having stated that advanced arrangements had been made for them at this place and that their hosts spoke English. Author Jim Marrs observes that many researchers suspect that Oswald, and perhaps Marina, were "debriefed" by U.S. intelligence during their stopover in Amsterdam .
-On June 4. 1962, according to the Warren Commission Report (see below) , the Oswald family boarded the SS Maasdam at Rotterdam, and after 9 days at sea disembarked at Hoboken, New Jersey, on June 13. 1962. There they were met by Spas T. Raikin, a representative of the Traveler's Aid Society, which had been notified of the Oswalds' arrival by the State Department. Raikin helped the Oswald's through customs and then found them a place to stay overnight in New York. He later arranged contact with Lee's brother, Robert, who sent the couple $200 to pay for plane fare to Fort Worth, Texas.
N.B. Interesting fellow was Spas Raikin... According to BBC researcher and author Anthony Summers, Spas was also a highly placed official with an anti-communist émigré group with links to both the FBI and U.S. military intelligence as well as anti-communist groups in New Orleans, and occupied office space in the very building where, in the days ahead. Oswald's name was to be linked with CIA-backed anti-Castro activists.
(N.B. A Google search will produce websites aplenty related to Spas Raikin)
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For those who may wish to refer to the relevant section in Appendix 13 of the Warren Commission Report (WCR): Therein is stated as follows:
Oswald picked up his Soviet, exit visa on May 22; 801 at about this time, he also had an interview with an official of the MVD to obtain final clearance for his departure. 802 He wrote to Robert that he and his family would leave for Moscow on the following day and depart for England 10 to 14 days later. He expected to cross the Atlantic by ship, probably docking in New Orleans. Returning to a point which he had made in an earlier letter to his mother, he commented that he knew from the newspaper clippings what Robert had said about him when he left for Russia; he thought that Robert had talked too much at that time, and asked that Robert say nothing to the newspapers now. 803
The Oswalds arrived in Moscow by May 24 804 and on that date filled out various documents at the American Embassy; 805 Marina was given her American visa.806 Final arrangements for their emigration were made with Soviet officials. 807 On June 1, Oswald signed a promissory note at the Embassy for a repatriation loan of $435.71.808 He and his family boarded a train for Holland,809 which passed through Minsk that night.810 They crossed the Soviet frontier at Brest on June 2. Two days later, they departed from Holland on the SS Maasdam. 811 Onboard ship, the Oswalds stayed by themselves; Marina testified that she did not often go on deck because she was poorly dressed and Oswald was ashamed of her.812
Probably while he was on board the Maasdam Oswald wrote some notes on ship stationery, which appear to be a summary of what he thought he had learned by living under both the capitalist and Communist systems. The notes reflect his unhappy and deepening feeling of disillusionment with both the Soviet Union and the United States. Oswald observed that although reform groups may oppose the government in power, they always declare that they are for their people and their country, and he asked what "would happen if somebody was to stand up and say he was utterly opposed not, only to the governments, but to the people, too the entire land and complete foundations" of his society. He condemned existing political groups and proposed the formation of a third choice between communism and capitalism. neither of which was acceptable to him. "I have lived," he said, under both systems I have sought the answers and although it would
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be very easy to dupe myself into believing one system is better than the other, I know they are not." In these notes, he acknowledged that his "Red Cross" subsidy had been paid by the Soviet Government rather than the international organization, and said, "I shall never sell myself intentionlly, or unintentionlly to anyone again." (Commission Exhibit No. 25, p. 273.) It was probably also onboard ship that Oswald wrote two sets of answers to questions which he anticipated about his decision to go to Russia. and later to return to the United States. Although the sets of answers are somewhat similar, but the tone of one is apologetic, while the other suggests that Oswald went to Russia to study the Soviet system, but remained a loyal American and owed no apologies.814
The Maasdam landed at Hoboken, N.J., on June 13.815 The Oswalds were met by Spas T. Raikin, a representative of the Traveler's Aid Society, which had been contacted by the Department of State; Raikin had the impression that Oswald was trying to avoid meeting anyone. He told Raikin that he had only $63 and had no plans either for that night or for travel to Fort Worth, and accepted the society's help, according to Raikin, "with confidence and appreciation."816 They passed through the immigration office without incident,817 and Raikin helped them through customs.818
The society referred the Oswalds to the New York City Department of Welfare, which helped them find a room at the Times Square Hotel.819 Oswald told both Raikin and representatives of the welfare department that he had been a marine stationed at the American Embassy in Moscow, had married a Russian girl, renounced his citizenship, and worked in Minsk; he soon found out, he said, that the Russian propaganda was inaccurate but had not been able to obtain an exit visa for his wife and child for more than 2 years. He said also that he had paid the travel expenses himself.820
The welfare department called Robert Oswald's home in Fort Worth. His wife answered and said that they would help. She contacted her husband who sent $200 immediately.821 Oswald refused to accept the money and insisted that the department itself should pay the fare to Texas; he threatened that they would go as far as they could on $63 and rely on local authorities to get them the rest of the way. In the end he accepted the money.822 On the afternoon of June 14, the Oswalds left New York by plane for Fort Worth.823
FORT WORTH, DALLAS, NEW ORLEANS
Oswald had originally indicated that he and his family would stay with his mother in Vernon, Tex.824 His decision to stay with Robert Oswald in Fort Worth apparently had been prompted by his brother's invitation in a letter to him in Russia.825 Oswald listed only his brother as a relative on an "Intake Interview" form which he prepared for the New York Department of Welfare.826
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Robert took his wife and children to Love Field, the Dallas airport, to meet Lee and Marina and their baby, June Lee.827 He testified that the most noticeable change in his brother's appearance was that he had become rather bald; he seemed also to be somewhat thinner than he had been in 1959. Robert thought that his brother had picked up "something of an accent" but, except for these changes was "the same boy" whom he had known before.828 Lee commented on the absence of newspaper reporters and seemed to Robert to be disappointed that none had appeared.829 Later on, Lee was anxious to avoid publicity.830
Robert drove the Oswalds to his home at 7313 Davenport Street.831 For a few days, Lee seemed tense,832 but the brothers got along well,833 and to Robert it was "more or less ... [as if Lee] had not been to Russia"; they were "just together again.
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From the above section in the WC, please note the following.
-It was Harvey, not Lee.who wrote to Robert Oswald and stated that he and his family expected to cross the Atlantic by ship, probably docking in New Orleans. Harvey was not Robert's brother...Lee was !
-to Robert it was "more or less ... [as if Lee] had not been to
Russia"; they were "just together again
There it is !... Harvey boarded the plane in New York with his wife, Marina, and infant daughter, June, but when the plane landed at Love Field in Fort Worth, apparently it was Robert's brother, Lee, and not Harvey, who came off the plane with Marina and her little daughter June. Indeed Marina was telling the truth (and once again misleadingly) when she chose later to observe on more than one occasion, " I was a woman with two 'husbands".
So where and when did Lee and Harvey trade places? For that we have to return to 'Crossfire' where Marrs relates roughly as follows:
Upon arrival in New York, the Oswalds had seven suitcases. but when they left by plane in Fort Worth , they had only five. When asked about the missing two pieces of luggage , Oswald stated that he had sent them ahead by rail. However, when the family arrived in Fort Worth, Robert was surprised to see that altogether they had only two suitcases.
Marrs speculated that the lost luggage may have had something to do with their flight to Texas, which, although many direct flights were available, went by way of Atlanta. However, recalling that Atlanta was the home of Natasha Davison, the mother of Captain Davison, the U.S. attaché with intelligence connections who had met with the Oswalds in Moscow, here is one possibility which might merit further consideration:
Aboard the SS Maasdam seven suitcases would have posed no problem, but going aboard the Delta Airlines Flight 810 via Atlanta to Fort Worth would have meant paying 'overweight ' charges for at least two of these cases, perhaps even three; and Harvey knew that he needed to hold onto the few dollars he had remaining . So that morning back at the motel, and prior to going aboard the aircraft, the Oswalds re-packed their belongings into five cases, and dumped the two smallest cases. Harvey's belongings ended up being re-packed into four cases , and Marina and June's belongings ended up in one case. In Atlanta Harvey departed with his four cases, Lee joined Marina and June, carrying a single case, and when they arrived at Love Field in Fort Worth. yes indeed, Robert would have seen not seven, not five, but only two cases..... And observe, if Robert had been a party to the deception, he never would have even considered drawning attention to the 'two suitcase' aspect.
N.B. In a statement to the Secret Service following the assassination, Marina had recounted a completely different version of their trip from Russia from that later attributed to her in the WCR Report. She claimed that they "then arrived in New York by air...stayed in some hotel in New York City for one day and then went by train to Texas." Obviously she had very good reason to prevaricate. Think about it.
Ed O'Hagan
