MOST Suspicious deaths of Assassination and its Investigation?

[Nathaniel Heidenheimer]

If you were trying to present an overall case that there was a conspiracy and you decided to use suspicious deaths of witnesses, researchers et al., which five would you chose and how would you rank them.

I realize this question might sound crass, but it is important for me in trying to educate others about the JFK Assassination. Which of the many deaths that most objective readers... say even of the New York Times would say "that's kind of suspicious," even though they have been conditioned against such thinking when it comes to our peace-loving nation.

Ok, what about nine.

Edited January 19, 2008 by Nathaniel Heidenheimer

[Jack White]

Topping the list by a wide margin is George DeMohrenschildt.

Jack

[Maggie Hansen]

If you were trying to present an overall case that there was a conspiracy and you decided to use suspicious deaths of witnesses, researchers et al., which five would you chose and how would you rank them.

I realize this question might sound crass, but it is important for me in trying to educate others about the JFK Assassination. Which of the many deaths that most objective readers... say even of the New York Times would say "that's kind of suspicious," even though they have been conditioned against such thinking when it comes to our peace-loving nation.

Ok, what about nine.

Personally, I think the killing of LHO by Ruby is very suspicious. Two lone nuts? I don't think so. Especially when there seems to be evidence that they had met before.

[Wim Dankbaar]

David Ferrie:

http:jfkmurdersolved.com/film/ferrie.wmv

[Robert Howard]

I think it is important to add a disclaimer to my list of five mysterious deaths. Specifically, that consensus on whether a mystery death was or, was not suicide or not related to the assassination of JFK, can be disturbingly irrelevant.

Why? Before I address that issue, I would first cite George DeMohrenschildt, David Ferrie and Jack Ruby as examples, of straddling the fence in the HSCA Final Report on that issue. Many years ago, when I believed that the HSCA was a bona fide attempt to unravel the assassination wherever the trail led...... [Read Gaeton Fonzi's The Last Investigation if you think it was, please remove rose colored lenses before reading]

......I was so engrossed in reading the 12 Volumes, that I did not give much thought to how much significance was given to the topic. In retrospect, it is my view that with a couple of exceptions, all Blakey and Hess did essentially was take the English newspaper's pronouncement that the odds of the mystery deaths being coincidental was, whatever the number was three hundred thousand trillion to one or whatever and pointing out that the number was an admitted mathematical miscalculation...Point Being, by doing that Blakey and Hess, more or less dodged the whole "explanation why these deaths took place" hook, line and sinker. Critics of this post will mention that the HSCA stipulated organized crime's involvement in the more high-profile murders, but even a "student" of the assassination would tell you that was a cosmetic statement

that anyone with a brain knew anyway. The real question of whether the agency contracted the mob should have been dwelt on, but I digress....

Having said that, here is my list of five......Ruby & Oswald's deaths are the most significant, but so much is known about them, that it does not really need to be listed but at least mentioned. This list was constructed with the most significant deaths in mind in terms of unraveling the conspiracy not, "the most mysterious" per se.

1. E.R. Buddy Walthers [home was bombed a few months before his death, word was a contract had been placed on him]

2. Maurice Brooks Gatlin [spook]

3. DesLesseps Morrison [former mayor of New Orleans]

4. William Sullivan [FBI, knew where all the bodies were buried]

5. Clay Shaw [would never have talked, but why take chances]

5a. Johnny Rosselli [sorry, I felt all six of these deaths are equally important]

Sorry for being loquacious, but history does matter.......

[Gene Kelly]

My top ten:

1. Gary Underhill

2. Grant Stockdale

3. Dorothy Kilgallen

4. Hermonio Diaz

5. Johnny Rosselli

6. Jack Ruby

7. J. D. Tippet

8. William Sullivan

9. Mary Pinchot Meyer

10. David Ferrie

[Charles Drago]

You need one, and only one, death to prove conspiracy.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy.

[Kathleen Collins]

JD Tippit. Did Lee Oswald kill him because Tippit thought he was Harvey and would have killed Lee?

Then Oswald. Jack Ruby shot Harvey. But what happened to Lee?

Next, was Karyn Kupcinet. I believe there was a contract out on her. Mafia bigwig, Paul Dorfman, realized that some kind of major happenstance in Chicago was needed to take the pressure off the Mob and Jack Ruby. He spent the weekend of Kennedy's death in Palm Springs, CA. Karyn Kupcinet was also in Palm Springs for the weekend. Did Dorfman see her? Somehow, her father, Irv Kupcinet, got in touch with Dorfman in Palm Springs, and asked about Ruby. I think Dorfman had a brainstorm: kill Karyn Kupcinet, who was Irv Kupcinet's daughter, so well-known in Chicago. That headline would overpower anything about Jack Ruby and the Mob. A distraction, needed to get the heat off the Chicago Mob. I think the killer cut off her carotid artery in a headlock and placed her face down on the couch. The face down was an additional insult, especially to a woman. The blood would center in her face and leave her discolored. Then her father flew to West Hollywood and had to identify her. Only, in Kup's case, a close family friend did it for him. Irv, prominent columnist and talk show host, wouldn't have Ruby on his mind.

Mary Pinchot Meyer -- shot several times. Main suspect was acquitted and case went unsolved.

Dorothy Kilgallen -- found propped up in bed with full make-up on, apparently reading a novel -- though she had told someone she had already read it. An overdose of sleeping pills and alcohol. I'll admit she was alcoholic. No sign anywhere of her file on President Kennedy's Assassination. It took 8 days to complete the autopsy -- why?

Then her best friend, F. Pritchard Smith, a woman who lived a few blocks away from Dorothy in NY, died right after Kilgallen. Dorothy supposedly left her file on JFK with this woman.

Other strange deaths in the sixties: Phil Graham, a Manic-Depressive Washington D.C. journalist, supposedly shot himself in his bathroom without any warning. Probably not connected, but was a suspicious death. There was the military photographer, Pitzer, who had in his office negatives of President Kennedy's autopsy photos. If I remember correctly, he shot himself in the head, but with the wrong hand.

Kathy

Edited February 7, 2008 by Kathleen Collins

[David Yarnell]

JD Tippit. Did Lee Oswald kill him because Tippit thought he was Harvey and would have killed Lee?

Then Oswald. Jack Ruby shot Harvey. But what happened to Lee?

Next, was Karyn Kupcinet. I believe there was a contract out on her. Mafia bigwig, Paul Dorfman, realized that some kind of major happenstance in Chicago was needed to take the pressure off the Mob and Jack Ruby. He spent the weekend of Kennedy's death in Palm Springs, CA. Karyn Kupcinet was also in Palm Springs for the weekend. Did Dorfman see her? Somehow, her father, Irv Kupcinet, got in touch with Dorfman in Palm Springs, and asked about Ruby. I think Dorfman had a brainstorm: kill Karyn Kupcinet, who was Irv Kupcinet's daughter, so well-known in Chicago. That headline would overpower anything about Jack Ruby and the Mob. A distraction, needed to get the heat off the Chicago Mob. I think the killer cut off her carotid artery in a headlock and placed her face down on the couch. The face down was an additional insult, especially to a woman. The blood would center in her face and leave her discolored. Then her father flew to West Hollywood and had to identify her. Only, in Kup's case, a close family friend did it for him. Irv, prominent columnist and talk show host, wouldn't have Ruby on his mind.

Irv Kupcinet had no idea anything was wrong with his daughter until Saturday night, November 30, when he and his wife were attending an event at the Sara Lee cheesecake factory near Chicago. They were interrupted by a phone call from a friend who had seen a television news flash on the death of the young woman in West Hollywood, CA. That gives Irv six days after Ruby shot Oswald to print any dangerous secrets he knew about Ruby. He didn't print any. That shoots a big hole in your theory.

Mary Pinchot Meyer -- shot several times. Main suspect was acquitted and case went unsolved.

Dorothy Kilgallen -- found propped up in bed with full make-up on, apparently reading a novel -- though she had told someone she had already read it. An overdose of sleeping pills and alcohol. I'll admit she was alcoholic. No sign anywhere of her file on President Kennedy's Assassination. It took 8 days to complete the autopsy -- why?

Then her best friend, F. Pritchard Smith, a woman who lived a few blocks away from Dorothy in NY, died right after Kilgallen. Dorothy supposedly left her file on JFK with this woman.

Her name was Florence Pritchett Smith. Her surviving son Earl says she was not murdered, and he wants the fantasy about her holding dangerous secrets to stop. He was interviewed by a researcher for Midwest Today magazine, whose 2007 article on Kilgallen has been cited in Education Forum. You can find a URL link to it.

Other strange deaths in the sixties: Phil Graham, a Manic-Depressive Washington D.C. journalist, supposedly shot himself in his bathroom without any warning. Probably not connected, but was a suspicious death.

How can you say that without citing any sources at the Chestnut Lodge Sanitarium, where staff members reluctantly gave permission, the day before Mr. Graham died, for him to leave the grounds of the institution for a weekend ? Also, Kay Graham's Pulitzer Prize - winning memoir "Personal History" says she was the only person anywhere near her husband when he shot himself. She was taking a short nap. It was a Saturday. I will admit Phil Graham was an alcoholic even if you won't.

There was the military photographer who had in his office negatives of President Kennedy's autopsy photos. If I remember correctly, he shot himself in the head, but with the wrong hand.

Kathy

[Kathleen Collins]

JD Tippit. Did Lee Oswald kill him because Tippit thought he was Harvey and would have killed Lee?

Then Oswald. Jack Ruby shot Harvey. But what happened to Lee?

Next, was Karyn Kupcinet. I believe there was a contract out on her. Mafia bigwig, Paul Dorfman, realized that some kind of major happenstance in Chicago was needed to take the pressure off the Mob and Jack Ruby. He spent the weekend of Kennedy's death in Palm Springs, CA. Karyn Kupcinet was also in Palm Springs for the weekend. Did Dorfman see her? Somehow, her father, Irv Kupcinet, got in touch with Dorfman in Palm Springs, and asked about Ruby. I think Dorfman had a brainstorm: kill Karyn Kupcinet, who was Irv Kupcinet's daughter, so well-known in Chicago. That headline would overpower anything about Jack Ruby and the Mob. A distraction, needed to get the heat off the Chicago Mob. I think the killer cut off her carotid artery in a headlock and placed her face down on the couch. The face down was an additional insult, especially to a woman. The blood would center in her face and leave her discolored. Then her father flew to West Hollywood and had to identify her. Only, in Kup's case, a close family friend did it for him. Irv, prominent columnist and talk show host, wouldn't have Ruby on his mind.

Irv Kupcinet had no idea anything was wrong with his daughter until Saturday night, November 30, when he and his wife were attending an event at the Sara Lee cheesecake factory near Chicago. They were interrupted by a phone call from a friend who had seen a television news flash on the death of the young woman in West Hollywood, CA. That gives Irv six days after Ruby shot Oswald to print any dangerous secrets he knew about Ruby. He didn't print any. That shoots a big hole in your theory.

Mary Pinchot Meyer -- shot several times. Main suspect was acquitted and case went unsolved.

Dorothy Kilgallen -- found propped up in bed with full make-up on, apparently reading a novel -- though she had told someone she had already read it. An overdose of sleeping pills and alcohol. I'll admit she was alcoholic. No sign anywhere of her file on President Kennedy's Assassination. It took 8 days to complete the autopsy -- why?

Then her best friend, F. Pritchard Smith, a woman who lived a few blocks away from Dorothy in NY, died right after Kilgallen. Dorothy supposedly left her file on JFK with this woman.

Her name was Florence Pritchett Smith. Her surviving son Earl says she was not murdered, and he wants the fantasy about her holding dangerous secrets to stop. He was interviewed by a researcher for Midwest Today magazine, whose 2007 article on Kilgallen has been cited in Education Forum. You can find a URL link to it.

Other strange deaths in the sixties: Phil Graham, a Manic-Depressive Washington D.C. journalist, supposedly shot himself in his bathroom without any warning. Probably not connected, but was a suspicious death.

How can you say that without citing any sources at the Chestnut Lodge Sanitarium, where staff members reluctantly gave permission, the day before Mr. Graham died, for him to leave the grounds of the institution for a weekend ? Also, Kay Graham's Pulitzer Prize - winning memoir "Personal History" says she was the only person anywhere near her husband when he shot himself. She was taking a short nap. It was a Saturday. I will admit Phil Graham was an alcoholic even if you won't.

There was the military photographer who had in his office negatives of President Kennedy's autopsy photos. If I remember correctly, he shot himself in the head, but with the wrong hand.

Kathy

The military man mentioned as having the autopsy photos was Pitzer, I believe.

Ruby shot Oswald on November 24th. Karyn Kupcinet was killed early November 28th. In the meantime, Irv was digging. Who knows who else he spoke to? But the thing is, he covered the Kennedy funeral in his column. That I can verify. I don't know if he mentioned Ruby. And in later years he was vehemently against the film JFK by Oliver Stone. He was against conspiracy. The mob wanted Ruby and themselves out of the headlines. I believe Paul Dorfman sent a hitman to kill Karyn Kupcinet in her apartment the night of Nov. 27/28. This served to shock Chicagoans and make them forget their one-time resident, Ruby, for awhile. Get the heat off the Mob.

Do you see how close her murder was to Oswald's? She had 2 male friends in her house thet night she died, was upset about her ending love affair and was killed when the 2 guys left -- perfect timing. They would bear the brunt of this murder as suspects. Easy as pie.

Irv did not have anything on Ruby yet. Dorfman wasn't going to tell him anything. But he was digging. She was killed mainly as a convenient distraction.

My theory.

The info about Phil Graham came from the book Katherine Graham. I am having a difficult time locating it in my house. I'm not sure who the author was. Also the book about Mary Pinchot Meyer may have mentioned Phil Graham. A Private Woman by Nina Burleigh. May have spelled the last name wrong.

Kathy

Edited January 30, 2008 by Kathleen Collins

[William Kelly]

Ed Voebel.

I'm not sure if that's spelled right, but he was a close friend of LHO in school in New Orleans, both joining the Astronomy Club and CAP together.

I remember reading the HSCA report on Voebel's father, who said his son died strangely and he felt was the victim of something sinister that had something to do with Oswald and the assassination.

BK

[David G. Healy]

courtesy of Jim Marrs and Ralph Schuster....

http://www.assassinationresearch.com/v1n2/deaths.html

Edited February 7, 2008 by David G. Healy