The Anonymous Phone Call to the Tippits of Connecticut

[Paul Jolliffe]

1 hour ago, Jim Hargrove said:

I'm confident Geo will approve of me quoting his full answer here which, if Gardos=Gardosh, seems kind of stunning.  Here it is:

Hi Jim

the old 1947 drawing that somone has put on in 2019  (David Josephs I think - or maybe Paul Joliffe ) was from somewhere else not this book ---in this 62 -63 booklet, in the 60s there was no artist left who would root for Communism that turned out to be  just a Police state stifling any individual initiative - hence pepe were starving. Of course they never promised anything else...except the false belief that eating the rich will make the poor less poor.

they are like steinberg in the new yorker - abstract...tongue-in-cheek humour, clearly silently anti Communist

The point in it for us is not the content.

But that the artist was a family relative of Gardosh [ who worked then at Corvina] and the name Gardosh is also up in an Oswald family [ one among hundreds but still there as the Tippit Call also did say...]

So they must have had a way [ maybe by diplomatic post] to send that book.
My twopence is that my Uncle at the Rand working with his former student Kissinger and McNamara and Cyrus Vance and Bob Kenbedy could have the ways and the clout to be a middle man to send the book to link the distant relatives Oswald and Gardos.
Because on a personal level people do not hate an opponent 24/24 as they are also just family...and they could not be aware of the tragic future...certainly my Uncle could not. If Gardos had infos...he might have tried to counteract others and our task now is to see the codes he used to send messages by the books he sent.

The in-law of my Uncle Karl Mannheim had a Memory Card system with all cards having a letter of the ABC

That is a simple method to hide words into a bridge game report.
 

Just got back from an appointment and received Geo's note above.   My first question involves whether "Gardosh" is another version of "Gardos?"  Anyone know?

Jim,

Is Geo saying that the 1962 "Circus Maximus" contained material from various decades which were basically quietly subversive anti-communist cartoons?

If so, then that's yet more evidence that our "Oswald" was critical of Soviet Communism (but also no fan of U.S. Imperialism.)

Also, great question about the "Gardosh/Gardos" possible connection. Could our "Oswald" originally have been a "Gardosh" in Hungary and was placed with Emil Gardos (briefly) because he was (somehow) a distant relative?

Maybe?

[Jim Hargrove]

Paul,

I read Geo’s note as saying that by the 1960s virtually all artists in Hungary and probably other parts of Eastern Europe had seen and felt enough of the Soviets to dislike them.  In other notes, Geo has expressed his feelings about the Russian state quite clearly and negatively.  In my very limited visits to former Eastern Block countries and nations bordering Russia, I felt a similar consensus.  In my total of two days in St. Petersburg, Russia, I got the feeling the people there still disliked the Germans more than anyone else.

The potential relationships of “Gardosh” and “Gardos” seems like the major question right now. I’ve sent another note to Geo about it, but it is nearly midnight in Budapest, so we’ll probably have to wait.

[Sandy Larsen]

8 hours ago, Paul Jolliffe said:

Thanks, Sandy.

Yes, I probably should have assessed my confidence level at 95% +, but of course, there is still a tiny possibility that yet more information might emerge from the notes of Mrs. Jack D. Tippit, information that might point in another direction.

However, based on what have at this time, it seems inconceivable that anyone else could fit besides Elizabeth Bentley.

 

I think that, if the woman who called the Tippits is a "notable person," then it is most very likely is Elizabeth Bentley.

My reservation lies with the possibility that the person was somebody who saw what was going on, but was not really involved. For example, the wife of a communist organization member whose beliefs weren't the same as her husband's. Or a woman with communist sentiments, who belonged to a communist organization, but wasn't radical/militant.

If the FBI document somehow reveals that the woman caller was a notable person, then I believe it was definitely Bentley.

 

[Sandy Larsen]

14 minutes ago, Sandy Larsen said:

If the FBI document somehow reveals that the woman caller was a notable person, then I believe it was definitely Bentley.

 

Wow, here it is in the FBI report:

THE WOMAN REQUESTED THAT NOTHING BE SAID TO THE PRESS
ABOUT A WOMAN CALLING AS THEY WOULD KNOW HER IDENTITY AND SHE
WOULD BE KILLED.

The militant communists would know who reported them just by knowing the person was a woman!

To me, that means that the woman who reported them was either Elizabeth Bentley, or had been a caretaker of the boy Oswald.

 

[Sandy Larsen]

11 hours ago, Paul Jolliffe said:

John,

Russ Geck is the husband of Andrea Gardos, the granddaughter of Emil and Grace Gardos. Andrea Gardos Geck's father was John (Janos) Gardos, son of Emil and Grace Gardos. He was mentioned in the infamous 1966 FBI memo in which the FBI was so concerned about Grace's possible return to the USA from Hungary (with her son), that they considered launching some kind of counter-operation against her!

(They were terrified she knew something and might say something at a time, 1966, when the public's doubts about the Warren Commission's conclusions were growing.)

 

Paul, can you tell me where to find the 1996 FBI memo that you speak of here?

 

11 hours ago, Paul Jolliffe said:

Again, for the general readers (if there are any), we know (Bentley's ) information to the Tippit's was taken so seriously by the FBI that they corrupted the names, classified the memo "Top Secret" and tried to hide it away forever. If the anonymous caller was a crackpot, none of that would have happened. It is because of the FBI's reaction to this call that we can confidently know the information was real.

 

Are you sure the FBI memo of the Tippit caller was classified Top Secret? I didn't know that the FBI had/has a classification system.

 

[Jim Hargrove]

On 2/20/2024 at 5:28 PM, John Kowalski said:

When I spoke to Tina Tippet she said that the woman called her several times, always in a rush, fearing that she will be overheard. Maybe her work as a spy made her concerned about people eavesdropping on her conversations, or she was living with someone when she made the phone calls.

John,

Has it been four or five years since you last spoke with Tina Tippet?

If so, do you think it would be wise if you or someone else here contacted once more to see if there is any way to acquire copies of those notes?
 

[Jim Hargrove]

Geo sent a reply to our question about “Gardos” vs Gardosh.”  Here’s part of what he said:

Oh it is simple...hi Jim.

In Hunnian we use the S = sh
And for S we us SZ.

So i use * Budapesht * as we pronounce S= SH

Yes of course you may put up my stuff...

EVEN THIS as I omit the name I fear to mention publicly:

The things I do not want to mention publicly…

Some quick web research indicates that the word “Hunnian” is not used much in English, but it seems to mean “Hungarian,” at least from what I can tell.

Under “The things I do not want to mention publicly,” Geo writes nine numbered paragraphs, and so I want to be careful here, but it is surely safe to say that he refers to “Gardos/h” a number of times.  Therefore, “Gardosh” is probably just the Hunnian (Hungarian) way to refer to “Gardos.”  Anyone see a more likely interpretation?

If so, this leaves us with the possibility of the following remarkable coincidence:  An edition of a Hungarian book published in 1962/1963 was allegedly in the possession of the Russian-speaking Oswald at the time he was arrested and killed.  This book was published by someone in Hungary (Budapest) with the same last name as the Hungarian in America who may have been Oswald’s caretaker for a relatively brief period.

[John Kowalski]

2 hours ago, Jim Hargrove said:

If so, do you think it would be wise if you or someone else here contacted once more to see if there is any way to acquire copies of those notes?

She passed away in 2020. Have been trying to locate an obituary to obtain family names that I can contact.

Edited February 22 by John Kowalski

[John Kowalski]

8 hours ago, Jim Hargrove said:

Has it been four or five years since you last spoke with Tina Tippet?

If so, do you think it would be wise if you or someone else here contacted once more to see if there is any way to acquire copies of those notes?
 

Jim:

Have contact information for one of her granddaughters. I could contact her, hoping that her mother or the other woman I spoke to, told her about me so she does not have to talk to a complete stranger. Tina Tippit told me that she was interested in the research being done but I do not know if she passed this information on to her granddaughters. The other option is to have some else call. Was listening to John Armstrong on Black Ops Radio last week and he said that both you and him visited Rob Reiner, who was very interested in John's research. She may be interested in talking to him, since he is a person whose identity they can confirm. Another option is to ask John to call. His identity can be easily confirmed by his website. Let me know what you think about this. I will call them if the above mentioned options are not suitable.

 

 

[Jim Hargrove]

John,

Interesting ideas!  If Rob Reiner could be persuaded to make the call, my bet is it would have the biggest chance of success, but only if the granddaughter understood it wasn't a prank.

I'm not sure if Rob even remembers me, but he does know John, and so it would surely be best to start with that introduction to the potential ask.  OK if I forward your post to John to get his take on this?

[Jim Hargrove]

John,

Just got off the phone with John A. and we discussed your ideas for some time.  John was absolutely convinced that you would be the best person to make the call because you had previous contact with Tina and might not come across as a complete stranger.  If she was unaware of your previous communication with her mother, you could at least explain what had happened.

You might tell her the current status of the research on this matter and explain that a fellow in Budapest is currently trying to help us with it.  John thought it would be important to try to explain to her the importance of the call and to ask her not to throw any of her grandmother’s old paperwork away without checking to see if it has something to do with the anonymous caller from so long ago.

I think John A’s thoughts on this make sense.  Do you agree, and is there anything else any of us can do to help?  Good luck!

[Jim Hargrove]

Earlier today I asked Geo Kozma if he could provide information we could all see about a relationship between  Emil Gardos and Corvina Press, the Hungarian publisher of “Circus Maximus,” a book that, according to Heritage Auctions, was in LHO’s possessions near the end of his life.

Geo responded that I should look up a Hungarian book entitled “Kárpáti rapszódia (Carpathian Rhapsody).”

Several hits immediately came up using the English translation.  According to TheModernNovel.org, “The Corvina Press translation, long since out of print but not too difficult to obtain, is, frankly, not a great translation but still quite readable….”

First English translation 1963 by Corvina Press
Translated by Grace Blair Gardos

Goodreads.com says: This two volume English translation was published and printed in 1963 by Corvina Press in Hungary. The book was translated into English by Grace Blair Gardos, the American wife of Hungarian Emil Gardos.
 
Geo also said that he doubted Grace had the skills to translate the book, so we might assume that Emil helped her.

And so let’s get this straight.  The anonymous caller said that the man we can surely identify as Emil Gardos was the Hungarian father of “Lee Harvey Oswald.”  Emil’s wife was the American Grace Blair Gardos, who was the translator of an (obscure in America) book by the same Hungarian publisher of a book allegedly in the possession of “Lee Harvey Oswald” near the end of his life.

Pretty interesting, eh?

Edited February 23 by Jim Hargrove

[Sandy Larsen]

15 hours ago, Jim Hargrove said:

Earlier today I asked Geo Kozma if he could provide information we could all see about a relationship between  Emil Gardos and Corvina Press, the Hungarian publisher of “Circus Maximus,” a book that, according to Heritage Auctions, was in LHO’s possessions near the end of his life.

Geo responded that I should look up a Hungarian book entitled “Kárpáti rapszódia (Carpathian Rhapsody).”

Several hits immediately came up using the English translation.  According to TheModernNovel.org, “The Corvina Press translation, long since out of print but not too difficult to obtain, is, frankly, not a great translation but still quite readable….”

First English translation 1963 by Corvina Press
Translated by Grace Blair Gardos

Goodreads.com says: This two volume English translation was published and printed in 1963 by Corvina Press in Hungary. The book was translated into English by Grace Blair Gardos, the American wife of Hungarian Emil Gardos.
 
Geo also said that he doubted Grace had the skills to translate the book, so we might assume that Emil helped her.

And so let’s get this straight.  The anonymous caller said that the man we can surely identify as Emil Gardos was the Hungarian father of “Lee Harvey Oswald.”  Emil’s wife was the American Grace Blair Gardos, who was the translator of an (obscure in America) book by the same Hungarian publisher of a book allegedly in the possession of “Lee Harvey Oswald” near the end of his life.

Pretty interesting, eh?

 

Yeah that is interesting.

Do we know who translated Circus Maximus? Now THAT would be interesting, if Grace Blair Gardos also translated that.

 

[Matt Cloud]

On 2/21/2024 at 10:15 PM, Sandy Larsen said:

 

Paul, can you tell me where to find the 1996 FBI memo that you speak of here?

https://vault.fbi.gov/solo/solo-part-109-of-114  pp. 15-16

 

Are you sure the FBI memo of the Tippit caller was classified Top Secret? I didn't know that the FBI had/has a classification system.

It does.  EO 12356

https://sgp.fas.org/library/quist2/chap_7.html#:~:text=The U.S. classification of information,are defined in EO 12356.&text=Those levels are used both,information (RD and FRD).

 

[Sandy Larsen]

9 hours ago, Matt Cloud said:

 

 

Thanks Matt!