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Larrie Schmidt


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Yes, I think it's possible he was working for the FBI in Miami - though nil evidence I know of to support it.

Weissman and Burley were employed on a strictly commission basis with the Carpet Engineers at 1002 South Beckley. By his own admission, neither he nor Burley sold any carpet during this employment. Asked how they survived, he claimed they lived of $200 in savings, and a credit card supplied by Schmidt.

Why was Weissman and not Schmidt not interviewed by the Warren Commission?

Was Joe Grinnan ever interviewed by the FBI about his role in Dallas?

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  • 2 months later...
By way of background, Schmidt told the FBI he was, to quote the report, "originally from Lincoln, Nebraska... entered the army in 1954 and was discharged in 1957 as an enlisted man. He then worked for a while in 1959 as editor of the Culver City Citizen, Culver City, California. after that he again served in the US Army from 1959 to October, 1962..."

What he left out was what he was doing between 1957 and his commencent in 1959 with the Culver City Citizen.

The Feb 17, 1959 edition of the Lincoln Evening Journal and Nebraska State Journal fills in the gap. On page 16 it is reported in a School Notes column that "Larrie Henry Schmidt, son of Reuben Schmidt, was re-elected news editor of the Hurricane, University of Miami weekly student newspaper. He is a sophomore journalism major at UM's College of Arts and Sciences."

I have no idea why he would have left out telling the FBI about his Miami days, but I do wonder what the Hurricane was saying about Castro, and what friendships he may have made in Miami.

Interesting information. Could it be that Schmidt was working as a FBI agent at the University of Miami? It is also strange that he should leave the job as editor of the Culver City Citizen to rejoin the army. He of course served under General Walker in Germany. After leaving the army in October, 1962, he moves to Dallas. Schmidt's brother then becomes Walker's chauffeur and general aide.

Schmidt invited Bernard Weissman to Dallas. Weissman later told the Warren Commission that Schmidt argued: "If we are going to take advantage of the situation, or if you are," meaning me, "you better hurry down here and take advantage of the publicity, and at least become known among these various right-wingers, because this is the chance we have been looking for to infiltrate some of these organizations and become known," in other words, go along with the philosophy we had developed in Munich."

Weissman arrived in Dallas on 4th November, 1963. Soon afterwards Schmidt got Weissman to join the Young Americans for Freedom. Schmidt also introduced Weissman to Joe Grinnan of the John Birch Society. Grinnan was involved in organizing protests against the visit of JFK. Grinnan seemed to know about the visit before it was officially announced to the public. Grinnan suggested that they should place a black-bordered advert in the Dallas Morning News on 22nd November, 1963. The advert cost $1,465. Grinnan supplied the money. He claimed that some of this came from Nelson Bunker Hunt, the son of Haroldson L. Hunt. Weissman was given the task of signing the advert and taking it to the newspaper office.

Do you know what job Schmidt did in Dallas? If his brother was Walker's general aide, what did Larrie do?

Have you got the date of this interview with the FBI? I thought the Warren Report said the FBI could not find Schmidt after the assassination (along with Weissman he fled from Dallas).

Sorry John... should have searched for this thread before posting.

Schmidt was interviewed by the FBI in Dallas on the 5th of Dec, '63. He worked as an insurance salesman for Mutual of New York through the office at 2595 Turtle Creek. Walker lived at 4011. 3505 Turtle Creek was somehow associated with Sam Bloom, advertising guru, a power in the Dallas Citizen's Council, and major force behind the building of the Dallas Trade Mart. Found in Ruby's apartment were some "Vote the Conservative Democratic Slate" cards - written on the back of one card was:

"Sam Bloom - turtle

3505 Turtle Creek

Luke RI 7-6965

Times Herald

Weissman denied they served directly under Walker in Germany.

Mr. JENNER. Who was the overall commander in Germany at that time?

Mr. WEISSMAN. The overall commander?

Mr. JENNER. Was General Walker one of the commanders at that time?

Mr. WEISSMAN. No; he had been removed at that time. In any case, he would have been about 60 or 70 miles--he was based in Landshut, Germany.

Weissman did leave Dallas on the Wednesday following the assassination, and I believe Schmidt did go into hiding for a while, but within Dallas.

Yes, I think it's possible he was working for the FBI in Miami - though nil evidence I know of to support it.

Weissman and Burley were employed on a strictly commission basis with the Carpet Engineers at 1002 South Beckley. By his own admission, neither he nor Burley sold any carpet during this employment. Asked how they survived, he claimed they lived of $200 in savings, and a credit card supplied by Schmidt.

Some comments and questions:

Weissman denied they served directly under Walker in Germany.

Mr. JENNER. Who was the overall commander in Germany at that time?

Mr. WEISSMAN. The overall commander?

Mr. JENNER. Was General Walker one of the commanders at that time?

Mr. WEISSMAN. No; he had been removed at that time. In any case, he would have been about 60 or 70 miles--he was based in Landshut, Germany.

Greg, you posted a timeline of Walker's career, or at least some of its later years, in another thread, to wit:

Jim, your post is hardly redundant. You are correct in saying a fuller understanding of Walker can only be gained by studying, at the very least, his whole military career, as well as his post-military career.

... Let's look at a time line:

Sept 25, 1957: Walker arrives in Little Rock and helps the integration process succeed

Dec 1958: Welch forms the John Birch Society

Aug 1959: Walker tenders his resignation to Sec of Army, Wilmer Brucker, stating in part that a "fifth column conspiracy in the United States" caused him to "have no further desire for military service." Brucker does not accept the resignation

Oct 1959: Walker sent to Augsburg, Germany, to take command of the 24th Infantry Division

... Apr 17, 1961: Walker relieved of command pending investigation

[emphasis added]

So it appears that Weissman, if not also Schmidt, served in Germany at the same time Walker did. I consider it disingenuous to suggest that because the "overall commander in Germany" was 60 or 70 miles away that troops in other parts of Germany did not serve "under" him. It is noteworthy that Weissman seemed to know where Walker "would have been" if he'd served under him (I don't know German geography well enough to know how distant Landshut is from Augsburg; does anybody else?). To even know that Walker had been "removed" suggests a certain familiarity with the man's career if not the man himself. It is not necessarily usual among grunts to know about even the commander who led immediately prior to one's own assignment (unless perhaps Walker ranked right up there with Eisenhower and Patton at the time?).
Weissman and Burley were employed on a strictly commission basis with the Carpet Engineers at 1002 South Beckley. By his own admission, neither he nor Burley sold any carpet during this employment. Asked how they survived, he claimed they lived of $200 in savings, and a credit card supplied by Schmidt.
Hmmm ... any guesses as to how far apart, exactly, 1002 South Beckley and 1024 South Beckley are?

FWIW, Weissman seemed genuinely and distinctly uncomfortable testifying the first time before the WC, although he opened up quite a bit the second time around. One wonders if he and partner Schmidt - or at least young Bernie - didn't find themselves (or himself) "outclassed" by Grinnan, Hunt and company; Schmidt, the "politician" of the two with his grand plans and perception of himself being "at the center" of all things right-wing in Dallas, may not have, or else may have taken an even harder fall than pal Bernie when he realized that they'd been used ... and that only assuming that he didn't, himself, have a part in using Bernie.

Once again we see the apparent manipulation of a "lone Jew" to achieve someone else's ends. Surely, it's all coincidence, tho', don't you think?

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So it appears that Weissman, if not also Schmidt, served in Germany at the same time Walker did. DL

Duke, not sure how you arrived at that. Weissman was drafted in Aug, 1961. This was after Walker was relieved of command. Schmidt re-enlisted in the latter half of 1959, but it doesn't mention in the FBI report, exactly when he was sent to Germany. In short, of the two, it's possible Schmidt served in Germany prior to Walker's problems, but there's nothing in the records to confirm that.

I consider it disingenuous to suggest that because the "overall commander in Germany" was 60 or 70 miles away that troops in other parts of Germany did not serve "under" him. DL

Doesn't matter. Unless Weissman lied about when he was drafted, he could not have served under Walker in Germany.

It is not necessarily usual among grunts to know about even the commander who led immediately prior to one's own assignment (unless perhaps Walker ranked right up there with Eisenhower and Patton at the time?). DL

Maybe not usual... but these weren't your average grunts... CUSA members... code scramblers and military police, politically aware, bright and ambitious, they would certainly have been aware of Walker, particularly after the Overseas Weekly thing broke. It was big news.

Hmmm ... any guesses as to how far apart, exactly, 1002 South Beckley and 1024 South Beckley are? DL

Could be, I just need another coffee... but you've lost me. Did I, at some stage mention 1024 S Beckley, or are you thinking of 1026 N Beckley?

FWIW, Weissman seemed genuinely and distinctly uncomfortable testifying the first time before the WC, although he opened up quite a bit the second time around. DL

He was the Chosen One to appear simply by virtue of his name appearing in the ad. Well, blame never goes up the chain in a military op, does it? Look at Abu Ghraib. He had his lawyer with him second time around.

One wonders if he and partner Schmidt - or at least young Bernie - didn't find themselves (or himself) "outclassed" by Grinnan, Hunt and company; Schmidt, the "politician" of the two with his grand plans and perception of himself being "at the center" of all things right-wing in Dallas, may not have, or else may have taken an even harder fall than pal Bernie when he realized that they'd been used ...

Bingo! Much has been written about how the assassination killed the FPCC, but the fact is, the FPCC was already in its death bed well before the assassination... it just hadn't had the steak driven through its heart until then. Rarely mentioned however, is that CUSA was destroyed by the same action in DP that day.

and that only assuming that he didn't, himself, have a part in using Bernie. DL

Possible, but I doubt it. Look for a Benedict Arnold in the CUSA ranks, and in doing so, look for the one who Weissman despised, but protected nonetheless (by hinting he was not in Dallas at the time of the assassination - an untruth, if Weissman's boss at Carpet Co is to be believed); the one identifiable using Scott's negative template because he slipped under the radar - the only CUSA member who had been in Dallas not interviewed by FBI.

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Hmmm ... any guesses as to how far apart, exactly, 1002 South Beckley and 1024 South Beckley are? DL

Could be, I just need another coffee... but you've lost me. Did I, at some stage mention 1024 S Beckley, or are you thinking of 1026 N Beckley?

Have you ever noticed that those pesky little smilies never seem to have blushing cheeks when you really need 'em? All I can say is ... "2:49 a.m."!!! Could be that I needed another cuppa java??!!??

... and speaking of late nights, here one is again! Gonna cut it short this time before my face needs saving once again!!

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Harry Dean has argued that the gunman who killed JFK were soldiers who served under General Edwin Walker. I only know of two of Walker's soldiers who were in Dallas on the day of the assassination: Bernard Weissman and Larrie Schmidt. (John Simkin)

Does anyone know where Ashland Burchwell was on the day of the assassination?

Burchwell below.

James

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  • 5 years later...

Schmidt is alive and well and living in Las Vegas. His email address is snahsgr@aol.com.

Well, John, I would like to see this thread revived as well.

For one thing, this email address that you shared seven years ago is no longer in service.

Do you happen to have an up-to-date email address for Larrie Schmidt?

The link between Larrie Schmidt and General Edwin Walker is very tight -- but I don't think this thread has nailed it so far.

Dick Russell's book (TMWKTM) is so far the most ample source on Larrie Schmidt, and it is fascinating.

The most fascinating thing is the story from Larrie's brother, Bob Schmidt, who worked for General Walker as a chauffer, and when all of the CUSA members scattered upon the assassination of JFK, Bob Schmidt was hunted down and then confessed that he and Larrie had joined Lee Harvey Oswald on 10Apr63 to shoot at General Walker through his living room window.

If that story is true - then I think we have a much deeper link between Walker and Oswald than ever before.

Walker knew something about Oswald that he never told anybody. According to Harry Dean, Walker chose Oswald to be the patsy in his conspiracy to kill JFK. (Now, there were many conspiracies to kill JFK, as Gerry Patrick Hemming told us; however, the only one that was successful, obviously, was the one that made Oswald into the patsy.)

Walker denied ever hearing about Oswald until after 11/22/1963, but Harry Dean implies that Walker was lying.

Not only that, but Walker actually contradicts himself several times in various articles and speeches he wrote, when he says that Oswald was arrested on 10Apr63, but released before midnight by the Kennedys orders, and that he was told this by people in privileged places.

When Dick Russell personnally confronted Walker with Bob Schmidt's claim that he and Larrie joined Oswald to shoot at Walker, Walker's response was, "I was told that they were involved!" But Walker never volunteered that information to anybody before that final interview with Dick Russell. How many other secrets was this man harboring?

Larrie Schmidt holds the ability to confirm Harry Dean's claim, in my opinion.

I would really, really like to contact him and ask him some further questions about Lee Harvey Oswald and General Edwin Walker.

Best regards,

--Paul Trejo, MA

Edited by Paul Trejo
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  • 1 month later...

John, this thread has more promise than meets the eye. I reckon that Larrie Schmidt does not want the public contacting him. I understand that. But at one point you had his personal Email address. If you still know how to contact him, then I would like to ask you to forward some questions that I have for Larrie regarding General Edwin Walker -- the possible ring-leader of the Dallas plot against JFK.

Here are my questions:

---------------------------------------------- START --------------------------------------------------

Dear Larrie Schmidt:

(1) Did you have any role in the 16 April 1961 articles in the Overseas Weekly that got General Walker dismissed from his Command over the 24th Infantry Division in Augsburg, Germany? If so, what was that role -- in detail?

(2) When General Walker was confined to a psychiatric hospital in 1 October 1962, and then released to return to Dallas six days later - were you in contact with Walker immediately before, during or after that period?

(3) Your brother Bob told sources that you and Oswald met on 10 April 1963 to shoot at General Walker at his home. Was Bob telling the truth?

(4) If so, then what was your motive for shooting at General Walker in April 1963? Was it related to the sabatoge against him by the Overseas Weekly?

(5) According to the Warren Commission testimony of Bernard Weismann (one of the leaders of your CUSA movement in Dallas) you wrote to Bernard in early October, 1963, telling him about final arrangements that were made to deal with Adlai Stevenson during his scheduled speech in Dallas on 24 October 1963. The night before, on 23 October 1963, General Walker held a meeting of his own in the same venue (Dallas Memorial Auditorium) and gave over a thousand people clear instructions about how to disrupt Adlai's speech. On the scheduled date, Adlai Stevenson was maltreated so badly that newspapers all over America reported on it. When you wrote to Bernard Weismann in early October, had you helped General Walker plan the disruption of Adlai's speech?

(6) You are known for playing a role in designing the WANTED FOR TREASON: JFK poster; what was your exact role? What was General Walker's role?

(7) Did you also play a role in designing the Black-bordered Ad (Welcome Mr. Kennedy) for the Dallas Morning News? Did General Walker play a role?

(8) What was your overall attitude towards General Walker? Did you admire him? Did you detest him? Did you envy him? Did you pity him? What was your feeling?

----------------------------------------------------- FINISH -----------------------------------------

Those questions would be a valuable first-effort to contact this valuable source, John.

Many thanks,

--Paul Trejo,MA

<edit typos>

Edited by Paul Trejo
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  • 1 month later...

Harry Dean has argued that the gunman who killed JFK were soldiers who served under General Edwin Walker. I only know of two of Walker's soldiers who were in Dallas on the day of the assassination: Bernard Weissman and Larrie Schmidt. There is already a discussion on Weissman here:

http://educationforu...p?showtopic=660

I think it is worth taking a look at Larrie Schmidt. He was born in 1937. He joined the U.S. Army and served in Germany under Walker. Like several soldiers serving under Walker, Schmidt developed extreme right-wing views. In April 1961 Walker was accused of indoctrinating his troops with right-wing literature from the John Birch Society. With the agreement of President Kennedy, Defense Secretary Robert S. McNamara relieved Walker of his command and announced an investigation into the affair. JFK was accused of trying to suppress the anti-Communist feelings of the military. Walker resigned from the army in protest about the way he had been treated.

While in the army Schmidt made friends with Bernard Weissman. While in Germany the two men discussed the possibility of establishing a right-wing political group when they returned to the United States.

Weissman was discharged in August 1963 but was unable to find work. Short of money, Weissman contacted Schmidt who at that time was living in Dallas. Schmidt told Weissman about his involvement in the attack on the liberal politician, Adlai Stevenson. According to Schmidt, this had been organized by Walker. Schmidt added that his brother was working as Walker's chauffeur and general aide.

Schmidt invited Weissman to Dallas. Weissman later told the Warren Commission that Schmidt argued: "If we are going to take advantage of the situation, or if you are," meaning me, "you better hurry down here and take advantage of the publicity, and at least become known among these various right-wingers, because this is the chance we have been looking for to infiltrate some of these organizations and become known," in other words, go along with the philosophy we had developed in Munich."

Weissman arrived in Dallas on 4th November, 1963. Soon afterwards Schmidt got Weissman to join an organization called the Young Americans for Freedom. Schmidt also introduced Weissman to Joe Grinnan of the John Birch Society. Grinnan was involved in organizing protests against the visit of John F. Kennedy. Grinnan seemed to know about the visit before it was officially announced to the public. Grinnan suggested that they should place a black-bordered advert in the Dallas Morning News on 22nd November, 1963. The advert cost $1,465. Grinnan supplied the money. He claimed that some of this came from Nelson Bunker Hunt, the son of Haroldson L. Hunt. Weissman was given the task of signing the advert and taking it to the newspaper office.

The advert attacked Kennedy's foreign policy as being anti-American and communistic. This included the claim that Gus Hall, "head of the US Communist Party praised almost every one of your policies and announced that the party will endorse and support your re-election in 1964". It also attacked Kennedy's domestic policies. Another passage asked why Robert Kennedy had been allowed "to go soft on Communists, fellow-travelers, and ultra-leftists in America."

On 22nd November, 1963, Schmidt and Weissman met in a bar. Weissman was shocked by the assassination of JFK and told Schmidt he feared he would be accused of being involved in the killing. Weissman suspected that Kennedy had been killed by supporters of General Edwin Walker and that as a result he would be implicated in the plot. However, he told the Warren Commission he felt relieved when he discovered that Lee Harvey Oswald had been arrested for the murder. The Warren Commission did not ask how he knew that Oswald was not a right-winger. Despite this news, Schmidt, Weissman and Grinnan decided to leave Dallas staight away.

Weissman was found by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and was forced to testify before the Warren Commission. However, Larry Schmidt was never caught by the authorities.

Does anyone else have any information on Schmidt?

John, the more I look at the career of ex-General Edwin Walker and his influence in Dallas during 1963, the more the name of Larrie Schmidt keeps coming up.

HOWEVER -- although Harry Dean said that the gunman who killed JFK were soldiers who served under General Edwin Walker, it is probably a mistake to name Larrie Schmidt and Bernie Weissman in that regard.

There are two good reasons for my opinion: (1) Schmidt and Weissman didn't serve under Walker, since they weren't part of the 24th Infantry Division in Augsburg, Germany; and (2) Larrie Schmidt was associated with the Army newspaper, Overseas Weekly, which was based in Munich. The Overseas Weekly was responsible for getting General Walker fired, and (according to Dick Russell's TMWKTM) Larrie once bragged that he personally got General Walker fired because General Walker had been trying to ban the Overseas Weekly newspaper in Germany.

THE HARRY DEAN SCENARIO:

On the contrary -- the more likely suspect, if we follow Harry Dean's suspicion, is somebody named Jack Martin (who is not the same Jack Martin who worked for guy Banister, but was much younger). Jack Martin served under Walker in Augsburg, and he also took a home movie of the bullet holes in ex-General Walker's Dallas home after the 10 April 1963 shooting at his home (allegedly fired at Lee Harvey Oswald), and in that same home movie Martin added footage of Lee Harvey Oswald being arrested for a fight with Carlos Bringuier on Canal Street in New Orleans in the summer of 1963. The young Jack Martin was also a Minuteman.

Another member of the Minutemen should be mentioned here, namely, Roscoe White, who was allegedly seen in 1963 at the Lake Pontchartrain training camp for Cuban Exiles, and also joined the Dallas Police Department in September, 1963. (Ron Lewis, in his 1993 book, FLASHBACK, claims that Oswald personally told him that named Roscoe White was hired by Bannister as the shooter.)

But Harry Dean also names two known associates of Lee Harvey Oswald - namely, Loran "Skip" Hall and Larry Howard. Those names are actually aliases of two serious Chicanos from Los Angeles, namely, Lorenzo Pacillo and Alonzo Escruido. Loran (Lorenzo) also had another alias: "Leopoldo". Larry (Alonzo) had another alias: "Angelo".

Lorenzo and Alonzo accompanied Lee Harvey Oswald to visit Sylvia Odio in late September, 1963, immediately before they left for Mexico, to meet up with Guy Gabaldon, who they claimed was a CIA Agent (although he was no such thing). Actually, Guy Gabaldon was a famous war hero, a member of the John Birch Society, a violent Anticommunist and had accepted a large amount of money to pay off Lorenzo, Alonzo and Oswald.

Harry Dean says he personally attended this meeting of radical JBS members in which the money was donated through the JBS, where ex-General Walker also attended along with Congressman John Rousselot, Guy Gabadon, Loran Hall and Larry Howard. Rousselot handed the money to Guy Gabaldon. Walker remarked about the irony that they had selected a Communist to be the patsy of their plot. They all had a good laugh. Then Gabaldon promptly traveled to Mexico to make arrangements.

Oswald's ostensible mission, IMHO, was to try to get into Cuba from Mexico, while posing as an officer of the FPCC (because FPCC officers got immediate entry into Cuba). Marina said that Oswald took his newspaper clippings from New Orleans with him to Cuba -- newspaper clippings about his fight with Carlos Bringuier, and his radio appearances in New Orleans, and even a TV appearance in New Orleans, always posing as an FPCC officer -- (an officer without any members in his branch except himself).

If Oswald had succeeded in getting into Cuba, his mission would be to kill Fidel Castro. If this mission was successful, then Oswald would have become a hero to the right-wing, and receive a huge cash reward. Oswald would even be forgiven for shooting at ex-General Walker on 10 April 1963, and certainly would have enjoyed an upgrade to his Marine discharge (from dishonorable to honorable). Oswald might even receive a parade and a chance to be President of the USA. This was the promise, IMHO (which explains why he once told Marina he was going to become 'Prime Minister' of the USA).

But if Oswald failed to kill Fidel Castro, there was a Plan B. Oswald would report to the (alleged) CIA agent, Guy Gabaldon, and receive funds for his next mission -- assassination of the top Communist in the USA, namely, JFK.

I say all this to clarify Harry Dean's report along with my own research. Harry didn't suggest that Larrie Schmidt was one of the shooters on 22 November 1963.

DETAILS ABOUT LARRIE SCHMIDT:

Furthermore, judging by Warren Commission records, Bernard Weissman was not the cloak-and-dagger type. Neither was Larrie Schmidt, although I get the impression that Schmidt was extremely ambitous. Larrie's big obsession (according to Dick Russell) was really power -- money came with power, and with power a person doesn't need to hide his face.

The main thing to remember about Larrie Schmidt was that he was a young, ambitious Army officer, only two years older than Oswald. Larrie's last name, Schmidt, identifies him as a German-American, and he was stationed in Germany after attending college to be a journalist. As such he was assigned a job on the Overseas Weekly newspaper. But he was bright and ambiitous, and when General Douglas MacArthur's aging intelligence officer, General Charles Willoughby was in Munich, Germany, Larrie Schmidt began to flatter him and befriend him. (Willoughby accepted Larrie Schmidt as an understudy, because, as it turned out, Willoughby was really a German national who had become a naturalized American citizen. They both loved Germany more than the average American.)

Both Willoughby and Schmidt agreed that the real enemy was Communism, and that the USA had smashed the wrong country. They wanted to set the USA on the right-wing course again. Around this time Larrie Schmidt began reading the works of the Nazi propaganda minister, Joseph Goebbels, and he began bragging that he was a 'follower' of Joseph Goebbels.

Larrie thought a lot of himself. He could out-talk any other young officer in the US Army in Germany. So he decided to start a new organization, named Conservatism USA (also known as CUSA). He decided that his organization would grow very fast by invading other right-wing groups in the USA, and taking them over. This is when he met Bernard Weissman (who was the second best talker among the Army men stationed in Germany) and they made a pact to lead America back to the right-wing. Over the months they involved a few others, but they were the most active members of CUSA.

Well, they were very young, 23 and 24, during those years. Anyway, Larrie was discharged first, in 1962, and Bernard Weissman was left in charge of the CUSA in Germany. Larrie immediately moved to Dallas, and immediately went to work trying to establish himself as a great right-wing leader. Two of his first contacts in the USA were H.L. Hunt (who was famous for his right-wing radio program, Life Line, and ex-General Edwin A. Walker, who was close to H.L. Hunt, and who had the same lawyer, namely, Dr. Robert Morris, who was also a military intelligence operative.

Walker did not at that time link-up Larrie Schmidt with his old enemy, the Overseas Weekly newspaper. It is doubtful whether he ever did.

Larrie Schmidt soon took over the National Indignation Convention (NIC), and shortly after that he took over the Young Americans for Freedom (YAF), with over 50,000 members. He was so excited that he wrote to Bernard Weissman frequently, knowing that Weissman and other members of the CUSA were soon to be discharged in 1963. Larrie told them that all their plans were being fulfilled, and that they were all going to be rich and powerful. (These letters are published in the Exhibits of the Warren Commission, #1032 through #1051).

What we can determine from these letters, IMHO, is that Larrie Schmidt learned nothing from General Walker, rather, Larrie learned from General Charles Willoughby, and thought of General Walker as small-potatoes. Larrie scoffed at the Pro-Blue program, and used the Overseas Weekly to destroy General Walker's career, laughing all the way.

As 1963 rolled around, Bernard Weissman decided that Larrie Schmidt was too ambitious and the Larrie would soon get himself into deep trouble. For one thing, Bernard didn't like hearing that Schmidt was meeting with ex-General Walker -- after what Larrie had done to Walker. But more importantly, on 1 October 1962 ex-General Walker made headlines for leading a charge of thousands against thousands of Federal Toops at Ole Miss University in Oxford, Mississippi. Hundreds had been wounded and only two were killed, due to the restraint of the Federal Troops, so RFK tossed Walker into an insane asylum.

But after only five days Walker was released from the insane asylum with an apology, and soon afterwards a Grand Jury acquitted Walker, finding him innocent of all charges. Now Walker was walking around like a raging lion; the hero of the right-wing and the villain of the left-wing.

The reason for the riots was the racist denial of allowing a black student, James Meredith, register to study there. Bernard Weissman was an American rightist, but he was no racist. He didn't want any part of any organization that had ex-General Walker as a member.

In any case, Dick Russell (TMWKTM) reports a story allegedly from Larrie Schmidt; that on 10 April 1963, he and his brother Bob Schmidt, drove Lee Harvey Oswald to ex-General Walker's house with the intent to assassinate Walker. They missed, sped away, and never said a word about it again.

THE ADLAI STEVENSON SCANDAL:

Still, Larrie Schmidt got more and more contacts, more and more power, and more and more money. It really looked like he was going places. Then, on 1 October 1963 Larrie Schmidt addressed a powerful letter to Bernard Weissman (Commission Exhibit #1033). He said that a person in power (he would not name the person) had made all the arrangements to attack Adlai Stevenson on 24 October 1963 when Adlai would visit Dallas to promote the United Nations.

The JBS was rabidly against the United Nations. In his dissertation (1993) Chris Cravens amply documents that ex-General Walker was the influential Dallas man who organized the attack on Adlai Stevenson on 24 October 1963. The final step in that organization was a meeting in the same hall that Adlai Stevenson rented, to be held exactly the night before, on 23 October 1963.

In that meeting ex-General Walker addressed all his Dallas minions, in the NIC, the JBS and the Minutemen, and all their wives and fellow-travelers. Hundreds attended. Walker instructed them to buy all the tickets they could afford to Adlai Stevenson's meeting, and also to bring as many party noisemakers as they could. They set up an enormous banner from the ceiling of the meeting hall, tied with a string, so that when the string was pulled, it would unravel and display: US OUT OF THE UN!! and UN OUT OF THE US!! All the leaders of protest marchers were called to muster, and Larrie Schmidt was one of those protest leaders.

In that letter of 1 October 1963, Larrie Scmidt told Bernard Weissman to watch the news very carefully in late October, and follow exactly what happens to Adlai Stevenson -- because it had all been planned! (As an added bonus, Larrie's brother, Bob Schmidt, was hired full time to be the ex-General Walker's personal chauffer! Larrie was seeking very intently to take over Walker and Surrey's American Eagle Publishing Company. All in due time.)

When the national scandal erupted that Adlai Stevenson had been humiliated in Dallas, and even hit and spit upon, Bernard Weissman knew at that time that Larrie Schmidt was onto something really big. He decided to travel to Dallas to join Larrie Schmidt.

THE BLACK-BORDERED AD:

When Weissman arrived in Dallas on 4th November, 1963, he immediately got into the swing of things. He quickly got a job as a carpet salesman to pay the bills, and after work he worked tirelessly to support the JBS, the YAF, the NIC and the American Eagle Publishing Company. Larrie and Bernie were paid by the JBS (specifically the Hunt family) to produce and publish the black-bordered ad (WELCOME MR. KENNEDY: WHY ARE YOU A COMMUNIST?) and to more widely distribute the handbill, WANTED FOR TREASON: JFK. That handbill was already in circulation on the day that Adlai Stevenson was in Dallas -- and the JBS planned to distribute it all over Dallas by the time JFK was in town.

Weissman's name was to be printed on the black-bordered ad in the Dallas Morning News. It would confound the left-wing to see a Jewish name on a right-wing advertisement, they thought.

Bernard Weissman had been in Dallas less than 20 days before JFK was assassinated. He immediately believed that ex-General Walker and his people were involved, and that now his name was in print as one of the conspirators! He felt he was going to be the patsy.

What an enormous relief it was for Bernard Weissman when Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested, and then was identified as a Communist! Still, the FBI caught Weissman and obliged him to testify before the Warren Commission.

For some, strange, inexplicable reason, Larrie Schmidt was never called by the Warren Commission to testify. That's really too bad -- because I believe that if anybody knows the details about ex-General Walker's alleged participation in the assassination of JFK, that person would be Larrie Schmidt.

I get the impression that everybody in the Warren Commission knew that ex-General Walker was behind the assassination, but this was the best kept secret of them all. Everytime the issue would be raised, it seems, the counselor would have an "off the record" discussion, and then get back to the distractions of the day.

Best regards,

--Paul Trejo

<edit typos>

Edited by Paul Trejo
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Here are the first questions I would ask Larrie Schmidt if I could interview him today:

(1) In early 1961, did you work with the Overseas Weekly to get General Walker fired from his command over the 24th Infantry Division?

(2) In 1962, did you ever discuss Joseph Goebbels with George De Mohrenschildt?

(3) In late 1962, did you attend a Dallas Bohemian Club dinner with George De Mohrenschildt, and give a presentation about Joseph Goebbels?

(4) In late 1962, what opinon did you form of General Walker's role in the Ole Miss race riots in which hundreds were wounded and two were killed?

(5) Did you ever speak with General Walker about the Ole Miss riots? If so, what did he say?

(6) Bradford Angers suggested that you have your own theory of syllogistic logic; if that is true, have you committed your theory to writing?

(7) What did you learn about the plans to disrupt Adlai Stevenson's UN Day rally in Dallas on 24 October 1963, and when did you learn it?

(8) Besides General Edwin Walker, who else played key roles in disrupting Adlai's rally; the Minutemen? the JBS? the KKK? the NIC? Others?

(9) Among those who contributed to disrupting Adlai Stevenson's rally in late 1963 (aside from General Walker) who contributed the most?

If anybody in this Forum knows how to contact Larrie Schmidt today, please forward these questions to him and reply to this thread with his answers.

Thanks in advance.

Best regards,

--Paul Trejo

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  • 4 weeks later...

Here are the first questions I would ask Larrie Schmidt if I could interview him today:

(1) In early 1961, did you work with the Overseas Weekly to get General Walker fired from his command over the 24th Infantry Division?

(2) In 1962, did you ever discuss Joseph Goebbels with George De Mohrenschildt?

(3) In late 1962, did you attend a Dallas Bohemian Club dinner with George De Mohrenschildt, and give a presentation about Joseph Goebbels?

(4) In late 1962, what opinon did you form of General Walker's role in the Ole Miss race riots in which hundreds were wounded and two were killed?

(5) Did you ever speak with General Walker about the Ole Miss riots? If so, what did he say?

(6) Bradford Angers suggested that you have your own theory of syllogistic logic; if that is true, have you committed your theory to writing?

(7) What did you learn about the plans to disrupt Adlai Stevenson's UN Day rally in Dallas on 24 October 1963, and when did you learn it?

(8) Besides General Edwin Walker, who else played key roles in disrupting Adlai's rally; the Minutemen? the JBS? the KKK? the NIC? Others?

(9) Among those who contributed to disrupting Adlai Stevenson's rally in late 1963 (aside from General Walker) who contributed the most?

If anybody in this Forum knows how to contact Larrie Schmidt today, please forward these questions to him and reply to this thread with his answers.

Thanks in advance.

Best regards,

--Paul Trejo

I've got some good news about my request from last month. A history student from TSU in San Marcos who regularly reads the FORM (but is not a member) kindly sent me a vetted address for Larrie Schmidt, and I used that address, and I was very pleased when Larrie Schmidt wrote back to me.

Larrie Schmidt was ambiguous about hearing from me, since he has read only wild theories about himself in the past 49 years, and seeks to avoid the chaos of JFK conspiracy buffs. But he was willing to share some facts about himself, as follows:

(1) Larrie never met Walker personally - but only interacted with Walker through intermediaries (e.g. for the Adlai Stevenson protests in Dallas).

(2) Larrie did send his brother, Bob Schmidt, to spy on Walker for the CUSA. No information of any importance came from that effort, he avers.

(3) Larrie was aghast to read Dick Russell's allegations that Bradford Angers told him that Larrie and Bob joined Oswald to shoot Walker. A bizarre fiction, he said.

(4) Larrie was in no way hiding from the FBI during the Warren Commission proceedings, he says. Instead, he was in Miami, supporting anti-Castro efforts with Cuban Exiles in full view and knowledge of the US Government.

(5) Larrie was interviewed by LOOK Magazine (1 Jan 65) which made a hatchet job out of his CUSA story, calling it a conspiracy. Actually, it is no conspiracy to struggle to have your favorite candidate elected; and it is no conspiracy to try to weld various political groups into a larger unit. It was quite ridiculous to call CUSA a conspiracy.

(6) Larrie was ambitious -- but not so ambitious as to delve into murder or bribery, and he resents those unfounded allegations.

As it appears to me today, Larrie Schmidt was a journalist major and an extraordinarily effective Armed Forces Recreation Center PR man in Munich from 1960-1962. Larrie did interact with the Overseas Weekly, as any PR man would interact with the local newspapers, but he paid little attention to the General Walker scandal in 1961.

Larrie's background was not in politics. He awoke to political activism in 1962, after reading Barry Goldwater's, Conscience of a Conservative, as well as Ayn Rand's, Altas Shrugged. He considered himself a Conservative and an Objectivist Libertarian after that point, and he chose to enter politics on that basis.

As in all avenues of life, rumors will always abound when there is no knowledgable person to refute them. I consider it most positive that Larrie Schmidt himself has offered to refute groundless rumors.

As for my own project, a history of Dallas during the JFK administration, which currently centers on General Walker, it is a boon to have Larrie Schmidt as an eye-witness for these events, and I'm grateful to the FORUM for being part of the process by which I was able to contact.him.

Best regards,

--Paul Trejo, MA

<edit typos>

Edited by Paul Trejo
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Paul,

Bernard Weissman and Burley did get jobs at a carpet company but were employed on commission only basis. As they made no sales in the short time they were in Dallas, they made no money from it. They lived on the small amount they brought with them, along with a credit card belonging to Schmidt.

Did Larrie answer each specific question you put, or was what you posted, his entire response?

I absolutely believe that he was not involved in any direct sense, in the Kennedy assassination (indirectly, perhaps as a possible fall guy).

Since he has a psyops background Angers is not credible and I absolutely believe Larrie was not involved in any conspiracy to kill Walker - though by the same token, I do believe the attempt was either a publicity stunt or part of a psyop (tho' the difference is sometimes moot).

I am puzzled by his denial regarding bribery since I am unaware of any allegations of this.

I am also puzzled about his denial that CUSA amounted to a conspiracy. Yes, his ambition was to have his "favorite candidate" elected and to "weld" various groups together - but some of the methods did involve groups of people in conspiratorial actions. The Black Border ad was a conspiracy involving men who who did not want their identities known, and involved inventing a fictional front group headed by a Jew to publicly accuse JFK of being a communist traitor. The Stevenson incident was a conspiracy which went beyond mere protest. And CUSA was not trying to weld various groups together by dent of overt persuasive argument or by other open means - it was intent on infiltrating those groups and taking them over under the CUSA banner, so in that regard, it was indeed, a conspiracy.

In any case, here are some more questions you might put to him:

Why did he advise Weissman to change his name and religion before coming to Dallas because of the antisemitism, then get him to put his name on the black border ad to show that the Dallas Right Wing was not anti-Jewish?

There is a photo of CUSA members in the LOOK article. Larrie and Bernard are both there. Was the third individual Larry Jones or Bill Burley?

Why did Weissman grow to dislike Jones so much?

Why did Larry Jones phone Weissman at the carpet company on the day of the assassination and leave a message to meet him at the bar "where the brothers" have lunch (The FBI report is ambiguous as to whether it was just prior to, or just after the assassination)?

http://www.maryferre...bsPageId=143707

edit to add: When given the message from Jones, why did Weissman go into a panic and deny ever knowing anyone by that name?

Why did Weissman testify that Jones had left Dallas when according to the above document, he was clearly in Dallas on the day of the assassination?

The first group Larrie joined in Dallas was the NIC. As this was about the same time that Michael Paine was attending meetings/spying on that group, does he recall meeting Paine?

I recall reading somewhere that you (Larrie) received a beating after the assassination as a message to "keep your mouth shut". Is this another unfounded rumor?

Your interview with the FBI touched on your education and work history to that point, but omits what you did between leaving the army the first time in '57 and commencing work with the Culver City Citizen in '59. Is it true that during this period you were living in Miami and editing the University of Miami newspaper?

What historical perspective does he derive from his German-Russian background, and did that influence his political thinking?

What was his impression of Bob Morris?

Edited by Greg Parker
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Guest Tom Scully

........................

I've got some good news about my request from last month. A history student from TSU in San Marcos who regularly reads the FORM (but is not a member) kindly sent me a vetted address for Larrie Schmidt, and I used that address, and I was very pleased when Larrie Schmidt wrote back to me......

(6) Larrie was ambitious -- but not so ambitious as to delve into murder or bribery, and he resents those unfounded allegations.

As it appears to me today, Larrie Schmidt was a journalist major and an extraordinarily effective Armed Forces Recreation Center PR man in Munich from 1960-1962. Larrie did interact with the Overseas Weekly, as any PR man would interact with the local newspapers, but he paid little attention to the General Walker scandal in 1961.

Larrie's background was not in politics. He awoke to political activism in 1962, after reading Barry Goldwater's, Conscience of a Conservative, as well as Ayn Rand's, Altas Shrugged. He considered himself a Conservative and an Objectivist Libertarian after that point, and he chose to enter politics on that basis.

As in all avenues of life, rumors will always abound when there is no knowledgable person to refute them. I consider it most positive that Larrie Schmidt himself has offered to refute groundless rumors.....

Best regards,

--Paul Trejo, MA

<edit typos>

..............

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Tom, can you explain for me and any other member chronically befuddled and bemused by the exercise of "free speech" in these here parts, what the connection is between what you highlighted and "the rules" you pointed to?

If you are alleging a breach in the rules, could you explain what Paul did wrong?

And as far that second rule goes, whilst it would be great to have Larrie Schmidt join and answer questions directly, it would seem an unlikely event. Are you really willing to stomp on Paul's ability to even paraphrase an important witness?

Because that is all he did here...

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