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Live by the Sword

Page 96

by Gus Russo


  on CIA misdirection during Church Committee hearings, 431

  Cuban exiles on Cuban Communist assassination team and, 313

  Cubela plot investigation, 240

  on FBI/CIA coordination for Warren Commission, 367

  on presidential use of CIA, 438–39

  Scott, Janet, 419

  Scott, Michael, 419

  Scott, Winston “Win”

  autobiography, 419, 421

  awareness of Oswald in Mexico City, 217, 455

  Barron and, 421

  on Castro’s agents’ infiltration, 143

  CIA coverup and, 353

  concern about Dallas, 281

  death, disappearance of files, 416, 419–20

  Mexico City CIA station and, 211–12

  on Oswald, Havana, two-suitcase problem and, 342

  on Oswald’s Soviet/Cuban Embassy visits, 352

  Scott-Foresman Books, Oswald job with, 257

  Scowcroft, Brent, 374

  Second Naval Guerrilla, 171–72

  Artime/Williams training, 238

  Castro assassination and, 175–76

  FitzGerald and, 175

  funding for, 172

  receives weapon purchases funding, 271

  Secret Service

  agents on grassy knoll theory and, 472–73

  concerns about JFK in crowds, 281

  finding/protecting Oswald next-of-kin, 337

  JFK body onto Air Force One and, 304

  Oswald’s shooting and, 297–98

  Pearson checking on Morgan’s anti-Castro plots story and, 394–95

  presence of, tolerated by JFK, 278

  “Preventing Assassination” report, 456

  RFK demands Oval Office tapes from, 322

  security risk procedures of, 473

  seriousness of Oswald’s Soviet Embassy contacts and, 258

  Seigenthaler, John, 66

  Semichastny, Vladimir, 102, 103–44, 107, 110

  Senate Rules Committee, LBJ/Baker investigation, 289

  Senate Select Committee to Study

  Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence. See Church Committee

  Sexton, Bill, 228

  Shackley, Theodore

  advising against Fitzgerald/Cubela meeting, 244

  on AM/TRUNK operation, 182

  on Artime’s operation, 174–75

  on autonomous operations, 173

  awareness of Soviet missiles in Cuba, 148

  on Harvey/Kennedy run-ins, 80

  JM/WAVE chief, 44

  lack of investigative follow-up and, 244

  postpone operations orders of, 390

  Shannon, William, 28–29

  Sharp, June Cobb, 219

  Shaw, Clay

  character of, 411

  Garrison investigation, 410–13

  Sheridan, Walter, 406–7, 409

  relationship with RFK, 578 n 45

  Shimon, Joe, 52, 246, 393

  Shirakova, Rimma, 100, 101

  Shirkovsky, Eduard, 103

  shooting range, Dallas, Oswald and, 261–63

  Siegel, Bugsy, 67

  Siegel, Evelyn Strickman, 90

  Sierra, Paulino, 185

  Silberling, Edwyn, 283

  Silver, Myra, 205

  Silverman, HUM, 491

  Sinatra, Frank, 435

  Single Bullet Theory (SBT), 477, 483

  Siragusa, Charles, 50, 66

  Sitzman, Marilyn, 474–75

  Skakel, George, 4

  Skakel, George, Jr., 31

  Skelton, Byron, 274

  Slack, Garland, 261

  Slack, Lucille, 264

  Slawson, David, 420

  Slough, Hugh, 269

  Smathers, George

  demanding JFK action on Cuba, 233

  Hudkins and, 74

  on JFK, Castro assassination plan and, 49, 64

  JFK complaints about Texas trip and, 276

  on JFK in Cuba, 10

  on JFK plans for Cuba invasion, 18–19

  McLaney and, 67

  Santa Ana mission and, 14

  Smith, Howard K., 377

  Smith, Joe Marshall, 472–73

  Smith, Steve, 323

  Smith, Wayne, 3

  Smothers, Curtis, 435

  Snyder, Richard, Oswald and, 103, 109

  Socialist Party of America, 96

  “Solo Source,” 223–24 See also Childs, Jack and Morris

  Somoza, Luis

  Cuba retaliation concern, 175

  on Cuban invasion likelihood, 271

  MDC training camps and, 186, 188

  message to RFK, 171

  Sierra meets with, 185

  Sorenson, Ted, 18, 25–26

  Sorrells, Forrest, 473

  Soviet Embassy, Mexico City

  Oswald first visit to, 214–15

  Oswald second visit to (pulls gun), 216

  Oswald third visit to, 217–18

  Soviet Embassy, Washington, DC, Oswald letter to, 225

  Soviet Union

  Cuba and, 6–7

  espionage school, Minsk, 122

  Oswald, Shirakova and, 101–3

  Oswald’s inconsequence to, 102–3, 455–56

  U.S.-Cuba invasion planning, 1962 and, 77–78

  U.S. perceived Caribbean military inferiority of, 178–79

  Spalding, Charles, 23

  Special Affairs Staff, 82

  Special Forces, U.S. Army, 39

  Special Group (Augmented), 43

  approves nine Cuban operations, 230

  authority of, 75

  Belin finds Harvey’s memo to coverup plans of, 426–27

  Castro threats and, 250

  Church Committee conclusions on, 429

  LBJ calls halt to, 390

  Special Operations Group (SOG), 40

  Spector, Arlen, 483

  Sportsdrome Gun Range, Oswald at, 261–63

  Sprague, Richard, 441

  stalkers, 120

  Stanton, Frank, 30

  Stephanapoulos, George, 460

  Stephens, John Henry, 53, 54

  Stern, Edith, 412

  Stevenson, Adlai J., 25, 235, 249, 274

  Stevenson, Robert, 180–81

  Stokes, Louis, 441

  Stone, I. E, 449

  Stone, Oliver, 446

  Stover, John, 325

  Strategy of Peace, The (JFK), 10

  Stuckey, Bill, 201

  Sturdivan, Larry, 466

  Sturgis, Frank, 48, 51, 166, 248

  Sullivan & Cromwell, 520–21 n 158

  Sullivan, William, 355, 357, 367

  Sulzberger, Arthur Hays, 24

  Summers, Malcom, 472

  Summers, Robbyn and Anthony, 420

  Sylvester, Arthur, 359

  Szulc, Tad, 16, 63–64, 166, 179, 250

  T

  Tannenbaum, Robert, 389, 442

  Tarabochia, Al, 242

  Tarassoff, Boris and Anna, 352

  Tarusin, Oleg, 108

  Task Force W, 44, 62, 82, 238 See also Cuba Project; Special Affairs Staff

  Tatum, Jack, 315

  Taylor, Maxwell, 25, 38, 47, 178

  Taylor Commission, 38, 71

  Texas School Book Depository, 294

  Frazier and Oswald at, 265

  Oswald job at, 256, 257

  Oswald missing from roll call at, 318

  trajectory from, 444–45, 470–71

  Texas trip, JFK, 280–81

  concerns about Dallas, 273–75

  Democratic Party fundraising and, 282

  planning, 253–54

  security problems of, 255–56

  Thevenot, Wayne, 374

  Third Agency Rule, 258, 366–67

  Thomas, Albert, 284

  Thomas, Evan, 303–4, 339

  Thompson, Josiah, 469, 474

  303 Committee. See Cuban Coordinating Committee

  Thurmond, Strom, 233

  Tippit, J. D., 228, 313–15

 
Titovets, Ernst, Oswald and, 104, 110

  Tobias, Mahlon, 128

  Tofte, Hans, 19

  Touré, Sékou, 234

  Tourine, Charles, 51

  Tower, John, 435

  Trafficante, Santos, Jr.

  Castro, numbers operation and, 246

  Castro assassination planning and, 50, 52

  Cubela and, 245

  Halfen and, 414

  McWillie and, 501

  trajectory, bullet, 444–45, 470–71, 477–81

  Travell, Janet, 327

  Trujillo, Rafael, 425

  Truman, Harry S, 35, 431

  Tsagoika, Leonid, 295

  Turner, Stansfield, 443

  Turner, William

  on Cuban exiles’ usefulness, 157

  on Howard’s changed opinion of RFK, 236

  on Los Amigos de Roberto, 164

  on McLaney’s Castro assassination plan, 69–70

  on meeting 11/22/63, 289

  on RFK/Williams relationship, 164–65

  Turnure, Pam, 171

  U

  U-2 spy plane

  Cuban Missile Crisis and, 148–49

  Oswald, KGB and, 102

  photos of Oswald residences in Minsk, 340

  Unconventional Warfare (UW), 178

  AM/TRUNK, OPLAN 380–63 and, 182

  Underwood, Marty

  on crown turnout, Texas trip, 280–81

  cue cards for LBJ swearing in and, 305

  on Jack/Jackie relationship on Texas trip, 278–79

  on JFK preferences for Texas trip, 255

  JFK’s St. Jude/Christopher medals and, 286

  on LBJ and Warren Commission report, 376

  United Fruit Company, 4, 8

  U.S. Communist Party. See Communist Party USA

  V

  Valenti, Jack, 404

  Vallejo, Rene, 235

  Van Cleve, Harry, 389

  Van Kirk, Burkett, 284, 290

  Vance, Cyrus, 163–64, 171, 176, 341

  Vanden Heuvel, William, 382

  Varona, Tony, 272

  Vaughn, Todd, 476–77

  Veciana, Antonio, 437

  Vega, Angel, 186, 188

  Vega Perez, Manuel, 225

  Verson, Salvador Diaz, 222, 345–46

  Vidal, Gore, 235, 398

  Vietnam, Lansdale and, 42

  Vinson, Fred, Jr., 409

  Voebel, Edward, 96

  W

  Wade, Henry, 333, 498–99

  Wagner, Herbert, 146

  Waldron, Lamar, 166–67

  Walker, C. T., 316

  Walker, Edwin, 124, 125, 338

  Walsh, John, 324–25

  war criminals, Cuban, 6

  Warren, Earl, 484

  appointment to Warren Commission, 360–61

  JFK eulogy and, 361

  Pearson checking on Morgan’s anti-Castro plots story and, 394–95

  Ruby and, 499

  on Warren Commission report, 375–76

  Warren, Earl, Jr., 360, 361

  Warren, Jeffrey, 360, 361, 375

  Warren Commission, 359–80

  appointments to, 359–63

  attempt to get RFK to contribute, 369–70

  on buses from Oak Cliff, 308

  CIA appointments to, 362–63

  Cuban exiles on Cuban Communist assassination team report, 313

  on Dougherty seeing Oswald 11/22/63, 288

  Dulles’ philosophy toward, 363–64

  evidence of Oswald’s culpability, 461–63

  executive session on objections to, 372

  FBI/CIA coordination for, 367

  on Hosty’s reporting obligations, 260

  legal staff doubts about “Oswald alone,” 374–75

  non-consensus of, 371–75

  on Oswald in Mexico City, 213, 217–18

  Russell’s dissent to, 372–73

  shortcomings of, 378–80

  workings/constraints/oversights of, 368–71

  Zapruder film, shooting mechanics and, 475–76

  Washington Merry-Go-Round. See Anderson, Jack

  Washington Post, JFK action on Cuba and, 233

  Watson, Marvin, 404

  Webster, William, 283

  Weidenfeld, Lord George, 362

  Weinstein, Sylvia, 117

  Weisberg, Harold, 205

  Weisberger, Bernard, 7, 11, 18

  Weitzman, Seymour, 483–84

  Werner, Lewis, 31

  Weston, Wally, 494, 495–96, 498, 500

  Wheeler, Earle, 362

  Whidbee, Harry, 355

  White, Allan, 353

  White, Byron E, 66

  White, Robert, 491

  White Citizens Council, Banister and, 140

  Wicker, Tom, 276, 321, 425

  Willens, Howard (Warren Commission staff), 370

  Williams, Bonnie Ray, 299

  Williams, Edward Bennett, 388, 397

  Williams, Harry, 164–67, 382, 390

  Brigade 2506 containment, Miami, 275

  closed-door RFK planning sessions and, 171

  Cuban invasion planning and, 166

  JFK assassination, RFK calling about, 303

  meeting with CIA, 11/22/63, 289

  meets with JFK, 170

  relaying JFK support to Artime, 174

  RFK and, 164

  RFK/autonomous projects meeting, 173–74

  Second Naval Guerrilla training and, 238

  Sierra and, 185

  Williams, John, 284

  Wilson, Henry Hall, 66

  Wilson, Will, 556 n 52

  witnesses, 487–89

  gunfire source and, 298–300, 467

  Wizelman, Leslie, 443

  Wofford, Harris

  concerns about RFK and Warren Commission, 370

  on JFK/RFK plots against Cuba, 84

  on JFK’s inattention to Cuba, 13

  on RFK and Malcolm X remark, 381

  on RFK and Operation Mongoose, 47

  on RFK’s need for action, 30

  Wood, Homer, 261–63

  Wood, Sterling, 261–63

  Woodward, Assistant Sec. of State Robert Forbes, 73–74

  Worker, The, 115

  Worrell, James, 296–97

  Wrightsman, Charles, 24, 31–32

  Wulf, William, 95

  Y

  Yarborough, Ralph, 280

  Yates, Ralph Leon, 268

  Yatzkov, Pavel, 215–16

  Year of the Firing Squad (1961), 6

  Z

  Zabola, Morse, 73

  Zahm, James A., 465

  Zaid, Mark, 489

  Zapruder, Abraham, 474

  Zapruder film, 339, 467, 468, 469–70

  Zoppi, Tony, 496, 498

  ZR/RIFLE, 61, 432

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  “You need a mess of help to stand alone.”

  —Brian Wilson

  Special Thanks

  My sincere thanks go first to all those who trusted me with their memories. Every attempt was made to keep your interview words accurate, and in context. This book owes its existence to veteran producer Harry Moses, who convinced me that my work should have a wider audience. Harry, I hope you were right. If not, I’m blaming everything on you. Thanks to Mary Ferrell, for her years of gracious support. To Joseph Howell and Craig and Debby Witzke: thanks for believing in and supporting my work. Cinda Elser, not only the best skip tracer in the biz, but a guaranteed giggle—your contributions are visible (to me at least) on every page. My old high school chum Doug Kearns made an initial effort at line editing an early unwieldy behemoth of a manuscript.

  Sy Hersh was always gracious in allowing access to his voluminous files and contacts. He was also considerate in not taking advantage of my second serve. Peter Matson at Sterling Lord—thanks for the Herculean effort. Michael Sullivan, W. Scott Malone, Miri “The Glue” Navasky, and David Fanning at Frontline all provided a great and collegial work experience. The late Bud Fensterwald, who encouraged my
early work (and that of numerous other truth seekers), was a constant source of help in those important years.

  It was Linda Jackson-Patterson who suggested I approach Bancroft Press at a book fair we were attending. So she shares the blame with Harry Moses, I suppose. To my publisher Bruce Bortz—thanks for taking the chance, while allowing me to retain my own voice throughout. Also at Bancroft, thanks to Evonne Smitt for a painstaking line edit. Jonathan Sachsman labored hard to manage both structural and computer gremlins. Robert Aulicino contributed a terrific jacket design. Susan Mangan not only functioned as last-minute trouble shooter, but in partnership with Steven Parke of What ?Design, added the artistic touch to the final design and photo spread. Deborah Patton, with very little notice, provided a thorough and meticulous index. Sarah Azizi managed the Bancroft office with great humor and professionalism, while also playing the role of prototypical reader with little background on or interest in the subject. (Her enthusiasm for the book was, therefore, especially appreciated.) Fred White and Melinda Russell both made significant contributions in the book’s early stages.

  I’d be greatly remiss if I didn’t single out Dr. Abe Bortz for his vital contributions to the book. A professional historian trained at Harvard under Arthur Schlesinger, Sr., Dr. Bortz devoted a significant part of his career to writing, studying, and teaching American history. For this book, he painstakingly read each draft, always asked the right questions, continually made astute suggestions, and constantly praised my efforts. This book was purposely written to be of use to adults of three distinct generations: the young (who have little knowledge of the Kennedy assassination), the middle-aged (the people who, like me and my publisher, grew up on a staple of Kennedy assassination information, and didn’t quite know what to believe), and Dr. Bortz’s generation (who are inclined to support the Warren Commission’s findings). It was edited by three generations of editors. When my youngest editors said they understood the story, when my publisher said it proved a paradigm shift from what his (and my) generation understood, and when Dr. Bortz, in reading the manuscript’s various versions, said he was “almost persuaded,” then “persuaded,” then “absolutely persuaded,” I sensed that this gigantic effort had succeeded.

  Jim Lesar of the Assassination Archives and Research Center has shared his insights (and files) with me for three decades. Steve Tilley of the National Archives JFK Collection went above and beyond the call of duty to keep the documents flowing. Sam Halpern graciously made himself available for late-night calls and fact checking. Ross Crozier was a great help in providing background and photos on Castro’s early years.

  To Mom—thanks for your love and support, especially in the form of spaghetti dinners. Ditto—Aunt Marie Young. To my landlords, Steve and Janet Nugent—thanks for your patience. Thanks, too, to Scout and Mrs. Teasdale; they showed unflinching love and loyalty in the face of my constant absences. Lastly, Geraldine Monsant, who now dwells with her own kind—angels: Thanks for the passion and love you showed for everyone and their work. I wanted you, more than anyone, to see the final product.

 

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