MY INFAMOUS CONTACT WITH WILLIAM MANCHESTER
By Vince Palamara
Due to "popular" demand, here is the short story of my contact
with "Death of a President" author William Manchester (also briefly
recounted in my book "The Third Alternative---Survivor's Guilt: The Secret
Service and the JFK Murder" and in Walt Brown's "Treachery in Dallas"
[p.338]):
I phoned Mr. Manchester in August 1993 and had an approx. 15
minute conversation with the gentleman. I told him that I was calling
for two reasons: 1) to see if it was at all possible to obtain copies of
his original steno notes and/ or tape recordings and 2) see exactly
what---or WHO---was his specific source for the following found
on pp. 37-38 of his book [1988 edition]---"Kennedy grew weary of seeing
bodyguards roosting behind him every time he turned around, and
in Tampa on November 18 [1963], just four days before his death, he dryly
asked Agent Floyd Boring to 'keep those Ivy League charlatans off the
back of the car.'Boring wasn't offended. There had been no animosity in
the remark" [You see, Boring was not interviewed for the book---as
my two interviews with him AND the book's Sources section strangely
confirms---and Boring and MANY of his colleagues unequivocally
denied that JFK EVER said such a thing, in Tampa, Dallas, or anywhere
else for that matter (see my book, conferences presentations, and
numerous articles)].
In regard to #1, Manchester told me "All those notes are
under seal and won't be released in my [Palamara's]lifetime; quite frankly,
most people would write to me instead of call" (he was obviously
miffed right off the bat---shades of Dr. Humes' anger with Aguilar!). He
continued, "I don't deal with your ilk...all those men [Secret Service
agents] are all dead now"---oh, really? First off, how he knew which stripe
of "ilk" I was is a mystery. Second, they're all dead?! At the time of
my phone call to him, Blaine, Foster, Hill, Johns, Kinney, Peterson,Sorrels,
Warner, Wells, and Youngblood---all agents he actually DID speak
to---and many, many more he did NOT speak to were and still are
very much alive and kicking (Kinney, Sorrels, Youngblood, and
Peterson HAVE since passed on).
In regard to #2, Manchester's ire was up and running: "Look,
all those men are dead now...[pause]...all my working materials are
under seal." Great answer to my question, huh?
Here's what I think happened: Manchester saw the Secret
Service reports given to the WC and now available at 18 H 803-809
(remember, Manchester said that "Chief Justice Earl Warren appointed me an
exofficio member of his commissioninvestigating the assassination
and provided me with an office in Washington's VFW building, where
the commission met and WHERE COPIES OF REPORTS AND DEPOSITIONS WERE
MADE AVAILABLE TO ME" [emphasis added; p. xix]) and used some
"literary license" on pp. 37-38 of his book. The other alternative is that
he got the fraudelent info. from Emory roberts, an agent he spoke to
who passed away in the late '60's who I have tremendous misgivings about,
to put it mildly.
The reports in question, sent only by request of the WC
exactly 5 months after the assassination, were allegedly authored by
agents Behn, Boring, Roberts, Ready, and Hill.SAIC Behn unequivocally denied
to me on 9/27/92 that President Kennedy ever made such claims (in direct
contradiction to this report [which carried Behn's STAMP PAD
signature and does NOT read like the way he spoke, either to me, to the
JFK Library, or even on the Air Force One radio tapes]). Boring, on
two different occasions, also unequivocally denied to me that JFK
ever told the agents to get off the rear of the limousine or ever
interfered with the Secret Service in any way (again, in contradiction to HIS
alleged report which mentions the Florida trip---where agents DID ride
on the rear of the limo---and the Italy trip, where, again, agents DID
ride on the rear of the limo, as newly-found film from the JFK Library
reveals [I showed this at COPA 96 and LANCER 97]). Roberts' report only
deals with the Florida trip---Boring was allegedly his source for this
presidential "desire"; that's it (and you know what I think of
Roberts AND Boring [see Kelin's Lancer conference wrap-up]!). Ready, the
agent assigned to JFK's side of the car on 11/22/63 but who never rode
on the rear of the limo, also deals with the Florida trip, using Boring
as his source again. However, to make matters even worse, Ready WASN'T
EVEN ON THIS TRIP. Finally, Clint Hill's report was the most honest of
the five:
"I, Special Agent Clinton J. Hill, never personally was
requested by President John F. Kennedy not to ride on the rear of the
Presidential automobile. I DID RECEIVE INFORMATION PASSED VERBALLY
FROM THE ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES OF THE WHITE HOUSE DETAIL OF THE
SECRET SERVICE TO AGENTS ASSIGNED TO THAT DETAIL THAT PRESIDENT
KENNEDY HAD MADE SUCH REQUESTS. I DO NOT KNOW FROM WHOM I RECEIVED
THIS INFORMATION.
It was general knowledge on the White House Detail, however, that
President Kennedy has asked Special Agent in Charge Gerald A. Behn, not to
have Special Agents ride on the rear of the Presidential Automobile
[which Behn denied to me and which is NOT borne out by the many films/
photos from 1963 alone]. NO WRITTEN INSTRUCTIONS REGARDING THIS
WERE EVER DISTRIBUTED.
I was informed that on November 18, 1963, in Tampa, Florida,
President Kennedy had requested through Assisitant Special Agent
in Charge Floyd M. Boring that Special Agents remove themselves from
the rear of the Presidential automobile. I WAS NOT ON THIS SPECIFIC TRIP
WITH THE WHITE HOUSE DETAIL AND RECEIVED THIS INFORMATION AFTER
THE PRESIDENT'S RETURN TO WASHINGTON, D.C. THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN BE-
WEEN NOVEMBER 19, 1963, AND NOVEMBER 21, 1963 [NOTE TIME FRAME!].
I DO NOT KNOW SPECIFICALLY WHO ADVISED ME OF THIS REQUEST BY THE
PRESIDENT" (emphasis added)
However, Hill "disobeyed" this alleged presidential edict by
mounting the rear of the limo approx. FOUR different times in
Dallas on 11/22/63. Also, although Hill claimed twice that he did not know
specifically who gave him this info. between 11/19 and 11/21/63,
he told the WC's Arlen Specter THE specific source, contradicting his
report for the second time:
ASAIC Floyd M. Boring! [2 H 137; see also my book]
And, as we know, Behn, Boring, Kinney, Powers, Youngblood,
Godfrey, Bouck, Norris, Bolden, Lilley, Martineau, Underwood,
Stoughton, and Lawton [who rode on the rear of the limo on 11/18/63]
denied that JFK EVER interfered with the Secret Service, inc. ordering
the men off the limo, taking off the bubbletop, depleting the motorcycles
(and not having them ride beside him), getting rid of the press from
close proximity (inc. the photographers, Stoughton/ Knudsen, or the
press busses), slowing down his car, changing motorcade routes, etc.
etc. etc.
I'm sick to death of writers like Posner, Manchester, Bishop,
the authors of the Warren Report AND the HSCA Report making excuses
for these actions that took away the life of our president. The Late
Jim Bishop followed the identical path of his predecessor Manchester
in tactics, the WC and the HSCA damned with glowing praise (if that
makes any sense), and Posner...look for the next issue of JFK/ Deep
Politics Quarterly---'nuff said.
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