TESTIMONY OF ROBERT G. KLAUSE
Mr. DULLES. Would you kindly raise your right hand?
Do you solemnly swear that the testimony you are about to give will be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. You are Robert G. Klause?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. And you appear here voluntarily today?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. I may say, Mr. Chairman, I reached Mr. Klause in Dallas yesterday afternoon. He had just returned from a 2-week vacation. He volunteered to come. The Secret Service got him on a plane with but minutes to spare, and no baggage. This he did to accommodate the Commission. Mr. Klause is here to testify with respect to the genesis and dissemination of the "Wanted For Treason" handbill, Commission Exhibit No. 996.
Mr. DULLES. Proceed, please.
Mr. JENNER. Your age, please?
Mr. KLAUSE. 32.
Mr. JENNER. You are a married man?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. You were born and reared in this country?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Likewise your wife?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. And your parents?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. And you reside in Texas?
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Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Where?
Mr. KLAUSE. Dallas.
Mr. JENNER. What address?
Mr. KLAUSE. 1126 South Waverly.
Mr. JENNER. And what is the name of your mother?
Mr. KLAUSE. Dorothy Anna Mercer.
Mr. JENNER. And is she engaged in a printing business in Dallas?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. She and her husband?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. What is her husbands first name? Clifford?
Mr. KLAUSE. Clifford; yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Are you employed in their business?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Is that the Lettercraft Printing Co.?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. And that is located where?
Mr. KLAUSE. 2615 Oak Lawn, Dallas.
Mr. JENNER. And how long have you been employed in the Lettercraft Printing Co.?
Mr. KLAUSE. I would say approximately about a year and a half. I think we have been open about a year and a half, it might be going on 2 years.
Mr. JENNER. And tell us what the nature of that printing company is.
Mr. KLAUSE. Offset lithography, letterheads, statements, envelopes, things like that.
Mr. JENNER. Is it a small house?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Were you employed theretofore by a different printing company?
Mr. KLAUSE. Sir?
Mr. JENNER. Were you formerly employed by another printing company in Dallas?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. And that was Johnson Printing Co.?
Mr. KLAUSE. Johnson Printing Co.; yes, sir. With several other companies in town.
Mr. JENNER. I see. And where is Johnson Printing Co. located?
Mr. KLAUSE. I think it is the 2700 block of Haskell in Dallas.
Mr. JENNER. Did you become acquainted with Robert A. Surrey while you were employed at Johnson Printing Co. ?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Had you known him before that?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. I show you a document which has been identified and admitted in evidence as Commission Exhibit No. 996. The particular document I show you is a Xerox reproduction of the original exhibit.
Did you play some part in producing the original, the original copy and materials from which the Exhibit No. 996 I show you was prepared?
Mr. KLAUSE. I am not too sure what you mean but as far as laying--laying the job out, no, sir. Now, like I said, I ran the job. I shot the negatives.
Mr. JENNER. Perhaps we can get at it this way, sir. When first did you have any connection with this matter?
Mr. KLAUSE. Approximately, I would say, a month before President Kennedy came to town.
Mr. JENNER. How did that arise?
Mr. KLAUSE. Mr. Surrey called on me and asked me if I would run a job.
Mr. JENNER. You say he called on you. Where were you when he called on you?
Mr. KLAUSE. I believe I was at the shop. In fact, I know I was at the shop. He must have called me at the shop.
Mr. JENNER. When you say shop, you mean the Lettercraft Printing Co.?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
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Mr. JENNER. He came to Lettercraft Printing Co.?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; he called.
Mr. JENNER. What did he say?
Mr. KLAUSE. He said that he had a little job he would like to have run, and would I run it myself?
Mr. JENNER. And you responded?
Mr. KLAUSE. I said yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Did he come over to your shop?
Mr. KLAUSE. Mr. Jenner, to be honest with you, really I do not remember now. I might have gone out, or he might have come over. To be perfectly honest, right at the present time I do not remember.
Mr. JENNER. Did I understand you to say that you said to him you would run it yourself?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. You mean by that something distinct from or having Lettercraft Printing Co. run it?
Mr. KLAUSE. He asked me if I was interested in doing a little job on the side, and I said yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. By "on the side," does that mean that you were going to do some reproduction printing for him, other than as a job for the Lettercraft Printing Co.?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir. You see, I have my own shop.
Mr. JENNER. You do?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Where is that located?
Mr. KLAUSE. Actually, I operate out of my house. But I have always had my own shop. I mean I have two or three little insert accounts that I do, and a couple of beauty suppliers. They will come in and want 500 letterheads. For a long time, when I was out of work, I went out and solicited work door to door. Then I would job them out to other printers. And then when I could get my hands on a press, I would run them myself.
Mr. JENNER. Was Mr. Surrey aware of this practice?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; I am sure he was.
Mr. JENNER. And he proposed to you at the outset that you do it "on the side"?
Mr. KLAUSE Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Now, you met with Mr. Surrey after this telephone call?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Do you recall whether it was at your home or whether it was at the Lettercraft Co. or some other place?
Mr. JENNER. Actually, like I say, Mr. Jenner, I am not real sure. I do not know whether it was out at--I am pretty sure it was not at the shop. And Mr. Surrey has never been to my house. And so it must have been out.
Mr. JENNER. Now, there are two reproductions of President Kennedy, a profile and a front view. Did you prepare the plates from which those profiles were made?
Mr. KLAUSE. By preparing the plates---the only thing that I actually did is--either it was two newspaper clippings or magazine clippings.
Mr. JENNER. From whom did you receive the magazine clippings?
Mr. KLAUSE. From Mr. Surrey.
Mr. JENNER. They were slick paper magazine clippings?
Mr. KLAUSE. Something on a slick paper basis; yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. That contained the front and profile of President Kennedy, which is reproduced on Commission Exhibit No. 996?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Now, what did you do with those two slick magazine reproductions of President Kennedy's head?
Mr. KLAUSE. Well, I tried to shoot them, and I could not shoot them. We have our own camera. We take a picture of it-- reproduce it.
Mr. JENNER. You must assume that none of us is experienced in the printing business. And when you say "shoot"----
Mr. KLAUSE. I will explain myself more carefully. When they were brought to me----
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Mr. JENNER. By Mr. Surrey?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir. Then I tried to make negatives of them----
Mr. JENNER. Negatives on film?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; on film.
Mr. JENNER. Yes.
Mr. KLAUSE. I could not do it. When I take a picture of copy, on most of your offset or lithography work, you have dot patterns. And when I would try to use my camera, the dot patterns would kind of blur, and you could not see what it was. It was just a big blur. So I sent the negatives of the two pictures downtown, down to Monk Brothers Lithography Service downtown, which shoots nothing but negatives.
Mr. JENNER. That is J. T. Monk?
Mr. KLAUSE. Tommy Monk, of Monk Bros.
Mr. JENNER. J. T. Monk is the father, and Tommy Monk, or J. T. Monk, Jr., is the son.
Mr. KLAUSE. The only person I know down there is Tommy.
Mr. JENNER. He is a young man?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; Tommy I have known 12 or 13 years. He is somewhere around 50, 55, probably.
Mr. JENNER. Is he the apparent owner or manager at least of this.
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Is it a lithography company?
Mr. KLAUSE. Well, it is a negative service. In other words, what they do is supply the printers with blanks, and ink, and ink knives, different fountain solutions, things like that, for the press, and also they have their own cameras.
They have probably two $15,000 or $20,000 cameras there. And, of course, they can produce work from their cameras I cannot touch on my little camera, or our camera at the shop.
Mr. JENNER. So you took the two magazine pictures of President Kennedy to Monk Bros.?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. For the purpose of having Monk Bros. make negatives, film negatives of them?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Which in turn were to be employed to do what?
Mr. KLAUSE. To be employed to be run on this job. I mean it was part of this piece right here.
Mr. JENNER. And do you recall what the charge was by Monk Bros. for that service?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; I think it was around three and a half, four and a half, something like that.
Mr. JENNER. Did you pay in cash?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. And you paid in cash because you did not want it charged to Lettercraft Printing Co.?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; I originally had a charge account at Monk. Bros. But I still owe a little on my bill down there; and at the time I just rather had paid for it. Not knowing what the job was then anyway--I mean when I go down there and buy supplies for myself, since---I owe the man money, I try whatever I can to pay for, because I have got a pretty nice little bill down there now, and I do not want to run it up any higher.
Mr. JENNER. When you received the negatives, then what did you do with the negatives?
Mr. KLAUSE. Well, the bottom part was shot, or picture was made with the camera at our shop; and then I stripped the negative in. In other words, I put the two top pieces, the picture and the bottom part together. And then made a plate on it.
Mr. JENNER. Made a plate from those negatives?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. In turn to be employed in printing the handbill?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
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Mr. JENNER. When you received those negatives, did you again communicate with Mr. Surrey?
Mr. KLAUSE. I do not believe I understand what you mean, Mr. Jenner.
Mr. JENNER. After you obtained usable negatives from Monk Bros., did you advise Mr. Surrey that you now had obtained those usable negatives and would be able to proceed with the job?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Had Mr. Surrey advised you as to how many he wished of these handbills?
Mr. KLAUSE. Approximately--he said approximately 6,000, 7,000.
Mr. JENNER. You made a plate from which the front and profile of President Kennedy as appears on Exhibit No. 996 was made?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Now, there is copy below the profile and front view, as you will notice on the exhibit before you. From what source did you receive that copy?
Mr. KLAUSE. That copy came, sir; as was--just approximately about the way it is here. I do not know whether it was typed on--I do not know that much about a Varitypewriter. Or it might have been letterpress. Somebody might have set it up letterpress or Linotoype, and ran a press proof; I do not know.
Mr. JENNER. From whom did you receive that press-proof copy?
Mr. KLAUSE. I received all the copy from Mr. Surrey.
Mr. JENNER. And the copy, then, as you received it from Mr. Surrey, which is in turn reflected on Commission Exhibit No. 996, was in the form at that time, when you received it from Mr. Surrey, that it now appears in on Commission Exhibit No. 996?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. How did you reproduce it onto the handbill?
Mr. KLAUSE. Well, this was run offset, like I said, all of it was put on film. Then it was burnt into what we call a metal plate, which we expose to light. It is a light-sensitive plate, and any time light hits it, where you have clear spots on your film, that image of the light will burn into your plate. When you process the plate out, you come up with a developer, which brings the image out. Then once you put that plate on the press, that image will pick up type.
Mr. JENNER. When did Mr. Surrey bring you that copy with respect to the time when he brought the two slick magazine reproductions of President Kennedy's profile and front views?
Mr. KLAUSE. I believe it was all at the same time. This was--the pictures were the only thing I even took out of the envelope at one time. The rest of it I did not even bother to look at.
Mr. JENNER. Who, if anybody, assisted you in printing up the handbills?
Mr. KLAUSE. Nobody.
Mr. JENNER. Mrs. Klause did not help you?
Mr. KLAUSE. She was in front of the shop. In fact, I do not even think she ever came back.
Mr. JENNER. When you say shop are you talking now of your own shop in your home or the shop at Lettercraft?
Mr. KLAUSE. Lettercraft.
Mr. JENNER. So the handbills were actually printed by you in the Lettercraft Printing Co. shop?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; after hours.
Mr. JENNER. After you had--how many did you print, if you recall?
Mr. KLAUSE. I would say, Mr. Jenner, approximately 5,000--5,200, 5,300.
Mr. JENNER. What did you do with them after you printed them?
Mr. KLAUSE. I put them in a box. In fact, I did not even wrap them. I just stuck them in a box. And I contacted Mr. Surrey the next day.
Mr. JENNER. And now, give us your recollection as to when you made contact with Mr. Surrey--with particular reference to November 22, 1963.
Mr. KLAUSE. I would say, sir; it was approximately 2 or 2 1/2 weeks before Mr. Kennedy was in Dallas.
Mr. JENNER. That would be the early part of November 1963?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; as close as I can remember right now.
Mr. JENNER. Did you deliver the 5,000 plus handbills personally to Mr. Surrey?
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Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. And where did that delivery take place?
Mr. KLAUSE. Now, that I do remember. That was about 5 blocks approximately from the shop. It was--from Lettercraft. It was a little cafe there which we call the Waffle Shop. It is the Pal's Waffle Shop.
Mr. JENNER. Did you make--I take it then you made arrangements with Mr. Surrey to meet him at Pal's Waffle Shop, rather than he come to the Lettercraft Printing Co.
Mr. KLAUSE. I called him and told him that they were ready, and he said, "Where can I meet you?" and I was getting ready to go to lunch at the time anyway. I believe it was lunch or coffee. I said, "I'm getting ready to go out for coffee. I am going to go up about 5 blocks up the street to the Waffle Shop." He said, "I'll meet you there, then."
Mr. JENNER. Did Mrs. Klause accompany you?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; she was at work.
Mr. JENNER. Anybody accompany you?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. You met Mr. Surrey at the Pal's Waffle Shop?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. You delivered him all of the handbills you had printed up?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. What color were those?
Mr. KLAUSE. The handbills were run on what we call assorted dodger stock--green and orange and blue and yellow. It is a cheap colored newspaper print is what it is.
Mr. JENNER. From where did you obtain the assorted dodger stock?
Mr. KLAUSE. Olmstead Kirk Paper Co.
Mr. JENNER. Did you make it as an individual purchase or was that a purchase on behalf of the Lettercraft Printing Co.?
Mr. KLAUSE. No; that was my own purchase.
Mr. JENNER. You purchased that and paid for it in cash?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Now, were you paid for this work you did for Mr. Surrey?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. And what did he pay you?
Mr. KLAUSE. I think it was $40, Mr. Jenner. In fact, I am almost positive.
Mr. JENNER. Was it in cash?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. When next did you see Mr. Surrey after you had delivered the handbills to him?
Mr. KLAUSE. I would say approximately 2 or 3 weeks after Mr. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas.
Mr. JENNER. So I take it then you had no contact with Mr. Surrey of any kind or character from the day you delivered the 5,000 plus handbills to him in Pal's Waffle Shop until some 2 weeks after President Kennedy's assassination on November 22, 1963.
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; that is correct.
Mr. JENNER. That whole time span was a month to 5 weeks?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; and then at that time I called Mr. Surrey myself personally.
Mr. JENNER. Why?
Mr. KLAUSE. Like I said, I have two or three accounts, and I had one job that I could not run, it was a big job. A lot of printers will work with other printers in jobbing out work. I took this job and jobbed it out--Mr. Surrey jobbed it out to Johnson, and let Johnson run it. And I in turn paid Bob for the job, when the people paid me, and I delivered the job, and I made a commission off of it.
Mr. JENNER. On that occasion when you saw Mr. Surrey, did you have a conversation--did you have any conversation with him with respect to the dodger or handbill, Commission Exhibit No. 996?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; I imagine there was. I cannot exactly say what it
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is now. But I imagine there was something said--because I was quite upset about it at the time.
Mr. JENNER. The FBI interviewed you about this incident, did they not?
Mr. KLAUSE. The Secret Service did; yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. And when you were first interviewed, you did not disclose to the Secret Service the facts with respect to Mr. Surrey delivering this material to you and your having printed it for him, delivered it to him, and he paying you?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; nothing at all.
Mr. JENNER. What led you to do that, Mr. Klause?
Mr. KLAUSE. Well, I started thinking about it, and then the folks were getting real upset about it, because I had put them in a jam, which it was my own fault.
Mr. JENNER. When you say folks, you mean your mother and stepfather?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; and I mean I like to help friends as much as I can, and be good to people as much as I can. But people in my family are going to come closer than my friends are.
Mr. JENNER. You finally decided to reveal the full facts respecting this handbill?
Mr. KLAUSE Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. And you did so to the Secret Service?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Did Mr. Surrey approach you at any time to suggest to you that you should not reveal the source of this handbill?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; I talked to him--I believe it was probably a couple of days after the Secret Service was out. And I told him those people were wanting to know things--I mean doing their job, that they wanted to find something out.
I said this is strictly out of my territory--I did not know what I was supposed to do. And he said, well, I could either get myself a lawyer or just not say anything at all.
Mr. JENNER. Did you ever tell him you made up your mind you were going to tell the full facts about this matter?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; not really. I think in so many words he might have understood that I was.
Mr. JENNER. Did he ever make a remark to you, "Well, that is the way the ball bounces."
Mr. KLAUSE. It sounds like it seems to ring a bell, but I cannot place it.
Mr. JENNER. Was that not in fact said by him in connection with your telling him that you had reached the conclusion that you had to tell the full facts about this matter?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; I believe so.
Mr. JENNER. Does that refresh your recollection?
Mr. KLAUSE. The ball bounces--yes, sir--that rings a bell now.
Mr. JENNER. Up to November 22., 1963, had you ever heard the name Lee Harvey Oswald?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Had you ever seen anybody up to that day who purported to be or whom you were advised was Lee Harvey Oswald?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. I show you Garner Exhibit No. 1. Did you ever see that man prior to November 22, 1963?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir. The only time I seen this man was on television and in the paper.
Mr. JENNER. You mean on or after November 22, 1963?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. I hand you Commission Exhibit No. 520, and direct your attention to the center figure appearing on that photograph. Did you ever see that man prior to November 22, 1963?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Did you have a conversation with Mr. Surrey as to the purpose for which the handbill was to be put?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
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Mr. JENNER. When you read this copy, did that not alarm you or upset you? It is rather provocative, is it not, and it has a title "Wanted for Treason."
Mr. KLAUSE. Actually, Mr. Jenner, I did not even pay any attention to the copy at all. It was late at night at the time I ran it. I did not pay any attention to it at all--which I should have done, I admit now. But I did not.
Mr. JENNER. You were running it at night because you were doing this on the side?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. You do have some printing equipment in your own apartment or home?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir. Not at my house; no, sir.
Mr. JENNER. You used the equipment of the Lettercraft Printing Co., did you?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. And you did this at night because you were doing it on the side with the Lettercraft Printing Co. equipment?
Mr. KLAUSE Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Did you advise your mother or your stepfather you were doing this?
Mr. KLAUSE. Now, let me explain this to you. When they opened the shop up I started to work for approximately $35 a week, and what few accounts I had, I turned over to the shop, and there was a couple of little accounts, like friends of mine that I ran around with, rode motorcycles with and things like that, that I kept for myself. And I mean that was my spending money. And they made the understanding--we made the understanding, when the shop was opened, that whatever little jobs like that that I had, I could do on the side at night--as long as it did not interfere with work during the day.
Mr. JENNER. Did you tell your mother or stepfather that you had done this work?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Did you tell them eventually?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. They found out about it eventually?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. You kept the money, did you?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr.JENNER. Do you know General Edwin A. Walker, resigned?
Mr.KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr.JENNER. Have you ever heard of him?
Mr.KLAUSE. I have heard of him.
Mr. JENNER. Did you ever have any contact with him?
Mr.KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr.JENNER. Were you aware that Robert A. Surrey was associated with General Edwin A. Walker at the time you made up these handbills?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Did you have any acquaintance with Robert A. Surrey other than as a fellow employee at Johnson Printing Co.?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER And this incident about which you have testified?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Senator COOPER. May I ask a question there? Did Surrey ever tell you what he intended to do with these throwaways, or posters, or make any remarks about them at all?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir. He just asked me to do the job--said he had a customer that wanted it done. And that is all that was ever said about it.
Senator COOPER. He did not tell you what the customer wanted to do with them?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. But at the very outset he asked you to do this on the side?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Senator COOPER. Mr. Chairman, I think I am going to have to leave now. I have no further questions.
(At this point, Senator Cooper left the hearing room.)
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Mr. JENNER. Have you ever heard of the American Eagle Publishing Co.?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir. It takes a minute to ring a bell, but it rings a bell.
Mr. JENNER. Did you ever do any work for the American Eagle Publishing Co.?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. That is a company with which Mr. Surrey is associated?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; I believe so. That is why I heard that mentioned.
Mr. JENNER How did you become acquainted with that fact? And when?
Mr. KLAUSE. I believe there was a discussion one day that sometimes on jobs--I think this was done, we talked about this at Johnson at the time.
Mr. JENNER. At the time you were employed at Johnson?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir. That jobs would come in that he would send through--might not be too much commission in it or something, or might not be a big job, where he would job through this place, which in turn then would job back through Johnson. Then he would get probably a markup plus a commission. How it is worked, I do not know, sir.
Mr. JENNER. You were aware of the fact that Mr. Surrey and General Walker were the two partners in American Eagle Publishing Co.?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. But you knew he had some connection with the company--Mr. Surrey?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir. Like I said, he had mentioned it.
Mr. JENNER. Mr. Surrey had mentioned it to you. Did he tell you he was an officer of that company?
Mr. KLAUSE. Well, as far as I knew, he was sole owner.
Mr. JENNER. I see.
Mr. KLAUSE. It is what I thought was an assumed name, like myself. I do not know how the laws are here, but in Texas when you open up in business, you have got to file an assumed name certificate if it is under an assumed name or your name or whatever the name is, you have to file that business.
Mr. JENNER. Do you have an assumed name certificate for your private business?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. What is it?
Mr. KLAUSE. Klause Printing.
Mr. JENNER. Were you not aware of the fact that Mr. Surrey had some connection with General Edwin A. Walker?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. At no time?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Did you ever see that tall yellow covered book published almost like a pamphlet, published, by the American Eagle Publishing Co., which contained reprints of various news stories of the assassination?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; this might be hard to believe. I saw the book. In fact, I think I have a copy of it. But to this day, I have yet to crack the cover on it. I have never even opened it.
Mr. JENNER. What I want to question you about---did you look at the back of the book, the back cover of the book?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; I noticed the front, and put it in the car. I carried it in the car for about a week, with a bunch of my scratch pads I hand out to my customers. And one night I went home to unload the car, and I unloaded everything out of the car and put it in the house. And since then I never looked at it.
Mr. JENNER. You never noticed that Surrey appears on the backside of the back cover as the president of the American Eagle Publishing Co.
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Have you ever heard of the Carousel Club in Dallas?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; I have heard of it.
Mr. JENNER. Do you know where it is located?
Mr. KLAUSE. All I can tell you, sir, it is downtown. I have never been there.
Mr. JENNER. You have never been there?
Mr. KLAUSE No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Did you ever meet Jack Ruby?
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Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Did you ever see Jack Ruby prior to the 24th of November 1963?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; I have never seen him and have never met him.
Mr. JENNER. You've never seen him before or since or on that day?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Did you ever have any business with him of any kind or character?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; as soon as he was put in jail, from what I understand, the biggest part of his property went up for sale, and the people--some people that bought some of his property, or bought his business, called on us to do a job.
Mr. JENNER. This was after the assassination?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; this was after--in fact, I imagine sometime after his trial. And I called on those people. We printed I think 500 letterheads and 500 envelopes, something like that, plus 2,000 circulars about open from 7 until 2 in the morning, and then the dance band who was there. In fact, they still owe the bill at the shop. In fact from what I understand, that place is closed up again now.
Mr. JENNER. Did Lettercraft Printing Co. ever do any work for Jack Ruby, to your knowledge?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Did Johnson Printing Co. ever do any work for Jack Ruby, to your knowledge?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; not to my knowledge. And I can assure you that Lettercraft didn't, because if it had, it would have crossed my desk.
Mr. JENNER. Were you generally aware of the jobs that went through Johnson Printing?
Mr. KLAUSE. That came to my press, yes sir. Now, Johnson--I don't know whether you know it--it is a pretty good sized shop. It is one of the biggest in Dallas. In fact, you could put my whole shop in just one room over there.
Mr. JENNER. When you talk about your shop you are talking about Lettercraft?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; now, on the press that I was working on, nothing ever came in; no, sir.
Mr. JENNER. I think that will be all. May I look at my notes, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. DULLES. Have you told us in detail all your conversations with Mr. Surrey, from the time that this particular job started until it was concluded?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. DULLES. Did he tell you at all what his purpose was?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; the only thing I mentioned--he said he had a customer that wanted it.
Mr. JENNER. He did not identify the customer?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. DULLES. But he indicated he was doing this for a customer?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. DULLES. Do you recall whether at the time Mr. Surrey first spoke with you about this job, it was publicly known that President Kennedy was to visit Dallas?
Mr. KLAUSE. It might have been; but not to my knowledge, sir.
Mr. DULLES. You did not know at that time that President Kennedy was going to visit Dallas?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. DULLES. And I think you have testified that your first contact with Mr. Surrey about this was some 3 weeks before the visit?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. DULLES. Around the first of November that would be?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; now, it might have came out in the paper that Mr. Kennedy was coming to Dallas, but we don't take the paper. And usually by the time we get home and feed the kids, we don't have time to read the paper anyway. We might watch the late movie on television. We don't keep up with the news, which we should, but we don't. And that is probably the way it got in without me knowing it. But I had no knowledge at all.
Mr. JENNER. Mrs. Klause works, does she?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. And you both get home about the same time do you?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir--the biggest part of the time we do.
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Mr. JENNER. How many children do you have?
Mr. KLAUSE. We have three.
Mr. JENNER. I exhibit to you another handbill which we will mark as Commission Exhibit No. 1053.
(The document referred to was marked Commission Exhibit No. 1053 for identification.)
Mr. JENNER. For the purpose of the record, this is entitled "Wanted for Murder," and it had a front view and profile of Mr. Khrushchev. It is signed "Minutemen" in printing, with quotations.
Have you ever seen that document before or one like it?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Do you see any form of type there that is the kind of type that is reproduced in Lettercraft Printing?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Does that appear to be any type font or printing with which you became familiar at Johnson Printing Co.?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; actually from a printers viewpoint--just looking at it from this angle here--that could be done off of a typewriter. That looks more like a typewriter than it does off a Linotype machine.
Mr. JENNER. And after its having been typed, then reproduced in the fashion in which Commission Exhibit No. 996 was reproduced?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. The mechanical processes you have described. You called it a blanket?
Mr. KLAUSE. Plate.
Mr. JENNER. Make up a plate of the whole sheet--you photograph the sheet, then make a plate, and reproduce from the plate?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Now why I say it doesn't look like Linotype---in Linotype most of your columns or your paragraphs are butted up straight. In other words, you got straight edges on both sides. Whereas on a typewriter you cannot flush. It takes somebody exceptionally skilled with a typewriter to flush the corners. These edges here are not flush.
Mr. JENNER. You. are talking about the right-hand margin?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir; you see your left hand is flush. Now on a Linotype those on the right can be flushed.
Mr. JENNER. Now, directing your attention to Commission Exhibit No. 996, are the right-hand margins of that material flushed as you call it?
Mr. KLAUSE. These I would say were pretty close to being flush. It would be more of a Linotype than this Exhibit No. 1053 here.
Mr. JENNER. That would lead you to believe, then, that the copy on Commission Exhibit No. 996 was produced in the first instance on a Linotype machine?
Mr. KLAUSE. Linotype or----
Mr. JENNER. A Ludlow?
Mr. KLAUSE. Possibly I was getting ready to Varitype. Varitype would come up dose to flushing it.
Mr. JENNER. But Commission Exhibit No. 1053 does not stimulate your recollection in any respect whatsoever?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. You never heard about that handbill?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Wholly apart from never having seen it?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. My handing it to you a moment ago was the first time you ever knew of the existence of a handbill of that type?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. You never heard any discussion of it heretofore?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Mr. Chairman, I have covered all of the details with Mr. Klause. I have no further questions of him.
Mr. DULLES. I have no more questions. We thank you very much, Mr. Klause, for coming. We appreciate your testimony.
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Mr. KLAUSE. I am glad I can do what I can do. Straightened out. I feel real guilty about it.
Mr. JENNER. Is there anything you would like to add, Mr. Klause?
Mr. KLAUSE. No, sir; except that it is a mess, and that I am just a poor country boy, I guess you would say, that got caught up in the mess, and I strictly learned my lesson on this.
I have hurt a bunch of people, especially my folks, and I have caused a lot of trouble. I just feel real bad about it. That is all. If I had taken time to have read the thing actually I don't think I would ever have done it.
But like I said, it was late at night, and I was in a hurry, and I wanted to get it on and off.
Mr. JENNER. And you needed the money.
Mr. KLAUSE. And I needed the money; yes, sir.
Mr. DULLES. What did you net on this?
Mr. KLAUSE. $40. Actually, I think the stock was somewhere around $20. I paid for the stock, and he in turn paid for the stock.
Mr. DULLES. $40 was your profit on this?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. $40 was the full profit to you?
Mr. KLAUSE. Yes, sir.
Mr. DULLES. Have you anything further, Mr. Jenner?
Mr. JENNER. No; I have not.
Mr. DULLES. The Commission will stand adjourned.
(Whereupon, at 4:15 p.m., the President's Commission recessed.)