LIFELONG FASCINATION
James R. Leavelle part of a moment in history
Not long ago, the sad news circulated that James R. Leavelle had passed away at age 99.
You may not know the name, but I’m betting that the face — and the white stetson — are very familiar.
An iconic photograph, taken by Robert H. Jackson of the Dallas Times Herald on Nov. 24, 1963, shows Leavelle — to the right of Lee Harvey Oswald — reacting a millisecond before the assassin of John F. Kennedy was himself gunned down by Jack Ruby in the basement of Dallas police headquarters.
That photo was the reason for my nearly lifelong fascination with the assassination.
In 1973, shortly before the 10th anniversary of JFK being murdered, a longtime friend of our family moved to Ottawa.
Knowing that Alan Vanstone and his non-prodigy of a son were voracious readers, we were left with several boxes of books, one of which was about the death of Robert F. Kennedy.
By chance, I opened the book on RFK and randomly flipped to a page that showed Ruby shooting Oswald.
I showed the picture to Dad, somewhat quizzically, and was soon told all about the JFK assassination.
A few weeks later, there was extensive TV coverage of the 10-year milestone. I watched every second. I was hooked.
Even now, it is difficult to comprehend that such a tragedy could occur.
A president of the United States riding in an open motorcade on the streets of a major American city?
A presidential limousine without Secret Service personnel serving as human shields?
Tall, unsecured buildings everywhere you looked?
It was a different time — until 12:30 p.m. on Nov. 22, 1963, when shots rang out in Dealey Plaza.
(Oswald did it, acting alone, by the way. The Warren Commission’s report has its flaws, to be certain, but Oswald was clearly the killer of Kennedy and Dallas police officer J.D. Tippit. If you have any doubts, read “Case Closed” by Gerald Posner. It is more convincing than any of the books that scream “Conspiracy!”)
I now have an entire bookshelf filled with publications pertaining to JFK and the assassination. Books, magazines, old newspapers ...
Not all of them are morbid, I should point out. Two of the books, for example, were written by Ted Sorensen, a speech writer for and adviser to President Kennedy. I had a chance to meet Sorensen in 2009, a year before he died, and he cordially autographed both books for me.
There was a time, back in the 1980s, when collecting autographs was an obsession. I have several dozen binders filled with signatures of notable individuals, most of whom are sports figures.
Every now and then, I still feel compelled to add a signature to my collection.
In 2011, for example, I did one of my regularly scheduled “Kennedy assassination” Google searches and found a story on Leavelle. Somewhere in the article, it was noted that he regularly receives and responds to autograph requests via the mail.
Intrigued by this, I did a little more Googling and found his address, whereupon a letter was sent — along with a self-addressed, stamped envelope. (I even had some American stamps in my cluttered desk.)
Barely a week later, I received a response.
To: Rob Vanstone
James R. Leavelle
Dallas Police
Detective
The autograph was carefully stored away until late August, when I learned that Leavelle had died.
One of the many stories written in tribute to him pointed out that he received as many as 50 autograph requests per month.
“More than I need,” Leavelle said in an interview when he was in his early 90s.
The unceasing autograph requests must have been a bother, but that did not deter him from responding quickly and courteously.
Although I did not request a personalized signature, I was very pleased to receive one.
He could have simply scribbled his good name and I would have been thrilled, but he was kind enough to acknowledge the sender.
It was a small gesture, but one that I appreciate more than ever. Rob Vanstone is the Regina Leader-post’s sports editor.