JFK Assassination Exposed with Startling New Clarity as NGC Remasters Eyewitness Films, Including Iconic Zapruder Footage
Mystery of Missing Bullet May Be Solved as New Digital Transfer Captures
Previously Obscured Details
JFK: The Lost Bullet premieres Sunday, 20 November 2011 at 9 PM ET on NGC
The assassination of President John F. Kennedy still reverberates for the nation and the world after almost 50 years, yet there still seem to be more questions than answers. According to a 2003 poll, as many as 70 percent of Americans still believe either that Lee Harvey Oswald was innocent or that he didn’t act alone. Most experts and skeptics agree that three shots were fired at JFK, but one bullet missed and was never recovered. The official investigations never pinpointed the time and location of all three shots and can only account for two of three bullets. Now, National Geographic Channel (NGC) provides an unprecedented new look at the only eyewitness evidence from that fatal day—the home movies shot by average citizens at Dealey Plaza in Dallas.
Newly remastered in high definition at a higher resolution that ever before, could the additional level of detail reveal evidence needed to put to rest some of the biggest conspiracy theories surrounding the assassination?
Two days before the 48th anniversary of JFK’s assassination, NGC presents JFK: The Lost Bullet on Sunday, 20 November 2011. The world premiere documentary offers the exclusive first look at home videos from that fateful day, including the restored Zapruder film, remastered in crystal-clear high definition and combined for the first time together in one film.
The digital scans offer more than projected images ever could—including details in the areas of exposed film between the sprocket holes. Could this obscured information shed light on some of the many controversies surrounding JFK’s death—including the mystery of the missing bullet?
Led by renowned historian and author Max Holland, a team of expert investigators analyzes the remastered films for new clues. Culling together these eyewitness movies frame by frame, Holland creates a second-by-second reconstruction of what took place in Dealey Plaza on 22 November 1963. Referring to one of the restored home movie clips, he says, “This is extremely exciting because as far as I’m concerned, this is a new film about the assassination that’s never been able to be viewed or evaluated—because it’s never appeared with such clarity.”
With the new high-definition scans and higher resolution, Holland thinks critical new details are revealed, including what he believes is the first time we are able to see Lee Harvey Oswald moving in the sixth-floor window within seconds of the first shot. If Holland is right, the film may offer new clues as to where the mysterious first bullet actually hit.
JFK: The Lost Bullet investigates this historic crime scene with help from a retired US Secret Service agent who participated in the first US Secret Service investigation of the assassination, a keyeyewitness who hasn't talked publicly about the assassination since 1967 and a wound ballistics expert. Shutting down the streets of Dealey Plaza, the team restages the shooting using a replica of Kennedy’s car, an identical rifle and ammunition. Measuring the angle of the rifle with lasers, they match the approximate trajectory of each of the three bullets.
Pairing their findings with the home movies, additional eyewitness accounts, and archival photos and records, Max Holland builds a case for what he thinks no official report has ever managed to provide: a clear explanation for the missing bullet fired by Lee Harvey Oswald.
JFK: The Lost Bullet is produced by National Geographic Television for National Geographic Channel (NGC). For National Geographic Television, executive producer is Pamela Caragol Wells. For NGC, executive producer is Kathleen Cromley. For more information, visit www.natgeotv.com or www.ngcpr.com .
Based at the National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington, DC, the National Geographic Channels US are a joint venture between National Geographic and Fox Cable Networks, launched in January 2001. The Channels contribute to the National Geographic Society’s commitment to exploration, conservation and education with smart, innovative programming and profits that directly support its mission. Channels have carriage with all of the nation’s major cable, telco and satellite television providers, with NGC currently available in more than 71 million U.S. homes. Globally, National Geographic Channels International is available in more than 380 million homes in 163 countries and 37 languages. For more information, visit www.natgeotv.com.