17-12-2013, 02:20 PM
One of the things that has always frustrated me the most in trying to make sense of the JFK assassination is the difficulty of deciding whom (if any) of the many witnesses to trust. One of the most important and yet enigmatic witnesses in the LHO story is Ed Voebel, who according to the Warren Commission was practically the only friend that LHO his entire life. The WC cited Voebel extensively on many aspects of LHO's teen years although they quite tellingly ignored Voebel's strong assertions that LHO was not at all interest in Marxism in junior high years. To John Armstrong, Voebel is critically important as one of the few people who knew both Harvey and Lee. Indeed, Armstrong suggests that this knowledge may have been the reason why Voebel died so mysteriously at age 31.
"NOTE: In May 1971, Ed Voebel suddenly became ill and was taken to the Ochsner Clinic in New Orleans. A physician called his family and asked if he (Voebel) had been exposed to "insecticide poisons. " Family members told the physician he had not been exposed to any poisons. After spending the night in the hospital Voebel called home, said he was feeling much better, and expected to be home within a day. But that evening Voebel died suddenly of a "blot clot," after allegedly suffering an attack of pneumonia. Voebel, according to his sister, died in the Ochsner clinic (Dr. Alton Ochsner, as we shall see, was a member of the CIA-sponsored Information Council of the Americas). Voebel's death certificate, however, shows that he died at Foundation Hospital in Metairie, La. In 1978 Voebel's father told the HSCA, even though he had no proof, that he believed his son died under mysterious circumstances." [Armstrong, Harvey and Lee 121-122.]
In Armstrong's Harvey and Lee, Voebel plays a critical role in almost every event that happens to LHO at Beauregard Junior High School: the incident where the piano fell on "Harvey" (p. 85), the fight between "Lee" and the Neumeyer brothers (pp. 91-92), the punch by Robin Riley that knocks out "Lee"'s tooth (pp. 92-93), the English 202 classroom picture that is published in Life magazine (p. 93), the Warren Easton high school orientation (p. 118), the observation that "Lee" was not at all interested in Marxism (pp. 120-121), and joining the Civil Air Patrol at Moisant Airport (pp. 122-124). Voebel was also the only person who was known to have visited "Lee" at 126 Exchange Place and met the "real" Marguerite there (pp. 103, 119).
Following the assassination, Voebel is the first person interviewed who knew LHO at Beauregard. Indeed his interview on WWL-TV (Channel 4, the CBS affiliate in New Orleans) on Saturday, November 23, has a dramatic effect on later events. It was after seeing this interview on TV that Jack Martin called ?? informing him that David Ferrie had known LHO. It was also after this interview that other former CAP members like John Ciravolo and Fred O'Sullivan started coming forth with their knowledge of the relationship between Ferrie and Oswald in the CAP, which subsequently led to Ferrie's arrest on the grounds that he had lied about not knowing Oswald.
In terms of judging Voebel as a witness, however, I have a lot of questions. Firstly I have not seen a full account of what Voebel said in the immediate aftermath. I have seen an excerpt from the WWL-TV interview that was broadcast nationally on CBS on Sunday, November 24, shortly after the LHO was killed. But I have yet to see the video or transcript of the original WWL-TV interview which must have been much longer because there is no mention of the CAP in the national CBS broadcast. I have seen references that the original WWL broadcast actually mentioned David Ferrie's name as associated with the CAP. Jack Martin said the original broadcast also mentioned that LHO at the time of his arrest had in his possession Ferrie's library card. Are there extant tapes or transcripts of the original WWL-TV interview? If so, how can we access them?
In addition to the WWL-TV interview, LHO was supposedly also interviewed by WDSU-TV (Channel 6, the NBC affiliate in New Orleans) and interviewed by the New Orleans Times-Picayune newspaper and possibly other newspapers. Has anybody seen these interviews and know how to access them? Any info about other pre-FBI interviews that Voebel gave would be most gratefully appreciated!
I am working on the idea that what Voebel said in these first couple of days was done quite spontaneously, motivated by his desire to share what he knew about this person Lee Oswald he had know as a teenager. However, after the FBI got ahold of him, I think that Voebel was increasingly managed, which I think you can see when you compare this first interview with his later FBI interviews and Warren Commission testimony. I thiink that by going through this evidence carefully and sequentially we can gain some insight into what exactly Voebel knew and what was fabricated.
I'll start with the first bit of evidence we have on Voebel -- the CBS national broadcast. Below the link I have included my transcription of what the interviewer and Voebel said. I cannot completely vouch that the transcription is 100% accurate. I've tried to include all the "uhh's" and mannerisms that I noticed but I'm sure I could add quite a few more if I kept at it. I feel quite a lot of empathy for court reporters just now!
(BTW, does anybody know who the interviewer was? Bill Reid, the News Director at WWL-TV, is mentioned with reference to this interview in FBI reports, but I don't know whether he conducted interviews.)
The question I would like you to consider as you watch this is video:
"Is this the spontaneous, uncoached memories of Ed Voebel?"
The interview with Ed Voebel begins at approximately 18:05.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ly0ocEMK5r8 - t=1349
Q: Would you tell us uhh your first encounter as you can recall. This has been what about eight
VOEBEL: It was about eight years ago.
Q: Eight years ago? Tell us about it.
VOEBEL: Uhh, well I, he came in uhh Beauregard's uhh mid-semester and uhh he had uhh a fight with a couple of boys and that's how I first uhh saw him. And uhh at the next day uhh someone had punched him in the mouth, but uhh Oswald didn't know, I didn't know, uhh uhh and I don't think the boy even know him, knew him. Uhh, I think these boys that he had a fight with them put this other guy up to punch him in the mouth to get back at him because Oswald did beat the other boys. And uhh Oswald was laying down on the ground and I ran up to him and I think a couple other boys did too and we brought him back in the school and uhh washed his mouth off and put some umm cold compresses on his mouth.
Q: And and this is uhh more or less the start of a friendship between you and Oswald at that time?
VOEBEL: Well, that's when we first met uhh was when this happened.
Q: And uhh what type of boy was he at 15? I understand uhh this was about the age of that year?
VOEBEL: Well, uhh he didn't uhh seem to mix too well with the uhh the rest of the uhh boys or the girls and anyone there at the school. He didn't seem to have any uhh friends. Uhh he didn't seem to be really interested in anything uhh. He didn't participate in any extra-curricular activities. Uhh he was just a loner, it seemed like. (licks lips)
Q: I'll tell you one one reason I'm concerned about the age of uhh 15 and this reportedly is when uhh Oswald first became interested or came in contact with the Marxist theory. Now did he at any time during your relationship with him did he mention anything about his readings of uhh uhh Leftist or Marxist uhh uhh literature?
VOEBEL: No, he (clears throat) he didn't mention anything at all about uhh any politics or socialism, communism, Marxism or anything and I don't believe that's true. I don't believe he had any really basic ideas on Marxism or anything at fifteen years of life. I think uhh that came later somewhere along the line because he never (shakes head) mentioned anything like that to me at all. (licks lips)
Q: Now in in talking uhh earlier before this interview, you you mentioned you had been to his house. Could you uhh tell us a little about his home life?
VOEBEL: Well, he uhh when I knew him he lived in Exchange Alley, I think was 126 Exchange Place or Alley. Uhh it was a small apartment and it lived above uhh above above poolrooms. And uhh in that area there is nothing but poolrooms and barrooms and it's sort of almost a skid row, it's a very bad uhh neighborhood.
Q: Well this uhh was before or after his father died?
A. Oh, this his father from what I understand died when he was very young and uhh this was this was after I think he had moved to Texas. After his father had died his mother brought him to Texas then he came back here again. And this was his uhh second time in New Orleans.
Q: And he sort of, uhh as I understand it, sort of blamed the world for his uhh his problems, Isn't that what you mentioned earlier?
VOEBEL: Well I, it seemed that way to me after at the time, I didn't uhh uhh have any basic opinions why he was a little different than uhh most of us. Uhh it didn't uhh enter my mind at all. Uhh I uhh sort of liked him that because he wasn't the general run of the mill that I had known at school. Uhh he was a little above them, he seemed to be at least even though he was he came from uhh a poor family let's say. And uhh he wasn't exactly a ruffian. Uhh he he just had had a little something about him, there was something that was just a little different from the average ruffian that I'd known at that school. ["JFK'S ASSASSINATION (CBS-TV) (PART 5), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ly0ocEMK5r8 - t=1349,18:05-22:26]
"NOTE: In May 1971, Ed Voebel suddenly became ill and was taken to the Ochsner Clinic in New Orleans. A physician called his family and asked if he (Voebel) had been exposed to "insecticide poisons. " Family members told the physician he had not been exposed to any poisons. After spending the night in the hospital Voebel called home, said he was feeling much better, and expected to be home within a day. But that evening Voebel died suddenly of a "blot clot," after allegedly suffering an attack of pneumonia. Voebel, according to his sister, died in the Ochsner clinic (Dr. Alton Ochsner, as we shall see, was a member of the CIA-sponsored Information Council of the Americas). Voebel's death certificate, however, shows that he died at Foundation Hospital in Metairie, La. In 1978 Voebel's father told the HSCA, even though he had no proof, that he believed his son died under mysterious circumstances." [Armstrong, Harvey and Lee 121-122.]
In Armstrong's Harvey and Lee, Voebel plays a critical role in almost every event that happens to LHO at Beauregard Junior High School: the incident where the piano fell on "Harvey" (p. 85), the fight between "Lee" and the Neumeyer brothers (pp. 91-92), the punch by Robin Riley that knocks out "Lee"'s tooth (pp. 92-93), the English 202 classroom picture that is published in Life magazine (p. 93), the Warren Easton high school orientation (p. 118), the observation that "Lee" was not at all interested in Marxism (pp. 120-121), and joining the Civil Air Patrol at Moisant Airport (pp. 122-124). Voebel was also the only person who was known to have visited "Lee" at 126 Exchange Place and met the "real" Marguerite there (pp. 103, 119).
Following the assassination, Voebel is the first person interviewed who knew LHO at Beauregard. Indeed his interview on WWL-TV (Channel 4, the CBS affiliate in New Orleans) on Saturday, November 23, has a dramatic effect on later events. It was after seeing this interview on TV that Jack Martin called ?? informing him that David Ferrie had known LHO. It was also after this interview that other former CAP members like John Ciravolo and Fred O'Sullivan started coming forth with their knowledge of the relationship between Ferrie and Oswald in the CAP, which subsequently led to Ferrie's arrest on the grounds that he had lied about not knowing Oswald.
In terms of judging Voebel as a witness, however, I have a lot of questions. Firstly I have not seen a full account of what Voebel said in the immediate aftermath. I have seen an excerpt from the WWL-TV interview that was broadcast nationally on CBS on Sunday, November 24, shortly after the LHO was killed. But I have yet to see the video or transcript of the original WWL-TV interview which must have been much longer because there is no mention of the CAP in the national CBS broadcast. I have seen references that the original WWL broadcast actually mentioned David Ferrie's name as associated with the CAP. Jack Martin said the original broadcast also mentioned that LHO at the time of his arrest had in his possession Ferrie's library card. Are there extant tapes or transcripts of the original WWL-TV interview? If so, how can we access them?
In addition to the WWL-TV interview, LHO was supposedly also interviewed by WDSU-TV (Channel 6, the NBC affiliate in New Orleans) and interviewed by the New Orleans Times-Picayune newspaper and possibly other newspapers. Has anybody seen these interviews and know how to access them? Any info about other pre-FBI interviews that Voebel gave would be most gratefully appreciated!
I am working on the idea that what Voebel said in these first couple of days was done quite spontaneously, motivated by his desire to share what he knew about this person Lee Oswald he had know as a teenager. However, after the FBI got ahold of him, I think that Voebel was increasingly managed, which I think you can see when you compare this first interview with his later FBI interviews and Warren Commission testimony. I thiink that by going through this evidence carefully and sequentially we can gain some insight into what exactly Voebel knew and what was fabricated.
I'll start with the first bit of evidence we have on Voebel -- the CBS national broadcast. Below the link I have included my transcription of what the interviewer and Voebel said. I cannot completely vouch that the transcription is 100% accurate. I've tried to include all the "uhh's" and mannerisms that I noticed but I'm sure I could add quite a few more if I kept at it. I feel quite a lot of empathy for court reporters just now!
(BTW, does anybody know who the interviewer was? Bill Reid, the News Director at WWL-TV, is mentioned with reference to this interview in FBI reports, but I don't know whether he conducted interviews.)
The question I would like you to consider as you watch this is video:
"Is this the spontaneous, uncoached memories of Ed Voebel?"
The interview with Ed Voebel begins at approximately 18:05.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ly0ocEMK5r8 - t=1349
Q: Would you tell us uhh your first encounter as you can recall. This has been what about eight
VOEBEL: It was about eight years ago.
Q: Eight years ago? Tell us about it.
VOEBEL: Uhh, well I, he came in uhh Beauregard's uhh mid-semester and uhh he had uhh a fight with a couple of boys and that's how I first uhh saw him. And uhh at the next day uhh someone had punched him in the mouth, but uhh Oswald didn't know, I didn't know, uhh uhh and I don't think the boy even know him, knew him. Uhh, I think these boys that he had a fight with them put this other guy up to punch him in the mouth to get back at him because Oswald did beat the other boys. And uhh Oswald was laying down on the ground and I ran up to him and I think a couple other boys did too and we brought him back in the school and uhh washed his mouth off and put some umm cold compresses on his mouth.
Q: And and this is uhh more or less the start of a friendship between you and Oswald at that time?
VOEBEL: Well, that's when we first met uhh was when this happened.
Q: And uhh what type of boy was he at 15? I understand uhh this was about the age of that year?
VOEBEL: Well, uhh he didn't uhh seem to mix too well with the uhh the rest of the uhh boys or the girls and anyone there at the school. He didn't seem to have any uhh friends. Uhh he didn't seem to be really interested in anything uhh. He didn't participate in any extra-curricular activities. Uhh he was just a loner, it seemed like. (licks lips)
Q: I'll tell you one one reason I'm concerned about the age of uhh 15 and this reportedly is when uhh Oswald first became interested or came in contact with the Marxist theory. Now did he at any time during your relationship with him did he mention anything about his readings of uhh uhh Leftist or Marxist uhh uhh literature?
VOEBEL: No, he (clears throat) he didn't mention anything at all about uhh any politics or socialism, communism, Marxism or anything and I don't believe that's true. I don't believe he had any really basic ideas on Marxism or anything at fifteen years of life. I think uhh that came later somewhere along the line because he never (shakes head) mentioned anything like that to me at all. (licks lips)
Q: Now in in talking uhh earlier before this interview, you you mentioned you had been to his house. Could you uhh tell us a little about his home life?
VOEBEL: Well, he uhh when I knew him he lived in Exchange Alley, I think was 126 Exchange Place or Alley. Uhh it was a small apartment and it lived above uhh above above poolrooms. And uhh in that area there is nothing but poolrooms and barrooms and it's sort of almost a skid row, it's a very bad uhh neighborhood.
Q: Well this uhh was before or after his father died?
A. Oh, this his father from what I understand died when he was very young and uhh this was this was after I think he had moved to Texas. After his father had died his mother brought him to Texas then he came back here again. And this was his uhh second time in New Orleans.
Q: And he sort of, uhh as I understand it, sort of blamed the world for his uhh his problems, Isn't that what you mentioned earlier?
VOEBEL: Well I, it seemed that way to me after at the time, I didn't uhh uhh have any basic opinions why he was a little different than uhh most of us. Uhh it didn't uhh enter my mind at all. Uhh I uhh sort of liked him that because he wasn't the general run of the mill that I had known at school. Uhh he was a little above them, he seemed to be at least even though he was he came from uhh a poor family let's say. And uhh he wasn't exactly a ruffian. Uhh he he just had had a little something about him, there was something that was just a little different from the average ruffian that I'd known at that school. ["JFK'S ASSASSINATION (CBS-TV) (PART 5), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ly0ocEMK5r8 - t=1349,18:05-22:26]