Friday, November 8, 2013

Plethora of JFK Shows Hits TV Screens

A plethora of brand new JFK documentaries and TV shows hits our TV screens this month as we commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Kennedy Assassination.

  • Several of the shows chronicle the events of that fateful day, in various detail and from different perspectives.

— "The Final Hours" (National Geographic Channel, Friday Nov. 7th at 8 p.m. EST) shows eyewitness accounts of JFK's trip to Dallas, narrated by Bill Paxton.

— "'Secrets of the Dead': JFK: One PM Central Standard Time" (PBS,  Nov. 13 at 10 p.m. EST) chronicles CBS anchor Walter Cronkite's role in reporting the Kennedy Assassination.

— "As It Happened: John F. Kennedy 50 Years" (CBS, Nov. 16 at 9 p.m. EST) is anchored by Bob Schieffer, who covered the story in Dallas in November 1963.

— "The Day Kennedy Died" (Smithsonian Channel, Nov. 17 at 9 p.m. EST).

— "JFK: The Lost Tapes" (Discovery Channel, Nov. 21 at 7 p.m. EST) includes newly released audio recordings from Air Force One and on-the-scene audio from the Dallas Police Department and other sources.

— "Lee Harvey Oswald: 48 Hours to Live" (History Channel, Nov. 22 at 10 p.m. EST).

— "Capturing Oswald" (Military Channel, Nov. 12 at 10 p.m. EST) shows the role of the Dallas Police Department in apprehending suspect Lee Harvey Oswald. This special is co-produced by Kate Griendling, the granddaughter of Jim Leavelle, who was the white-hatted detective handcuffed to Oswald when Jack Ruby shot him.

  • Other shows seek to answer questions revolving around the JFK Assassination, including controversies, conspiracy theories, and new investigations and evidence concerning the case.

— "JFK: The Smoking Gun" (Reelz, repeating throughout November) proposes that a Secret Service agent in the motorcade accidentally fired one of the bullets that struck Kennedy.

— "Fox News Reporting: 50 Years of Questions: The JFK Assassination" (Fox News Channel, Saturday at 9 p.m. EST),  takes a look at controversy surrounding the FBI investigation, the autopsy report and the Warren Commission.

— "NOVA: Cold Case" (PBS, Nov. 13 at 9 p.m. EST) looks at new forensic techniques and investigations into the JFK Assassination.

— "The Assassination of JFK (1963)" (CNN, Nov. 14 at 9 p.m. EST)  part of an upcoming 10-part documentary series & co-produced with Tom Hanks, this first edition will explore the key conclusions of the Warren Commission.

 
— "JFK Assassination: The Definitive Guide" (History, Nov. 22 at 8 p.m. EST) offers polling results of thousands of Americans to reveal what they do and don't believe today regarding the shooting and who was responsible (in the process uncovering what the network says are 311 distinctly different conspiracy theories).
 
— "Where Were You?" (NBC, Nov. 22 at 9 p.m. EST), anchored by Tom Brokaw, combines archival footage with first-person accounts of those (including famous Americans and ordinary citizens) who lived through it.

  • Further investigations into the Kennedy presidency are offered by these programs:

— "JFK: A President Betrayed" (available on DirecTV on Demand starting Nov. 14) reveals how Kennedy halted a proposed pre-emptive nuclear strike against the Soviet Union that had been planned for 1963.

— "Kennedy's Suicide Bomber" (Smithsonian Channel, Nov. 17 at 8 p.m. EST) tells the story of a would-be assassin who targeted the president-elect a month before he was sworn into office.

  • Personal Portraits of JFK and his family life are also presented during this month:
— "American Experience: JFK" (PBS, Nov. 11 and Nov. 12 at 9 p.m. EST) is a four-hour, two-part special that promises "a fresh assessment of the man" from his childhood through death.
  
— "Letters to Jackie" (TLC, Nov. 17 at 9 p.m. EST)- a roster of celebrities read a few of the 800,000 condolence letters sent to first lady Jacqueline Kennedy and her family in the two months following the killing.