President John F. Kennedy Hearst at Barrett Jackson Auctions (photo by Charly Butcher)

Wow! I’ve been waiting for my mother’s first Holga photos for nearly two weeks now and I finally have the negatives on my scanner.

My mother, Charly Butcher (www.imagesbycharly.com), lives in Phoenix, Arizona. The JFK hearse was up for auction at Barrett-Jackson in Scottsdale.

Read John F. Kennedy’s Dallas Hearse up for Auction in Scottsdale (Jan. 17, 2012) for how this all began.

Charly bought her first Holga (there will be others) at a local camera retailer and resisted the urge to buy other camera equipment (one of her husband’s dreams). She then proceeded with her husband in tow (actually, he drove) to the auction, where she did the best she could with absolutely zero Holga experience, poor lighting, a crowd of people and less than ideal scenery.

As of right now, I have only scanned one roll of film. This image came off a roll of Kodak TMAX 400. Of the twelve images, this was the only one that came out. Talk about lucky.

I will be scanning the other two rolls in a few minutes. I can already see there are images to be had.

I can’t than my mother enough for being part of my JFK project, Death by Holga: 11.22.63. Cheers.

Another Photo

Okay, you can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs. And you can’t take Holga photos without the back coming off every now and again (I’ve done it three or four time).

The following image is not a CGI background for the next Star Trek movie. It is in fact a shot of the Barrett-Jackson showroom floor after the back of my mother’s Holga came off. This is a happy accident, because the image is quite lovely.

The Holga Back Came Off (photo by Charly Butcher)

As more and more photos are being taken for my JFK project, Death by Holga: 11.22.63, I will add news and information to Facebook. Be sure to LIKE my Facebook page today.

You can find me on Facebook at facebook.com/DeathByHolga. I would love to see you following along. Cheers.

Last year I found out about Lee Harvey Oswald’s coffin being auction. Today, I read that the hearse that moved President John F. Kennedy’s body from the emergency room at Parkland Hospital to Air Force One at Dallas Love Field is now up for auction.

The hearse, a white / green 1964 Cadillac, will be auctioned by Barrett-Jackson in Scottsdale, Az. this Saturday, January 21, 2012. The owner claims to have all the proper documentation to prove this is the Kennedy hearse used in Dallas.

This is extremely short notice for me and my JFK book project. I don’t have the means or the time to hop a flight to Arizona this weekend.

Fortunately, I know a stock photographer in the neighborhood who might be able to help, my mother. I can easily overnight a Holga and some film to her for the few shots I need.

I hope this works out. Cheers.

UPDATE 2012-01-17

I have since talked to my mother in Avondale, Arizona. She has agreed to photograph the JFK hearse for my book project.

At first I was going to overnight a Holga to her, but she has a local store that sells Holga cameras and 120 film. That saves shipping and time.

Now comes the hard part. I have to give my mother directions on how to use a Holga camera and get good results. She is no stranger behind a lens, but this will be her first attempt at shooting with a Holga.

I did send here a link to Freestyle Photographic Supplies’ famous Holga manual. I get one with every Holga. If you ever want to know more about Holga cameras, I suggest starting with this manual.

The most important tip I can give her is to make sure the shutter setting under the lens is set to N for normal, not B for bulb or blurry. This little switch will ruin a roll of film.

Wish us luck. Cheers.

UPDATE 2012-01-21

The JFK hearse sold for $160,000 at the Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale, Arizona. From what I read, the owner was looking for something closer to $1 million. Looks like it fell a little short of their goal.

UPDATE 2012-02-01

I received the film from my mother last week. I dropped the film off at BWC Creative in Richardson, Texas, on Monday. I will have negatives back this Thursday.

I have a long list of items to photograph while I am in D.C. Below is a list of my photographic agenda:

• Arlington National Cemetery
• President John F. Kennedy
• First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onasis
• Robert Kennedy, U. S. Attorney General
• Senator Edward Kennedy
• Col. James Swindal, Air Force One pilot
• Cecil W. Stoughton, White House photographer
• Evelyn Norton Lincoln, president’s personal secretary
• Dr. George Burkley, president’s physician
• Malcolm MacGregor Kilduff, White House Spokesman
• Arthur Goldberg, Secretary of Labor
• Marriman Smith, United Press International
• Justice Early Warren, Warren Commission
• Senator John Sherman Cooper, Warren Commission
• Stephen John Roman, my grandfather
• Congressional Cemetery
• J. Edgar Hoover, FBI Director
• Congressman Hale Boggs Jr., Warren Commission
• White House
• East Room where President Kennedy lay in repose
• U.S. Capitol Building
• Capitol Rotunda where President Kennedy lay in state
• U.S. National Archives
• They have Mrs. Kennedy’s pink wool suit, remember
• National Museum of American History
• Lee Harvey Oswald’s rifle
• Georgetown
• The residence where Mrs. Kennedy stayed after leaving the White House
• Martin Luther King Memorial
• Ford’s Theater
• Madame Tussauds
• President Kennedy and Johnson wax figures
• They have Jacqueline Kennedy in the pink wool suit! Score!

I’ll be spending a day at Arlington National Cemetery all by myself. My wife has promised to go shopping while I am busy photographing history. I hope she does not spend too much.

I previously visited Washington, D.C. and Arlington National Cemetery in the 1990s.

My first visit was for my grandfather’s funeral. My grandfather made a career out of the Air Force serving in World War II and a couple of other skirmishes. It was a beautiful service with a horse-drawn carriage and a twenty-one gun salute. Too bad I was not into Holgas then.

My second trip was with my grandmother. She used to live in D.C. with my grandfather. I though she would be a good tour guide, but she was just as lost as I was. Oh well, we had a good time anyway.

Let me know if I need to send you a post card. Cheers.

The Texas White House at the LBJ Ranch in Stonewall, Texas

Just before Thanksgiving last year I set off on a small adventure to south Texas. My goal was to photograph some of the people, places and things associated with the Kennedy assassination.

I was already down in the Austin area last March, but I was short on time and had my family in tow. I just can’t do a lot of grave hunting with people looking over my shoulder and tapping on their watch.

My family is not really like that, but you get the idea.

Liz Carpenter

Monument for Liz Carpenter on College Hill in Salado, Texas

My first stop was at College Hill in Salado, Texas. There the ashes of Liz Carpenter were scattered on the ruins of Salado College.

Liz Carpenter was Vice President Johnson’s speech writer and was in the Kennedy motorcade in Dallas. She wrote the short speech President Johnson gave to the nation upon returning to Washington, D.C.

All that is left of the Salado College is a really nice wrought iron and stone fence, some stairs up the hill, a statue, the foundation of the college and numerous signs saying not to climb on the ruins. At the top of the stairs is a stone bench and directly beyond that is a memorial for Liz Carpenter.

The nearby statue is of Elijah Sterling Clack Robertson, who was a Colonel in the Army of the Republic of Texas, Postmaster General, Brigadier General, Texas Ranger, Chief Justice and Founder of Salado and Salado College. The placard also says Roberson was a Knight Templar, but I could not find any grail clues.

I was told that Mrs. Carpenter wanted her ashes scattered here because this is where her parents went to college and this is where she played as a young girl.

If only we all could be so lucky to spend eternity in a place we love.

Maj. Gen. Erwin Walker

Grave marker for General Edwin A. Walker in Center Point Cemetery

From Salado I drove further down to Center Point, which is south of Fredericksburg. After a lot of winding and dipping roads, I stopped at Center Point Cemetery off FM 480 to photograph the grave of Maj. Gen. Erwin A. Walker.

Gen. Walker was Lee Harvey Oswald’s first assassination attempt. Gen. Walker lived on Turtle Creek Blvd. in Dallas. Oswald took a shot at him from the rear of Walker’s house in April 1963. Gen. Walker missed being Oswald’s first victim.

By Dallas standards, Center Point Cemetery is small. I could easily have looked at all the graves and found Gen. Walker on my own. But time was of the essence for me and I found a contact number on the maintenance shed. I was fortunate to get the assistance of Richard Bloom.

Mr. Bloom directed me to Gen. Walker’s grave within minutes. Gen. Walker is buried in a family plot with other Walkers. He is located in the back of the cemetery under some trees just north of the maintenance shed.

My stop for Gen. Walker was a last minute addition to my schedule. I was planning on being done with the Johnson Ranch by now and heading to Austin. This diversion puts me way off schedule.

President and Mrs. Johnson

Gravestones for President and Mrs. Johnson in the Johnson Family Cemetery

As I previously mentioned, I was already down south this past spring. I had already stopped at the LBJ Ranch in Stonewall, Texas. On my first visit I was told I could not enter the Johnson Family Cemetery, but after talking with park officials for this visit I found out that I could enter the cemetery. The park supervisor clarified that I could not be buried in the cemetery without permission from the Johnson Family. No issue there.

After getting my free permit to travel the grounds I set out to the Johnson Family Cemetery. Unfortunately, the lighting at this time of day was really bad and the polished, pink marble headstones did not help at all.

I took several shots of President and Mrs. Johnson’s gravestones, but I don’t think they will be usable.

After the cemetery, I headed over to the Johnson Ranch house, the Texas White House. I only wanted photographs of the front, so I did not need to purchase a tour ticket. Having been on the tour before, I can recommend it. The Texas White House is very nice and full of history. There is a beautiful N. C. Wyeth painting in the TV room.

I think a photograph of the Johnson Ranch house would be a fitting end to my book. This was Kennedy’s intended last stop on Friday, November 22, 1963. It was also Johnson’s last stop as he died in his bed.

LBJ Library & Museum

President Johnson's speech by Liz Carpenter at the LBJ Library & Museum

By now I am way behind schedule and driving like a maniac. I won’t say what my speed was, because my wife does not need to know.

I made it to the LBJ Library & Museum just after 4 p.m., which was plenty of time to visit the Reading Room on the 10th floor. I had made arrangements with their archivists to see the actual speech that Liz Carpenter wrote and that Johnson read.

I felt really important standing in the LBJ Library Reading Room. The glassed in room had a long admin counter with a few shelves in the rear. There were rows of research desks with a few being occupied by actual researchers. The lighting wasn’t great for photography, but it would have to do.

I had to fill out an application to get a researcher card. Is that what I am now, a researcher? This project is getting way cooler by the minute.

Not long after I became a card carrying researcher, I was face to face with the original copy of Johnson’s speech. The speech was typed on Air Force One stationary, which you could see on the verso. There were pencil corrections made by both Mrs. Carpenter and President Johnson.

My first thought was how interesting it was that someone had a typewriter on Air Force One. Of course they had a typewriter on the plane.

I clarified with the archivist that this was the actual speech, which she confirmed. The archivist said a facsimile is usually on display. Paper ages poorly in the light.

I took several shots with my Holga and Nikon cameras.

Texas State Cemetery

Monument for F. Trammel Crow at the Texas State Cemetery

With only a few minutes till the close of business, I zipped over to the Texas State Cemetery. I was looking for F. Trammell Crow, who build the Dallas Trade Mart, which was Kennedy’s intended destination after the motorcade.

F. Trammell Crow is a builder, philanthropist and the name sake for the Crow Collection of Asian Art, a very fine museum in Dallas.

I was directed to the Crow memorial, which I later confirmed was just a memorial, not a grave. I was told Mr. Crow was buried in Dallas.

Alas, the hunt continues for the elusive F. Trammell Crow.

Although the cemetery was closing, I was told I could stay on the grounds after the main entrance is locked. There are a couple of side gates that stay unlocked all the time. So it was just me and my fellow Texas patriots after sundown. I walked around to visit AG Waggoner Carr, Stephen F. Austin, Gov. and Mrs. Connally, Gov. Ann Richards and a few others.

Houston National Cemetery

Grave marker for U.S. Congressman Albert Thomas at the Houston National Cemetery

After a good night sleep at La Quinta Inn Capital, I set off for Houston at 6 a.m. I got to hear all sorts of interesting radio as I lost and gained stations along State Hwy 71 to US 10. It was a really fun drive until the sun came up and blinded me for over an hour. If I wasn’t in such a hurry, I would have stopped in La Grange, Texas.

U.S. Congressman Albert Thomas is buried at the Houston National Cemetery. This is a beautiful cemetery with lush green grass and the reverence of perfectly aligned grave markers.

The cemetery was undergoing a little construction as was evident by the many detour signs. They are getting a new visitors center. Unfortunately, the visitor center deficiency was not supplemented with a temporary visitors center. I was forced to use the automated grave locator, which was of little help. I had to knock on a side door of the admin office for assistance.

It appears that Congressman Thomas was really important as he is the only one buried in the area surrounded by Thomas Circle. His landscaped grave faces the open end of the Hemicycle, the large monument in the center of the facility. You can’t miss it.

Congressman Thomas was on board Air Force One and witnessed President Johnson take the oath of office from Judge Hughes.

The Menil Collection

After photographing Congressman Thomas, my must-do list was all completed. Now it was time for a little fun. I drove over to The Menil Collection to the the Byzantine Chapel before the Byzantine frescoes left for good. The frescoes were only on load to the Menil.

The Menil Collection is a beautiful museum. I really like the feel of the surrounding park with the spaciousness of the interior. The Menil has wonderful old wooden floors that run the length of the building.

On view in a room all its own was Walter De Maria: Trilogies. The main focus of the exhibit was three perfectly restored 1955 Chevy Bel Airs. All three cars were the exact same color scheme. They were beautiful … and hard not to touch.

If you’re ever in Houston, I highly recommend visiting The Menil Collection. Tell Vance I said hello.

Homeward Bound

After visiting a new Twitter friend at the John Cleary Gallery, I gassed up my speedster and grabbed a Subway for the four hour drive home. I arrived just after dinner.

Postscript

Further research has turned up another grave I need in Austin. Looks like I will be making one more trip down south to photograph Paul Groody. Mr. Groody was the mortician for Lee Harvey Oswald. His assistant, Allen Baumgardner, is still alive and living in Fort Worth. I will be meeting him soon too. Cheers.

This is a short list of the items that ring a bell with me. There are a lot of events, births and deaths that happened in 1963 not included in my list. Visit Wikipedia for more information about 1963.

Events

• Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci is exhibited at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. – January 8
• George C. Wallace becomes governor of Alabama – January 14
• Travel to Cuba by U.S. citizens is made illegal by President Kennedy – February 8
• Iron Man debuts in Marvel Comics – March
• Mount Agung erupts on Bali and kills 11,000 people – March 16
• The federal penitentiary on Alcatraz Island closes – March 21
• The Beatles release their first album, Please Please Me – March 22
• General Hospital debuts on ABC – April 1
• Martin Luther King, Jr. arrested in Birmingham, Alabama – April 12
• Dr. No debuts in U.S. – May 8
• Mercury astronaut Gordon Cooper launches into space – May 15
• Alabama Governor George C. Wallas tries prevent integration at the University of Alabama – June 11
• Pope Paul VI succeeds Pope John XXIII – June 21
• President Kennedy gives speech in West Berlin – June 26
• Zip codes are introduced in U.S. – July 1
• Martin Luther King, Jr. delivers I Have a Dream speech in Washington, D.C. – August 25
• Marvel Comics release first X-Men comic book – September
• Sports car company Lamborghini is founded – October 30
• President Johnson establishes the Warren Commission – November 19
• The Sword in the Stone debuts – December 25
• I Want to Hold Your Hand and I Saw Her Standing There by The Beatles are released in U.S. – December 26

Births

• David Cone, baseball player – January 2
• Hakeem Olajuwon, Nigerian basketball player – January 21
• Seal Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel, British singer – February 19
• Charles Barkley, basketball player – February 20
• Joel Osteen, televangelist – March 5
• Bret Michael, rock singer for Poison – March 15
• Vanessa Williams, American beauty queen and actress – March 18
• Kathy Ireland, supermodel – March 20
• Elle Macpherson, Australian supermodel – March 29
• Julian Lennon, British musician and son of John Lennon – April 8
• Conan O’Brien, talk show host – April 18
• Natasha Richardson, actress – May 11
• Mike Myers, Canadian actor – May 25
• Johnny Depp, actor – June 9
• Helen Hunt, actress – June 15
• George Michael, British singer – June 25
• Christopher George Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy – July 4
• Phoebe Cates, actress – July 16
• Lisa Kudrow, actress – July 30
• Patrick Bouvier Kennedy, son of John F. Kennedy – August 7
• Whitney Houston, singer – August 9
• John Stamos, actor – August 19
• Tori Amos, singer – August 22
• Michael Chiklis, actor – August 30
• Randy Johnson, baseball player – September 10
• Mark McGwire, baseball player – October 1
• Elisabeth Shue, actress – October 6
• Norm MacDonald, Canadian comedian – October 17
• Lauren Holly, actress – October 28
• Sarah Brown, wife of British Prime Minister – October 31
• Rob Schneider, actor – October 31
• Rick Allen, drummer for Def Leppard – November 1
• Terri Schiavo, right-to-die cause – December 3
• Benjamin Bratt, actor – December 16
• Brad Pitt, actor – December 18
• Jennifer Beals, actress – December 19
• Jim Harbaugh, football player and coach – December 23
• Patrick Sean Payton, football coach – December 29

Deaths

• Jean Piccard, Swiss-American chemist, engineer, and balloonist – January 28
• Robert Frost, poet – January 29
• Sylvia Plath, poet and writer – February 11
• Patsy Cline, country singer – March 5
• Elmore James, Blues guitarist, singer and band leader – May 24
• Pope John XXIII, Roman Catholic Pope – June 3
• Jacques Villon, French Cubist painter – June 9
• Medgar Evers, civil rights victim – June 12
• Patrick Bouvier Kennedy, son of John F. Kennedy – August 9
• Georges Braque, Cubist painter – August 31
• Jean Cocteau, French writer and artist – October 11
• Edith Piaf, French singer – October 11
• Robert Franklin Stroud, “Birdman of Alcatraz” – November 21
• Aldous Huxley, British writer – November 22
• John F. Kennedy, President of the United States of America – November 22
• J. D. Tippit, Dallas Patrolman – November 22
• Lee Harvey Oswald, alleged assassin – November 24
• Dinah Washington, jazz and blues singer – December 14
• Gorgeous George Wagner, wrestler – December 26

Stephen King at the Majestic Theater with Liza Collins in background (Holga, Kodak 400 TMAX)

It’s not every day you get to meet Stephen King.

I was part of the press conference for Mr. King at the Majestic Theater in Dallas. Mr. King was promoting his new book, 11/22/63 A Novel, and also doing a benefit for The Sixth Floor Museum.

I brought along my big brother, James, to take photographs. This left me free to ask a few questions of Mr. King and shoot off a roll on my Holga 120N.

Unbeknownst to me, my Holga was in the B shutter mode, which we all know stands for blurry. Actually, it stands for bulb and it keeps the shutter open as long as you finger is on the shutter release. This usually results in blurry and dark photos due to over exposure.

Under normal circumstances, these photos would be trash, but some other interesting variables took over.

I was taking photos while on the stage of the Majestic Theater. The background for Mr. King was very dark. I was using a flash with Kodak 400 TMAX film. The combination of the B shutter mode, flash and a mostly dark room gave some sharpness from the flash with a little ghostly after image from the ambient lighting.

I only got two out of ten shots to come out. The two were closer shots, about three to four feet. All the distance shots, about ten to twelve feet, were still too blurry for my liking. I honestly think these two close-up shots were better than what I would have normally gotten.

Click here to see the other shot on Flickr.

I still hate the B shutter mode setting. I should supper glue it to the N setting.

Stephen King

Meeting Mr. King was a pure delight. He’s the next best thing to meeting my favorite author and daisy delicacy, Ernest Hemingway.

Mr. King was casually dressed in a loose fitting white oxford, blue jeans and loafers. His graying hair is done in a slick backed wavy style. Mr. King’s long jowly face makes you think he could be someone’s mean old neighbor (You kids get off of my lawn!). He is a very animated speaker who expresses himself gracefully with his hands and sometimes a creepy smile or two.

Mr. King has a wonderful sense of humor. I liken him to a roller-coaster designer who aims to thrill and excite all in the same ride. He really likes his job.

If ever you get the chance to meet or be in the same room with Mr. King, then I highly recommend it.

11/22/63 A Novel

It took me a little while, but I finished all 850 pages of Stephen King’s 11/22/63 A Novel on my Kindle.

As you know, I’m currently on the hunt for the people, places and things associated with the Kennedy assassination. I’ve already been through the Who’s Who of the Kennedy Assassination, The Report of the President’s Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy (The Warren Commission), Assassination Vacation and am currently reading On the Trail of the JFK Assassins. So, I’m a little over informed to read Mr. King’s latest novel.

In short, 11/22/63 is about English teacher Jake Epping, who is befriended by the local diner owner, Al Templeton. The reason for the quick friendship is that Al, who’s suffering from a terminal illness, has a secret passage in the back of his diner that leads to September 1958.

Al wants Jake to use the passage to save President Kennedy from Lee Harvey Oswald. As you can imagine, this is no easy task, because the past is obdurate and does not change easily.

I think 11/22/63 is a delightful read, all 850 pages. It is a little long for my liking. I prefer shorter stories that leave some details to my imagination. I am sure most King fans will eat this book up and still want more.

I was at the press conference and the speaking event. I heard Mr. King say he spent some time in the Dallas area researching for 11/22/63. Mr. King admits he made some mistakes like misspelling Killeen (he used one L) and calling the local radio station K-Life, when it should have been KLIF (as in Oak Cliff). Those points aside, I really feel all Mr. King did was a drive-by. I have lived in the Dallas area most of my life, and I don’t really think he got a good lay of the land.

Mr. King was a little hard on the people of Dallas too. But that’s okay, we don’t much care for yankees either.

Unfortunately, 11/22/63 did not keep me on the edge of my seat like Misery, my all time favorite Stephen King novel, or give me a surprise ending. I could see where the book was heading a mile away. If anything, this novel was written for the big screen and it will need to be drastically pared down. 11/22/63 should make a wonderful movie for the fall 2013 season, in time for the 50th anniversary of the Kennedy assassination.

Can I see into the future? I knew you would ask that.

If you really like Stephen King novels, then you will like 11/22/63 A Novel just the same. If you are not a Stephen King fan and are looking for a little excitement, then I would recommend something else like The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. Cheers.

My Favorite Stephen King Novels

• Different Seasons, 1982
• Misery, 1987

Other Stephen King Novels I have read

• The Shining, 1977
• Night Shift, 1978
• Christine, 1983
• Skeleton Crew, 1985
• The Stand, 1990
• The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, 1999

How great would that be to photograph three iconic pieces of U.S. history for my book? From what I have read, the rifle is on display but the coat and the suit are kept in storage.

I know you are thinking that photographing Mr. Kennedy’s suit coat and Mrs. Kennedy’s pink wool suit would be too gruesome for the book. And you would be right, but you need to consider what has happened to the blood stains over the last forty-seven years. The stains on these items are far from fresh. They have most likely turned brown or possibly faded.

I think old blood stains will be hard to see in any photograph taken with a high quality camera. But that’s the point of my project. I’m not using a really high quality camera. I’m using a Holga. My camera is both near-sighted and far-sighted depending on its mood. The goal of my book is to mark this period in U.S. history with a camera that takes artsy photographs. I’m not trying to bring new evidence to light. I’m just trying to have an adventure.

Hopefully you’re still with me on this endeavor.

Contacting the U.S. National Archives

Since I do not have any contacts at the U.S. National Archives, I did what any layman with a toy camera can do. I went online and filled out a request form in late July.

I realize that filling out an online form is not the best way to get results. After all, I am an Internet professional and I understand how easy it is for web forms, emails and database records to get lost. So, I crossed my fingers and clicked the submit button.

Here is the meat of my online request:

I am working on a photography book about the Kennedy assassination. I am photographing people, places and things associated with the event in Dallas. I am not interested in documents, but I am interested in evidence that the National Archives has stored. Who can I talk to about the possibility of photographing some of the evidence for my book?

To my dismay, I did receive a response from the U.S. National Archives four weeks later. They sent me a reply email stating their policy of providing photographs and descriptions whenever possible. Like many underfunded government agencies, they cannot give personal access to the archives.

Unfortunately, I cannot use photographs supplied from the U.S. National Archives for my book. I have to be able to take my own photographs with one of my Holga cameras*.

Undeterred and armed with a name and return email address, I replied with a description of my book project and the necessity to photograph the items myself. I also noted the items I wanted to photograph as the coat, rifle and pink wool suit. I thought for sure that my request was dead and buried upon request after mentioning the pink wool suit.

Imagine my surprise when I received a call from Martha Murphy at the U.S. National Archives last week.

Ms. Murphy was very kind and polite, but I could sense a level of museum snootiness in her voice that says I’m the U.S. National Archives and you are not. Or maybe that was all in my own head. I do have a problem with authority.

It was very kind of Ms. Murphy to give me a call.

Unfortunately, Ms. Murphy told me the answer is No. The policy of the U.S. National Archive is to provide photographs and descriptions of items in the collection. The only time an item can be seen is if a question cannot be answered with the documents available. In other words, I don’t get to photograph the items.

Pink Wool Suit

Ms. Murphy went on to discuss Mrs. Kennedy’s pink wool suit. She said the suit was gifted to the U.S. National Archive by Mrs. Kennedy with the provision that it not be shown for 100 years after the date of gift**. Until such time, no access or photographs are allowed.

Ms. Murphy went on to say, “If it makes you feel any better, we turn down major networks like ABC and CBS asking for the same items.”

No, actually it doesn’t make me feel any better. I understand the need to preserve history, but I wish the U.S. National Archives could make an exception for me.

Well, you can’t blame a Holga photographer for asking.

Where there’s a will …

Given that I cannot photograph President Kennedy’s suit coat or Mrs. Kennedy’s pink wool suit, I can still photograph Lee Harvey Oswald’s rifle. Photography should be allowed in the Smithsonian provided I don’t use a flash, which I won’t want to use anyway with the rifle being behind glass.

I will most definitely take photographs of the U.S. National Archive when I visit Washington, D.C. next spring. The caption will read: Where all our national history goes to disappear.

* Current Holga count is six or seven not counting the extra lenses and Polaroid film back. Please don’t tell my spouse.

** I am currently not sure if Mrs. Kennedy’s pink wool suit was gifted in 1964 after the assassination or before her death in 1994. I will follow up with the U.S. National Archive to get the date of gift. Either way, I’ll probably be long gone and won’t care. Cheers.

Det. James Leavelle in Lee Harvey Oswald and Jack Ruby's cell at the old Dallas Police Headquarters (Nikon)

Mission accomplished. I have photos of Det. James Leavelle at the Dallas Municipal Building (a.k.a. the old Dallas Police Headquarters). The Holga shots are yet to be developed. I’ll be keeping my fingers crossed that all goes well this those pictures too.

More on this photo shoot coming soon. Cheers.

Mr. Holga in a Domke photog vest and old-man bucket hat with a Holga 120 FN in hand (photo by Mr. Holga)

I spent an hour or more getting ready for my photo shoot at the Dallas Municipal Building, formerly the Dallas Police Headquarters. The shoot will be in the basement where Lee Harvey Oswald was shot and the fifth floor where Oswald was jailed. I will have former Dallas Police Det. James Leavelle on hand as a model for the shoot.

Det. Leavelle has graciously agreed to pose for some photos. We are planning on taking great care of Det. Leavelle, who is 90 years-old.

For those who don’t know, Det. Leavelle was handcuffed to Oswald when he was shot by Jack Ruby in the basement of the Dallas Police Headquarters. He is in the famous photo by Robert Jackson.

Setting-up

It took me just 10 minutes to set-up my soft boxes and probably another five to get my Nikon ready and the tripod positioned. I did not want to show up at the shoot and have the lights not work.

I positioned my favorite model on a stool in front of a white screen and tested the U1 and U2 settings on my Nikon. These are the new presets added to the Nikon D7000. I jumped from a Nikon D70 to a Nikon D7000. If these settings were on the D90, they are still new to me.

I programmed my U1 and U2 settings to emulate my Holgas. Both U1 and U2 are set to F8 and 1/100 speed. This is the Holga equivalent. The only difference is that U1 and U2 are set to 125 ISO and 400 ISO, respectively. I can quickly determine which ISO film to use with these programmed settings.

I noticed immediately that U1 and U2 were not doing the trick for a somewhat dark room and my two soft boxes. I manually bumped the ISO up to 800 and that did the trick. The only other adjustment I made was changing the white balance from auto to incandescent bulb, an option I won’t have on my Holgas.

I dismissed my model and then donned my usual polo shirt, Domke photog vest and old-man bucket hat. I positioned my Nikon for a few self portraits and fired the camera with my ML L3 remote. After about a couple dozen shots and a lot of funny looks from my model, I had what I needed (see above photo).

I finished packing up the cameras and lights and put the living room back in order. I then made a list of items that I’ll need for the shoot. This will be the most equipment I have ever taken to a shoot.

Here’s the list.

• Model release form
• Chair
• Cooler full of cold water
• Fan
• Soft box lights
• Reflector
• Extension cords
• Power strip
• Tripod
• Holga cameras
• Film (Color and B&W, all ISOs)
• Nikon camera
• Step ladder

I’m sure there is something I’m forgetting. Don’t worry. This list will grow as the shoot nears. Cheers.