''Four Days in November'' is a 1964 American
documentary film
A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in te ...
directed by
Mel Stuart about the
assassination of John F. Kennedy. It was nominated for an
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment in ...
for
Best Documentary Feature
Best or The Best may refer to:
People
* Best (surname), people with the surname Best
* Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer
Companies and organizations
* Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain
* Best Lock Corporation, ...
.
Summary
The film includes Dallas radio and television coverage of:
* The President's arrival at Love Field (Bob Walker,
WFAA-TV 8)
* Progression of the motorcade (Bob Huffaker,
KRLD Radio)
* First local bulletin of shooting (Jay Watson,
WFAA-TV 8)
* Reports at Parkland Hospital (Bob Huffaker,
KRLD Radio)
* Official announcement of President's death from Malcolm Kilduff (Roy Nichols,
KLIF Radio)
Amateur films and photos include:
* Scenes along the motorcade route
*
Orville Nix
Orville Orhel Nix (April 16, 1911 – January 17, 1972) was a witness to the assassination of United States President John F. Kennedy in Dallas, Texas on November 22, 1963. His filming of the shooting, which only captured the last few seconds of ...
's films of the motorcade entering
Dealey Plaza
Dealey Plaza is a city park in the West End Historic District of downtown Dallas, Texas. It is sometimes called the "birthplace of Dallas". It was also the location of the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963; 30 minutes after the shooting ...
, the fatal head shot followed by Secret Service Agent Clint Hill climbing on top of the
presidential limousine and the post-shooting confusion at the Plaza
*
Mary Moorman's photo taken just a fraction of a second after the fatal shot
*
Bob Jackson's photo of Jack Ruby shooting Lee Harvey Oswald at the Dallas City Jail
Production
The opening credits indicate that "certain scenes have been recreated in the original locations by the actual participants".
TCM.com
/ref> Some of these recreations include:
* Buell Wesley Frazier driving himself and Lee Harvey Oswald to work at the Texas School Book Depository on the morning of November 22. This scene includes commentary from Frazier and his sister Linnie Mae Randle who saw Oswald arrive at their house and place a package (in which Oswald told Frazier it contained curtain rods but really had the murder weapon) in Frazier's car to take to work.
* Oswald's post-shooting trek from the Texas School Book Depository to the Texas Theater. This segment includes commentary from cab driver William Whaley, who picked Oswald up and took him to his rooming house on North Beckley.
* Jack Ruby's path from his apartment to the Dallas City Jail on the morning of November 24
See also
* List of American films of 1964
References
External links
*
*
*
*
''Four Days in November''
at the website of David L. Wolper
*
Rotten Tomatoes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Four Days In November
1964 films
1964 documentary films
1964 directorial debut films
American documentary films
American black-and-white films
Black-and-white documentary films
Documentary films about the assassination of John F. Kennedy
1960s English-language films
Films directed by Mel Stuart
Films scored by Elmer Bernstein
United Artists films
1960s American films