''The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald'' is an American two-part television film shown on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

in September 1977. The film stars

Ben Gazzara Biagio Anthony Gazzara (August 28, 1930 – February 3, 2012) was an American actor and director of film, stage, and television. He received numerous accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award and a Drama Desk Award, in addition to nominatio ...

Lorne Greene Lorne Hyman Greene (born Lyon Himan Green; 12 February 1915 – 11 September 1987) was a Canadian actor, musician, singer and radio personality. His notable television roles include Ben Cartwright on the Western ''Bonanza'' and Commander Ada ...

and

John Pleshette John Pleshette (born July 27, 1942) is an American actor and screenwriter, best known for his role as Richard Avery on the television drama ''Knots Landing'', and for portraying Lee Harvey Oswald in the TV movie '' The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald ...

in the title role. It is an example of

alternative history Alternate history (also alternative history, althist, AH) is a genre of speculative fiction of stories in which one or more historical events occur and are resolved differently than in real life. As conjecture based upon historical fact, alter ...

. The hypothesis is what might have happened if

Lee Harvey Oswald Lee Harvey Oswald (October 18, 1939 – November 24, 1963) was a U.S. Marine veteran who assassinated John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, on November 22, 1963. Oswald was placed in juvenile detention at the age of 12 fo ...

had not been killed by

Jack Ruby Jack Leon Ruby (born Jacob Leon Rubenstein; April 25, 1911January 3, 1967) was an American nightclub owner and alleged associate of the Chicago Outfit who murdered Lee Harvey Oswald on November 24, 1963, two days after Oswald was accused of th ...

and had stood trial for the murder of President

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...

Synopsis

The film opens sometime in 1964 and Oswald is in a maximum security cage as a radio announcer tells how he has been on trial for the last 43 days as the eyes of the entire world watch. A bailiff announces the jury has reached a verdict and the world press rushes to their phones. Oswald is handcuffed and led back into the courtroom to learn his fate. The film then flashes back to the day before the

Kennedy assassination John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 un ...

. Oswald is trying to reconcile with his estranged wife Marina without luck. The next day, a friend drives him to the

Texas School Book Depository The Texas School Book Depository, now known as the Dallas County Administration Building, is a seven-floor building facing Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas. The building was Lee Harvey Oswald's vantage point during the assassination of United Sta ...

and he puts a wrapped package in the backseat. The assassination of Kennedy is then reenacted with chilling conviction. Oswald leaves the building and possibly murders police officer

J. D. Tippit J. D. Tippit (September 18, 1924 – November 22, 1963) was an American World War II U.S Army veteran and police officer who served as an 11-year veteran with the Dallas Police Department. About 45 minutes after the assassination of John F. ...

. Oswald is arrested in a theater and bound over for trial. Oswald's prosecutor is wily, sarcastic Anson "Kip" Roberts (Gazzara). From the beginning, Roberts is skeptical about a "poor shlub who couldn't even hold a job" assassinating the President. However, a phone call from President

Johnson Johnson is a surname of Anglo-Norman origin meaning "Son of John". It is the second most common in the United States and 154th most common in the world. As a common family name in Scotland, Johnson is occasionally a variation of ''Johnston'', a ...

himself makes him realize he had better stick to this hypothesis. In the meantime, bombastic defense attorney Matt Weldon (Greene) is assigned to the defense. He realizes he has a difficult client upon their first meeting when Oswald keeps talking in paranoid fashion about "them" and "they" manipulating the strings. In addition, Weldon has to deal with several cases of possible witnesses for the defense dying under suspicious circumstances. A change of venue moves the "trial of the century" to a small Texas town. Roberts and Weldon square off before a stern judge who immediately lets them know who is in charge of the courtroom. Weldon conducts a formidable defense in the beginning casting doubt on the testimony of eyewitnesses. He and his investigators interview Oswald's wife and mother and associates to try to obtain a clearer picture of "the man of mystery". However, the picture only grows darker as flashbacks show Oswald defecting to the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

, returning to the US and in the company of various shady individuals. Oswald stubbornly refuses to cooperate when Weldon urges him to open up and tell the truth, as it might help save him from the

electric chair An electric chair is a device used to execute an individual by electrocution. When used, the condemned person is strapped to a specially built wooden chair and electrocuted through electrodes fastened on the head and leg. This execution method, ...

. Although Lee insists on taking the stand in his own defense, he mysteriously refuses to talk when Weldon presses him. Roberts begins his cross-examination by asking Oswald why there is a picture of him with a rifle, a palmprint of his on the murder weapon and a money order buying the

Mannlicher-Carcano Carcano is the frequently used name for a series of Italian bolt-action, magazine-fed, repeating military rifles and carbines. Introduced in 1891, this rifle was chambered for the rimless 6.5×52mm Carcano round (''Cartuccia Modello 1895''). It ...

which killed Kennedy. Oswald merely says the evidence is faked. The prosecutor applies an unusual method of cross-examination by mentioning an argument Oswald and Marina had the night before the assassination when Marina wanted to watch JFK on TV and Lee kept turning the set off over and over. Roberts demands "Isn't that why you decided to kill President John F. Kennedy, because Marina wanted to watch him on TV?" In his only display of emotion during the trial, Oswald screams a denial. When Roberts points this out, Oswald responds that any person would react that way if someone pries into their personal lives. The film then ends as it began with the prisoner being led back into the courtroom. Dallas Police Detective

Jim Leavelle James Robert Leavelle (August 23, 1920 – August 29, 2019) was a Dallas Police Department homicide detective who, on November 24, 1963, was escorting John F. Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey Oswald through the basement of Dallas Police headquarters ...

made a brief cameo appearance playing himself in this scene. Oswald is then shot and killed by Ruby in an eerie return to reality. It flashes on the screen that the makers of the film cannot provide the role of a jury and the final verdict is ours alone.

Cast

as Anson "Kip" Roberts *

as Matthew Arnold Weldon *

Frances Lee McCain Frances Lee McCain (born July 28, 1943) is an American actress. Early life and education McCain was born in York, Pennsylvania and grew up in New York, Illinois and Colorado in addition to California. She graduated from Ripon College with ...

as Jan Holder *

Lawrence Pressman Lawrence Pressman (born David M. Pressman; July 10, 1939) is an American actor, probably best known for roles on ''Doogie Howser, M.D.'', ''Ladies' Man'', a recurring role on '' Profiler'', the title character on ''Mulligan's Stew'' and as a f ...

as Paul Ewbank * Charlie Robinson as Melvin Johnson *

George Wyner George Wyner (born October 20, 1945) is an American film and television actor. Wyner graduated from Syracuse University in 1968 as a drama major and was an in-demand character actor by the early 1970s. Wyner has made guest appearances in over 10 ...

as Ed Blandings *Mo Malone as

Marina Oswald Marina Nikolayevna Oswald Porter ( Prusakova; russian: Марина Николаевна Прусакова; born July 17, 1941) is the Russian-American widow of Lee Harvey Oswald, the assassin of US President John F. Kennedy. Early life Porte ...

* Marisa Pavan as Evita Alesio * Jack Collins as Judge Claymore

Featuring (alphabetically)

*Ed Abry *Jeff Alexander *David Beidelman *Maggie Burns *

Burke Byrnes Burke Byrnes (born December 9, 1937) is an American actor, best known as the voice for Daddy Topps in ''The Land Before Time ''The Land Before Time'' is an American animated film series and media franchise created by Judy Freudberg and Ton ...

*John Chappell *

Charles Cyphers Charles Cyphers (born July 28, 1939) is an American actor who is known in the horror movie community for his work in the films of John Carpenter, especially his role as Sheriff Leigh Brackett in Carpenter's 1978 movie ''Halloween''. He reprised ...

as Michael Brandon *Desmond Dhooge *Joe Edwards *John Gage *John Galt *Tony Garrett *

Ellen Geer Ellen Ware Geer is an American actress, professor, and theatre director. Personal life Geer was born in New York City, the daughter of actors Herta Ware and Will Geer. Her father was best-known for playing Grandpa Zebulon "Zeb" Walton on ''The ...

*Buddy Gilbert as Harry Cabot * Robert Ginnaven *Joe Griffith * James Harrell *Susan Heldfond *Harlan Jordan * William Jordan as James Kleist *Elsie Julian *Hugh Lampman *Ray Le Pere *Don McCord *Billy Dan Millikan *Jaki Morrison *Peyton Park *

Robert Phalen Robert Anthony Phalen (May 10, 1937 – December 6, 1995) was an American actor who starred in films and on television. Life and career He was born on May 10, 1937 in San Francisco, California, where he attended George Washington High School, wa ...

* William Phipps as Captain Will FritzDallas Police Captain John Will Fritz
at

Texas State Historical Association The Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) is a non-profit educational organization, dedicated to documenting the history of Texas. It was founded in Austin, Texas, on March 2, 1897. , TSHA moved their offices from Austin to the University of N ...

*Jack Rader *Alex Rodine *Eddie Thomas *

Bill Thurman Bill Thurman (November 4, 1920 – April 13, 1995) was an American film and television actor. From the early 1960s until his death in 1995, he frequently appeared in B movies and independent films, often playing "redneck types" or sheriffs. He wo ...

*Annabelle Weenick as

Marguerite Oswald Marguerite Frances Claverie Oswald Ekdahl (also known as Marguerite Oswald), (July 19, 1907 – January 17, 1981) was the mother of Lee Harvey Oswald. Early life and family New Orleans and Dallas Oswald was born Marguerite Frances Claverie in 1 ...

*Billy Vance White *Bill Woods :;Uncredited * G. D. Spradlin as Doctor providing witness testimony

Reviews

In a critical review for ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'',

Tom Shales Thomas William Shales (born November 3, 1944) is an American writer and retired critic of television programming and operations. He was a television critic for ''The Washington Post'' from 1977 to 2010, for which Shales received the Pulitzer Pr ...

wrote that the film "is beyond reprehensible as a piece of entertainment" and called it a "sorry charade".

References

External links

*
''The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald'' (1977)
at BFI Film Forever * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Trial Of Lee Harvey Oswald, The 1977 television films 1977 films ABC network original films American television films 1970s English-language films 1977 drama films American alternate history films Films set in 1964 Films set in Dallas Films about the assassination of John F. Kennedy American courtroom films Films directed by David Greene Films scored by Fred Karlin Cultural depictions of Lee Harvey Oswald 1970s American films