William Bruce Pitzer (April 13, 1917 - October 29, 1966) was an officer of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

whose death is speculated to have had some connection with the

assassination of John F. Kennedy John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, was assassinated on Friday, November 22, 1963, at 12:30 p.m. CST in Dallas, Texas, while riding in a presidential motorcade through Dealey Plaza. Kennedy was in the vehicle with ...

Life and career

Pitzer joined the Navy reserve in 1934 at the age of seventeen and trained as a

Radiologic technologist Radiographers, also known as radiologic technologists, diagnostic radiographers and medical radiation technologists are healthcare professionals who specialize in the imaging of human anatomy for the diagnosis and treatment of pathology. Radio ...

. After discharge in 1939, he worked for three years as chief technologist at the Episcopal Ear, Eye and Nose Hospital. He re-enlisted in 1942 after the United States entered

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. His obituaries listed him as "a consultant to the visual arts department of Montgomery Junior College".

Death

At the time of 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 ...

, Pitzer worked at the

National Naval Medical Center National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

(NNMC) where Kennedy's

autopsy An autopsy (post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of death or to evaluate any di ...

took place. Pitzer's alleged possession of autopsy-related film and photographs is briefly discussed in the television documentary ''

The Men Who Killed Kennedy ''The Men Who Killed Kennedy'' is a video documentary series by British television network ITV that depicts the assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963. Originally broadcast in 1988 in two parts (with a subsequent st ...

''.''

'', Episode 6. A fellow naval officer of Pitzer's named Dennis David says that he viewed such materials in Pitzer's office at the NNMC, and that they appeared to contradict the official findings of the autopsy. At the time of his death, Pitzer held the rank of Lieutenant Commander. He was found in the NNMC television studio next to his office with a single gunshot wound to the head. Pitzer's death occurred the same day that the Kennedy family agreed, through their attorney, to release to the National Archives several items related to the autopsy of the fallen president, including photographs and x-rays. The Naval investigation into Pitzer's death reported no evidence of foul play. He is buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

Allegations surrounding death

Dennis David's recollections of the autopsy and of Pitzer's materials were first made public in an anonymous 1975 interview with the Waukegan, Illinois ''

News Sun The ''Lake County News-Sun'' is a regional newspaper based in Gurnee, Illinois, United States, that predominantly covers news for Lake County, Illinois, a part of the Chicago metropolitan area. It is currently owned by the Chicago Tribune Media ...

''. Since that time, Pitzer's name (often accompanied by misreported circumstances of his death) has appeared in many printed or televised lists of "suspicious deaths" having an alleged connection to the Kennedy assassination.Jones, Penn Jr. ''Forgive My Grief'', Volumes I-IV. self-published, late 1960s-early 1970s. See ''Vol. III'', p. 95-96 for Pitzer.Livingstone, Harrison and Robert Groden. ''High Treason''. 1989.

Berkley Books Berkley Books is an imprint of the Penguin Group. History Berkley Books began as an independent company in 1955. It was founded as "Chic News Company" by Charles Byrne and Frederick Klein, who had worked for Avon; they quickly renamed it Berk ...

, New York. Though Dennis David had been interviewed for ''Best Evidence'' by David S. Lifton several years earlier, ''High Treason'' was the first time his name appeared alongside Pitzer's. Moench, Doug. ''The

Big Book of Conspiracies ''The Big Book Of'' is a series of graphic novel anthologies published by American company DC Comics imprint Paradox Press. Publication history The ''Big Books'' were published between 1994 and 2000. Just over half of them (ten out of seventeen) w ...

'', p. 15. 1995. Paradox Press, New York. Lt. Col. Dan Marvin (US Army, retired) claimed that when he saw such a list in 1993, it brought back to his memory an incident in the summer of 1965 in which he was asked by the

Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

to kill Pitzer. The author who Marvin engaged to co-write a book on the subject came to have serious doubts about Marvin's story. Dennis David alleged that Pitzer was left-handed but the bullet entry wound was on the right side of his head, from which David inferred that Pitzer may have been murdered. Family members have stated that Pitzer was in fact right-handed. Pitzer is also sometimes said to have been present at the Kennedy autopsy at the NNMC, though he was not among those noted in official records.

References

External links

Allan Eaglesham's essays on Pitzer's death
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pitzer, William Bruce 1917 births 1966 deaths Urban legends People associated with the assassination of John F. Kennedy Burials at Arlington National Cemetery United States Navy officers United States Navy personnel of World War II