My very tenous link to the Kennedy Assasination - Stories for my grandchildren

I ran across an article in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram about workers, engaged in a years-long effort to make electronic copies of old case files and destroy their paper counterparts, found an old Tarrant County court file that included documents trying to prevent the late, famed attorney Melvin Belli from representing Jack Ruby, who shot Lee Harvey Oswald.

The two files contained the efforts of local attorneys to encourage the Texas State Bar to prevent Belli from representing Ruby, who gunned down Oswald on live television after he was arrested for killing President John F. Kennedy. Belli tried to prove that Ruby was legally insane when he shot Oswald in Dallas more than 50 years ago. But Ruby was found guilty of murdering Oswald and sentenced to die.

One of the documents is a letter that Belli, based in San Francisco, sent to 96th District Judge Fisher T. Denny stated in part, “I have no intention of being bound by (attorneys’) advice or suggestions. Knowing the facts, the State Bar of Texas may act as it is advised, and I say this respectfully.” Also in the file are letters from attorneys throughout the state asking the Texas Bar to sanction Belli for his comments. Eventually the cases were dismissed, according to the article.

So how does this have anything to do with me?

In 1964, I was working for a company called Fidelity Films. Our primary task was to film the Herald of Truth television series, but the company often contracted for commercial and sponsored work. In this case, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation hired us to provide a film crew for an interview with Melvin Belli to be aired later over the CBC network, and I was the sound man on that crew.

Belli, a colorful character known as "The King of Torts" (and by detractors as 'Melvin Bellicose') was famous for his many celebrity clients, including Zsa Zsa Gabor, Errol Flynn, Chuck Berry, Muhammad Ali, the Rolling Stones, Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, Martha Mitchell, Lana Turner, Tony Curtis, and Mae West.He was defending Jack Ruby for no charge, apparently for the publicity alone.

We set up in a downtown Dallas hotel and representatives from the famous attorney were there to set some ground rules for the CBC crew - and for us. An emphasis of those guidelines was that the attorney's name was pronounced "BELL eye," NOT "Belly."

A bit later, Mr Belli and his entourage swept into the room, 5 or 6 assistants trailing behind him, Our crew chief stepped up to greet him and said - you guessed it - "Good morning, Mr. Belly."

 I don't remember anything about the interview itself, but I do know that the CBC didn't use us again. And that's my connection to this historical event.