From jmcadams@primenet.com Mon Jan 27 13:13:14 CST 1997 Article: 5564 of alt.conspiracy.jfk.moderated Path: news.primenet.com!jmcadams From: jmcadams@primenet.com (John McAdams) Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy.jfk.moderated Subject: Stockwell Critique of Files Story - 4 Date: 23 Jan 1997 21:18:14 -0700 Organization: PrimeNet Lines: 61 Approved: jmcadams@primenet.com Message-ID: <5c9d66$li@nnrp1.news.primenet.com> X-Posted-By: jmcadams@206.165.5.111 (jmcadams) Xref: news.primenet.com alt.conspiracy.jfk.moderated:5564 FROM: John R. Stockwell, 105475,2627 Re: Vernon/Files, Part IV In short, Vernon did NOT permit any objective, 3rd party scrutiny of Files's story (altho he paid lip service to the concept). It never happened. Vernon remains the only one today who has had more than passing DIRECT access to Files's story. And he eventually signed Jim Maars as the writer of the Joe West/Jimmy Files story. Maars was a good choice, because of his history of lightweight (his Crossfire has no references, no footnotes....in the first edition not even an Index), noncritical, pro-conspiracy writings about the JFK assassination. 4 years went by. Vernon suffered through financial disaster (he really did invest thousands of hours and dollars into this project) and divorce. Moved to California and remarried. Joined the CompuServe JFK Debate forum >from which he was soon banished for seemingly compulsive, provocative dialogue.. Throughout these years Barry Adelman and Dick Clark returned again and again, trying to broker a deal to publish the Files story on network television. Eventually, in 1996, Vernon sort of gave up on his dream of developing the project into a major production. He sold it to a Chicago company (I believe MPI) via Dick Clark. MPI published Files's bare "confession" through Blockbuster. The strategy was to float a trial balloon and hopefully to build interest that would snowball into a lucrative venture. Mr. Walid Ali, of MPI hired veteran filmmaker Tony Potter to produce a show for network television.... They contacted me to replicate my "Blue Texas" ballistics tests. I told them these superficial tests were so-so interesting (the melons we shot jumped the opposite direction from Alvarez's), but not substantive enough to warrant inclusion in their show. However, I offered to give them an authoritative critique of the Jimmy Files story.... Dealing with Vernon, they seemed to be having doubts; they flew me to Chicago. I took virtually my entire library of assassination books, extensively tabbed. I found they were both novices to the assassination. Potter had not read any of the substantive books. Nor had Walid. But Potter was working fulltime on a production of the Files story more or less at face value. I challenged them instead to use the Jimmy Files story to do THE definitive critical work on the Kennedy assassination, noting that I believe such a work, properly done, could win the undying gratitude of the American people....and probably win an Emmy. Ali seemed to be interested (and promised I would be hired as a consultant if they pursued my approach).... Potter less so--he expressed instead interest in doing a rehash of the assassination, obliquely using the Files material. They did not get back to me.... I am now told they are completing a production they hope to sell and air on network television in the spring. According to the terms of the sale of the property, Vernon is now completely out of the production.... and may be trying to jumpstart his music career. Next Edition: the published essence of the Jimmy Files story.