Dallas is set to host multiple events to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
At approximately 12:30 p.m. on November 22, 1963, Kennedy was riding in a motorcade when he was shot in the neck and head as the procession passed the Texas School Book Depository. Kennedy was pronounced dead at Parkland Memorial Hospital just 30 minutes later, according to the JFK Presidential Library and Museum.
The Texas Theatre in Dallas recently hosted the world premiere of National Geographic’s docuseries on the assassination, JFK: One Day in America, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
The City of Dallas announced a variety of events and exhibits being held this month in commemoration of the occasion.
The first of these is the “Two Days in Texas Special Exhibit” organized by The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. The exhibit will explore Kennedy’s trip to Texas, featuring accounts in his own words as well as from eyewitnesses.
The exhibit will debut on November 8 and continue through June 16 of next year.
An updated version of the 2013 documentary City of Hate: Dallas and the Assassination will be shown at the Dallas Public Library. Quin Mathews, the film’s director, will be present at the showing for a Q&A.
This event will be held from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on November 18.
The Texas Theatre will also be putting on its own exhibit, “JFK 60: Selections from the John F. Kennedy/Dallas Police Department Collection of the Dallas Municipal Archives,” showcasing original photographs and documents connected to the Dallas Police Department’s investigation of the assassination. The exhibit “will highlight the processes and methods of crime scene investigation and reporting in use in 1963.”
The exhibit will be open from November 20 to December 8.
The Friends of the Municipal Archives will host a fundraising event celebrating the release of Darwin Payne’s new memoir, Behind the Scenes: Covering the JFK Assassination, which will feature a book signing and conversation with the author as well as an opportunity to view official investigation documents and photos. There is a suggested donation of $20.
The fundraiser will be held on November 21 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Ridgewood-Belcher Recreation Center.
Finally, the Dallas Municipal Archives will also hold an event at Top Ten Records, granting visitors an opportunity to meet City Archivist John Slate and Assistant City Archivist Kristi Nedderman and learn about “Oak Cliff’s many connections to the events of November 22, 1963.” Originals and facsimiles of documents and photographs will be available for viewing.
The event will take place at 1 p.m. on November 22.