It is impossible to correct every error
in Assassination Science. There's just not enough time in my lifetime
or enough hard drive space on my server. But I will attempt to address
some of the "anomalies" which its authors have claimed are in the Zapruder
film and will expand this article to cover other "anomalies" in the future.
1. On page 321 Dr. Mantik notes that the B&W
(negative) example of Zapruder frame 316 on page 322 shows the shadow of
a woman broken into two parts. The optical illusion is partly due to the
extremely poor quality of the film which Marler rented. After many generations
of copying, a print will build up contrast. But if Mantik had simply compared
frame 316 to frame 313 on page 262 as published by the Warren Commission,
he would have seen that the upper line was always there in the upper sprocket
hole area several frames back. When the shadow disappears into the sprocket
hole area, we can still see the line above it in the upper sprocket hole
area which has been there for many frames.
Below is frame 316 from page 322 which I have converted from negative
to positive::
So, what is that preexisting line? It is a line of
contrast, as can be seen even in the color copy of frame 313. It is the
bottom edge of the ghost image in the upper sprocket hole area. The ghost
image is a double exposure and in this instance the source for the double
exposure was lighter than the dark grass so the difference between the
two exposures created a contrast line at the bottom edge of the upper sprocket
hole ghost image area (or tab). On better quality prints you can see that
the woman's shadow fades out as it goes farther into the sprocket hole
area, but it is still there. So, the line is not broken. The upper line
was always there.
Below is a color copy of frame 313 showing the brightness of the upper
sprocket hole ghost image:
I would urge you to buy the MPI release of
the Zapruder film to see the evidence for yourself. Most of the supposed
"anomalies" do not exist in the original Zapruder film and are merely artifacts
of bad handling and poor copying. One caveat, however. MPI could not correct
all the damage that was done to the original Zapruder film when LIFE had
possession of it. Several frames are missing, such as 155, 156, 208, 209,
210, 211, 484, 485, and 486, and frame 212 is still a splice with frame
207. In addition, MPI made a couple of mistakes of their own. Frames 331
and 332 are reversed.