/internal/media/dispatcher/27426/fullPencil sketch of the Ruby trial courtroom by Gary Artzt02/25/1964Framed: 22 3/4 × 28 1/2 in. (57.8 × 72.4 cm)
Matboard: 21 3/4 × 27 1/4 in. (55.2 × 69.2 cm)
Sketch: 17 × 22 in. (43.2 × 55.9 cm)Paper, foamGary Artzt Collection/The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza2002.058.00300Original courtroom pencil sketch on paper from Jack Ruby murder trial by Gary Artzt, with caption at bottom, center edge: "2/25/64 / Jack Ruby murder trial / Gary Artzt [signature underneath caption]".
The sketch is of Judge Joe B. Brown seated above all the other figures in the drawing at the judge's bench with the American flag and the Texas state flag flanking him. The front of the courtroom is shown in the drawing with a figure drawn in the witness stand to the proper left of Judge Brown. A single juror is drawn along the far right edge of the paper but is featureless so cannot be identified. The prosecution and defense attorneys are seated at tables in front of the judge and are drawn from behind. The stenographer or court recorder is seated facing away from the viewer between the witness stand and the District Attorney's table. Some architectural features are drawn in the image like the pilasters and cornice behind the judge's bench and the ceiling fans in the courtroom.
This black and white sketch is on gray paper that is mounted on matboard and placed between foam board and Plexiglas.
Gary Artzt was a sketch artist who covered the Ruby trial for KRLD.Art6493569.215138430372.390144780355.880111760257.785115570243.180086360255.245110490221858Courtroom sketch0E-100E-100E-10Original courtroom sketch drawn during the Jack Ruby murder trial by Gary Artzt, who covered the trial for Dallas CBS affiliate KRLD.
In the drawing, Judge Joe B. Brown is seated at the bench, flanked by the American and Texas flags. A witness sits in the stand, and a single juror is visible on the right edge. At tables in front of the judge, attorneys for both the prosecution and defense are seated, while the court stenographer sits with back to the viewer.
The bottom of the sketch is signed at the center edge: "2/25/64 / Jack Ruby murder trial / Gary Artzt".SketchesArtworkJack Ruby trialJuryTrialsBrown, Judge Joe B.Ruby, JackBelli, MelvinTonahill, Joe H.Wade, Henry M.Alexander, William F.Artzt, GaryDallas County Criminal Courts BuildingDallas County District Attorney's OfficeKRLD-TVDallasSince cameras were not permitted inside Judge Brown's courtroom during the Ruby trial, media outlets relied upon sketch artists to provide visuals for readers and viewers around the world eager for a glimpse of what was called at the time "the trial of the century." Dallas CBS affiliate KRLD-TV used members of its studio art department, including Gary Artzt, to create sketches of the trial on a daily basis. Other KRLD-TV sketch artists included Charles Fisher and Ken Hansen. - Stephen Fagin, CuratorThis item, along with materials from the DA's Ruby file (which is on loan to the Museum) and from the Museum's permanent collection, briefly appeared in a temporary display on the Museum's seventh floor in 2017. - Lindsey Richardson, Curator of CollectionsTexas native Gary E. Artzt (1935-2001) was a noted western and wildlife artist whose paintings can be found in several museum and private collections in the United States. At the time of the Kennedy assassination, Artzt, then age 28, was working in the art department of Dallas CBS affiliate KRLD-TV and was assigned to cover the Jack Ruby trial in 1964 as a sketch artist. In 2002, the Museum acquired two of his original courtroom sketches from the Ruby trial as well as a collection of black and white photographs of other trial sketches, his press badge, and other materials. -- Stephen Fagin, Curator