Phil Willis Slide #8 (Willis 6)

Phil Willis' entire family joined him in Dealey Plaza to see the president's motorcade: his wife, Marilyn, their daughters Linda and Rosemary, and Marilyn's parents, Mr. & Mrs. William H. Stubblefield.  Neither Rosemary nor the Stubblefields were questioned by the Warren Commission, although the other members of the family were interviewed. - Gary Mack, Curator

In addition to witnessing the assassination of President Kennedy, Phil Willis was also present at another historic event: the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. A second lieutenant in the Army Air Corps, Willis was assigned to the 86th Observation Squadron at Bellows Field in Oahu, Hawaii, during the Japanese attack. During World War II, he flew a total of 52 combat missions.

Mr. Willis passed away in January 1995, before he could record an oral history with the Museum.  However, his wife, Marilyn Willis, participated in a videotaped group interview with other assassination eyewitnesses on November 22, 1996. - Stephen Fagin, Curator

Phil Willis took this photograph approximately thirty seconds after the fatal shot was fired. Seen from behind, the running man with the crewcut in the near-center of this photograph is eyewitness Pierce Allman, program director at WFAA Radio. Shortly after this photo was taken, Allman believes that he encountered Lee Harvey Oswald exiting the Texas School Book Depository. Allman went inside, claimed a telephone, and made a now-famous breathless live report on the president's shooting from inside the Depository. -- Stephen Fagin, Curator