John Pleshette Oral History

Object number2015.001.0164

Date12/16/2015

ClassificationsOral Histories

Oral history interview subject John Pleshette

Oral history interviewer Stephen Fagin

ObjectOral history

Credit LineOral History Collection/The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza

MediumBorn digital (.wav file)

DimensionsDuration: 39 Minutes

Collections

All Online Objects
Oral History Collection

DescriptionAudio oral history interview with John Pleshette. A longtime actor and screenwriter, Pleshette was part of the original off-Broadway production of "MacBird!" (1967), a political satire blending the Kennedy assassination with William Shakespeare’s "Macbeth." A decade later he portrayed Lee Harvey Oswald in the two-part ABC television movie, "The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald" (1977), much of which was filmed on location in Dallas. Interview conducted by telephone on December 16, 2015 by Stephen Fagin. The interview is thirty-nine minutes long.

Curatorial Commentary

At the 2025 Legacies Dallas History Conference, I detailed the making of the 1977 ABC miniseries, The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald, as part of a presentation on film and television productions that shot on location in Dealey Plaza over the years. That program may be viewed here: Shot in Dealey Plaza: JFK Film and TV Productions - YouTube. - Stephen Fagin, Curator

Curatorial Commentary

MacBird!, a satirical play by Barbara Garson, an anti-war activist at the University of California, Berkeley, opened at the Village Gate theater in New York City on February 22, 1967, a little more than three years after the Kennedy assassination. Prolific film and television actor Stacy Keach portrayed MacBird (a parody of Lyndon Johnson), while Lady MacBird (Lady Bird Johnson) was played by future Golden Girls star Rue McClanahan. A satirical version of the Kennedys, the O'Duncs, were portrayed by Paul Hecht (John), William Devane (Robert), and John Pleshette (Ted). The play closed in New York in January 1968 after 386 performances. Different casts performed MacBird! in Los Angeles and San Francisco in 1968.

Ironically, after portraying a parody of Kennedy brothers Robert and Ted in MacBird!, John Pleshette (who later portrayed Lee Harvey Oswald on television) and William Devane (who later portrayed both John and Robert Kennedy in two television productions) were both part of the main cast of popular primetime soap opera Knots Landing (1979-1993). However, they never reunited on screen since Pleshette, an original cast member, left the show after four seasons, and Devane joined the cast in the fifth season. - Stephen Fagin, Curator

Curatorial Commentary

The text of the play, MacBird!, was published by "Grassy Knoll Press" in 1966. A paperback copy is part of the Museum's Library Collection and may be found here: Bibliovation | Details for MacBird.

The book, The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald by Robert E. Thompson, based on the ABC miniseries, was published by Ace Books in 1977. A paperback copy is part of the Museum's Library Collection and may be found here: Bibliovation | Details for The trial of Lee Harvey Oswald.

Although the 1977 ABC miniseries, The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald, was commercially released on VHS, to date it has never been officially released on DVD or legitamately available on streaming platforms. However, multiple bootleg copies have turned up online over the years. This miniseries is not to be confused with the black and white 1964 independent film, The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald, filmed in Dallas (though not in Dealey Plaza), or the two-part 1986 production, On Trial: Lee Harvey Oswald, a forerunner to reality television in which London Weekend Television staged a "trial" for the accused assassin with an actual Dallas County judge and jury, prominent attorneys, and actual participants in the events of November 22, 1963, to provide testimony. - Stephen Fagin, Curator