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Shadow Play: The Unsolved Murder of Robert F. Kennedy
This updated edition for the 50th anniversary of Robert F. Kennedy’s murder explores ignored witness accounts, coerced testimony, bullet-hole evidence, and other issues surrounding the political homicide, and is the basis for the new podcast, The RFK Tapes, which debuted at #1 on the iTunes chart, available now.
On June 4, 1968, just after he had declared victory in the California presidential primary, Robert F. Kennedy was gunned down in the kitchen of the Ambassador Hotel. Captured a few feet away, gun in hand, was a young Palestinian-American named Sirhan Sirhan. The case against Sirhan was declared “open and shut” and the court proceedings against him were billed as “the trial of the century”; American justice at its fairest and most sure. But was it? By careful examination of the police files, hidden for twenty years, Shadow Play explores the chilling significance of altered evidence, ignored witnesses, and coerced testimony. It challenges the official assumptions and conclusions about this most troubling, and perhaps still unsolved, political murder.
On June 4, 1968, just after he had declared victory in the California presidential primary, Robert F. Kennedy was gunned down in the kitchen of the Ambassador Hotel. Captured a few feet away, gun in hand, was a young Palestinian-American named Sirhan Sirhan. The case against Sirhan was declared “open and shut” and the court proceedings against him were billed as “the trial of the century”; American justice at its fairest and most sure. But was it? By careful examination of the police files, hidden for twenty years, Shadow Play explores the chilling significance of altered evidence, ignored witnesses, and coerced testimony. It challenges the official assumptions and conclusions about this most troubling, and perhaps still unsolved, political murder.
368 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 1997
40 people are currently reading
1371 people want to read
About the author
William Klaber
7 books43 followers William Klaber is a part-time journalist who lives with his wife Jean in upstate New York. In 1990 he joined a group of researchers who were going through the newly opened LAPD files concerning the murder of Robert Kennedy who had been murdered in Los Angeles in 1968 moments after winning the California presidential primary. A young gunman, Sirhan Sirhan, was caught at the scene, but despite of the seeming open and shut nature of the case, the police files were kept secret. Why?
What the researchers found answered that question, and in 1992 the group filed a formal Request to the LA County Grand Jury asking for a special prosecutor to investigate the LAPD for “willful and corrupt misconduct” in its investigation of the Kennedy murder. The Request was accompanied by 800 pages of exhibits drawn from the files which documented the LAPD’s “destruction of evidence, falsification of evidence and coercion of witnesses.”
When the Grand Jury failed to act, Mr. Klaber went back to New York where he produced a public radio documentary that featured startling audio tapes that had been hidden in the police files. The one-hour documentary was titled The RFK Tapes, and it played on 160 public radio stations across the country. So compelling was this new material that Time magazine gave the program a full-page review. A book offer from St. Martin’s Press followed, and Professor Philip Melanson joined Mr. Klaber in this endeavor. Shadow Play came out in 1997 and it explored the many newly opened questions surrounding the Kennedy murder. Since 1997 there have been a handful of significant developments in the case, and these are fully explored in the new edition of Shadow Play: The Unsolved Murder of Robert Kennedy.
What the researchers found answered that question, and in 1992 the group filed a formal Request to the LA County Grand Jury asking for a special prosecutor to investigate the LAPD for “willful and corrupt misconduct” in its investigation of the Kennedy murder. The Request was accompanied by 800 pages of exhibits drawn from the files which documented the LAPD’s “destruction of evidence, falsification of evidence and coercion of witnesses.”
When the Grand Jury failed to act, Mr. Klaber went back to New York where he produced a public radio documentary that featured startling audio tapes that had been hidden in the police files. The one-hour documentary was titled The RFK Tapes, and it played on 160 public radio stations across the country. So compelling was this new material that Time magazine gave the program a full-page review. A book offer from St. Martin’s Press followed, and Professor Philip Melanson joined Mr. Klaber in this endeavor. Shadow Play came out in 1997 and it explored the many newly opened questions surrounding the Kennedy murder. Since 1997 there have been a handful of significant developments in the case, and these are fully explored in the new edition of Shadow Play: The Unsolved Murder of Robert Kennedy.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
December 22, 2012
Like most people I believed the assassination of RFK solved upon the conclusion of the trial of Sirhan Sirhan. Coauthored by a political science professor and a journalist, Shadow Play has caused me to put this segment of my beliefs in suspension.
The most damning evidence against the government's case was the photographically documented recovery of more bullets at the crime scene than were carried in the accused gun when fully loaded--and the subsequent destruction and/or loss of elements of such evidence. That certainly wasn't all, but that alone suggests at least another gunman.
Most interesting was the discussion of Sirhan's mental condition, then and now, and the possibility that he was subjected to some kind of brainwashing. He's still alive and has been interviewed and has consistently claimed amnesia with such sincerity that he himself has believed that he may have killed the senator. After all, there are the weird notebooks written in his hand while he was studying Rosicrucianism, notebooks with scrawls apparently written against Kennedy, scrawls suggesting prior intent despite other evidences that he and his family were supporters of RFK's candidacy for the presidency.
"Sirhan Sirhan". Like most of the public, I'd just assumed he was an angry Palestinian and bought into the story that he was angry about Kennedy's support for military sales to Israel. In fact, his is a Christian family. So much for motive.
Previous reading of research in mind control conducted either by government agencies or companies and individuals under contract with the government has led me to wonder, along with the authors, whether Sirhan was a victim of such efforts. Subsequent reading and recent photographic and cinematic evidence that the Ambassador Hotel hosted not only thousands of RFK supporters but also several disgruntled, mostly former, intelligence agents who had been involved in the abortive Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba has only served to increase my doubts about the official story.
The most damning evidence against the government's case was the photographically documented recovery of more bullets at the crime scene than were carried in the accused gun when fully loaded--and the subsequent destruction and/or loss of elements of such evidence. That certainly wasn't all, but that alone suggests at least another gunman.
Most interesting was the discussion of Sirhan's mental condition, then and now, and the possibility that he was subjected to some kind of brainwashing. He's still alive and has been interviewed and has consistently claimed amnesia with such sincerity that he himself has believed that he may have killed the senator. After all, there are the weird notebooks written in his hand while he was studying Rosicrucianism, notebooks with scrawls apparently written against Kennedy, scrawls suggesting prior intent despite other evidences that he and his family were supporters of RFK's candidacy for the presidency.
"Sirhan Sirhan". Like most of the public, I'd just assumed he was an angry Palestinian and bought into the story that he was angry about Kennedy's support for military sales to Israel. In fact, his is a Christian family. So much for motive.
Previous reading of research in mind control conducted either by government agencies or companies and individuals under contract with the government has led me to wonder, along with the authors, whether Sirhan was a victim of such efforts. Subsequent reading and recent photographic and cinematic evidence that the Ambassador Hotel hosted not only thousands of RFK supporters but also several disgruntled, mostly former, intelligence agents who had been involved in the abortive Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba has only served to increase my doubts about the official story.
April 13, 2018
Shadow Play: The Murder of Robert F. Kennedy, the Trial of Sirhan Sirhan & the Failure of American Justice by authors William Klaber and Philip H. Melanson will leave the reader wondering many things about this event from a past era in US history. Nothing is ever as simple as it may seem, and this was no open and shut clear case of the man with the gun being the only guilty party.
In this book, the authors go behind the scenes and gather information which has been made available in a different political and media era. The more I read this book, the angrier I felt at our justice system and the few who control what they think the American Public wants to know or hear. It seems those with political power and money have again been able to shape the news to conform for their own private purposes. How do large pieces of evidence just go missing from the evidence holding rooms, and years later those missing items are cited as evidence for a theory in a new document? Because someone with money and power wanted to change the facts of the case.
My review should be about the content of the book, I know. But the authors have been very successful in raising doubts as to our perceived reality of what really happened, and to bring forward information the police, investigators, lawyers, and judges wanted to control.
I am glad I read the book and I have many questions which I know may never be answered.
I can remember when both Kennedy brothers were killed and the aftermath of anxiety and the disturbance people seem to feel. When President John F. Kennedy was assassinated our school principal called all the students to the auditorium to pray for the family of the slain President and for our country. Later I remember watching on my aunts Black & White TV speeches Bobby Kennedy gave during the campaign. And when he was killed, my aunt called me in to watch the news coverage, over and over as she cried. When I asked her why she was crying so hard for someone she had never met, she hugged me and said, "I care because he was a human being trying to do good, he was some mother's child, and some woman's husband, it is very sad, because you never know what that person could have done for this country."
Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.
In this book, the authors go behind the scenes and gather information which has been made available in a different political and media era. The more I read this book, the angrier I felt at our justice system and the few who control what they think the American Public wants to know or hear. It seems those with political power and money have again been able to shape the news to conform for their own private purposes. How do large pieces of evidence just go missing from the evidence holding rooms, and years later those missing items are cited as evidence for a theory in a new document? Because someone with money and power wanted to change the facts of the case.
My review should be about the content of the book, I know. But the authors have been very successful in raising doubts as to our perceived reality of what really happened, and to bring forward information the police, investigators, lawyers, and judges wanted to control.
I am glad I read the book and I have many questions which I know may never be answered.
I can remember when both Kennedy brothers were killed and the aftermath of anxiety and the disturbance people seem to feel. When President John F. Kennedy was assassinated our school principal called all the students to the auditorium to pray for the family of the slain President and for our country. Later I remember watching on my aunts Black & White TV speeches Bobby Kennedy gave during the campaign. And when he was killed, my aunt called me in to watch the news coverage, over and over as she cried. When I asked her why she was crying so hard for someone she had never met, she hugged me and said, "I care because he was a human being trying to do good, he was some mother's child, and some woman's husband, it is very sad, because you never know what that person could have done for this country."
Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.
May 12, 2018
I tend to read anything I can about John F. Kennedy and recently started reading also more about his brother, Robert. I was younger when both men were assassinated but am very intriqued by them both. This book was an eye-opener. Once I started reading it, I could not put it down. The writing is clear and the evidence is presented a manner where you can come to your own conclusions. Very good book. I highly recommend. Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the ARC of this book in return for my honest review.
December 19, 2017
Prior to reading this book I have become quite au fait with the RFK case. My book collection includes the publications from Turner and Christian, Morrow, Moldea, O'Sullivan, the recently published 'Polka Dot File' by Fernando Faura and Philip Melanson's 'The Robert F. Kennedy Assassination' (1991).
'Shadow Play', co-authored by Melanson and William Klaber (1997) not only covers the main points of the events at the Ambassador Hotel in June '68, along with the so called investigation performed by both the LAPD and FBI that Mack Sennett couldn't dream up. However it is the trial of Sirhan that predominates, followed by updates on the many parole hearings, FOIA requests and the civil case brought by Scott Enyart in 1996.
I loved this book. If I could award more that five stars, I would. The diagnosis of this whole affair is written up with intelligence and unbiased analysis and without any of my scathing sarcasm and cynicism. (How do they do it?)
It is approaching fifty years that Sirhan Bishara Sirhan has been incarcerated, having been found guilty of killing Bobby Kennedy. Yet the case remains full of mystery. Suppressed witness statements indicate strongly that Sirhan was not alone that night. (For further highly disturbing evidence of the girl in the polka dot dress, interested readers should consult Faura's book.) Evidence of another shooter(s) at the scene is almost certain, as per Noguchi's autopsy findings and witness statements. Even though DeWolfer's ballistic investigations were incompetent it remains highly unlikely that the accused was responsible for the angles and the number of shots fired in the Ambassador pantry area. It remains more than a mystery, even after this length of time, what the motive was behind Sirhan's actions that night. More the fact that even under hypnosis, he has no memory of his actions.
For myself the most disturbing aspect of this tragedy is that the foremost logical explanation is that RFK was killed in a conspiracy that involved a dupe, or to use Lee Harvey Oswald's phrase, a patsy', as a hypnotised plant while the fatal shot came from behind and at point blank range of the victim. It then becomes quite reasonable to consider CIA's MK/ULTRA programme and their involvement would not surprise me in the least.
'Shadow Play', co-authored by Melanson and William Klaber (1997) not only covers the main points of the events at the Ambassador Hotel in June '68, along with the so called investigation performed by both the LAPD and FBI that Mack Sennett couldn't dream up. However it is the trial of Sirhan that predominates, followed by updates on the many parole hearings, FOIA requests and the civil case brought by Scott Enyart in 1996.
I loved this book. If I could award more that five stars, I would. The diagnosis of this whole affair is written up with intelligence and unbiased analysis and without any of my scathing sarcasm and cynicism. (How do they do it?)
It is approaching fifty years that Sirhan Bishara Sirhan has been incarcerated, having been found guilty of killing Bobby Kennedy. Yet the case remains full of mystery. Suppressed witness statements indicate strongly that Sirhan was not alone that night. (For further highly disturbing evidence of the girl in the polka dot dress, interested readers should consult Faura's book.) Evidence of another shooter(s) at the scene is almost certain, as per Noguchi's autopsy findings and witness statements. Even though DeWolfer's ballistic investigations were incompetent it remains highly unlikely that the accused was responsible for the angles and the number of shots fired in the Ambassador pantry area. It remains more than a mystery, even after this length of time, what the motive was behind Sirhan's actions that night. More the fact that even under hypnosis, he has no memory of his actions.
For myself the most disturbing aspect of this tragedy is that the foremost logical explanation is that RFK was killed in a conspiracy that involved a dupe, or to use Lee Harvey Oswald's phrase, a patsy', as a hypnotised plant while the fatal shot came from behind and at point blank range of the victim. It then becomes quite reasonable to consider CIA's MK/ULTRA programme and their involvement would not surprise me in the least.
August 13, 2018
Well documented information on the existence of others who probably shot Robert F. Kennedy. A coup against the electoral process.
August 4, 2021
A lot in here you probably haven't heard of.
Sirhan fired a gun, but so did someone else as his only held 8 bullets and more bullets than 8 were fired.
Sirhan fired a gun, but so did someone else as his only held 8 bullets and more bullets than 8 were fired.
September 9, 2020
This book is a 2018 publication and I am now reviewing it after reading it once again. I remember when Robert Kennedy was shot and days after. I did not pay to much attention to the trail being younger and just not into it. Southern California had a lot of different things happening from one day to the next.
Here though the author sets out to say that Sirhan Sirhan was a fall guy, he could not have fired the five shots. He then goes into botched evidence by LAPD and the FBI. That once they had him, they made sure everything pointed to him. I remember the hotel for my father would take me their occasionally and I also remember when they tore it down and thought that was strange, for I am sure Robert Kennedy would have won the election that year. We as a nation probably would not have had Nixon who won that year.
People don’t even know that it was said that Sirhan Sirhan commented on this act because of the seven-day war between Israel and Palestine, he being Palestine. The author of the book speaks of all of the other evidence that has been talked about like a second and people that left before they were questioned. Overall, I thought this was a good book and for the most part, I don’t think it will change anyone's mind but for me, this was some information that I had heard and I am glad it was at least put out there. Worth the read. I received this book from Netgalley.com I gave it 4 stars. Follow us at www.1rad-readerreviews.com
Here though the author sets out to say that Sirhan Sirhan was a fall guy, he could not have fired the five shots. He then goes into botched evidence by LAPD and the FBI. That once they had him, they made sure everything pointed to him. I remember the hotel for my father would take me their occasionally and I also remember when they tore it down and thought that was strange, for I am sure Robert Kennedy would have won the election that year. We as a nation probably would not have had Nixon who won that year.
People don’t even know that it was said that Sirhan Sirhan commented on this act because of the seven-day war between Israel and Palestine, he being Palestine. The author of the book speaks of all of the other evidence that has been talked about like a second and people that left before they were questioned. Overall, I thought this was a good book and for the most part, I don’t think it will change anyone's mind but for me, this was some information that I had heard and I am glad it was at least put out there. Worth the read. I received this book from Netgalley.com I gave it 4 stars. Follow us at www.1rad-readerreviews.com
July 16, 2020
This book is exactly what it says, a hard look at the unsolved murder of Robert F. Kennedy because Sirhan Sirhan did not fire the bullets killed RFK. The ballistic evidence presented in this book clearly shows there was more than one shooter. I was not alive when this happened so I found it so fascinating to take a look at the case 50+ years after it took place and see all the mistakes that were made. I don't think you can even tag this as conspiracy theory because the culprits who killed RFK were never brought to justice and the more you read about the case only unanswered questions pop up. I learned so many new details. Definitely would recommend this book to others.
March 26, 2019
Shadow Play written by William Klaber and Philip Melanson is a excellent publication of what had occurred during the investigation and trial of the assassination of Senator Robert F. Kennedy. The novel uncovered the inconsistencies with evidence, coerced confessions and the secret disposal of vital evidence two months after the assassination by the LAPD (Los Angeles Police Department). Although the LAPD has never been found guilty of fowl play, all evidence and witnesses say otherwise. The authors produced, in my opinion, a very credible book by capturing the events of the crime perfectly. All claims were supported by concrete-evidence from respectable doctors, professors and witnesses making it a reliable source when depicting the tragic event. This was a truly magnificent book to read as it was very compelling, eye-opening and most importantly, honest.
May 31, 2018
It is hard to believe it has been fifty years, and yet, as a 9-year-old, I remember seeing it as it unfolded on a black and white television.
I won a copy of this book during a Goodreads giveaway. I am under no obligation to leave a review or rating and do so voluntarily. I am paying it forward by passing this book along to a family member who I think will enjoy it too.
I won a copy of this book during a Goodreads giveaway. I am under no obligation to leave a review or rating and do so voluntarily. I am paying it forward by passing this book along to a family member who I think will enjoy it too.
August 3, 2018
A tremendous book, less an examination of the evidence than about the history of the prosecution of the accused assassin, Sirhan Sirhan. Although it argues that others were involved in Robert Kennedy's murder, it is neither hagiography nor conspiratorial screed. It professionally argues the evidence that Sirhan may have been a "Manchurian Candidate". Highly recommended.
June 20, 2018
I am not a big believer in “conspiracy theories “ but I found this book to be fascinating. It certainly seems well-researched and it is definitely well-written. It gives one food for thought that this case was not as cut-and-dried as is commonly presented. A definite recommend.
My thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for my honest review.
My thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for my honest review.
December 2, 2018
Fascinating.
September 17, 2018
3.5, down. Interesting analysis of a suspect assassination. Longer rtc
May 11, 2018
It’s been 50 years since Robert Kennedy was murdered in the crowded pantry at the Ambassador Hotel. The assassin stood just feet from his target as he shot his pistol. Witnesses grabbed him on the spot, the police whisked him away, the city of Los Angeles gave him a lengthy trial, and he was convicted of the murder.
Case closed. Or is it?
Why, after all these years, have key documents from the investigation still not been released to the public? Why was key evidence destroyed less than a year after the assassination? Why were the police so brutal and dismissive in their interrogations of witnesses who had reason to believe that more than one gun was involved in the murder? Why was law enforcement so quick to reject witness claims that the assassin was not alone at the Ambassador hotel? Why did the psychologists -both from the defense and the prosecution, work so hard to influence the defendant’s testimony?
This new edition of Shadow Play is an exhaustively referenced examination of the events surrounding the assassination and the sham trial that followed it. With out taking a position on many of the issues that have come up over the years, the authors lay out the facts in a way that allows readers to evaluate the often-contradictory evidence and come to their own conclusions.
One conclusion is inescapable, however: this case must not remain closed. Shadow Play is a must read for anyone who wants to see just how badly our justice system can pervert the truth.
Case closed. Or is it?
Why, after all these years, have key documents from the investigation still not been released to the public? Why was key evidence destroyed less than a year after the assassination? Why were the police so brutal and dismissive in their interrogations of witnesses who had reason to believe that more than one gun was involved in the murder? Why was law enforcement so quick to reject witness claims that the assassin was not alone at the Ambassador hotel? Why did the psychologists -both from the defense and the prosecution, work so hard to influence the defendant’s testimony?
This new edition of Shadow Play is an exhaustively referenced examination of the events surrounding the assassination and the sham trial that followed it. With out taking a position on many of the issues that have come up over the years, the authors lay out the facts in a way that allows readers to evaluate the often-contradictory evidence and come to their own conclusions.
One conclusion is inescapable, however: this case must not remain closed. Shadow Play is a must read for anyone who wants to see just how badly our justice system can pervert the truth.
December 4, 2017
A. A very interesting book. Unfortunately there are no definitive conclusions other that all is not known about the assassination of RFK. It is hard to remember the assassination of Robert Kennedy in 1968. As an 18-year-old there must have been many things on my mind. I may have been off-shore…I don’t recall offhand. Anyway… the gist of the book is that the LAPD bungled or perhaps even intentionally obstructed justice in their efforts to sell their conclusions that: 1.) Sirhan [B] Sirhan was the sole shooter and that 2.) it was a politically motivated assassination. The book tells of many pieces of evidence that were destroyed, related the maintenance of secrecy by LAPD and State of California for over 20 years. The authors were not convinced and neither am I.
February 27, 2018
Thanks to the internet and years of television shows and media coverage about the murder of Robert Kennedy, I thought I had an idea as to who killed him. This book made me question what I thought! This is definitely a book for anyone that loves conspiracy theories and American history. I strongly recommend it!
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews