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JFK Researcher, Restaurant owner and Artist, Robert Chapman, has passed away.
May 30, 2010
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Robert Chapman  | |
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Greetings!
Mary Ferrell and Robert  | A dear friend and fellow researcher has left us. Robert Chapman was a close friend and research partner for the late Mary Ferrell. I met them both at the ASK Symposium in 1995 and they welcomed me into the JFK assassination community. He and Mary were with me continually as JFK Lancer grew. Robert would tell wonderful stories about his time with Mary, especially how back in 1977 they were sitting a table in her home going over stacks of documents when Robert found one from CIA that was about a French assassin, Jean Soutre, who had been arrested in Dallas by the FBI and deported the same day. He slid the paper across the table to Mary saying, "You might find this interesting."
Kerry McCarthy 1997  | His quick eye for details was a great talent, one he put to use in the JFK research community where he was speaker and host at the Lancer "November In Dallas" conferences. One of his proudest moments was in 1997 when he introduced Kennedy family member Kerry McCarthy to our Banquet audience saying, "We have with us tonight, as
a special guest speaker, a very distinguished individual from
a very distinguished family. Kerry McCarthy is the first member
of the Kennedy Family to come forward to an event of this nature:
to embrace our aims, our goals, our efforts and to endorse the
research and the effort that we are all doing on behalf of the
memory of a member of her family." Kerry thanked Robert by answering, "And if
that means I have embraced the research community, what the heck
has taken the Kennedy's so long to do it?"
Robert at Lancer's Memorial Banquet for Mary Ferrell  | Robert oversaw new research being offered, particularly regarding document releases by the ARRB in his tenure as Editor of "Assassination Chronicles" published by JFK Lancer and shared his finds liberally. He also spent years with writers helping with their research, offering his knowledge and encouraging their writing. Robert was a crucial negotiator in the purchase of Mary Ferrell's collection by businessman Ollie Curme and oversaw the creation of millions of pages of JFK assassination documents now online as the Mary Ferrell Foundation. In 1997, Robert was awarded the JFK Lancer "New
Frontier" Award, which are "In
appreciation for your contribution of new evidence
and furthering the study of the assassination of President John F.
Kennedy."
In 1999 when Robert accepted the role of Editor for KAC, he sent me the following bio:
Robert Chapman was born in Jackson,
Mississippi in 1949. His parents moved shortly thereafter to Houston,
Texas where he spent his childhood and early teen years. He finished
high school in Memphis, Tennessee, and then entered the University
of Memphis. He graduated from the U of M in 1972, earning a BA
in art history.
In 1975, he attended a researcher's conference
in New York City held at NYU. There he met Penn Jones, Jr.. Penn
was very kind to him and invited him to call anytime to discuss
the assassination, and to come and visit in Texas should Chapman
ever find himself headed to Dallas. A subsequent telephone conversation
resulted in an invitation to come in November of 1975 ("You
can't understand this case until you take the tour, Penn drawled).
Once there Penn did indeed take him on the tour, and equally important,
to a party at Mary Ferrell's house.
Mrs. Ferrell, who needs
no introduction to any
student of this subject, encouraged Chapman's research and offered
to host him should he care to return sometime and see her archives.
It was not necessary to repeat the offer. A friendship developed
which led to an association that has lasted to the present day.
From 1975 until 1982 Mrs. Ferrell would periodically call and
announce the pending arrival of a large batch of recently de-classified
documents. Usually these were documents pried from CIA or whomever
under FOIA by the late Bud Fensterwald and sent directly (and
often only) to Mrs. Ferrell. Chapman would drive or fly to Dallas
on the agreed upon day and he and Mrs. Ferrell would spend three
or four (nearly non-stop) days reading, analyzing, and indexing
the documents. Sleep, when it occurred, consisted of maybe a four-hour
nap.
While from time to time he did contribute
essays to Penn Jones' "Continuing Inquiry," Chapman's primary focus
as a researcher has been document analysis. Years of kind mentoring
by Mrs. Ferrell, and exposure to her tens of thousands of pages
of documents, aided immeasurably in that pursuit.
In 1982 Chapman was presented with an opportunity to enter the
restaurant business by purchasing an existing business and expanding
it. He has remained in the restaurant business to this day. His
interest in the JFK assassination research never waned, however,
and his relationship with Mrs. Ferrell and other researchers continued
as well. Chapman attended all of the ASK conferences, as well
as the JFK Lancer conferences working with and assisting Mrs.
Ferrell. He also spoke at many of the conferences, or assisted
the organizers in some official capacity.
Chapman is married to the former Jamie
Goree, and they have one daughter, Amanda. He writes fiction and
is an inveterate reader of not only JFK material, but of many
subjects far afield from that.
Finally, I'd like to share with you what Robert wrote to his fellow researchers upon his acceptance as Editor:
Taking over a project that has been ably
and intelligently run for years by someone like George Michael
Evica is a daunting task. George Michael is a friend of mine,
and I have long respected his work, his passion, and his abilities.
I hope that I can continue this work in a manner that approaches
his standard.
When Debra Conway first asked me about
taking this position I was not sure how to answer. After all,
I had never edited any magazine, and now was being offered the
position in a magazine that is sent not only across America but
also around the world. Debra and I talked about it, and I soon
realized it was a project that I would enjoy. I was right.
I have recently read through the back issues
of this magazine and am very impressed with the steady growth
in scope and quality over the years. The hard work of Debra, George
Michael, and Tom Jones has paid off. This magazine is a first
rate journal of research into the single most important crime
(or political event) in the history of our country. This magazine,
and others like it, is concerned with the free discussion and
presentation of ideas and data that advances the cause of all
Americans who care about our history, our justice, and our freedom.
This magazine exists because of the failure
of the national and local news media to allow independent investigative
journalists to actively (much less aggressively) pursue the obvious
mountain of evidence demonstrating that a conspiracy killed John
F. Kennedy. This failure is a heavy burden that the media now
bears, and I believe it is the primary reason for their continued
promotion of nonsense published by those who would apologize for
the Warren Report and its defenders. The result of this abnegation
of responsibility by the media is that thousands of ordinary citizens,
led by such first generation researchers as Mary Ferrell, Harold
Weisberg, Penn Jones, Jr., and David Lifton (to name just a few)
have taken it upon themselves to investigate this heinous crime
and remarkable cover-up.
We have in this issue a great group of
researchers, and future issues will see even more. From its inception
this magazine has been a forum for researchers to exchange ideas
and information in the hopes of one day understanding the truth
about what really happened in Dallas and how it was covered up.
That is truly the bottom line: how it was covered up. We may never
know who really pulled the trigger on the gun that murdered John
Kennedy, but there can be little doubt that we are very, very
close to having proof about those responsible for the most obvious
of the conspiracy - the cover-up.
Rest in peace dear friend,
Debra Conway
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Service for Robert Chapman
ROBERT ANDERSON CHAPMAN,
60, owner of Molly's La Casita Restaurant since 1982, died peacefully on
May 30, 2010. Robert is survived by his loving wife of 26 years, Jamie
Goree Chapman, daughter Amanda Bailey Bogart (Alan), his mother Betty
Wells Chapman, sisters, Susan Wilson (Clayton), Debbie Trimble (Jerry),
brothers, Hal Chapman (Linda) and Charles Chapman. He was preceded in
death by his father Arthur Robert Chapman and an infant sister, Rebecca.
Robert was a graduate of Whitehaven High School and Memphis State
University. He was also a board member emeritus of the University of
Memphis Art Museum and a member of The Memphis Restaurant Association.
He was a loving, kind and spiritual soul. Before his stroke, Robert was
an avid golfer and a gifted artist. He will be greatly missed by his
many friends and loving family. Visitation will be Tuesday, June 1 from
5-7 pm., and funeral service will be Wednesday, June 2 at 1 pm., both at
Memorial Park Funeral Home. Interment will follow in Memorial Park
Cemetery. Memorials may be made to The Church Health Center or the
American Stroke Association
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Published in The Commercial Appeal
on June 1, 2010
"Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God."
- Matthew 5:3-9
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