“The alteration of the [Zapruder] film in two instances proves its worthlessness as a document of anything other than deceit.”

So writes respected director-writer David Mamet in a 6.24.23 Unherd article titled “The Power of the Kennedy Myth.” The piece is partly about theories and suspicions about the JFK Assassination, which Mamet is co-writing a screenplay about (his co-writer is Nicholas Celozzi, great-nephew of late Chicago mob boss Sam “Momo” Giancana) and will begin to direct in September.

The costars include Viggo Mortensen, Shia LaBeouf, Al Pacino, Courtney Love and John Travolta.

Mamet and Celozzi will basically be passing along a “JFK was murdered by Momo and the mob” saga. This will put Mamet at loggerheads with Dealey Plaza conspiracy maestro Oliver Stone, who’s claimed for years that it was a CIA black ops job.

Mamet writes that he’s fond of “The Great Zapruder Film Hoax: Deceit and Deception in the Death of JFK,” a 2003 book that was edited by James H. Fetzer. I haven’t read it, but Mamet’s Unherd article says it asserts a claim that may arouse suspicions among JFK assassination buffs. It is, in fact, absolutely dead wrong.

“What’s wrong with the [Zapruder] film?,” Mamet asks, apparently leaning on the Fetzer book but possibly indicating his own suspicions. “To begin, several frames are missing,” Mamet states, “”No one has ever suggested a logical reason for their excision other than suppression of evidence.”

Then comes the Fetzer whopper. which Mamet is apparently on board with: “The blood-spatter explosion of the President’s head is, goes the claim, clearly painted on. It exists only for one frame, 0.04 of a second. In frame 312 it is absent, in the following frame it’s there, and in the next frame it’s gone — not dispersed or dispersing, but gone.”

This claim is absolutely incorrect, and the proof can be found by anyone examining this Zapruder file access page, which contains images of all 486 frames of the 8mm Zapruder assassination film.

All you have to do is examine frames #312, #313, #314 and #315.

#313 shows the initial blood-and-brain-matter explosion, and it’s quite a good job of “painting” given that it not only shows the eruption of tissue in different directions but also a hazy watery mist hovering above JFK and Jackie Kennedy’s heads.

But #314 clearly shows the continuation of the initial grenade-like impact with red-orange tissue continuing to shoot out to the right, along with the persistence of the blood-water-brain matter spray effect above.

$315 shows less spray but the left-to-right tissue surge continues.

Say it again: Mamet’s statement about the blood-spatter explosion “existing only for one frame, 0.04 of a second” is flat-out wrong. “In frame 312 it is absent, [but] in the following frame it’s there, and in the next frame it’s gone,” he incorrectly writes. “Not dispersed or dispersing, but gone.”

C’mon, David…look at frame #314! You and your pal Fetzer need to rethink and recalibrate.

Again, an easy link to all 486 frames.