John H. Slate Oral History

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Videotaped oral history interview John H. Slate. Born three months after the Kennedy assassination, Slate has served as Dallas City Archivist since 2000. Previously, he co-developed a private Dallas tour and guidebook called “Conspiracy A-Go-Go” (1988) and appeared as an assassination conspiracy theorist in Richard Linklater’s cult film, "Slacker" (1990).Interview conducted at The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza on August 26, 2016 by Curator Stephen Fagin. The interview is one hour and fifteen minutes long.

Object Details

Object title:

John H. Slate Oral History

Date:

08/26/2016

Medium:

Born digital (.m2ts file)

Dimensions:

Duration: 75 Minutes

Credit line:

Oral History Collection/The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza

Object number:

2016.001.0094

Curatorial Note:

The Museum's John Slate Collection (1989.079) includes multiple copies of the Conspiracy A-Go-Go guidebook. Self-published by the so-called "Nerraw Commission" (Warren Commission spelled backwards), the twenty-six page tongue-in-cheek booklet includes an introduction that reads: "In a sense, we, the authors of this guide, feel that JFK has almost endorsed our endeavor to perpetuate the memory of the recent past in Dallas. These structures stand in mute testimony to the lurid misdeeds of the persons involved in the Crime of the Century - the assassinations (and cover-ups of same) of JFK, Lee Harvey Oswald, and Patrolman J.D. Tippit. Also, JFK was funny. So are we." - Stephen Fagin, Curator

In addition to John H. Slate, several individuals involved in the Conspiracy A-Go-Go tour and guidebook have recorded oral histories with the Museum over the years, including Ellen Gibbs, Peggy Norvell Turlington and John G. Kays. Mr. Kays' 2023 oral history may be viewed here: https://emuseum.jfk.org/objects/73670. - Stephen Fagin, Curator

The Museum's Library Collection includes two books co-authored by John H. Slate: Dealey Plaza (2013, with Willis Winters) and Managing Local Government Archives (2016, with Kaye L. Minchew). Both books may be found here: Bibliovation | Catalog Search Results. The Museum's Library Collection also includes a DVD of the Richard Linklater film, Slacker (1990), which briefly features John Slate as a Kennedy assassination conspiracy theorist: Bibliovation | Details for Slacker. In 2011, as part of the Dallas Video Festival, John Slate reprised his Slacker role in a three-minute short by Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Ryan Hartsell. As of summer 2024, the short may be found on Mr. Hartsell's website here: SLACKER 2011 - Ryan Hartsell. - Stephen Fagin, Curator

In addition to this 2016 oral history, John H. Slate gave a lecture at The Sixth Floor Museum on March 7, 2007, about the collections of the Dallas Municipal Archives. That public program was recorded as part of the Museum's Oral History Project. - Stephen Fagin, Curator