President's Commission on the Assassination of - The Warren Commission (Complete Edition)

Mr. Martin. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. All the time?

Mr. Martin. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. Do you recall who that was?

Mr. Martin. Let's see—well, I remember his first name now, Mike Howard, and Charles Kunkel, Lee Gopadze was there part of the time. They seemed to change quite frequently.

Mr. Rankin. Did they have someone there 24 hours of the day?

Mr. Martin. Yes, sir.

Mr. Rankin. During this early period did you ever talk to Marina?

Mr. Martin. No, except to say hello.

Mr. Rankin. Do you know whether she talked English much at that time?

Mr. Martin. From all appearances, she didn't.

Mr. Rankin. Did anyone visit you while she was there at the Six Flags during this early period that you recall?

Mr. Martin. Not to my knowledge other than the FBI.

Mr. Rankin. Did you invite Marina and her family to come to your home for Thanksgiving?

Mr. Martin. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. Will you tell us how that happened?

Mr. Martin. Well, it just happened. I don't know, I think I asked Robert if he would like to come out for dinner, Thanksgiving dinner. They weren't going to have a very happy Thanksgiving, and living in those rooms was pretty cramped.

Mr. Rankin. When was this that you asked Robert?

Mr. Martin. I believe on Wednesday.

Mr. Rankin. Did you include Robert and his wife as well as Marina and her family in the invitation?

Mr. Martin. Well, Robert's wife wasn't there, but I included Robert. He came out to the house also.

Mr. Rankin. Did Marina then come to your house for Thanksgiving?

Mr. Martin. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. Who all came at that time?

Mr. Martin. Let's see, there were Marina and June Lee, and Robert, Charlie Kunkel, and one Arlington police officer. I don't recall his name.

Mr. Rankin. What time of the day did they come?

Mr. Martin. I believe it was 3 or 4 o'clock in the afternoon.

Mr. Rankin. Did you invite Marguerite Oswald to Thanksgiving dinner at that time, too?

Mr. Martin. No.

Mr. Rankin. Did you say anything to her about it?

Mr. Martin. No. As I recall I just asked, I believe I just asked Robert if they would like to come, they were welcome if they would like to come.

Mr. Rankin. You mean by that that you included Marguerite Oswald in your invitation?

Mr. Martin. I don't think I named her. I don't know if she had left by then.

Mr. Rankin. You didn't deliberately exclude her from the invitation?

Mr. Martin. No.

Mr. Rankin. Then did you at some time discuss with Marina the possibility of her staying at your home rather than at the Six Flags Inn?

Mr. Martin. No, I discussed it with Secret Service first.

Mr. Rankin. When was that?

Mr. Martin. Thursday or Friday.

Mr. Rankin. Before this Thanksgiving dinner or afterwards?

Mr. Martin. I don't recall. I know the Secret Service made a statement that they were quite concerned as to where Marina would go after she left the Inn. They had no place to put her and they had no idea where she was going to go.

Mr. Rankin. Do you recall when they made that statement?

Mr. Martin. No, it was Wednesday or Thursday.

Mr. Rankin. At that time did you say anything about that?

Mr. Martin. I told them that if they couldn't find any place for her that I would be glad to take them into my home.

Mr. Rankin. Was anything said about what compensation you would receive for that?

Mr. Martin. No. There was no compensation considered.

Mr. Rankin. You didn't suggest any and they didn't, is that right?

Mr. Martin. That is correct.

Mr. Rankin. Did you discuss that idea with Marina at all?

Mr. Martin. No. They, the Secret Service told Robert about it, and——

Mr. Rankin. How do you know that?

Mr. Martin. Because he told me they had. And then Robert thanked me and said that it would work out all right.

Mr. Rankin. Before you made that suggestion had you had any discussions about selling any rights to Marina's stories or anything of that character?

Mr. Martin. No.

Mr. Rankin. With any media?

Mr. Martin. No.

Mr. Rankin. How did you happen to make this offer?

Mr. Martin. I felt sorry for her.

Mr. Rankin. Did you limit the offer to Marina and her children?

Mr. Martin. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. Was there any talk at that time about Robert living at your home, too?

Mr. Martin. No.

Mr. Rankin. Anything about Marguerite living there?

Mr. Martin. No.

Mr. Rankin. Did you discuss this proposal with your wife before you made it?

Mr. Martin. No.

Mr. Rankin. Could you describe for the Commission briefly your home, how the layout of it was?

Mr. Martin. Well, it is a three-bedroom house, with a living room, dining room, den and kitchen, two baths.

Mr. Rankin. All of it on the same floor?

Mr. Martin. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. Could you give us an idea of where the bedrooms were from the rest of the house?

Mr. Martin. Well, as you come in the front door you go through one end of the living room, and then into a hallway, and the bedrooms are along the hall.

Mr. Rankin. And is yours and Mrs. Martin's bedroom at the end of the hall?

Mr. Martin. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. Does it have a private bath associated with that suite?

Mr. Martin. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. And all of the rooms of the house are on one floor, is that right?

Mr. Martin. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. And then where was Marina's bedroom from yours?

Mr. Martin. The next room.

Mr. Rankin. And where was the bath that she used?

Mr. Martin. Right across the hall from it.

Mr. Rankin. And then after Marina's room right next to hers?

Mr. Martin. Is a children's bedroom.

Mr. Rankin. That was the closest one to the living room, is that right?

Mr. Martin. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. About how large was your bedroom?

Mr. Martin. I think it is about 14 by, maybe 14 by 14, 16.

Mr. Rankin. How large was Marina's room?

Mr. Martin. About 11 by 13.

Mr. Rankin. And the children's room?

Mr. Martin. About the same size.

Mr. Rankin. What children do you have?

Mr. Martin. I have a 14-year-old boy and a 12-year-old boy and a 6-year-old girl.

Mr. Rankin. And they are all living at home?

Mr. Martin. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. And they have been throughout this period, have they?

Mr. Martin. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. Had you discussed the assassination with Marina at all prior to the time she came to live with you?

Mr. Martin. No.

Mr. Rankin. Had you discussed any financial arrangements with her or the idea that you should manage her affairs before she came to live with you?

Mr. Martin. No.

Mr. Rankin. When did the donations for Marina and her children start to come in, do you recall the date?

Mr. Martin. No.

Mr. Rankin. Was it before she came to live with you?

Mr. Martin. Not to my knowledge, I didn't—I think it started after she came into the house.

The Chairman. Mr. Rankin, if you will excuse me now, gentlemen, I am going to retire to my Court work and Mr. Dulles, will you conduct the hearing? If you are still in session I will be here this afternoon to see you, if not, gentlemen, I am very glad to have seen you, both of you. Give Mr. Thorne my regards, please.

(At this point, the Chief Justice Warren left the hearing room.)

Mr. Dulles. Will you proceed, please.

Mr. Rankin. When did the idea of your being Marina's business manager first come up.

Mr. Martin. It was after the first of December. She had been there about 3 or 4 days, I guess.

Mr. Rankin. That is 1963?

Mr. Martin. 1963.

Mr. Rankin. Will you tell us how it came up?

Mr. Martin. One of the Secret Service agents suggested that I get an attorney for Marina.

Mr. Rankin. Who was that?