November 22, 1963. A day that will forever be etched in the annals of American history. The assassination of President John F. Kennedy sent shockwaves throughout the nation and the world. The events of that fateful day continue to captivate and intrigue us, even after all these years.

As we reflect on this momentous occasion, CBS News takes us back in time, transporting us to the very heart of the tragedy. Through a meticulous reenactment, we relive the events as they unfolded, moment by moment. The emotions, the fear, and the uncertainty are palpable, reminding us of the profound impact that this event had on our collective psyche.

Join us as we delve into the past and explore the legacy of JFK, a man whose life was tragically cut short. Through eyewitness accounts, archival footage, and expert analysis, we seek to shed light on the circumstances surrounding his assassination. We strive to honor his memory and ensure that his legacy endures.

As we commemorate the 60th anniversary of this pivotal moment in history, let us remember the man who inspired a nation and the enduring impact of his untimely demise. Together, we can keep the memory of JFK alive and ensure that his vision for a better future continues to guide us.

Walter Cronkite | CBS News (1993): Kennedy seemed to be leading us into a new era of, of youthful exuberance ... over the fun of life, the fun a country could have being itself, being important in the world. We were dancing on clouds.

Schieffer: It was just the difference in night and day. He was the Technicolor President, and we had sort of seen the presidency in black-and-white up until that point. ... Suddenly we had this young handsome president and this gorgeous wife and these beautiful children ... and he is the first president that we came to really know, and we came to know his family and that was because of television.

Schieffer: In those days presidents didn't travel very much and it was a major event. ... They decided to come to Texas because they thought they could raise money there. ... The people were so excited.

Schieffer: The relationship between Lyndon Johnson and John Kennedy was very complex. They were partners. Were they ever friends?

Robert Caro | Author and historian: Not really.

Friday, Nov. 22, 1963

Schieffer: They decided to fly from Fort Worth to Dallas, which is literally only 30 miles. They flew over. Air Force One lands at Love Field.

Well the day began gray and cold ... there was a misting rain falling and the temperature was cold. Suddenly at mid-morning the skies opened up and it was a beautiful ... blue, spring-like day.

Caro: We see it, the great plane is gleaming silver in the background, everything is bright under a bright Texas sun, and you hear the television announcer: "There she is..."

Reporter: ...and there's Mrs. Kennedy, the first lady stepping from the plane. Wearing a bright pink suit with a dark fur collar and a matching pink hat, and the president wearing a dark suit.

Caro: They hand Jackie at the bottom of the stairs this bouquet of roses.

Reporter: She does makes a very striking picture as she clutches the huge bouquet of bright red roses...

Caro: He takes Jackie and they walk along the fence. And someone said there was no brighter moment in the Kennedy presidency then that moment at Love Field in Dallas.

Schieffer: They decided because the skies had cleared to take the bubble-top off the presidential limousine.

Reporter: And the president will be riding in the open. ... That car was flown in here last night from Washington...

Huffaker: The crowd cheered as the president and his beautiful wife came past us.

Reporter: And now the ticker tape and uh ... other confetti and such is beginning to flow from the windows and the crowd at our point is surging forward. There is a big cheer going up...

Schieffer: As they turned to go into the main downtown area, Nelly Connally, who was John Connally's wife, [Texas] Governor Connally's wife, turned to the president and said, "Well, Mr. President, you can't say Dallas doesn't love you."

Reporter: ... and here is the President of the United States ... and what a crowd... what a tremendous welcome he is getting now.

Huffaker: The crowd just surged out from their points on the sidewalk and filled the street from curb to curb.

Caro: Then they turn off Main Street into this open grassy area, Dealey Plaza, and there's a sharp cracking sound. ... John Connally, I remember saying to me, "I was a hunter. I knew the moment I heard it, it was the crack of a hunting rifle."

Abraham Zapruder film: I was down on this freeway early ... and even the freeway was jammed pack with spectators waiting their chance to see the president as he made his way toward the trade mart ... it appears as though something has happened in the motorcade route ... something I repeat has happened in the motorcade route.

Schieffer: Well, it was just pandemonium. It was just a terrible moment.

Caro: So the three cars — the cars with President Kennedy, the Secret Service car and Johnson's car squeal up the ramp to an expressway ... and then off the expressway and into the emergency bay at Parkland Hospital.

Reporter: There has been a shooting ... Parkland Hospital has been advised to stand by for a severe gunshot wound.

Cronkite (1993): Looking right at it when the bells rang, five bells for a bulletin. ... Shots rang out while the president's motorcade drove through the streets of Dallas. ... And with that I turned around and shouted, "Let's get on the air, lets get on the air!" Well. in those days we didn't keep a camera hot.

Socolow: And he couldn't get on the air on television. You never saw Cronkite. You saw a card on the screen.

Cronkite on the air: Here is a bulletin from CBS News. In Dallas, Texas, three shots were fired at President Kennedy's motorcade in downtown Dallas.

Huffaker: This was the day that the news went live on television.

Cronkite on the air:

Schieffer: People were crying. People were just walking around with a blank look on their face. "What does this mean? What's happened?"

Walter Cronkite on the air: This is Walter Cronkite in our newsroom. There has been an attempt, as perhaps you know now, on the life of President Kennedy. He was wounded in an automobile driving from Dallas Airport into downtown Dallas, along with Governor Connally of Texas. They've been taken to Parkland Hospital where their condition is as yet unknown.

Dr. Kenneth Salyer: I'm Dr. Kenneth Salyer. And on Nov. 22, 1963, I was on neurosurgery call at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, Texas. ... A nurse ran into the room and said "the president's been shot."

Schieffer: And what did you do?

Dr. Salyer: When I walked in, my colleagues were at the top of the table in Trauma Room One. ... The president ... had a large, huge jagged injury of the right side of his skull, with pieces missing.

Schieffer: Was he alive?

Dr. Salyer: He was still breathing ... and we were trying to intubate him, get a tube into his windpipe, trachea. ... But it wouldn't go past this wound.

Cronkite on the air: We have not been told their condition. At Dallas, in a downtown hotel room, a group had been gathered to hear President Kennedy and was waiting his arrival. Let's switch down there now where Eddie Barker of KRLD is on the air.

: As you can imagine there are many stories that are coming in now as to the actual condition of the president. One is that he is dead. This cannot be confirmed.

Schieffer: Did you think this was survivable?

Dr. Salyer: I didn't make that assessment at the moment I was taking care of him. ... This is a major, high velocity injury.

Huffaker: As I was standing in the crowd, two priests brushed past me...

Voice of Bob Huffaker | KRLD Radio: President Kennedy is on the inside of Parkland Hospital and two priests have just been sent in to the room with the president.

Dr. Salyer: As I looked up in the room, in the far back of the room is Mrs. Kennedy ... blood splattered on her dress. But she was just observing everything, wasn't talking.

Cronkite (1993): My God — who, what, why? Surely the president won't die. I mean, that can't be. He won't die, surely.

Schieffer: How long did that go on?

Dr. Salyer: It seemed like forever. But it was really probably less than 30 minutes.

Cronkite on the air: From Dallas, Texas, the flash, apparently official: President Kennedy died at 1:00 p.m. Central Standard Time, 2:00 Eastern tTme, some 38 minutes ago. [Takes off glasses, pauses.]

Socolow: He stopped in his tracks. ... tough man who understood the momentousness of what he was charged with doing.

Cronkite (1993): It was disbelief that it could have happened, that it had happened.

Dr. Salyer: As I observed Mrs. Kennedy and witnessed everyone leaving the room, she approached me. We had covered up the deceased and she laid on his chest. She then removed a ring and placed it on his finger. I found this to be a very touching moment.

Socolow: As the news began to spread, people halted their activities and turned to their radios, primarily, but also to their televisions. This marked the first instance of non-stop news coverage.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: It was one of the most shocking things I had ever heard. Frankly, I was deeply upset and struggled to come to terms with it. Initially, I could hardly believe it.

Penny Robinson to Charles Kuralt: Nobody could comprehend it. It's too... there are no words to describe what happened.

Charles Kuralt | CBS News 1963: It is indeed true that there are no words adequate enough to express it, and this sentiment is evident all around us on the streets of Los Angeles.

Richard Nixon: Today, millions of people around the world are attempting to find words that can sufficiently convey their grief and sympathy to his family.

Man on the street, NYC: We are sorry. We are deeply affected by this incident. This is a dark day in America's history.

Edward Kennedy: I would like to express how grateful both my parents are for the overwhelming outpouring of kindness and prayers that have come from Americans all across the country.

Opinions from the Public: It takes a mentally deranged person to carry out such an act. No rational individual would ever consider doing something like that.

Witness Account: These are the scenes captured at a building opposite the location where President Kennedy was shot. ... Some empty cartridges were discovered in that building. ... It is believed that the fatal shots were fired from one of the open windows.

Dan Rather (2008): After the initial shock of the president's assassination — the realization of such an event sinks in, then it becomes crucial to "focus on the story." Neglecting to do so could potentially lead to an emotional breakdown.

Cronkite Reporting: In Dallas— a Dallas policeman was recently shot and killed while pursuing a suspect.

Schieffer: A policeman named J.D. Tippit spotted an individual walking down the street. He called the person over to the police car, and at that moment, Oswald approached and shot him at close range.

Latest Updates: This is Lee H. Oswald, a 24-year-old suspect. ... Here is the gun that the police claim was used to assassinate the president. ... Initially, Oswald was charged with killing the policeman, and the police state that they have at least one eyewitness to support this claim.

Oswald: I really don't know what this situation is about. Nobody has told me anything except I'm accused of, uh, murdering a policeman.

Reporter: Did you kill the president?

Oswald

Schieffer: And I drove down to The Star Telegram. ... And a woman called in and said, "Is there anyone there who can give me a ride to Dallas?" And I said, "Well, lady, you know, we're not running a taxi here. And beside, the president has been shot." And she said, "Yes ... I think my son is the one that they've arrested."

Marguerite Oswald: I spoke a few words to Lee and he says, "Mother don't worry about a thing..."

Schieffer: And it was Lee Harvey Oswald's mother, Marguerite Oswald. We wrote down the address, and went out and picked up her. And we drove her to Dallas. ... It was my first really big scoop.

Caro: Johnson's Determination to Stay with Mrs. Kennedy

The agents urge Lyndon Johnson to leave the scene, but he refuses to go without Mrs. Kennedy. They inform him that Mrs. Kennedy won't leave without her husband's body. Johnson decides to wait for her on Air Force One with the coffin, stating that he will not leave Dallas without her.

Mrs. Kennedy, now in an ambulance carrying her husband's body, heads back the way she came.

Caro: The Tense Moments on Air Force One

Once Johnson is on the plane, the window shades are drawn to protect against potential snipers. At this point, nobody knows if this is the start of a conspiracy.

Schieffer: Johnson Takes Command

Johnson walks into the center of the room and begins giving orders, specifying who he wants present. He especially requests Mrs. Kennedy's presence.

Cronkite reporting live on air

Mrs. Kennedy and her Husband's Coffin

Mrs. Kennedy boards Air Force One with her husband's coffin, which is placed in the rear section of the plane.

Schieffer: Mrs. Kennedy's Refusal to Change Clothes

Mrs. Kennedy insists on not changing her clothes, stating, "I want them to see what they have done to him."

Caro: Lady Bird Johnson's Observations

Lady Bird Johnson remarks on Mrs. Kennedy's appearance, noting that her skirt is covered in blood. Lyndon Johnson asks her to be present at the ceremony, to which she agrees, saying, "For the sake of history I should."

A Historic Moment: The Transition of Power

As the nation mourns the loss of President Kennedy, a new chapter begins with the inauguration of Lyndon B. Johnson. The image captured on Air Force One speaks volumes about the resilience of the United States and its commitment to upholding the constitution.

The Oath of Office

Renowned historian Robert Caro describes the scene as Lyndon Johnson takes the oath of office on the plane. With his hand coming down, Johnson declares, "Now let's get airborne." This symbolic moment, with two presidents aboard the aircraft, will forever be etched in America's history as one of its most dramatic and defining moments.

Reporter: President Lyndon Johnson has arrived at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland. This is film, or tape, of that arrival. (Background: "Live, live, live!") It is live. It is live, right now.

Caro vividly recalls the sight of the great silver plane gliding out of the darkness, a symbol of hope and continuity.

Reporter: This is one of the most unique and tragic moments in history...

However, amidst the solemnity, an interaction between Robert Kennedy and Jackie Kennedy stands out. Robert Kennedy rushes past Lyndon Johnson without acknowledging him and approaches Jackie, saying, "Jackie, I'm here."

Reporter: I'm watching a turnover in government, at the highest office. And now we can see what we believe to be a coffin containing the body of President Kennedy being moved from Air Force One.

Caro: The Funeral Procession

As the coffin emerges, Jackie Kennedy and Bobby Kennedy follow closely behind.

Socolow: Television News Takes Center Stage

At the time, no one fully grasped the significance of this event for television news. Suddenly, television news became a crucial medium.

Schieffer: Johnson's Commanding Presence

President Johnson understood the importance of projecting continuity to the nation. Despite the sadness of the moment, it was a defining moment in American history, affirming that there was still a president.

Caro: A Simple Setting

There was no grand presidential podium or seal. Instead, a cluster of microphones was placed on the bare tarmac.

President Lyndon Johnson: A Personal Tragedy

President Johnson addressed the nation, expressing the immeasurable loss and personal tragedy that had befallen the country. He called for support and invoked God's guidance.

Schieffer: A Poignant and Brief Speech

The President's speech was both poignant and brilliant in its brevity.

Cronkite (1993): We had a whole new world out there. Lyndon Johnson was not going to be John Fitzgerald Kennedy by any means.

Reporter: At 4:30 this morning Mr. Kennedy's body was returned to the White house. George Herman was on hand when it arrived.

: President John F. Kennedy comes back to the White House for the last time.

Cronkite on the air: There will be a particularly poignant time for the Kennedy family next week.The two Kennedy children, uh, both have birthdays next week. John, 3, November the 25th, and Caroline, 6, on November the 27th. An entire nation has almost come to a stop today, uh, in the wake of the horrible news.

Huffaker

Cronkite on the air

Reporter: Has he confessed sir? Has he made a statement?

Official: He has not confessed.He has made no statement. Charges of murder have been accepted against him.

Recreation of News Article

Suspect Charged in President's Death

Lee Harvey Oswald, the prime suspect in the assassination of the president, has been formally charged after admitting nothing during further questioning. Police discovered a powerful military rifle in the building from which the fatal shot is believed to have been fired.

New Details Emerge about Oswald

Lee Oswald, known for his leftist beliefs, was an active member of the Fair Play for Cuba Committee and a vocal admirer of Russia and Cuba's Fidel Castro. He had previously resided in Russia.

Reporter: What did you do in Russia?

Oswald: A policeman hit me.

Oswald: The Most Hated Suspect

Lee Harvey Oswald, considered the most despised suspect of the 20th century, faced intense public animosity.

Reporter: Chief, do you have any concern for the safety of your prisoner due to the high tension among the people of Dallas over the president's assassination?

Police Chief: No, but precautions will be taken, of course.

Transfer of Oswald to County Jail

On the specified Sunday, the plan was to move Oswald from the Dallas City Jail, where he had been questioned and held, to the county jail.

Rather (2008): This was something ... brand new. Covering this kind of tragedy, nobody had done it on television before.

Dan Rather (2008): Nobody knew how to do it, and in terms of coverage ... everybody in television ... we were making it up as we went along.

Huffaker: I had looked and seen Oswald grimace, grasp his stomach and fall. And I knew, that, what we had feared, had actually taken place.

Schieffer: In a shocking turn of events, two detectives escorting Oswald were suddenly confronted by an unknown individual who approached Oswald and shot him at close range.

Schieffer: The entire incident left everyone wondering, what exactly had just occurred? How was this even possible?

Socolow: As a journalist, I was inundated with countless unanswered questions. Who was the assailant? What motivated them to commit such an act?

Reporter: And you were acquainted with the assailant?

Officer: Yes, sir.

Bob Huffaker: And the assailant is a resident of Dallas, correct?

Officer: Yes, sir.

Cronkite (1993)

Huffaker: The assailant was identified as the owner of a rundown strip club in downtown Dallas.

: Oswald emerges, visibly pale and unconscious... and now the ambulance is approaching... the ambulance carrying Lee Harvey Oswald, the man who was shot.

Cronkite (1993): Oswald was rushed to Parkland Hospital, where he tragically succumbed to his injuries an hour and 15 minutes later, in an emergency room located just 10 feet away from the room where President Kennedy had passed away almost exactly 48 hours prior.

Schieffer: That weekend was an unprecedented moment in television and journalism history. I had never experienced anything like it until the events of 9/11.

Unveiling the Truth: Was Oswald Acting Alone?

On the fateful day when Lee Harvey Oswald was scheduled to be transferred to the county jail in Dallas, I was assigned to cover his arrival. However, as history tells us, he never made it there. Instead, his murder ignited a storm of suspicion, raising questions about a possible conspiracy. Was Jack Ruby sent to silence the president's assassin? Even after all these years, a 2013 CBS News poll reveals that a majority of Americans, 61 percent to be exact, do not believe that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone.

Reporter: It appears as though something has happened in the motorcade route — something, I repeat, something has happened in the motorcade route.

Since the moment the sound of those shots reverberated through the air, people have been plagued by doubts. Was there a conspiracy?

Reporter: Parkland Hospital has been advised to stand by for a severe gunshot wound...

Those who were present at Dealey Plaza were left in the dark, unaware of the magnitude of the event.

Reporter: Something is wrong here, something is terribly wrong...

In the midst of this atmosphere of uncertainty, Air Force One was en route to Washington while the Mexican border was sealed, fearing that conspirators might attempt to escape.

Bobby Kennedy wasted no time after the assassination. Within hours, he confronted the director of the CIA on his own lawn, posing a direct question, "Did you kill my brother?"

Schieffer: And what was his response?

Shenon: He unequivocally denied any involvement.

In his account of these events, Philip Shenon sheds light on the intricate details surrounding the assassination. His book, A Cruel and Shocking Act, offers a compelling narrative that challenges the official narrative.

Shenon: During that time, there was a great deal of suspicion surrounding the Soviet Union, Cuba, and the larger Communist threat. Fidel Castro was well aware that the Kennedy administration was attempting to assassinate him in the fall of 1963. It was therefore a logical suspicion that Castro may have been involved in Kennedy's death.

In order to alleviate the fears of the American people, President Johnson decided that a high-level commission was necessary to investigate the assassination.

Reporter: The seven members of the Warren Commission, led by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court...

Shenon: After 10 months of investigation in September 1964, the Warren Commission concluded that there was no evidence of a conspiracy and that Lee Harvey Oswald appeared to be the lone gunman in Dealey Plaza.

After all these years, what do we now know? Was the president truly killed by a lone gunman in Dealey Plaza?

The most reliable record of the assassination, which has stood the test of time, is Abraham Zapruder's famous 26 ½ seconds of 8mm film captured just steps away from the president's motorcade. From his vantage point, what did Abraham Zapruder witness?

Assassination Research

For 38 years, a professional computer animator named Dale Myers has dedicated his time to researching the assassination. With the help of new computer technology, he has been able to analyze an 8mm film frame by frame, hoping to uncover the truth about a possible second shooter in Dealey Plaza.

Dale K. Myers: The Zapruder film, which is the only footage that captures the entire shooting, is actually much smaller than most people realize. It is smaller than a postage stamp, making it extremely difficult to see the details, especially when projected in real time. However, with the advancements in technology, I believe there is a way to match my computer models with the Zapruder film, frame by frame, in order to isolate what exactly happened in the car when the shots were fired.

Schieffer: The Warren Commission, in order to support its conclusion of a lone gunman, claimed that a single bullet hit President Kennedy and then went on to wound Gov. Connally. This theory, often referred to as the "magic bullet theory," has been heavily criticized. Even Gov. Connally himself never accepted it.

Gov. John Connally (1992): I find it inconceivable that the first shot that went through President Kennedy's neck also entered my back. I do not believe it, and no amount of tests can convince me otherwise.

Analysis: When Kennedy emerges from behind the sign, it is clear that he has been hit. Conspiracy theorists argue that the time between Kennedy being hit and Connally being hit is too short for a single gunman to have fired two shots. They believe this indicates a conspiracy and the presence of a second shooter in the plaza.

According to our current understanding of the shooting, there were three shots fired. Zapruder's film captures the sequence of events. The first shot misses and the second shot hits Kennedy. The third and fatal shot is fired shortly after, hitting Kennedy in the head.

At frame 222, Connally is not injured. However, at frame 224, his right shoulder buckles and drops, indicating that he has been hit. The bullet emerges from Kennedy's coat area, causing his lapel to blow open. Both Kennedy and Connally react to being hit at the same time, suggesting that they were hit by the same bullet.

This computer technology supports the single-bullet theory, which states that one bullet passed through Kennedy and hit Connally. By rotating the Zapruder footage in three dimensions, we can visually demonstrate why the single bullet theory is plausible.

In a recent analysis using modern technology, it has been determined that Lee Harvey Oswald was the sole shooter responsible for the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Despite numerous theories and investigations over the past five decades, no credible evidence of a conspiracy involving Oswald has been found. However, many people still find it difficult to accept that one young, unstable man with a $21 rifle could have such a profound impact on the world. The truth is, though, that it did indeed happen.

A nation united in grief

As rumors and uncertainty spread, one thing was certain: America, and much of the world, was united in unimaginable grief. The president had been assassinated. The drama that was about to unfold in Washington played like an epic tragedy, and television broadcast live images that would be branded into our nation's memory.

Reporter: John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 35th President of the United States, leaving the White House for the last time.

Bob Schieffer: I was always struck by, just what seemed like overwhelming grief that people seemed to be experiencing.

Caro: So the caisson is pulled up to the front of White House. Then they put the coffin on it, put the flag on top of it. Then all of a sudden there she is in the doorway.

Reporter: Mrs. Kennedy, Caroline, and John ...

Caro: Her face is behind the veil. She's holding a little figure in each hand in a sky blue coat — her son and her daughter. She moves forward toward the limousine and Robert Kennedy ... his face is also unforgettable... ravaged face, uh, comes out behind her.

Reporter: President Johnson has gotten into the car with the Kennedy family.

Caro: I mean, here's Lyndon Johnson and Robert Kennedy, two men who hate each other. They're going to be riding behind the body of Robert Kennedy's brother. In this long, slow procession. The caisson pulls away.

Reporter: President John Kennedy ... his body in the casket moving down Pennsylvania Avenue now, up toward Capitol Hill.

Caro: Then they go into the Rotunda.

Saying Goodbye: The Kennedy Funeral

By Anonymous

People felt like they knew the Kennedys. We had seen their family. And so we felt like we were losing someone who was very close to us.

Reporter: The line, 40 blocks long ... estimated by police at 500,000.

There was this one moment where, uh, Caroline reaches up under the flag, to be, obviously trying to be closer to her father. And it wasn't enough just to put her hand on the flag.

: So great is the crush outside the Capitol, waiting to get in, that people who have not been in line at 10 o'clock can't possibly go by the coffin before it is borne away at 10 o'clock tomorrow.

Reporter: Mrs. Kennedy followed the casket on foot to St. Matthews Church.

Cronkite (1993): It really happened. The president of the United States, dead, and there he lied. It had happened, it was over, it was done, and we were about to bury it. Bury something of our past along with that man.

I think the picture that most people will remember is this tiny little boy, in his little-boy suit, uh, and he puts his hand up... and he salutes. it's hard for me to think of it even today and not be touched by that.

It's all the pomp and majesty that a republic can muster.

Schiefferr: You had the riderless horse.

Caro: The great black horse.

Schieffer: You heard the sound of the drums. ... It was a soft sound. Solid.

Caro: It was like it burned it into our consciousness.

Schieffer: It was overwhelming. ... It was overwhelming.

Caro: When you see these images, even today, you feel this is a watershed moment in American history. ... Really, never to be forgotten.

Schieffer: So many parts of our culture changed because of that weekend. I truly believed it was the weekend that America lost its innocence.

America was never quite the same after that day. A nation that had been brimming with confidence suddenly felt a new vulnerability. How could this have happened? Would it have been different had Kennedy lived? We can never know.

But that weekend was only the beginning of one of the most tumultuous and violent decades in the country's history — a decade that would see more assassinations, Vietnam, bloody riots, and Watergate, which would bring down and force the resignation of a very different president. It would be a time when we would question our leaders our institutions and everything we had taken for granted for so long.