Mr. LIEBELER. Did Oswald ever appear to you to have any kind of a sense
of humor?
Mr. FORD. None whatsoever.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did he say anything about the attitude the Russian
authorities took when he wanted to come back to the United States and
bring his wife back with him?
Mr. FORD. He never said anything to me. I think he may have while he
was talking Russian with these other people. He may have mentioned the
fact that it was easier, they got their visa for he and his wife from
the Russian authorities, the delay came from the American authorities,
but I don't specifically know whether it did. He said these things,
again it would be hearsay, again I would have heard it from my wife or
somebody else who could speak Russian who had either discussed it with
him or was present when he was discussing it with somebody else.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did you ever hear Oswald or hear of Oswald making any
remarks that would indicate a hostility toward President Kennedy?
Mr. FORD. No; never did.
Mr. LIEBELER. What about Governor Connally?
Mr. FORD. Never heard that either, until after the assassination. I
saw newspaper copies of a letter he wrote to Governor Connally when
Governor Connally was Secretary of the Navy.
Mr. LIEBELER. I would limit my question to before the assassination?
Mr. FORD. Before the assassination, no.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did you hear anything about his military career prior to
the assassination?
Mr. FORD. No; in fact I had assumed prior to the assassination that he
had had an honorable discharge from the Marine Corps.
Mr. LIEBELER. You never had any discussions with him about that or
heard anybody discussing it?
Mr. FORD. He said something the first time I met him, I can't
specifically remember what it was, but I got the impression that, at
that time that he had been a Marine Corps guard at the U.S. Embassy
in Russia and I can't remember whether he said this or somebody else
mentioned it or whether I just assumed it on my own.
So I know my first idea was this was the way he had gotten to Russia. I
later learned he had gone on his own.
Mr. LIEBELER. But you don't remember any specific discussion with him
about this question?
Mr. FORD. No.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did you know where Oswald was living during this period
that his wife was separated from him and living with you and Mrs.
Meller?
Mr. FORD. I knew he had an apartment in this Oak Cliff section of
Dallas. I don't remember the exact address. I don't know whether he
stayed there while Marina was in our house or not.
Mr. LIEBELER. You had no knowledge where he lived prior to the time
that he took the apartment in Oak Cliff, did you?
Mr. FORD. Well, I think he lived in Fort Worth. I am not absolutely
sure. I believe this apartment in Oak Cliff was the first place he
lived in Dallas, but I am not absolutely sure about it.
Mr. LIEBELER. You had never talked to him about it?
Mr. FORD. No; never.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did you ever visit the apartment?
Mr. FORD. No.
Mr. LIEBELER. Now, had we gotten to the Christmas party?
Mr. FORD. You asked me about it.
Mr. LIEBELER. Tell us as best as you can recall the events of that
period. I think you said there was a party at your house on the 28th of
December.
Mr. FORD. Yes.
Mr. LIEBELER. Tell me if there were parties or get-togethers at which
you were present or of which you knew at other homes during that period.
Mr. FORD. Well, there were, but I don't remember the specific dates
that they were. I think they were after the party at our house. There
was a party at George Bouhe's home, an apartment, during that period. I
think it was a few days after that, right in the period of New Year's
Eve, and I went to several celebrations.
I would hate to try to recall exactly when each one of them was and who
was there.
Mr. LIEBELER. Do you remember going to George Bouhe's apartment?
Mr. FORD. Yes; I remember going there but I don't remember the exact
date that it was.
Mr. LIEBELER. Was Oswald at that meeting?
Mr. FORD. No; he was not.
Mr. LIEBELER. Was there any discussion of Oswald at that time?
Mr. FORD. Not that I can remember.
Mr. LIEBELER. Were there any other parties that you attended during
that period?
Mr. FORD. I don't remember any formal parties. I stopped and had drinks
with a lot of people.
Mr. LIEBELER. Specifically, was there a get-together at your home the
night after the party that you had on the 28th of December?
Mr. FORD. Not a formal party, just a group of people happened to show
up and we started another party.
Mr. LIEBELER. Who was there?
Mr. FORD. Mr. and Mrs. Sullivan, friends of ours from New Orleans, and
Mr. and Mrs. Harris who were from Georgetown, Tex., and another Mr. and
Mrs. Ray, not the ones who live in Dallas, but these live in Paris, Tex.
Mr. LIEBELER. Would that be Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Ray?
Mr. FORD. Thomas Ray.
Mr. LIEBELER. Thomas Ray. And yourself and your wife?
Mr. FORD. Right.
Mr. LIEBELER. Anybody else?
Mr. FORD. Right now I can't remember anybody else who came in. It was
not a formal gathering, just people happened to stop in and we started
having a party.
Mr. LIEBELER. Do you have any recollection of any discussion of Oswald
at that time?
Mr. FORD. No.
Mr. LIEBELER. Do you remember at any time having any discussion with
any of your Russian friends on the question of whether or not Oswald
was a Russian agent?
Mr. FORD. Prior to the assassination?
Mr. LIEBELER. Yes, sir.
Mr. FORD. No; I don't remember prior to the assassination. There may
have been some but I don't remember any.
Mr. LIEBELER. At the party at your home on the 28th of December, did
you have any conversation with Oswald?
Mr. FORD. Said "hello, how are you," to he and Marina, and after that,
I can't remember Oswald talking to anybody there except one guest, a
Japanese girl, Yaeko, I forget her last name; my wife will remember.
As nearly as I can remember she was the only person in the whole party
that he ever bothered to talk to.
Mr. LIEBELER. Do you remember whether Oswald was drinking that evening?
Mr. FORD. I fixed one drink for him, in a little liqueur glass full of
liqueur. As far as I remember he never touched it.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did you ever observe Oswald smoking?
Mr. FORD. No.
Mr. LIEBELER. And you don't remember any discussion about Oswald after
he left that evening?
Mr. FORD. No; after he left that evening, I don't recall any discussion
of him.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did you ever have any conversations with De Mohrenschildt
about Oswald?
Mr. FORD. I don't remember any specific conversations with George De
Mohrenschildt. I may have.
Mr. LIEBELER. What was your impression of Oswald at this time as far
as his relations with the other members of the Russian community were
concerned, and generally?
Mr. FORD. My impression was that he didn't want his wife to associate
with them, and that he resented any aid or help people tried to give
either he or his wife. I might say, I know, I have heard other Russian
people there, for example, would take Marina to a grocery store and
buy a load of groceries for her and take her back, and one girl that
went by and found the baby had a fever and nobody was taking it to the
hospital and she took Marina and the baby to the hospital for some
medical treatment for it, and I had the impression that Lee Oswald
resented this.
Mr. LIEBELER. You gained that impression from conversations that you
had?
Mr. FORD. From conversations with other people, yes.