A silent color 8mm reel filmed in Dallas on November 22, 1963, sold for $137,500 at RR Auction on September 28, 2024. It shows motorcade scenes before the assassination and the presidential limousine speeding toward Parkland Memorial Hospital afterward—not the shooting itself. The winning bidder was anonymous.
What the 8mm film shows
Dale Carpenter Sr. recorded the footage in Dallas. The Associated Press reported that the reel starts with Carpenter missing the limousine as it passed on Lemmon Avenue, while capturing other vehicles in the motorcade. The camera picks up the procession again on Interstate 35 after the shooting.
That freeway segment lasts about 10 seconds, according to the AP. It shows Secret Service agent Clint Hill on the back of the presidential limousine and Jacqueline Kennedy in the rear seat as the car travels toward Parkland Memorial Hospital. The footage does not show Kennedy being shot. The auction house did not publicly release the freeway segment, the AP reported. Associated Press report
How the family-held reel came to auction
Carpenter died in 1991, aged 77. According to Gizmodo’s September 5, 2024 report, the reel passed to his wife, Mabel, then to their daughter, Diana, and later to his grandson, James Gates. Gates inherited it along with about 30 other reels around 2009. The AP described Gates viewing the footage after projecting it onto his bedroom wall around 2010; the accounts do not establish the exact date he first discovered this reel.
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What it sold for and when
RR Auction’s closed catalog identifies the footage as lot 5036. It lists an estimate of $100,000 or more and records the final price as $137,500, including the buyer’s premium. RR Auction’s announcement also reports the $137,500 sale and says the winning bidder remained anonymous. RR Auction lot 5036 · RR Auction auction details
The sale was part of RR Auction’s Remarkable Rarities Auction #700, which began online on September 4 and concluded with an in-person event in Boston on September 28, 2024. The $100,000 figure was the catalog estimate; $137,500 was the reported sale price.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Can the public watch the film now?
The cited reporting does not establish whether the complete reel is currently available to the public. RR Auction said the film and its copyright were subject to a licensing agreement allowing use in Agent Number Nine, a feature about Clint Hill that was then expected to premiere in 2025. The available information does not confirm whether the film premiered or where it can currently be watched, so its present availability should not be assumed.
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Best Value
Rank #3
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