Interview by Paul Salfen
In a world where truth often hides behind layers of myth and misinformation, Farris Rookstool III stands as a beacon of clarity. As the world’s foremost expert on the assassination of President John F. Kennedy—the most intricate criminal investigation in American history—Rookstool has dedicated his life to peeling back the curtains of time. From his early days as a medical illustrator sketching groundbreaking surgeries to his tenure as an FBI analyst handling classified files, Rookstool’s journey is a testament to insatiable curiosity and unyielding integrity. In an exclusive interview with AMFM Magazine, he shares stories that blend personal triumphs, historical revelations, and a dash of serendipity, proving that the pursuit of knowledge can lead to extraordinary places.
Rookstool’s story begins not in the shadowy corridors of government agencies, but in the innocent wonder of childhood. Inspired by his mother, who hoped her child would possess boundless curiosity and imagination, young Farris developed an “insatiable appetite for wanting to know things.” By age eight, he dreamed of becoming a medical illustrator, explaining the human body’s intricacies to doctors and students. At just 14, he illustrated the first intraocular lens implant—a procedure now standard for cataract surgery—and his drawings helped secure FDA approval. “I was in a surgical suite illustrating while most kids were just being kids,” Rookstool recalls with a chuckle.
This early passion led to a five-and-a-half-year stint at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, where he worked alongside Nobel laureates like Drs. Michael Brown and Joseph Goldstein, whose cholesterol research earned them the prize in 1985. Rookstool’s illustrations were part of their Nobel submission package. “Working around smart people is contagious,” he says. But when oil revenues tanked in 1983, leading to layoffs, fate intervened in the most cinematic way: a near-miss pedestrian encounter with an old school friend who worked for the FBI.
That chance meeting propelled Rookstool into the Bureau in 1984, just as the Republican National Convention brought JFK assassination files back to Dallas. Assigned to review the voluminous records—over half a million pages—he unwittingly became the FBI’s go-to expert. “I did not set out to be a JFK expert,” he admits. Born and raised in Dallas, Rookstool was at Love Field on November 22, 1963, and watched Oswald shoot Ruby live on TV two days later. His prior involvement in Oswald’s 1981 exhumation as a forensic photographer added another layer to his expertise.
Rookstool’s FBI career was a whirlwind of high-stakes cases. He served on the Hostage Negotiation and Evidence Response Teams, contributing to investigations like the Delta 191 crash, Waco siege, Oklahoma City bombing, and the Unabomber case. In a groundbreaking move, he pioneered a DNA extraction technique from stamps and envelopes, first used in a cold case involving a Methodist minister. This method became FBI standard, aiding prosecutions in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and beyond. “It was a Hail Mary moment,” Rookstool reflects, emphasizing how innovation often stems from persistence.
But it’s his JFK work that cements his legacy. As the sole FBI analyst with access to Parkland Hospital’s Trauma Room One vault, he transported original files from Dallas to D.C.—in a U-Haul truck, no less, under orders from a supervisor he nicknamed “Bluto.” He briefed the Attorney General, FBI Director, and Congress, and drafted testimony for the JFK Assassination Records Act, signed by President George H.W. Bush in 1992. Rookstool’s nine years poring over 500,000 classified pages and authoring 3,500 follow-up reports make him unparalleled. Even today, he’s consulted on the remaining records, dismissing conspiracy theories with evidence-based calm: “No ChatGPT or AI is going to make sense of all this—it’s complex, nuanced, with human errors.”
Hollywood came calling in 1991 when Oliver Stone sought his expertise for JFK. Rookstool read the screenplay (bootlegged by a friend) and bluntly told Stone, “The only thing you got right is the victim, the date, and the location.” Though he couldn’t join the set due to Bureau protocols, the film’s controversy fueled the push for file releases. Rookstool’s encounters extend to advising on Emmy- and Peabody-winning documentaries, earning an Academy Award nomination himself, and appearing on CNN, ABC, NBC, CBS, Discovery, PBS, C-SPAN, and History Channel.
His speaking engagements are equally illustrious, addressing the USSS, FBI, CIA, MI-5, INTERPOL, and even Prince Albert of Monaco. Yet Rookstool remains grounded, crediting serendipity: meeting Jack Ruby’s brother Earl, firing Ruby’s pistol (and encasing a bullet in acrylic), or discovering he’s related to Bonnie and Clyde through DNA work for their exhumation and auctions.
Today, Rookstool preserves history through museum consultations, like advising the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza, and installing markers—such as one at Love Field marking LBJ’s inauguration aboard Air Force One, which he personally funded and embedded. “Southwest Airlines is the only airline where you can taxi across U.S. history,” he quips.
Upcoming projects include a documentary, three books (one on his JFK story), and a Texas Historical Commission marker for the first Chili’s restaurant—a nod to his love for Dallas icons. At the “It Came from Texas” film festival in Garland this September, Rookstool will discuss archival JFK footage and Bonnie and Clyde (1967), joined by relatives Raylene Linder and Buddy Barrow. “It’s a rare opportunity to see living history,” he says.
For aspiring investigators, Rookstool’s advice is simple: “Never give up. Find your passion, be the best at it, and trust instinct. Life is short—make a difference.” As he puts it, the greatest gifts are “to be loved and be remembered.” With a life that rivals Hollywood scripts, Farris Rookstool ensures history won’t forget.
For more on Farris Rookstool, visit farrisrookstool.com. Catch him at the “It Came from Texas” film festival in Garland, September [dates TBD].
