Lincoln and Kennedy assasination scenarios reversed

How would history and culture change if the circumstances surrounding the deaths of Lincoln and Kennedy were reversed? In this hypothetical timeline:

1. Lincoln is killed while riding in a parade by a lone nut with a rifle. The assassin is then murdered before he can be questioned by authorities, leading to a multitude of conspiracy theories surrounding Lincoln's death.

2. Kennedy is killed at the theater by a famous actor. The murder is part of a larger conspiracy to decapitate the Kennedy administration with simultaneous attempts also being made on the lives of Lyndon Johnson and Bobby Kennedy, both of whom survive. JFK's assassin is killed during a shootout with police officers trying to take him into custody, but the rest of the conspirators are caught, tried, and convicted.
 
How would history and culture change if the circumstances surrounding the deaths of Lincoln and Kennedy were reversed? In this hypothetical timeline:

1. Lincoln is killed while riding in a parade by a lone nut with a rifle. The assassin is then murdered before he can be questioned by authorities, leading to a multitude of conspiracy theories surrounding Lincoln's death.

2. Kennedy is killed at the theater by a famous actor. The murder is part of a larger conspiracy to decapitate the Kennedy administration with simultaneous attempts also being made on the lives of Lyndon Johnson and Bobby Kennedy, both of whom survive. JFK's assassin is killed during a shootout with police officers trying to take him into custody, but the rest of the conspirators are caught, tried, and convicted.
If the Lincoln assassination were significantly changed it would alter the course of politics over the decades and Kennedy may be a completely different person or not become president.
 
If the Lincoln assassination were significantly changed it would alter the course of politics over the decades and Kennedy may be a completely different person or not become president.

True but if we're going 'soft' AH to fit the OP... Lincoln's death simply isn't raising many conspiracies, not ones that would be popular until the late 20th century and by then it just doesn't have the resonance. Not a lot of people talking about things like the Zangara attempt on FDR for instance despite numerous (inane IMO) details that could point to an organised plot.

Kennedy, well by the 1960s the cult of celebrities was starting to solidify thanks to the TV so it would be massive for Jack Lemon (?!) to blow his brains out and have serious cultural effects it simply didn't in the 1860s when actors were still considered not much more socially superior to prostitutes. Maybe another Hollywood Black List? As to the conspiracy implications; an organised conspiracy (in the literal sense of the word) to decapitate the US government - say on anti-Integration lines - by civilians is guaranteed to make waves in conspiracy circles. Bare in mind the reality and folklore surrounding MK Ultra, of brainwashed sleeper agents willing to do what their Deep State masters demand, which was taking place at this point and the idea of famous people ('why would a bloody actor murder the president!') shooting politicians trying to make radical change becomes a lot more acceptable.

While the obsession with tiny details is less likely to happen (Back and to the Left), such a Kennedy assassination opens so many doors to possibilities I imagine it would be even more paramount in modern conspiracy circles than the OTL event is, which is saying something.
 
If the Lincoln assassination were significantly changed it would alter the course of politics over the decades and Kennedy may be a completely different person or not become president.

You could have Lincoln killed by the Baltimore Conspiracy. The thinking was that if Lincoln was killed before he could be sworn in, it would prevent the Civil War.
 
You could have Lincoln killed by the Baltimore Conspiracy. The thinking was that if Lincoln was killed before he could be sworn in, it would prevent the Civil War.

That is an interesting POD in of itself. Lincoln had to be snuck into DC on a night train, disguised as an invalid due to fears of gunmen. The Unionists also relied on Baltimore street gangs and New England militia (Benjamin Butler's most prescient move -and what got him stature in the Northern war effort- was to march them down pre-war for this reason) to ensure the city was secure. Kill Butler's unilateral move, kill the DC bureaucracy accepting help from criminals or simply have Lincoln have more ego and come into town publicly and it very possible. But extraordinary events create extraordinary plans so despite the circumstance I think those particular actors would avoid the Baltimore Conspiracy.
 
That is an interesting POD in of itself. Lincoln had to be snuck into DC on a night train, disguised as an invalid due to fears of gunmen. The Unionists also relied on Baltimore street gangs and New England militia (Benjamin Butler's most prescient move -and what got him stature in the Northern war effort- was to march them down pre-war for this reason) to ensure the city was secure. Kill Butler's unilateral move, kill the DC bureaucracy accepting help from criminals or simply have Lincoln have more ego and come into town publicly and it very possible. But extraordinary events create extraordinary plans so despite the circumstance I think those particular actors would avoid the Baltimore Conspiracy.

There is actually a really good movie loosely based on the Baltimore Conspiracy called The Tall Target. Dick Powell plays a cop on an over night train from New York to DC trying to foil a plot on Lincoln’s life.It’s basically Civil War noir, which is a really interesting mash-up of genres. Even more bizarre is that Powell’s character is named John Kennedy.
 
There is actually a really good movie loosely based on the Baltimore Conspiracy called The Tall Target. Dick Powell plays a cop on an over night train from New York to DC trying to foil a plot on Lincoln’s life.It’s basically Civil War noir, which is a really interesting mash-up of genres. Even more bizarre is that Powell’s character is named John Kennedy.

Fascinating, I'll look that up. John Kennedy is odd. When was it released?
 
Ha, fun little coincidence.

OR ITS PROOF OF THE ILLUMINATI!

Or something. Actually his PA (or 1860s equivalent) was a Kennedy so maybe its a reference?

Regardless thanks for the tip.
 
Edwin Booth, John Wilkes' brother, saved the life of Lincoln's son, Robert.
So if we really want to switch fates, then a famous relative of an equally famous actor (who is associated with someone in Kennedy's family) has to kill JFK. I don't know, maybe Frank Sinatra goes insane after JFK snubs him at his 1962 Palm Springs visit, and uses his (alleged) mob connections to organize a gang hit.
 
There will always be conspiracy theories. The attempt on Reagan has some as well (driven partly by the fact that the Hinckleys are related to the Bushes).

Trying and executing several members of a cabal might tamp down the conspiracies. In OTL, we have unanswered questions about JFK and two mutually exclusive official answers.

Imagine if, in OTL, there was a shooter dressed as a cop on the grassy knoll, and he was caught and ultimately executed. That would likely keep conspiracy theories to the Hinckley level at most, because we would have a complete answer. We would know it was the Marcello crime family, and would assume the motive was that they felt the Kennedys double crossed them. We might have a few people who think LBJ or Castro or the military industrial complex contracted the hit, but those aren't as sexy as the questions in OTL.

Had JFK been shot in a theater by a racist A list actor, and multiple coconspirators executed, most people would be satisfied that we had a complete answer.
 
Top