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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2009
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New Photos Bare Aftermath of King's Death

Life finally releases grim images taken after assassination

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(Newser) – Newly published photographs by a Life magazine lensman capture the aftermath of the shocking assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., including a motel worker sweeping away the blood of the civil rights crusader. Few journalists traveled to Memphis after the assassination, and Life declined to run the photos after his murder in April 1968, reports the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

"It was very disappointing they didn’t publish them, but in those days, we had no say," said Henry Groskinsky, who rushed to Memphis when he heard the news of King's death. He took only a few photographs to document the scene, which he says was "like a wake." To view the newly released images, click on the link to Life below.

Martin Luther King Jr. stands at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, on April 3, 1968. He was assassinated the next day.
Martin Luther King Jr. stands at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, on April 3, 1968. He was assassinated the next day.   (AP Photo/File)
The National Civil Rights Museum, built around the motel where the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in 1968.
The National Civil Rights Museum, built around the motel where the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in 1968.   (AP Photo/Greg Campbell, File)
Newly released images by a 'Life' photographer reveal the scene after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
Newly released images by a 'Life' photographer reveal the scene after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.   (AP Photo/File)
Mourners waiting to view the body of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. queue up outside the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta just after dawn in this 1968 file photo.
Mourners waiting to view the body of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. queue up outside the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta just after dawn in this 1968 file photo.   (AP Photo/File)
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4 comments
VIEWING:
 
riffran
Apr 3, 09 5:21 AM CDT
shame such a great font of wisdom and understanding met with such an untimely death. Reply
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IN RESPONSE:
Robert_Dada
Apr 3, 09 7:24 AM CDT
His legacy lives on by virtue of who we elected as President.
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IN RESPONSE:
AClotfelter
Apr 3, 09 1:58 PM CDT
>> His legacy lives on by virtue of who we elected as President. I agree that a major component of his dream was realized on Jan 20th, unfortunately, realizing the full promise will take quite a bit longer.
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PosterNutbag
Apr 4, 09 3:19 AM CDT
"Few journalists traveled to Memphis after the assassination..." Earl Caldwell was a journalist for the New York Times who was covering King's activities in Memphis at the time so he had a room in the same hotel. A journalist at the scene of the crime at the time the crime was committed--obviously his records can shed a lot of light on what happened that day. In the 90's Janet Reno reopened the case, supposedly to look at weather or not it was conspiracy. After Caldwell turned over all of his records to the attorney general, she completely disregarded his account of the event and in her concluding report the only mention of him was the claim that Earl Caldwell, with all of the evidence to dispute the lone-gunman theory, was not actually at the Lorraine Motel that day. Reply
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