Today is the 144th anniversary of Lincoln's ill-fated trip to Ford's Theatre. C-SPAN will broadcast a live event tonight with James Swanson, author of the best-selling Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer, speaking at Washington DC's Newseum about assassination.
The anniversary has brought out one person seeking to share the morbid spotlight. John Sotos, author of the well-received The Physical Lincoln, is trying to gain access to the pillowcase on which Lincoln's head rested when he died. He wants to run tests on Lincoln's blood to see if he was affected with a rare genetic cancer. The priceless quotation from a professor suggesting that the pillowcase is "the Shroud of Turin of Civil War history" makes the story pop (and has gotten it much wider coverage, no doubt). Read the original story here.
One would think that it would be impossible to find humor in Lincoln's assassination, but this fake news story about a would-be PBS documentary is pretty funny. "The Man Who Shot Lincoln," starring Burt Ward, should bring a smile.
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