JFK Researcher Frank Beckendorf's 2018 essay "Ed Butler, INCA and Me" - Ed Butler interviewed Oswald on the Radio in New Orleans

 

Ed Butler, INCA and Me          the real Ed Butler as I saw him

June 24, 2018

 

JFK researcher Frank Beckendorf wrote this essay on the JFK assassination. He invites your comments:

 

by Frank W. Beckendorf BCJ, MA    

© Copyright 2018

 

Let's set the record straight right from the beginning. Ed Scannell Butler was not hired as an executive vice president, he was INCA.   

I met Ed Butler in his INCA office in the 70s. INCA, or the Information Council of the Americas, had once been a player in the us vs. them scenario, but at this time, it was dying a fast death. Funding was drying up and interest was waning. Alton Oschner was too elderly to care about a non-stop flow of continued financial. support and Patrick Frawley, another financial backer, also lost interest. Oschner was too big an influence on both the organization and Frawley.  

Butler's office, contrary to earlier reports, was not located in “INCA’s” building.

It was stuffed in the Maison Blanche Building on Canal Street in New Orleans. Also located there was WSMB, a radio station Butler would later be hosting an on-air show.

When I first walked into Butler's office, the first thing I noticed was that it was packed. Much like an overstuffed New Orleans po boy, there were boxes and papers everywhere. It was poorly lit and smelly. The odor of long stored cardboard was obvious. Even the floors were cluttered beyond imagination. Butler's desk was packed with papers en masse. Much like the walls and floors. 

 The only staff member INCA and Butler had was a strange, but friendly character whose name presently escapes me. Butler's assistant reminded me of Igor in the movie, Young Frankenstein. His faced and upper area was badly scarred and he was humped over, slightly. Ed told me he was very dedicated to the cause and was satisfied with minimal wages. To this day, I cannot remember anything else about Butler's sole employee.  I do remember that he was a nice guy. Friendly and courteous..  

I was up there with Butler many times discussing INCA, and in particular Oswald and JFK. We would sit for hours discussing things. Or, at least, it was me just listening. 

Ed Butler was always eagerly handing me things  He gave me lots of things. Books, articles and LPs. were some of the things he gave me. Signed books and audios galore. Newspaper articles and magazines. INCA publications.  

Butler had always been cordial and accommodating to me. But, one thing that puzzled me about him was that he was always afraid someone was going to kill him. He would take different routes to an from the office daily. His daily activities we’re carefully planned and scouted  He lived in an underpopulated area in a nearby city and drove an old unnoticeable car. Now, whether his life really was threatened or not cannot be confirmed – and I never tried. I took his word for it. 

Ed Butler's topics generally focused on: Oswald, INCA and communism. He was only fond of one, and the other two repulsed him.  Or did they? Let’s take a look at all three.  

But, before we look at these let’s consider this. I base this on both knowledge and conjecture. First, of all, Butler's job was running INCA from the comforts of an office. Now, was he overly concerned with this continued and stable position? Or, was he protecting his welfare? Something to think about…. 

Butler was no doctor or lawyer. I knew of no professional talent that could earn an oversized income. Butler was INCA and INCA was Butler. Could he have earned his salary elsewhere? He never disclosed what he was paid. He never discussed benefits. He discussed Oswald, communism and Kennedy.  

In a phone call, June 25^th, Butler's nephew, Perrin Butler Jr stated that in his opinion he  believed that his uncle believed  Oswald was the killer of JFK and that DA Garrison's investigation was baseless.  

Presently, there is no information that contradicted his opinion that Ed Butler believed Oswald killed Kennedy. Thus all there is presently is conjecture and debate. Was it a matter of economics for Ed Butler, or did he believed there was a conspiracy. Without evidence disputing what this author, and Butler’s nephew believes, it can only be assumed that Ed Butler was anti conspiracy.  

INCA

Ed Butler had always felt a need for an anti communist organization. He and Dr. Alton Oschner collaborated and came up with an idea to promote capitalism, and in particular Latin American trade with the port of New Orleans. Latin America sent around 70% of its goods through the port. Butler and Oschner soon gathered strong support and formed INCA.  

I debate how effective INCA really was. It looks to me that it was not very effective. To this date, I have seen no evidence to contradict this theory.  Distributing literature and holding meetings can only accomplish so much. What real successes attributed to INCA remains debatable. I invite debate on this subject matter. 

 

When Hurricane Katrina hit the Louisiana coast in August 2005, Ed Butler was long past his prime. His broadcasting career was in full force, primarily as an entertainment venue. During August, Butler suffered a fatal heart attack. Katrina forced a lot of hospitals to close and Butler had to be taken to a few locations before ending up in a Lacombe, La hospital, according to his nephew Perrin Butler. By then, the time lapse was too great to overcome. Butler succumbed to an ailment the weather condition precipitated.  

Thirteen years later, few historians give Butler much credit in curtailing communism in Latin America or elsewhere. Ed Butler may be remembered as someone who spent Alton Oschner’s money and dispensing a lot of air. He was a colorful character whose belief in Oswald as an assassin may well have been his Achilles heel. Perhaps his greatest accomplishment was in debating Oswald with Carlos Bringuier on a New Orleans broadcasting outlet. History will not argue the importance of this happenchance event. 

So, Ed Butler is an important figure in the history changing event of late 1963. Just how important is for the individual student of history to decide.  

The author has earned a Bachelor of Criminal Justice from Loyola University in New Orleans and a Master of Arts from the University of New Orleans. He was born and lived in the immediate New Orleans area for fifty – three years of his life, until Hurricane Katrina forced him to relocate his family to West Texas, in particular Abilene, TX in 2005. He relocated back home to the New Orleans area in 2015.  He is a retired social studies teacher and holds a real estate sales license in Louisiana and a real estate broker’s license in Texas. He also teaches American Politics at an online university. He is the 2012 winner of the Mary Ferrell Promise Award.  

 

Some people choose the path less traveled. Me, I'd rather cut through the woods.  

 

Frank Beckendorf BCJ, MA Slidell, La.  985-205-7622