Biographical / Historical
Historical note
Content Description
Conditions Governing Access
Conditions Governing Use
Preferred Citation
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
USC Libraries Special Collections
Title: Richard M. Mosk Warren Commission papers
creator:
Mosk, Richard M.
Identifier/Call Number: 6120
Physical Description:
9 Linear Feet
9 boxes
Date (inclusive): 1963-2015
Abstract: Richard M. Mosk was a California Court of Appeal Justice who over more than three decades of public service investigated the
assassination of President John F. Kennedy, chaired the Motion Picture Classification and Rating Administration that provides
the parental ratings for motion pictures, and sat on the Iran-U.S. Claims Tribunal at The Hague, where he served as a judge
from 1981 to 1984 and 1997 to 2001. The Warren Commission was established by President Lyndon B. Johnson on November 29, 1963
and was chaired by Chief Justice Earl Warren to investigate the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Mosk's papers
consist of correspondence between members of the staff, both personal and professional, clippings, audio and video documentaries,
copies of reports, interviews and speeches all related to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
Biographical / Historical
Richard M. Mosk (1939-2016) was an associate justice of the California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, Division
Five since 2001 when he was appointed by Gray Davis.
Mosk was born in Los Angeles in 1939, the son of Stanley Mosk, a former California Attorney General and state Supreme Court
justice. A graduate of both Stanford University and Harvard Law School, Richard Mosk served as a California Supreme Court
law clerk and later was appointed to the staff of the Warren Commission (President's Commission on the Assassination of President
John F. Kennedy) where he was charged with examining the background of Lee Harvey Oswald. From 1981 to 1984, Mosk served as
the U.S. appointed judge on the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal, which was established as part of the settlement of the
Iranian hostage crisis. Subsequently, he served as a substitute judge on that Tribunal from 1984 to 1997. In 1997, he was
reappointed to that Tribunal and served until 2001 when he was appointed to his current position on the California Court of
Appeal.
In 1991, Mosk served as a member of the Independent Commission on the Los Angeles Police Department, also known as the Christopher
Commission. The Commission was formed to investigate the L.A.P.D. shortly after the highly publicized beating of motorist
Rodney King.
Between 1994 and 2000, Mosk served as both Chair and Co-Chair of the Motion Picture Classification and Rating Administration
(of the Motion Picture Association of America) that provides the parental ratings for motion pictures.
Justice Mosk practiced law in Los Angeles, tried both civil and criminal cases, and argued cases before the California and
United States Supreme Courts. He taught law at the University of Southern California Law Center and the T.C. Beirne School
of Law at Queensland University in Australia. In addition, he lectured at many law schools in the United States, Europe, and
Asia.
Historical note
The Warren Commission, chaired by Chief Justice Earl Warren, was established on November 29, 1963 and was tasked with investigating
the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. On September 24, 1964, the commission presented its final report, consisting
of 888 pages, to President Johnson. The report concluded that Lee Harvey Oswalt acted alone in the assassination of President
Kennedy. Over the years, the commission's report has proven to be controversial and its findings have been challenged by skeptics
and conspiracy theorists.
Content Description
The Richard M. Mosk papers, 1963-2015, consist of correspondence between members of the Warren Commission staff, both personal
and professional, clippings, audio and video documentaries, copies of reports, interviews and speeches all related to the
assassination of President John F. Kennedy. The bulk of the collection consists of correspondence between former members of
the Warren Commisssion, and it includes e-mails, letters, and memorandums of President Kennedy's assassination and the findings
of the Warren Commission. The papers also include reports about Lee Harvey Oswald, the assassination of President John F.
Kennedy, assassination materials disclosure act, and the report of the select committee on assassinations. Mosk's papers also
include clippings, articles, magazines, transcripts of television and radio shows, drafts, and legal documentes pertaining
to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the findings of the Warren Commission Report.
Conditions Governing Access
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE. Advance notice required for access.
Conditions Governing Use
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Manuscripts Librarian.
Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical items and is not intended
to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.
Preferred Citation
[Box/folder# or item name], Richard M. Mosk Warren Commission papers, Collection no. 6120, Special Collections, USC Libraries,
University of Southern California
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Sandra Mosk, June 14, 2016.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Assassination -- Investigation -- United States -- 20th century -- Archival resources
Assassination -- Political aspects -- United States -- History -- 20th century -- Archival resources
Assassination -- United States -- History -- 20th century -- Archival resources
United States -- History -- 20th century -- Archival resources
Books
Clippings
Compact discs
Correspondence
DVDs
Interviews
Interviews (Sound recordings)
Journals (periodicals)
Legal documents
Letters
Magazines (periodicals)
Memorandums
Photographs
Press releases
Reports
Transcripts
Speeches
VHS (TM)
Mosk, Richard M. -- Archives
Griffin, Burt W. -- Archives
Holland, Max -- Archives
Kennedy, John F. (John Fitzgerald), 1917-1963 -- Archives
Kennedy, John F. (John Fitzgerald), 1917-1963 -- Assassination
Oswald, Lee Harvey -- Archives
Slawson, W. David, 1931- -- Archives
United States. Warren Commission -- Archives
Warren, Earl, 1891-1974 -- Archives
Willens, Howard P., 1931- -- Archives