Neither [senior consultant Robert] Groden nor I were aware of the Corsican hit team theory [which was linked to Mack's "Badge Man" theory, and played a large role in Turner's overall conspiracy theory], developed primarily by Steve Rivele.
The original 1988 British broadcast named the three hit men and accused them of killing Kennedy. One, [Lucien] Sarti, was dead, but the other two were still alive.
One threatened to sue Central and had a good alibi. Central quickly produced a 30-minute "apology" program in which the "assassin" told his story. The guests included Groden, Robert Blakey, Howard Willens of the Warren Commission, and James Duffy. I was not invited. The moderator and all of the guests, except Groden, criticized Nigel for failing to do thorough research. Groden tried to emphasize the film's strong points.
The "apology" program, taped in Washington, aired only in England. Parts one and two of "The Men Who Killed Kennedy" were then re-edited to remove the accusations, but the show's credibility was damaged. That was the real reason ABC, CBS, NBC and PBS lost interest in purchasing US rights from Central, even though all four initially wanted the series.
While much of the original five-part production holds up well today, some is outdated or contradicted by new information. The version now appearing on the Arts & Entertainment and History channels was edited by Turner to include 6-7 minutes of commercial time in each part. The home video version, available only from A&E, is the full, revised British version.
http://www.jfk-online.com/tmwkk.html
