Report of the President's Commission on the Assassination of President John F. Kennedy

Ruby’s Background and Associations

This section covers Jack Ruby’s background and associations, noting that study of his history (detailed further in appendix XVI) leads to the firm conclusion he had no ties to individuals or groups that would have eliminated the need for direct contact with Oswald near the time of the assassination. Ruby was a rigorously independent person who moved from his family home at age 16, relocated from Chicago to Dallas in 1947 with only sporadic contact with most of his family, and was almost continuously self-employed for most of his working life, preferring to operate independently even when he had temporary business partners.

Ruby’s Business Activities

This section details Ruby’s business activities. Ruby’s primary income sources were his two Dallas nightclubs, the Carousel Club and the Vegas Club, though he frequently pursued short-lived independent business promotions. At the time of the assassination, he owed approximately $44,000 in delinquent U.S. taxes and was in substantial debt to his brother Earl and friend Ralph Paul, but there was no indication either party was pressuring him for payment, and his tax liabilities were likely susceptible to acceptable settlement. He operated his clubs on a cash basis, often carrying large amounts of cash, so the roughly $3,000 found on him and in his car at arrest had no particular significance. His meager financial records showed no unexplained large transactions, he used bank accounts infrequently, and no entries were made to his safe-deposit boxes in over a year before the Oswald shooting. There is no evidence he received funds after his arrest except small defense contributions from friends, sympathizers, and family, and royalties from a syndicated newspaper article about his life.