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Source: The Philadelphia InquirerOct.自存倉 18--Until the very end, Sen. Arlen Specter insisted that one shooter -- and only one shooter -- killed President John F. Kennedy.The so-called single bullet theory was no theory, Specter would snap whenever the topic came up. "It's a conclusion," the late senator repeatedly asserted.Specter was a rising young prosecutor when he joined the Warren Commission to investigate the Kennedy assassination.In a decision that continues to draw critics and controversy, the commission pinned the killing on Lee Harvey Oswald.There was no mafia plot.No anti-Castro conspiracy.Oswald acted alone, the commission concluded in its 889-page report.Now, on the eve of the 50th anniversary of Kennedy's death, Philadelphia University has staged an innovative exhibit to probe the different theories on whether Kennedy was killed by one assassin or two.Specter, who lived in East Falls, left all of his personal papers and archives to Philadelphia University."Single Bullet," a free show from Oct. 21 to April 11, is the first major exhibition for the university's Arlen Specter Center for Public Policy.Conceived by a creative team of students, faculty and staff, the exhibition displays artifacts and information, but also allows visitors to test conflicting assassination theories.The focal point of the display is a life-size pine and metal model of Kennedy's limousine when he passed through Dealy Plaza in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963. It's less a replica of the car than an approximation.Placed in an alcove on the second floor of the university's Paul J. Gutman Library, the car allows a visitor to imagine sitting in the exact spot as Kennedy.On a jump seat in front is a mannequin representing Texas Gov. John Connally Jr.Here's where the ingenuity comes in.Three rifle shots were fired that day. One bullet missed the motorcade; one pierced Kennedy's neck and, according to the commission, struck Connally; and the last blasted through the president in the head.Using mounted cameras and three video screens, a visitor can imagine the trajectory of the second bullet as if it were fired from Oswald's hideout in the Texas School Book Depository, versus the so-called grassy knoll or a nearby overpass.The shots fired from the grassy knoll and overpass would have missed the mark, but not the one from the sixth floor of the book depository."The aim from th迷你倉 beginning was to lay out the evidence in a way to explain it," said Evan Laine, director of the university's law and society program.The exhibition, underwritten by a $100,000 grant from PNC Foundation, was a collaborative effort between students and professors of architecture, design and law.At first, the designers thought they would create a more traditional exhibit using models, photographs and other archival materials from Specter's collection.But students suggested creating a more immersive experience."Students thought we should put the visitor in the place of Arlen Specter," said David Kratzer, associate professor of architecture. And that meant exploring and experiencing not only the single-shooter theory, but others, as well."We let people reach their own conclusion, even though Specter went to his grave with the single-bullet conclusion," said Frank Baseman, an associate professor of graphic design.Stephen Spinelli Jr., president of Philadelphia University, said that when he sat in the model car for the first time, imagining the bullet coming from different angles, he felt a sense of going back in time."This forces you to think about it as Oswald, as Kennedy, and as Specter," he said.Spinelli, 58, said he was an 8-year-old having lunch at school when the principal announced that President Kennedy had been shot."Time stopped in your head," he said.Ted Nicholas, 23, who graduated last May with a degree in architecture from the university, said working on the exhibit brought him closer to understanding how the Kennedy assassination was a defining moment for his parents' generation."It's what 9/11 was to us," he said.Taylor Klemm, a fifth-year architecture student who also worked on the exhibit, said Kennedy's assassination "wasn't personal" to him before. And of the many conspiracy theories, he said, "the lines were blurred."Working on the exhibit, he comes down more on the side of the single bullet. "After this," Klemm said, "the lines are much more clearly drawn."The exhibition is free and open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. To schedule individual or group tours, call 215-951-0489 or e-mail spectercenter@philau.edu.jlin@phillynews.com215-854-5659 @j_linq.inquirer.com/doubledownCopyright: ___ (c)2013 The Philadelphia Inquirer Visit The Philadelphia Inquirer at .philly.com Distributed by MCT Information Servicesmini storage