Fatal Vision

Fatal Vision is a best-selling true crime book published in 1983 by journalist and author Joe McGinniss. The following year it was made into an NBC television miniseries under the same name. Fatal Vision is the real-life story of Captain Jeffrey MacDonald, M.D., who in 1979 was convicted of the murder of his pregnant wife and his two young daughters. These murders took place in 1970 while MacDonald was a Green Beret captain and physician in the US Army, stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

History

McGinniss began his writing career as author of the non-fiction book The Selling of the President 1968 (1969).

McGinniss and MacDonald made arrangements to work together shortly before the trial; as part of those arrangements, McGinniss was given special access to MacDonald and his legal team, even living with MacDonald during the murder trial, in return for a share of the book's profits. The book covers events until MacDonald's first appeal was rejected in 1985.

MacDonald expected that the book would show his innocence; however, like other authors MacDonald had contacted, McGinniss insisted on a signed release from MacDonald, allowing him to write freely, and the final version was precisely the opposite of what MacDonald had expected. Fatal Vision, told in a narrative format that interpolates case events with transcripts of recordings MacDonald sent McGinniss, becomes an investigation and the investigation steadily builds a case against MacDonald. As a motive, McGinniss suggests that MacDonald killed his family in a fit of psychotic rage as a result of taking amphetamines.

The Fatal Vision case, as it has come to be known, has a very long legal history, not all of which was covered by the book and movie. Originally, McDonald's lawyer, Bernie Segal, was able to get the charges dismissed by a military court. Despite this, McDonald's father-in-law, Freddie Kassab, began investigating the case himself, mainly by obtaining transcripts of the closed military hearing. He convinced a government lawyer, Victor Worheide, to reopen the case, and Worheide obtained a federal indictment from a grand jury. A federal court of appeal then decided that McDonald's speedy trial rights had been violated, but this decision was set aside by the U.S. Supreme Court, leading to a jury verdict in 1979. The case went back up to the Supreme Court for another decision in 1985, when the jury verdict was affirmed. As recently as 2008, McDonald was still litigating the case and obtained a federal court order to have DNA evidence in the case re-tested. So far this has not led to any changes in the case.^{[citation needed]}

Reception and controversy

In 1984, MacDonald sued McGinniss for breach of contract, including "journalistic distortion." Following a mistrial, the suit was settled out of court for $325,000.

In 1990, The New Yorker writer Janet Malcolm published a widely read article, "The Journalist and the Murderer", the thesis of which was that McGinniss committed a "morally indefensible" act in pretending that he believed MacDonald was innocent, even after he became convinced of his guilt.

Fatal Vision, both book and miniseries, helped to popularize the case against MacDonald, but failed to sway all his supporters. In 1995, MacDonald defenders Jerry Allen Potter and Fred Bost challenged McGinniss' narrative with Fatal Justice: Reinvestigating the MacDonald Murders.

Miniseries

Fatal Vision was also a 1984 television miniseries.

Cast list

• Gary Cole as Capt. Jeffrey MacDonald, MD
• Karl Malden as Freddy Kassab
• Eva Marie Saint as Mildred Kassab
• Barry Newman as Bernie Segal
• Wendy Schaal as Colette MacDonald
• Andy Griffith as Victor Worheide

Karl Malden was awarded an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series for his performance as MacDonald's father in-law, Freddy Kassab.

Fatal Vision was also nominated for Outstanding Drama/Comedy Special and for Outstanding Achievement in Makeup, David Greene for Outstanding Directing in a Limited Series or a Special, and John Gay for Outstanding Writing in a Limited Series or a Special.

Cultural references

Seinfeld's Elaine Benes is seen reading a copy of Fatal Vision in the episode entitled "The Diplomat's Club" which gives the mistaken impression that she is interested in killing her boss Mr. Pitt.

External links

• Fatal Vision at the Internet Movie Database
• Fatal Vision at AllRovi
• Fatal Vision at Rotten Tomatoes