Photograph of Ruby killing Oswald captured historic moment, defined a career

By DAVID CASSTEVENS

During a visit to the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza, a 3-year-old gazed up from her stroller at a black-and-white photograph picturing a dark-haired man in his late 20s. The portrait was taken almost a half-century ago, but the child recognized that face instantly.

"Grandpa!" Marianne Jackson cried.

Her gray-haired grandfather smiled in delighted surprise.

Yes, Bob Jackson said, that's me.

Through a child's eyes, the 75-year-old former newspaper photographer was reminded of the magic of the camera -- the power of a lens and the click of a shutter to freeze time and preserve it forever.

Jackson's award-winning career was defined in one captured fraction of a second.

The moment arrived on a Sunday, Nov. 24, 1963.