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Playboy Payola: Jack Kershaw, Pt. 2

April 9, 2026 · 44 min

Show notes

Decades before he sculpted a Confederate general out of old bathtubs, Jack Kershaw briefly represented his most famous client - Martin Luther King Jr's assassin, James Earl Ray. The relationship soured after Ray discovered his lawyer had pocketed a payment from Playboy magazine.

Sources:

James McKinley, "Playboy Interview: James Earl Ray," Playboy Magazine, September 1977

https://www.nytimes.com/1977/08/09/archives/polygraph-indicates-ray-lied.html

https://www.nytimes.com/1977/10/25/archives/james-earl-ray-wants-mark-lane-to-replace-his-tenth-lawyer.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/28/sports/the-barkley-marathons-few-know-how-to-enter-fewer-finish.html

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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