From today's Philadelphia Inquirer...

[mozartpc27]

So, today's Inquirer had this article about the whole John Wilkes Booth thing. It turns out, two of his living relatives are from the area --- one in Philadelphia (where I live now) and one in nearby Warminster (where I grew up) --- and a medical museum in Philadelphia actually holds some samples of DNA taken from the body of the man who was shot inside the Garrett barn (the vertebrae immediately surrounding the area where he was shot). So, obviously, the article was about the possibility of doing a DNA test using his living relatives in the area against the sample at the Mutter Museum. Don't hold your breath about a "solution" to this one, however (though I'm quite sure Booth was the man shot that day); the Mutter Museum's policies regarding the release of its exhibits for testing are quite strict, and they say the tissues are likely too degraded from being kept in formaldehyde and alcohol to produce a reliable sample anyway.

What was of interest in the article, however, was this little line, quite near the end:

Originally Posted by The Philadelphia Inquirer

...more than a dozen [Booth] descendants... gave permission to open the Booth burial plot in Baltimore in 1995. They wanted to check the remains for identifying marks... But a judge turned down the family and [Nate] Orlowek [one of the Booth researchers featured in the UM Booth segment] after learning that Booth had been interred at an undisclosed location in the cemetery to prevent desecration of his grave. That left DNA as the only option for the descendants and Orlowek, whose research will be featured on TV's Unsolved Mysteries in the fall.

So, we know at least one case that will make the cut for the new episodes! It's interesting, because, if I recall correctly, this is one of UM's longer segments. If they're planning on airing it, I don't see how they can relate the entire story AND obey their stated "slash and burn" philosophy when it comes to the segments (cutting them down to 7 minutes a piece).

[Allierain]

Definitely, I remember this one! One of my favorite cases! I can't wait to see what new information they can add.

As for my feeling based on the original UM segment, I thought that there was a true possibility that Booth wasn't killed in the farm that night. But I thought for a long time that Anna Anderson was Anastasia, too, and we all know how *that* turned out...