became an Associate Professor in 1947, and Professor in 1953. He published little in the academic press but later became known for politically conservative articles expressing anti-Semitism and white nationalism. He retired in 1977 from the University of Illinois as a professor emeritus. Conservative movement Oliver co-founded the National Review in November 1955 and worked with William F. Buckley as an associate editor. Oliver also wrote for The American Mercury. Buckley, who aimed to make conservatism more respectable to Americans averse to antisemitism and extremism, kept a close friendship with Oliver but acknowledged privately that Oliver was antisemitic. He employed Oliver as a National Review book reviewer for years, finally breaking with him over his 1964 article on the Kennedy assassination. In 1958, Oliver joined as a founding member of Robert W. Welch, Jr.'s John Birch Society, an anti-communist organization. He was a member of its national commission and associate editor of its magazine, American Opinion. In 1962, Buckley repudiated Welch and the "Birchers", saying they were "far removed from common sense" and urging the GOP to purge itself of Welch's influence. The repudiation drove a wedge in Buckley's friendship with Oliver. After the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, Oliver wrote a two-part article called "Marxmanship in Dallas" published in March 1964 in American Opinion, the Birch magazine. It alleged that Lee Harvey Oswald had carried out the murder as part of a communist conspiracy to kill Kennedy, whom Oliver described as a puppet who had outlived his usefulness. In March 1964, Oliver was reprimanded by the University of Illinois' Board of Trustees, but was allowed to keep his position. Oliver testified in the fall of that year before the Warren Commission. White nationalism In 1966, Oliver embarrassed Welch by proclaiming that the world's troubles would be ended if "all Jews were vaporized at dawn tomorrow" along with "Illuminati" and "Bolsheviks". Alleging that Welch had tricked him or sold out to Zionist interests, he decried what he called "the Birch hoax". He was "forced to resign" from the society on July 30, 1966. Oliver later claimed in 1981 to have discovered that Welch "was merely the nominal head of the Birch business, which he operated under the supervision of a committee of Jews". Oliver is described as "a virulent anti-Semite" in Claire Conner's memoir about the time, Wrapped in the Flag: A Personal History of America's Radical Right. From