Even the date seemed right. An assassination on April 13 would reemphasize how fate had driven Booth, and how history had guided him. Not only was it the birthday of Jefferson, but in the ancient Roman calendar it was a day of reckoning‑‑the Ides. The symbolism was not lost on Booth. But in case anyone else should miss the point, he would script his own act in conscious imitation of the killing of Caesar. He would strike down the president in public, preferably in a theater.