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Controversy at Bomas and how SMS saved Gen Ogolla's career

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Ruto defends appointing Gen Ogolla as KDF boss despite Bomas drama

President Ruto acknowledged that he was sharing highly classified information but chose to explain his decision on why he rewarded General Ogolla despite being mentioned among those accused of trying to overturn his win at Bomas of Kenya

President William Ruto explained why he appointed General Francis Ogolla as the Chief of Defence despite being mentioned among those accused of trying to overturn his win during the hotly contested presidential election in 2022.

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Speaking during an interview with the media at State House on Sunday, May 14, President Ruto said he had a candid conversation with General Ogolla over the alleged plot and decided to promote him regardless.

The commander-in-chief, however, explained that the KDF boss’ track record and qualifications were unmatched, making Ogolla the best person to head Kenya’s military.

Ruto was clearing the air on claims that his administration was making appointments on the basis of politics not competence.

“ I called him and I sat him down. I told him, my friend, you went to Bomas to try and overturn my victory but because you are the best person to be general, I will give you the job, ” the president said.

READ: General Francis Ogolla's Biography: Family, education, US fighter jet training

Ruto further stated that he had been presented with 10 names to choose from and decided to promote General Ogolla against the advice of many of his allies.

He said many people told him not to reward the KDF boss because of the Bomas issue.

During the interview, the president acknowledged that he was sharing highly classified information but chose to explain his decision.

“ Yes, he may have made a mistake, maybe because the commander-in-chief at that time told him what to do, ” Ruto said, adding that the KDF boss admitted he had made a mistake.

The head of state recalled that in his candid conversation, General Ogolla told him he was ready for whatever decision the president would make regarding his career.

“ I have no defence, you do with me whatever you want. I cannot defend what I did, it was wrong, ” Ruto quoted what General Ogolla said to him.

What transpired at Bomas of Kenya

Former Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) chairman Wafula Chebukati and ex-commissioner Abdi Guliye alleged that Gen Ogolla was part of a delegation from the National Security Advisory Council (NSAC) that attempted to influence the presidential election results in favour of Raila Odinga .

In their sworn statements presented to the Supreme Court during the presidential petition, Chebukati and Prof. Guliye claimed that NSAC asserted that a result unfavorable to Odinga would lead to nationwide turmoil.

They further alleged that NSAC dispatched a team comprising Gen. Ogolla, former Principal Administrative Secretary in the Office of President Kennedy Kihara, ex-Solicitor General Kennedy Ogeto, and former police chief Hillary Mutyambai to the national tallying center at Bomas of Kenya.

NSAC, in its response, refuted the allegations but acknowledged holding a meeting with Chebukati at Bomas of Kenya on August 15.

Kihara explained that the NSAC team only went to Bomas to discuss security concerns related to delays in the transmission of presidential election results before updating the IEBC chair on Kenya's safety situation.

The Supreme Court, in its verdict that upheld President Ruto's victory, did not make any definitive conclusions regarding the allegations.

• WilliamRuto
• BomasofKenya
• StateHouseKenya
• WafulaChebukati

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Full military honours for Kibaki as ex-President is accorded state funeral

Friday april 29 2022.

Kenya's former president Mwai Kibaki. PHOTO | FILE | NMG

• Funeral service in Nairobi today will start a series of events that will lead to the burial of Mwai Kibaki.

The body of former President Mwai Kibaki will this morning be escorted from Lee Funeral Home to State House where a guard of honour will be mounted one last time in the place he called home for 10 years.

At 9am, the procession will depart State House for Nyayo National Stadium, where the state funeral will be held in his honour ahead of burial at his Othaya home tomorrow.

Some family members of former president Mwai Kibaki at Lee Funeral Home in Nairobi on April 29, 2022. PHOTO | JEFF ANGOTE | NMG

The six-hour send-off programme for Kenya’s third President will be a largely military affair. 

Given that Kibaki was Catholic, the Mass will be celebrated by Archbishop Philip Anyolo, assisted by Archbishop Martin Kivuva.

Foreign leaders, including South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa are expected to arrive at 10.20am for the ceremony to pay tribute to Kibaki who died last Friday, aged 90.

The day’s procession will begin at 8.30am. 

The Kenya Defence Forces’ (KDF) gun carriage with the casket draped in the Kenyan flag will leave Lee Funeral Home for State House escorted by outriders.

At State House, a brief guard of honour will be mounted and the National Anthem played as President Kenyatta, alongside First Lady Margaret Kenyatta, receive the body of his predecessor who led Kenya from 2003 t0 2013.

In a slow march, the casket will then be taken inside State House for a brief Mass led by military chaplains.

A photo session will then follow and the casket reloaded to the gun carriage.

The procession will leave State House at 9am for the 5.1 kilometre journey to Nyayo National Stadium where Kenyans will be waiting.

The procession will be led by a military band and other formations, who will march to the stadium followed by the gun carriage that will be occupied by Brigadier Jeff Nyagah and the colonels who have assumed the role of pall bearers.

Hearse carrying the body of former president Mwai Kibaki is escorted on Valley Road to State House Nairobi on April 29, 2022. PHOTO | DENNIS ONSONGO | NMG

Behind the gun carriage will be KDF officers from the Army, Navy and Air Force marching in ceremonial outfits.

State reception

President Kenyatta and the First Lady will arrive at Nyayo stadium at 10.30am and the state reception for Kibaki’s funeral procession will begin at 10.45am with a guard of honour followed by a procession to the altar.

The President, Chief of Defence Forces Robert Kibochi, Vice Chief of Defence Forces Francis Ogolla and service commanders Walter Koipaton, John Omenda and Jimson Mutai will witness the mounting of the casket on a wooden catafalque placed on a red carpet.

The casket will be surrounded by family members, military generals, pallbearers and religious leaders from various denominations all of whom will occupy a tent in the middle of the stadium.

The body of former president Mwai Kibaki arrives at State House Nairobi on April 29, 2022 ahead of a state funeral service to be held at Nyayo Stadium. PHOTO | JEFF ANGOTE | NMG

The National Police Service has warned motorists to be wary of traffic disruptions on Processional Way, Uhuru Highway, Kenyatta Avenue and Aerodrome Road to allow for the cortège’s movements.

Yesterday, military officials rehearsed their movements and prepared the venue with characteristic precision.

Security has been beefed up at Nyayo stadium and the surrounding areas by officers from the National Police Service and the military, which is in charge of the entire event.

Kenyans attending the Mass will be seated at the terraces and will follow the proceedings from the screens mounted at the four corners of the tent.

The government has not restricted the number of attendees to the stadium, which has a capacity of 30,000.

Once inside the stadium, the attendees will be entertained by multiple choirs, which have been scheduled to perform at the mass.

They include the Kenya Army Band, which will lead in the national and East African anthems, the State House choir and the Starehe Boys Centre Band.

Archbishop Anyolo of the Catholic Church, Nairobi Diocese, will be the main celebrant at the Mass, but other denominational leaders will have a chance to participate.

Flags will be hoisted at half-mast at the stadium. Those attending will be expected to be seated by 8am.

Three African heads of state, vice-presidents, prime ministers and the secretary-general of the Commonwealth are among the dignitaries expected at the event.

They include South Sudan President Salva Kiir, Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa and Sahle-Work Zewde of Ethiopia.

Others are the prime minister of Rwanda, vice-presidents of Zimbabwe, Tanzania, and Uganda, the former President of Malawi, and the special envoy of Sri Lanka.

Tomorrow, Kibaki’s body will be ferried to Othaya Approved School Grounds by road using the Lee Funeral Home’s hearse, whose clear glass windows will allow Kenyans a chance to view the coffin as the cortège makes its way to Kibaki’s final resting place.

At some point closer to the school, soldiers will load the casket back onto the gun carriage for the final slow procession into the Othaya Approved School grounds where the burial ceremony will be held ahead of interment at Kibaki’s Mweiga home.

Mr Kennedy Kihara, the Principal Secretary in the Office of the President, said at least 15,000 mourners are expected to attend the burial ceremony but will be restricted from attending the final rites at Kibaki’s rural home in Mweiga.

The ceremony at the approved school will be conducted by Nyeri Catholic Archbishop Anthony Muheria. Archbishop Muheria eulogised Kibaki as a humble servant who has left a great legacy through his style of leadership.

“He would come to church like other congregants every Sunday. Kibaki would kneel to pray despite his advanced age even when we asked him not to,” Archbishop Muheria told the Daily Nation. “This shows his humility in prayer. It was a reflection of his style of leadership.”

Mwai Kibaki, who was born to Kibaki Githinji and Teresia Wanjiku in Othaya on November 15, 1931, was the lastborn. 

Only one sibling, Waitherero, lives. His other siblings were Wangui, Githinji, Kinyua, Nderitu and Waruguru.

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President Ruto: My inner circle rejected General Francis Ogolla as KDF chief

General Francis Ogolla, Kenya's new Chief of Defence Forces, addresses participants during the change of guard ceremony at the Ulinizi Sports Complex in Langata, Nairobi, on May 5, 2023. 

By  Mwangi Muiruri

Nation Media Group

What you need to know:

• President Ruto said he exercised magnanimity of leadership to appoint "Mr Ogolla, who had walked into Bomas of Kenya to try and overthrow my win" after the August 9 General Election.
• He dismissed the notion that "I appointed him on the dictates of the military traditions and order of doing things".

President William Ruto on Sunday revealed that he appointed General Francis Ogolla as the Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) against the advice of many in his inner circle.

While fielding questions from journalists on live TV, President Ruto said he exercised magnanimity of leadership to appoint "Mr Ogolla, who had walked into Bomas of Kenya to try and overthrow my win" after the August 9 General Election.

He said the popular advice he got from his loyalists was not to reward Gen Ogolla "owing to his (claimed) attempted power grab against the will of the people, "but I insisted on him because his experience justified his being given the job".

Francis Ogolla appointed new Chief of Defence Forces

Kibochi leaves big boots to fill as Ogolla takes charge

President Ruto dismissed the notion that "I appointed him on the dictates of the military traditions and order of doing things".

"Nothing could be farther from the truth since I had over 10 choices and I would have appointed any to the position but I called Mr Ogolla, sat him down, called out his action ... but at the end of the day I gave him the job". 

The President was referring to claims by former Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Chairman Wafula Chebukati that on August 15, 2022, Vice CDF Ogolla, attempted to force him to declare Azimio La Umoja candidate Raila Odinga as the winner or force a rerun. 

He was accompanied by the then Jubilee Secretary-General Raphael Tuju, Head of Public Service Joseph Kinyua, Inspector-General of Police Hillary Mutyambai, the Principal Administrative Secretary in the Office of President Kennedy Kihara and Solicitor-General Kennedy Ogeto.

The claims, which Mr Chebukati made while calling for a public inquiry into the Bomas election fiasco, are also contained in an affidavit the IEBC boss filed at the Supreme Court during the 2022 presidential election petition.

President Ruto said, "I do not work in any other way apart from appointing people on merit. It is all about competency. I looked at this man's curriculum vitae and decided, against the wish of many, that he was the most suitable," Dr Ruto said.

The Commander-In-Chief said he has powers to overrule the set military dictates (popularly known as Tonje rules) that guide the institution's ultimate leadership "but not for the sake of it and my policy is to go for competencies devoid of those other considerations being peddled out there”.

General Ogolla took over the reins of the military from General Robert Kibochi after taking the oath of office at State House, Nairobi, on April 29.

Defence Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale congratulated Gen Ogolla on his appointment, noting he has the requisite competency, training and leadership skills to take the military to greater heights within the East African region and the globe.

Gen Kibochi lauded his successor for being part of his strategic team, saying it ensured the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) remained mission-ready in responding to diverse operational and administrative engagements.

Gen Ogolla paid tribute to his predecessor, thanking him for his mentorship, guidance and cooperation.

He implored the KDF fraternity to always be determined and committed to developing and embracing modern security strategies, to conform with evolving national and global security threats.

He further noted that he will continue working closely with other security agencies, within a broader multi-agency framework, for the safety, security and stability of the country and its people, and for the sake of sustainable economic development and prosperity.

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Security Council: We met Chebukati over delays in presidential election results

Head of Public Service Joseph Kinyua.

Members of the National Security Advisory Committee (NSAC) have denied claims by IEBC commissioner Prof. Abdi Guliye, who said that they wanted the chairman Wafula Chebukati to alter the results of the Presidential Election.

In an affidavit on Monday, NSAC members Kennedy Kihara and Joseph Kinyua termed claims that they visited the Bomas of Kenya to try to subvert the will of the people as “unfounded and a total misrepresentation of the events of August 15, 2022.”

According to Kinyua and Kihara, their visit to the National Tallying Centre in Bomas was occasioned by the delay in the declaration of the presidential results.

“The said meeting of 15th August, 2022 was necessitated by the fact that the NSAC in the discharge of its mandate, had become seized of information to the effect that apparent delays in declaring the results of the presidential elections, and the manner in which results were being transmitted, including the stoppage of the public display of results had generated considerable public anxiety and tension and risked creating the opportunity for chaos, violence and insecurity in parts of the country,” they said in the affidavit.

NSAC added that the constitution stipulates that the results of the Presidential election had to be declared before August 16, but it was not clear whether the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and Wafula Chebukati would meet the timelines.

They added that they also wanted to find out if the commission was facing any challenges since they had stopped public display of results.

“The NSAC had observed that the delay in the declaration of presidential election results was unprecedented in Kenya’s history.”

In his affidavit, Guliye said that Principal Administrative Secretary at the office of President Kennedy Kihara, Head of Public Service Joseph Kinyua , Solicitor General Kennedy Ogeto, Inspector General of Police Hillary Mutyambai and LT. General Francis Omondi Ogolla the Vice Chief of Defences visited Bomas on August 15.

He said that the group asked him to influence the outcome of the presidential election held on August 9, 2022, in favour of a particular candidate.

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Congressman John Fitzgerald Kennedy (circa 1946-47) in his Congressional Office.

Courtesy of John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston

A portrait of JFK, in full

Brett Milano

Harvard Correspondent

New biography aims to chronicle a complex life amid a pivotal time for a nation

One of the revelations about John F. Kennedy in Fredrik Logevall’s new biography, “JFK: Coming of Age in the American Century, 1917‒1956,” is that the man was an excellent letter-writer and diarist. The Laurence D. Belfer Professor of International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School and professor of history makes effective use of the collection at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library, part of which has become available only recently.

“He always had a knack for the English language, even if he was an indifferent student in prep school and in his first years at Harvard,” Logevall says. “His teachers, frustrated by his lack of application overall, were always impressed by his way with words. It is an interesting contrast with his older brother, Joe Jr., the family’s supposed golden child, whose writings had a more dutiful, less imaginative quality.”

The first of a two-volume set, “JFK” aims to give the clearest picture yet available of the 35th president set against the historical, political, and cultural context of a pivotal age. The book begins with great-grandfather Patrick Kennedy’s arrival in Boston during the Irish potato famine and runs through Jack’s childhood, studies at Harvard, and military duty, and finally his rise in politics in 1956, when he almost became the Democrats’ vice presidential pick. Logevall spoke with the Gazette recently about the man and the book.

Fredrik Logevall

GAZETTE: There have certainly been many books written about JFK. What were you able to find that hadn’t been found before?

LOGEVALL: You’re quite right. There are a lot of excellent books out there on various aspects of his life and career, and especially the presidency — one thinks, for example, about the many studies of the Cuban missile crisis, Civil Rights, the Bay of Pigs disaster, the marriage with Jackie, and the assassination in Dallas. But we don’t have many true biographies, even one that is a full-scale examination of the entire life and that looks closely at his early life, in particular his teens and 20s, which I believe were key years for him (as they are for most of us). Mine is a “life and times” biography that places Kennedy in his own context, that of a rising American power in world affairs. I guess the conceit of the book is that I can tell two stories together: the story of John F. Kennedy’s rise and the story of America’s rise. I believe we can better understand the first half of the so-called American Century through the lens of Kennedy’s life.

Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. (from left), Joseph P. Kennedy Sr., and John F. Kennedy in Southampton, England, July 2, 1938.

Courtesy of John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum

GAZETTE: What did you find that people have missed about JFK in the past?

LOGEVALL: One thing that people have underplayed is the degree to which he was a serious student of democracy and world affairs at an earlier point than we imagine. We tend to think of him as a callow playboy, not serious about public policy or his career until quite late, until he runs for Congress in 1946, and maybe not even then. But you can look at the papers he wrote as an undergraduate at Harvard, some of which are available, and you can look at his senior thesis which became a best-selling book [“Why England Slept”] and see a young man already thinking deeply and in sustained fashion about important issues. A second finding is that the young Jack Kennedy was in important respects his own master. Though his father was a towering force in his life and those of his eight siblings, Jack proved willing and able, to a degree I did not expect, to chart his own course. The Harvard years are interesting in this regard: In 1939‒40, as World War II began and debate raged in the U.S. about how to respond, Jack showed himself willing in a way his older brother, Joe Jr., never was to separate himself from his father. Long before Pearl Harbor, Jack had become an interventionist while his father adhered throughout to a staunch isolationist position. Later, during his political campaigns, Jack always kept the key decision-making role for himself, notwithstanding the common misconception that his father called the shots. [gz_soundcloud title=”John F. Kennedy recording for public speaking class at Harvard, 1937″ track_id=”321147626″ playlists=”” height=”350″ show_artwork=”false”] [/gz_soundcloud]

GAZETTE:   Another family relationship we learn more about is with his brother Bobby, and how this became increasingly important.

LOGEVALL:  Yes, the age difference between the two brothers was such — 8½ years — that in the early years, when Jack was at prep school and then at Harvard, they weren’t particularly close. But what we see especially in 1951, when they traveled together along with their sister Patricia on an extended tour of the Middle East and Asia, is that they developed a strong bond. Bobby admired his brother to no end, and Jack could now see Bobby’s intelligence and loyalty and good cheer. Then in 1952 Bobby, all of 26 at the time, came aboard to take charge of Jack’s floundering Senate campaign against Henry Cabot Lodge and helped to turn the thing around. Jack could now see just how important Bobby could be to his career, could see the powerful combination of doggedness, shrewdness, and ruthlessness that his brother possessed.

The Kennedy family at Hyannisport, Mass., 1931. Robert (from left), John, Eunice, Jean (on lap of) Joseph P. Kennedy Sr., Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy (behind) Patricia, Kathleen, Joseph, Rosemary.

Photo by Richard Sears, courtesy of the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum

GAZETTE: He was quite a complex character. He did have his playboy side, but some of his war actions can be called heroic.

LOGEVALL:  Yeah, I think that is right. There is a seriousness of purpose which you see in his letters home from the South Pacific, and more dramatically in the actions he took to help save his crew after his boat, the PT-109, was rammed by a Japanese destroyer. Was there heroism there? I believe so, even if he deserves no accolades for allowing his boat to be rammed. The efforts he made in the succeeding days to try to save his crew were really quite extraordinary. We might note here as well that he came back from the war, as many of the servicemen did, with a seriousness of purpose evinced to some degree before but deepened as a result of seeing combat. He was convinced that the U.S. would need to play a leading role in world affairs, even as he also had a skepticism about the use of the military’s power that he would carry with him for the rest of his days.

GAZETTE: His coming out against Joseph McCarthy seems to be a bit of a political turning point.

LOGEVALL: Well, he never fully came out in stark opposition, which was a problem. The relationship with McCarthy was complicated, partly because of family ties. He never felt the kind of personal connection to McCarthy that Joe Sr. felt and that Bobby felt. And there were a lot of aspects of McCarthy’s political persona that he found off-putting — the disdain for senatorial good manners, the disregard for facts, for reasoning from evidence. That said, liberals at the time had good reason to be frustrated by JFK’s reluctance to really condemn McCarthy. Even in 1954, when McCarthy’s influence was in decline and the Senate held a censure vote, JFK, recovering in the hospital following a serious surgery, did not instruct his aide Ted Sorensen to register his position on the vote. He could have done so, but he didn’t, and that caused a lot of grief for him with liberals later on. He preferred to sidestep the issue, aware that there were an awful lot of Irish Catholic voters in Massachusetts who still backed McCarthy. He didn’t want to get on their bad side.

A page in Kennedy’s diary from fall 1951. The first part reads: “Oct. 3 — Paris — I talked with General Eisenhower Biddle and MacArthur at SHAEF Headquarters. Eisenhower looking very fit — seemed disturbed at news of last few days.” Lt. Kennedy on board PT 109, July 1943.

Photo by Joel Benjamin (left), courtesy of the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum

GAZETTE: The book deals a lot with the influence of World War II on his character development. Do you think he took a lot from other aspects of American life at the time, including popular culture?

LOGEVALL: To a degree, certainly. When he returned from the war and was figuring out what he wanted to do, he had a fascinating stint as a journalist. He showed good reporting instincts and could have made it a career. In this period he also liked to pal around in Hollywood, where his father had been a movie mogul in the 1920s and still had connections. Jack dated actresses like Gene Tierney and liked to be on the set, liked to go to movies. Popular music I think interested him less, and until Jackie came along he evinced little interest in art. He did like poetry, and he memorized a lot of it starting already in prep school at Choate. But the Hollywood connection is interesting to me, and probably plays some role in his later skill at using images and film to advance his political career. He was among the first politicians to see that images matter, that the right use of film can make a powerful difference. Television was a huge emerging thing as his career builds, and he had that savvy understanding of the medium and how he could use it to his advantage, kind of like FDR used radio so effectively.

GAZETTE: Many of the reviews I’ve read have focused on his womanizing, which we already knew about. Do you think that’s ultimately that important a part of his character?

LOGEVALL:  Yes, the womanizing is an important part of who he is. His father led by example, carrying on with innumerable women in the 1920s and 1930s, and the older kids knew very well what was going on. Joe Sr. made clear he expected his sons to follow his ways. But I can’t have it both ways: If I’m going to argue that JFK was able to resist his father’s pressure and be his own man when it came to politics and career choices, I have to maintain that he could have broken with him on this issue too. Here he was his father’s son, with a tendency to see women as objects to be conquered. But there are paradoxes here, among them the fact that his administration took important progressive steps, establishing, for example, the President’s Commission on the Status of Women, with Eleanor Roosevelt as chair. In 1962, at the urging of the commission, Kennedy ordered federal agencies to cease sex discrimination in hiring.

Sen. John Kennedy and his then-fiancée Jacqueline Bouvier in Hyannis Port, Mass.

Photo courtesy of Harvard Fine Arts Library, Digital Images & Slides Collection

GAZETTE: In the second volume you’ll have to unravel the mystery around the assassination. Do you have a sense of how you will approach that?

LOGEVALL: There is certainly a fascination, and it shows few signs of fading. It is a vexing issue to any biographer of JFK, and it has spawned a whole cottage industry of its own. I haven’t yet written Volume 2 so I haven’t fully decided how I will proceed on this. But certainly I will talk about Lee Harvey Oswald’s background, about what led him to take this action, and will give the reader a full sense of how it all culminated in this terrible moment. And I think I will owe the reader my assessment of what I believe happened. So I will provide it. I don’t think I will get heavily into the deliberations of the Warren Commission or the various conspiracy theories that have sprouted up over the years. That’s another book, not to mention a potential morass.

GAZETTE: What do you think happened?

LOGEVALL: My reading of the evidence we have indicates pretty clearly to me that Oswald was the lone gunman. Claims to the contrary all come up short. Oswald’s associations and meetings in the weeks leading up to the assassination are worthy of investigation, however, and have been examined in recent studies. I will delve into that material and be interested to see what I find.

Interview was lightly edited for clarity and length.

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Life of John F. Kennedy

Growing up in the kennedy family.

Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy, who was a very disciplined and organized woman, made the following entry on a notecard, when her second child was born:

John Fitzgerald Kennedy  Born Brookline, Mass. (83 Beals Street) May 29, 1917 

In all, Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy would have nine children, four boys and five girls. She kept notecards for each of them in a small wooden file box and made a point of writing down everything from a doctor’s visit to the shoe size they had at a particular age. John Fitzgerald Kennedy was named in honor of Rose’s father, John Francis Fitzgerald, the Boston Mayor popularly known as Honey Fitz. Before long, family and friends called this small blue-eyed baby, Jack. Jack was not a very healthy baby, and Rose recorded on his notecard the childhood diseases from which he suffered, such as: "whooping cough, measles, chicken pox."

On February 20, 1920 when Jack was not yet three years old, he became sick with scarlet fever, a highly contagious and then potentially life-threatening disease. His father, Joseph Patrick Kennedy, was terrified that little Jack would die. Mr. Kennedy went to the hospital every day to be by his son’s side, and about a month later Jack took a turn for the better and recovered. But Jack was never very healthy, and because he was always suffering from one ailment or another his family used to joke about the great risk a mosquito took in biting him – with some of his blood the mosquito was almost sure to die! 

When Jack was three, the Kennedys moved to a new home a few blocks away from their old house in Brookline, a neighborhood just outside of Boston. It was a lovely house with twelve rooms, turreted windows, and a big porch. Full of energy and ambition, Jack’s father worked very hard at becoming a successful businessman. When he was a student at Harvard College and having a difficult time fitting in as an Irish Catholic, he swore to himself he would make a million dollars by the age of 35. There was a lot of prejudice against Irish Catholics in Boston at that time, but Joseph Kennedy was determined to succeed. Jack’s great-grandparents had come from Ireland and managed to provide for their families, despite many hardships. Jack’s grandfathers did even better for themselves, both becoming prominent Boston politicians. Jack, because of all his family had done, could enjoy a very comfortable life. The Kennedys had everything they needed and more.  By the time Jack was eight there were seven children altogether. Jack had an older brother, Joe; four sisters, Rosemary, Kathleen, Eunice, and Patricia; and a younger brother, Robert. Jean and Teddy hadn’t been born yet. Nannies and housekeepers helped Rose run the household. 

At the end of the school year, the Kennedy children would go to their summer home in Hyannis Port on Cape Cod where they enjoyed swimming, sailing, and playing touch football. The Kennedy children played hard, and they enjoyed competing with one another. Joseph Sr. encouraged this competition, especially among the boys.

He was a father with very high expectations and wanted the boys to win at sports and everything they tried. As he often said, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." But sometimes these competitions went too far. One time when Joe suggested that he and Jack race on their bicycles, they collided head-on. Joe emerged unscathed while Jack had to have twenty-eight stitches. Because Joe was two years older and stronger than Jack, whenever they fought, Jack would usually get the worst of it. Jack was the only sibling who posed any real threat to Joe’s dominant position as the oldest child.

Jack was very popular and had many friends at Choate, a boarding school for adolescent boys in Connecticut. He played tennis, basketball, football, and golf and also enjoyed reading. His friend Lem Billings remembers how unusual it was that Jack had a daily subscription to the  New York Times . Jack had a "clever, individualist mind," his Head Master once noted, though he was not the best student. He did not always work as hard as he could, except in history and English, which were his favorite subjects.

"Now Jack," his father wrote in a letter one day, "I don’t want to give the impression that I am a nagger, for goodness knows I think that is the worse thing any parent can be, and I also feel that you know if I didn’t really feel you had the goods I would be most charitable in my attitude toward your failings. After long experience in sizing up people I definitely know you have the goods and you can go a long way…It is very difficult to make up fundamentals that you have neglected when you were very young, and that is why I am urging you to do the best you can. I am not expecting too much, and I will not be disappointed if you don’t turn out to be a real genius, but I think you can be a really worthwhile citizen with good judgment and understanding." 

Jack graduated from Choate and entered Harvard in 1936, where Joe was already a student. Like his brother Joe, Jack played football. He was not as good an athlete as Joe but he had a lot of determination and perseverance. Unfortunately, one day while playing he ruptured a disk in his spine. Jack never really recovered from this accident and his back continued to bother him for the rest of his life.  The two eldest boys were attractive, agreeable, and intelligent young men and Mr. Kennedy had high hopes for them both. However, it was Joe who had announced to everyone when he was a young boy that he would be the first Catholic to become President. No one doubted him for a moment. Jack, on the other hand, seemed somewhat less ambitious. He was active in student groups and sports and he worked hard in his history and government classes, though his grades remained only average.

Late in 1937, Mr. Kennedy was appointed United States Ambassador to England and moved there with his whole family, with the exception of Joe and Jack who were at Harvard. Because of his father’s job, Jack became very interested in European politics and world affairs. After a summer visit to England and other countries in Europe, Jack returned to Harvard more eager to learn about history and government and to keep up with current events.  Joe and Jack frequently received letters from their father in England, who informed them of the latest news regarding the conflicts and tensions that everyone feared would soon blow up into a full-scale war. Adolph Hitler ruled Germany and Benito Mussolini ruled Italy. They both had strong armies and wanted to take land from other countries. On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland and World War II began. 

By this time, Jack was a senior at Harvard and decided to write his thesis on why Great Britain was unprepared for war with Germany. It was later published as a book called Why England Slept. In June 1940, Jack graduated from Harvard. His father sent him a cablegram from London: "TWO THINGS I ALWAYS KNEW ABOUT YOU ONE THAT YOU ARE SMART TWO THAT YOU ARE A SWELL GUY LOVE DAD."

World War II and a Future in Politics

Soon after graduating, both Joe and Jack joined the Navy. Joe was a flyer and sent to Europe, while Jack was made Lieutenant (Lt.) and assigned to the South Pacific as commander of a patrol torpedo boat, the PT-109. 

Lt. Kennedy had a crew of twelve men whose mission was to stop Japanese ships from delivering supplies to their soldiers. On the night of August 2, 1943, Lt. Kennedy’s crew patrolled the waters looking for enemy ships to sink. A Japanese destroyer suddenly became visible. But it was traveling at full speed and headed straight at them. Holding the wheel, Lt. Kennedy tried to swerve out of the way, but to no avail. The much larger Japanese warship rammed the PT-109, splitting it in half and killing two of Lt. Kennedy’s men. The others managed to jump off as their boat went up in flames. Lt. Kennedy was slammed hard against the cockpit, once again injuring his weak back. Patrick McMahon, one of his crew members, had horrible burns on his face and hands and was ready to give up. In the darkness, Lt. Kennedy managed to find McMahon and haul him back to where the other survivors were clinging to a piece of the boat that was still afloat. At sunrise, Lt. Kennedy led his men toward a small island several miles away. Despite his own injuries, Lt. Kennedy was able to tow Patrick McMahon ashore, a strap from McMahon’s life jacket clenched between his teeth. Six days later two native islanders found them and went for help, delivering a message Jack had carved into a piece of coconut shell. The next day, the PT-109 crew was rescued. Jack’s brother Joe was not so lucky. He died a year later when his plane blew up during a dangerous mission in Europe. 

When he returned home, Jack was awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for his leadership and courage. With the war finally coming to an end, it was time to choose the kind of work he wanted to do. Jack had considered becoming a teacher or a writer, but with Joe’s tragic death suddenly everything changed. After serious discussions with Jack about his future, Joseph Kennedy convinced him that he should run for Congress in Massachusetts' eleventh congressional district, where he won in 1946. This was the beginning of Jack’s political career. As the years went on, John F. Kennedy, a Democrat, served three terms (six years) in the House of Representatives, and in 1952 he was elected to the US Senate. 

Soon after being elected senator, John F. Kennedy, at 36 years of age, married 24 year-old Jacqueline Bouvier, a writer with the  Washington Times-Herald . Unfortunately, early on in their marriage, Senator Kennedy’s back started to hurt again and he had two serious operations. While recovering from surgery, he wrote a book about several US Senators who had risked their careers to fight for the things in which they believed. The book, called  Profiles in Courage , was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for biography in 1957. That same year, the Kennedys’ first child, Caroline, was born. 

John F. Kennedy was becoming a popular politician. In 1956 he was almost picked to run for vice president. Kennedy nonetheless decided that he would run for president in the next election.

He began working very long hours and traveling all around the United States on weekends. On July 13, 1960 the Democratic party nominated him as its candidate for president. Kennedy asked Lyndon B. Johnson, a senator from Texas, to run with him as vice president. In the general election on November 8, 1960, Kennedy defeated the Republican Vice President Richard M. Nixon in a very close race. At the age of 43, Kennedy was the youngest man elected president and the first Catholic. Before his inauguration, his second child, John Jr., was born. His father liked to call him John-John.

John F. Kennedy Becomes The 35th President of the United States

John F. Kennedy was sworn in as the 35th president on January 20, 1961. In his inaugural speech he spoke of the need for all Americans to be active citizens. "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country," he said. He also asked the nations of the world to join together to fight what he called the "common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself." President Kennedy, together with his wife and two children, brought a new, youthful spirit to the White House. The Kennedys believed that the White House should be a place to celebrate American history, culture, and achievement. They invited artists, writers, scientists, poets, musicians, actors, and athletes to visit them. Jacqueline Kennedy also shared her husband's interest in American history. Gathering some of the finest art and furniture the United States had produced, she restored all the rooms in the White House to make it a place that truly reflected America’s history and artistic creativity. Everyone was impressed and appreciated her hard work.  The White House also seemed like a fun place because of the Kennedys’ two young children, Caroline and John-John. There was a pre-school, a swimming pool, and a tree-house outside on the White House lawn. President Kennedy was probably the busiest man in the country, but he still found time to laugh and play with his children.  However, the president also had many worries. One of the things he worried about most was the possibility of nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union. He knew that if there was a war, millions of people would die. Since World War II, there had been a lot of anger and suspicion between the two countries but never any shooting between Soviet and American troops. This 'Cold War', which was unlike any other war the world had seen, was really a struggle between the Soviet Union's communist system of government and the United States' democratic system. Because they distrusted each other, both countries spent enormous amounts of money building nuclear weapons. There were many times when the struggle between the Soviet Union and the United States could have ended in nuclear war, such as in Cuba during the 1962 missile crisis or over the divided city of Berlin.  President Kennedy worked long hours, getting up at seven and not going to bed until eleven or twelve at night, or later. He read six newspapers while he ate breakfast, had meetings with important people throughout the day, and read reports from his advisers. He wanted to make sure that he made the best decisions for his country. "I am asking each of you to be new pioneers in that New Frontier," he said. The New Frontier was not a place but a way of thinking and acting. President Kennedy wanted the United States to move forward into the future with new discoveries in science and improvements in education, employment and other fields. He wanted democracy and freedom for the whole world.  One of the first things President Kennedy did was to create the Peace Corps. Through this program, which still exists today, Americans can volunteer to work anywhere in the world where assistance is needed. They can help in areas such as education, farming, health care, and construction. Many young men and women have served as Peace Corps volunteers and have won the respect of people throughout the world. 

President Kennedy was also eager for the United States to lead the way in exploring space. The Soviet Union was ahead of the United States in its space program and President Kennedy was determined to catch up. He said, "No nation which expects to be the leader of other nations can expect to stay behind in this race for space." Kennedy was the first president to ask Congress to approve more than 22 billion dollars for Project Apollo, which had the goal of landing an American man on the moon before the end of the decade.  President Kennedy had to deal with many serious problems here in the United States. The biggest problem of all was racial discrimination. The US Supreme Court had ruled in 1954 that segregation in public schools would no longer be permitted. Black and white children, the decision mandated, should go to school together. This was now the law of the land. However, there were many schools, especially in southern states, that did not obey this law. There was also racial segregation on buses, in restaurants, movie theaters, and other public places.

Thousands of Americans joined together, people of all races and backgrounds, to protest peacefully this injustice.

Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the famous leaders of the movement for civil rights. Many civil rights leaders didn’t think President Kennedy was supportive enough of their efforts. The President believed that holding public protests would only anger many white people and make it even more difficult to convince the members of Congress who didn't agree with him to pass civil rights laws. By June 11, 1963, however, President Kennedy decided that the time had come to take stronger action to help the civil rights struggle. He proposed a new Civil Rights bill to the Congress, and he went on television asking Americans to end racism. "One hundred years of delay have passed since President Lincoln freed the slaves, yet their heirs, their grandsons, are not fully free," he said. "This Nation was founded by men of many nations and backgrounds…[and] on the principle that all men are created equal." President Kennedy made it clear that all Americans, regardless of their skin color, should enjoy a good and happy life in the United States. 

The President is Shot

On November 21, 1963, President Kennedy flew to Texas to give several political speeches. The next day, on November 22, as his car drove slowly past cheering crowds in Dallas, shots rang out. Kennedy was seriously wounded and died a short time later. Within a few hours of the shooting, police arrested Lee Harvey Oswald and charged him with the murder. On November 24, another man, Jack Ruby, shot and killed Oswald, thus silencing the only person who could have offered more information about this tragic event. The Warren Commission was organized to investigate the assassination and to clarify the many questions which remained. 

The Legacy of John F. Kennedy

President Kennedy's death caused enormous sadness and grief among all Americans. Most people still remember exactly where they were and what they were doing when they heard the news. Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in Washington for the President's funeral, and millions throughout the world watched it on television.  As the years have gone by and other presidents have written their chapters in history, John Kennedy's brief time in office stands out in people's memories for his leadership, personality, and accomplishments. Many respect his coolness when faced with difficult decisions--like what to do about Soviet missiles in Cuba in 1962. Others admire his ability to inspire people with his eloquent speeches. Still others think his compassion and his willingness to fight for new government programs to help the poor, the elderly and the ill were most important. Like all leaders, John Kennedy made mistakes, but he was always optimistic about the future. He believed that people could solve their common problems if they put their country's interests first and worked together.

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John F. Kennedy

By: History.com Editors

Updated: April 16, 2024 | Original: October 29, 2009

Elected in 1960 as the 35th president of the United States, 43-year-old John F. Kennedy became one of the youngest U.S. presidents, as well as the first Roman Catholic to hold the office. Born into one of America’s wealthiest families, he parlayed an elite education and a reputation as a military hero into a successful run for Congress in 1946 and for the Senate in 1952. 

As president, Kennedy confronted mounting Cold War tensions in Cuba, Vietnam and elsewhere. He also led a renewed drive for public service and eventually provided federal support for the growing civil rights movement. His assassination on November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas, sent shockwaves around the world and turned the all-too-human Kennedy into a larger-than-life heroic figure. To this day, historians continue to rank him among the best-loved presidents in American history.

John F. Kennedy’s Early Life

Born on May 29, 1917, in Brookline, Massachusetts, John F. Kennedy (known as Jack) was the second of nine children. His parents, Joseph and Rose Kennedy, hailed from two of Boston’s most prominent Irish Catholic political families. Despite persistent health problems throughout his childhood and teenage years (he would later be diagnosed with a rare endocrine disorder called Addison’s disease), Jack led a privileged youth. He attended private schools such as Canterbury and Choate and spent summers in Hyannis Port on Cape Cod.

Joe Kennedy, a hugely successful businessman and an early supporter of Franklin D. Roosevelt , was appointed chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission in 1934 and named U.S. ambassador to Great Britain in 1937. As a student at Harvard University, Jack traveled in Europe as his father’s secretary. His senior thesis about Britain’s unpreparedness for war was later published as an acclaimed book, Why England Slept (1940).

Watch the three-episode documentary event, Kennedy . Available to stream now.

Did you know? John F. Kennedy's Senate career got off to a rocky start when he refused to condemn Senator Joseph McCarthy, a personal friend of the Kennedy family whom the Senate voted to censure in 1954 for his relentless pursuit of suspected communists. In the end, though he planned to vote against McCarthy, Kennedy missed the vote when he was hospitalized after back surgery.

Jack joined the U.S. Navy in 1941 and two years later was sent to the South Pacific, where he was given command of a Patrol-Torpedo (PT) boat. In August 1943, a Japanese destroyer struck the craft, PT-109, in the Solomon Islands. Kennedy helped some of his marooned crew back to safety and was awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for heroism. His older brother, Joe Jr., was not so fortunate: He was killed in August 1944 when his Navy airplane exploded on a secret mission against a German rocket-launching site. A grieving Joe Sr. told Jack it was his duty to fulfill the destiny once intended for Joe Jr.—to become the first Catholic president of the United States.

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JFK’s Beginnings in Politics

Abandoning plans to be a journalist, Jack left the Navy by the end of 1944. Less than a year later, he returned to Boston, preparing a run for Congress in 1946. As a moderately conservative Democrat, and backed by his father’s fortune, Jack won his party’s nomination handily and carried the mostly working-class Eleventh District by nearly three to one over his Republican opponent in the general election. He entered the 80th Congress in January 1947, at the age of 29, and immediately attracted attention (as well as some criticism from older members of the Washington establishment) for his youthful appearance and relaxed, informal style.

Kennedy won reelection to the House of Representatives in 1948 and 1950, and in 1952 ran successfully for the Senate, defeating the popular Republican incumbent Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. On September 12, 1953, Kennedy married the beautiful socialite and journalist Jacqueline (Jackie) Lee Bouvier. Two years later, he was forced to undergo a painful operation on his back. While recovering from the surgery, Jack wrote another best-selling book, Profiles in Courage , which won the Pulitzer Prize for biography in 1957. (The book was later revealed to be mostly the work of Kennedy’s longtime aide, Theodore Sorenson.)

Kennedy’s Road to Presidency

After nearly earning his party’s nomination for vice president (under Adlai Stevenson) in 1956, Kennedy announced his candidacy for president on January 2, 1960. He defeated a primary challenge from the more liberal Hubert Humphrey and chose the Senate majority leader, Lyndon Johnson of Texas, as his running mate. In the general election, Kennedy faced a difficult battle against his Republican opponent, Richard Nixon, a two-term vice president under the popular Dwight D. Eisenhower . 

Offering a young, energetic alternative to Nixon and the status quo, Kennedy benefited from his performance (and telegenic appearance) in the first-ever televised presidential debates, watched by millions of viewers. In November’s election, Kennedy won by a narrow margin—fewer than 120,000 out of some 70 million votes cast—becoming the youngest man and the first Roman Catholic to be elected president of the United States.

With his beautiful young wife and their two small children (Caroline, born in 1957, and John Jr., born just weeks after the election), Kennedy lent an unmistakable aura of youth and glamour to the White House . In his inaugural address, given on January 20, 1961, the new president called on his fellow Americans to work together in the pursuit of progress and the elimination of poverty, but also in the battle to win the ongoing Cold War against communism around the world. Kennedy’s famous closing words expressed the need for cooperation and sacrifice on the part of the American people: “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.”

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The Navy Disaster That Earned JFK Two Medals for Heroism

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How JFK’s Brief Stint as a WWII Journalist Influenced His Presidency

After serving in the military, the future 35th president worked as a foreign correspondent.

Kennedy’s Foreign Policy Challenges

An early crisis in the foreign affairs arena occurred in April 1961, when Kennedy approved the plan to send 1,400 CIA-trained Cuban exiles in an amphibious landing at the Bay of Pigs in Cuba. Intended to spur a rebellion that would overthrow the communist leader Fidel Castro , the mission ended in failure, with nearly all of the exiles captured or killed. 

That June, Kennedy met with Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev in Vienna to discuss the city of Berlin, which had been divided after World War II between Allied and Soviet control. Two months later, East German troops began erecting a wall to divide the city. Kennedy sent an army convoy to reassure West Berliners of U.S. support, and would deliver one of his most famous speeches in West Berlin in June 1963.

Kennedy clashed again with Khrushchev in October 1962 during the Cuban missile crisis . After learning that the Soviet Union was constructing a number of nuclear and long-range missile sites in Cuba that could pose a threat to the continental United States, Kennedy announced a naval blockade of Cuba. 

The tense standoff lasted nearly two weeks before Khrushchev agreed to dismantle Soviet missile sites in Cuba in return for America’s promise not to invade the island and the removal of U.S. missiles from Turkey and other sites close to Soviet borders. In July 1963, Kennedy won his greatest foreign affairs victory when Khrushchev agreed to join him and Britain’s Prime Minister Harold Macmillan in signing a nuclear test ban treaty. In Southeast Asia, however, Kennedy’s desire to curb the spread of communism led him to escalate U.S. involvement in the conflict in Vietnam, even as privately he expressed his dismay over the situation.

Kennedy’s Leadership at Home

During his first year in office, Kennedy oversaw the launch of the Peace Corps, which would send young volunteers to underdeveloped countries all over the world. Otherwise, he was unable to achieve much of his proposed legislation during his lifetime, including two of his biggest priorities: income tax cuts and a civil rights bill. Slow to commit himself to the civil rights cause, events forced Kennedy into action, spurring him to send federal troops to support the desegregation of the University of Mississippi after riots there left two dead and many others injured. The following summer, Kennedy announced his intention to propose a comprehensive civil rights bill and endorsed the massive March on Washington that took place that August.

Kennedy held enormous popularity, both at home and abroad, and his family drew famous comparisons to King Arthur’s court at Camelot. His brother Bobby served as his attorney general, while the youngest Kennedy son, Edward (Ted), was elected to Jack’s former Senate seat in 1962. Jackie Kennedy became an international icon of style, beauty and sophistication, though stories of her husband’s numerous marital infidelities (and his personal association with members of organized crime) would later emerge to complicate the Kennedys’ idyllic image.

JFK’s Assassination

On November 22, 1963, the president and his wife landed in Dallas; he had spoken in San Antonio, Austin and Fort Worth the day before. From the airfield, the party then traveled in a motorcade to the Dallas Trade Mart, the site of Jack’s next speaking engagement. Shortly after 12:30 p.m., as the motorcade passed through downtown Dallas, shots rang out . Bullets struck Kennedy twice, in the neck and head; he was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at a nearby hospital.

Authorities arrested 24-old Lee Harvey Oswald, known to have Communist sympathies, for the killing. But he was shot and fatally wounded two days later by local nightclub owner Jack Ruby while being led to jail. Almost immediately, alternative theories of Kennedy’s assassination emerged—including conspiracies allegedly run by the KGB , the Mafia and the U.S. military-industrial complex, among others. A presidential commission led by Chief Justice Earl Warren concluded that Oswald had acted alone, but speculation and debate over the assassination have persisted.

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John F. Kennedy

The 35th President of the United States

The biography for President Kennedy and past presidents is courtesy of the White House Historical Association.

John F. Kennedy was the 35th President of the United States (1961-1963), the youngest man elected to the office. On November 22, 1963, when he was hardly past his first thousand days in office, JFK was assassinated in Dallas, Texas, becoming also the youngest President to die.

On November 22, 1963, when he was hardly past his first thousand days in office, John Fitzgerald Kennedy was killed by an assassin’s bullets as his motorcade wound through Dallas, Texas. Kennedy was the youngest man elected President; he was the youngest to die.

Of Irish descent, he was born in Brookline, Massachusetts, on May 29, 1917. Graduating from Harvard in 1940, he entered the Navy. In 1943, when his PT boat was rammed and sunk by a Japanese destroyer, Kennedy, despite grave injuries, led the survivors through perilous waters to safety.

Back from the war, he became a Democratic Congressman from the Boston area, advancing in 1953 to the Senate. He married Jacqueline Bouvier on September 12, 1953. In 1955, while recuperating from a back operation, he wrote Profiles in Courage, which won the Pulitzer Prize in history.

In 1956 Kennedy almost gained the Democratic nomination for Vice President, and four years later was a first-ballot nominee for President. Millions watched his television debates with the Republican candidate, Richard M. Nixon. Winning by a narrow margin in the popular vote, Kennedy became the first Roman Catholic President.

His Inaugural Address offered the memorable injunction: “Ask not what your country can do for you–ask what you can do for your country.” As President, he set out to redeem his campaign pledge to get America moving again. His economic programs launched the country on its longest sustained expansion since World War II; before his death, he laid plans for a massive assault on persisting pockets of privation and poverty.

Responding to ever more urgent demands, he took vigorous action in the cause of equal rights, calling for new civil rights legislation. His vision of America extended to the quality of the national culture and the central role of the arts in a vital society.

He wished America to resume its old mission as the first nation dedicated to the revolution of human rights. With the Alliance for Progress and the Peace Corps, he brought American idealism to the aid of developing nations. But the hard reality of the Communist challenge remained.

Shortly after his inauguration, Kennedy permitted a band of Cuban exiles, already armed and trained, to invade their homeland. The attempt to overthrow the regime of Fidel Castro was a failure. Soon thereafter, the Soviet Union renewed its campaign against West Berlin. Kennedy replied by reinforcing the Berlin garrison and increasing the Nation’s military strength, including new efforts in outer space. Confronted by this reaction, Moscow, after the erection of the Berlin Wall, relaxed its pressure in central Europe.

Instead, the Russians now sought to install nuclear missiles in Cuba. When this was discovered by air reconnaissance in October 1962, Kennedy imposed a quarantine on all offensive weapons bound for Cuba. While the world trembled on the brink of nuclear war, the Russians backed down and agreed to take the missiles away. The American response to the Cuban crisis evidently persuaded Moscow of the futility of nuclear blackmail.

Kennedy now contended that both sides had a vital interest in stopping the spread of nuclear weapons and slowing the arms race–a contention which led to the test ban treaty of 1963. The months after the Cuban crisis showed significant progress toward his goal of “a world of law and free choice, banishing the world of war and coercion.” His administration thus saw the beginning of new hope for both the equal rights of Americans and the peace of the world.

For more information about President Kennedy, please visit the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum.

Learn more about John F. Kennedy’s spouse, Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy .

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A Guide to the Kennedy Family Tree

When JFK was assassinated 60 years ago, he was survived by his wife and children—along with his parents, maternal grandparents, six siblings, and many other relatives.

Every item on this page was chosen by a Town & Country editor. We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy.

Today marks 60 years since the assassination of President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963.

On that fateful day in Dallas, Texas, President Kennedy was shot as he rode in a motorcade alongside Texas Governor John Connally and his wife, Nellie Connally. He was rushed to Parkland Memorial Hospital, but there was nothing to be done; he pronounced dead just 30 minutes later. Governor Connally was shot in the back, but recovered from his injuries.

JFK was survived by his wife, First Lady Jackie Kennedy , their two small children, Caroline and John Jr. , his parents, and his maternal grandparents. JFK had a large extended family, though—he grew up in a large Irish Catholic household with eight siblings, and was survived by six of them: Rosemary, Eunice, Patricia, Robert ("Bobby"), Jean, and Edward ("Ted"). (His older brother, Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., was killed in action during World War II, and one of his sisters, Kathleen Cavendish, Marchioness of Hartington, died in a plane crash in 1948.) Five of those siblings married, and had children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren of their own, making the Kennedy family tree one with many, many branches.

Here, Town & Country presents a guide to John F. Kennedy's family tree, descendants, and as many relatives as we could write about:

JFK's parents: Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy

Both of JFK's parents, Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. (1888 - 1969) and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy (1890 - 1995) outlived their son JFK. They married in October 1914, and had nine children: Joseph Jr., John, Rosemary, Kathleen, Eunice, Patricia in 1924, Jean, and Edward. ( More details on all, except Joseph Jr., JFK, and Kathleen, below.)

Joseph was the son of Mary Hickey (1857 - 1923) and P. J. Kennedy (1858 - 1929), an influential figure in the Bostonian Irish community and a Massachusetts politician. He was an investor, involved in the nascent Hollywood industry, was the first chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and served as the US ambassador to the UK in the lead-up to World War II. He died in 1969 at age 81, outliving four of his eight children.

Rose was the daughter of Boston mayor John F. "Honey Fitz" Fitzgerald (1863 - 1950) and Mary Josephine Hannon (1865 - 1964). (JFK's maternal grandparents also outlived their grandson.) She was involved in the political careers of her family members, and published an autobiography in 1974, Times to Remember . At her son JFK's funeral, she told Ethiopia's Emperor Haile Selassie and said: "It's wrong for parents to bury their children. It should be the other way around." Rose died in 1995 at age 104.

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis

1929 - 1994.

Jacqueline Lee Bouvier was born on July 28, 1929 to John Vernou "Black Jack" Bouvier III (1891 - 1957) and Janet Norton Lee (1907 - 1989). She studied at Vassar College and George Washington University, and after graduation in 1951, stayed in D.C., where she worked as a photographer . In 1952, she met John Kennedy at a dinner party— they married in September 1 953 in Newport, Rhode Island. Jackie and JFK had four children, two of whom who died as infants: Arabella , born stillborn in 1956, Caroline , born 1957, John Jr. , born 1960, and Patrick , who died two days after his premature birth in 1963. (Read more on Caroline and John Jr. below . )

During her husband's tenure as president, she was an influential First Lady— she was a style icon , she renovated the White House , promoted the arts, and so much more. She was with her husband in Dallas on November 22, 1963, and he was killed as she rode next to him the motorcade, making her a widow at age 34. She soon planned his funeral, and as the Kennedy Library notes , "as it was broadcast around the world, millions of people shared her grief and admired her courage and dignity."

A week after his death, she was interviewed by Life magazine, comparing the Kennedy administration to the mythical Camelot. "At night, before we'd go to sleep, Jack liked to play some records; and the song he loved the most came at the very end of this record. The lines he loved to hear were: Don't let it be forgot, that once there was a spot, for one brief, shining moment that was known as Camelot ," she said . "There'll be great presidents again ... but there will never be another Camelot again."

Jackie would go on to remarry, in 1968, to Aristotle Onassis . When he died in 1975, she became a widow again. As her children were older, Jackie went on to have a second career as a book editor, and she spent her final years with Maurice Tempelsman . She died in 1994 at age 64.

JFK's daughter: Caroline Kennedy

Caroline Kennedy , the only member of JFK's immediate family who is still alive today, was born on November 27, 1957. She was nearly six when her father was assassinated, and then her mother moved her and her brother to Manhattan for school. She attended Harvard University for undergrad, and earned a J.D. from Columbia Law School. In 1986, she married designer and artist Edwin Schlossberg (b. 1945); she did not change her name upon their marriage.

Caroline currently serves as the U.S. Ambassador to Australia . "My family legacy is something I’m really proud of, and I try to live up to and and I think the fact that it means something to people around the world makes me really proud and want to be worthy of it and do what I can to continue the values that my father would like," she said. She previously served as U.S. Ambassador to Japan under President Obama.

Caroline and Edwin have three children: Rose Schlossberg (b. 1988), Taitana Schlossberg (b. 1990), and Jack Schlossberg (b. 1993). Last year, Rose married restaurateur Rory McAuliffe , and in 2017, Tatiana married George Moran , who is now a doctor. Tatiana and George have one child, Edwin Garrett Moran (b. 2022) making Caroline a grandmother .

JFK's son: John Kennedy Jr.

1960 - 1999.

John Kennedy Jr. was born on November 25, 1960, two weeks after his dad was elected president. He spent the first three years of his life in the White House; his third birthday coincided with his father's funeral, where John Jr. famously saluted his father's casket. He largely grew up in Manhattan, then attended Brown University and law school at NYU. He worked in the Manhattan District Attorney's Office, and co-founded George magazine. He married Carolyn Bessette (1966 - 1999) in September 1996. In 1998, he received his pilot's license.

John Jr. tragically died in 1999 in a plane crash with his wife, Carolyn Bessette Kennedy , and her sister, Lauren Bessette.

Rosemary Kennedy

1918 - 2005.

Rosemary Kennedy, born Rose Marie Kennedy , was Joseph and Rose's oldest daughter. She had learning disabilities, and at age 22, her father decided she should have a lobotomy. The horrific procedure left her permanently disabled, unable to walk or talk. As Lyz Lenz wrote , " Rosemary Kennedy's legacy is not a story of tragedy—it's a story of quiet power that would eventually change the quality of life for disabled and mentally ill people across the country." She died in 2005 at age 86.

Read more here:

Eunice Kennedy Shriver

1921 - 2009.

Eunice has one of the more interesting branches of the Kennedy family tree, as it's how Arnold Schwarzenegger is related to JFK. Here is part of it:

Eunice, born Eunice Mary Kennedy on July 10, 1921, was Joseph and Rose's fifth child. She's best known for her philanthropic work, specifically founding the Special Olympics. In 1953, she married Robert Sargent Shriver (1915 - 2011), an American diplomat and politician. Shriver helped create the Peace Crops, and was the Democratic Party's nominee for vice president in 1972.

Eunice and Sargent had five children: Robert Sargent Shriver III (b. 1954), Maria Owings Shriver (b. 1955), Timothy Perry Shriver (b. 1959), Mark Kennedy Shriver (b. 1964), and Anthony Paul Kennedy Shriver (b. 1965). They have 19 grandchildren, and numerous great-grandchildren.

The big Hollywood connection between the Kennedy family is here, in Eunice's branch of family tree: Maria married Arnold Schwarzenegger (b. 1947) in 1986 (they divorced in 2021) and they have four children: Katherine Schwarzenegger (b. 1989), Christina Schwarzenegger (b. 1991), Patrick Schwarzenegger (b. 1993) and Christopher Schwarzenegger ( b. 1997). In 2019, Katherine married actor Chris Pratt (b. 1979), and they have two daughters, Lyla Pratt (b. 2020) and Eloise Pratt (b. 2022).

Eunice died in 2009 at age 88.

Patricia Kennedy

1924 - 2006.

Patricia , the sixth of Rose and Joseph's children, was born on May 6, 1924. She married British actor Peter Lawford (1923 - 1984), who became a member of the "Rat Pack," and they had four children: Christopher Lawford (1955 - 2018), Sydney Lawford (b. 1956), Victoria Lawford (b. 1958) and Robin Lawford (b. 1961), and numerous grandchildren. Patricia and Peter separated in 1963, shortly after JFK's death, and officially divorced in 1966. Patricia died in 2006 of pneumonia.

Robert F. "Bobby" Kennedy

1925 - 1968.

Robert Kennedy , also known as RFK, born November 20, 1925, had a similarly tragic end to his brother. He served in the Navy, and then graduated from Harvard University.

In 1950, he married Ethel Skakel (b. 1928), and they had 11 children: Kathleen Kennedy (b. 1951), Joseph P. Kennedy II (b. 1952), Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (b. 1954), David Kennedy (1955 - 1984), Mary Kennedy (b. 1956), Michael LeMoyne Kennedy (1958 - 1997), Mary Kerry Kennedy (b. 1959), Christopher Kennedy (b. 1963), Matthew "Max" Kennedy (b. 1965), Douglas Kennedy (b. 1967), and Rory Kennedy (b. 1968). Rory was born six months after her father's assassination.

Bobby managed his older brother John's campaign for the Senate, then his campaign for president. After JFK was elected, he was appointed Attorney General. After his brother was killed, he resigned, and in 1964, was elected Senator from New York. In 1968, he decided to run for president, and after winning the Democratic primary in California on June 5, 1968, he was shot by Sirhan Bishara Sirhan at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. He was just 42 years old.

Bobby and Ethel have 33 grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren. (This is perhaps the most complicated family tree of all of JFK's siblings, because of all the children.) Ethel Kennedy is still alive; she turned 95 earlier this year.

Jean Kennedy Smith

1928 - 2020.

The Nine of Us: Growing Up Kennedy

The eighth of the nine children of Joseph and Rose, Jean Ann Kennedy was born on February 20, 1928, the 8th birthday of her older sister, Kathleen. In 1956, she married Stephen Edward Smith (1927 - 1990), they had four children—two biological sons and two adopted daughters: Stephen Edward Smith, Jr. (b. 1957), William Kennedy Smith (b. 1960), Amanda Mary Smith (b. 1967), and Kym Maria Smith (b. 1972).

Jean was involved in her older brother JFK's political campaigns, and founded Very Special Arts in 1974, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting those with disabilities. In 1993, President Bill Clinton appointed Jean the U.S. Ambassador to Ireland, where she worked on the peace process and the historic Good Friday Agreement.

She was JFK's last surviving sibling, and wrote a memoir, The Nine of Us . "I hope that people who read this book better understand who my parents, brothers and sisters truly were," she told T&C in 2016 . "They were real people who loved each other and loved this country. They kidded each other, played together, learned hard lessons, and tried to make the most out of every day." Jean died in 2020 at the age of 92 .

Edward M. "Ted" Kennedy

1923 - 2009.

True Compass: A Memoir

The youngest Kennedy sibling, Edward "Ted" Kennedy was born on February 22, 1932. A lawyer and politician, he was elected to the Senate in 1962 when he was just 30 years old, and continued serving until his death in 2009. (He is the fifth longest-serving member of the U.S. Senate in American history.)

In 1958, he married Joan Bennett (b. 1936), and they had three children: Kara Kennedy (1960 - 2011), Ted Kennedy Jr. (b. 1961) and Patrick J. Kennedy II (b. 1967). They divorced in 1982. In 1992, he married divorcee Victoria Anne Reggie (b. 1954), who had two children from a previous marriage, Curran Raclin (b. 1982) and Caroline Raclin (b. 1985).

He died in 2009 of a brain tumor; Ted was 77 years old.

Emily Burack (she/her) is the Senior News Editor for Town & Country, where she covers entertainment, culture, the royals, and a range of other subjects. Before joining T&C, she was the deputy managing editor at Hey Alma , a Jewish culture site. Follow her @emburack on Twitter and Instagram .

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Inside a New Biography of JFK Jr.

The Last Days of JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bessette

Who Was Lauren Bessette?

Remembering John F. Kennedy, Jr.'s Life in Photos

A Very Kennedy Guide to Massachusetts

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John F. Kennedy: Life in Brief

John F. Kennedy was born into a rich, politically connected Boston family of Irish-Catholics. He and his eight siblings enjoyed a privileged childhood of elite private schools, sailboats, servants, and summer homes. During his childhood and youth, “Jack” Kennedy suffered frequent serious illnesses. Nevertheless, he strove to make his own way, writing a best-selling book while still in college at Harvard University and volunteering for hazardous combat duty in the Pacific during World War II. Kennedy's wartime service made him a hero. After a short stint as a journalist, Kennedy entered politics, serving in the US House of Representatives from 1947 to 1953 and the US Senate from 1953 to 1961.

Kennedy was the youngest person elected US president and the first Roman Catholic to serve in that office. For many observers, his presidency came to represent the ascendance of youthful idealism in the aftermath of World War II. The promise of this energetic and telegenic leader was not to be fulfilled, as he was assassinated near the end of his third year in office. For many Americans, the public murder of President Kennedy remains one of the most traumatic events in memory; countless Americans can remember exactly where they were when they heard that President Kennedy had been shot. His shocking death stood at the forefront of a period of political and social instability in the country and the world.

Marc J. Selverstone

Associate Professor of History Miller Center, University of Virginia

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Who is Kick Kennedy? All about RFK Jr.’s daughter

Kathleen “Kick” Kennedy is the eldest daughter of Robert F. Kennedy Jr ., who made headlines recently when he ended his own presidential run and endorsed former President Donald Trump’s campaign.

Kick Kennedy, 36, has not commented publicly on her dad’s recent political ventures, and she has opened up in the past about establishing her own identity apart from her family's legacy.

“People ask me, ‘What’s it like to be a Kennedy?’” she told the New York Post in 2014. “Maybe it’s just the temperature of the water, but I’m just like, ‘I have no idea.’ When I see my face or name in the tabloids, I get a knot in my stomach. It’s just not me — it’s reading something that’s not real.”

Read on to learn more about Kathleen Alexander “Kick” Kennedy.  

She is one of Robert F. Kennedy Jr’s six children

Robert F. Kennedy Jr and his ex-wife, Emily Ruth Black, welcomed Kick Kennedy in 1988. They also share a son, Robert “Bobby” Kennedy III, in 1984. 

Kick Kennedy also has four half-siblings from her father’s subsequent marriage to Mary Richardson: Conor Richardson Kennedy, 30, Kyra LeMoyne Kennedy, 29, William Finbar Kennedy, 26, and Aidan Caohman Vieques Kennedy, 23.

She’s named after another famous Kennedy

Kennedy shares a nickname with another notable member of the Kennedy family —  her father’s aunt, Kathleen Cavendish, Marchioness of Hartington, who was a sister of President John F. Kennedy and who also went by “Kick.”

The late Kick Kennedy married William Cavendish , the Marquess of Hartington, in 1938. He was killed in combat just months after their wedding in 1944, and she died four years later in a plane crash at just 28. 

The younger Kick Kennedy paid tribute to her great-aunt on Instagram in 2016, sharing a photo from a visit to her grave.

“Visiting the gravesite of my great aunt and namesake, Kick Kennedy, in Edensor, England,” she wrote in the caption. “‘Joy she gave, Joy she has found.’”

While her birth name is Kathleen Alexandra Kennedy, the younger Kick says pretty much everyone calls her by her nickname.

“(No one) calls me Kathleen except the TSA and the Department of Motor Vehicles,” she told the New York Post in 2014. 

She shared a memorable anecdote about her dad involving a dead whale

While she doesn’t often discuss her father in public, Kennedy did once share a colorful childhood memory involving her dad, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 

In a 2012 Town & Country interview that has recently been making the rounds again online, Kennedy shared that when she was 6 years old, her father heard that a dead whale had washed up in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts, the site of the Kennedy compound.

She said her dad, who was interested in studying animal anatomy, cut the dead whale’s head off with a chainsaw and strapped it to the roof of the family car. They then drove five hours to Mount Kisco, New York. 

“Every time we accelerated on the highway, whale juice would pour into the windows of the car, and it was the rankest thing on the planet,” she said. “We all had plastic bags over our heads with mouth holes cut out, and people on the highway were giving us the finger, but that was just normal day-to-day stuff for us.”

Kennedy has followed in her dad’s footsteps when it comes to environmental activism, particularly around water conservation issues. In 2006, she and her dad took a rafting trip together along the Colorado River, a journey featured in the IMAX film “Grand Canyon Adventure: River at Risk 3D.”

“We’re always doing things like conserving light bulbs, and of course we get castigated if we litter,” Kick Kennedy told Stanford Magazine in 2008 about growing up in an environmentally conscious family. “But the impact has been more in our love for nature. My dad has spent his whole fatherhood forcing us outdoors and not letting us come back in.”

She has appeared in shows including ‘Gossip Girl’ and ‘The Newsroom’

Kennedy has appeared in a handful of movies and TV shows over the years, including episodes of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and “The Newsroom,” and the movies “Teacher of the Year and “Fear and Loathing in Aspen,” according to her IMDB profile .

She also appeared as herself in a 2010 episode of “Gossip Girl.”

Kennedy, who has also worked as a model, made her off-Broadway debut in 2014, starring in a modern retelling of Sophocles’ “Antigone.”

“I’m really lucky,” Kennedy told the Associated Press in 2014 while rehearsing for the play. “I’ve grown a lot just studying this part and I hope I can do it justice. I couldn’t really ask for a better story to tell right now. It’s just sort of magical that everything fell into place.”

Kennedy also opened up to the AP about her lifelong love of acting, revealing that growing up, she put on plays with Annie Starke, the daughter of Glenn Close. She also acted during her time at Stanford University.

“It’s just been the funniest thing for me throughout my whole life,” she said. “Here I am and I’m giving it a go. It seems to be the thing that I like doing and people tell me I’m kind of good at.”

She added that she was eager to prove herself as an actor, regardless of her famous surname.

“Hopefully one day people will come see me for something that doesn’t have to do with my last name,” she said. “For me, it’s just two different things. This is a job. That is my life.”

She has spoken sparingly about her romantic relationships

Kennedy was previously linked to Matthew Mellon, a banking heir who died in 2018 while traveling to a drug rehabilitation facility in Cancun, Mexico.

He and Kennedy had been reportedly dating for four months prior to his death, according to People .

“She is heartbroken, shocked, she didn’t see this coming,” Kennedy’s modeling manager, Christine Schott, told People in 2018. “She is devastated and will not be making comment.”

A few years prior, Kennedy dated musician Harper Simon, the son of singer-songwriter Paul Simon.

Kennedy opened up about the experience of bringing Simon to meet her family, including her late grandmother, Ethel Kennedy, who was one of President Kennedy’s sisters.

“Harper came to the Cape,” she told the New York Post in 2014. “He’s a very charming guy, and he sang for my grandmother, which she loved — and then he was ordered to sing every night after that, which he didn’t love. My grandmother likes performance and music, and she sometimes demands it. And you can’t really say no to Ethel, so I made sure he brought his guitar.”

Her half-brother dated Taylor Swift

Kennedy’s half-brother, Conor Kennedy, briefly dated Taylor Swift in 2012. 

Conor Kennedy, 30, is the eldest son of Kick Kennedy’s dad and his late ex-wife, Mary Richardson.

Kick Kennedy shared some kind words about Swift’s music in her 2012 Town & Country interview.

“Taylor’s sweet, and so catchy I can’t believe it. I can’t get her songs out of my head,” she said.

“Yeah, she’s really sweet,” she later told the New York Post in 2014, reflecting on Swift’s presence at the Kennedy compound while she and her half-brother were dating.

“It was a moment, really," Kennedy continued. "But we always have exciting things going on — exciting people to meet.”

She has opened up about finding her identity beyond her famous family

Kennedy reflected on her relationship with the Kennedy name in her 2012 Town & Country interview. 

She said growing up in such a notable family left her wary of fame.

“I was born with a sticker — a name — that has made me totally uninterested in the fame factor of success,” she said. “I see all my actor friends really going for it in that way because it’s such a big part of the job, but it kind of turns me off. I’m frightened of it, or at least uninterested, unamused.”

While she has chosen not to pursue a career in politics, unlike many of her relatives, Kennedy has said she sees links between the worlds of politics and acting.

“Everyone thinks it’s so crazy and I’m such a tangent from this tree, but I see it all kind of relating, personally,” she told the AP in 2014.

“I mean, if you break down what a lot of politics is you get stage presence, charisma and, more importantly, a search for truth and the desire to serve a common good, which I believe theater does.”

Lindsay Lowe has been a regular contributor to TODAY.com since 2016, covering pop culture, style, home and other lifestyle topics. She is also working on her first novel, a domestic drama set in rural Regency England.

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Who Is Kick Kennedy? All About RFK Jr.'s Daughter (Who’s Been Linked to Ben Affleck)

Though a source told PEOPLE that Kick Kennedy had been "spending time" with Ben Affleck, the actor's rep said the rumor was untrue

Andrew Toth/Getty

As the eldest daughter of six siblings and a descendant of Robert F. Kennedy , Kathleen "Kick" Kennedy has continued to uphold the iconic American family's legacy.

Kick was born four years after her brother, Robert “Bobby” Kennedy III, in 1988 to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his first wife, Emily Ruth Black. She grew up in New York as one of six children but eschewed a path in politics that much of her family chose to go down.

Instead, Kick started her career as a performer, having pursued acting after graduating from Stanford University. Though she had a few roles shortly after graduation, Kick has mainly focused on a career in philanthropy.

Most recently, Kick, 36, made headlines after a source told PEOPLE she was getting to know Ben Affleck , 52, after Jennifer Lopez filed for divorce from the actor on Aug. 20, 2024. Although another insider said, "I don't think they even know each other. There's definitely nothing going on."

The following day, Affleck's rep confirmed to PEOPLE that the two were not dating .

So who is Kick Kennedy? Here's everything to know about Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s eldest daughter.

She was named after her great-aunt

Sylvain Gaboury/Patrick McMullan/Getty ; Bettmann

Kick was born Kathleen Alexandra Kennedy on April 13, 1988, but was nicknamed Kick, just like her great-aunt, Kathleen "Kick" Agnes Kennedy (who was the sister of late President John F. Kennedy).

Kathleen was remembered as having an adventurous and outgoing personality , per the 2016 biography  Kick Kennedy :  The Charmed Life and Tragic Death of the Favorite Kennedy Daughter . However, Kathleen had a major rift with her family when she married Billy Hartington, a Protestant, causing her Catholic parents to turn her away. After she died in a tragic plane crash in 1948 at just 28 years old, no one from her family attended her funeral.

Like Kathleen, Kick had an adventurous spirit from a young age; she told Town & Country in a 2012 profile and was traveling across the world, hiking Mount Kilimanjaro and rafting in the Grand Canyon while still in college. Unlike Kathleen, however, Kick said she has a more supportive family.

"I always thought Dad and I were the same person, but I got fascinated by Kick a few years ago, and it's funny how similar we are," she said. "She was fun and social and a performer in many ways."

"Of course, I don't think my parents would ever call my own death divine retribution. Well, maybe if I became a Republican," she joked.

She was raised in a home of six siblings

Stephen Lovekin/Getty

Kick is one of six siblings. She and her older brother, Bobby, were born to RFK Jr. and Black. However, the couple split in 1994, at which point RFK Jr. remarried to Mary Richardson. The pair went on to welcome four children — Conor Kennedy, Kyra Kennedy, Aidan Kennedy and William "Finn" Kennedy — before their split in 2010. In 2012, Richardson died by suicide.

In the wake of Richardson's death, Kick flew home from college at Stanford University to spend time with her siblings. Now, she continues to have a close relationship with all five, participating in various fundraisers and charities with them, including speaking with Conor at the 50th anniversary of the Poor People’s Campaign in Mississippi in May 2018.

Kick has always been very adventurous

David Crotty/Patrick McMullan/Getty

As the daughter of a master falconer, Kick grew up with a love for animals and the environment, as well as exploring it. While she was a student at Stanford studying history, she hiked Mount Kilimanjaro with actors Emile Hirsch  and  Jessica Biel in an effort to raise awareness of the water shortage crisis.

She told Resident in 2014 that she grew up always surrounded by animals, including "dogs and cats and chickens and alligators."

"I thought it was pretty normal to run around the woods building forts with my crow that was trained to say 'Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy, oh boy' or have an alligator wound, etcetera," she said. "My classmates were quick to correct me. I think they were a little off-put."

She started her career as an actress

Leigh Vogel/Getty

Though Kick majored in history, she knew she wanted to work in acting while she was still in college. Following graduation, she landed a few minor roles in Gossip Girl and The Newsroom , and even an episode of her stepmother Cheryl Hines ' Curb Your Enthusiasm before she began dating RFK Jr.

Though Kick was splitting her time between New York and Los Angeles in hopes of finding her big break, she admitted to Town & Country that it wasn't fame she was seeking.

"I was born with a sticker — a name — that has made me totally uninterested in the fame factor of success," Kick said. "I see all my actor friends really going for it in that way because it's such a big part of the job, but it kind of turns me off. I'm frightened of it, or at least uninterested, unamused."

Kick is now a philanthropist

Santiago Felipe/Getty

Kick mainly stopped acting after 2012, instead focusing on a career in philanthropy. She is passionate about finding a solution to water shortages and other environmental causes, having grown up with her father, who is passionate about the environment.

"I've been really connected to water issues since I can remember, as my father made it his passion," she told Resident. "We knew what PCPs were before we knew how to tie our shoes. I've also spent so much time on the water, whether it's sailing with friends and family or doing a river cleanup on the Hudson."

She was rumored to be spending time with Affleck in August 2024

Mike Pont/Getty ; Kevin Winter/Getty 

Just days after her father  dropped out of the 2024 presidential race , Kick made headlines for her rumored connection with Affleck. The reports also came just days after Lopez filed for divorce from the  Gone Girl  actor.

Multiple sources told PEOPLE that Kick and Affleck were getting to know one another, with one saying the two are “in the same scene," adding that "Kick’s celeb crush has always been Ben.”

The source also described Kick as a "partier" who "likes to have a good time." However, a different source told PEOPLE that there's nothing between the two.

The next day, Affleck's rep denied the rumors in a statement to PEOPLE.

"There is no truth to any of it. I don't know if they even know each other,” Jen Allen, Affleck's spokesperson, said.

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Video Message by Prime Minister Kishida for the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award

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[Provisional translation]

My dear friend, Caroline, and distinguished guests,   Sixty years have passed since 1963, and the international community is now at a turning point in history. At this critical juncture, I am truly honored to receive, with President Yoon, this prestigious award named after your father and a masterpiece on political leadership that he wrote.   In the early 1960s, then-President John F. Kennedy and Prime Minister Hayato Ikeda, who founded my political group, Kouchikai, made significant contributions to the improvement of the Japan-U.S. relations, along with their great and lasting achievements in their respective countries. During Prime Minister Ikeda's official visit to the United States in 1962, President Kennedy gave a message to the Prime Minister: 'The Pacific Ocean does not separate Japan and the United States. Rather, it unites us.'   During that time, Japan and the Republic of Korea were holding a series of negotiations on normalization of diplomatic relations. The two countries eventually achieved normalization in 1965. Since then, we cultivated friendship through multi-layered people-to-people exchanges and deepened our ties in the six decades to date. Now, President Yoon and I share a strong commitment to strengthen the bilateral relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea. With my friendship and trust with President Yoon, the two countries will pave the way to a new era, working in tandem as partners.   Today, the Indo-Pacific does not separate Japan, the United States, the Republic of Korea, and other countries in the region. Rather, just as President Kennedy said, it unites all of us. Japan will work closely with the United States and the Republic of Korea, as fellow Indo-Pacific nations, to contribute to peace and stability in the region.   In September 1963, President Kennedy said in his last address made for the international community: 'Peace does not rest in charters and covenants alone. It lies in the hearts and minds of all people.' We political leaders are vested with the responsibility to make our peoples' ties the solid foundation of peace, and to aspire for a tomorrow that is better than today, not only by words but also by taking action.   As the Prime Minister of Japan, I am determined to fulfill this responsibility, working together with President Biden and President Yoon.   Thank you very much.

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John F. Kennedy

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What was John F. Kennedy’s family like?

John F. Kennedy was reared in a large Roman Catholic family of Irish descent that demanded intense physical and intellectual competition among its nine siblings. Steeped in Democratic Party politics, the family produced three presidential candidates: John and his brothers Robert and Ted .

What were John F. Kennedy’s parents’ names?

John F. Kennedy’s father was Joseph P. Kennedy , who acquired a multimillion-dollar fortune in banking, bootlegging, shipbuilding, motion pictures, and the stock market and who served as U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom. His mother, Rose , was the daughter of John F. (“Honey Fitz”) Fitzgerald, onetime mayor of Boston .

When was John F. Kennedy born and when did he die?

John F. Kennedy was born on May 29, 1917, in Brookline , Massachusetts , and he was assassinated in Dallas , Texas , on November 22, 1963. While riding in a motorcade, he was struck by two rifle bullets and died shortly after hospitalization. Lee Harvey Oswald was accused of the slaying.

What were John F. Kennedy’s jobs?

John F. Kennedy served in the U.S. Navy during World War II , represented the Massachusetts 11th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives for three terms (1947–53), served two terms as a U.S. senator for Massachusetts (1953–60), and was the 35th president of the United States (1961–63).

What was John F. Kennedy famous for?

John F. Kennedy, the first Roman Catholic president of the United States, sparked the idealism of “a new generation of Americans” with his charm and optimism, championed the U.S. space program , and showed cool dynamic leadership during the Cuban missile crisis , before becoming the victim of an assassination .

Whether the U.S. should maintain its embargo enforced by John F. Kennedy against Cuba is hotly debated. Some say Cuba has not met the conditions required to lift it, and the U.S. will look weak for lifting the sanctions. Others say the 50-year policy has failed to achieve its goals, and Cuba does not pose a threat to the United States. For more on the Cuba embargo debate, visit ProCon.org .

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John F. Kennedy (born May 29, 1917, Brookline , Massachusetts , U.S.—died November 22, 1963, Dallas , Texas) was the 35th president of the United States (1961–63), who faced a number of foreign crises, especially in Cuba and Berlin, but managed to secure such achievements as the Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty and the Alliance for Progress . He was assassinated while riding in a motorcade in Dallas.

(Read John Kennedy’s Britannica entry on Oliver Ellsworth.)

The second of nine children, Kennedy was reared in a family that demanded intense physical and intellectual competition among the siblings—the family’s touch football games at their Hyannis Port retreat later became legendary—and was schooled in the religious teachings of the Roman Catholic church and the political precepts of the Democratic Party. His father, Joseph Patrick Kennedy , had acquired a multimillion-dollar fortune in banking, bootlegging, shipbuilding, and the film industry, and as a skilled player of the stock market . His mother, Rose , was the daughter of John F. (“Honey Fitz”) Fitzgerald, onetime mayor of Boston. They established trust funds for their children that guaranteed lifelong financial independence. After serving as the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission , Joseph Kennedy became the U.S. ambassador to Great Britain, and for six months in 1938 John served as his secretary, drawing on that experience to write his senior thesis at Harvard University (B.S., 1940) on Great Britain’s military unpreparedness. He then expanded that thesis into a best-selling book, Why England Slept (1940).

In the fall of 1941 Kennedy joined the U.S. Navy and two years later was sent to the South Pacific. By the time he was discharged in 1945, his older brother, Joe, who their father had expected would be the first Kennedy to run for office, had been killed in the war, and the family’s political standard passed to John, who had planned to pursue an academic or journalistic career.

John Kennedy himself had barely escaped death in battle. Commanding a patrol torpedo (PT) boat, he was gravely injured when a Japanese destroyer sank it in the Solomon Islands. Marooned far behind enemy lines, he led his men back to safety and was awarded the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps Medal for heroism. He also returned to active command at his own request. (These events were later depicted in a Hollywood film, PT 109 [1963], that contributed to the Kennedy mystique.) However, the further injury to his back, which had bothered him since his teens, never really healed. Despite operations in 1944, 1954, and 1955, he was in pain for much of the rest of his life. He also suffered from Addison disease , though this affliction was publicly concealed. “At least one-half of the days he spent on this earth,” wrote his brother Robert , “were days of intense physical pain.” (After he became president , Kennedy combated the pain with injections of amphetamines —then thought to be harmless and used by more than a few celebrities for their energizing effect. According to some reports, both Kennedy and the first lady became heavily dependent on these injections through weekly use.) None of this prevented Kennedy from undertaking a strenuous life in politics. His family expected him to run for public office and to win.