I grew up in the 60s & JFK became & remains my hero. JFK+50 highlights the key events relating to JFK in an "on this day in history" format & includes other events in US & world history. The daily postings read as if published in a newspaper on the day of the event.
Brookline, Massachusetts (JFK+50) On February 20, 1920, Kathleen Kennedy*, sister of future President John F. Kennedy, was born here in Brookline. She was the second daughter and fourth child of Mr. & Mrs. Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr.
Everyone except her mother, Rose, would call her 'Kick.'
Paula Byrne writes...
"Physically Kick resembled (Jack) the most, with thick golden-brown hair and blue-grey eyes. She had her mother's strong jawline. She was a fearless toddler."
Joe Kennedy said...
"All my ducks are swans, but Kick was especially special."
SOURCES
"Kathleen Kennedy: Her Life and Times," by Lynne McTaggart, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, 1983.
"Kick: The True Story of JFK's Sister and the Heir to Chatsworth," by Paula Byrne, Harper Collins Publishers, 2016.
KATHLEEN KENNEDY BORN IN BROOKLINE Brookline, Massachusetts(JFK+50) On February 20, 1920, John F. Kennedy's sister, Kathleen Agnes Kennedy, was born here in Brookline. a suburb of Boston. She was the second daughter and fourth child of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr.
Kathleen, who was called 'Kick' by everyone except her mother, attended Noroton Convent of the Sacred Heart in Greenwich, Connecticut and Hold Child Convent in Neuilly, France. Kick
was a London debutante in May 1938 when Joe Sr. was Ambassador to Great
Britain. She served as a Red Cross volunteer during World War II. Kick, at age 21, got a job with the Washington Times-Herald where she became close friends with John B. White, feature writer for the Washington Times-Herald. He and Kick sometimes double-dated with Jack and Inga Arvad. At age 24, Kick was described as being..."a petite 5'3" American lass with bright gray-blue eyes." It was also said that..."she favored Jack with her reddish-brown hair" and..."they had the same quick, self-deprecating humor, the same free-spiritedness and unharnessed energy."
Kick, against the wishes of her mother Rose, married William Cavendish, the Marquess of Hartington, on May 6, 1944 but he was killed in the war. Kathleen Kennedy died in an airplane crash in France on May 13, 1948. Kick's funeral was held in London attended by her father who represented the Kennedy family. Kick was buried in the cemetery of the Church at Edensor in Derbyshire, England. SOURCES "Kathleen Kennedy: Her Life and Times," by Lynne McTaggart, Holt Rinehart & Winston, New York, 1983. "The Kennedy Curse," by Edward Klein, St. Martin's Press, New York, 2003.
Kathleen Kennedy
London, England
JFK Library Photo (1943)
Joe, Jr., Kick and Jack in London "The Golden Trio"
Brookline(JFK+50) On February 20, 1920, Kathleen Agnes 'Kick' Kennedy, the younger and favorite sister of future President John F. Kennedy, was born on here in Brookline.
Kathleen was the second daughter and fourth child of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. and was called 'Kick' by everyone except her mother. She attended Riverdale County Schooland Convent of the Sacred Heart in Greenwich, Connecticut.
Kathleen's nickname, according to her great niece, namesake and daughter of Robert F. Kennedy, came from the fact that she was "a lot of fun...a kick."
Kick was a London debutante in May 1938 when her father was ambassador to Great Britain and became a Red Cross volunteer during World War II.
Against the wishes of her mother, Kick married a Protestant, William Cavendish, the Marquess of Hartington, on May 6, 1944. The marriage was confirmed in a civil ceremony with the only other Kennedy in attendance being Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr.
Again according to her great niece, "Marrying outside the church was probably the worst sin...it meant living in mortal sin and eventually going to hell." Lynn McTaggart writes..."(Kick) was the only rebel of the family."
Kick's husband, Billy Hartington, was killed by a German sniper just four months after their marriage on September 10, 1944.
After the war, Kathleen fell in love with still another Protestant, Peter Fitzwilliam, but the couple, flying from London to the French Riviera, died tragically in a crash on May 13, 1948.
Kathleen Cavendish, Marchioness of Hartington, is buried in a small churchyard in Edensor, England. The gravesite was visited by her brother Jack, the President of the United States, in 1963 just 5 months before his death.
"I'll take you home again Kathleen*
To where your heart will feel no pain
And when the fields are fresh and green
I'll take you to your home again."
*"I'll Take You Home Again Kathleen" was written by Thomas P. Westendorf in 1875. Although the song is of German-American origins, it is often mistaken as an Irish ballad.
SOURCES
"JFK's forgotten free-spirited sister was the most cursed of all," by Barbara Hoffman, January 16, 2016, www.nypost.com/
"Kathleen Kennedy: Her Life and Times," by Lynne McTaggart, Holt Rinehart and Winston, New York, 1983.
"The forgotten Kennedy," by Kelly McLaughlin, January 16, 2016, www.dailymail.co.uk
"The Kennedy Curse," by Edward Klein, St. Martin's Press, New York, 2003.
JFK+50: Volume 6, No. 1865 JFK'S FAVORITE SISTER BORN 96 YEARS AGO Brookline, Massachusetts(JFK+50) Kathleen Agnes 'Kick' Kennedy, the younger and favorite sister of future President John F. Kennedy, was born 96 years ago today, February 20, 1920, here in Brookline. Kathleen was the second daughter and fourth child of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. and was called 'Kick' by everyone except her mother. She attended Riverdale County Schooland Convent of the Sacred Heart in Greenwich, Connecticut. Kathleen's nickname, according to her great niece, namesake and daughter of Robert F. Kennedy, came from the fact that she was "a lot of fun...a kick." Kick was a London debutante in May 1938 when her father was ambassador to Great Britain and became a Red Cross volunteer during World War II. Against the wishes of her mother, Kick married a Protestant, William Cavendish, the Marquess of Hartington, on May 6, 1944. The marriage was confirmed in a civil ceremony with the only other Kennedy in attendance being Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. Again according to her great niece, "Marrying outside the church was probably the worst sin...it meant living in mortal sin and eventually going to hell." Lynn McTaggart writes..."(Kick) was the only rebel of the family." Kick's husband, Billy Hartington, was killed by a German sniper just four months after their marriage on September 10, 1944. After the war, Kathleen fell in love with still another Protestant, the rich Peter Fitzwilliam but the couple, flying from London to the French Riviera, died tragically in a crash on May 13, 1948. Kathleen Cavendish, Marchioness of Hartington, is buried in a small churchyard in Edensor, England. The gravesite was visited by her brother Jack, the President of the United States, in 1963 just 5 months before his death. In the recent television episode of "Million Dollar American Princesses*," on the Smithsonian Channel, Kick's great niece, Kathleen "Kick" Kennedy says... "The times (Kick) lived in necessitated bravery and a strong ability to carry on in the face of tragedy. Her decisions were informed by her own moral compass, not that of her parents or society." *This episode is titled "Beautiful and Doomed" & was first aired on Jan 17 2016. The next airing is scheduled for Mar 3 from 12-1 p.m. The program is described as "three American heiresses who married into European nobility and lived troubled lives." The two other subjects are Barbara Hutton & Clara Ward. SOURCES "JFK's forgotten free-spirited sister was the most cursed of all," by Barbara Hoffman, January 16, 2016, www.nypost.com/ "Kathleen Kennedy: Her Life and Times," by Lynne McTaggart, Holt Rinehart and Winston, New York, 1983. "The forgotten Kennedy," by Kelly McLaughlin, January 16, 2016, www.dailymail.co.uk
"The Kennedy Curse," by Edward Klein, St. Martin's Press, New York, 2003.
JOHN GLENN BECOMES FIRST AMERICAN IN ORBIT Cape Canaveral, Florida (JFK+50) 53 years ago today, February 20, 1962, the United States put its' first astronaut into earth orbit. Lt.Col. John Glenn (USMC), lifted off successfully aboard the Friendship 7Mercury space capsule at 9:47 a.m. eastern time with 100,000 people watching on the ground and millions on television. John Glenn, no stranger to putting his life on the line in the air, had flown 150 combat missions in WW II and the Korean War.
John Glenn Signed Bomber Jacket
Dr. Les Cunningham Collection
Campbell, Cunningham & Taylor
Knoxville, Tennessee
Photo by John White (2015)
While his 3 orbits around the globe were not without some technical issues, the Friendship 7 reentered the earth's atmosphere and splashed down safely in the Atlantic Ocean where it was retrieved by a helicopter from the USS Noa. The flight lasted almost 5 hours. John Glenn became the third man to orbit the earth. The first was Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin followed by his fellow cosmonaut Gherman Titov. Glenn is also the 3rd American astronaut to fly in space. He follows fellow Mercury astronauts Alan Shepard & Virgil "Gus" Grissom. The success of putting a man in orbit represented a huge step toward achieving President John F. Kennedy's goal of "landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the earth" by the end of the decade. The President visited Cape Canaveral on February 23, 1962 to pin a medal on John Glenn who later addressed congress and was given a ticker tape parade.
KICK BORN 95 YEARS AGO TODAY Brookline, Massachusetts(JFK+50) Kathleen Agnes 'Kick' Kennedy, the younger sister of future President John F. Kennedy, was born 94 years ago today, February 20, 1920, here in Brookline. a suburb of Boston. Kathleen was the second daughter and fourth child of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. and was called 'Kick' by everyone except her mother. She attended Noroton Convent of the Sacred Heart in Greenwich, Connecticut and the Hold Child Convent in Neuilly, France. Kick was a London debutante in May 1938 when Joe Sr. was Ambassador to Great Britain and became a Red Cross volunteer during World War II.
Kathleen Kennedy
London, England
JFK Library Photo (1943)
Kick, against the wishes of her mother Rose, married William Cavendish, the Marquess of Hartington, on May 6, 1944. Kick's husband was killed in the war on September 10, 1944. Kathleen Kennedy died in an airplane crash in France on May 13, 1948. SOURCES "Kathleen Kennedy: Her Life and Times," by Lynne McTaggart, Holt Rinehart & Winston, New York, 1983.
"The Kennedy Curse," by Edward Klein, St. Martin's Press, New York, 2003.
JFK'S SISTER KICK BORN 94 YEARS AGO TODAY Brookline, Massachusetts(JFK+50) JFK's sister, Kathleen Agnes 'Kick' Kennedy was born 94 years ago today, February 20, 1920, here in Brookline. a suburb of Boston. Kathleen was the second daughter and fourth child of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr.
Kathleen Kennedy
London, England
JFK Library Photo (1943)
Kathleen, who was called 'Kick' by everyone except her mother, attended Noroton Convent of the Sacred Heart in Greenwich, Connecticut and the Hold Child Convent in Neuilly, France. Kick was a London debutante in May 1938 when Joe Sr. was Ambassador to Great Britain and became a Red Cross volunteer during World War II.
Joe, Jr., Kick and Jack in London
When Kick was 21, she got a job with the Washington Times-Herald where she became close friends with John B. White. John B. White was the star feature writer for the Washington Times-Herald. He and Kick sometimes double-dated with Jack and Inga Arvad. John was described as a 'brilliant polymath' by friends. A fellow newsman said 'everybody loved him.' At the age of 24, Kick was described as being... "a petite 5'3" American lass with bright gray-blue eyes." It was also said that... "she favored Jack with her reddish-brown hair" and... "they had the same quick, self-deprecating humor, the same free-spiritedness and unharnessed energy." It was also said that... "the vivacious Kick...inherited her charismatic personality from...Honey Fitz." Kick, against the wishes of her mother Rose, married William Cavendish, the Marquess of Hartington, on May 6, 1944. Kick's husband was killed in the war on September 10, 1944. Kathleen Kennedy died in an airplane crash in France on May 13, 1948. Kick's funeral was held in London attended by her father who represented the Kennedy family. Kick was buried in the cemetery of the Church at Edensor in Derbyshire, England. SOURCES "Kathleen Kennedy: Her Life and Times," by Lynne McTaggart, Holt Rinehart & Winston, New York, 1983. "The Kennedy Curse," by Edward Klein, St. Martin's Press, New York, 2003.
Knoxville, Tennessee (JFK+50) Today we continue our report of Chapter 12 of the book by Kenneth P. O'Donnell & David F. Powers with Joe McCarthy. It is published by Little, Brown & Company.
The title of Chapter 12 is "Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ye"
Kenneth O'Donnell says that after leaving Ireland, JFK made an "unscheduled & unpublicized stop" to visit the grave of his sister Kathleen* at Chatsworth, England.
Kathleen, who was called Kick, had died in a plane crash in France in 1948.
Kenny adds that this was JFK's 1st & last visit to the grave.
"He knelt & prayed, & watched (sister) Jean place a bouquet of red & white roses beside the headstone...."
*KATHLEEN AGNES KENNEDY CAVENDISH (1920-1948)
The 4th child of Joseph P. & Rose F. Kennedy, she was educated at Queen's College in London. During WWII, she served in the American Red Cross in England.
"Kick" married William "Billy" Cavendish, Marquess of Hartington in 1944 but he was killed in the war that same year.
Lady Hartington died in 1948 & is buried in the Cavendish family plot at St. Peter's Church in Edensor near Chatsworth in Derbyshire, England.
Kathleen "Kick" Kennedy, 1943 American Red Cross Volunteer JFK Library Photo
