John F. Kennedy Jr. | |
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 Kennedy in 1997 | |
| Born | John Fitzgerald Kennedy Jr. (1960-11-25)November 25, 1960 Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Died | July 16, 1999(1999-07-16) (aged 38) Atlantic Ocean, nearMartha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Plane crash |
| Alma mater | |
| Occupations |
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| Political party | Democratic |
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| Parents | |
| Family | Kennedy family Bouvier family |
John Fitzgerald Kennedy Jr. (November 25, 1960 – July 16, 1999), also known asJFK Jr., was an American attorney, magazine publisher, and journalist. He was a son of 35th U.S. presidentJohn F. Kennedy and First LadyJacqueline Kennedy.
Born two weeks after his fatherwas elected president, Kennedy spent his early childhood years living in theWhite House untilhis father was assassinated. At thefuneral procession, which took place on his third birthday, he gave his father's flag-draped casket a final salute as it came past him. As an adult, Kennedy worked for nearly four years as an assistant district attorney inManhattan. In 1995, he launched his magazineGeorge by using his political and celebrity status to promote it.
A popular social figure in Manhattan, Kennedy was the subject of intense media coverage throughout his entire life. The constant focus of the paparazzi extended to his personal life, especially his marriage toCarolyn Bessette. He was also involved in nonprofit work andhis family's political campaigns. Kennedy died in a highly publicizedplane crash in 1999.
John Fitzgerald Kennedy Jr. was born on November 25, 1960, atGeorgetown University Hospital,[1] to MassachusettssenatorJohn F. Kennedy andJacqueline Kennedy (née Bouvier). His father had beenelected president less than three weeks earlier[2] and wasinaugurated two months after his son's birth. Kennedy had an older sister,Caroline, who was born three years earlier. His parents had a stillborn daughter, Arabella, in 1956, and an infant son,Patrick, who died two days after his premature birth in 1963.[3] His widely repeated nickname, "John-John", originated with a reporter who misheard his father calling him "John" twice in quick succession; the family did not use the name.[4]
Kennedy lived in theWhite House during the first three years of his life and remained in the public spotlight as a young adult. His father was assassinated on November 22, 1963, and thestate funeral was held three days later, on Kennedy's third birthday. In a widely broadcast moment, he stepped forward and saluted his father's flag‑draped casket as it was carried out ofSt. Matthew's Cathedral.[5]NBC News vice presidentJulian Goodman called the image "the most impressive... shot in the history of television."[6] The moment was captured by several photographers includingUnited Press International photographerStan Stearns—later chief White House photographer during theLyndon B. Johnson administration[7]—and Dan Farrell of theNew York Daily News.[8] Johnson wrote his first letter as president to Kennedy, telling him that he "can always be proud" of his father.[9]
Following the assassination, the family continued with their plans for a birthday party to demonstrate their resolve to carry on despite the president's death.[10] They moved briefly to theGeorgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C., and then to a luxury apartment on theUpper East Side ofManhattan, where Kennedy grew up. In 1967, his mother took him and Caroline on a six-week "sentimental journey" to Ireland, where they met PresidentÉamon de Valera and visited the Kennedy ancestral home in Dunganstown.[11]
After theassassination of Kennedy's uncle Robert in 1968, Jacqueline took Caroline and Kennedy out of the United States, saying, "If they're killing Kennedys, then my children are targets ... I want to get out of this country."[12] She married Greek shipping magnateAristotle Onassis later that year, and the family moved to his private island ofSkorpios. Kennedy reportedly considered his stepfather "a joke".[13] Onassis died in 1975 and left his widow an annual income of $250,000 a year,[14] though she later settled withChristina Onassis for $25 million in exchange for not contesting the will.
Kennedy returned to the White House with his mother and sister in 1971 for the first time since his father's assassination. PresidentRichard Nixon's daughters gave him a tour that included his former bedroom, and Nixon showed him theResolute desk under which his father had allowed him to play.[15]
Kennedy attended private schools in Manhattan, beginning atSaint David's School and later moving toCollegiate School, which he attended from third through tenth grade.[11] He completed his secondary education atPhillips Academy, a preparatory boarding school inAndover, Massachusetts. After graduating, he accompanied his mother on a trip to Africa. During a pioneering course, Kennedy's group became lost for two days without food or water; he led them to safety, earning credit for leadership.[16]
In 1976, Kennedy and his cousin travelled to the earthquake-affected region ofRabinal in in Guatemala, helping with heavy construction work and distributing food. A local priest said that they "ate what the people of Rabinal ate and dressed in Guatemalan clothes and slept in tents like most of the earthquake victims," adding that the two "did more for their country's image" in Guatemala "than a roomful of ambassadors."[17] On his 16th birthday, Kennedy's Secret Service protection ended,[18] and he spent the summer of 1978 working as awrangler in Wyoming.[19] In 1979, theJohn F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum inBoston was dedicated, and Kennedy made his first major speech, recitingStephen Spender's poem "The Truly Great".[20]
Kennedy attendedBrown University, where he majored in American studies.[21] He co-founded a student discussion group that focused on contemporary issues such asapartheid in South Africa, gun control, and civil rights. He was appalled by apartheid when visiting South Africa on a summer break and arranged for U.N. ambassadorAndrew Young to speak about the topic at Brown.[22] By his junior year, Kennedy had moved off campus to live with several other students in a shared house,[23] and he spent time at Xenon, a club owned byHoward Stein. Kennedy was initiated into Phi Psi, a local social fraternity that had been the Rhode Island Alpha chapter of nationalPhi Kappa Psi fraternity until 1978.[24]
In January 1983, Kennedy's Massachusettsdriver's license was suspended when he received more than threespeeding summonses in 12 months and failed to appear at a hearing.[25][26] The family's lawyer explained that Kennedy most likely "became immersed in exams and just forgot the date of the hearing".[27] That same year, he graduated with a bachelor's degree in American studies and took a break, traveling to India and spending time at theUniversity of Delhi, where he did his post-graduate work and metMother Teresa.[28]
After the1984 Democratic National Convention in San Francisco, Kennedy returned to New York to earn $20,000 a year at Office of Business Development, where his boss said that he worked "in the same crummy cubbyhole as everybody else. I heaped on the work and was always pleased."[29] Kennedy continued there as deputy director of the 42nd Street Development Corporation in 1986,[30] conducting negotiations with developers and city agencies.
In 1988, Kennedy became a summer associate atManatt, Phelps, Rothenberg & Phillips, a Los Angeles law firm with strong connections to the Democratic Party, working for his uncleTed Kennedy's law school roommate and formerDemocratic National Committee chairmanCharles Manatt.[29] Later that year, Kennedy was named byPeople magazine as 1988's "Sexiest Man Alive".
From 1989, Kennedy headed Reaching Up, anonprofit group which provided educational and other opportunities for workers who helped people with disabilities. William Ebenstein, executive director of Reaching Up, said, "He was always concerned with the working poor, and his family always had an interest in helping them."[31]
Kennedy earned aJuris Doctor degree from theNew York University School of Law in 1989.[32] He then failed the New Yorkbar exam twice before passing on his third try in July 1990.[33] After failing the exam for a second time, Kennedy vowed that he would continue to take it until he was 95 years old or passed.[34] If Kennedy had failed a third time, he would have been ineligible to serve as anassistant district attorney in theManhattan DA's Office, where Kennedy worked for the next four years;[35][36] handling such matters as consumer fraud and landlord-tenant disputes.[37] On August 29, 1991, Kennedy won his first case as a prosecutor.[38]
In the summer of 1992, Kennedy worked as a journalist and was commissioned byThe New York Times to write an article about his kayaking expedition to theÅland Archipelago, where he saved one of his friends when a kayak capsized.[39] Kennedy then considered creating a magazine with his friend, public-relations magnateMichael J. Berman, a plan which his mother thought too risky. In his 2000 bookThe Day John Died, Christopher Andersen wrote that Jacqueline had worried that her son would die in a plane crash and asked her longtime companionMaurice Tempelsman "to do whatever it took to keep John from becoming a pilot".[40]
Kennedy had appeared in many plays while at Brown and had done a bit of acting afterwards. He expressed interest in acting as a career but his mother strongly disapproved, considering it an unsuitable profession.[41] Kennedy made his New York acting debut on August 4, 1985, in front of an invitation-only audience at the Irish Theater on Manhattan's West Side. The executive director of the Irish Arts Center, Nye Heron, said that Kennedy was "one of the best young actors I've seen in years".[30] Kennedy's director, Robin Saex, stated, "He has an earnestness that just shines through." Kennedy's largest acting role was playing a fictionalized version of himself in the eighth-season episode of the sitcomMurphy Brown called "Altered States", in which he visits Brown's office to promote a magazine he is publishing.
In 1995, Kennedy and Michael Berman foundedGeorge, a glossy, politics-as-lifestyle and fashion monthly, with Kennedy controlling 50 percent of the shares.[41] Kennedy officially launched the magazine at a news conference in Manhattan on September 8 and joked that he had not seen so many reporters in one place since he failed his first bar exam.[42]
Each issue of the magazine contained an editor's column and interviews written by Kennedy,[43] who believed they could make politics "accessible by covering it in an entertaining and compelling way", allowing "popular interest and involvement" to follow.[44] Kennedy did interviews withLouis Farrakhan,Billy Graham,Garth Brooks, and others.[44]
The first issue was criticized for its image ofCindy Crawford posing asGeorge Washington in a powdered wig and ruffled shirt. In defense of the cover, Kennedy stated that "political magazines should look likeMirabella."[45]
In July 1997,Vanity Fair published a profile of New York City mayorRudy Giuliani, claiming that he was sleeping with his press secretary (which both parties denied). Kennedy was tempted to follow up on this story but decided against it.[46] That same month, he wrote about meeting Mother Teresa, declaring that the "three days I spent in her presence was the strongest evidence this struggling Catholic has ever had that God exists."[43]
The September 1997 issue ofGeorge centered on temptation and featured two of Kennedy's cousins,Michael LeMoyne Kennedy andJoseph P. Kennedy II. Michael, a Boston attorney,[47] had been accused of having an affair with his children's underage babysitter,[48] while Joseph, a Massachusetts congressman,[49] had been accused by his ex-wife of having bullied her. John said that both his cousins had become "poster boys for bad behavior", and that he was trying to show that press coverage of the pair was unfair because they were Kennedys.[50] Joseph paraphrased John's father by stating, "Ask not what you can do for your cousin, but what you can do for his magazine."[51]
By early 1997, Kennedy and Berman were locked in a power struggle, which led to screaming matches, slammed doors, and even a physical altercation. Berman sold his share of the company and Kennedy took on Berman's responsibilities. Berman's departure was followed by a rapid drop in sales for the already declining magazine.[52]
Hachette Filipacchi Magazines were partners inGeorge. CEODavid Pecker said the decline was due to Kennedy's refusal to "take risks as an editor, despite the fact that he was an extraordinary risk taker in other areas of his life." Pecker also said, "He understood that the target audience forGeorge was the eighteen-to-thirty-four-year-old demographic, yet he would routinely turn down interviews that would appeal to this age group, likePrincess Diana orJohn Gotti Jr., to interview subjects likeDan Rostenkowski orVõ Nguyên Giáp."[52]Shortly before his death, Kennedy had been planning a series of online chats with the 2000 presidential candidates.Microsoft was to provide the technology and pay for it while receiving advertising inGeorge.[53] After his death, the magazine was bought out by Hachette,[54] but it folded in early 2001.[55]
Kennedy addressed the1988 Democratic National Convention inAtlanta, introducing his uncle Senator Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts. He invoked his father's inaugural address, calling "a generation to public service", and received a two-minute standing ovation.[56] Republican consultantRichard Viguerie said he did not remember a word of the speech, but remembered "a good delivery" and added, "I think it was a plus for the Democrats and the boy. He is strikingly handsome."[57][58]
Kennedy participated in his cousinPatrick J. Kennedy's campaign for a seat in theRhode Island House of Representatives by visiting the district.[59] He sat outside the polling booth and had his picture taken with "would-be" voters. The gimmick worked so well that Patrick Kennedy used it again in 1994.
Kennedy also campaigned in Boston for his uncle'sre-election to the U.S. Senate against challengerMitt Romney in 1994. "He always created a stir when he arrived in Massachusetts", remarked Senator Kennedy.[60]
In 1994, Kennedy bought aloft in theTribeca district of New York City (20 North Moore Street) where he first lived alone and later with Carolyn Bessette.[61][62]
While attending Brown University Kennedy met Sally Munro. They dated for six years, and visited India together in 1983. While at Brown, he also met model and actressBrooke Shields,[63] with whom he was later linked.
Kennedy dated modelsCindy Crawford and Julie Baker and actressSarah Jessica Parker,[64] who said that she enjoyed dating Kennedy but realized he "was a public domain kind of a guy." Parker said she had no idea what "real fame" was until dating Kennedy and felt that she should "apologize for dating him" since it became the "defining factor" of who she was.[65]
Kennedy had known actressDaryl Hannah since their two families had vacationed together in Saint Martin in the early 1980s. After meeting again at the wedding of his auntLee Radziwill in 1988, they dated for five and a half years, though their relationship was complicated by her feelings for singerJackson Browne, with whom she had lived for a time.[66]
From 1985 to 1990, Kennedy dated Christina Haag. They had known each other as children, and she also attended Brown University.[67]
After his relationship with Daryl Hannah ended, Kennedy lived with Carolyn Bessette, who worked in the fashion industry. They were engaged for a year, though Kennedy consistently denied reports of this. On September 21, 1996, they were married in a private ceremony onCumberland Island,Georgia,[68] where his sister, Caroline, wasmatron of honor and his cousinAnthony Radziwill was best man.[69] His niecesRose Kennedy Schlossberg andTatiana Kennedy Schlossberg served as the flower girls, and nephewJack Kennedy Schlossberg served as the ring bearer.[70]
The next day, Kennedy's cousin Patrick revealed that the pair had married. When they returned to their Manhattan home a mass of reporters was on the doorstep. One of them asked Kennedy if he had enjoyed his honeymoon, to which he responded: "Very much." Kennedy added, "Getting married is a big adjustment for us, and for a private citizen like Carolyn even more so. I ask you to give her all the privacy and room you can."[71]
Bessette was disoriented by the constant attention of the paparazzi. The couple were permanently on show, both at Manhattan events and on their travels to visit celebrities such asMariuccia Mandelli andGianni Versace.[72] She complained about being unable to get a job without being accused of exploiting her fame.[73] The couple began seeing a marriage counselor in March 1999 and sought counseling fromCardinal John O'Connor in the summer of 1999.[74][75]
Kennedy had wanted to become a pilot since he was a child. Kennedy took flying lessons at the Flight Safety Academy inVero Beach, Florida,[50] and received his pilot's license in April 1998.[42] The death of his cousin Michael in a skiing accident[76] had prompted John to take a hiatus from his piloting lessons for three months. Kennedy's sister, Caroline, hoped this would be permanent but when he resumed, she did little to stop him.[77]
On July 16, 1999, Kennedy departed fromFairfield, New Jersey, at the controls of hisPiper Saratoga light aircraft. He was traveling with his wife Carolyn and sister-in-law Lauren Bessette. Lauren was to be dropped off atMartha's Vineyard and Kennedy and his wife would continue on toHyannis Port, Massachusetts, to attend the wedding of his cousinRory Kennedy. He had purchased the plane from Air Bound Aviation on April 28.[78] Carolyn and Lauren were passengers sitting in the second row of seats.[79] Kennedy had checked in with thecontrol tower at theMartha's Vineyard Airport, but the plane was reported missing after it failed to arrive on schedule.[80]
Officials were not hopeful about finding survivors after aircraft debris and a black suitcase belonging to Bessette were recovered from the Atlantic Ocean.[81] PresidentBill Clinton gave his support to the Kennedy family during the search for the three missing passengers.[81]
On July 18, aUnited States Coast Guard admiral declared an end to the rescue efforts.[82] Within the next two days, the fragments of Kennedy's plane were found by theNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration vesselRude usingside-scan sonar, subsequently promptingUnited States Navy divers to descend into the 62 °F (17 °C) water. They found part of the shattered plane strewn over a broad area of seabed 120 feet (37 m) below the surface.[83] The search ended in the late afternoon of July 21 when high-resolution images of the ocean bottom[84] helped Navy divers recover the three bodies from the ocean floor. The bodies were taken by motorcade to the countymedical examiner's office.[85] Divers found Carolyn's and Lauren's bodies near the twisted and broken fuselage while Kennedy's body was still strapped into the pilot's seat.[80] Admiral Richard M. Larrabee of the Coast Guard said that all three bodies were "near and under" the fuselage, still strapped in.[86]
TheNational Transportation Safety Board determined that pilot error was the probable cause of the crash: "Kennedy's failure to maintain control of the airplane during a descent over water at night, which was a result ofspatial disorientation."[87]
Later that evening, the bodies were autopsied at the county medical examiner's office and taken from Hyannis toDuxbury, Massachusetts, where they were cremated in the Mayflower Cemeterycrematorium.[88] The families announced their plans for memorial services the same day.[85] The autopsy determined that the crash victims had died upon impact. Ted Kennedy favored a public service for John, while Caroline Kennedy insisted on family privacy.[89] On the morning of July 22, their ashes were scattered at sea from the NavydestroyerUSS Briscoe off the coast of Martha's Vineyard.[90]
A memorial service was held for Kennedy on July 23, 1999, at theChurch of St. Thomas More in New York City, a parish that Kennedy had often attended with his mother and sister. The invitation-only service was attended by hundreds of mourners, including President Bill Clinton, who presented the family with photo albums of John and Carolyn on their visit to the White House from the previous year.[91]
Kennedy's last will and testament stipulated that his personal belongings, property, and holdings were to be "evenly distributed" among his sister Caroline's three children –Rose,Tatiana, andJack – who were among 14 beneficiaries in his will.[80] Ascrimshaw set that belonged to his father was left to his nephew Jack.[92]
In 2000, Reaching Up, the organization which Kennedy founded in 1989, joined with The City University of New York to establish the John F. Kennedy Jr. Institute.[93] In 2003, the ARCO Forum atHarvard Kennedy School was renamed the John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum of Public Affairs. Kennedy had been a member of the Senior Advisory Committee of Harvard's Institute of Politics for 15 years and an active participant in Forum events. Ted Kennedy said the renaming symbolically linked Kennedy with his late father; Caroline Kennedy said the renaming reflected his love of discussing politics.[94]
In 2013, on the 50th anniversary of the JFK assassination, theNew York Daily News re-ran the famous photograph of the three-year-old JFK Jr. saluting his father's coffin during the funeral procession. Photographer Dan Farrell, who took the photo, called it "the saddest thing I've ever seen in my whole life".[95] During 2025, CNN airedAmerican Prince: JFK Jr., a three-part documentary about JFK Jr.
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