Jacqueline Kennedy's secrets: Why she respected Khrushchev's wife, took the children from the United States and hated the wives of other presidents

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

One of the most famous first ladies of the world and the United States, Jacqueline Kennedy, is known not only for her not the happiest personal life. Dying from a serious illness, Jacqueline left memories that were published and translated into many languages. From these memories, you can learn a lot of interesting things about what the Kennedy curse was, how Jacqueline treated other first ladies, including Khrushchev's wife, and why her two first marriages were unhappy.

About the Kennedy curse

The former first lady wrote in her memoirs - and this is, in general, a well-known fact - that her father-in-law, Joseph Kennedy Sr., was going to make his three sons presidents in turn. This was practically unthinkable because the Kennedy family was Catholic and religious prejudice in the United States was traditionally high. In addition, the Kennedy were also Irish, who, despite their numbers, were also openly despised. Nevertheless, all of Kennedy's sons from an early age were taught to think about politics, to be interested in it, to feel like a fish in water in this world.

However, it turned out not at all as Joseph dreamed. He is survived by four of his children. His eldest son, who was to run for president first, also Joseph, died in the war - his plane exploded. John F. Kennedy was assassinated when he became president. Roberta - during the election race. Caitlin's daughter died in a plane crash with her fiancé, Earl Fitzwilliam. All this made people say that the Kennedy clan is cursed. Of course, Jacqueline was asked more than once what she thought about this, and in her book she gave the answer.

“Is there the curse of the Kennedy clan? The clan itself is already the curse of its members, because they cease to live their own lives, becoming obedient executors of the will of the clan. Not only the sons, daughters or grandchildren of Joseph and Rose, but all the women who fell into the clan are Kennedy's daughters-in-law. I am, perhaps, the only one who managed to escape and live my life. And I really hope that the curse of the clan will not affect my children."

The Kennedy family did not take into account the interests and problems of children. John was actually going to be a writer and Robert was actually going to own a law firm, but neither of them was allowed to follow their dreams. Daughters Rosemary, too far from perfect due to neurological problems, had a lobotomy, turned into a vegetable, and in this form was locked alone away from home.

Women in the Kennedy clan were generally treated as things - useful, above all. But that's all. Jacqueline once heard Joseph Kennedy's sons discussing her. They defined it as a "useful acquisition." Her husband repeatedly told strangers in her presence that he had never loved any woman (including her) and that there were no beautiful women in Washington (including her). If they got out somewhere and John started talking to reporters there, Jacqueline would just quietly leave so as not to accidentally hear one of these exits. She spent hours waiting for her husband in the car. When John got into the car, he was even surprised to see her there: he forgot that there was any woman with him at all.

On the secrets of John F. Kennedy

Many journalists use words like "secret" or "secrets" to describe John F. Kennedy's carnal relationships. In fact, as Jacqueline admits, his constant adventures were neither secrets nor secrets from anyone. All the men of the Kennedy clan openly, without any shame, cheated on their women. Jacqueline could not feel at home literally anywhere, because at any moment she could stumble upon another mistress of her husband - he did not consider it necessary, at least for the sake of decency, to bring women when his wife was away.

As a result, Jacqueline Kennedy used a recipe from her mother-in-law, Rose Kennedy. She was constantly absent wherever. I went to visit my sister in Europe, for example. This gave her a chance to save her face at least a little. In the Kennedy family, it got to the point that even mistresses showed more human sympathy: when Rose Kennedy gave birth to one of her daughters, her husband found it unnecessary to break away from his current passion, an actress. And even the flowers were sent to Rose's maternity hospital only by this actress …

John F. Kennedy's promiscuity in sexual relations led to the fact that he infected Jacqueline during her first pregnancy with a sexually transmitted disease, which led to the death of the fetus and premature birth. Moreover, when everything happened, John did not even consider it necessary to go to the hospital - opening his eyes after the operation, Jacqueline saw his softer brother Robert near her bed (his wife had just given birth, and he, visiting her, visited Jacqueline). John at this time was having fun on a yacht with other women. The Kennedy family blamed Jacqueline for the death of the fetus, claiming that it was due to her smoking.

John F. Kennedy's real secret was his serious illness. As Jacqueline recalls, he communicated with reporters only on painkillers, leaving the house, hiding crutches, was forced to use a rocking chair to relieve a little of the sore spine. To help John endure the pain, methamphetamine, a drug, was added to his pain relievers. From a young age, the Kennedy family hid the disease from those around him, believing that Kennedy had no right to look weak.

This disease was aggravated after John survived the wreck of his ship during his service in the navy. He swam for five kilometers in cold water to the shore, dragging another sailor behind him, covered with burns, and in the end saved the life of both himself and his comrade. But John's father was frankly disappointed that the sick son was saved, and not the healthy one - Joseph.

About other first ladies

In the book, Jacqueline Kennedy recalls the four first ladies with whom she happened to communicate: three former American and one Soviet, the wife of Nikita Sergeevich Khrushchev. She didn't like the first three, but she remembered Nina Petrovna with respect.

As for the American first ladies - Eleanor Roosevelt, Mamie Eisenhuaer and Pat Nixon, the first two, according to Jacqueline, used openly chauvinistic rhetoric against her husband. So, during the election campaign of John F. Kennedy, Roosevelt insisted that he was a Catholic. As she argued, if the Pope ordered a Catholic president to do something anti-American, he would betray his country.

Eisenhower, after a joint tea party with Nixon and Jacqueline, said aloud, pointing to John that he looked like an Irish girl in a top hat. Moreover, she could not not know that Kennedy was Irish - after all, this was constantly discussed during the previous election campaign. She quite specifically wanted to offend Jacqueline, as Jacqueline herself believes - for the fact that, having not seen bookcases in the White House, she could not resist asking whether the presidents read books.

Kennedy prepared very carefully for the meeting with Nina Petrovna Kukharchuk, whom Jacqueline calls Mrs. Khrushcheva. Together with her husband, she looked through the footage of the chronicle where the Khrushchev couple met in the United States with the Eisenhower couple. Jacqueline drew attention to how simply, elegantly and very expensively Nina Petrovna was dressed and how unusually smoothly she moved. It was clear that Mrs. Khrushcheva carefully thought out her costumes for the situation - for example, in no case did she wear expensive jewelry when going to inspect the farm, which made her stand out from the background of local politicians' wives, but she wore real diamonds for the evening. Kennedy was very worried so as not to hit her face in the mud in front of Nina Petrovna.

Later, she happily writes that she coped with her task. She was lucky to choose a laconic formal suit for the first meeting, because Khrushcheva met her in a very unexpected way, against which a more magnificent dress would look like an outfit for a children's Christmas evening: her costume made of expensive silk in cut and color was similar to the dressing gowns of elderly aunts …

Both in the costume and in the further words of Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (he compared John with his son several times), it was clear that the Khrushchevs decided to play on the age difference and emphasize that the Kennedys for them are in the place of inadvertent young relatives. In response, Jacqueline tried to make it clear that, of course, they are “youth”, but the future belongs to the youth. She describes the meeting with Khrushcheva as a difficult exam, which she experienced with honor.

Diplomatic victories

There were at least two cases when John F. Kennedy owed his wife a warm welcome in another country - although he did not know how to appreciate it at all. Jacqueline Kennedy was born Bouvier, a French aristocrat from a family settled in America. She spoke great French, often bought herself clothes from French designers (although she did not advertise this in the USA), understood the French mentality and knew how to please him. These qualities came in very handy when he and John traveled to Canada and France.

In order to appear in front of the Canadians for the first time, Jacqueline put on a suit similar to the uniform of the Canadian Guard - and instantly won over the Canadians. All their attention was focused on Jacqueline, so that John even felt confused. True, he finally figured out what was the matter, and when they visited France together, he introduced himself there as Mrs. Kennedy's companion. The joke really liked the French, who, like the Canadians, almost completely concentrated on Jacqueline.

As a result, John F. Kennedy got a good attitude and was able to conduct negotiations in a pleasant atmosphere in both countries as a "train" to his wife. However, this did not increase his love for his wife. He just found Jacqueline to be even more useful than he expected.

Aristotle Onassis

When Jacqueline, widowed, decided to marry Onassis, her sister's former lover, all of America hated her. Supported only by my sister and … ex-mother-in-law, Rose Kennedy. Rose, who has lost so many children, told Jacqueline to be sure to take the children out of America: "America hates Kennedy." Perhaps, thanks to the escape for a second marriage, Jacqueline's children escaped the "Kennedy curse."

Aristotle turned out to be the second Kennedy in relation to women and even worse. Very soon, Jacqueline found out that he beat his mistresses. Although he did not touch Jacqueline herself, she was constantly afraid that Onassis's hands would reach her. She also believed that Onassis had mistreated Maria Callas, "the most stunning woman on earth." He married Jacqueline, without interrupting his romance with Maria, whom he took away from a tender and loving husband and who, due to a progressive illness, was very financially dependent. Onassis rushed at Maria with fists, but she never took it just like that and fought back.

In this marriage, Jacqueline, who also did not have any income of her own, like insane, bought clothes and shoes - and Aristotle then constantly arranged scenes for her, asking where all these piles of clothes, on which his money had gone, disappeared. In fact, Jacqueline sold everything, dressing one or two times in order to save money for herself and the children in case Onassis decided to leave her or she had to save herself. It was not a very honest move, but she did not see any other way to get money - after all, she had not had a chance to work for a very long time and she had lost all her qualifications as a journalist (she worked in a magazine in her youth).

John's sister Rosemary was considered a separate part of Kennedy's curse. Hide or just love: What did they do with "special" children in the families of presidents and monarchs