Episode 155: Harvard, London, and a World at War; JFK, Part II

 

JFK's collegiate path was never in doubt - his application essay (which I read in full on the podcast) is evidence of that - but after he begins university, his father's new senior position in the US government gives Jack a front row seat to the collapse of peace in Europe and leaves his struggling with how and why it happened.

Fortunately for him, that gives him a great idea for his senior thesis, which becomes a best selling book, but also leaves his grappling which what his role will be when the United States inevitably enters World War II.

Episode 154: Brookline to Hyannis Port - Growing Up Kennedy; JFK, Part I

 

Jack Kennedy - Age 10

More than four years ago - way back in Episode 13 - I shared the story of President John F. Kennedy's funeral as part of the series on the establishment of Arlington as a cemetery. At that time I said that I would probably share the story of how Kennedy became eligible for burial at Arlington (specifically his military service, not his election as president), and that time has finally come.

Jack Kennedy (left) age 2 and Joe, Jr age 4

But before we get to his time in the Navy, I am going to talk a little about his childhood, which was not as idyllic as it may have seemed from the outside (just wait until you hear younger brother Bobby's recollection about what Joe, Jr. like to do to poor Jack when they were young).

JFK - age 8 (second from left) and his siblings at Hyannis Port, MA