The Kennedys

The Kennedys have always been interesting to me. I recently watched the mini-series, The Kennedys - it was pretty good.

The family of Joseph and Rose Kennedy is obviously the biggest interest as it includes so many famous and influential people, several that the miniseries didn't, or couldn't even touch on. It might have made a better TV show, or at least a one-season show that detailed more in-depth the family.

Joesph Kennedy - the father, he was the 1st chairman of the SEC and also ambassador to the UK under FDR. He got rich off the stock market, liquor trade and revamping Hollywood studios.

Rose Kennedy - lived to be 104 years old.

But the children's lives are what is so interesting - all of them had something unique in their lives, and they were struck with tragedy after tragedy.

Joesph, Jr. - he was being groomed to become the president by his father, but was killed in a plane crash during World War II at age 29, in 1944.

John - obviously the most famous Kennedy as he was President of the United States from 1961-1963 before being assassinated. He had four children, but the first was stillborn and the fourth only lived three days. JFK, Jr. died at age 38 in a plane crash. Caroline Kennedy is still living and is a lawyer.

Rosemary - she had mental health problems where she was unable to progress past the intelligence of a young child, then underwent a lobotomy at age 23 and was permanently incapacitated until she died at age 86.

Kathleen - she married some English royalty but against the wishes of her parents. He died in WWII, and then she later died in a plane crash in 1948, at age 28. She is rarely talked about, I guess because of her family's disapproval - her father is the only one to attend her funeral.

Eunice - she started what ended up becoming the Special Olympics in the 1960s. Her husband was the vice presidential candidate in 1972, and her daughter is Maria Shriver, who was married to actor/Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger. She lived a full life, dying at age 88.

Patricia - she was considered one of the smartest of the bunch but never really did much other than travel and work in Hollywood.

Robert - Attorney General under JFK, then a senator from 1965 until his assassination in 1968 while running for president. He had 11 kids.

Jean - still living today, she was Ambassador to Ireland in the 1990s under President Clinton. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011, which is the highest civilian honor.

Edward - known as "Ted", he was a lifelong politician, serving as a senator from Massachusetts from 1962 until his death in 2009 at age 77. He ran for president against incumbent Jimmy Carter in 1980 but lost in the primaries.