WHEN Henry Cabot Lodge lost his
Massachusetts Senatorial seat to
young Jack Kennedy in 1952, he ex
plained his defeat succinctly: "It was
those darned tea parties !"
The "darned tea parties" were for women only
the same women who had always been ignored
by campaigning politicians and they were for
mally called "A reception in honor of Mrs. Jo
seph P. Kennedy, Sr., and her son, Congressman
John F. Kennedy." At the receptions, there were
short talks, much tea sipping, and a chance to
shake hands with Mrs. Kennedy and JFK.
If JFK is re-elected President in 1964, you
may hear his defeated opponent lament: "It was"
those darned home-movie shows or travel-slide
shows or whatever you want to call them!"
The "whatever you want to call them" in ques
tion have no formal name, and that's only right
since they are informal affairs. But if someone
were to call the performance, "An Evening with
Rose Kennedy," no one could argue.
I recently attended one of them in Brewster,
Mass. (see invitation reproduced above).
What my invitation didn't say was that the
commentary accompanying the slides would be
some of the most entertaining talk ever heard in
the world of home movies and home slides.
A typical "evening" starts with a few words
from the organizing chairwoman. Then Mrs.
4
Family Wttkly, Octotxr 17, 19CJ
One of the most effective weapons in the Kennedy clan's popularity arsenal
Kennedy comes to the podium while murmurs
of "Look how young and pretty she looks" run
through the audience. The reaction is under
standable. Rose Kennedy is a handsome, beauti
fully groomed, aristocratic-looking woman. The
key features of her face are the Katharine Hepburn-like
high cheekbones that also can be found
in varying degrees in all her children. Fairly
short (not more than five feet, three inches) and
slim, she still looks very much like the Rose
Kennedy who, after the birth of her ninth child,
was greeted at a White House function by a wolf
whistle from Franklin Roosevelt's son-in-law,
John Boettiger.
"An Evening with Rose Kennedy" begins with
a few remarks about what she is going to do;
then she starts doing it. The lights dim, a slide
goes on the screen, and the comments begin.
From the sampling that follows, you will dis
cover that Mrs. Kennedy is definitely her own
woman. Her sentiments about several of the peo
ple who appear on the screen wouldn't be shared
by her sons not out loud anyway.
On the screen: JFK, Jackie, Charles de
Gaulle, Madame de Gaulle. "Mr. de Gaulle is a
rare patriot. He has such devotion to duty and
has done so much for his country, Mrs. de Gaulle
is so charming ... she shares my interest in
mentally retarded children. She is so self
effacing. French women don't make speeches, and
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ladies do over here."
On the screen: Joseph Kennedy, Rose Ken
nedy, and Neville Chamberlain. "There's Mr.
Chamberlain with his famous umbrella. His po
sition was never understood in this country. He
did what he thought was best and what had to
be done at the time. My husband understood this
and always liked him . . ."
On the screen: a platoon of Kennedys flanked
by the Swiss Guards who police the Vatican.
"When Pope Pius XII, who was then Cardinal
Pacelli, came to America in 1935 or '36, my hus
band was asked to meet him and escort him
around. This was understandable as my husband
was one of the few Catholics in a prominent posi
tion in the Roosevelt Administration. ... I re
member so well a fine talk the Cardinal had with
President Roosevelt. There were only 12 people
around the table at the time, and that's the right
number to produce such fine conversation espe
cially if the women keep quiet . . .
"In this picture, we are all at Rome for the
coronation of Pope Pius XII. Joe, Jr., is miss
ing; he was in Spain at the time.
"He was, as you may know, the one we expected
to go into politics, and he was already laying
the groundwork ...
"The children under 12 were allowed to wear
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Rose Kennedy, King George VI, Queen Elizabeth, and Joe Kennedy.
white to the ceremony; all others wore black.
Teddy was the first American boy to receive his
first Holy Communion from the Pope, and I
thought that with such a start he would become
a priest or maybe a bishop. But then one night
he met a beautiful blonde and that was the end
of that."
On the screen: the head table at a royal din
ner in London when Joseph Kennedy was U. S.
ambassador to Great Britain. "Royalty always
wears light-colored clothing at these affairs so
that they stand out and can be seen more easily.
Queen Elizabeth always wore her hats off her
face so her subjects could see her. . . .
"Notice the elaborate dress all around. The
man at the far right is the Lord Mayor of Lon
don. My father was mayor of Boston and he
never had an ermine cape!"
On the screen: a close-up of King George VI
and Queen Elizabeth at the dinner. "When din
ing with the Queen, the ladies all wear tiaras.
But, while they're beautiful, they're uncomfort
able. The more valuable the tiara is, the heavier
it is. . . .
"The Queen was a wonderful woman. One time
we went upstairs after dinner and she asked me
if I always saw the kids off to school in the morn
ing. I told her that I got up for the first six, but
when seven, eight, and nine came along, I
whose quietly refined "travel-slide
General de
thought, 'this can go on forever' and I rolled
over and went to sleep 1 . . ."
On the screen: 10 Downing St. "This does
not look like a very distinguished place, but so
many important events have taken place here.
The first time the President saw it, when we
first came to England, he said, 'Oh, Mother, is
that really 10 Downing Street?' and he was so
excited . . ."
On the screen: the Ladies' Guest Room in
the White House. "This is done in rose silk.
There's a plaque on the wall that says, 'Queen
Elizabeth'stayed here in 1939.' "
On the screen: Lincoln Room in the White
House. "This is the men's guest room. Notice
the extra-long bed and the circular table. It was
a conference room until Jackson's time. The
Emancipation Proclamation was signed here in
1863. There is a framed copy of the Gettysburg
Address on one wall.
"There is no plaque saying 'Rose Kennedy
slept here.' "
At times during her talk, Mrs. Kennedy will
be reminded of something that is not on a slide
and will talk about that. One time she added this
advice about raising teen-agers:
"I know many of you mothers are appalled by
the drinking that's going on among teen-agers.
Family Weekly October 27, 1963
shows" knock 'em dead
Gaulle greets Jacqueline Kennedy and the President.
Please, please tell them that to be sophisticated,
to show that you've been places, you don't have
to drink. The girl that does will lose her figure,
face, and looks. Mr. Kennedy never drank be
fore making an important business decision. We
were very fortunate in our family. My husband
promised each of our children $1,000 if they did
not smoke or drink until they were 21. The oldest
boys, Joe, Jr., and Jack went through with it,
and the girls followed." Editors' note: Jack
later gave his $1,000 back. His reason: "I drank
some beer."
Talking about this later, Mrs. Kennedy told
me, "I don't like to lecture like that, but I do
wish young people would learn you can be so
phisticated without following the crowd. Two of
my three sons married girls who don't drink."
At the end of the "evening" which lasts 90
minutes or so Rose Kennedy announces that
the show is over, the lights go on, and the ap
plause is enough to make any political opponent
of the Kennedys reach for the aspirin bottle.
But there's more to come. Mrs. Kennedy then
steps down from the stage, and members of the
audience line up to shake the hand that "rocked
the cradle of the future President" and say
things like, "Now I know where the President
got his sense of humor."
When Mrs. Kennedy's "shows" began getting
publicity recently, many people assumed it was
another maneuver of the Kennedy political
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Family Wrrkly. Oftobrr 27. lit S