Because she didn’t have to put up with her husband’s philandering all that long. Joan Kennedy became an alcoholic wreck. |
I imagine Jackie wanted him to end up with someone like her or Caroline. Jackie was from a wealthy family, had a good pedigree and appeared to be interested in her role as First Lady. Caroline was the next generation of that - wealthy family, right pedigree, smart and ambitious. I wonder if rose and Joseph Kennedy approved of their son’s spouses. I think Ethel was a friend of Eunice’s and came from the Kennedy world. Both Jackie and Ethel kind of understood the “‘never explain, never complain” mentality. |
Caroline wasn't the right pedigree, in terms of background or education. She was not blue blood, grew up middle class, then moved to Greenwich as a teen. She was earthy and not at all patrician in bearing or manners. Not a strong student, at a middling school, surrounded by new family members who attended Ivies and took politics and public service very seriously. |
*Carolyn |
I meant Caroline as in JFKs sister Caroline. I was saying Jackie wanted her son to end up with someone with a pedigree like her own or Caroline Kennedy’s. Carolyn did not have that pedigree. She was beautiful and passed for it but I think people like Jackie and Caroline kind of rolled their eyes at a beautiful “it girl” in a seemingly superficial fashion PR job. And working out of need, lol. |
The thing is, when you’re JFK frigging Jr., EVERYONE is “down the ladder.” |
I think Jackie probably would have been okay with someone who wasn't from a similar family as long as they had the educational pedigree and traveled in the same circles. Ed Schlossberg (Caroline's husband) is from a family who had enough money to send Ed to private school in NYC, but nothing like the Kennedys (or the Beauvoirs). But his family highly valued education and Ed went to Columbia and got a PhD. He was also "earthy" in that he was an artist in NYC in the 70s and 80s, however he was/is an intellectual and his academic background is in philosophy. So he wasn't really from the same background as Caroline at all, but I think it was still a good match for the family because Schlossberg and his family cared about the same things as the Kennedys and Ed could attend family events and fundraisers with Caroline and not be a total fish out of water (even though I'm certain many people in the Kennedy set looked down on him for his background). The issue with Carolyn is that she and her family did not have the same priorities as John's family at all. It was a total culture clash. Not with John (who was also rebelling against his family in a variety of ways) but between the families. They really were not well suited. While I normally hate her being mentioned on threads like this, I actually think Meghan Markel is very similar. A successful professional woman marrying the younger son of a family that views itself as an established institution with high expectations for its progeny. On the surface it seems like it will be okay but you've got a woman who likes making her own decisions and living her own life marrying into a family where obligation is doing what you're told is a big part of fitting in. |
She was old money. Rich people get nose jobs. |
The show seems to be pushing the idea that she was scrappy & practical, but not sufficiently intellectual. She’s not able to comment on politics, & people at Kennedy gatherings keep mentioning the elite colleges they went to, & Carolyn is forced to admit she only went to BU (good college, but lacks cachet for snobs). |
Ethel must have had some status among the Kennedy wives because at least her husband was banging her at least once per year. As opposed to Jack & Ted, who were chasing everyone except their wives. |
If you had standards you wouldn’t be commenting here. |
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I find today's obsession with them crazy.
However, I do remember where I was when I found out they got married and when they crashed. |
Jackie had 5 pregnancies in 10 years, including a stillbirth and a very premature baby that died. Thy were clearly having sex on a regular basis. |
For a woman who wanted a good husband and provider, he was not at all a catch. The idea that everyone wanted him and everyone was below him is delulu. Only his fellow party animals wanted him. |
Not PP but I’ve met a lot of name droppers and I’m sure you have too. Both in DC and especially in New York. It’s pathetic, but definitely believable. |