Love Story: JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bassette

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My understanding is that she was extremely late to the airstrip because she spent a couple of hours at the nail salon having the paint color redone several times to match her outfit for the rehearsal dinner.
By the time she finally arrived, it was dark already. They should have just skipped the dinner and waited until the next day to fly to the wedding but he thought they could still arrive in time for dinner even though he had not yet achieved the level of flying by instrument panel. There is no horizon in the darkness. They probably had no idea that they were heading into the water.
Both parties were daft. This is why his mother prohibited him from pursuing flying small aircrafts while she was alive. She understood something about his lack of judgement.

Not believing this for one second. This does not sound like something she would do AT ALL.

(DP) I’m old enough to remember their relationship and death due to a People magazine subscription and being very invested as a teenager. Ha.

The rumor that she caused them to start out late due to her nails was well known. The public back then perceived her as very difficult and demanding. Obviously I have no idea if it is true. Just saying, PP didn’t make it up, it’s what the public was told via gossip mags.

It is 2026 and you're basing this on People magazine's reporting from 1999. FML.

Do, but that is more likely to be accurate. Now both John and Carolyn are being deified. Journalism was actually much better then.

Seriously? All the Kennedys had to do was have someone place a call blaming Carolyn and People would publish it. Then and now, it's little more than a PR mouthpiece.

It’s hardly blaming her to note that she arrived late. It was widely reported at the time that he made a number of critical errors with the flight, including not postponing to the next day after she arrived late.

Just privileged people making bad decisions all around.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone remember George magazine? It failed pretty miserably. The story goes that his mother looked at the first cover with Cindy Crawford on it and was dubious from the start.

Yes, he was sighed around town. He kind of had a large head. Too bad it took him several tries to pass the bar exam.

Didn’t he only ever pass in Massachusetts? That would be based on writing “Kennedy” on it, not on content.

No, he passed NY on the third try.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t get the romanticizing of this couple all these years later. Yes, he was a Kennedy and they were both good looking people and it’s sad they died young (along with Lauren Bessette) but isn’t it pretty well established that their marriage was rocky at best? She was a rampant cheater (maybe he was too) and a druggie… not seeing this as some epic love story.

I agree, there is nothing noteworthy about them as individuals or as a couple. They were not interesting at all and their lives were frivolous.

They were good looking and stylish, died tragically and young and he was the son of a president. People felt they knew JFK Jr and then could wonder, what if? about him. But in reality, I think they would have divorced and he would have had a series of failures in his endeavors, not amounting to much. But at the same time also protected by the Kennedy myth. He embodied it more than anyone in his generation. (I don't believe in the Kennedy myth myself.) I think the interest comes from their looks and the fact that they died tragically. He would be about 65 now if he had lived.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t get the romanticizing of this couple all these years later. Yes, he was a Kennedy and they were both good looking people and it’s sad they died young (along with Lauren Bessette) but isn’t it pretty well established that their marriage was rocky at best? She was a rampant cheater (maybe he was too) and a druggie… not seeing this as some epic love story.

I agree, there is nothing noteworthy about them as individuals or as a couple. They were not interesting at all and their lives were frivolous.

They were good looking and stylish, died tragically and young and he was the son of a president. People felt they knew JFK Jr and then could wonder, what if? about him. But in reality, I think they would have divorced and he would have had a series of failures in his endeavors, not amounting to much. But at the same time also protected by the Kennedy myth. He embodied it more than anyone in his generation. (I don't believe in the Kennedy myth myself.) I think the interest comes from their looks and the fact that they died tragically. He would be about 65 now if he had lived.

I think their marriage was on the edge but might have endured, if they followed up on moving out of the city where she could have more privacy and have kids. George was going under, so hard to know what his next professional endeavor would have been. Some white shoe law firm or other, probably. Don't think he was smart enough to make it in politics, and Carolyn couldn't handle yet more scrutiny. I agree that they were unlikely to accomplish much beyond being attractive, stylish, and rich.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t get the romanticizing of this couple all these years later. Yes, he was a Kennedy and they were both good looking people and it’s sad they died young (along with Lauren Bessette) but isn’t it pretty well established that their marriage was rocky at best? She was a rampant cheater (maybe he was too) and a druggie… not seeing this as some epic love story.

I agree, there is nothing noteworthy about them as individuals or as a couple. They were not interesting at all and their lives were frivolous.

They were good looking and stylish, died tragically and young and he was the son of a president. People felt they knew JFK Jr and then could wonder, what if? about him. But in reality, I think they would have divorced and he would have had a series of failures in his endeavors, not amounting to much. But at the same time also protected by the Kennedy myth. He embodied it more than anyone in his generation. (I don't believe in the Kennedy myth myself.) I think the interest comes from their looks and the fact that they died tragically. He would be about 65 now if he had lived.

I think their marriage was on the edge but might have endured, if they followed up on moving out of the city where she could have more privacy and have kids. George was going under, so hard to know what his next professional endeavor would have been. Some white shoe law firm or other, probably. Don't think he was smart enough to make it in politics, and Carolyn couldn't handle yet more scrutiny. I agree that they were unlikely to accomplish much beyond being attractive, stylish, and rich.

Like all Kennedy men, he cheated. I think they would have divorced, mainly for this reason and because she couldn't live up to what he wanted in a wife.
He enjoyed attention and being in public, wanted a wife who could handle it. And who was willing to look the other way, like all the Kennedy wives. Don't think she was the type.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My understanding is that she was extremely late to the airstrip because she spent a couple of hours at the nail salon having the paint color redone several times to match her outfit for the rehearsal dinner.
By the time she finally arrived, it was dark already. They should have just skipped the dinner and waited until the next day to fly to the wedding but he thought they could still arrive in time for dinner even though he had not yet achieved the level of flying by instrument panel. There is no horizon in the darkness. They probably had no idea that they were heading into the water.
Both parties were daft. This is why his mother prohibited him from pursuing flying small aircrafts while she was alive. She understood something about his lack of judgement.

I don’t ever think I’ve seen a photo of her even wearing any nail polish (she barely wore recognizable make up). She certainly wouldn’t be getting matchy-matchy manicure with her dress color. Come on. Do you believe everything you read?

Yeah, this story seems suspect. She was a minimalist. I remember hearing it was to match a shade of lavender in her dress or something ?but she almost always wore neutrals. She was the epitome of Calvin Klein's look at the time. Simple lines, body conscious, no obvious makeup and I can't imagine colored nails. But I can see someone making up this story. I think she was high maintenance and so it fit.

[Anonymous]

Still not quite sure why she crumpled under the pressure of being his wife. At first she seemed plenty tough and thrilled to get that brass ring. Many seem to agree he didn't give her the emotional support she needed, but he was under a lot of pressure with the magazine. He knew people were waiting with bated breath for him to fail, must have been hard. Maybe she should have kept working, so that she was busier and had purpose to her day beyond waiting for him to come home from work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Still not quite sure why she crumpled under the pressure of being his wife. At first she seemed plenty tough and thrilled to get that brass ring. Many seem to agree he didn't give her the emotional support she needed, but he was under a lot of pressure with the magazine. He knew people were waiting with bated breath for him to fail, must have been hard. Maybe she should have kept working, so that she was busier and had purpose to her day beyond waiting for him to come home from work.

I think she needed a lot of support in the early years, and, like you said, he wasn't able to give enough. So sad that she started hiding out, basically afraid to go outside. He was not a good husband to her imo. Not a bad person, but focused primarily on himself because he always could.

[Anonymous]

I am watching now and like it a lot.

Daryl Hannah must hate it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t get the romanticizing of this couple all these years later. Yes, he was a Kennedy and they were both good looking people and it’s sad they died young (along with Lauren Bessette) but isn’t it pretty well established that their marriage was rocky at best? She was a rampant cheater (maybe he was too) and a druggie… not seeing this as some epic love story.

I agree, there is nothing noteworthy about them as individuals or as a couple. They were not interesting at all and their lives were frivolous.

They were good looking and stylish, died tragically and young and he was the son of a president. People felt they knew JFK Jr and then could wonder, what if? about him. But in reality, I think they would have divorced and he would have had a series of failures in his endeavors, not amounting to much. But at the same time also protected by the Kennedy myth. He embodied it more than anyone in his generation. (I don't believe in the Kennedy myth myself.) I think the interest comes from their looks and the fact that they died tragically. He would be about 65 now if he had lived.

I think their marriage was on the edge but might have endured, if they followed up on moving out of the city where she could have more privacy and have kids. George was going under, so hard to know what his next professional endeavor would have been. Some white shoe law firm or other, probably. Don't think he was smart enough to make it in politics, and Carolyn couldn't handle yet more scrutiny. I agree that they were unlikely to accomplish much beyond being attractive, stylish, and rich.

Are you paying attention to current politics? The majority of the current administration has an IQ of roughly room temperature. In February. In an igloo.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My understanding is that she was extremely late to the airstrip because she spent a couple of hours at the nail salon having the paint color redone several times to match her outfit for the rehearsal dinner.
By the time she finally arrived, it was dark already. They should have just skipped the dinner and waited until the next day to fly to the wedding but he thought they could still arrive in time for dinner even though he had not yet achieved the level of flying by instrument panel. There is no horizon in the darkness. They probably had no idea that they were heading into the water.
Both parties were daft. This is why his mother prohibited him from pursuing flying small aircrafts while she was alive. She understood something about his lack of judgement.

I don’t ever think I’ve seen a photo of her even wearing any nail polish (she barely wore recognizable make up). She certainly wouldn’t be getting matchy-matchy manicure with her dress color. Come on. Do you believe everything you read?

Yeah, this story seems suspect. She was a minimalist. I remember hearing it was to match a shade of lavender in her dress or something ?but she almost always wore neutrals. She was the epitome of Calvin Klein's look at the time. Simple lines, body conscious, no obvious makeup and I can't imagine colored nails. But I can see someone making up this story. I think she was high maintenance and so it fit.

Obviously no idea if the mail story is true but a lot of those "minimalist" and "neutral" looks are the most effort and highest maintenance of all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t get the romanticizing of this couple all these years later. Yes, he was a Kennedy and they were both good looking people and it’s sad they died young (along with Lauren Bessette) but isn’t it pretty well established that their marriage was rocky at best? She was a rampant cheater (maybe he was too) and a druggie… not seeing this as some epic love story.

I agree, there is nothing noteworthy about them as individuals or as a couple. They were not interesting at all and their lives were frivolous.

They were good looking and stylish, died tragically and young and he was the son of a president. People felt they knew JFK Jr and then could wonder, what if? about him. But in reality, I think they would have divorced and he would have had a series of failures in his endeavors, not amounting to much. But at the same time also protected by the Kennedy myth. He embodied it more than anyone in his generation. (I don't believe in the Kennedy myth myself.) I think the interest comes from their looks and the fact that they died tragically. He would be about 65 now if he had lived.

I think their marriage was on the edge but might have endured, if they followed up on moving out of the city where she could have more privacy and have kids. George was going under, so hard to know what his next professional endeavor would have been. Some white shoe law firm or other, probably. Don't think he was smart enough to make it in politics, and Carolyn couldn't handle yet more scrutiny. I agree that they were unlikely to accomplish much beyond being attractive, stylish, and rich.

Are you paying attention to current politics? The majority of the current administration has an IQ of roughly room temperature. In February. In an igloo.

😂😂😂😂

[Anonymous]

If he were alive now he’d be running for president

Or NY governor and he would have won

Not saying he’s smart or even . Motivated he’s one of the few that could have beaten any maga

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t get the romanticizing of this couple all these years later. Yes, he was a Kennedy and they were both good looking people and it’s sad they died young (along with Lauren Bessette) but isn’t it pretty well established that their marriage was rocky at best? She was a rampant cheater (maybe he was too) and a druggie… not seeing this as some epic love story.

I agree, there is nothing noteworthy about them as individuals or as a couple. They were not interesting at all and their lives were frivolous.

They were good looking and stylish, died tragically and young and he was the son of a president. People felt they knew JFK Jr and then could wonder, what if? about him. But in reality, I think they would have divorced and he would have had a series of failures in his endeavors, not amounting to much. But at the same time also protected by the Kennedy myth. He embodied it more than anyone in his generation. (I don't believe in the Kennedy myth myself.) I think the interest comes from their looks and the fact that they died tragically. He would be about 65 now if he had lived.

I think their marriage was on the edge but might have endured, if they followed up on moving out of the city where she could have more privacy and have kids. George was going under, so hard to know what his next professional endeavor would have been. Some white shoe law firm or other, probably. Don't think he was smart enough to make it in politics, and Carolyn couldn't handle yet more scrutiny. I agree that they were unlikely to accomplish much beyond being attractive, stylish, and rich.

Like all Kennedy men, he cheated. I think they would have divorced, mainly for this reason and because she couldn't live up to what he wanted in a wife.
He enjoyed attention and being in public, wanted a wife who could handle it. And who was willing to look the other way, like all the Kennedy wives. Don't think she was the type.

I think it’s pretty well established that she cheated and had a cocaine problem. He needed a wife who would look the other way but also behave and play the Kennedy wife role. Carolyn was too volatile for this to work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My understanding is that she was extremely late to the airstrip because she spent a couple of hours at the nail salon having the paint color redone several times to match her outfit for the rehearsal dinner.
By the time she finally arrived, it was dark already. They should have just skipped the dinner and waited until the next day to fly to the wedding but he thought they could still arrive in time for dinner even though he had not yet achieved the level of flying by instrument panel. There is no horizon in the darkness. They probably had no idea that they were heading into the water.
Both parties were daft. This is why his mother prohibited him from pursuing flying small aircrafts while she was alive. She understood something about his lack of judgement.

I think any pilot would tell you that it has absolutely nothing to do with her nails. He was the pilot. It’s on him completely. He killed them all with obvious negligence. It would probably be criminal if he had somehow survived.

IIRC the Bessette family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the Kennedys.