TMZ's JFK Pic a Hoax

TMZ photo shows John F. Kennedy on a boat with nude women

(NEWSER) - John F. Kennedy was always rumored to be a playboy—now the world apparently has proof. TMZ has an exclusive photo from the mid-1950s that appears to show JFK sunning himself on a boat deck, surrounded by naked women. Don’t believe the gossip site? Well, numerous photo experts—as well as Kennedy biographers—say the photo looks like the real deal. More»

National Archives release recording of conversations day JFK was killed

(NEWSER) - A heart-wrenching call from Lyndon Johnson placed to Rose Kennedy from Air Force One has finally been released more than 48 years after her son was assassinated. "I wish to God there was something I could do," says Johnson the day John F. Kennedy was killed. "I wanted to tell you that we are grieving with you." Rose responds: "Thank you very much. I know you loved Jack. And he loved you." Johnson's wife adds: "We just want to ... we feel like we've lost ..." "Thank you," says Kennedy. More»

More gossip from 1964 interviews revealed

(NEWSER) - More details—and more barbs —are trickling out from the new book of 47-year-old interviews with Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, which hits shelves Wednesday. From the New York Times :

• On French president Charles DeGaulle: "That egomaniac."
• On future Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi: "A real prune—bitter, kind of pushy, horrible woman."
• JFK’s thoughts on Franklin D. Roosevelt: "Charlatan is an unfair word," but "he did an awful lot for effect."
• On former Democratic presidential nominee Adlai Stevenson: "Violently liberal women in politics" liked him more than JFK because they "were scared of sex," Jackie theorized.

...and other revelations from a new book of interviews

(NEWSER) - Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis was not a fan of Martin Luther King Jr, once describing him as "tricky" and a "phony," after hearing FBI tapes of him with a woman other than his wife in a hotel room. That's just one of the revelations contained in a new book, Jacqueline Kennedy: Historic Conversations on Life With John F. Kennedy, which details, and even includes audio recordings of, a series of interviews Jackie gave shortly after JFK's assassination. The AP got an early copy of the book and its accompanying eight audio CDs, and reveals these tidbits: More»

'Ask not' poetic knight of Camelot helped shape history

(NEWSER) - The man who crafted among the most compelling speeches of political history for President John F. Kennedy has died. Theodore Sorensen, 82, passed away in a Manhattan hospital following a stroke. He was the last poetic knight of Camelot, the youngest top official in the White House who served as a key aide to Kennedy. He worked as special counsel and speechwriter for the president, and played a critical role in ending the Cuban Missile Crisis, reports the New York Times. “You need a mind like Sorensen’s around you that’s clicking, and clicking all the time,” Richard Nixon once said in 1962. More»