‘Cowardice’ Made LBJ Grow War

...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»

(NEWSER) - As the tumultuous 1968 presidential campaign closed, Lyndon Johnson learned of attempts by Richard Nixon's aides to undermine peace efforts in Vietnam, actions he referred to as "treason," The final batch of audio recordings made during LBJ's administration, released yesterday by his presidential library, capture the frustration of his final days in office, reports the Austin American-Statesman. 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»

You'll have to wait for the network special

(NEWSER) - ABC officials are saying that their Jackie O tapes are not nearly as "sordid" as claimed in press reports—but aren't saying what's on them. The Daily Mail has reported that Jackie Kennedy told historian Arthur Schlesinger Jr. in a lengthy interview that she believed Lyndon Johnson was behind the assassination of her husband , that she knew about JFK's affairs, and that she had flings of her own. The "tabloid reports about the content are totally erroneous," said an ABC statement, which added that no details of the tapes will be released until they're featured in a network program next month. More»

Knew of husband's intern flings, had affairs of her own

(NEWSER) - Jackie Kennedy Onassis believed Lyndon B. Johnson was behind JFK's assassination, knew about her husband's affairs with his interns, and had her own fling with actor William Holden. Those are the stunning revelations from an interview she held decades ago, tapes of which are about to be released publicly, the Daily Mail reports. The tapes were made by historian Arthur Schlesinger Jr., who interviewed the former first lady within months of Kennedy's 1963 assassination. She confided to Schlesinger that she believed Johnson and a cabal of billionaire Texas tycoons orchestrated the Dallas assassination with Lee Harvey Oswald, according to the newspaper. Jackie Kennedy reportedly also revealed that she was well aware of her husband's multiple affairs, and talked of finding underwear from a 19-year-old intern working for Kennedy in their bedroom. More»