All language subtitles for S01E01 - Jack (1917-1940)

af Afrikaans
ak Akan
sq Albanian
am Amharic
ar Arabic
hy Armenian
az Azerbaijani
eu Basque
be Belarusian
bem Bemba
bn Bengali
bh Bihari
bs Bosnian
br Breton
bg Bulgarian
km Cambodian
ca Catalan
chr Cherokee
ny Chichewa
zh-CN Chinese (Simplified)
zh-TW Chinese (Traditional)
co Corsican
hr Croatian
cs Czech
da Danish
nl Dutch
en English
eo Esperanto
et Estonian
ee Ewe
fo Faroese
tl Filipino
fi Finnish
fr French
fy Frisian
gaa Ga
gl Galician
ka Georgian
de German
el Greek
gn Guarani
gu Gujarati
ht Haitian Creole
ha Hausa
haw Hawaiian
iw Hebrew
hi Hindi
hu Hungarian
is Icelandic
ig Igbo
id Indonesian
ia Interlingua
ga Irish
it Italian
ja Japanese
jw Javanese
kn Kannada
kk Kazakh
rw Kinyarwanda
rn Kirundi
kg Kongo
ko Korean
kri Krio (Sierra Leone)
ku Kurdish
ckb Kurdish (Soranî)
ky Kyrgyz
lo Laothian
la Latin
lv Latvian
ln Lingala
lt Lithuanian
loz Lozi
lg Luganda
ach Luo
mk Macedonian
mg Malagasy
ms Malay
ml Malayalam
mt Maltese
mi Maori
mr Marathi
mfe Mauritian Creole
mo Moldavian
mn Mongolian
sr-ME Montenegrin
ne Nepali
pcm Nigerian Pidgin
nso Northern Sotho
no Norwegian
nn Norwegian (Nynorsk)
oc Occitan
or Oriya
om Oromo
ps Pashto
fa Persian
pl Polish
pt-BR Portuguese (Brazil)
pt-PT Portuguese (Portugal)
pa Punjabi
qu Quechua
ro Romanian
rm Romansh
nyn Runyakitara
ru Russian
gd Scots Gaelic
sr Serbian
sh Serbo-Croatian
st Sesotho
tn Setswana
crs Seychellois Creole
sn Shona
sd Sindhi
si Sinhalese
sk Slovak
sl Slovenian
so Somali
es Spanish Download
es-419 Spanish (Latin American)
su Sundanese
sw Swahili
sv Swedish
tg Tajik
ta Tamil
tt Tatar
te Telugu
th Thai
ti Tigrinya
to Tonga
lua Tshiluba
tum Tumbuka
tr Turkish
tk Turkmen
tw Twi
ug Uighur
uk Ukrainian
ur Urdu
uz Uzbek
vi Vietnamese
cy Welsh
wo Wolof
xh Xhosa
yi Yiddish
yo Yoruba
zu Zulu
Would you like to inspect the original subtitles? These are the user uploaded subtitles that are being translated: 1 00:00:02,290 --> 00:00:03,556 - He'll lead us to a fruitful America. 2 00:00:03,580 --> 00:00:04,860 From the state of Massachusetts, 3 00:00:04,910 --> 00:00:07,830 John F. Kennedy! 4 00:00:07,910 --> 00:00:10,330 - John F. Kennedy lived a life 5 00:00:10,450 --> 00:00:14,410 that would help define an entire generation. 6 00:00:14,580 --> 00:00:17,080 - Together, we shall save our planet, 7 00:00:17,200 --> 00:00:20,160 or together, we shall perish in its flames. 8 00:00:20,330 --> 00:00:22,000 - What was it about that guy? 9 00:00:22,120 --> 00:00:25,700 - Looks, style, empathy. 10 00:00:25,830 --> 00:00:27,870 - He was incredibly charming. 11 00:00:28,040 --> 00:00:30,250 - Intellectual and progressive. 12 00:00:30,370 --> 00:00:32,200 - He was the future. He was next. 13 00:00:34,200 --> 00:00:36,870 - President for just over 1,000 days, 14 00:00:37,000 --> 00:00:39,580 Kennedy navigated events and crises 15 00:00:39,700 --> 00:00:41,250 that changed the world. 16 00:00:41,370 --> 00:00:43,000 - Kennedy is feeling the pressure 17 00:00:43,080 --> 00:00:44,410 from the Civil Rights activists. 18 00:00:44,540 --> 00:00:47,250 - This was a country on nuclear war footing. 19 00:00:49,330 --> 00:00:50,660 - This could be the last mistake 20 00:00:50,830 --> 00:00:52,056 that anybody makes politically. 21 00:00:54,700 --> 00:00:57,580 - He changed us in the process of his own growth. 22 00:00:57,700 --> 00:01:00,500 - We choose to go to the moon in this decade 23 00:01:00,660 --> 00:01:03,790 and do the other things, not because they are easy 24 00:01:03,910 --> 00:01:07,000 but because they are hard. 25 00:01:07,120 --> 00:01:09,950 - 60 years after his assassination, 26 00:01:10,080 --> 00:01:12,410 we are still fascinated by the triumphs 27 00:01:12,540 --> 00:01:14,580 and flaws of the youngest president 28 00:01:14,700 --> 00:01:17,250 ever elected. 29 00:01:17,370 --> 00:01:20,500 - I ask you to join us in all the tomorrows 30 00:01:20,580 --> 00:01:23,200 yet to come, in building America, 31 00:01:23,370 --> 00:01:26,080 moving America, picking this country 32 00:01:26,200 --> 00:01:28,580 of ours up and sending it into the '60s. 33 00:01:49,700 --> 00:01:52,330 - The story begins on a quiet spring afternoon 34 00:01:52,450 --> 00:01:55,870 in May 1917 in the Boston suburb 35 00:01:56,000 --> 00:01:58,790 of Brookline, Massachusetts. 36 00:01:58,870 --> 00:02:02,410 Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy gave birth to a baby boy 37 00:02:02,540 --> 00:02:07,160 in the master bedroom of the modest Kennedy household. 38 00:02:07,330 --> 00:02:10,660 The future president, John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 39 00:02:10,830 --> 00:02:14,000 known by his friends and family as Jack, 40 00:02:14,080 --> 00:02:17,330 was born on May 29th around 3:00 p.m. 41 00:02:19,410 --> 00:02:23,750 The world in 1917 was shifting. 42 00:02:23,870 --> 00:02:25,370 That year, America entered 43 00:02:25,540 --> 00:02:29,000 the Great War, which had begun in 1914. 44 00:02:29,080 --> 00:02:33,160 The Silent Sentinels protested in favor of women's suffrage 45 00:02:33,330 --> 00:02:35,660 in front of the White House. 46 00:02:35,790 --> 00:02:39,750 The average annual household income was $800, 47 00:02:39,870 --> 00:02:44,330 and the cost of a movie ticket was just seven cents. 48 00:02:44,500 --> 00:02:47,750 With hundreds of thousands of miles of railroad tracks, 49 00:02:47,910 --> 00:02:51,080 America, also the world's largest producer 50 00:02:51,200 --> 00:02:53,950 of coal and iron, was at the center 51 00:02:54,040 --> 00:02:56,700 of a new industrial age. 52 00:02:56,870 --> 00:02:59,160 - Kennedy is born into this time 53 00:02:59,330 --> 00:03:03,040 when the United States is rising as a world power. 54 00:03:03,120 --> 00:03:04,620 - Delivered by the family doctor, 55 00:03:04,750 --> 00:03:08,500 Jack was proclaimed healthy and handsome. 56 00:03:08,620 --> 00:03:11,660 Young Jack's life was happy and carefree 57 00:03:11,750 --> 00:03:16,580 until he contracted scarlet fever at age two. 58 00:03:16,660 --> 00:03:18,950 In a world without antibiotics, 59 00:03:19,120 --> 00:03:21,660 his prognosis was dim. 60 00:03:21,790 --> 00:03:24,660 Jack was sent to the Boston City Hospital, 61 00:03:24,790 --> 00:03:27,040 where his condition was so poor 62 00:03:27,200 --> 00:03:29,700 that he received last rites. 63 00:03:29,870 --> 00:03:32,000 - The last rites are not administered trivially. 64 00:03:32,080 --> 00:03:36,540 That's a mark of a very, very serious near-death experience. 65 00:03:36,700 --> 00:03:39,830 - In an unexpected turn, his health stabilized 66 00:03:39,950 --> 00:03:41,660 and he was released. 67 00:03:41,790 --> 00:03:44,910 This was an early sign of Jack's lifelong 68 00:03:45,040 --> 00:03:46,370 chronic health struggles. 69 00:03:48,830 --> 00:03:50,160 Jack's mother, Rose, 70 00:03:50,290 --> 00:03:52,660 was effectively a single parent. 71 00:03:52,790 --> 00:03:55,160 Though she tolerated her husband Joe's affairs 72 00:03:55,330 --> 00:03:57,040 with other women, 73 00:03:57,160 --> 00:03:59,000 his numerous business ventures, 74 00:03:59,160 --> 00:04:01,500 including banking, ship manufacturing 75 00:04:01,620 --> 00:04:03,330 during the First World War, 76 00:04:03,450 --> 00:04:05,500 and stock brokering, 77 00:04:05,620 --> 00:04:08,250 added to his frequent absences. 78 00:04:08,370 --> 00:04:12,000 - He was, by this time, 79 00:04:12,120 --> 00:04:15,660 well on his way to becoming 80 00:04:15,870 --> 00:04:18,410 an important businessman, and it hadn't been easy. 81 00:04:18,540 --> 00:04:22,410 From the very beginning, Joe and Rose 82 00:04:22,540 --> 00:04:27,160 reached an agreement that Rose was gonna raise the kids 83 00:04:27,290 --> 00:04:28,830 when they were little. 84 00:04:28,910 --> 00:04:32,790 As the boys got bigger, Joe would step in. 85 00:04:32,870 --> 00:04:35,330 But Joe Kennedy wasn't around much, 86 00:04:35,500 --> 00:04:37,580 with one exception. 87 00:04:37,700 --> 00:04:41,540 Jack developed scarlet fever at the age of two, 88 00:04:41,660 --> 00:04:45,410 and before work and after work, 89 00:04:45,540 --> 00:04:49,160 Joe goes to the hospital. 90 00:04:49,290 --> 00:04:52,160 He sits at the bedside. 91 00:04:52,290 --> 00:04:54,450 He watches over his son. 92 00:04:54,580 --> 00:04:58,660 He confers with the doctors and the nurses. 93 00:04:58,790 --> 00:05:03,330 He becomes the one and only parent. 94 00:05:03,410 --> 00:05:06,290 Jack Kennedy doesn't see his mother 95 00:05:06,370 --> 00:05:08,330 at a critical moment in his upbringing 96 00:05:08,500 --> 00:05:11,830 for months and months. 97 00:05:14,620 --> 00:05:18,080 - When he was around, Joe showered attention, 98 00:05:18,200 --> 00:05:21,000 especially on the boys. 99 00:05:21,120 --> 00:05:25,450 Rose was cold, self-absorbed. 100 00:05:25,540 --> 00:05:29,580 There was something particular about the coldness 101 00:05:29,700 --> 00:05:34,450 from Rose that you can't. Really explain away. 102 00:05:34,540 --> 00:05:36,870 - Rose, like Joe, often went away 103 00:05:37,000 --> 00:05:40,290 for large stretches of time when the children were young. 104 00:05:40,370 --> 00:05:43,660 A young Jack was said to have remarked, 105 00:05:43,830 --> 00:05:45,950 "Gee, you're a great mother to go away and leave 106 00:05:46,080 --> 00:05:47,540 your children all alone." 107 00:05:47,700 --> 00:05:51,200 He told a friend while he was an adult, 108 00:05:51,330 --> 00:05:55,950 "My mother never hugged me, never, never." 109 00:05:58,120 --> 00:06:01,120 - Instead of pitying himself, he found something else 110 00:06:01,290 --> 00:06:03,250 to occupy his mind. 111 00:06:06,450 --> 00:06:09,200 From Sinbad the Sailor to Peter Pan, 112 00:06:09,330 --> 00:06:12,450 Jack was enthralled by reading. 113 00:06:12,540 --> 00:06:15,040 His literary interests did not lay solely 114 00:06:15,160 --> 00:06:16,620 in swashbuckling adventure. 115 00:06:16,700 --> 00:06:19,540 He devoured weighty historical tomes 116 00:06:19,660 --> 00:06:23,910 like "Lays of Ancient Rome," a popular collection of poems 117 00:06:24,040 --> 00:06:26,330 written in the 1840s, 118 00:06:26,500 --> 00:06:28,250 and "The Pilgrim's Progress," 119 00:06:28,370 --> 00:06:31,660 a work of theological fiction by John Bunyan. 120 00:06:31,790 --> 00:06:35,500 - There was something special about Jack. 121 00:06:35,620 --> 00:06:39,500 He taught himself. 122 00:06:44,410 --> 00:06:46,580 - When Jack was 10, his father relocated 123 00:06:46,700 --> 00:06:49,080 the family to New York. 124 00:06:49,250 --> 00:06:51,370 A formidable business opportunist 125 00:06:51,540 --> 00:06:53,500 and an investor in the stock market, 126 00:06:53,580 --> 00:06:57,580 Joe Sr. had grown his wealth by applying his skills 127 00:06:57,700 --> 00:07:02,080 to various business ventures, including the film industry. 128 00:07:02,200 --> 00:07:04,500 - He was spending most of his time now in New York. 129 00:07:04,700 --> 00:07:07,910 He was a film producer. 130 00:07:08,040 --> 00:07:10,000 He was a film executive. 131 00:07:10,040 --> 00:07:13,000 And the business side of the movie business 132 00:07:13,080 --> 00:07:15,200 was in New York. 133 00:07:15,370 --> 00:07:18,290 The Bronxville house, 134 00:07:18,370 --> 00:07:21,750 where Jack really grows up, is... 135 00:07:21,870 --> 00:07:23,660 you know, it was a mansion 136 00:07:23,830 --> 00:07:28,750 with a huge lawn, big driveway, 137 00:07:28,870 --> 00:07:32,540 lots of land for the kids to play. 138 00:07:32,620 --> 00:07:35,370 - The family began spending their summer 139 00:07:35,540 --> 00:07:37,750 and early autumn months at the beachside village 140 00:07:37,870 --> 00:07:40,830 of Hyannis Port, part of the Cape Cod area 141 00:07:41,040 --> 00:07:43,370 in Massachusetts. 142 00:07:43,540 --> 00:07:45,290 After renting a summer residence 143 00:07:45,370 --> 00:07:48,160 at 50 Marchant Avenue for several years, 144 00:07:48,250 --> 00:07:51,700 Joe Sr. purchased the home. 145 00:07:51,830 --> 00:07:55,330 - The family spends more time together 146 00:07:55,410 --> 00:07:58,700 in Hyannis Port than anywhere else. 147 00:07:58,870 --> 00:08:02,750 What binds them together is not their home 148 00:08:02,870 --> 00:08:05,790 in Bronxville but Hyannis Port. 149 00:08:05,910 --> 00:08:09,160 - Jack was surrounded by eight siblings... 150 00:08:09,330 --> 00:08:11,660 Joe Jr., Rosemary, 151 00:08:11,790 --> 00:08:15,000 Kathleen, Eunice, Patricia, 152 00:08:15,160 --> 00:08:18,160 Robert, Jean, and Ted. 153 00:08:18,250 --> 00:08:20,750 Though they were raised in considerable wealth, 154 00:08:20,910 --> 00:08:22,660 Joe and Rose taught their children 155 00:08:22,790 --> 00:08:25,750 about the value of money, the importance 156 00:08:25,910 --> 00:08:29,250 of a strong work ethic, and the need to stay informed 157 00:08:29,370 --> 00:08:31,080 about world affairs, 158 00:08:31,200 --> 00:08:33,870 which often led to heated political discussions 159 00:08:34,040 --> 00:08:36,370 at the dinner table. 160 00:08:36,540 --> 00:08:40,200 - Joe and Rose led conversations 161 00:08:40,330 --> 00:08:43,290 about current events and global events 162 00:08:43,410 --> 00:08:46,660 for all nine of the siblings over dinner. 163 00:08:46,750 --> 00:08:51,000 And Joe was like a quiz master. 164 00:08:52,750 --> 00:08:55,660 The parents seeded the children, 165 00:08:55,790 --> 00:08:58,620 particularly the boys, with this sense 166 00:08:58,750 --> 00:09:03,200 of history, current events, global events. 167 00:09:03,330 --> 00:09:05,500 And from that, the boys 168 00:09:05,620 --> 00:09:08,830 did pursue it on their own. 169 00:09:08,950 --> 00:09:11,080 - Jack lived his early life in the shadow 170 00:09:11,200 --> 00:09:12,910 of his older brother, Joe Jr., 171 00:09:13,040 --> 00:09:15,500 who was the promising Kennedy child, 172 00:09:15,700 --> 00:09:18,830 being primed for a political future. 173 00:09:19,000 --> 00:09:21,830 Joe Jr. was successful in school, 174 00:09:21,910 --> 00:09:24,830 but Jack's grades were comparatively poor. 175 00:09:24,950 --> 00:09:28,500 - Jack was a smart aleck as a kid. 176 00:09:28,660 --> 00:09:30,870 He had friends. 177 00:09:31,040 --> 00:09:34,330 Every smart aleck, every jokester has friends. 178 00:09:34,450 --> 00:09:39,200 But he didn't try hard the way Joe did. 179 00:09:39,330 --> 00:09:42,120 Joe was the model kid. 180 00:09:42,250 --> 00:09:45,790 Joe Kennedy put his faith in the future 181 00:09:45,910 --> 00:09:49,790 of the Kennedy dynasty, in his oldest son, Joe Jr. 182 00:09:49,870 --> 00:09:51,910 - Joe Sr. Seriously believed 183 00:09:52,040 --> 00:09:55,080 he would become the first Irish Catholic president 184 00:09:55,200 --> 00:09:56,620 of the United States. 185 00:09:56,700 --> 00:09:58,500 Jack was an afterthought. 186 00:10:01,910 --> 00:10:05,830 - Coming up on future episodes of "Kennedy"... 187 00:10:05,910 --> 00:10:10,160 - John Fitzgerald Kennedy is a unique character 188 00:10:10,290 --> 00:10:13,160 in U.S. and world history. 189 00:10:13,370 --> 00:10:14,620 - He had risked his life. 190 00:10:14,700 --> 00:10:16,500 He'd climb one rung of the ladder, 191 00:10:16,660 --> 00:10:18,380 and then he'd start looking to the next one. 192 00:10:18,500 --> 00:10:21,580 But he would have given up all of his political success 193 00:10:21,700 --> 00:10:23,450 to be pain-free. 194 00:10:23,540 --> 00:10:26,160 - There was a chance that he would die. 195 00:10:26,290 --> 00:10:27,950 Was he going to pity himself, 196 00:10:28,040 --> 00:10:31,120 or was he going to overcome it? 197 00:10:32,290 --> 00:10:33,620 - And we stand today 198 00:10:33,790 --> 00:10:35,370 on the edge of a new frontier. 199 00:10:35,540 --> 00:10:37,160 - When he walked into the Oval Office, 200 00:10:37,290 --> 00:10:39,080 he had a lot to learn. 201 00:10:39,200 --> 00:10:42,000 - You have Kennedy trying to manage the Cold War, 202 00:10:42,160 --> 00:10:44,410 but also adhere to the real dilemma 203 00:10:44,580 --> 00:10:45,900 that African Americans are facing. 204 00:10:46,000 --> 00:10:47,790 - He guided the country through 205 00:10:47,870 --> 00:10:51,290 the most dangerous period of its existence. 206 00:10:51,410 --> 00:10:55,660 - The idea we could get into a nuclear war was very real. 207 00:10:55,750 --> 00:10:57,790 That's where Kennedy is the leader. 208 00:10:58,000 --> 00:11:00,330 - And so, my fellow Americans, 209 00:11:00,410 --> 00:11:03,830 ask not what your country can do for you, 210 00:11:03,950 --> 00:11:06,500 ask what you can do for your country. 211 00:11:13,120 --> 00:11:15,410 - Jack's playful personality and rebellious energy 212 00:11:15,540 --> 00:11:17,120 was at odds with his solemn 213 00:11:17,200 --> 00:11:19,910 and polished older brother, Joe Jr., 214 00:11:20,040 --> 00:11:23,830 molded by Joe Sr. In his own image. 215 00:11:23,910 --> 00:11:26,080 Though Jack looked up to his older brother, 216 00:11:26,200 --> 00:11:29,500 the two were competitive, engaging in heated fights 217 00:11:29,660 --> 00:11:32,370 on the living room floor. 218 00:11:32,540 --> 00:11:35,660 - Jack adored his older brother, 219 00:11:35,790 --> 00:11:38,950 Joe, followed him around. 220 00:11:39,040 --> 00:11:41,200 The two of them played together all the time, 221 00:11:41,370 --> 00:11:43,830 though Joe was a bully. 222 00:11:44,000 --> 00:11:47,330 Jack brought a lot of 223 00:11:47,450 --> 00:11:50,330 the physical abuse on himself. 224 00:11:50,450 --> 00:11:53,290 He couldn't stop teasing. 225 00:11:53,410 --> 00:11:56,870 He started fights that he knew he was gonna lose. 226 00:11:57,000 --> 00:12:00,290 - Underweight and frail, Jack was almost always pinned 227 00:12:00,410 --> 00:12:04,000 and defeated in these brotherly brawls, 228 00:12:04,080 --> 00:12:08,000 but he always got back up and tried again. 229 00:12:08,160 --> 00:12:10,950 In one of these competitive episodes, 230 00:12:11,040 --> 00:12:13,790 Joe Jr. suggested that he and Jack race their bicycles 231 00:12:13,910 --> 00:12:15,790 around Brookline. 232 00:12:15,870 --> 00:12:18,500 The frenzied race landed Jack in the hospital 233 00:12:18,620 --> 00:12:20,660 with 28 stitches. 234 00:12:23,250 --> 00:12:25,500 - John Kennedy becomes a teenager, 235 00:12:25,580 --> 00:12:27,160 more or less, at the onset 236 00:12:27,250 --> 00:12:29,290 of the Great Depression in the early 1930s. 237 00:12:29,370 --> 00:12:32,330 It was just an unimaginable calamity. 238 00:12:32,410 --> 00:12:36,620 That kind of suffering and trial by unemployment 239 00:12:36,700 --> 00:12:39,250 didn't touch the Kennedy family at all. 240 00:12:39,370 --> 00:12:40,950 - They were completely shielded 241 00:12:41,040 --> 00:12:42,580 from the Great Depression. 242 00:12:42,750 --> 00:12:44,750 They knew that it was happening. 243 00:12:44,870 --> 00:12:47,160 But maybe Joe Kennedy's real genius 244 00:12:47,330 --> 00:12:51,330 was exposing his sons to the world 245 00:12:51,500 --> 00:12:54,040 so that they would understand that the world was larger 246 00:12:54,160 --> 00:12:57,160 than the closeted life they all lived. 247 00:13:03,200 --> 00:13:05,700 - In September 1930, Jack began 248 00:13:05,870 --> 00:13:08,500 his eighth-grade year at the Canterbury School 249 00:13:08,580 --> 00:13:11,000 in New Milford, Connecticut. 250 00:13:11,160 --> 00:13:15,250 Jack loved sports, playing both baseball and football 251 00:13:15,370 --> 00:13:17,580 in spite of his abnormally low weight 252 00:13:17,700 --> 00:13:19,790 and constant health issues. 253 00:13:19,910 --> 00:13:21,830 Jack often wrote to his parents 254 00:13:21,950 --> 00:13:23,910 about everyday life at school, 255 00:13:24,040 --> 00:13:26,330 including the difficulty of his studies, 256 00:13:26,450 --> 00:13:28,330 his frustration with the school's 257 00:13:28,540 --> 00:13:31,830 strict religious practices, and the freezing weather. 258 00:13:35,370 --> 00:13:37,540 In April 1931, 259 00:13:37,660 --> 00:13:39,660 when he was almost 14 years old, 260 00:13:39,790 --> 00:13:41,910 Jack suffered abdominal pains 261 00:13:42,040 --> 00:13:44,660 that resulted in an appendectomy... 262 00:13:44,750 --> 00:13:47,500 the first of many surgeries in his life. 263 00:13:49,450 --> 00:13:52,330 After this operation, he withdrew from Canterbury 264 00:13:52,450 --> 00:13:55,330 and returned home to Hyannis Port. 265 00:13:57,000 --> 00:13:58,830 Having had the summer to recover, 266 00:13:59,000 --> 00:14:01,160 Jack transferred to the Choate School 267 00:14:01,290 --> 00:14:05,120 in September 1931, a private boarding school 268 00:14:05,250 --> 00:14:07,080 in Wallingford, Connecticut. 269 00:14:07,160 --> 00:14:09,660 Joe Jr. was already a student there 270 00:14:09,790 --> 00:14:11,790 and showed Jack the ropes. 271 00:14:15,160 --> 00:14:18,160 - Its hallmark, from George St. John, 272 00:14:18,290 --> 00:14:21,660 the headmaster, was to make sure that every boy 273 00:14:21,750 --> 00:14:24,250 got attention 274 00:14:24,370 --> 00:14:27,330 and got the kind of education that he needed. 275 00:14:27,450 --> 00:14:30,250 As a new third-former, as they were known, 276 00:14:30,370 --> 00:14:33,370 the ninth-graders, he was nervous. 277 00:14:33,450 --> 00:14:35,250 Fortunately, he did have an older brother 278 00:14:35,370 --> 00:14:37,910 to sort of steer him and give him the ropes. 279 00:14:38,040 --> 00:14:40,080 But he was pretty much on his own, 280 00:14:40,200 --> 00:14:42,750 but I think that was part of the family tradition, too... 281 00:14:42,870 --> 00:14:45,000 to make your own way. 282 00:14:45,120 --> 00:14:48,540 Put into a dormitory... so that's your first network. 283 00:14:48,660 --> 00:14:53,200 Then, you're in classes... that's another network. 284 00:14:53,370 --> 00:14:56,000 Sports... that's another network. 285 00:14:56,080 --> 00:14:59,000 You sort of find your way with the activities 286 00:14:59,120 --> 00:15:00,620 that you're involved in. 287 00:15:03,200 --> 00:15:05,040 - Jack did well in classes he enjoyed, 288 00:15:05,200 --> 00:15:07,160 like math and politics, 289 00:15:07,290 --> 00:15:09,330 but performed poorly in subjects 290 00:15:09,450 --> 00:15:12,410 that didn't interest him, such as Latin. 291 00:15:12,500 --> 00:15:15,790 Where he truly excelled was American history, 292 00:15:15,910 --> 00:15:19,080 a subject he found fascinating. 293 00:15:19,200 --> 00:15:22,000 - Kennedy loved history. 294 00:15:22,120 --> 00:15:23,790 He knew it very well, 295 00:15:23,870 --> 00:15:27,160 and I think it gave him 296 00:15:27,330 --> 00:15:30,370 this grasp of how things work. 297 00:15:32,370 --> 00:15:35,250 His knowledge of history informed him 298 00:15:35,370 --> 00:15:38,330 that being a great orator was important. 299 00:15:38,500 --> 00:15:40,160 How does power work? 300 00:15:40,290 --> 00:15:43,160 How, historically, have our alliances worked? 301 00:15:45,040 --> 00:15:47,450 - Despite his untroubled, relaxed persona, 302 00:15:47,540 --> 00:15:49,580 Jack's sharp intelligence was noted 303 00:15:49,700 --> 00:15:51,160 by those around him, 304 00:15:51,290 --> 00:15:53,500 including the Choate headmaster 305 00:15:53,620 --> 00:15:55,450 George St. John. 306 00:15:55,540 --> 00:15:59,290 - I think he saw great promise in John Kennedy 307 00:15:59,410 --> 00:16:02,830 but was a little frustrated by his occasional 308 00:16:02,950 --> 00:16:05,500 nonconformist activity. 309 00:16:05,620 --> 00:16:07,910 That just angered him 310 00:16:08,040 --> 00:16:10,000 because he saw such great promise in him. 311 00:16:10,120 --> 00:16:12,250 He knew he was a smart boy, 312 00:16:12,370 --> 00:16:15,910 and he just wanted something better out of him. 313 00:16:19,040 --> 00:16:20,910 - While at Choate, Jack met someone 314 00:16:21,040 --> 00:16:23,370 who would become his lifelong friend, 315 00:16:23,500 --> 00:16:26,870 a classmate named Lem Billings. 316 00:16:26,950 --> 00:16:29,830 - One of Jack Kennedy's greatest talents 317 00:16:29,950 --> 00:16:32,500 was making friends and keeping them... 318 00:16:32,660 --> 00:16:33,750 lifelong friends. 319 00:16:33,870 --> 00:16:36,200 Lem Billings was one. 320 00:16:36,370 --> 00:16:38,830 - They were both working on the school yearbook. 321 00:16:38,910 --> 00:16:41,540 That's, in fact, how they met. 322 00:16:41,700 --> 00:16:45,250 But sometimes they disagreed with each other. 323 00:16:45,330 --> 00:16:48,000 Sometimes they would fight against each other, 324 00:16:48,120 --> 00:16:52,160 but there's also a lot of affection as well. 325 00:16:52,330 --> 00:16:55,410 Early on, JFK is somewhat mystified 326 00:16:55,540 --> 00:16:58,330 by Lem's lack of interest in girls, 327 00:16:58,450 --> 00:17:01,160 which, even then, as a young teenager, 328 00:17:01,290 --> 00:17:04,330 JFK was very active and interested in. 329 00:17:10,200 --> 00:17:12,950 - While Jack excelled socially at Choate, 330 00:17:13,080 --> 00:17:17,330 there was another part of him most did not see. 331 00:17:17,450 --> 00:17:19,660 - You see all these contrasts. 332 00:17:19,790 --> 00:17:21,450 So what does he present as? 333 00:17:21,540 --> 00:17:26,080 Handsome, born to an extremely wealthy family, 334 00:17:26,200 --> 00:17:29,410 rich playboy. But what do we really know? 335 00:17:29,540 --> 00:17:32,500 What we really know is a lot of pain. 336 00:17:32,660 --> 00:17:36,330 - One thing after another that sent him to the infirmary 337 00:17:36,450 --> 00:17:39,160 or even more specialty care, when they couldn't 338 00:17:39,290 --> 00:17:42,120 figure out what was really going on. 339 00:17:42,250 --> 00:17:46,750 - He's having fatigue, these diffuse aches and pains. 340 00:17:46,870 --> 00:17:50,580 He developed colitis, so he could not gain weight. 341 00:17:52,620 --> 00:17:55,250 - In February 1934, Jack's health 342 00:17:55,370 --> 00:17:57,370 deteriorated rapidly. 343 00:17:57,540 --> 00:17:59,910 He was sent to Rochester, Minnesota 344 00:18:00,040 --> 00:18:02,580 for medical tests at the Mayo Clinic. 345 00:18:03,080 --> 00:18:05,750 Joe Sr. came to visit his ailing son. 346 00:18:05,910 --> 00:18:08,290 Rose didn't visit once. 347 00:18:10,450 --> 00:18:12,370 He was at death's door. 348 00:18:18,160 --> 00:18:20,370 In early 1934, undergoing medical tests 349 00:18:20,540 --> 00:18:23,660 at the Mayo Clinic, 16-year-old Jack 350 00:18:23,830 --> 00:18:26,200 was plagued by constant pain, 351 00:18:26,330 --> 00:18:29,000 surrounded by strangers, and dealing with 352 00:18:29,120 --> 00:18:32,080 one medical mystery after another. 353 00:18:32,200 --> 00:18:35,000 To pass the time, he wrote rambling letters 354 00:18:35,120 --> 00:18:39,000 full of jokes, often sexual in nature. 355 00:18:39,290 --> 00:18:41,000 In letters written to Lem Billings 356 00:18:41,160 --> 00:18:42,830 during his time at the hospital, 357 00:18:43,040 --> 00:18:47,200 Jack's buoyant personality showed no signs of waning. 358 00:18:47,330 --> 00:18:49,330 - He's making jokes, and they're jokes 359 00:18:49,450 --> 00:18:51,160 about his imminent death, 360 00:18:51,330 --> 00:18:53,370 and he's saying, "Yeah, they were here today. 361 00:18:53,500 --> 00:18:56,250 "I looked at the chart when they left the room, 362 00:18:56,370 --> 00:18:59,160 and I think they're measuring me from my coffin." 363 00:18:59,200 --> 00:19:01,830 Looking at some of the numbers for his blood levels 364 00:19:02,000 --> 00:19:05,450 and saying, "Yeah, you know, if I get any lower, I'm out." 365 00:19:05,540 --> 00:19:07,540 Kind of making light of the whole thing. 366 00:19:07,700 --> 00:19:12,500 That was, I think, invaluable to what he became, 367 00:19:12,580 --> 00:19:15,540 which was someone who understood pain. 368 00:19:15,700 --> 00:19:17,330 - It was just one of those things 369 00:19:17,500 --> 00:19:19,700 where he had a choice to make. 370 00:19:19,870 --> 00:19:23,910 Was he going to pity himself, or was he going to 371 00:19:24,040 --> 00:19:27,080 deal with this and overcome it? 372 00:19:27,200 --> 00:19:28,450 - People who experience 373 00:19:28,580 --> 00:19:30,160 that kind of pain and sickness, 374 00:19:30,250 --> 00:19:32,870 they understand life is pain, 375 00:19:33,000 --> 00:19:34,620 you know? 376 00:19:34,750 --> 00:19:36,636 There's joy, too, but there's also just a lot of pain. 377 00:19:36,660 --> 00:19:40,700 His humor was one way of dealing with it. 378 00:19:40,830 --> 00:19:43,750 - After months in and out of different hospitals, 379 00:19:43,870 --> 00:19:47,160 Jack was finally stable enough to return home 380 00:19:47,250 --> 00:19:50,160 in the summer of 1934 with orders 381 00:19:50,330 --> 00:19:53,080 from his doctors to follow a strict diet 382 00:19:53,200 --> 00:19:54,660 and reduce stress. 383 00:19:56,950 --> 00:19:59,410 - Lem was so concerned about him 384 00:19:59,540 --> 00:20:03,040 and helped take care of him when he was ill. 385 00:20:03,200 --> 00:20:05,450 - Jack and Lem were especially tight-knit, 386 00:20:05,540 --> 00:20:08,910 following each other around at Choate and beyond. 387 00:20:09,080 --> 00:20:11,540 So close, in fact, the teens decided 388 00:20:11,700 --> 00:20:16,000 to lose their virginity at the same Harlem brothel. 389 00:20:16,120 --> 00:20:18,200 - They went to prostitutes, 390 00:20:18,330 --> 00:20:20,450 although it's not clear that Lem actually 391 00:20:20,540 --> 00:20:22,160 ever did anything with a prostitute. 392 00:20:22,290 --> 00:20:24,040 Nobody really knows. 393 00:20:24,120 --> 00:20:27,250 After a while, of course, JFK being as smart as he was, 394 00:20:27,370 --> 00:20:30,000 he realized that Lem didn't really have 395 00:20:30,160 --> 00:20:32,000 any interest in women. 396 00:20:32,120 --> 00:20:34,160 He had an interest in Jack. 397 00:20:34,290 --> 00:20:36,750 - Lem felt more than friendship 398 00:20:36,870 --> 00:20:38,370 for his companion. 399 00:20:38,500 --> 00:20:40,660 A Choate tradition was to use toilet paper 400 00:20:40,830 --> 00:20:42,870 for notes, because they could easily 401 00:20:43,000 --> 00:20:45,120 be flushed and destroyed. 402 00:20:45,290 --> 00:20:48,500 - Boys who wanted to engage in sexual behavior 403 00:20:48,540 --> 00:20:51,500 would hint as such on toilet paper. 404 00:20:51,620 --> 00:20:54,700 - Lem sent such a note to Jack, 405 00:20:54,870 --> 00:20:58,830 expressing his affection for the charismatic young man. 406 00:20:58,950 --> 00:21:02,450 Jack politely rebuffed Lem's romantic overture, 407 00:21:02,580 --> 00:21:05,000 but they would remain friends and confidants 408 00:21:05,120 --> 00:21:07,080 for the rest of Jack's life. 409 00:21:07,200 --> 00:21:11,290 He had no interest in publicly exposing Lem's sexuality, 410 00:21:11,410 --> 00:21:13,330 something that would subject his friend 411 00:21:13,450 --> 00:21:16,700 to ridicule and harassment. 412 00:21:16,870 --> 00:21:19,660 His relationship with Lem was a testament 413 00:21:19,750 --> 00:21:22,080 to Jack's character in a time 414 00:21:22,200 --> 00:21:24,660 when homosexuality was far from accepted 415 00:21:24,830 --> 00:21:27,200 in everyday society. 416 00:21:27,370 --> 00:21:30,700 - Jack took great risks in keeping this friendship 417 00:21:30,870 --> 00:21:35,660 with Lem Billings, which shows the sense of loyalty 418 00:21:35,830 --> 00:21:37,160 that he had. 419 00:21:42,540 --> 00:21:45,080 - After being called "troublemaking muckers" 420 00:21:45,200 --> 00:21:48,000 by Choate headmaster George St. John, 421 00:21:48,080 --> 00:21:50,290 Jack, Lem, and two other friends 422 00:21:50,370 --> 00:21:54,000 established the Choate Muckers Club. 423 00:21:54,160 --> 00:21:58,080 Together, they began sneaking into town for milkshakes, 424 00:21:58,200 --> 00:22:00,790 going to dances, and arranging pranks 425 00:22:00,870 --> 00:22:02,700 around campus. 426 00:22:02,790 --> 00:22:06,330 - Then they came up with this wild and crazy idea 427 00:22:06,410 --> 00:22:09,370 that they were gonna disrupt a major dance... 428 00:22:09,500 --> 00:22:11,330 it's called Festivities... 429 00:22:11,410 --> 00:22:14,500 by depositing a load of manure 430 00:22:14,620 --> 00:22:16,700 at the entrance to the dance. 431 00:22:16,830 --> 00:22:19,870 You can imagine the boys up in their rooms, 432 00:22:20,040 --> 00:22:21,760 just hooting and hollering about this thing. 433 00:22:21,790 --> 00:22:24,580 Wouldn't it be a great thing to do? 434 00:22:24,700 --> 00:22:27,370 They never did it. They never did it. 435 00:22:27,540 --> 00:22:30,040 But it was fun to think about. 436 00:22:30,160 --> 00:22:32,750 It was a testimony, again, to Jack's ability 437 00:22:32,870 --> 00:22:35,830 to make friends, even if in that particular case, 438 00:22:35,950 --> 00:22:38,950 it was because of involvement in potential hijinks. 439 00:22:42,830 --> 00:22:45,700 - At last, his time at Choate came to an end. 440 00:22:45,830 --> 00:22:48,830 Jack was now 18 and filled 441 00:22:48,950 --> 00:22:52,500 with a new sense of independence. 442 00:22:52,620 --> 00:22:54,540 - I think he was certainly ready to leave, 443 00:22:54,660 --> 00:22:56,580 once graduation came around. 444 00:22:58,540 --> 00:23:01,040 - Jack found his second home on the water 445 00:23:01,160 --> 00:23:05,620 when back in Hyannis Port during 1935 and '36. 446 00:23:05,790 --> 00:23:08,500 Sailing from Edgartown to Martha's Vineyard, 447 00:23:08,620 --> 00:23:12,410 even winning the 1936 Atlantic Coast Championship, 448 00:23:12,540 --> 00:23:16,000 his love of the ocean was a Kennedy hallmark. 449 00:23:16,120 --> 00:23:18,370 - I think you can't understand the Kennedys 450 00:23:18,500 --> 00:23:21,330 without understanding Hyannis Port. 451 00:23:21,450 --> 00:23:24,660 It's this big, old, rambling house. 452 00:23:24,750 --> 00:23:28,540 There's nine children spilling out of the rooms. 453 00:23:28,660 --> 00:23:30,410 They're all sailing. 454 00:23:30,540 --> 00:23:32,870 They're all in competition with each other. 455 00:23:33,040 --> 00:23:34,370 There's a tennis court. 456 00:23:34,540 --> 00:23:36,120 If they're not playing tennis, 457 00:23:36,250 --> 00:23:37,500 they're playing touch football. 458 00:23:37,540 --> 00:23:39,370 If they're not doing that, 459 00:23:39,500 --> 00:23:41,700 they've got a pickup baseball game going. 460 00:23:41,870 --> 00:23:44,410 And they never lacked for companionship, 461 00:23:44,540 --> 00:23:46,290 because they had each other. 462 00:23:46,370 --> 00:23:49,160 They're each other's best friends. 463 00:23:49,330 --> 00:23:51,910 - Kennedy felt at one with the sea. 464 00:23:52,040 --> 00:23:54,660 He was able to get clearer mind... 465 00:23:54,790 --> 00:23:56,410 they call it "blue mind"... 466 00:23:56,540 --> 00:23:58,290 where everything comes clear to you 467 00:23:58,410 --> 00:24:00,870 when you're in a maritime environment. 468 00:24:00,950 --> 00:24:03,910 And that's why so often, he would be at Cape Cod 469 00:24:04,040 --> 00:24:06,790 when he would make his big decisions in his life. 470 00:24:09,200 --> 00:24:11,700 - In the decades to come, the family compound 471 00:24:11,870 --> 00:24:14,540 would serve as a source of stability and calm 472 00:24:14,620 --> 00:24:17,250 in Jack's ever-changing world. 473 00:24:33,620 --> 00:24:36,160 - The principal of the Choate school 474 00:24:36,410 --> 00:24:38,290 wrote to the Harvard deans... 475 00:24:38,370 --> 00:24:39,830 I assume, the admissions office... 476 00:24:39,950 --> 00:24:42,950 and says, "Jack has rather superior 477 00:24:43,040 --> 00:24:45,200 "mental ability without the deep interest 478 00:24:45,330 --> 00:24:47,830 "in his studies or the mature viewpoint 479 00:24:47,910 --> 00:24:50,500 "that demands of him his best effort all the time. 480 00:24:50,620 --> 00:24:53,830 "He can be relied upon to do enough to pass. 481 00:24:53,950 --> 00:24:57,120 "We have been and are working our hardest to develop 482 00:24:57,250 --> 00:24:58,830 "Jack's own self-interest. 483 00:24:58,950 --> 00:25:01,660 "Great enough in social life, to the point 484 00:25:01,790 --> 00:25:03,620 "that will assure him a record in college 485 00:25:03,750 --> 00:25:06,000 "more worthy of his natural gifts 486 00:25:06,160 --> 00:25:09,120 of intelligence, likableness, and popularity." 487 00:25:14,160 --> 00:25:17,580 - Jack entered Harvard in fall of 1936. 488 00:25:17,750 --> 00:25:20,330 - It is said that his grades weren't very good 489 00:25:20,450 --> 00:25:22,450 when he was a student at Harvard. 490 00:25:22,580 --> 00:25:24,160 - At Harvard in his first year, 491 00:25:24,330 --> 00:25:26,160 he's interested in one thing... 492 00:25:26,290 --> 00:25:28,160 conquering as many women as he can. 493 00:25:28,290 --> 00:25:29,370 And he's pretty good at it. 494 00:25:31,540 --> 00:25:33,450 - Though the 19-year-old Jack 495 00:25:33,580 --> 00:25:36,160 lost the election for freshman class president, 496 00:25:36,370 --> 00:25:38,500 he was active socially. 497 00:25:38,660 --> 00:25:40,660 He took on the task of organizing 498 00:25:40,830 --> 00:25:43,500 the freshman smoker, a large party 499 00:25:43,580 --> 00:25:45,830 held at the end of the year. 500 00:25:45,910 --> 00:25:48,250 Jack supplied first-rate tobacco 501 00:25:48,330 --> 00:25:51,790 and arranged for appearances by two jazz orchestras, 502 00:25:51,870 --> 00:25:54,660 dance groups, and baseball stars. 503 00:25:54,790 --> 00:25:58,750 The party impressed his fellow students. 504 00:25:58,870 --> 00:26:02,120 Jack Kennedy had captured their attention. 505 00:26:03,870 --> 00:26:05,790 - He would just grab the coolest person there 506 00:26:05,910 --> 00:26:07,290 and kind of go off in the corner 507 00:26:07,410 --> 00:26:08,830 and have a private conversation. 508 00:26:08,870 --> 00:26:11,080 I mean, he was not... he was not an extrovert. 509 00:26:11,200 --> 00:26:13,160 He was really very much of an introvert. 510 00:26:13,330 --> 00:26:16,580 He did not draw energy from big groups of people. 511 00:26:16,700 --> 00:26:19,330 He much preferred smaller conversations. 512 00:26:19,450 --> 00:26:21,290 You know, had lots of friends. 513 00:26:21,410 --> 00:26:23,540 He had various circles of friends. 514 00:26:23,700 --> 00:26:25,540 - It was fun. It was light. 515 00:26:25,660 --> 00:26:27,500 I think of him as a character of literature 516 00:26:27,660 --> 00:26:29,540 like Long John Silver, 517 00:26:29,660 --> 00:26:31,500 like incredibly charming but dangerous. 518 00:26:31,620 --> 00:26:34,870 You know? Like irresistible. 519 00:26:35,040 --> 00:26:37,950 - It's a combination of looks, style, 520 00:26:38,080 --> 00:26:42,000 eloquence, empathy. 521 00:26:42,080 --> 00:26:44,410 - I think the only word you can use is, 522 00:26:44,540 --> 00:26:47,290 Kennedy had charisma. It was natural. 523 00:26:47,410 --> 00:26:49,330 And he would come into a room 524 00:26:49,450 --> 00:26:51,500 and he was the center of attention. 525 00:26:51,620 --> 00:26:54,500 - He probably elicited more humor 526 00:26:54,620 --> 00:26:56,330 with fewer words than anyone. 527 00:26:56,450 --> 00:26:59,330 It was a very acerbic, deadpan, 528 00:26:59,450 --> 00:27:01,580 sarcastic sense of humor, 529 00:27:01,700 --> 00:27:04,120 great sense of timing. 530 00:27:04,200 --> 00:27:06,200 - By all accounts, being around Kennedy 531 00:27:06,330 --> 00:27:09,830 was incandescent. 532 00:27:09,910 --> 00:27:13,370 It was, as Winston Churchill said of Franklin Roosevelt, 533 00:27:13,500 --> 00:27:16,000 like opening a bottle of champagne. 534 00:27:16,080 --> 00:27:18,120 - "He looked like he could be blown over 535 00:27:18,250 --> 00:27:21,500 with a good breath," said Jack's new football coach. 536 00:27:21,620 --> 00:27:24,160 Tall and lanky, the 20-year-old Jack 537 00:27:24,250 --> 00:27:26,250 didn't look much like an athlete, 538 00:27:26,370 --> 00:27:29,330 but he tried his best to stay active in athletics 539 00:27:29,450 --> 00:27:33,160 like football and swimming. 540 00:27:33,290 --> 00:27:37,160 His first two years at Harvard were lackluster academically, 541 00:27:37,330 --> 00:27:40,700 largely due to his interest in athletics and girls. 542 00:27:40,830 --> 00:27:43,330 However, Jack began to take his education 543 00:27:43,500 --> 00:27:45,580 more seriously in his junior year, 544 00:27:45,660 --> 00:27:49,330 even making the dean's list. 545 00:27:49,500 --> 00:27:54,250 - While successful people mature at different rates, 546 00:27:54,370 --> 00:27:56,700 he had to find his place. 547 00:27:56,870 --> 00:27:59,200 Here, he's got this older brother, Joe Jr., 548 00:27:59,330 --> 00:28:02,160 who is considered the shining star 549 00:28:02,200 --> 00:28:06,500 of the family, and Jack has trouble dealing with that. 550 00:28:06,580 --> 00:28:08,660 And it's not until later, 551 00:28:08,750 --> 00:28:11,500 when he's in his advanced years 552 00:28:11,660 --> 00:28:14,160 at Harvard, that he gets quite serious. 553 00:28:18,790 --> 00:28:21,540 - On December 9, 1937, 554 00:28:21,700 --> 00:28:24,790 "The New York Times" broke the news. 555 00:28:24,910 --> 00:28:28,700 Jack's father, Joe Kennedy, later nicknamed "Jolly Joe" 556 00:28:28,830 --> 00:28:31,500 by the press, would be the new United States 557 00:28:31,620 --> 00:28:34,500 ambassador to Great Britain. 558 00:28:34,620 --> 00:28:37,370 - Just arrived in England after a very pleasant trip 559 00:28:37,500 --> 00:28:39,160 from the United States. 560 00:28:39,290 --> 00:28:42,160 I'm looking forward, with great anticipation, 561 00:28:42,290 --> 00:28:43,620 taking up my duties here. 562 00:28:45,950 --> 00:28:48,000 - The Great Depression is a terrible calamity 563 00:28:48,080 --> 00:28:50,120 for millions upon millions of Americans. 564 00:28:50,200 --> 00:28:52,160 When Franklin Roosevelt took the oath of office 565 00:28:52,330 --> 00:28:55,700 in March of 1933, we estimate that there were 566 00:28:55,870 --> 00:28:58,620 13 million people unemployed. 567 00:28:58,750 --> 00:29:01,160 That was about 25% of the entire workforce 568 00:29:01,290 --> 00:29:03,330 of the United States. 569 00:29:03,500 --> 00:29:05,200 - Joe was worried. 570 00:29:05,370 --> 00:29:09,700 He was a conservative, but he understood 571 00:29:09,830 --> 00:29:13,790 that Hoover did not have a clue 572 00:29:13,910 --> 00:29:17,410 as to how to end the depression 573 00:29:17,540 --> 00:29:21,000 and save capitalism and American democracy. 574 00:29:21,160 --> 00:29:25,120 And Joe Kennedy understands 575 00:29:25,200 --> 00:29:28,290 earlier than most 576 00:29:28,370 --> 00:29:32,750 that the Depression is the greatest threat 577 00:29:32,870 --> 00:29:36,700 to American capitalism that this nation 578 00:29:36,870 --> 00:29:39,660 has ever seen. 579 00:29:39,830 --> 00:29:42,660 So he, very early, went and he joined 580 00:29:42,750 --> 00:29:45,750 the Roosevelt bandwagon. 581 00:29:45,870 --> 00:29:50,660 Kennedy really enters politics for the first time. 582 00:29:50,700 --> 00:29:54,620 - Joe had been a very enthusiastic 583 00:29:54,700 --> 00:29:57,660 and a very important supporter of FDR, 584 00:29:57,790 --> 00:30:00,330 particularly around election time, 585 00:30:00,450 --> 00:30:04,330 1932, 1936, and 1940. 586 00:30:04,450 --> 00:30:09,000 And Joe Kennedy was a very important Catholic 587 00:30:09,080 --> 00:30:11,120 at a time when the Catholic vote, 588 00:30:11,200 --> 00:30:14,200 as it remains today, was very important, 589 00:30:14,330 --> 00:30:17,250 and he would not just contribute money, 590 00:30:17,370 --> 00:30:20,330 but he would entice other important people 591 00:30:20,410 --> 00:30:24,040 like William Randolph Hearst as well as Catholics 592 00:30:24,160 --> 00:30:27,040 around the country to support FDR. 593 00:30:27,200 --> 00:30:29,330 So he thought that FDR owed him. 594 00:30:31,450 --> 00:30:35,660 - Finally, Roosevelt gets in touch 595 00:30:35,790 --> 00:30:39,950 with Kennedy, and he offers him the position. 596 00:30:40,120 --> 00:30:42,910 - Joe Kennedy's new role in the public sphere 597 00:30:43,040 --> 00:30:45,830 would push the entire Kennedy family 598 00:30:45,950 --> 00:30:48,790 into the center of world politics. 599 00:30:54,330 --> 00:30:56,830 - By early 1938, Joe Kennedy was the new United States 600 00:30:57,000 --> 00:30:59,000 ambassador to Great Britain. 601 00:30:59,160 --> 00:31:01,120 - That would have been the most important 602 00:31:01,250 --> 00:31:03,660 and most prestigious ambassadorship 603 00:31:03,790 --> 00:31:05,040 that would have been offered, 604 00:31:05,200 --> 00:31:07,830 and Franklin Roosevelt gave it to Joe Kennedy. 605 00:31:46,910 --> 00:31:48,000 - You're kind of excited. 606 00:31:54,000 --> 00:31:58,250 - Roosevelt sends Kennedy to England 607 00:31:58,370 --> 00:32:00,870 as a statement as much as anything else. 608 00:32:01,000 --> 00:32:03,250 It's a statement to the English 609 00:32:03,370 --> 00:32:06,790 that I'm gonna send you an Irish Catholic. 610 00:32:06,950 --> 00:32:10,790 He also tells Kennedy, "Look, I need eyes 611 00:32:10,870 --> 00:32:12,620 "and ears over there. 612 00:32:12,750 --> 00:32:16,750 "Europe is falling apart, and I can't trust anybody. 613 00:32:16,870 --> 00:32:19,160 "I need someone over there to tell me, 614 00:32:19,290 --> 00:32:21,160 are the British gonna be able to fight? 615 00:32:21,290 --> 00:32:23,410 "Are the British gonna be able 616 00:32:23,540 --> 00:32:26,910 to stand up against the Nazis?" 617 00:32:38,700 --> 00:32:42,540 - Kennedy, from the beginning, doesn't simply report 618 00:32:42,620 --> 00:32:44,330 on what's going on in Europe. 619 00:32:44,410 --> 00:32:47,040 Kennedy is determined that he knows better 620 00:32:47,160 --> 00:32:50,120 than Roosevelt and everybody else. 621 00:32:50,200 --> 00:32:52,750 - The American people do not have to go to war. 622 00:32:52,870 --> 00:32:55,370 They will not go to war 623 00:32:55,540 --> 00:32:58,750 if they will to stay out of war. 624 00:32:58,870 --> 00:33:02,660 - He opposed U.S. involvement in the war. 625 00:33:02,750 --> 00:33:06,500 He was actually a person who might be classified 626 00:33:06,620 --> 00:33:08,080 today as an appeaser. 627 00:33:08,200 --> 00:33:10,040 He didn't want to go to war with Germany. 628 00:33:10,200 --> 00:33:12,250 He thought the U.S. would lose 629 00:33:12,370 --> 00:33:14,830 and that it would be a grave error 630 00:33:14,950 --> 00:33:16,136 for the country to get involved 631 00:33:16,160 --> 00:33:18,620 in that kind of conflict. 632 00:33:18,750 --> 00:33:22,500 - Hitler! Sieg heil! Sieg heil! 633 00:33:28,200 --> 00:33:32,160 - He comes to the conclusion that the English 634 00:33:32,250 --> 00:33:37,120 are too foppish, too weak, 635 00:33:37,200 --> 00:33:39,660 they have no backbone, 636 00:33:39,830 --> 00:33:42,040 that Hitler and the Germans 637 00:33:42,200 --> 00:33:44,910 are gonna run right over him. 638 00:33:45,040 --> 00:33:48,540 - If I am called an appeaser because I oppose 639 00:33:48,660 --> 00:33:51,620 the entrance of this country into the present war, 640 00:33:51,750 --> 00:33:53,950 I cheerfully plead guilty, 641 00:33:54,080 --> 00:33:57,540 and so must every one of you who want to keep America 642 00:33:57,700 --> 00:33:59,700 out of this war. 643 00:33:59,830 --> 00:34:02,830 - Roosevelt enlists Kennedy 644 00:34:02,950 --> 00:34:06,000 not simply as an ambassador 645 00:34:06,120 --> 00:34:08,200 but as a troubleshooter, 646 00:34:08,370 --> 00:34:11,660 an eyewitness who's gonna report back 647 00:34:11,790 --> 00:34:13,290 what's going on. 648 00:34:13,370 --> 00:34:17,000 Ambassadors don't run foreign policy. 649 00:34:17,120 --> 00:34:20,870 Ambassadors are stick figures, really. 650 00:34:21,000 --> 00:34:24,080 - The problems between FDR and Joe 651 00:34:24,200 --> 00:34:26,000 really lie with Joe, 652 00:34:26,120 --> 00:34:28,250 because once he became ambassador, 653 00:34:28,370 --> 00:34:31,790 he forgot about what that position was really like. 654 00:34:31,910 --> 00:34:36,120 That role is to translate 655 00:34:36,250 --> 00:34:39,660 the president's view to the British leaders 656 00:34:39,790 --> 00:34:41,620 and the British people. 657 00:34:41,700 --> 00:34:45,080 And what Joe wanted to do was relay his own thoughts, 658 00:34:45,200 --> 00:34:49,450 and his thoughts did not match FDR's thoughts. 659 00:34:49,540 --> 00:34:54,040 So FDR grew to distrust him and opened up 660 00:34:54,160 --> 00:34:57,080 a separate private channel with Churchill. 661 00:34:57,200 --> 00:35:00,830 Joe resented it, and the relationship 662 00:35:01,000 --> 00:35:02,290 tumbled from there. 663 00:35:04,540 --> 00:35:08,000 - In 1939, with his father now living and working 664 00:35:08,120 --> 00:35:10,500 in London as ambassador to Great Britain, 665 00:35:10,620 --> 00:35:13,200 Jack decided to travel overseas. 666 00:35:15,200 --> 00:35:18,000 He set off on a seven-month tour of Europe, 667 00:35:18,160 --> 00:35:20,330 the Middle East, and the Soviet Union, 668 00:35:20,500 --> 00:35:23,120 meeting with leaders, diplomats, 669 00:35:23,290 --> 00:35:25,950 and everyday people to gather information 670 00:35:26,040 --> 00:35:29,200 about the growing threat of war. 671 00:35:29,370 --> 00:35:31,540 Jack's journey began in London 672 00:35:31,660 --> 00:35:34,200 where he took tea with Princess Elizabeth. 673 00:35:34,370 --> 00:35:36,700 Then he was off to Eastern Europe, 674 00:35:36,870 --> 00:35:39,000 stopping in Warsaw, Poland. 675 00:35:39,160 --> 00:35:42,040 As he traveled, he often corresponded 676 00:35:42,200 --> 00:35:44,910 with Lem Billings and reported his observations 677 00:35:45,040 --> 00:35:46,370 back to his father. 678 00:35:48,370 --> 00:35:49,790 - Bye, Rosie. - Bye, Jack. 679 00:35:49,910 --> 00:35:51,540 - So long, Jack! 680 00:35:51,700 --> 00:35:53,410 - I... see, that's enough. 681 00:35:53,540 --> 00:35:56,450 - On another leg of the trip, Jack was joined 682 00:35:56,580 --> 00:36:00,080 by his Harvard roommate, Torby Macdonald. 683 00:36:00,200 --> 00:36:02,250 They crossed into Nazi Germany and were heckled 684 00:36:02,370 --> 00:36:04,540 by local stormtroopers who believed 685 00:36:04,620 --> 00:36:09,330 they were disrespecting the statue of a Nazi hero. 686 00:36:09,500 --> 00:36:12,500 Days later, traveling at high speeds 687 00:36:12,540 --> 00:36:15,370 near Paris, en route to see his father, 688 00:36:15,500 --> 00:36:17,540 Jack lost control of his vehicle, 689 00:36:17,700 --> 00:36:20,330 flipping it. 690 00:36:20,410 --> 00:36:22,700 In his true lighthearted fashion, 691 00:36:22,830 --> 00:36:25,870 Jack laughed off his near-death experience. 692 00:36:26,000 --> 00:36:27,580 While upside-down in the car, 693 00:36:27,700 --> 00:36:29,750 he is said to have quipped to Torby, 694 00:36:29,870 --> 00:36:34,200 "Well, pal, we didn't make it, did we?" 695 00:36:36,910 --> 00:36:39,450 - On August 19, Jack arrived 696 00:36:39,580 --> 00:36:42,330 in the German capital of Berlin. 697 00:36:42,410 --> 00:36:44,580 At that moment, Hitler's troops 698 00:36:44,660 --> 00:36:46,830 were preparing to attack Poland, 699 00:36:46,950 --> 00:36:49,500 making their way to the border. 700 00:36:49,750 --> 00:36:53,620 Less than two weeks later, Hitler's forces invaded. 701 00:36:53,750 --> 00:36:56,660 The Second World War had begun. 702 00:37:00,540 --> 00:37:03,830 - Jack understood that if you want to understand the world, 703 00:37:03,950 --> 00:37:05,950 you need to go see the world, 704 00:37:06,080 --> 00:37:08,830 and he was very eager to see the world. 705 00:37:11,080 --> 00:37:15,290 - In fact, when Britain declared war on Germany 706 00:37:15,450 --> 00:37:17,540 on September 3, 1939, 707 00:37:17,700 --> 00:37:20,200 two days after the Nazis invaded Poland, 708 00:37:20,330 --> 00:37:23,000 JFK was in the House of Commons 709 00:37:23,080 --> 00:37:24,620 in the visitor's gallery. 710 00:37:24,700 --> 00:37:27,330 He saw Chamberlain make the announcement 711 00:37:27,410 --> 00:37:30,500 that World War II had started. 712 00:37:30,660 --> 00:37:33,410 - This morning, the British ambassador 713 00:37:33,540 --> 00:37:36,200 in Berlin handed the German government 714 00:37:36,330 --> 00:37:40,200 a final note, stating that unless we heard 715 00:37:40,370 --> 00:37:44,830 from them by 11:00 that they were prepared 716 00:37:45,000 --> 00:37:48,700 at once to withdraw their troops from Poland, 717 00:37:48,870 --> 00:37:52,290 a state of war would exist between us. 718 00:37:52,370 --> 00:37:55,830 I have to tell you now that no such undertaking 719 00:37:55,950 --> 00:37:59,660 has been received, and that consequently, 720 00:37:59,790 --> 00:38:03,750 this country is at war with Germany. 721 00:38:05,620 --> 00:38:08,830 - During his time visiting the House of Commons, 722 00:38:08,950 --> 00:38:12,160 Jack was deeply inspired by Winston Churchill 723 00:38:12,250 --> 00:38:16,160 and was awestruck listening to his first wartime speech 724 00:38:16,330 --> 00:38:19,160 rallying the free world to stand up 725 00:38:19,290 --> 00:38:22,580 to the oncoming battle against Hitler. 726 00:38:22,700 --> 00:38:25,330 After listening to Churchill's remarks, 727 00:38:25,500 --> 00:38:30,080 Jack was motivated to do his part as well. 728 00:38:30,200 --> 00:38:32,160 Upon the outbreak of the war, 729 00:38:32,290 --> 00:38:35,660 German U-boats began sinking ships. 730 00:38:35,790 --> 00:38:38,950 The first ship lost was the Scottish passenger liner, 731 00:38:39,040 --> 00:38:40,830 SS "Athenia." 732 00:38:41,000 --> 00:38:42,790 Joe Sr. sent his son to meet 733 00:38:42,910 --> 00:38:45,830 with and assist hundreds of American survivors 734 00:38:45,910 --> 00:38:48,750 hospitalized in Glasgow. 735 00:38:48,870 --> 00:38:51,540 During this trip, Jack spoke publicly, 736 00:38:51,620 --> 00:38:54,330 reassuring those affected that they would be 737 00:38:54,450 --> 00:38:57,750 safely transported back to the U.S. 738 00:38:57,870 --> 00:39:00,500 He was also tasked with gathering 739 00:39:00,620 --> 00:39:03,250 firsthand information about the attack. 740 00:39:03,370 --> 00:39:06,160 Finally, safe passage home was secured 741 00:39:06,290 --> 00:39:09,000 for the American survivors. 742 00:39:09,160 --> 00:39:12,000 Jack's work was done. 743 00:39:12,120 --> 00:39:14,250 After seven months in Europe, 744 00:39:14,370 --> 00:39:17,750 Jack Kennedy was now 22 years old. 745 00:39:17,870 --> 00:39:20,950 He had seen Nazi Germany up close, 746 00:39:21,080 --> 00:39:24,160 listened to his political hero Winston Churchill 747 00:39:24,290 --> 00:39:26,450 speak in the House of Commons, 748 00:39:26,540 --> 00:39:28,370 shared tea with the future Queen 749 00:39:28,500 --> 00:39:32,500 of the United Kingdom, crashed his car in France, 750 00:39:32,620 --> 00:39:34,660 and helped fellow Americans 751 00:39:34,750 --> 00:39:37,830 in the wake of a wartime attack. 752 00:39:38,000 --> 00:39:40,540 - He was exposed from a very early age 753 00:39:40,700 --> 00:39:44,370 to a really incredible array of international experiences, 754 00:39:44,450 --> 00:39:46,410 quite untypical for people in his generation 755 00:39:46,540 --> 00:39:49,120 in this country. 756 00:39:49,250 --> 00:39:51,200 - Jack had experienced firsthand 757 00:39:51,370 --> 00:39:52,750 what it meant to be involved 758 00:39:52,870 --> 00:39:55,700 in high-level political, cultural, 759 00:39:55,870 --> 00:39:59,000 and military situations and began to break away 760 00:39:59,080 --> 00:40:02,750 from his father's stifling political beliefs. 761 00:40:02,830 --> 00:40:04,750 His whirlwind tour of Europe 762 00:40:04,870 --> 00:40:07,540 laid the foundations of a new worldview 763 00:40:07,700 --> 00:40:11,450 that would evolve for years to come. 764 00:40:11,580 --> 00:40:14,450 - I think it was just the self-confidence 765 00:40:14,580 --> 00:40:19,330 that Jack got from traveling abroad, 766 00:40:19,450 --> 00:40:23,500 from being on his own, from being encouraged 767 00:40:23,620 --> 00:40:25,950 through all of those early meals 768 00:40:26,040 --> 00:40:30,000 led by Joe and Rose to think for himself, 769 00:40:30,120 --> 00:40:33,080 that he eventually did think for himself, 770 00:40:33,200 --> 00:40:36,580 and from his travels, came to different conclusions 771 00:40:36,750 --> 00:40:41,290 than Joe came to, that America needed to play 772 00:40:41,370 --> 00:40:44,330 a prominent role on the world stage 773 00:40:44,450 --> 00:40:46,660 if freedom were to prevail. 774 00:40:49,500 --> 00:40:52,660 Using his experiences in Europe as a guide, 775 00:40:52,790 --> 00:40:57,330 Jack began work on his thesis, just meeting his deadline. 776 00:40:57,450 --> 00:41:00,540 He examined why England was so unprepared 777 00:41:00,660 --> 00:41:03,620 for World War II, and titled his final project, 778 00:41:03,700 --> 00:41:06,870 "Appeasement at Munich." 779 00:41:07,040 --> 00:41:10,000 Jack later expanded his thesis into a book, 780 00:41:10,120 --> 00:41:13,160 called "Why England Slept," 781 00:41:13,290 --> 00:41:15,370 an ode to Winston Churchill's book, 782 00:41:15,540 --> 00:41:18,540 "While England Slept." 783 00:41:18,700 --> 00:41:22,410 "Why England Slept" quickly sold 80,000 copies, 784 00:41:22,540 --> 00:41:25,660 bringing in some $40,000 in revenue. 785 00:41:25,790 --> 00:41:27,830 He donated his British earnings 786 00:41:28,000 --> 00:41:30,040 to the English city of Plymouth, 787 00:41:30,160 --> 00:41:31,700 which had recently been bombed 788 00:41:31,870 --> 00:41:34,750 by Hitler's powerful air force. 789 00:41:34,870 --> 00:41:39,040 With his American earnings, he bought a new convertible. 790 00:41:39,200 --> 00:41:43,000 In June 1940, Jack graduated from Harvard. 791 00:41:43,080 --> 00:41:45,500 It was the end of an important chapter 792 00:41:45,540 --> 00:41:47,330 in his life and the beginning 793 00:41:47,500 --> 00:41:50,000 of a new equally important chapter. 794 00:41:57,250 --> 00:42:00,750 Next on "Kennedy"... 795 00:42:06,000 --> 00:42:08,330 - 16 months after Pearl Harbor, 796 00:42:08,450 --> 00:42:11,410 the United States was locked in a fierce Naval campaign 797 00:42:11,540 --> 00:42:14,330 against Japanese forces. 798 00:42:14,410 --> 00:42:18,370 - Jack was a man who wanted to be at the center of action. 799 00:42:18,500 --> 00:42:21,830 - Kennedy takes command of "PT-109". 800 00:42:21,910 --> 00:42:25,450 This is a very dangerous place to be. 801 00:42:25,580 --> 00:42:27,620 These are Japanese-held waters. 802 00:42:27,750 --> 00:42:29,580 The Japanese destroyer... 803 00:42:29,700 --> 00:42:33,330 - She is speeding directly towards "PT-109."61483

Can't find what you're looking for?
Get subtitles in any language from opensubtitles.com, and translate them here.