- Ethel Skakel Kennedy
Infobox_Person
image_size = 150px
name = Ethel Skakel Kennedy
caption =
birth_date = birth date and age|mf=yes|1928|4|11
birth_place =Chicago ,Illinois
education =
occupation =
residence =
spouse =Robert F. Kennedy (1950 - 1968; his death)
children = 11 (9 living; 2 deceased)
parents =
religion =Roman Catholic Ethel Skakel Kennedy (born April 11, 1928) is the widow of late Sen. and former Attorney General
Robert F. Kennedy .Early life
Born in
Chicago, Illinois to Ann Brannack, aRoman Catholic , and George Skakel, aProtestant , Ethel was raised Catholic inGreenwich, Connecticut . Her father was the founder of the very successfulGreat Lakes Carbon Corporation . [http://www.glcarbon.com/] She attended the all-girlsGreenwich Academy [ [http://www.greenwichacademy.org Welcome to Greenwich Academy ] ] [http://www.marthamoxley.com/news/072499gt.htm] in Greenwich, as well as the Convent of the Sacred Heart inthe Bronx . In September 1945, Ethel began her collegiate education at Manhattanville College of the Sacred Heart (then located inManhattan ), where she metJean Kennedy , sister of her soon-to-be husband, Robert F. Kennedy, and the two became friends and roommates.Marriage to Robert F. Kennedy (1950–1968)
Ethel met
Robert F. Kennedy (Bobby) during a skiing trip toMont Tremblant Resort in Quebec, Canada during the winter of 1945. At the time, Robert was dating Ethel's sister, Patricia. Eventually that relationship ended and Ethel and Bobby started seeing each other. Ethel campaigned for Bobby's brother,John F. Kennedy , in his 1946 campaign forUnited States Congress , and wrote her college thesis on his book "Why England Slept ".Bobby and Ethel became engaged in February 1950, and were married on June 17, 1950 at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Greenwich. Ethel's wedding dress and bridal party gowns were created by noted
New York City fashion designerMamie Conti . As newlyweds, Ethel and Bobby moved toCharlottesville, Virginia , where they lived while Bobby finished his last year at theUniversity of Virginia Law School . Their first child, Kathleen, was born on July 4, 1951. After Bobby graduated with his law degree, the family settled in theWashington, D.C. area and Bobby went to work for the Department of Justice. However, that path did not last long as Bobby was asked by his family to manageJohn F. Kennedy 's 1952 successful Senate campaign inMassachusetts .Throughout the 1950s, Robert Kennedy worked for the federal government in investigatory roles for the
Senate Subcommittee on Investigations with the notoriously anti-Communist SenatorJoe McCarthy and as chief counsel for the Senate Democrats. In 1956, the Kennedys purchased Hickory Hill from Bobby's brother John and his wife, Jackie. They needed a larger house, since Ethel was pregnant with their fifth child. This enormous 13 bedroom, 13 bath home was situated on six acres inMcLean, Virginia .In contrast to John and Jackie Kennedy, Robert and Ethel held many get-togethers at their home. Whether it was a pool party or a formal dinner party, the guest list was impressive and eclectic. Journalist
Roger Mudd remembers meetingJohn Lennon at one such party. Other notable invitees included the Secretary of the InteriorStewart Udall , entertainerJudy Garland , dancerRudolf Nureyev and historianArthur Schlesinger , who found himself thrown into the pool fully clothed where Ethel was also already swimming fully clothed. [http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2003/10/21/shock_over_plan_to_sell_rfk_home/ `Shock' over plan to sell RFK home - The Boston Globe ] ] .The 11 Kennedy children added to the wild atmosphere at Hickory Hill. Notoriously, Robert Jr. had a zoo in the basement. It was not unusual to see reptiles, a seal, an anteater, miniature ponies and even an elephant on the grounds Evan Thomas, "Robert Kennedy: A Life" ] . Jackie found the children so wild that she did not allow Caroline and John Jr. to play with their cousins.
Due to her strict Catholicism, Ethel reportedly objected when her children's private school began to teach the
Theory of Evolution .RFK assassination (1968)
Just after midnight on June 5, 1968, her husband was shot by
Sirhan Sirhan . He died 26 hours later. Ethel and her children were devastated. PresidentLyndon Johnson declared a day of mourning. In 1969, Sirhan was convicted of Robert Kennedy's murder and sentenced to death. In 1972, the sentence was commuted to life imprisonment after the California Supreme Court invalidated that state's death penalty as it existed at that time.Life after the assassination (1968–present)
Frequently throughout the 1970s, Ethel was escorted to dinners, parties and the theater by singer
Andy Williams , a family friend. However, she never engaged in any romantic relationships with another man following her husband's death. Citing her Catholicism, she had said she would never marry again.In October 2003, the
Boston Globe reported that Ethel was selling the legendary residence for $25 million [ [http://www.sothebysrealty.com/PropertyDetails.aspx?R=4100000037&N=12+4294967274+4294966953&No=-1&PSeq=0 Sotheby's International Realty | Find a House, Home and Luxury Real Estate Property | ] ] . By 2008, still unsold, the asking price has been cut in half to $12.5 million, with the understanding that the historic mansion (which served as headquarters to Union GeneralGeorge B. McClellan in theCivil War ) is in need of a multi-million dollar renovation.As of 2007, Ethel continues to live at the
Kennedy Compound inHyannisport .During the 2008 presidential election she endorsed Illinois Senator
Barack Obama [cite web |title=Ethel Kennedy Endorses Barack Obama |url=http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/samgrahamfelsen/CGBjb |publisher=Barackobama.com |date=2008-02-02 |accessdate=2008-02-02] (as did her children Max and Rory, though another three,Kathleen Kennedy Townsend ,Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. andKerry Kennedy , at first publicly endorsed SenatorHillary Clinton , in mid-2007). In her official statement, she compared Obama with her late husband, saying:"Barack is so like Bobby...With courage, caring, and charisma, Senator Obama is leading us toward a kinder, gentler world."
Children of Robert and Ethel Kennedy
References
External links
*imdb name|0448026
* [http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/rfk/peopleevents/e_hickoryhill.html "American Experience": RFK People & Events] -- From PBS
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