Hey
First Lady, fashion icon, and book editor
She transformed the role of First Lady by leading the historic restoration of the White House and establishing it as a cultural center for the arts while becoming a global fashion icon.
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, born July 28, 1929, under the zodiac sign Leo, served as First Lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963 and transformed the role into a platform for arts and culture. She led a comprehensive restoration of the White House, turning it into a living museum of American history, and became a global fashion icon whose "Jackie Look" influenced trends worldwide throughout the 1960s. After her husband's assassination in 1963 and a subsequent marriage to Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis (1968-1975), she reinvented herself as a respected book editor at Viking Press and Doubleday, working in New York publishing until her death from lymphoma on May 19, 1994.
Born into the privileged Bouvier family in Southampton, New York, she attended elite schools including Miss Porter's School and studied at Vassar College before spending her junior year at the Sorbonne in Paris. She graduated from George Washington University in 1951 with a Bachelor of Arts in French literature and began her career as an inquiring photographer for the Washington Times-Herald, earning $42.50 per week. She met then-congressman John F. Kennedy at a dinner party in Washington in 1952, and they married on September 12, 1953, in Newport, Rhode Island.
She married John F. Kennedy in 1953 and had four children, two of whom died in infancy (Arabella, stillborn in 1956, and Patrick, who lived two days in 1963); her surviving children were Caroline (born 1957) and John F. Kennedy Jr. (1960-1999). After JFK's assassination in 1963, she married Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis in 1968, a union that lasted until his death in 1975. She spent her final decades in New York City with longtime companion Maurice Tempelsman, a Belgian diamond merchant, while working as a book editor and fiercely protecting her children's privacy.
Spoke four languages fluently: French, Spanish, Italian, and English.
Won the Vogue Prix de Paris writing contest but turned down the prize of a year working at the magazine.
Was an accomplished equestrian and competed successfully in horse shows from an early age.
Her pillbox hat style became a fashion phenomenon copied worldwide in the 1960s.
Worked as a book editor sometimes under a pseudonym to maintain privacy.
Her estate sale at Sotheby's in 1996 brought in $34 million, far exceeding estimates.
Received a Grammy Award nomination for her narration of audiobook recordings.
I want to live my life, not record it.
The one thing I do not want to be called is First Lady. It sounds like a saddle horse.
If you bungle raising your children, I don't think whatever else you do matters very much.
Born on July 28 in Southampton, New York, to Wall Street stockbroker John Vernou Bouvier III and socialite Janet Norton Lee.
Graduated from George Washington University with a Bachelor of Arts in French literature and began working as an inquiring photographer for the Washington Times-Herald.
Married John F. Kennedy on September 12 in Newport, Rhode Island.
Became First Lady of the United States and launched the historic restoration project of the White House, establishing it as a museum of American history and culture.
Hosted the televised tour 'A Tour of the White House with Mrs. John F. Kennedy' viewed by 80 million Americans and named Time magazine's Woman of the Year at age 33.
Her husband President John F. Kennedy was assassinated on November 22 in Dallas, Texas, while she sat beside him in the motorcade.
Married Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis on October 20, causing international controversy and media sensation.
Aristotle Onassis died on March 15; she began her career as a book editor at Viking Press in New York City.
Moved to Doubleday publishing house where she worked as a senior editor until her death.
Died on May 19 from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma at age 64 in New York City; buried at Arlington National Cemetery alongside President Kennedy.