110 Facts About Jacqueline Kennedy

1.

Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis was an American socialite, writer, photographer, and book editor who served as first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F Kennedy.

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2.

Jacqueline Kennedy was elected to the Senate that same year, and the couple married on September 12,1953, in Newport, Rhode Island.

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3.

Jacqueline Kennedy died in 1994 and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery alongside President Kennedy.

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4.

Jacqueline Kennedy Lee Bouvier was born on July 28,1929, at Southampton Hospital in Southampton, New York, to Wall Street stockbroker John Vernou "Black Jack" Bouvier III and socialite Janet Norton Lee.

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5.

Jacqueline Kennedy's mother was of Irish descent, and her father had French, Scottish, and English ancestry.

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6.

Jacqueline Kennedy's sister, Caroline Lee, was born four years later on March 3,1933.

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7.

Jacqueline Kennedy Bouvier spent her early childhood years in Manhattan and at Lasata, the Bouviers' country estate in East Hampton on Long Island.

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8.

Jacqueline Kennedy looked up to her father, who likewise favored her over her sister, calling his elder child "the most beautiful daughter a man ever had".

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9.

From an early age, Jacqueline Kennedy was an enthusiastic equestrienne and successfully competed in the sport, and horse-riding remained a lifelong passion.

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10.

Jacqueline Kennedy took ballet lessons, was an avid reader, and excelled at learning foreign languages, including French, Spanish, and Italian.

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11.

Jacqueline Kennedy was a bright student but often misbehaved; one of her teachers described her as "a darling child, the prettiest little girl, very clever, very artistic, and full of the devil".

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12.

Jacqueline Kennedy's mother attributed this behavior to her finishing her assignments ahead of classmates and then acting out in boredom.

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13.

Jacqueline Kennedy's behavior improved after the headmistress warned her that none of her positive qualities would matter if she did not behave.

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14.

Jacqueline Kennedy formed the closest bond with Yusha, who became one of her most trusted confidants.

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15.

Jacqueline Kennedy gave her a stable environment and the pampered childhood she otherwise would have never experienced.

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16.

Jacqueline Kennedy chose Miss Porter's because it was a boarding school that allowed her to distance herself from the Auchinclosses and because the school placed an emphasis on college preparatory classes.

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17.

Jacqueline Kennedy later hired her childhood friend Nancy Tuckerman to be her social secretary at the White House.

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18.

Jacqueline Kennedy graduated among the top students of her class and received the Maria McKinney Memorial Award for Excellence in Literature.

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19.

Jacqueline Kennedy had wanted to attend Sarah Lawrence College, closer to New York City, but her parents insisted that she choose the more isolated Vassar.

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20.

Jacqueline Kennedy was an accomplished student who participated in the school's art and drama clubs and wrote for its newspaper.

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21.

Jacqueline Kennedy had made her debut to high society in the summer before entering college and became a frequent presence in New York social functions.

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22.

Jacqueline Kennedy spent her junior year in France—at the University of Grenoble in Grenoble, and at the Sorbonne in Paris—in a study-abroad program through Smith College.

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23.

Jacqueline Kennedy followed the advice, left the job and returned to Washington after only one day of work.

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24.

Jacqueline Bouvier and US Representative John F Kennedy belonged to the same social circle and were formally introduced by a mutual friend, journalist Charles L Bartlett, at a dinner party in May 1952.

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25.

Jacqueline Kennedy was attracted to Kennedy's physical appearance, wit and wealth.

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26.

Bouvier and Jacqueline Kennedy married on September 12,1953, at St Mary's Church in Newport, Rhode Island, in a mass celebrated by Boston's Archbishop Richard Cushing.

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27.

Newlyweds honeymooned in Acapulco, Mexico, before settling in their new home, Hickory Hill in McLean, Virginia, a suburb of Washington, DC Jacqueline Kennedy developed a warm relationship with her parents-in-law, Joseph and Rose Jacqueline Kennedy.

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28.

John Jacqueline Kennedy suffered from Addison's disease and from chronic and at times debilitating back pain, which had been exacerbated by a war injury; in late 1954, he underwent a near-fatal spinal operation.

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29.

Additionally, Jacqueline Kennedy suffered a miscarriage in 1955 and in August 1956 gave birth to a stillborn daughter, Arabella.

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30.

Jacqueline Kennedy gave birth to daughter Caroline on November 27,1957.

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31.

Soon enough, John Jacqueline Kennedy started to notice the value that his wife added to his congressional campaign.

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32.

John's mother Rose however observed that Jacqueline Kennedy was not "a natural-born campaigner" due to her shyness and was uncomfortable with too much attention.

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33.

Jacqueline Kennedy credited Jacqueline's visibility in the ads and stumping as vital assets in securing his victory, and he called her "simply invaluable".

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34.

In July 1959, the historian Arthur M Schlesinger visited the Kennedy Compound in Hyannis Port and had his first conversation with Jacqueline Kennedy; he found her to have "tremendous awareness, an all-seeing eye and a ruthless judgment".

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35.

That year, John Kennedy traveled to 14 states, but Jacqueline took long breaks from the trips so she could spend time with their daughter, Caroline.

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36.

Jacqueline Kennedy counseled her husband on improving his wardrobe in preparation for the presidential campaign planned for the following year.

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37.

On January 3,1960, John F Kennedy was a United States senator from Massachusetts when he announced his candidacy for the presidency and launched his campaign nationwide.

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38.

Jacqueline Kennedy subsequently participated in the campaign by writing a weekly syndicated newspaper column, Campaign Wife, answering correspondence, and giving interviews to the media.

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39.

Jacqueline Kennedy did not attend the nomination due to her pregnancy, which had been publicly announced ten days earlier.

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40.

Jacqueline Kennedy was in Hyannis Port when she watched the September 26,1960 debate—which was the nation's first televised presidential debate—between her husband and Republican candidate Richard Nixon, who was the incumbent vice president.

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41.

On November 8,1960, John F Kennedy narrowly defeated Republican opponent Richard Nixon in the US presidential election.

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42.

Jacqueline Kennedy spent two weeks recuperating in the hospital, during which the most minute details of both her and her son's conditions were reported by the media in what has been considered the first instance of national interest in the Kennedy family.

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43.

Jacqueline Kennedy's husband was sworn in as president on January 20,1961.

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44.

Jacqueline Kennedy insisted they kept a family home away from the public eye and rented Glen Ora at Middleburg.

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45.

Jacqueline Kennedy was the first presidential wife to hire a press secretary, Pamela Turnure, and carefully managed her contact with the media, usually shying away from making public statements, and strictly controlling the extent to which her children were photographed.

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46.

Jacqueline Kennedy had visited the White House on two occasions before she became first lady: the first time as a grade-school tourist in 1941 and again as the guest of outgoing First Lady Mamie Eisenhower shortly before her husband's inauguration.

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47.

Jacqueline Kennedy decided to make the family quarters attractive and suitable for family life by adding a kitchen on the family floor and new rooms for her children.

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48.

Jacqueline Kennedy personally wrote to possible donors in order to track down these missing furnishings and other historical pieces of interest.

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49.

Jacqueline Kennedy initiated a Congressional bill establishing that White House furnishings would be the property of the Smithsonian Institution rather than available to departing ex-presidents to claim as their own.

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50.

Jacqueline Kennedy founded the White House Historical Association, the Committee for the Preservation of the White House, the position of a permanent Curator of the White House, the White House Endowment Trust, and the White House Acquisition Trust.

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51.

Jacqueline Kennedy was the first presidential spouse to hire a White House curator.

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52.

On February 14,1962, Jacqueline Kennedy, accompanied by Charles Collingwood of CBS News, took American television viewers on a tour of the White House.

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53.

At the urging of US Ambassador to India John Kenneth Galbraith, Jacqueline Kennedy undertook a tour of India and Pakistan with her sister Lee Radziwill in 1962.

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54.

Jacqueline Kennedy had found out on his visit to the White House that he and the First Lady had a common interest in horses.

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55.

Life magazine correspondent Anne Chamberlin wrote that Jacqueline Kennedy "conducted herself magnificently" although noting that her crowds were smaller than those that President Dwight Eisenhower and Queen Elizabeth II attracted when they had previously visited these countries.

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56.

Unlike her husband, Jacqueline Kennedy was fluent in Spanish, which she used to address Latin American audiences.

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57.

In early 1963, Jacqueline Kennedy was again pregnant, which led her to curtail her official duties.

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58.

Jacqueline Kennedy spent most of the summer at a home she and the President had rented on Squaw Island, which was near the Kennedy compound on Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

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59.

Jacqueline Kennedy had remained at Otis Air Force Base to recuperate after the Caesarean delivery; her husband went to Boston to be with their infant son and was present when he died.

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60.

Arthur Schlesinger wrote that while John Jacqueline Kennedy always "regarded Jackie with genuine affection and pride, " their marriage "never seemed more solid than in the later months of 1963".

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61.

President Jacqueline Kennedy initially had reservations, but he relented because he believed that it would be "good for her".

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62.

Jacqueline Kennedy did not realize that it was a gunshot until she heard Governor Connally scream.

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63.

Jacqueline Kennedy continued to wear the blood-stained pink suit as she boarded Air Force One and stood next to Johnson when he took the oath of office as president.

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64.

Johnson's biographer Robert Caro wrote that Johnson wanted Jacqueline Kennedy to be present at his swearing-in in order to demonstrate the legitimacy of his presidency to JFK loyalists and to the world at large.

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65.

Jacqueline Kennedy took an active role in planning her husband's state funeral, modeling it after Abraham Lincoln's service.

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66.

Jacqueline Kennedy requested a closed casket, overruling the wishes of her brother-in-law, Robert.

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67.

Jacqueline Kennedy led the procession on foot and lit the eternal flame—created at her request—at the gravesite.

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68.

Jacqueline Kennedy quoted Queen Guinevere from the musical, trying to express how the loss felt.

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69.

Jacqueline Kennedy spent 1964 in mourning and made few public appearances.

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70.

On January 14,1964, Jacqueline Kennedy made a televised appearance from the office of the Attorney General, thanking the public for the "hundreds of thousands of messages" she had received since the assassination, and said she had been sustained by America's affection for her late husband.

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71.

Jacqueline Kennedy purchased a house for herself and her children in Georgetown but sold it later in 1964 and bought a 15th-floor penthouse apartment for $250,000 at 1040 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan in the hopes of having more privacy.

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72.

Jacqueline Kennedy oversaw the establishment of the John F Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, which is the repository for official papers of the Kennedy Administration.

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73.

Jacqueline Kennedy attended the funeral services of Martin Luther King Jr.

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74.

Jacqueline Kennedy had been a source of support after she had suffered a miscarriage early in her marriage; it was he, not her husband, who stayed with her in the hospital.

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75.

Jacqueline Kennedy credited her with convincing him to stay in politics, and she supported his 1964 run for United States senator from New York.

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76.

January 1968 Tet offensive in Vietnam resulted in a drop in President Johnson's poll numbers, and Robert Jacqueline Kennedy's advisors urged him to enter the upcoming presidential race.

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77.

Jacqueline Kennedy met with him around this time and encouraged him to run after she had previously advised him to not follow Jack, but to "be yourself".

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78.

Jacqueline Kennedy confided in him about these feelings, but by her own account, he was "fatalistic" like her.

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79.

Jacqueline Kennedy rushed to Los Angeles to join his wife Ethel, her brother-in-law Ted, and the other Kennedy family members at his hospital bedside.

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80.

Robert Jacqueline Kennedy never regained consciousness and died the following day.

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81.

On October 20,1968, Jacqueline Kennedy married her long-time friend Aristotle Onassis, a wealthy Greek shipping magnate who was able to provide the privacy and security she sought for herself and her children.

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82.

The fact that Aristotle was divorced and his former wife Athina Livanos was still living led to speculation that Jacqueline Kennedy might be excommunicated by the Roman Catholic church, though that concern was explicitly dismissed by Boston's archbishop, Cardinal Richard Cushing, as "nonsense".

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83.

Jacqueline Kennedy was condemned by some as a "public sinner", and became the target of paparazzi who followed her everywhere and nicknamed her "Jackie O".

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84.

In 1968, billionaire heiress Doris Duke, with whom Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis was friends, appointed her as the vice president of the Newport Restoration Foundation.

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85.

Jacqueline Kennedy developed a close relationship with Ted, and from then on he was involved in her public appearances.

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86.

Jacqueline Kennedy died of respiratory failure aged 69 in Paris on March 15,1975.

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87.

Jacqueline Kennedy participated in the subsequent presidential campaign, which was unsuccessful.

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88.

Jacqueline Kennedy encouraged Dorothy West, her neighbor on Martha's Vineyard and the last surviving member of the Harlem Renaissance, to complete the novel The Wedding, a multi-generational story about race, class, wealth, and power in the US.

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89.

Jacqueline Kennedy ultimately obtained a restraining order against him, and the situation brought attention to the problem of paparazzi photography.

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90.

Jacqueline Kennedy began chemotherapy in January 1994 and publicly announced the diagnosis, stating that the initial prognosis was good.

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91.

Jacqueline Kennedy was interred at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, alongside President Kennedy, their son Patrick, and their stillborn daughter Arabella.

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92.

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis took conscious control of her public image and, by the time of her death, succeeded in rehabilitating it.

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93.

Jacqueline Kennedy reestablished her relationship with the Kennedy family and supported the John F Kennedy Library and Museum.

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94.

Jacqueline Kennedy was featured 27 times on the annual Gallup list of the top 10 most admired people of the second half of the 20th century; this number is superseded by only Billy Graham and Queen Elizabeth II and is higher than that of any US president.

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95.

Jacqueline Kennedy was named Woman of the Year 1962 for her efforts in uplifting the American history and art.

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96.

Jacqueline Kennedy is seen as being customary in her role as first lady, though Magill argues her life was validation that "fame and celebrity" changed the way First Ladies are evaluated historically.

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97.

Wide variety of commentators have credited Jacqueline Kennedy with restoring the White House; the list includes Hugh Sidey, Letitia Baldrige, Laura Bush, Kathleen P Galop, and Carl Anthony.

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98.

Jacqueline Kennedy became a global fashion icon during her husband's presidency.

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99.

In 1961, Jacqueline Kennedy spent $45,446 more on fashion than the $100,000 annual salary her husband earned as president.

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100.

Jacqueline Kennedy preferred French couture, particularly the work of Chanel, Balenciaga, and Givenchy, but was aware that in her role as first lady, she would be expected to wear American designers' work.

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101.

Jacqueline Kennedy suggested Ben Zuckerman, another highly regarded tailor who regularly offered re-interpretations of Paris couture, and the sportswear designer Stella Sloat, who occasionally offered Givenchy copies.

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102.

Jacqueline Kennedy set a new fashion trend with beltless, white jeans with a black turtleneck that was never tucked in and instead pulled down over her hips.

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103.

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis acquired a large collection of jewelry throughout her lifetime.

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104.

Jacqueline Kennedy wore Schlumberger's gold and enamel bracelets so frequently in the early and mid-1960s that the press called them "Jackie bracelets"; she favored his white enamel and gold "banana" earrings.

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105.

Jacqueline Kennedy was named to the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame in 1965.

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106.

Griffis said she had been told by her orthodontist of her resemblance to Jacqueline Kennedy and was cast as her upon walking into the auditions for the role.

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107.

Hennessy prepared for the performance by watching hours of archival footage of Jacqueline Kennedy and cited one of the reasons for her favoring of the miniseries was its distinctiveness in not focusing "strictly on the men or only on Jackie".

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108.

Neil Genzlinger thought Bisset "should have known better" in taking on the role while Kristen Tauer wrote Bisset portraying Jacqueline Kennedy as a mother was a "different central light than many proceeding films".

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109.

Kelly admitted to having difficulty with perfecting Jacqueline Kennedy's voice, going "to sleep listening to her", and having discomfort with the wool clothing associated with the role.

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110.

Goodwin used intimate photos to better portray Jacqueline Kennedy and was concerned "to do her justice and to play her as accurately as possible without ever doing an impression of her".

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