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Kenneth P. O'Donnell

"Johnny, We Hardly Knew Ye": Memories of John Fitzgerald Kennedy Paperback – March 20, 2018

by Kenneth P. O'Donnell (Author), David F. Powers (Author)

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This classic New York Times bestseller is an illuminating portrait of JFK—from his thrilling rise to his tragic fall—by two of the men who knew him best.

As a politician, John Fitzgerald Kennedy crafted a persona that fascinated and inspired millions—and left an outsize legacy in the wake of his murder on November 22, 1963. But only a select few were privy to the complicated man behind the Camelot image.

Two such confidants were Kenneth P. O’Donnell, Kennedy’s top political aide, and David F. Powers, a special assistant in the White House. They were among the president’s closest friends, part of an exclusive inner circle that came to be known as the “Irish Mafia.” In Johnny, We Hardly Knew Ye, O’Donnell and Powers share memories of Kennedy, his extraordinary political career, and his iconic family—memories that could come only from intimate access to the man himself.

As they recount the full scope of Kennedy’s journey—from his charismatic first campaign for Congress to his rapid rise to national standing, culminating on that haunting day in Dallas—O’Donnell and Powers lay bare the inner workings of a leader who is cherished and mourned to this day, in a memoir that spent over five months on the New York Times bestseller list.

Print length

502 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Open Road Media
Publication date

March 20, 2018
Dimensions

5.25 x 1.12 x 8 inches
ISBN-10

1480437832
ISBN-13

978-1480437838
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About the Author

David F. Powers (1912–1998) was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts, in April 1912. He is best remembered as a congenial, spirited, funny Boston Irishman who, along with Kenneth O’Donnell and the late Larry O’Brien, made up the original “Boston Irish Mafia.” He also happened to be one of President John F. Kennedy’s best friends. The two met in the winter of 1946, when Kennedy, then a young and largely unknown Congressional candidate, famously climbed the stairs of Powers’s triple-decker house in Charlestown and asked for his help. The two formed an immediate bond. Powers was likely at Jack Kennedy’s side from that night until the fateful afternoon in Dallas in November 1963. He had no particular duties with Kennedy, but Kennedy always knew that he had his back. In the White House, Powers was named special assistant to the president, and he served to provide a much-needed humorous lift during some of the president’s most difficult days. After Kennedy’s death, Powers remained close with Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and their children. From 1964 forward, he worked hand in glove with Mrs. Onassis to establish the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum and rightly went on to become its first curator. He and Kenneth O’Donnell penned the book Johnny, We Hardly Knew Ye, which has become a classic. Powers died in 1998 at the age of eighty-five.

Kenneth P. O’Donnell (1924–1977) was born in Worcester, Massachusetts, in March 1924, and was the founding member of what the press dubbed the “Boston Irish Mafia,” which also included David F. Powers and Larry O’Brien. His father was the famed Holy Cross football coach Cleo O’Donnell. Kenneth O’Donnell became a bombardier pilot, a war hero, and a graduate of Harvard University, where he played football with Robert F. Kennedy. He was later inducted into Harvard’s football hall of fame, and many of his records remain unbroken to this day.

O’Donnell met John F. Kennedy in 1946, and through his relationship with Bobby Kennedy, became John Kennedy’s top political aide from that point forward. During the 1960 political campaign, he worked hand in glove with Jack and Robert Kennedy as they developed the “Kennedy machine” and drove it to victory.

Once in the White House, John Kennedy named O’Donnell special assistant and appointment secretary; nobody got to see Jack Kennedy without first going through O’Donnell. He was with Kennedy that fateful afternoon in Dallas, Texas, in 1963.

After Kennedy’s death, O’Donnell stayed on for one year in the same role with then-president Lyndon Johnson. He also became executive director of the Democratic National Committee and is credited with helping to create the modern DNC. He later left Washington to return to Boston, where he ran for governor in 1966, losing in a very tight race. Later, as a political consultant, he worked with senators Robert F. Kennedy and Hubert Humphrey. He remained close to Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis throughout his life, helping her to establish the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. He also remained a close friend and advisor to Bobby Kennedy. O’Donnell collaborated with Dave Powers on the now-classic memoir Johnny, We Hardly Knew Ye. O’Donnell was later made famous in the film Thirteen Days, in which his relationship with Jack and Bobby Kennedy is accurately portrayed by Kevin Costner. O’Donnell died in September 1977 at the age of fifty-three.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Open Road Media (March 20, 2018)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 502 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1480437832
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1480437838
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.25 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.25 x 1.12 x 8 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #483,510 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,660 in Political Leader Biographies
- #6,327 in U.S. State & Local History
- #10,879 in Memoirs (Books)

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4.4 163 ratings

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"The heart of the Kennedy legend is what might have been." -- James Reston

Reviewed in the United States on January 1, 2013

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Alhough Kenny O'Donnell, co-author of JOHNNY WE HARDLY KNEW YE, admits that 60% of data and memories in the book belong to Dave Powers, he was elected as this bio's narrator. Kenny's technique is thus: "I recall when..." or "Dave says that..."

Intentional or not, the work has a stream-of-consciousness style filled with digressions. As illustration, its first long chapter, ostensibly about the fatal Dallas trip, includes timeouts for a Justice Dept. meeting on civil rights, LBJ's jealousy of Bobby and his dissatisfaction with being VP, memories of Sam Rayburn and Harry Truman, and so on.

There's hundreds of events covered in O'Donnell's breezy style, none more moving than this Zapruder-like passage, captured from Dave's and Kenny's limousine vantage point of ten feet behind Jackie and JFK during that tragic Dallas ride:

```I had just finished speaking when we heard shots, two close together and then a third one. There must have been an interval of at least five seconds before the third and last shot because, after the second shot, Dave said to me, "Kenny, I think the President's been shot."
```I made a quick sign of the cross and said, "What makes you think that?"
```"Look at him!" Dave said. "He was over on the right, with his arm stretched out. Now he's slumped over toward Jackie, holding his throat."
```While we both stared at the President, the third shot took the side of his head off. We saw pieces of bone and brain tissue and bits of his reddish hair flying through the air. The impact lifted him and shook him limply, as if he was a rag doll, and then he dropped out of our sight, sprawled across the back seat of the car. I said to Dave, "He's dead."

That's the passage we all searched for in bookstores 40 years ago, and as bitter a memory as it may be, these four paragraphs well illustrate Mr. O'Donnell's writing style. Details from JFK's life between 1946 and '63 are equally as vivid. Of the many works I've read on John Fitzgerald Kennedy, because of its first person knowledge and inviting prose, JOHNNY, WE HARDLY KNEW YE remains my favorite.

Highest recommendation!

CONTENTS--
ONE: The End of the Beginning / TWO: Getting Into Politics / THREE: The Lodge Fight / FOUR: Onions Burke and the 1956 Convention / FIVE: Going Nationwide / SIX: Wisconsin and West Virginia / SEVEN: How Lyndon Got on the Ticket / EIGHT: The Big One / NINE: Forming a Government / TEN: The White House / ELEVEN: The Showdown with Khrushchev / TWELVE: "Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ye" / THIRTEEN: Our Short Stay with LBJ / FOURTEEN: Reminscences / INDEX

5 people found this helpful

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CalNative

Must read1

Reviewed in the United States on December 18, 2016

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I'm only part way through this book and have loved every word of it. Unfortunately, it also reminds me of the tremendous sadness we suffered when je was murdered in Dallas, and all those crackpots circulated equally crackpot "theories".

O'Donnell was one of the prize men to write this book, and he's done an excellent job, without making it "glossy" or turning JFK into a secular saint. The man knew war (as did my father - spent 3-1/2 years as a POW of the Japanese) and did not want another one, . . EVER. Too bad his successors did not feel the same. As de Tocqueville noted, '“I do not know if the people of the United States would vote for superior men if they ran for office, but there can be no doubt that such men do not run.” He also noted that "“Society will develop a new kind of servitude which covers the surface of society with a network of complicated rules, through which the most original minds and the most energetic characters cannot penetrate. It does not tyrannise but it compresses, enervates, extinguishes, and stupefies a people, 'til each nation is reduced to nothing better than a flock of timid and industrious animals, of which the government is the shepherd.” I think Jack Kennedy was trying to lead the USA away from this very thing, but, unfortunately was not given the time. Also read deTocquevueille's "The Old Regime and the French Revolution", and Democracy in America.

7 people found this helpful

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Gramma 2

Used Book

Reviewed in the United States on September 29, 2023

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I didn’t see that that book is used. It has a lot of wear and tear. The plastic book cover is really smudged. Has printing on edge of book pages. Also has a lot of tape on cover. All in all it is not in really good shape. I am not going to send it back- but I will not order again unless the description advises the condition as “used” in a prominent way.

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Sir Maximiliano

A great tribute to a great president

Reviewed in the United States on October 17, 2016

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A great tribute to a great president. No conspiracy NONSENSE! Just 2 of JFK's closest friends writing a memoir.

I get it..... we need to have something more "exciting" than just some lone crazed gunman. The assassin was a delusional nut-job nobody who unfortunately accomplished the goal of becoming famous for all the wrong reasons. I personally never say his name....I just refer to him as the loser who killed JFK. If you have a chance....read the whole 1600+ page book or listen to the abridged version of Reclaiming History. Vincent Bugliosi of Helter Skelter fame, poured his heart and soul into investigating the assassination of Kennedy. Better yet, get your hands or computer on the Warren Commission Report. It covers EVERYTHING and EVERY angle. Don't support conspiracy theorists and theories before getting the facts first.

One person found this helpful

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Lou Washington

A great listen - Narrator needs pronunciation help

Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2017

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I am thoroughly enjoying this audible book except for one annoying problem. The narrator needs to do two things. First, he needs to find someone to help him pronounce names correctly. Newscaster Sander Vanocur, Senator Stuart Symington, Senator Birch Bayh and others all are subjected to name mangling, The other problem is his instance on trying to mimic the Kennedy "accent" when delivering quotes from the president. They guy is a great reader, but these two problems detract from the performance.

The book itself is wonderful, an insider look at the Kennedy presidency, the White House and the huge issues of that era.

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Amazon Customer

Great insiders view by people that loved JFK

Reviewed in the United States on February 12, 2017

Verified Purchase

Recently moving to New England and having memories as a 12 year old in 1960 wanted to know more. Feel I need to read another written by a detracter to get a balanced picture. The JFK depicted in this book is the public JFK we saw at the time (with great insider details and stories) not with his Clintonish like escapades we later learned about. Wonder if he could have been as successful with today's media? I recommend this book for what it is, a well written book by friends.

6 people found this helpful

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RAEL.ORG

Indispensable à lire

Reviewed in France on September 8, 2020

Verified Purchase

Quand on aime la personne, comment ne pas aimer ce livre, écrit par des personnes qui ont été proches de John Kennedy et qui l'ont profondément aimé eux aussi ?
C'est en plus, il faut le reconnaitre, très bien écrit. Le livre détaille toute la carrière politique de JFK, pas seulement la présidence. Cela permet d'apprendre beaucoup de choses sur le fonctionnement de la politique aux États-Unis, O'Donnell mêle l'Histoire et les anecdotes qui font de Kennedy et de son frère (comment dissocier l'un de l'autre ?) des êtres si attachants.
Pas interprétations, même au sujet de l'assassinat, juste les faits. mais racontés en détail, par ceux qui les ont vécu. O'Donnell et Powers étaient dans la voiture qui suivait Le président à Dallas, ils étaient toujours près de lui dans toutes les décisions importantes de sa vie publique et souvent dans sa vie intime. Après avoir lu le livre on a l'impression de le connaître personnellement, et on l'aime encore plus. Un livre indispensable si on s'intéresse à John et Robert.

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Gertraud Morgenthal

Bis jetzt sehr gut.

Reviewed in Germany on October 8, 2018

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Im Moment übersetze ich das dritte Kapitel, aber was ich bis jetzt las ist ausgesprochen interessant . Im allgemeinen werden in den JFK Biographien nur die Fakten mitgeteilt. zum Beispiel, er wurde 1946 in den Kongress gewählt. Hier. erfährt man sehr interessante Hintergründe auch über den Menschen JFK nicht nur über den Politiker.und auch reizende Nebensächlichkeiten. Ich bin froh, das Buch erworben zu haben

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Jane Carr

An interesting read written by friends of President Kennedy. ...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 24, 2015

Verified Purchase

An interesting read written by friends of President Kennedy. If you are looking for objective analysis this is not the book for you. A personal tribute to their friend which gives an interesting insight to Kennedy.

Gracia Barreiros

bad state of repair

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 27, 2013

Verified Purchase

I haven't read the book, so I'm not judging it
I'm refering to the very bad state of repair it is in
It doesn't even have a cover!!!!
big deception

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