Jacqueline Kennedy: First Lady of the New Frontier

Modern First Ladies

by Barbara A. Perry

In a mere one thousand days, Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy created an entrancing public persona that has remained intact for more than a half-century. Even now, long after her death in 1994, she remains a figure of enduring—and endearing—interest. Yet, while innumerable books have focused on the legends and gossip surrounding this charismatic figure, Barbara Perry’s is the first to focus largely on Kennedys’ White House years, portraying a First Lady far more complex and enigmatic than previously perceived.

Noting how Jackie’s celebrity and devotion to privacy have for years precluded a more serious treatment, Perry’s engaging and well-crafted story illuminates Kennedy’s immeasurable impact on the institution of the First Lady. Perry vividly illustrates the complexities of Jacqueline Bouvier’s marriage to John F. Kennedy, and shows how she transformed herself from a reluctant political wife to an effective, confident presidential partner. Perry is especially illuminating in tracing the First Lady’s mastery of political symbolism and imagery, along with her use of television and state entertainment to disseminate her work to a global audience.

By offering the White House as a stage for the arts, Jackie also bolstered the president’s Cold War efforts to portray the United States as the epitome of a free society. From redecorating the White House, to championing Lafayette Square’s preservation, to lending her name to fund-raising for the National Cultural Center, she had a profound impact on the nation’s psyche and cultural life. Meanwhile, her fashionable clothes and glamorous hairdos stood in stark contrast to the dowdiness of her predecessors and the drab appearances of Communist leaders’ spouses.

Never before or since have a First Lady (and her husband) sparkled with so much hope and vigor on the stage of American public life. Perry’s deft narrative captures all of that and more, even as it also insightfully depicts Jackie’s struggles to preserve her own identity amid the pressures of an institution she changed forever.

Grounded on the author’s painstaking research into previously overlooked or unavailable archives, at the Kennedy Library and elsewhere, as well as interviews with Jacqueline Kennedy’s close associates, Perry’s work expands and enriches our understanding of a remarkable American woman.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, History

288 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2004

About the author

Barbara A. Perry is the Gerald L. Baliles Professor and director of presidential studies at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center, where she co-directs the Presidential Oral History Program. She has authored or edited 16 books on presidents, First Ladies, the Kennedy family, the Supreme Court, and civil rights and civil liberties. Perry has conducted more than 120 interviews for the George H. W. Bush, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama Presidential Oral History Projects; participated in the Bill Clinton interviews; directed the Edward Kennedy Oral History Project; and co-directs the Hillary Rodham Clinton Oral History Project. She served as a U.S. Supreme Court fellow and has worked for both Republican and Democratic members of the Senate.

A native of Louisville, Kentucky, Perry earned a PhD in government from the University of Virginia; an MA degree in politics, philosophy, and economics from Oxford University; and a BA degree in political science, with highest honors, from the University of Louisville.

Perry is a frequent media commentator for national and international news sources. She is prepared to discuss American presidents, especially FDR through Obama, with particular expertise on JFK and the Kennedy family. Perry has taught all aspects of American government/politics and can respond to media questions on most topics related to presidential campaigns and elections, public policy, and presidential communications. In addition to the American presidency (including First Ladies), her research, writing, and commentary have covered the U.S. Supreme Court, particularly presidential appointments, as well as civil rights and civil liberties.

Perry has been a commentator for such outlets as CBS, PBS, CNN, C-SPAN, MSNBC, NPR, PRI, Fox News, BBC, Canadian Broadcasting Corp., Swiss TV, HuffPost Live, The Morning Rundown, The Andrea Mitchell Report, The NewsHour, 1A, The Diane Rehm Show, The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Sunday Times of London, USA Today, Bloomberg News, POLITICO, the Daily Beast, and the Associated Press. She regularly contributes to UVA’s blog, Thoughts from the Lawn.

Previously, Perry was the Carter Glass Professor of Government and founding director of the Center for Civic Renewal at Sweet Briar College in Virginia. In 1994-95, she received the Justice Tom C. Clark Award as the outstanding Supreme Court Fellow that year. In addition to providing research for Chief Justice William Rehnquist’s speeches, she briefed more than 3,000 visitors to the court from 70 different countries. She was the Senior Fellow for Civics Education at the University of Louisville’s McConnell Center in 2006-07, where she is currently a Non-Resident Fellow. From 1996 through 2008, she taught in the Supreme Court Summer Institute, co-sponsored by the Supreme Court Historical Society and Street Law. In 2012, Perry received the Virginia Social Science Association’s Scholar Award in Political Science. The Sons of the American Revolution, Virginia Society, awarded her their 2013 Silver Good Citizenship Medal for “her outstanding achievements in the study, writing, and teaching of American history.” The University of Louisville’s College of Arts and Sciences named her the 2014 Alumna Fellow of the Year.

Perry has participated in the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Information Programs and lectures for the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, for which she taught a 2015 online graduate course on the Kennedy presidency and offers a teacher institute on JFK. From 2010-14, she served as an adjunct faculty member at the Federal Executive Institute in Charlottesville, providing seminars to senior federal executives on the Kennedy presidency, the U.S. Supreme Court, and leadership.

Reviews

[Colleen Browne · Rating 5 out of 5]

If this had not been required reading for a class, I would not have read it but I am glad it was required. Although I have read a lot about the other Kennedy's, I had not read a biography of Jackie. It is well written, well documented, and very interesting. She was a very smart, complex women and an excellent First Lady. Her contributions to White House history have been invaluable. I recommend.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book - especially since the author Dr. Barbara Perry was my professor and advisor at Sweet Briar College. It was well-researched and well-written, and it made me nostalgic to sit in her classes again. Worth the read!

[Erik Ryberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

A comprehensive, fairly concise although somewhat unbalanced look at Jackie as First Lady. A substantial overview of her upbringing and how it would influence her role in the White House is given and then a focus on her actions and rejuvenation of the interior design of the White House makes up much of this book. It got a bit tedious with a focus on some of the details of her impact on rejuvenating the White House and DC neighborhoods, but the importance of her is not lost on one. Naturally, she will be a yardstick by which to measure future First Wives and Husbands.

[Robin | TheWanderingReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

I knew very little about Jacqueline Kennedy before reading this book. To this book's credit, I appreciated how informative it was. It certainly packs a lot of information, but gets bogged down in the middle by including lots of details about former and future First Ladies to better mark and give context to Jackie's place in history. It also felt a little cold and impersonal. I learned a lot, but was left preferring to read a biography by someone who knew her more personally.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a wonderful look at the years Jacqueline Kennedy spent in the White House. A few pages at the beginning of the book describe her early life, and a few pages at the end of the book briefly detail her post-White House years. This book mainly discusses Jacqueline Kennedy in the role of first lady, how the job shaped her and how she shaped the job.

It's very easy to read, very engaging, and a worthwhile effort from Barbara A. Perry.

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice summary of her life and easy to read

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm totally hooked on the C-Span First Ladies: Influence and Image series. Since history normally focuses on the "great men", this is a rare chance to glimpse the evolving role of women in society, as well as the unique personalities, passions and accomplishments of individual First Ladies, from Martha Washington to Michelle Obama. Some of their stories are delightful -- some tragic. Some, like Jacqueline Kennedy's, are both.

Biographer Barbara Perry and historian Michael Beschloss are the two panelists on the Jacqueline Kennedy program, which is, predictably, fascinating. Well researched, Perry's book is especially interesting from the standpoints of process and personality -- how she accomplished what she did, from her own legacy including the landmark renovation of the White House, creation of the White House Historical Society and the classification of the White House as a museum, to her influential patronage of the arts, international diplomatic and fashion successes, exemplar parenting, support of her husband and shaping her husband's legacy. The writing doesn't flow very well, but the content is interesting.

I'll no doubt be doing more first lady reading! And btw, the whole series is archived online at http://firstladies.c-span.org/ and some are available as podcasts via C-Span radio.

[Readergal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an honest book about Jacqueline Kennedy. The author, Barbara Perry, appeared on the C-Span series about the first ladies.

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nothing here that you won't find elsewhere