Is the ‘Kennedy Curse’ Real? A Look Back at the Tragic History of America’s Political Dynasty
The political dynasty has suffered multiple misfortunes over the decades, including the death of John F. Kennedy Jr. on July 16, 1999
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NEED TO KNOW
- July 16 marks 26 years since the death of John F. Kennedy Jr.
- The so-called “Kennedy curse,” goes back decades, beginning with Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., who was killed in a plane crash
- Ted Kennedy came up with the concept of the curse after the 1969 Chappaquiddick incident
On July 16, 1999, the world was reminded of the “Kennedy curse” when John F. Kennedy Jr. died in a plane crash.
The death of the former president’s son, which the NTSB attributed to “pilot error,” was a tragic loss, another misfortune for the American political dynasty — prompting some to say he’d been reckless, and others to say the “Kennedy curse” was real.
The inexplicable “curse,” was long cited as the reason for the premature deaths, the two assassinations and the multiple fatal disasters that have befallen so many of Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy’s descendants and those around them. As grim as it sounds, the so-called curse was first mentioned by a certain Kennedy who may have unwittingly uttered its name into existence.
“Generally, they did not believe in the curse,” The Kennedy Heirs author J. Randy Taraborrelli told PEOPLE of the family in May 2019. “It was Ted Kennedy who came up with the concept of the curse after Chappaquiddick, when he was giving his public address — and said he wondered if perhaps that explained the terrible things that had happened to the family, including the death of Mary Jo Kopechne. And after that, the Kennedy curse became this sort of wide-ranging explanation for a lot of things that were happening. But when things got rough for them, I think they slipped into wondering if maybe there really was some kind of curse.”
The curse: Is it fact or fiction? Here’s a look back at some of the tragedies that have befallen the Kennedy family over the past several decades.
Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., 1944
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On Aug. 12, 1944, while serving in the United States Navy during World War II, Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. was killed in a plane crash during a secret mission. Joseph Sr. and Rose’s eldest child, and President John F. Kennedy‘s brother, was 29 years old.
Kathleen Kennedy, 1948
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Four years later, Joseph Sr. and Rose lost another child, Kathleen Kennedy. Also known as “Kick” Kennedy, she died in a plane crash on May 13, 1948, while on a flight from Paris to the French Riviera. She was 28.
John F. Kennedy, 1963
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President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963. JFK was riding in the presidential motorcade alongside his wife, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis; Texas Gov. John Connally; and Connally’s wife, Nellie, when Lee Harvey Oswald fatally shot him. The 35th president of the United States was 46 years old.
Robert F. Kennedy, 1968
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Five years later, on June 5, 1968, JFK’s brother Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated while on the presidential campaign trail. The former senator and attorney general was shot after giving a victory speech at Los Angeles’ Ambassador Hotel after winning the California primary. He was 42 years old.
Ted Kennedy and the Chappaquiddick incident, 1969
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On July 18, 1969, Ted drove his car off a bridge on Chappaquiddick Island in Edgartown, Mass., killing 28-year-old Mary Jo Kopechne, who was trapped inside. According to Ted, he and his cousin Joe Gargan and friend Paul Markham attempted to save Kopechne. Ted did not report Kopechne’s death until 10 hours after the accident.
In 2018, PEOPLE’s Cover-Up podcast explored unanswered questions about that fateful evening and featured interviews with Kopechne’s cousin (and only living relative) and dozens of others involved in the incident.
David Kennedy, 1984
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The son of Robert and Ethel Kennedy, David Kennedy died on April 25, 1984, of a drug overdose in Palm Beach, Fla. He was 28 years old.
Michael Kennedy, 1997
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In 1997, Michael Kennedy, son of Robert and Ethel Kennedy, was killed in a skiing accident in Aspen, Colo., on New Year’s Eve. He was 39 years old.
John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, 1999
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On July 16, 1999, John F. Kennedy Jr. died in a plane crash off of Martha’s Vineyard alongside his wife, Carolyn Bessette, and sister-in-law, Lauren Bessette. JFK Jr. was piloting the plane at the time of the crash. The president’s son was 38.
Mary Kennedy, 2012
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The estranged wife of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Mary Richardson Kennedy died by suicide on May 16, 2012. Her body was found in a barn behind her Bedford, N.Y., property. She was 52 years old and amid a divorce and custody battle at the time of her death.
Saoirse Kennedy Hill, 2019
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On Aug. 1, 2019, Robert and Ethel’s granddaughter Saoirse Kennedy Hill was found dead at her family’s Massachusetts estate. Aged 22, her cause of death was an accidental overdose.
The family confirmed the news in a statement: “Our hearts are shattered by the loss of our beloved Saoirse. Her life was filled with hope, promise and love. She cared deeply about friends and family, especially her mother, Courtney; her father, Paul; her stepmother, Stephanie; and her grandmother, Ethel.”
Maeve Kennedy Townsend McKean, 2020
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RFK’s granddaughter Maeve Kennedy Townsend McKean and her young son, Gideon, went missing, according to her husband, David McKean, after a canoeing accident in Chesapeake Bay on April 2, 2020.
David told The Washington Post that Maeve and Gideon had “popped into a canoe” to go and retrieve a ball that had landed in the water while their family was visiting at her mom’s waterfront property in Shady Side, Md.
Maryland authorities confirmed in a statement that a 40-year-old woman and an 8-year-old boy went missing from that same location after they “appeared to be overtaken by the strong winds” while canoeing.
“They just got farther out than they could handle and couldn’t get back in,” David told the Post.
On April 6, Maeve’s body was recovered about 2.5 miles away from the Shady Side property; Gideon’s was discovered two days later.
