Prologue
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We were so sure that Jack could do it. I was sure of it, in fact. But it didn’t happen. Humphrey was running a better campaign then we expected. That and that damn rumor. I don’t know who started it but it didn’t help.
-Activist, lawyer and Former Deputy Secretary of State Robert F. Kennedy, interview with TIME, Saturday, June 4, 1988.
I think JFK would have been a great president. Nothing against President Humphrey, of course. But JFK was on track to be the first Catholic President of the United States. Whether or not JFK would have been able to do the things that HHH did on Civil and Voting Rights is a matter of debate. Still it is an interesting thought experiment.
-Barack Obama, author of Camelot: An Alternate 1960’s and Beyond, on The Tonight Show with Joan Hardy, April 15, 2006.
I wasn’t as politically active back then as I am now. I was interested sure. But I usually kept my opinions to myself.
There were those who wanted you to run for office.
(laughs) I know. But just the thought of me, or any actor, achieving elected office is ridiculous.
What about Ronald Reagan?
He’s the exception that proves the rule. What did California gain by his time in office? Not much, as far as I can tell. Besides, it always seemed to me that he had one eye on that house on Pennsylvania Avenue with the oval room then anything to actually help Californians.
-Marilyn Monroe, interview with Variety, Saturday August 4, 2012.
April 5, 1960.
John and Robert Kennedy were nervous. Though they expected to win Wisconsin, they didn’t expect it to be this close. Humphrey had run a better campaign then they had expected. It was energetic, poorly funded but energetic. The Kennedys had the money and the star power to be sure, they thought that was enough.
During the run up to tonight, something started happening. More people started to show up at Humphrey’s rallies. People were talking about the race being closer. The Kennedys started doing things, like making promises that they would have to go back on, that they wouldn’t have done otherwise. Now the Wisconsin primary was closer than either of them could imagine when the evening started. As the evening wore on though, things got worse. The Kennedy team started losing. Even in the Catholic, Urban parts of the state they were losing.
At the headquarters of Senator Hubert Humphrey, there was cause for subdued celebration. Though they were winning in Wisconsin, they all knew, Humphrey especially, that there was still a long way to go until the end of this primary. As the night wore on, things started to stabilize until the final results were in: Humphrey 59%, Kennedy 41%. It was enough for the Humphrey team to pick up some more money and endorsements.
At Kennedy headquarters, Robert turned to John and said: “What are we going to tell dad?”
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We were so sure that Jack could do it. I was sure of it, in fact. But it didn’t happen. Humphrey was running a better campaign then we expected. That and that damn rumor. I don’t know who started it but it didn’t help.
-Activist, lawyer and Former Deputy Secretary of State Robert F. Kennedy, interview with TIME, Saturday, June 4, 1988.
I think JFK would have been a great president. Nothing against President Humphrey, of course. But JFK was on track to be the first Catholic President of the United States. Whether or not JFK would have been able to do the things that HHH did on Civil and Voting Rights is a matter of debate. Still it is an interesting thought experiment.
-Barack Obama, author of Camelot: An Alternate 1960’s and Beyond, on The Tonight Show with Joan Hardy, April 15, 2006.
I wasn’t as politically active back then as I am now. I was interested sure. But I usually kept my opinions to myself.
There were those who wanted you to run for office.
(laughs) I know. But just the thought of me, or any actor, achieving elected office is ridiculous.
What about Ronald Reagan?
He’s the exception that proves the rule. What did California gain by his time in office? Not much, as far as I can tell. Besides, it always seemed to me that he had one eye on that house on Pennsylvania Avenue with the oval room then anything to actually help Californians.
-Marilyn Monroe, interview with Variety, Saturday August 4, 2012.
April 5, 1960.
John and Robert Kennedy were nervous. Though they expected to win Wisconsin, they didn’t expect it to be this close. Humphrey had run a better campaign then they had expected. It was energetic, poorly funded but energetic. The Kennedys had the money and the star power to be sure, they thought that was enough.
During the run up to tonight, something started happening. More people started to show up at Humphrey’s rallies. People were talking about the race being closer. The Kennedys started doing things, like making promises that they would have to go back on, that they wouldn’t have done otherwise. Now the Wisconsin primary was closer than either of them could imagine when the evening started. As the evening wore on though, things got worse. The Kennedy team started losing. Even in the Catholic, Urban parts of the state they were losing.
At the headquarters of Senator Hubert Humphrey, there was cause for subdued celebration. Though they were winning in Wisconsin, they all knew, Humphrey especially, that there was still a long way to go until the end of this primary. As the night wore on, things started to stabilize until the final results were in: Humphrey 59%, Kennedy 41%. It was enough for the Humphrey team to pick up some more money and endorsements.
At Kennedy headquarters, Robert turned to John and said: “What are we going to tell dad?”