Jacqueline Kennedy‘s historic appearances in Senator John F. Kennedy’s 1960 presidential campaign ads, both her pitch to Spanish speakers and her chat with Dr. Benjamin Spock, were not her first filmed assist in a Kennedy campaign.
Jackie appeared in an ad for the Senator in 1958, when Senator Kennedy was running for reelection in Massachusetts, though he had his eye on the presidency, spending part of that year campaigning outside of his home state. Kennedy’s campaign team devised a strategy heavy on personal appearances and light on television, to avoid flaunting Kennedy’s wealth, despite the objections of Kennedy’s father, who worried about Kennedy’s health.
Meet the Kennedys
The campaign did create a 25-minute biographical film, “The U.S. Senator John F. Kennedy Story,” which aimed to give viewers a glimpse of Kennedy’s life on the job. Toward the end of the film, the Senator departs his office, and the camera follows him home, walking through the front door with him and watching him reunite with Jackie and baby girl. The not-yet-30 Jackie is as poised as you would expect, as she welcomes the audience into her home, “How do you do? I look forward to meeting all of you this fall as soon as the Senate is out, and we’re back in Massachusetts.”
Jackie For The Win
Senator Kennedy won reelection in 1958, crushing his little-known Republican opponent with 74 percent of the vote. He credited the win to the help of Jackie, who not only appeared in ads for the campaign, but stumped with the Senator both in Massachusetts and on his profile-raising trips outside the state, telling a reporter, “She is simply invaluable.”