Caroline Kennedy: Last Survivor of Camelot
Interesting podcast about Caroline’s life & times!
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 13 days ago
u/Tall-Plane-4477
r/ATC r/JFKassasination r/CarolynBessetteKnndy r/TheKennedys r/AviationHistory r/RobertKennedy r/JFK
Los Angeles Times: RFK Killer Sirhan “fired the first shots of the war on terror.”
In 2003, The LA Times wrote that Sirhan Sirhan "fired the first shot in the War on Terror” when he killed RFK.
Sirhan's name will be recorded in the history books as the first Palestinian terrorist to strike at the heart of America, on American soil.
Sirhan’s biographer Mel Ayton authored two books on Sirhan’s motives for killing Kennedy. Fascinating interview with Ayton, recorded shortly before his death in 2025.
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 17 days ago
JFK Jr. & Donald Trump (Life Magazine Archives)
Not sure exactly when this was taken. Sometime in the mid 90s, George magazine era.
The look on Rosemarie Terrenzio’s face as she looks at Trump is just priceless!
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 19 days ago
▲ 26 r/ATC
The ATC Heroes of 9/11
On the first anniversary of 9/11 (September 11, 2002) NBC’s Tom Brokaw produced an hourlong prime time special report on the air traffic controllers who handled the hijacked planes.
These interviews still shake me.
The 2002 interviews are fascinating because the actual ATC tapes wouldn’t be made public until 10 years after the attacks, in 2011. So all we had for many years was the first hand accounts of these ATC’s, based on their memories of that day.
I wonder where are those ATC’s now? Anyone here know or worked with them? Hope all are still alive & well, presumably retired or coming up on retirement soon.
Curious to hear from any older or now-retired ATC’s who worked on the darkest day in aviation history 25 years ago, if you are here in this sub.
How has ATC changed/improved since 9/11?
What lessons still have not been learned?
Has new/advanced technology made your jobs easier, compared to the old school tech you see in this video?
If a hijacking should happen again in U.S. airspace, how confident are you that the ATC network would handle it as well or better than these men and women did on 9/11?
Just wanted to thank you all for your service. You don’t get paid nearly enough for the stressful job you do. To my mind the ATC’s will always be the unsung heroes of that day — and every day.
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 1 month ago
Why wasn’t an autopsy done on the Bessette sisters?
Just curious if anyone knows why the Freeman family declined to have autopsies done on their daughters. Pretty sure under the law it was their choice?
Ted Kennedy made the decision to have John autopsied but didn’t want autopsy photos taken. Because state law requires photos, authorities agreed that the photos would never be developed lest they fall into the wrong hands.
I remember all the tabloid stories that came out after the accident speculating that Carolyn wasn’t autopsied because she was pregnant and for some reason the Kennedys didn’t want that information to be public.
That explanation never made any sense at all, because if she was pregnant there was certainly no reason for the Kennedys to want that fact hidden. (If indeed it was a fact, but alas we will never know for certain.)
Also, Carolyn possibly being pregnant doesn’t explain why Lauren was not autopsied.
Could it be that the sisters had some illegal recreational drugs in their systems? I’m sorry if my question offends but it’s the only explanation that would make sense to me. No parent would want their daughters remembered that way after such a tragedy.
It always seemed to me like there was something that someone wanted hidden from the public. It was strange to many of us in 1999 when we heard there had been no autopsy on the Bessettes.
Has this ever been explained by any authoritative source?
(EDIT: I looked up the law in MA, and an autopsy is not required for every death in Massachusetts. However, state law allows the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner or the local district attorney to legally mandate and order an autopsy if a death involves suspicious, unexpected, sudden, or violent circumstances.
When an Autopsy May Be Required
Unexpected or unexplained deaths: Sudden deaths of healthy children or adults where the cause is unknown.
Violent or traumatic deaths: Homicides, suicides, severe accidents.
So it may not have been at the discretion of the Bessette family, the decision to autopsy or not might have been made by local authorities.
* NOTE: There are conflicting reports about whether there was an autopsy of the women or not. Some media sources say a rushed autopsy of all bodies was done (in less than 4 hours, that’s VERY rushed). But most reports I’ve seen from biographers over the years say only John was autopsied.)
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 3 months ago
27 years ago today: JFK Jr.’s funeral 😢
27 years ago this week, the bodies of JFKJr, his wife Carolyn, and her sister Lauren Bessette, were recovered from the ocean floor.
Despite an extensive search it took authorities five days to find the wreckage. The bodies were cremated and their ashes scattered at sea near the crash site, followed by funeral services for the three victims.
Episode 12 of "The Kennedys: After Camelot" gives a rare insider’s look inside the Kennedy compound during those 5 dark days in July 1999.
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 3 months ago
JFK Jr.’s Final Flight: July 16, 1999
July 16, 1999: JFK Jr, his wife Carolyn, and her sister Carolyn Bessette perished in a plane crash off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard, MA.
This is an excellent description of John’s final flight as it happened from Lori Spencer, a personal friend of John for many years.
Spencer wrote and produced a biography podcast series about her late friend John Kennedy titled “JFK Jr.: The Man Behind the Myth” in 2025. It’s on her YouTube channel, highly recommended series!
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 3 months ago
The Humble Hunk: My Friendship With JFK Jr.
Journalist, Musician, and Kennedy Historian Lori Spencer was personal friends with JFK Jr. for nearly a decade before his death on July 16, 1999.
Spencer wrote and produced a biography podcast series about her late friend John Kennedy titled “JFK Jr.: The Man Behind the Myth” in 2025.
In this excerpt from Ep. 2 Lori tells a really funny story about how she first met JFK Jr., quite by surprise, in the unlikeliest of places!
https://youtu.be/joFD7sPVlkU?is=GcLv62bWF60TcdAs
She also shares some interesting stories about John & Daryl Hannah’s relationship in the early 90s here.
https://youtu.be/Mlv7LTOrr68?is=UNq\_OMRfEe2iFPlU
Enjoyed these! Wanted to share with others as we reflect on this 27th anniversary…
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 3 months ago
#OTD in 1999: “JFK Jr.‘s Plane is Missing” 🛩️
27 years ago tonight, JFK Jr.’s small plane was reported missing.
The wreckage and bodies were found 5 days later on the ocean floor.
The final episode of Ryan Murphy’s “Love Story” series touched upon how the deaths of JFK Jr., Carolyn and Lauren Bessette affected their families.
Here’s the inside story of what happened at the Kennedy compound on that tragic July weekend in 1999.
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 3 months ago
▲ 5 r/JFK
New RFK Files Reveal Many Plots to Kill Kennedy in 1968
New RFK Assassination Files Reveal Many Plots to Kill Kennedy in 1968
In this excerpt from the true crime series “Who Killed Bobby Kennedy” we continue our deep dive into newly declassified documents and analyze their context.
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 3 months ago
▲ 13 r/JFKassasination
New RFK Files Reveal Many Plots to Kill Kennedy in 1968
New RFK Assassination Files Reveal Many Plots to Kill Kennedy in 1968
In this excerpt from the true crime series “Who Killed Bobby Kennedy” we continue our deep dive into newly declassified documents and analyze their context.
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 3 months ago
New RFK Files Reveal Many Plots to Kill Kennedy in 1968
New RFK Assassination Files Reveal Many Plots to Kill Kennedy in 1968
In this excerpt from the true crime series “Who Killed Bobby Kennedy” we continue our deep dive into newly declassified documents and analyze their context.
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 3 months ago
Memories of John & Carolyn from a George Magazine intern
Benjamin Ryan was a young intern at George in the summer of 1999.
He wrote a dishy Substack article about his brief time at George, including this tidbit regarding that time he answered the phone and…
“was subjected to a seething, hysterical woman insisting—with remarkable moxie—that I had to put John on the phone this instant, and where was he anyway? (We got a lot of kookie calls about John, but this one took the cake.) Until finally she mentioned that she was his wife and I went scrambling to find someone who could at least get Carolyn to calm down.”
Be sure to read the comments after the article. Richard Bradley (formerly Richard Blow) chimed in!
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 4 months ago
▲ 6 r/RobertKennedy
LIFE Magazine photographer Bill Epperidge interview: Eyewitness to an Assassination
LIFE Magazine Photographer Bill Epperidge took some of the most iconic and horrifying photos in history on the night of June 5, 1968.
He told his memories of witnessing the RFK assassination through a camera lens to Washington D.C. journalist Craig Colgan 30 years later in 1998.
Listen! 🎧
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 4 months ago
▲ 0 r/RobertKennedy
Why RFK Jr. Visited His Father’s Killer in Prison
Why RFK Jr. Met His Father's Killer in Prison and Now Advocates for Sirhan Sirhan’s Release.
In this interview with Lisa Pease who arranged Secretary Kennedy’s 2017 prison visit with Sirhan she explains what caused RFK Jr. to change his mind about Sirhan’s guilt.
Pease is the author of “A Lie Too Big To Fail” and works directly with Sirhan’s defense attorneys. She spearheads the “Free Sirhan” movement.
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 4 months ago
▲ 15 r/RobertKennedy
WHY Did Sirhan Kill RFK?
58 years ago this week, RFK was assassinated on the presidential campaign trail.
Nearly six decades later, researchers too often focus too much on the HOW and not enough on the WHY.
Why did Sirhan Sirhan kill Kennedy?
Sirhan’s biographer Mel Ayton (author of 2 books on the RFK case) talks about the motive for this heinous crime.
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 4 months ago
▲ 3 r/RobertKennedy
Why RFK Jr. got involved in the effort to free his father’s murderer
Interview with RFK assassination researcher Lisa Pease, who works with Sirhan’s family and defense lawyers, spearheading the movement for his parole.
It was Lisa Pease who arranged a prison visit between Sirhan and Health Secretary RFK Jr. in 2017.
Secretary Kennedy soon-after became involved in the effort to free his father’s convicted killer — much to the dismay of his family, all of whom believe that Sirhan is guilty and should never see the light of day again.
RFK Jr.’s letter to the California Parole Board helped convince them to find Sirhan suitable for release in 2021. Gov. Gavin Newsom overturned the parole board’s recommendation and Sirhan remains behind bars.
Sirhan is up for parole again in 2027.
Should he finally be released at age 83?
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 4 months ago
▲ 5 r/RobertKennedy
Did RFK Killer Sirhan Sirhan Act Alone?
Did RFK's Killer Sirhan Act Alone?
This excerpt from Ep. 2 of the true crime series “Who Killed Bobby Kennedy” explores the fight between the Kennedy family (who say Sirhan is guilty) and Health Secretary RFK Jr. (who says he’s innocent).
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 4 months ago
The Final 48 Hours of RFK (June 3-4, 1968)
This excerpt from Ep. 10 of the true crime podcast series "Who Killed Bobby Kennedy" traces the steps of Sen. Robert F. #Kennedy on the campaign trail in California in the final 48 hours of his life: June 3-4, 1968.
It also follows the path of Kennedy’s killer, Sirhan Sirhan, as he stalked RFK around Southern California, waiting for that moment when their paths would cross in Los Angeles.
The guest is Craig Colgan, a journalist who has been writing about the RFK assassination for more than a quarter century.
Also discussed here is the make-or-break California presidential Democratic Party primary that year, the whirlwind of events happening across America in 1968, and whether or not Bobby Kennedy would have won the party nomination had he lived.
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 3 months ago
The Secret Diaries of RFK Jr.
The secret diaries of Health Secretary RFK Jr. were leaked to NY Post reporter Isabel Vincent in 2013.
She is finally opening them to the public in her new biography of Kennedy.
This book club takes you inside RFK Jr.’s diaries. Much here on his parents, siblings, wives, politics, and more.
u/Tall-Plane-4477 — 3 months ago