Never before seen photos of JFK as a teenager.
A full-length image of JFK in his
full academic regalia for his graduation from Choate in 1935. Photo by: RR Auction
Five photos of John F. Kennedy
in his school days, including two shots never before seen by the
public, are currently up for grabs in an online auction.
Organized by Boston-based RR Auction,
the online lot contains candid photos of the future president as he jokes
around with his friends during high school as well as more formal shots of his
graduation day from the elite Choate prep school.
Taken during the early to mid-1930s, when Kennedy was
between 14 and 18 years old, the exclusive snaps
show JFK the joker, the young man whose father did not think he
would be a presidential candidate.
A playful image of Kennedy with his roommate Rip Horton
as members of Choate’s drama club during a rehearsal.
Image
credit: RR Auctions.
One unique aspect of these
photographs, however, is their origin – they come from the family’s own photo
albums. JFK’s father, Joseph P. Kennedy, took the photos from the family’s
scrapbook and delivered them to biographer Gene Schoor in 1961 while the writer
was working on “Young John Kennedy,” published in June 1963.
The photos were pulled from the Kennedy family
scrapbook with traces of the glue still on the backs as well as
typed captions of who’s pictured and when they were taken.
Photo caption of JFK and his high school friends. Image credit: RR
Auction.
The lot even contains the typed memo
on official White House letterhead sent from Joseph Kennedy to Schoor when he
forwarded on the photos.
“From: The personal diary of Pres. John F. Kennedy
scrapbook & photo material given Gene Schoor by [J.F.K. crossed out] Amb.
Joe Kennedy at the White House, January 1961,” the memo reads.
A typed memo on official White House letterhead. Images credit: RR
Auction.
Schoor only used three of the photos
in his biography, however, meaning that two of the lot have never before been
seen in public: a photo of Kennedy
with his father and a sister – ‘Kick' on the deck of a ship; and one
of Kennedy with many of his friends at the prestigious Choate in Connecticut,
including Lem Billings (who would later work on his campaign) and Bud Wynne.
“An absolutely outstanding,
one-of-a-kind collection of original material from Kennedy’s formative years,”
said Bobby Livingston, Executive VP at RR Auction.
“We’ve seen JFK at Choate
– but you don’t really see images like this, The one outside his house with him
and all his buddies – that’s what he was known for. Jack as a young person was
always thought of as a cut-up.'
One of Kennedy with many of his friends at Choate,
including Lem Billings and Bud Wynne.
Image credit: RR Auction.
Kennedy was, in fact, seen
as quite the jokester while he attended Choate, infamously setting off a
firework in a school bathroom during his earlier years there.
When the school headmaster referred
to him and his accomplices as “muckers” following the incident, JFK wore the
term with pride and nicknamed his group of friends “The Muckers Club.”
“He was mischievous at Choate,” Livingston added. “Joe,
his father, didn’t see him as the presidential candidate. That was his older
brother, Joe Jr. So he’s relaxed in these pictures.”
A photo of Kennedy with his father and a sister
‘Kick' on the deck of a ship. Image credit: RR Auction.
That doesn’t mean he didn’t show some
promise during his teenage years. Despite his brushes with trouble, JFK was
still voted “Most Likely to Succeed” by his classmates upon his graduation in
1935.
The remaining photos include an image
of him standing proudly in his robe on graduation day. as well as a full-length
image of JFK atop the
roof of the Kennedy estate in Palm Beach, FL in 1935; and a playful
image of Kennedy with his roommate Rip Horton as members of Choate’s drama club
during a rehearsal.
The complete lot includes a first edition hardback copy of
Schoor’s book “Young John Kennedy” where three of the images were first
published.
A first edition hardcover of Schoor’s book Young John
Kennedy. Image credit: RR Auction.
The online bidding for the
memorabilia began on August 19 and will continue until September 16. Anybody
looking to purchase can place their bid at www.rrauction.com. At the time of
writing, the bid stands at $363 for the lot, but it is sure to rocket in the
coming days.
The auctioneers are currently placing
a conservative estimate of between $1,500 and $2,000 on the lot of photographs,
book and memo but would not be surprised if that was greatly surpassed.
Previous Kennedy items auctioned by the company have
earned bids up to $39,600.
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