25 Mind-blowing Facts About JFK

PocketEpiphany Published 08/26/2022 in wtf

John F. Kennedy changed our idea of what a president could be. And if he hadn't been killed, he might have created a better world for us to live in.

However, many don't know nearly enough about JFK's life. Ready to learn the good and the bad behind this icon? Let's dive in and find out!

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1.
JFK experienced chronic back pain. He underwent 4 back operations, including a discectomy, an instrumentation and fusion, and 2 minor surgeries that failed to improve his pain.-u/davidmilan46
2.
Dean Martin refused to attend JFK’s inauguration because Sammy Davis, Jr (who helped Kennedy campaign) wasn’t allowed to attend because he was black.-u/AllegroAppassionato
3.
Rosemary Kennedy, sister of JFK and RFK, had a forced lobotomy arranged by her father when she was just 23, leaving her incapacitated for the rest of her life.-u/photoalbumguy
4.
JFK asked his mother not to contact heads of state without asking first after she asked Nikita Khrushchev to send her his autograph.-deleted user
5.
JFK wore a rigid back brace due to his poor health and terrible back which left him sitting upright in the limo after being initially shot by Oswald. Thereby, giving Oswald a clear second shot.-u/Capgunkid
6.
JFK didn't know the U.S. had nuclear weapons in Turkey during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Even quoted as saying putting them there would be "Goddamned Dangerous" during a situation room meeting during the crisis. He was then told the U.S. had placed Jupiter IRBM's there in 1961, infuriating JFK.-u/CompletelyProtocol
7.
In JFK’s father’s 1946 congressional race, his campaign hired a janitor named Joe Russo to run against him and Boston City Councillor Joe Russo to confuse voters and split the “Russo” vote.-u/MickeySpin
8.
The casket that held JFK was buried at sea.-u/geek66
9.
2 weeks after buying a mail-order rifle, Lee Harvey Oswald used it to attempt to kill anti-communist extremist General Edwin Walker at home. He failed when his bullet struck a window frame, but escaped undetected. 7 months later, he used to same rifle to assassinate JFK.-u/a2soup
10.
JFK was stranded on a desert island during WWII, and eventually rescued thanks to a coconut he had carved a distress message into. He later displayed this coconut in the Oval Office.-u/thelonebroccoli
11.
The car JFK was assassinated in was cleaned and repurposed back into rotation and served as the presidential limo for Johnson, Nixon, Ford and Carter before being retired in 1977.-u/Gaymface
12.
In 1963, a group of Catholic schoolchildren visiting the JFK eternal flame sprinkled it with holy water, accidentally extinguishing it.-u/noahbodty
13.
In 1943, a Japanese destroyer sank an American ship with JFK on board. While everyone assumed the entire crew died, 11 survived and swam to a nearby island.-u/MorsesTheHorse
14.
Richard Pavlick was a retired postal worker who slipped past the Secret Service on a mission to assassinate president-elect JFK in 1960. Pavlick decided not to attempt the assassination because he did not wish to harm Kennedy's wife and children.-u/DieSchungel1234
15.
As of 2013, 61% of Americans believe Lee Harvey Oswald didn't kill JFK alone.-u/7dare
16.
In 1962, JFK wanted to create a nuclear economy that would have made viable massive desalination plants. Getting freshwater from saltwater “would really dwarf any other scientific accomplishments.”-u/ulikel
17.
The Zapruder film of the JFK assassination wasn’t shown to the public until 12 years later (1975) when comedian Dick Gregory provided a copy to Geraldo for his show, “Good Night America.”-u/Doctor_Popeye
18.
When JFK was only 3 years old, his father Joseph Kennedy narrowly escaped the infamous 1920 Wall Street bombing planned by a group of anarchists who used a wagon full of lead weights as a bomb. The explosion killed 38 bystanders. However, Kennedy was thrown unharmed to the ground.-u/KimCureAll
19.
Frank Sinatra was friends with JFK. In 1962, in anticipation of a presidential visit, Sinatra had a helipad built at his house in Palm Springs. When JFK snubbed him and ended their friendship (due to Sinatra’s alleged mob ties), Sinatra grabbed a sledge hammer and smashed up the helipad.-u/Russian_Bagel
20.
JFK ordered 1200 Cuban cigars just a day before declaring the Cuban trade embargo.-u/James0317
21.
President JFK had an affair with a 19 year old White House intern, including one instance where he dared her successfully to perform oral sex on his special assistant, Dave Powers.-u/TrendWarrior101
22.
JFK was a superb golfer but kept his golfing a secret because he didn't want to seem out of touch with average Americans. JFK reacted with terror when he nearly hit a hole-in-one while running for President.-u/7UPvote
23.
After JFK was assassinated, there was a brief scuffle between local and federal authorities when the President's security detail wasn't allowed to remove his body from the hospital. It ended when the Secret Service agents put the local officials against the wall at gunpoint.-u/tooanalytical
24.
In the opening credits of Gilligan’s Island, as the SS Minnow sails out of the harbor, flags can be seen in the background flying at half-staff given that the filming of the show’s pilot took place the week of the JFK assassination.-u/UndiagnosablePaella
25.
JFK watched From Russia With Love at the White House in November 20, 1963, making it the last film he ever watched. He also named Fleming's novel of the same name (which served as the basis of the film) one of his ten favorite books of all time in a Life magazine.-u/dcdiehardfan

1.
JFK experienced chronic back pain. He underwent 4 back operations, including a discectomy, an instrumentation and fusion, and 2 minor surgeries that failed to improve his pain.-u/davidmilan46
2.
Dean Martin refused to attend JFK’s inauguration because Sammy Davis, Jr (who helped Kennedy campaign) wasn’t allowed to attend because he was black.-u/AllegroAppassionato
3.
Rosemary Kennedy, sister of JFK and RFK, had a forced lobotomy arranged by her father when she was just 23, leaving her incapacitated for the rest of her life.-u/photoalbumguy
4.
JFK asked his mother not to contact heads of state without asking first after she asked Nikita Khrushchev to send her his autograph.-deleted user
5.
JFK wore a rigid back brace due to his poor health and terrible back which left him sitting upright in the limo after being initially shot by Oswald. Thereby, giving Oswald a clear second shot.-u/Capgunkid
6.
JFK didn't know the U.S. had nuclear weapons in Turkey during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Even quoted as saying putting them there would be "Goddamned Dangerous" during a situation room meeting during the crisis. He was then told the U.S. had placed Jupiter IRBM's there in 1961, infuriating JFK.-u/CompletelyProtocol
7.
In JFK’s father’s 1946 congressional race, his campaign hired a janitor named Joe Russo to run against him and Boston City Councillor Joe Russo to confuse voters and split the “Russo” vote.-u/MickeySpin
8.
The casket that held JFK was buried at sea.-u/geek66
9.
2 weeks after buying a mail-order rifle, Lee Harvey Oswald used it to attempt to kill anti-communist extremist General Edwin Walker at home. He failed when his bullet struck a window frame, but escaped undetected. 7 months later, he used to same rifle to assassinate JFK.-u/a2soup
10.
JFK was stranded on a desert island during WWII, and eventually rescued thanks to a coconut he had carved a distress message into. He later displayed this coconut in the Oval Office.-u/thelonebroccoli
11.
The car JFK was assassinated in was cleaned and repurposed back into rotation and served as the presidential limo for Johnson, Nixon, Ford and Carter before being retired in 1977.-u/Gaymface
12.
In 1963, a group of Catholic schoolchildren visiting the JFK eternal flame sprinkled it with holy water, accidentally extinguishing it.-u/noahbodty
13.
In 1943, a Japanese destroyer sank an American ship with JFK on board. While everyone assumed the entire crew died, 11 survived and swam to a nearby island.-u/MorsesTheHorse
14.
Richard Pavlick was a retired postal worker who slipped past the Secret Service on a mission to assassinate president-elect JFK in 1960. Pavlick decided not to attempt the assassination because he did not wish to harm Kennedy's wife and children.-u/DieSchungel1234
15.
As of 2013, 61% of Americans believe Lee Harvey Oswald didn't kill JFK alone.-u/7dare
16.
In 1962, JFK wanted to create a nuclear economy that would have made viable massive desalination plants. Getting freshwater from saltwater “would really dwarf any other scientific accomplishments.”-u/ulikel
17.
The Zapruder film of the JFK assassination wasn’t shown to the public until 12 years later (1975) when comedian Dick Gregory provided a copy to Geraldo for his show, “Good Night America.”-u/Doctor_Popeye
18.
When JFK was only 3 years old, his father Joseph Kennedy narrowly escaped the infamous 1920 Wall Street bombing planned by a group of anarchists who used a wagon full of lead weights as a bomb. The explosion killed 38 bystanders. However, Kennedy was thrown unharmed to the ground.-u/KimCureAll
19.
Frank Sinatra was friends with JFK. In 1962, in anticipation of a presidential visit, Sinatra had a helipad built at his house in Palm Springs. When JFK snubbed him and ended their friendship (due to Sinatra’s alleged mob ties), Sinatra grabbed a sledge hammer and smashed up the helipad.-u/Russian_Bagel
20.
JFK ordered 1200 Cuban cigars just a day before declaring the Cuban trade embargo.-u/James0317
21.
President JFK had an affair with a 19 year old White House intern, including one instance where he dared her successfully to perform oral sex on his special assistant, Dave Powers.-u/TrendWarrior101
22.
JFK was a superb golfer but kept his golfing a secret because he didn't want to seem out of touch with average Americans. JFK reacted with terror when he nearly hit a hole-in-one while running for President.-u/7UPvote
23.
After JFK was assassinated, there was a brief scuffle between local and federal authorities when the President's security detail wasn't allowed to remove his body from the hospital. It ended when the Secret Service agents put the local officials against the wall at gunpoint.-u/tooanalytical
24.
In the opening credits of Gilligan’s Island, as the SS Minnow sails out of the harbor, flags can be seen in the background flying at half-staff given that the filming of the show’s pilot took place the week of the JFK assassination.-u/UndiagnosablePaella
25.
JFK watched From Russia With Love at the White House in November 20, 1963, making it the last film he ever watched. He also named Fleming's novel of the same name (which served as the basis of the film) one of his ten favorite books of all time in a Life magazine.-u/dcdiehardfan

JFK Facts -- JFK experienced chronic back pain. He underwent 4 back operations, including a discectomy, an instrumentation and fusion, and 2 minor surgeries that failed to improve his pain.-u/davidmilan46

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JFK experienced chronic back pain. He underwent 4 back operations, including a discectomy, an instrumentation and fusion, and 2 minor surgeries that failed to improve his pain.-u/davidmilan46

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1. JFK experienced chronic back pain. He underwent 4 back operations, including a discectomy, an instrumentation and fusion, and 2 minor surgeries that failed to improve his pain.-u/davidmilan46

2. Dean Martin refused to attend JFK’s inauguration because Sammy Davis, Jr (who helped Kennedy campaign) wasn’t allowed to attend because he was black.-u/AllegroAppassionato

3. Rosemary Kennedy, sister of JFK and RFK, had a forced lobotomy arranged by her father when she was just 23, leaving her incapacitated for the rest of her life.-u/photoalbumguy

4. JFK asked his mother not to contact heads of state without asking first after she asked Nikita Khrushchev to send her his autograph.-deleted user

5. JFK wore a rigid back brace due to his poor health and terrible back which left him sitting upright in the limo after being initially shot by Oswald. Thereby, giving Oswald a clear second shot.-u/Capgunkid

7. In JFK’s father’s 1946 congressional race, his campaign hired a janitor named Joe Russo to run against him and Boston City Councillor Joe Russo to confuse voters and split the “Russo” vote.-u/MickeySpin

8. The casket that held JFK was buried at sea.-u/geek66

9. 2 weeks after buying a mail-order rifle, Lee Harvey Oswald used it to attempt to kill anti-communist extremist General Edwin Walker at home. He failed when his bullet struck a window frame, but escaped undetected. 7 months later, he used to same rifle to assassinate JFK.-u/a2soup

10. JFK was stranded on a desert island during WWII, and eventually rescued thanks to a coconut he had carved a distress message into. He later displayed this coconut in the Oval Office.-u/thelonebroccoli

11. The car JFK was assassinated in was cleaned and repurposed back into rotation and served as the presidential limo for Johnson, Nixon, Ford and Carter before being retired in 1977.-u/Gaymface

12. In 1963, a group of Catholic schoolchildren visiting the JFK eternal flame sprinkled it with holy water, accidentally extinguishing it.-u/noahbodty

13. In 1943, a Japanese destroyer sank an American ship with JFK on board. While everyone assumed the entire crew died, 11 survived and swam to a nearby island.-u/MorsesTheHorse

14. Richard Pavlick was a retired postal worker who slipped past the Secret Service on a mission to assassinate president-elect JFK in 1960. Pavlick decided not to attempt the assassination because he did not wish to harm Kennedy's wife and children.-u/DieSchungel1234

15. As of 2013, 61% of Americans believe Lee Harvey Oswald didn't kill JFK alone.-u/7dare

16. In 1962, JFK wanted to create a nuclear economy that would have made viable massive desalination plants. Getting freshwater from saltwater “would really dwarf any other scientific accomplishments.”-u/ulikel

17. The Zapruder film of the JFK assassination wasn’t shown to the public until 12 years later (1975) when comedian Dick Gregory provided a copy to Geraldo for his show, “Good Night America.”-u/Doctor_Popeye

18. When JFK was only 3 years old, his father Joseph Kennedy narrowly escaped the infamous 1920 Wall Street bombing planned by a group of anarchists who used a wagon full of lead weights as a bomb. The explosion killed 38 bystanders. However, Kennedy was thrown unharmed to the ground.-u/KimCureAll

20. JFK ordered 1200 Cuban cigars just a day before declaring the Cuban trade embargo.-u/James0317

21. President JFK had an affair with a 19 year old White House intern, including one instance where he dared her successfully to perform oral sex on his special assistant, Dave Powers.-u/TrendWarrior101

22. JFK was a superb golfer but kept his golfing a secret because he didn't want to seem out of touch with average Americans. JFK reacted with terror when he nearly hit a hole-in-one while running for President.-u/7UPvote

23. After JFK was assassinated, there was a brief scuffle between local and federal authorities when the President's security detail wasn't allowed to remove his body from the hospital. It ended when the Secret Service agents put the local officials against the wall at gunpoint.-u/tooanalytical

24. In the opening credits of Gilligan’s Island, as the SS Minnow sails out of the harbor, flags can be seen in the background flying at half-staff given that the filming of the show’s pilot took place the week of the JFK assassination.-u/UndiagnosablePaella

25. JFK watched From Russia With Love at the White House in November 20, 1963, making it the last film he ever watched. He also named Fleming's novel of the same name (which served as the basis of the film) one of his ten favorite books of all time in a Life magazine.-u/dcdiehardfan

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eBaum's Picks

1.
JFK experienced chronic back pain. He underwent 4 back operations, including a discectomy, an instrumentation and fusion, and 2 minor surgeries that failed to improve his pain.-u/davidmilan46

2.
Dean Martin refused to attend JFK’s inauguration because Sammy Davis, Jr (who helped Kennedy campaign) wasn’t allowed to attend because he was black.-u/AllegroAppassionato

3.
Rosemary Kennedy, sister of JFK and RFK, had a forced lobotomy arranged by her father when she was just 23, leaving her incapacitated for the rest of her life.-u/photoalbumguy

4.
JFK asked his mother not to contact heads of state without asking first after she asked Nikita Khrushchev to send her his autograph.-deleted user

5.
JFK wore a rigid back brace due to his poor health and terrible back which left him sitting upright in the limo after being initially shot by Oswald. Thereby, giving Oswald a clear second shot.-u/Capgunkid

7.
In JFK’s father’s 1946 congressional race, his campaign hired a janitor named Joe Russo to run against him and Boston City Councillor Joe Russo to confuse voters and split the “Russo” vote.-u/MickeySpin

8.
The casket that held JFK was buried at sea.-u/geek66

9.
2 weeks after buying a mail-order rifle, Lee Harvey Oswald used it to attempt to kill anti-communist extremist General Edwin Walker at home. He failed when his bullet struck a window frame, but escaped undetected. 7 months later, he used to same rifle to assassinate JFK.-u/a2soup

10.
JFK was stranded on a desert island during WWII, and eventually rescued thanks to a coconut he had carved a distress message into. He later displayed this coconut in the Oval Office.-u/thelonebroccoli

11.
The car JFK was assassinated in was cleaned and repurposed back into rotation and served as the presidential limo for Johnson, Nixon, Ford and Carter before being retired in 1977.-u/Gaymface

12.
In 1963, a group of Catholic schoolchildren visiting the JFK eternal flame sprinkled it with holy water, accidentally extinguishing it.-u/noahbodty

13.
In 1943, a Japanese destroyer sank an American ship with JFK on board. While everyone assumed the entire crew died, 11 survived and swam to a nearby island.-u/MorsesTheHorse

14.
Richard Pavlick was a retired postal worker who slipped past the Secret Service on a mission to assassinate president-elect JFK in 1960. Pavlick decided not to attempt the assassination because he did not wish to harm Kennedy's wife and children.-u/DieSchungel1234

15.
As of 2013, 61% of Americans believe Lee Harvey Oswald didn't kill JFK alone.-u/7dare

16.
In 1962, JFK wanted to create a nuclear economy that would have made viable massive desalination plants. Getting freshwater from saltwater “would really dwarf any other scientific accomplishments.”-u/ulikel

17.
The Zapruder film of the JFK assassination wasn’t shown to the public until 12 years later (1975) when comedian Dick Gregory provided a copy to Geraldo for his show, “Good Night America.”-u/Doctor_Popeye

18.
When JFK was only 3 years old, his father Joseph Kennedy narrowly escaped the infamous 1920 Wall Street bombing planned by a group of anarchists who used a wagon full of lead weights as a bomb. The explosion killed 38 bystanders. However, Kennedy was thrown unharmed to the ground.-u/KimCureAll

20.
JFK ordered 1200 Cuban cigars just a day before declaring the Cuban trade embargo.-u/James0317

21.
President JFK had an affair with a 19 year old White House intern, including one instance where he dared her successfully to perform oral sex on his special assistant, Dave Powers.-u/TrendWarrior101

22.
JFK was a superb golfer but kept his golfing a secret because he didn't want to seem out of touch with average Americans. JFK reacted with terror when he nearly hit a hole-in-one while running for President.-u/7UPvote

23.
After JFK was assassinated, there was a brief scuffle between local and federal authorities when the President's security detail wasn't allowed to remove his body from the hospital. It ended when the Secret Service agents put the local officials against the wall at gunpoint.-u/tooanalytical

24.
In the opening credits of Gilligan’s Island, as the SS Minnow sails out of the harbor, flags can be seen in the background flying at half-staff given that the filming of the show’s pilot took place the week of the JFK assassination.-u/UndiagnosablePaella

25.
JFK watched From Russia With Love at the White House in November 20, 1963, making it the last film he ever watched. He also named Fleming's novel of the same name (which served as the basis of the film) one of his ten favorite books of all time in a Life magazine.-u/dcdiehardfan