John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy was an American politician and journalist, who served as the 35th President of the United States from January 1961 until his assassination in November 1963. He served at the height of the Cold War and spent much of his presidency handling relations with the Soviet Union.
Kennedy graduated from Harvard University in 1940 and joined the U.S. Naval Reserve the following year. During World War II, he commanded a series of PT Boats (Patrol Boats) in the Pacific and earned the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for his service.
On its 31st mission, PT-109 traveled with 14 other PTs that had been ordered to block or repel four Japanese destroyers and float planes. They were carrying food, supplies, and 900 Japanese soldiers to the Villa Plantation garrison on the southern tip of the Solomon's Island. On that dark and moonless night, Kennedy spotted a Japanese destroyer heading north on its return from the base of Kolombangara at 2 AM and turned to attack. PT-109 was rammed suddenly at an angle and cut in half by the destroyer Amagiri, killing two PT-109 crew members.
When it came to fighting or surrendering, Kennedy stated, "There's nothing in the book about a situation like this. A lot of you men have families, and some of you have children. What do you want to do? I have nothing to lose."
Shunning surrender, the men swam towards Plum Pudding Island 3.5 miles SE of the remains of the PT-109. Despite re-injuring his back in the collision, Kennedy towed a badly burned crewman through the water to the island with a life jacket strap clenched between his teeth. Lieutenant "Bud" Liebenow, a friend and former tent mate of Kennedy's, rescued Kennedy and his crew on Olasana Island on August 8, 1943, aboard his ship, the PT-157.
Kennedy took only a month to recover. On September 1, 1943, he returned to duty and took command of the PT-59. On November 2, Kennedy's PT-59 took part with two other PTs in the successful rescue of 40-50 marines. PT-59 acted as a shield from shore fire and protected them as they escaped.
Under doctor's orders, Kennedy was relieved of his command of PT-59 on November 18, 1943 and was sent to a hospital on Tulagi. From there, he returned to the U.S. in early January 1944. After receiving treatment for his back injury, he was released from active duty in late 1944. On June 12, he was presented the Purple Heart and the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for his heroic actions on August 1-2, 1943.
Did you know...
- After her role as First Lady came to an end, Jackie Kennedy went into the publishing business. She became an associate editor at Doubleday and worked mostly on autobiographies. In fact, she was one of two original editors for Michael Jackson's 2009 autobiography Moonwalk, a #1 New York Times bestseller.
- While attending the Grammys in February 2000, Jennifer Lopez stepped out in a green Versace dress that instantly became a phenomenon. The barely-there ensemble had a dramatically low cut that came below JLo’s belly button. It became such a talking point that it was Google’s most popular search query up to that point, and it spurred the company to include images into search results. It became the motivation for Google Images.
- When Rihanna debuted her famous red locks in 2010 (around the same time she was featured on Eminem's "Love the Way You Lie"), she started a red-hair trend. Over the next twelve months, she changed her hairstyle 13 times—more than once a month! But that came at a pricey cost. Sources say the annual price tag came out to $1,168,000 on just her hair.
- Jackie Kennedy is famous for redecorating and renovating the interior of the White House. Actually, on just her first day, she ordered $50,000 in changes for new rooms for the children and upgrades to the kitchen. She later hosted a tour of the White House for CBS News which was viewed by 56 million people and won her an Emmy Award.
- Jennifer Aniston's star-defining role on friends started a hair craze in the 90s that even lasted into the early 2000s. Called "The Rachel," Aniston's shoulder-length haircut had grown-out bangs and highlights styled to perfection. A hairdresser in Detroit noted that at the peak of its popularity, 40% of her business was devoted to recreating "The Rachel." Too bad that it was notoriously difficult to maintain on your own at home.