The Heartbreaking Reason Why Jackie Kennedy Was 'Not a Happy Bride' the Day She Married John F. Kennedy
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Jackie Kennedy’s life with John F. Kennedy is often painted as the ultimate fairy tale — a version of Camelot that America bought into. But things behind the scenes were often challenging for the young couple, especially on their wedding day in 1953. The then-Massachusetts senator wasn’t to blame for Jackie’s sad mood on the biggest day of her life, though, it was her dad who was at fault.
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Author Carl Sferazza Anthony shared what went wrong in his recent book, Camera Girl: The Coming of Age of Jackie Bouvier Kennedy, on what was deemed as “one of the social events of the season, maybe the century,” per CBS News. Martha Bartlett, who was the matchmaker for the dynamic duo and one of Jackie’s bridesmaids, recalled what turned the day’s events rather sour. Calling her friend “not a happy bride,” she explained what happened with Jackie’s dad, John Vernou Bouvier III.
“I think it was due to the fact that her father couldn’t give her away,” Bartlett said. “He was there. He’d got totally intoxicated the night before and couldn’t get up the next morning.” Bouvier III was an alcoholic and it often got him in trouble, like on Jackie’s wedding day. Her stepfather, Hugh D. Auchincloss, escorted her down the aisle instead, but the damage was done.
‘Camera Girl: The Coming of Age of Jackie Bouvier Kennedy’
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Jackie was also upset with her mother, Janet Lee Bouvier because she had excluded her dad from the rehearsal dinner the night before. The future first lady felt that had he attended the event, he wouldn’t have had the opportunity to go out and get intoxicated, and it was that decision that ultimately changed the entire mood of the Kennedy wedding.
Before you go, click here to see photos of JFK and Jackie O.’s grown-up grandkids.
Launch Gallery: 18 Of Jackie Kennedy's Most Iconic Summer Outfits
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