Carolyn Bessette's Mom Had Tough Advice for Her Daughter When She and JFK Jr. Broke Up
To the outside world, Carolyn Bessette's relationship with John F. Kennedy Jr. may have seemed like a fairytale. After all, she married into the closest thing America has to a royal family.
But Carolyn and John had their ups and downs just like any other couple, maybe even more so. And at a screening last week for the new documentary JFK JR: The Final Year, those who knew them well shed light on their courtship.
Answering a question by her friend and former Real Housewives co-star Dorinda Medley, Carole Radziwill revealed that Carolyn and John were first introduced through her job at Calvin Klein.
"They met when he went in for a fitting at Calvin Klein, I believe, and she was the person who dealt with celebrities coming in to get free clothes—I'm sure he paid for his clothes though," Radziwill, who was married to John's cousin Anthony Radziwiłł, said.
"I think he just liked her, and then they started dating, This was in I'm going to say '92. We were sharing a summer house, Anthony and I and John, and he brought her for memorial day weekend. They had been seeing each other for a few months super on the DL [down low]. And that's when I first met her."
Radziwill remembers being drawn to Carolyn immediately.
"She was just so much fun right away. You just felt like you knew her your whole life," she said. "And then, he broke up with her a few weeks later because he got back with his ex-girlfriend Daryl Hanna."
It was during that break, that Carolyn's mom offered her daughter some tough advice on love.
"There was this period where John was going back and forth, but didn't say anything to Carolyn. He just kind of went off the radar. And then she opened up the newspaper and there he was at a movie premiere with Daryl," RoseMarie Terenzio, JFK Jr.'s chief of staff, said during the panel.
"And her mom, who is hilarious sent her the article in the mail. Carolyn, please get on with your life, love mom. With a sad face."
But just a few years later, following the death of Kennedy's mother Jackie, John and Carolyn would get back together. They married in September of 1996, and tragically died less than three years later.
JFK JR: The Final Year airs Tuesday, July 16 at 9 p.m., on A&E.
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