41 Years Ago In TIME

By Melissa August, Amanda Bower, Beau Briese, Rhett Butler, Belinda Luscombe, Ellin Martens, Andrea Sachs, Ryan Schick, Sora Song, Heather Won Tesoriero, Kadesha Thomas

America--and TIME--became fascinated with the Kennedy family even before J.F.K.'s election in 1960:

The KENNEDY CLAN is as handsome and spirited as a meadow full of Irish thoroughbreds, as tough as a blackthorn shillelagh, as ruthless as Cuchulain, the mythical hero who cast up the hills of Ireland with his sword. The tribal laws permit extremes of individualism, though most Kennedys look alike when they smile. When they are together, the family foofaraws are noisy and the discussions continuous, but when they are apart, their need for constant communication strains the facilities of the telephone company and the U.S. postal service. No matter where they happen to be, the Kennedys are a cable-stitched clan. The sisters communicate by long distance at least once a week; Jack and his brothers hold daily strategy meetings by telephone or in person. Father Joe, whether in his Manhattan office, his summer home in Hyannisport, his winter palace in Palm Beach, or his between-seasons residence on the Riviera, gets the latest daily report from one of the boys, and when Mother Rose makes one of her frequent trips to the ateliers of Paris, she can count on weekly letters, with the latest intelligence from each of her children.

--TIME, July 11, 1960