The
Day Camelot Was Lost—November 22, 1963
“Don’t let it be forgot,
that once there was a spot, for one brief shining moment that was known as
Camelot.” This line from the Broadway show of “Camelot” comes from one of John
F. Kennedy’s favorite songs.
The presidential era of
what came to be known as “Camelot” came to an end that terrible day in Texas
when a man with a high-powered rifle aimed at our President’s head as he sat
smiling next to his wife, Jackie, as they participated in a motorcade in Texas,
and pulled the trigger.
It was 50 years ago this
week, on November 22, 1963, that people of my age will never forget. We all
know exactly where we were and remember being glued to the scene on TV of the
funeral in Washington, D.C. over that long Thanksgiving break from school. What
I remember most about that day were the boots placed backward in the saddle of
a riderless horse and young John Jr. saluting his dad for one last time.
Where were you when you
heard the news? I was coming out of a class down in Machias at Washington State
Teachers College (now University of Maine at Machias). Everyone was buzzing
about the news that had just come through from Texas. Our president was dead.
It was quite unbelievable and very shocking to us all.
As I remember, Maine
people at that time were not all that thrilled with the Kennedy Administration.
I in fact, didn’t vote for him, voting for McCarthy instead. The scare to some
was that Kennedy was Catholic and therefore the Pope would eventually make the
policies in our United States. How ridiculous was that?
We as a nation lost our
innocence that day. November 22 forever became our “Day of Infamy.” As young
people then, we despaired about the future of our country. What would become of
our daily lives if we had to look over our shoulders in fear of a sharpshooter
lurking above our heads somewhere? Was this psycho shooter, Lee Harvey Oswald,
who had actually done the unthinkable and defected to our worst enemy at the
time, the USSR, been sent here to do this deed by his “red” commanders over
there in Russia?
So many questions with
no real answers. The Warren Commission tried to sort it all out later and
determined that Oswald acted alone, which is probably correct. That conclusion
didn’t stop our uneasiness about all things Communist, however.
How
did Camelot Begin?
I came across an article
in Yahoo Voices telling the story that Jackie began the idea of Camelot to
memorialize the Kennedy era for the future. I just saw on “Sunday Morning” that
they attributed the idea to John’s father, Joe, who was connected to the movie
industry. I believe that it probably was Jackie’s idea to begin with and Joe
just carried the idea forward. Here are excerpts from the article I found:
Why the Term "Camelot" was Given
to the John F. Kennedy Presidency
…It was First Lady Jackie Kennedy
who originally decided to use this expression. Jackie was very concerned with
how the Kennedy's were going to be portrayed after their time in office. She
wanted to make sure that the administration of President John F. Kennedy was
accurate and created an image for posterity of which she approved. Jackie had
always believed that history was written by old men with a pessimistic
viewpoint of the world…
Jackie contacted Theodore H. White of Life Magazine. She asked him to personally interview her for the
publication. Jackie wanted to be sure that the first piece written after the
Kennedy Administration was exactly what she wanted it to be. The interview was
entitled "For President Kennedy: an Epilogue". It appeared in a
memorial edition published in the month after the assassination.
It was because of President Kennedy's love of King Arthur
and the Knights of the Round Table that Jackie come up with the term
"Camelot". This was one of John Kennedy's favorite stories since his
childhood, as he loved stories that were full of heroes...
In 1960, a musical entitled "Camelot" came to
Broadway, running for 873 performances and receiving four Tony Awards. An
original cast album was created, as well, and became America's top selling
record for 60 weeks. President Kennedy loved the show so much that he purchased
the album and listened to it every night before he went to sleep.
According to Jackie, the song that President Kennedy enjoyed
most contained the line "Don't let it be forgot, that once there was a
spot, for one brief shining moment that was known as Camelot". After the
President died, Jackie remarked many times that the line just kept replaying
over and over in her mind. It helped the term "Camelot" to become synonymous
in her own thinking of the Kennedy family's time in office.
John and Jackie Kennedy and their two children were one of
the youngest and most attractive first families in American history. The
Kennedys had an aristocratic aura about them that a prior administration had
never really had. The Kennedys became more like celebrities than just a family
in politics. Jackie's use of the term "Camelot" was widely accepted
because she saw the reality- that there was a quality the administration held
that was never duplicated before or since.
To view the whole story by Kathy Scheidler, please go to:
The Saddest Songs of the 60s
The two saddest songs of
the 60s have to be “Where Have all the Flowers Gone?” and “Abraham, Martin and
John.” YouTube has two great videos of both of them which I include here.
Peter. Paul and Mary, our most favorite folk singers of the day sing “Where
Have all the Flowers Gone?” to a live audience in Japan in 1990.
Thanks for listening.
From Bill Pease, via the Village Soup site:
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sandra, for that moving remembrance of President John F. Kennedy.
You asked, "Where were you when you heard the news of his death?" I was in my office as head of the Undergraduate Library at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, when a student assistant came by and told me of it.
Kennedy had passed within two feet in front of me back in 1959 when it had been a very long tradition at Harvard College for the Trustees of the College and graduation luminaries and speakers to pass through a double line of the graduating seniors on their way to the graduation podium. He gave that Kennedy smile to every senior that he passed in that procession, including me, and I will never forget it.
Just four years later he was dead at the hands of a nobody with a 12$ rifle and a 7$ scope in Dallas.
Bill Pease (RHS Class of 1952)
From Sister, Sara Tavares via Facebook: I was in Mrs Viik 'a room at the high school counting tickets for our senior class play when Mr Doble turned on the school intercom with the broadcast of the news. Our play was to go on that night but was postponed for a week. We spent that week glued to the TV at home. Seems like yesterday
ReplyDeleteFrom Sandra Prescott via Facebook: I was celebrating my son's first birthday with a party that started at 1:00 when I heard and saw the news on television... I can see him now sitting in the high chair and we were all crowded around watching the news! I will never forget...
ReplyDeleteFrom Ruth Wade, via Facebook: I was home tending my younger children when the older ones came home from school and told me. I turned on the radio to learn more. We didn't own a TV at that time.
ReplyDeleteFrom Brother Ted, via Village Soup site:
ReplyDeleteI sat at my Linotype machine at The Courier-Gazette and "set" the story of the assassination written by Sid Cullen. The Courier, in fact, was the first paper in the state to have the story hit the streets. it was a Friday afternoon and we had the paper put by about 5 p.m.
Ted Sylvester