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 Of the many official events hosted by the Kennedys in the White House, two in particular resonate with historical significance.
The Kennedys honored Governor Luis Muñoz Marín of Puerto Rico and his wife at the White House on November 13, 1961. Legendary Spanish cellist Pablo Casals, who had played for President Theodore Roosevelt in 1904, agreed to perform that evening. When the U.S. recognized the fascist regime of Spain’s Generalissimo Franco years before, Casals vowed never to play in America again. He agreed to perform at President Kennedy’s request, but did not attend dinner so as not to appear to compromise his ideals. Many of America’s celebrated composers and conductors were guests, including Samuel Barber, Aaron Copland, and Leonard Bernstein.
On April 29, 1962, the Kennedys hosted forty-nine Nobel laureates and other distinguished guests from the worlds of education, science, and the arts. Guests included Pearl S. Buck, Robert Frost, James Baldwin, Linus Pauling, Robert Oppenheimer, and John H. Glenn, Jr. The assembled group prompted the president to declare it ”the most extraordinary collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever been gathered together at the White House, with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone…"
In the exhibition, see the two Oleg Cassini creations Mrs. Kennedy wore on these historic occasions, along with other stunning gowns she wore to White House functions.
View a timeline of events in Jacqueline Kennedy’s life. >>
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