From First Lady to Jackie O

From First Lady to Jackie O

Everyone knows Jackie Kennedy Onassis was married to two of the 20th century’s most powerful men, but lesser known are the five incredible years between those marriages when she was on her own.

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Most Recent Episode

Episode 11: Mrs. Onassis

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After yet another tragic loss, Jackie was ready to live life on her own terms. She was through with shouldering the burden of living as others thought she should— of leading a life that they, and not she, deemed suitable. She knew what she wanted to do.

This podcast is a companion to Paul Brandus's new book, "Jackie: Her Transformation from First Lady to Jackie O," now available in stores and online.

Follow host Paul Brandus on Twitter here.

More Episodes

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Episode 10: Shattered Again

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The assassination was now four years in the rear view mirror and she was in a new relationship. She was happy and life was good... but not for lon...
Listen to Episode 10: Shattered Again

Episode 9: A Brush with Death

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By 1966, Jackie wasn’t ON the A-list— she WAS the A-list....
Listen to Episode 9: A Brush with Death

Episode 8: The Lioness

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For Jackie, looming publication of "The Death of a President" would bring new troubles and the first dent in her once untouchable image....
Listen to Episode 8: The Lioness

Episode 7: Jackie Emerges

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Still only in her mid-30s, culture was changing all around Jackie, and inspired her to continue to break free of her own past in her own way. ...
Listen to Episode 7: Jackie Emerges

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More About Jackie by Paul Brandus

Jackie O Book

Purchase the book here.

The world was shocked when Jacqueline Kennedy married Aristotle Onassis in 1968. It would not have been so surprising had the truth of their relationship—which dated back to the 1950s—been known. Jackie knew Ari almost as long as she had known John F. Kennedy—and saw qualities in him (besides money) that she found highly attractive.

The five years between her marriages to JFK and Onassis are often overlooked. But it was an incredible period of growth and change for Jackie. How did the world’s most famous woman remain so enigmatic? What was she really like? This book reveals the real Jackie, the one that hid behind her trademark large sunglasses.

In this book, you’ll learn about:

  • Jackie’s lovers—and the one man she regretted not marrying
  • The secret, second burial of JFK
  • Her evolution from “political wife Jackie” into “nightclubbing, party girl Jackie”
  • Her own near death in 1967
  • Her influence on pop art, fashion, and design


The Team

Paul Brandus

The Host
A member of the White House press corps, founder of West Wing Reports, columnist for USA Today and Dow Jones, and author of Under This Roof, This Day in Presidential History, and Jackie.

Hannah Leach

Producer

Sean Rule-Hoffman

Audio Engineer
Sean hails from Orange Village, OH. He earned a degree in Music Technology with a minor in Electronic Media and Film from Capital University in Columbus, OH.