Once Upon a Time

The Captivating Life of Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy

Elizabeth Beller

• Publisher: Gallery Books
• Year: 2024
• eBook ISBN:
  9781982178987
• Topic: Design
• Subtopic: Fashion Biographies

The inspiration for the FX series Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette

A NEW YORK TIMES, LOS ANGELES TIMES, AND USA TODAY BESTSELLER

This “intimate and sympathetic portrait of Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy that is as enthralling as she was” (Dana Thomas, New York Times bestselling author) reexamines her life and legacy as never before. Perfect for fans of My Travels with Mrs. Kennedy, What Remains, and Fairy Tale Interrupted.

A quarter of a century after the plane crash that claimed the lives of John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife Carolyn, and her sister Lauren, the magnitude of this tragedy remains fresh. Yet, Carolyn is still an enigmatic figure, a woman whose short life in the spotlight was besieged with misogyny and cruelty.

Amidst today’s cultural reckoning about the way our media treats women, Elizabeth Beller “reveals the true woman behind the mystery, and what a woman she turns out to be: fabulous, fierce, fashionable, flawed…formidable” (J. Randy Taraborrelli, New York Times bestselling author). When she began dating America’s prince, Carolyn was thrust into an overwhelming spotlight filled with cruelly relentless paparazzi who reacted to her reserve with a campaign of harassment and vilification.

To this day, she is still depicted as a privileged princess—icy, vapid, and drug-addicted. She has even been accused of being responsible for their untimely death, allegedly delaying take-off until she finished her pedicure. But now, the truth is finally unveiled.

A fiercely independent woman devoted to her adopted city and career, Carolyn relied on her impeccable eye and drive to fly up the ranks at Calvin Klein in the glossy, high-stakes fashion world of the 1990s. When Carolyn met her future husband, John was immediately drawn to her strong-willed personality, effortless charm, and high intelligence. Their relationship would change her life and catapult her to dizzying fame, but it was her vibrant life before their marriage and then hidden afterwards, that is truly fascinating.

Based on in-depth research and exclusive interviews with friends, family members, teachers, roommates, and colleagues, and featuring never-before-seen family photos, this comprehensive biography reveals a multifaceted woman worthy of our attention regardless of her husband and untimely death.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Dedication
• Epigraph
• Author’s Note
• Chapter One: Last Night: July 16, 1999
• Chapter Two: Westchester: 1966–1977
• Chapter Three: Greenwich Time: 1977–1983
• Chapter Four: Boston Uncommon: 1983–1989
• Chapter Five: Champagne Supernovas: Spring 1989–Spring 1992
• Chapter Six: Ann’s Girl, Jackie’s Boy: Spring 1992–Fall 1992
• Chapter Seven: Much Ado: Spring 1993–Spring 1994
• Chapter Eight: Working Girl: Summer 1994–Fall 1994
• Chapter Nine: Meet the Family: Fall 1994–Fall 1995
• Chapter Ten: Sunday in the Park with George: February 1996–March 1996
• Chapter Eleven: Sprezzatura: April 1996
• Chapter Twelve: Back to Work: Spring 1996–Summer 1996
• Chapter Thirteen: The Wedding: September 1996
• Chapter Fourteen: Days of Wine and Roses: September 1996–November 1996
• Chapter Fifteen: Friends and Foes: November 1996–January 1997
• Chapter Sixteen: Help Wanted: February 1997–April 1997
• Chapter Seventeen: Cruel Summer: May 1997–August 1997
• Chapter Eighteen: Burning at Both Ends: September 1997–December 1997
• Chapter Nineteen: Mrs. Kennedy and the Vicious Circle: January 1998–March 1998
• Chapter Twenty: The Rumor Mill: April 1998–August 1998
• Chapter Twenty-One: All the World’s a Stage: September 1998–December 1998
• Chapter Twenty-Two: Grey Gardens in Manhattan: January 1999–March 1999
• Chapter Twenty-Three: Present Tense: April 1999–June 1999
• Chapter Twenty-Four: Reference Points: July 1, 1999–July 16, 1999
• Chapter Twenty-Five: The Other Side: July 16, 1999–July 24, 1999
• Epilogue
• Photographs
• Acknowledgments
• About the Author
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index
• Copyright