Boston Common - Niche Media - A side of Boston that's anything but common.
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F ront Runners The Kennedy wedding in Newport in 1953 was the most-talked about event of the decade. America's Royal Wedding 60 YEARS AGO THE ENTIRE COUNTRY TURNED ITS ATTENTION TO NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND, WHEN SENATOR JOHN F. KENNEDY MARRIED FUTURE STYLE ICON JACQUELINE LEE BOUVIER. BY JESSICA LANIEWSKI 20 PHOTOGRAPHY BY BACHRACH/GETTY IMAGES W edding bells resounded through tony Newport, Rhode Island, when Jacqueline Lee Bouvier married the dashing young Senator John F. Kennedy on September 12, 1953. One of the most talked-about weddings of the decade, the ceremony took place at St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church in front of more than 700 people. Bouvier's ivory silk dress with a portrait neckline, fitted bodice, and bouffant skirt, embellished with more than 50 yards of flounces (now at the JFK Museum in Boston) was made by Ann Lowe. Her rose-point lace veil, originally worn by her grandmother, was draped from a tiara. The bride wore a single strand of family pearls, Jack's gift of a diamond bracelet, and an engagement ring created by Van Cleef & Arpels. Her attendants, dressed in pink taffeta, included her sister, Lee, and the groom's sister Jean and sister-in-law Ethel. Kennedy's best man was his brother, Robert, and among the ushers were brother Edward, brother-in-law Sargent Shriver, and friend Charles Bartlett, who had introduced the couple. At the rehearsal dinner the evening before, the groom presented each of his ushers with a Brooks Brothers umbrella engraved with the wedding date. The ceremony was performed by Archbishop Cushing, who was a close friend of the Kennedy family, and a special blessing from Pope Pius XII was read before the mass. Tenor soloist Luigi Vena from Boston sang Gounod's "Ave Maria." After the nuptials they retired to Bouvier's stepfather Hugh Auchincloss's 300-acre estate, Hammersmith Farm, to greet an additional 500 guests at the reception. The luncheon included creamed chicken, sliced ham, potatoes, a pineapple cup, and endless rounds of Champagne. Kennedy's wedding dress was the first step toward the future First Lady becoming a fashion icon, making "Jackie O" sunglasses, A-line dresses, and pastel-colored suits forever popular. BC BOSTONCOMMON-MAGAZINE.COM 020_BC_FOB_FR_Sep13.indd 20 8/2/13 2:14 PM