Laurence Leamer with Derek Blasberg: Ladies’ Man — The Careless Heart of John F. Kennedy

Overview

Biographer and journalist Laurence Leamer has chronicled the lives of the 20th century’s most enigmatic icons, from Truman Capote and Andy Warhol’s inner circles to the Kennedy dynasty. Now he returns with Ladies’ Man: The Careless Heart of John F. Kennedy, an intimate and deeply researched new look at JFK through the lens of his extramarital affairs.

Drawing on decades of reporting, interviews with hundreds of Kennedy insiders, and personal relationships with several of Kennedy’s former lovers, Leamer paints a portrait that is at once psychologically revealing and historically illuminating. He explores the stark divide between Kennedy’s polished public image and the private life that unfolded behind the mythology of Camelot, arguing that JFK’s relationships with women were central to understanding both his character and his presidency. Along the way, Leamer considers how Kennedy’s chronic illness, physical pain, and awareness of mortality shaped the choices that defined his personal life.

Leamer, whose book Capote’s Women was adapted into Ryan Murphy’s hit series Feud: Capote vs. The Swans, has long been fascinated with getting behind the mythology of some of America’s most revered cultural figures. Hear him reflect on what years of reporting taught him about one of our most scrutinized political dynasties, the women whose voices have been left out of the historical record, and what this new perspective reveals about one of the most charismatic — and complicated — figures in American history.

Why do the Kennedys still fascinate us? What is behind the enduring power of the Camelot legend? Don’t miss a fascinating conversation with one of our foremost chroniclers about the man behind the myth — and the stories that continue to reshape our understanding of John F. Kennedy.