AllMovie

Part of the Biography television series from A&E, this documentary reviews the political career and personal life of President John F. Kennedy. During World War II, he commanded a PT boat in the Pacific. When the boat was rammed and sunk by a Japanese destroyer in August 1943, Kennedy, despite serious injuries, led the surviving crew through miles of perilous waters to safety. He married Jacqueline Bouvier on September 12, 1953, and the couple had two children. While recuperating from back surgery, Kennedy wrote Profiles in Courage,a study of courageous political acts by eight United States senators, which won a Pulitzer Prize. Kennedy campaigned for and nearly gained the Democratic nomination for vice president in 1956, and four years later was a first-ballot nominee for president. After winning the presidency in 1960 by a narrow margin, Kennedy became the 35th president of the United States, the youngest president ever elected, and the first Roman Catholic president. Kennedy was assassinated by rifle fire while being driven in an open car through Dallas, Texas. The alleged assassin Lee Harvey Oswald, was shot and killed by night club owner Jack Ruby two days later, while under heavy police escort on a jail transfer. Much controversy remains concerning the Kennedy assassination, and speculation about conspiracy theories abounds, despite the Warren Commission's conclusion that Oswald most likely acted alone.