Listening In (54 page)

8
. In a response to a request by Jacqueline Kennedy during the height of the Cold War, Pushinka (Russian for “Fluffy”) was a gift from Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev to Caroline Kennedy. Pushinka was a puppy from Strelka, one of the first Soviet space dogs who returned to Earth. Pushinka and the Kennedys’ Welsh Terrier Charlie had four puppies together.

9
. Tito had led Yugoslavia’s fierce partisan resistance to the Nazis in World War II, and conceived a unique path during the Cold War, as the head of a Communist nation capable of standing up to the Soviets and embracing certain values of the West.

10
. In October 1961, Tito visited the United States. During a visit to the United Nations, he encountered protests from Croats and Serbs and was criticized by Senator Thomas Dodd of Connecticut.

1
. David Hackett (1927–2011) was executive director of the President’s Committee on Juvenile Delinquency and Youth Crime from 1961 to 1964. He was a close friend of Robert Kennedy since they had attended Milton Academy together, and a hockey standout who played for the U.S. Olympic team.

2
. Arthur Sylvester was assistant secretary of defense for public affairs.

3
. Pierre Salinger, President Kennedy’s press secretary.

4
. Jordan Marsh was a department store in downtown Boston.

5
. Godfrey McHugh (1911–1997) was a brigadier general in the U.S. Air Force and the air force aide to President Kennedy.

6
. “Al” is unidentified.

7
. Peter Lawford (1923–1984) was an English-American film actor married to President Kennedy’s sister Patricia Kennedy (1924–2006). They divorced in 1966.

8
. Jack L. Warner (1892–1978) was a Canadian-American film executive who was the president and driving force behind the Warner Bros. Studios in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California.

9
. This meeting included three advisors. Wilbur Mills (1909–1992) was a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from the state of Arkansas and chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. Lawrence O’Brien (1917–1990) was special assistant to the President for congressional relations and personnel. O’Brien was also one of the Democratic Party’s leading electoral strategists and served as the director of Kennedy’s successful U.S. Senate election and reelection campaigns and nationally as the director of his presidential campaign. Ted Sorensen (1928–2010) was President John F. Kennedy’s special counsel.

10
. This meeting included Robert Kennedy, Lawrence O’Brien, DNC Chairman John Bailey, Kenneth O’Donnell, and Ted Sorensen.

11
. Stephen E. Smith (1927–1990) was married to President Kennedy’s sister Jean. He was expected to serve as the campaign manager for the 1964 election.

12
. The Alliance for Progress was a Kennedy administration initiative to improve relations with Latin America, emphasizing trade and development, and announced in 1961.

13
. João Goulart (1919–1976) was president of Brazil from 1961 to 1964; his progressive policies often put him at odds with the United States at the time.