Joseph P. Kennedy’s reputation as a savvy businessman, diplomat, and sly political patriarch is well-documented. But his years as a Hollywood mogul have never been fully explored until now. In Joseph P. Kennedy Presents, Cari Beauchamp brilliantly explores this unknown chapter in Kennedy’s biography. Between 1926 and 1930, Kennedy positioned himself as a major Hollywood player. In two short years, he was running three studios simultaneously and then, in a bold move, he merged his studios with David Sarnoff to form the legendary RKO Studio. Beauchamp also tells the story of Kennedy’s affair with Gloria Swanson; how he masterminded the mergers that created the blueprint for contemporary Hollywood; and made the fortune that became the foundation of his empire.

Joseph P. Kennedy’s reputation as a savvy businessman, diplomat, and sly political patriarch is well-documented. But his years as a Hollywood mogul have never been fully explored until now. In Joseph P. Kennedy Presents, Cari Beauchamp brilliantly explores this unknown chapter in Kennedy’s biography. Between 1926 and 1930, Kennedy positioned himself as a major Hollywood player. In two short years, he was running three studios simultaneously and then, in a bold move, he merged his studios with David Sarnoff to form the legendary RKO Studio. Beauchamp also tells the story of Kennedy’s affair with Gloria Swanson; how he masterminded the mergers that created the blueprint for contemporary Hollywood; and made the fortune that became the foundation of his empire.

In 1919, when movies were an idea one week, in front of the camera the next and in theaters in a month, few were taking filmmaking seriously as business, but Joseph Kennedy spotted it as "a gold mine" and he moved so fast and so authoritatively, Louella Parsons hailed him as the "coming Napoleon of the movie business," yet seven years later, he was gone, millions of dollars richer. For the first time, Joseph P. Kennedy Presents discloses the full story of Kennedy's love affair and business arrangement with the "reigning Queen of the movies" Gloria Swanson. Beginning with his promise that "together we can make millions," they rode the disastrous roller coaster of their Erich von Stroheim epic Queen Kelly to end with Swanson over a million dollars in debt and on the brink of professional ruin. Here, too, are Kennedy's friendships with Marlene Dietrich, Joan Fontaine, and scores of other stars as well as his ruination of the life and career of Fred Thomson, the second highest rated film star of 1928 and his betrayal of two of his key business partners. Cari Beauchamp was one of the first to be allowed access to Kennedy's personal papers, including a maze of deals, memos and letters that had been locked away for decades. She reveals Kennedy as a complex and complicated father, husband and businessman and shatters much of the "common knowledge" previously assumed about him. This star studded tale of personal greed, business genius and perfect timing exposes how Joseph P. Kennedy charmed, cajoled, railed and manipulated. Beauchamp brings to light how Kennedy made his fortune, what he left in his path, how he changed the business of movie making and how he took what he learned to turn himself and his family into international celebrities.

In this pioneering new work, celebrated historian David Nasaw examines the life of Joseph P. Kennedy, the founder of the twentieth century's most famous political dynasty. Drawing on never-before-published materials from archives on three continents and interviews with Kennedy family members and friends, Nasaw tells the story of a man who participated in the major events of his times: the booms and busts, the Depression and the New Deal, two world wars and the Cold War, and the birth of the New Frontier. In studying Kennedy's life, we relive the history of the American century. "Riveting . . . The Patriarch is a book hard to put down . . . As his son indelibly put it some months before his father was struck down: 'Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your county.' One wonders what was going through the mind of the patriarch, sitting a few feet away listening to that soaring sentiment as a fourth-generation Kennedy became president of the United States. After coming to know him over the course of this brilliant, compelling book, the reader might suspect that he was thinking he had done more than enough for his country. But the gods would demand even more." - New York Times Book Review

Chronicles the life of the Kennedy patriarch, including his childhood, courtship of Rose Fitzgerald, Hollywood involvements, time as ambassador to Great Britain, dealings with Al Capone, and affair with Gloria Swanson.

Memorial: Edward J. Essey Sr.