
Once upon a Time
The Captivating Life of Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy
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Narrated by:
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Emily Tremaine
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By:
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Elizabeth Beller
About this listen
A NEW YORK TIMES, LOS ANGELES TIMES, USA TODAY BESTSELLER
The life and legacy of Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, wife of John F. Kennedy Jr., are reexamined in this captivating and effervescent biography that is perfect for fans of My Travels with Mrs. Kennedy, What Remains, and Fairy Tale Interrupted.
A quarter of a century after the plane crash that claimed the lives of John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife Carolyn, and her sister Lauren, the magnitude of this tragedy remains fresh. Yet, Carolyn is still an enigmatic figure, a woman whose short life in the spotlight was besieged with misogyny and cruelty.
Amidst today’s cultural reckoning about the way our media treats women, Elizabeth Beller explores the real person behind the tabloid headlines and media frenzy. When she began dating America’s prince, Carolyn was increasingly thrust into an overwhelming spotlight filled with relentless paparazzi who reacted to her reserve with a campaign of harassment and vilification.
To this day, she is still depicted as a privileged princess—icy, vapid, and drug-addicted. She has even been accused of being responsible for their untimely death, allegedly delaying take-off until she finished her pedicure. But now, she is revealed as never before.
A fiercely independent woman devoted to her adopted city and career, Carolyn relied on her impeccable eye and drive to fly up the ranks at Calvin Klein in the glossy, high-stakes fashion world of the 1990s. When Carolyn met her future husband, John was immediately drawn to her strong-willed personality, effortless charm, and high intelligence. Their relationship would change her life and catapult her to dizzying fame, but it was her vibrant life before their marriage and then hidden afterwards, that is truly fascinating.
Based on in-depth research and exclusive interviews with friends, family members, teachers, roommates, and colleagues, this comprehensive biography reveals a multi-faceted woman worthy of our attention regardless of her husband and untimely death.
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Story
New York Times bestselling author Barbara Leaming answers the question: What was it like to be Mrs. John F. Kennedy during the dramatic thousand days of the Kennedy presidency? Here for the first time is the full story of the extravagant interplay of sex and politics that constitutes one of modern history's most spectacular dramas.
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An amazing woman who led a truly amazing life.
- By Jn on 02-04-24
By: Barbara Leaming
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The Kennedy Heirs
- John, Caroline, and the New Generation - A Legacy of Tragedy and Triumph
- By: J. Randy Taraborrelli
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
- Length: 18 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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A unique burden was inherited by the children of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy and his celebrated siblings, Senators Robert and Ted Kennedy. Raised in a world of enormous privilege against the backdrop of American history, this third generation of Kennedys often veered between towering accomplishment and devastating defeat. In his revelatory new audiobook, acclaimed Kennedy historian J. Randy Taraborrelli draws back the curtain on the next generation of America’s most famous family.
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Well written and comprehensive
- By Richard Hadden on 08-28-19
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Ask Not
- The Kennedys and the Women They Destroyed
- By: Maureen Callahan
- Narrated by: Gabra Zackman
- Length: 11 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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The Kennedy name has long been synonymous with wealth, power, glamor, and—above all else—integrity. But this carefully constructed veneer hides a dark truth: the pattern of Kennedy men physically and psychologically abusing women and girls, leaving a trail of ruin and death in each generation’s wake. Through decades of scandal after scandal—from sexual assaults to reputational slander, suicides to manslaughter—the family and their defenders have kept the Kennedy brand intact.
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Finished this in two days
- By Mellie on 07-10-24
By: Maureen Callahan
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The Day John Died
- By: Christopher Andersen
- Narrated by: Richard Poe
- Length: 10 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Kennedy family biographer Christopher Andersen makes The Day John Died available for the first time as an ebook. Andersen draws on important sources - many talking here for the first time - to recreate in vivid and startling detail the events leading up to that fateful night off the coast of Martha's Vineyard. An inspiring, sympathetic, and compelling look at one of the most remarkable young men of our time, The Day John Died is more than just the definitive biography of JFK Jr. It is a bittersweet saga of triumph, love, loss, fate - and promise unfulfilled.
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Death and an Amazing Life
- By Admiralu on 07-21-19
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The Men We Became
- My Friendship with John F. Kennedy, Jr.
- By: Robert T. Littell
- Narrated by: Robert T. Littell
- Length: 5 hrs and 18 mins
- Abridged
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From youth to adulthood, Rob Littell spent 20 years alongside John F. Kennedy Jr.—through laughter and sorrow, joy and heartbreak. In this moving and poignant memoir of their touching friendship, Rob Littell himself shares his story with listeners.
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A useful piece of history
- By Placeholder on 04-30-12
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Jackie
- By: J. Randy Taraborrelli
- Narrated by: Jane Oppenheimer
- Length: 16 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Based on hundreds of interviews with friends, family, and lovers over a thirty-year period—as well as previously unreleased material from the JFK Library—Kennedy historian J. Randy Taraborrelli paints an unforgettable new portrait of a woman whose flaws and contradictions only serve to make her even more iconic. “I have three lives,” Jackie told a former lover, “public, private and secret.” In this revealing biography, listeners will become intimately familiar with all three.
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Very thorough!
- By LaurieB. on 06-26-24
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America's Reluctant Prince
- The Life of John F. Kennedy Jr.
- By: Steven M. Gillon
- Narrated by: Tim Andrés Pabon
- Length: 18 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Through the lens of their decades-long friendship and including exclusive interviews and details from previously classified documents, noted historian and New York Times best-selling author Steven M. Gillon examines John F. Kennedy Jr.’s life and legacy from before his birth to the day he died. Gillon covers the highs, the lows, and the surprising incidents, viewpoints, and relationships that John never discussed publicly, revealing the full story behind JFK Jr.'s complicated and rich life. In the end, Gillon proves that John’s life was far more than another tragedy.
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Another “close friend” account
- By Nor'easter on 07-12-19
By: Steven M. Gillon
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Bobby and Jackie
- A Love Story
- By: David C. Heymann
- Narrated by: Dick Hill
- Length: 7 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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From the New York Times best-selling author of American Legacy, RFK, and A Woman Named Jackie comes an in-depth look at the much talked-about - but never fully revealed - relationship between Jackie Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy.
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Could have been better
- By Richard on 02-23-13
By: David C. Heymann
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The End of Normal
- By: Stephanie Madoff Mack
- Narrated by: Stephanie Madoff Mack
- Length: 6 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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An explosive, heartbreaking memoir from the widow of Mark Madoff and daughter-in-law of Bernard Madoff, the first genuine inside story from a family member who has lived through - and survived - both the public crisis and her own deeply personal tragedy. In this candid insider account, she talks about her idyllic wedding to Mark, what it was really like to be a part of the Madoff family, the build-up to Bernard's confession, and the media frenzy that followed. It is about the loss of the fairytale life she knew and the tragic and final loss of her husband.
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Madoff's family values
- By Olga Rozzell on 10-25-11
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Forever Young
- My Friendship with John F. Kennedy, Jr.
- By: William Noonan
- Narrated by: Adam Grupper
- Length: 8 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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For 25 years William Noonan and John F. Kennedy, Jr. were best friends. Sharing an adolescence in Hyannisport, Massachusetts, the two frequented beach bonfires and the Monday-night yacht-club dances, took road trips, shared albums, sneaked cigarettes on the widow’s walk of John’s house, and scored beer together. And as they grew older, John and Billy never lost the connection they forged in the Kennedy compound as two young boys who had both tragically lost their fathers.
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Lacks substance
- By Beverly F. on 12-04-16
By: William Noonan
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The Friday Afternoon Club
- A Family Memoir
- By: Griffin Dunne
- Narrated by: Griffin Dunne
- Length: 12 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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At nine, Sean Connery saved him from drowning. At thirteen, desperate to hook up with Janis Joplin, he attended his aunt Joan Didion and uncle John Gregory Dunne’s legendary LA launch party for Tom Wolfe’s The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test. At sixteen, he got kicked out of boarding school, ending his institutional education for good.
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Griffiths phrasing made it easy to listen and absorb.
- By Nancie Keay on 06-17-24
By: Griffin Dunne
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The Kennedys
- An American Drama
- By: Peter Collier, David Horowitz
- Narrated by: Christopher Hurt
- Length: 20 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Who are the Kennedys? Are they the brilliant, heroic, extraordinary people their admirers believe them to be? Or are they arrogant, competitive, self-absorbed children of a willful and immensely rich patriarch, as their detractors claim? In fact, they are all of these things, and more.
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Well-written (and narrated) Kennedy history.
- By SBG on 09-17-19
By: Peter Collier, and others
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Too Much Money
- A Novel
- By: Dominick Dunne
- Narrated by: Ann Marie Lee, Nicholas Hormann
- Length: 9 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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My name is Gus Bailey...It should be pointed out that it is a regular feature of my life that people whisper things in my ear, very private things, about themselves or others. I have always understood the art of listening. The last two years have been monstrously unpleasant for high-society journalist Gus Bailey. His propensity for gossip has finally gotten him into troubl - $11 million worth. His problems begin when he falls hook, line, and sinker for a fake story from an unreliable source and repeats it on a radio program.
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Wasted a credit on this!
- By RKNS on 01-19-10
By: Dominick Dunne
What listeners say about Once upon a Time
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- Summer
- 08-01-24
An exquisite portrait
Beautifully written, poignant, supported with evidence from friends and family…. A fascinating biography of a beloved person
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1 person found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 10-26-24
Pieced together from other publications
There really is nothing new in this book. Unfortunately it is pieced together with quotes from other publications, places Carolyn and John had been based on photos published, and speculation that does not seem to be fact checked.
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- Jackie
- 01-21-25
PERFECT FOR KENNEDY FOLLOWERS OR NON FICTION ROMANCE
Thus is my second listen and I loved every minute.
I'm old enough to remember "John John " as the
three year old kittle boy saluting his father's casket in 1963. I had no idea how much his father's assassination affected him. I also was unaware of how close he was at the time pof his death to entering politics... and the plans that he had to one day assume the presidency himself.
I always admired his wife, Caroline, and this book
only cemented that admiration. She was constantly
hounded and chased by the paparazzi and suffered severe depression because of being forced to stay at home. But most of all, 0John and Caroline were deeply in love.
Truly an enjoyable listen.
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- Kathleen Ponkey
- 05-26-24
Not what I expected.
Incorrect pronunciation of names was annoying and made me wonder how in depth this was researched.
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8 people found this helpful
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- LINDA BAER
- 06-03-24
The real Caroline Bissett Kennedy revealed
I admit to not knowing much about this tragedy and the woman who captured JFK Junior’s heart. It was a very quick listen to it painted a picture of someone who was vilified my the press when alive but who was was the most lovely woman married to a man who could have done incredible things in the political world, and possibly prevented a lot of the tragedies that have happened to us in the choice of our political leaders. We will never know what this duo could have accomplished, but now that I better know who she was it makes this tragedy even more pointless
Narrator was very good and despite my vision, being poor and now listening to books instead of reading them, I was able to follow the story very well will search for more from this author.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Maine girl
- 12-17-24
How amazing Caroline and John were as kind empathetic people Such potential wasted, heartbreaking. Boo hiss to the paparazzi
Disliked hearing how destructive the evil paparazzi were to this spectacular young woman and man
A beautiful well matched couple with their long life ahead. Heartbreaking
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- Monica Cristan
- 06-03-24
Well Told Story
Well told story, learned much about this interesting, beautiful woman and her relationships with family, friends and her husband.
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- Kindle Customer
- 06-17-24
Insightful
Provided more background on the elusive wife of “America’s Prince.” I can’t go but hear these stories and wish for a different ending. Heartbreaking even after 25 years. Would like to learn more about the surviving sister, Lisa. The devastation she and her mother must’ve gone through is unimaginable as well of course for JFK Jr family and friends, let alone the world.
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- ursula shulzycki
- 11-20-24
Predictable Deification
Although unfairly criticized during her lifetime, this saint like portrayal doesn’t ring true either. JFK Jr’s irresponsibly and arrogance ultimately won the day. Although John’s arrogance was not evident to friends, his belief that he will never suffer any consequences drove him his entire life. It’s a shame Carolyn, the empath, never saw this. May they rest in peace.
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- marguerite critelli
- 12-18-24
Carolyn Bessett
Skewed opinion. Sounds like a nice person , but went overboard in angelic, perfect description. Don’t remember such negativity from press.
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