John F. Kennedy

====Camelot====
[[File:John F Kennedy Official Portrait.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|Official White House portrait of Kennedy, by [[Aaron Shikler]]]]

The term "Camelot" is often used to describe his presidency, reflecting both the mythic grandeur accorded Kennedy in death and powerful nostalgia for that era of American history.<ref>Linda Czuba Brigance, "For One Brief Shining Moment: Choosing to Remember Camelot." ''Studies in Popular Culture'' 25.3 (2003): 1-12 [https://www.jstor.org/stable/23414940 online] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230906210242/https://www.jstor.org/stable/23414940 |date=September 6, 2023 }}</ref> According to Richard Dean Burns and Joseph M. Siracusa, the most popular theme surrounding Kennedy's legacy is its replay of the legend of [[King Arthur]] and [[Camelot]] from medieval England.<ref>Richard Dean Burns and Joseph M. Siracusa, ''Historical Dictionary of the Kennedy-Johnson Era'' (Rowman & Littlefield, 2015) pp. 75–76.</ref> In an interview following Kennedy's death, his widow Jacqueline mentioned his affection for the Broadway musical ''[[Camelot (musical)|Camelot]]'' and quoted its closing lines: "Don't let it be forgot, that once there was a spot, for one brief, shining moment that was known as Camelot."<ref name="JFKlibrary.org White. Series 11. Camelot Documents">[https://web.archive.org/web/20060906065903/http://www.jfklibrary.org/Historical%2BResources/Archives/Archives%2Band%2BManuscripts/fa_white_theodore.htm The Personal Papers of Theodore H. White (1915–1986): Series 11. Camelot Documents], ''John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum'' quotation:{{blockquote|The 1963 LIFE article represented the first use of the term "Camelot" in print and is attributed with having played a major role in establishing and fixing this image of the Kennedy Administration and period in the popular mind.}}</ref><ref>[{{GBurl|id=T1IEAAAAMBAJ|p=158}} ''An Epilogue''], in ''LIFE'', December 6, 1963, pp.158–9</ref> Critics, especially historians, have mocked the Camelot myth as a distortion of Kennedy's actions, beliefs, and policies. However, in the public memory, the years of Kennedy's presidency are still seen as a brief, brilliant, and shining moment.<ref>Richard Dean Burns and Joseph M. Siracusa, ''Historical Dictionary of the Kennedy-Johnson Era'' (Rowman & Littlefield, 2015) pp. 75-76.</ref><ref>Jon Goodman, et al., ''The Kennedy Mystique: Creating Camelot'' (National Geographic Books, 2006).</ref>