Rating: 
Summary: I wonder who pushed the author to write this book
Review: I am sick and tired of people talking crap about the Kennedy's vices. It is very easy for armchair critics to say the men in that family were immoral and didnt play fair. If you think that the Kennedy's played hardball, then think about the group of people that killed the brave three brothers and a grandson. And search for the reason why. Why were they killed and their deaths covered up so well? Who has the power to do that?
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Summary: Anything for a buck.
Review: This is the stuff of black helicopters. Nothing in this book can be substantiated. Hersh is a fraud. This book makes me question Mai Lai. Some investigative reporter, a rank rookie stung him with fake Monroe letters. Take back his Pulitzer.
Rating: 
Summary: Sex, Lies and Audio Tape
Review: Seymour Hersh states in his Author's Notes that "Kennedy's private life and personal obsessions- his- character affected the affairs of the nation and its foreign policy far more than has ever been known." This is a well-researched expose a shocking and vivid portrayal of the lives of the Kennedys, who saw themselves as being a breed apart meaning normal rules didn't apply to them. I've barely touched on the highlights below. Highly recommended!!!!Jack's Personal Life:
Jack hated his mother Rose Kennedy because she was cold and distant to him, which could be the reason for his womanizing. Jack Kennedy had a chlamydeous infection since the 1940's. He didn't disclose this to his many sexual partners. Marriages were broken up because of Jack's "prowling". He had his friends bearding for him, that's taking women out in public who were meant for Jack. He couldn't remember all the names of his many paramours so he'd refer to them all as kid. JFK had to be entertained, if he got bored he'd leave. This instilled a sense of being disposable amongst his friends and his many women. Kennedy made threats of pursuing litigation to stop the press from publishing stories about his personal life and even cut a deal with Ben Bradlee of Life Newsweek to publish an article to discredit stories of his first marriage to Durie Malcolm because the truth of his lies would politically ruin him. JFK's Election:
Richard Nixon wrote in RN the following about the 1960 Election, "Kennedy's organization approached campaign dirty tricks with a roguish relish and carried them off with insouciance that captivated many politicians and overcame the critical faculties of many reporters." Lyndon Johnson forced himself into the position as Jack's running mate. Kennedy made himself a prime target for such bullying due to his many indiscretions. Joe Kennedy was an ambassador to England during FDR's Administration. He tried to force FDR from office to make way for himself but failed and ruined any chances he had at the presidency so he turned to his sons. Jack Kennedy once said of his father that he," held up high standards for us, and he was very tough when we failed to meet those standards." Joe paid many bribes to get Jack the votes he needed to win, securing help from the Mafia and labor unions, so he could recognize his White House dreams. He also forced Jack to take Bobby, who had no real experience, on as his Attorney General. JFK's White House:
Joe Kennedy leased a private phone line that connected from his office in New York to the Oval Office, the president's private quarters and the private hideaway off the Oval Office. J. Edgar Hoover collected damaging political and personal information about politicians and used it as a weapon against them. As president-elect, JFK reappointed Hoover as FBI director.
Jack was also blackmailed into handing over a lucrative military contract for aircraft that the Top Brass wanted to go to another company. ZR/RIFLE Program was a CIA organization to plot the assassination of inconvenient world leaders such as Fidel Castro. JFK fully supported it. Bobby Kennedy used Mob information on Cuba and at the same time tried to destroy their ability to conduct business. Kennedy pushed the missile crisis further along in a bid to hold onto the White Housein the upcoming 1964 election. Ellen Rometsch, and East German call girl living in Washington, was a frequent playmate of JFK and many other government officials. She was a Communist and had the story broke a lot of careers would have gone up in flames. Kennedy had her sent back to East Germany and paid her for her silence. Assassination Aftermath:
After JFK's assassination, Bobby Kennedy immediately changed the locks on Jacks' files and all the papers oval office tape recordings moved to the offices of his Special Group for Counterinsurgency where they were under armed guard. White House Usher's Logs, which record the visitors to the president's personal quarters, were destroyed. Bobby and Jackie Kennedy believed that Jack was murdered by a domestic conspiracy. Bobby could never truly investigate his brother's death because in so doing he'd have to reveal the truth of what was happening behind the scenes during the Kennedy Administration.
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Summary: Essential Reading for Those with Romanticized Notions of JFK
Review: This eye-opening book reports on the unseemly aspects of the events leading up to and taking place during the presidency of John F. Kennedy. It is essential reading for anyone with any glamorous or romanticized notions of JFK, his administration, and his presidency. In an author's note, Hersh says explicitly that the book does not report on JFK's brilliant moments, nor does it dwell on his assassination. Instead, it covers the many unethical practices of Kennedy and his staff. These include: * the theft of the 1960 presidential election, both in the West Virginia democratic primary, and in the Illinois electoral college; * the strange last-minute selection of Lyndon Johnson as Kennedy's running mate, most probably due to blackmail by Johnson; * Kennedy's philandering, whose shocking extent is documented by secret service personnel responsible for protecting him; * Kennedy's continuation of Eisenhower's secret plans to assassinate Fidel Castro, both before and after the failed Bay of Pigs invasion; * Kennedy's secret ties to Sam Giancana, a Chicago mob boss, who Kennedy dealt with both during the 1960 election, and in his attempts to assassinate Castro; * Kennedy's secret first marriage to Florida socialite Durie Malcolm, which was quickly annulled, and all records of which were destroyed; * Kennedy's continuous use of amphetamines, and other aspects of his physical health, such as the fact that he had sexually transmitted diseases for the last 30+ years of his life, due to continuous reinfection; * Kennedy's use of a secret back-channel in his negotiations with Nikita Krushchev over the Cuban missile crisis, including the secret withdrawal of U.S. nuclear missiles from Turkey in exchange for the removal of Soviet missiles from Cuba; * Kennedy's affair with Judith Campbell Exner, also Sam Giancana's lover, who on at least one occassion carried large sums of money between the president and mob boss, and who also arranged for a secret meeting between the two men in her apartment; * Kennedy's affair with East German Ellen Rometsch, a potential national security threat; and * Kennedy's role in the overthrow of several foreign leaders, including the ouster and assassination of South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem. Perhaps the most spectacular aspect of this book is not the quantity or importance of its revelations, but its thoroughness. Hersh spent 5 years writing it, and conducted hundreds of interviews. Many of the new revelations come from these first-hand interviews or from previously unreleased private manuscripts. Even some of the many interesting footnotes seemed to me like they must have taken days or weeks to research.
Rating: 
Summary: Dark and Dangerous
Review: This is another tale of our society's ability to become enraptured by someone with star quality and ignore the real picture despite overwhelming evidence. It is easy to see why America was enthralled with the Kennedys. After WWII and a general for President through the prosperous but boring 50's, Jack Kennedy and his beautiful classy wife burst upon the scene and heralded a new generation of leadership--a bit like Clinton did so many years later. But Kennedy's personal life was astoundingly out of kilter--his behavior makes the later antics of a Gary Hart or Bill Clinton look merely foolish. Kennedy ran security risks that are unimaginable, sleeping with a myriad of women unknown to the Secret Service, associating with organized crime figures, using drugs in ways dangerous to his health. On the political front, Hersh portrays Kennedy and his brother as obsessed with Cuba and Castro and constantly plotting to knock off the leaders of various other small nations. According to Hersh, corruption was rampant--cash was routinely paid out to buy votes or hush people up, and cash was routinely paid in for political favors in a way that would land someone in jail today for a very long time. As you can tell, this is not a balanced study of the Kennedy administration, but rather the work of an excellent investigative reporter to put names, dates and facts to the rumors and stories that began to circulate in the years after Kennedy's death. How these things remained secret for so long amazes me--how the standards of the press have changed!--how the pendulum has swung in the other direction to an extreme! The view presented here is very bleak--if one takes this book as the whole story, one would believe that Kennedy was the most despicable sort of politician, with little regard for the law, no moral sense, and no interest in policy, especially domestic policy. Certainly this book is a legitimate contribution to the history of the era, but only one piece of the puzzle.
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Summary: Balancing the Scales of Image
Review: You won't get the whole "Camelot" picture with this book but you may not get the whole "Camelot" picture without it. Hersch does a good job of incorporating most of his sources in the text so readers can judge their credibility as they read along--and as they see fit. The bibliography is also written in an easily decipherable way. It's a testament to the strength of an open society that can allow a reporter such as Hersch to spend 5 years probing through such highly sensitive sources of information as the CIA, FBI, Secret Service, organized crime and private bedrooms and will allow it citizens to learn from it. As for believability, what is more gullible, believing the hidden dark side that Hersch paints in this book or the star-struck "Camelot" image? The truth obviously has elements of both and this book simply helps balance the scale. It is assumed that the reader is already familiar with the generally accepted charismatic image of JFK. The value of this book is in understanding the potential disparity that can exist between image and reality for our public figures. But, believe it or not, you can also gain a deeper and more critical appreciation of JFK here by looking beyond the highly choreographed PR image to understand the total human being. I don't recommend this as an "introduction" if you don't either remember or know the basics about this subject. But if you do, even if you think you've heard it all, this book will keep you on the edge of your seat and your eyeballs on the edge of their sockets-a fascinating, informative read.
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Summary: Unbelievable vs Unnerving
Review: I have given this book back to the friend who loaned it to me. I did not look at the published date. If this book was written before November 22, 1963, I would classify this writing as an unbelievable attempt to surpass all flamboyancy of any tabloid headline; if it was written after the president's assassination, I would call the writing unnerving, at best. This history has all of the emotions of a trashy novel- love, marriage, children, careers, sex, violence, secrets, trust, betrayal, and grief- but the greatest grief here is to think this might have actually happened in our country. The media painted the John Kennedy's as the "American family" during the presidential campaign, into the presidency, and even after the assassination. If one is to believe any of the accusations disclosed in this history, we have to question if there is any such thing as national or international security. The accusations make me question if there is any ethical morals left, or were they ever present, in this country. If only the walls of the White House could talk- how many political figures have we placed our deepest trust, only to learn they did not deserve this trust. I do not think I will ever view a political campaign, a President, or the White House in the same light. Are we making a mockery of our faith in having the president take the oath of office and placing his hand on the Bible? What will this country come to? Will all of these "trusted" people eventually be guests on the day-time talk shows? Surely their stories top the stories being aired on these shows daily. It is truly a sad time in America.
Rating: 
Summary: The title says it all...
Review: that is for sure. The main problem I have with this book is the lack of "proof" a substantial number of all the presented stories. I have read a number of books of Mr. Hersh and I was an little bit disappointed on the amount of hearsay and annonymous sources that was used in this one.
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Summary: as a conservative republican
Review: The previous reviewer states that "if republicans disliked JFK..." Well , I am a conservative Republican and I greatly admire the late president. And the comments about the "truth" of JFK and his life are certainly not to be found in this book. It is much more than good looks and charisma...how about across the board tax cuts...building our military defense as the best in the world, calling the Soviet Union an "Evil System" long before Reagan! Pulling back from the brink of nuclear catastrophe in Cuba, and making Russia look weak, which in turn , started their arms build up which eventually bankrupted them and helped bring communism to its bitter and glorious end! The moon shot, which is still the greatest technological triumph in human history! THAT is what JFK set into motion, and as a Republican I am in awe of it! Presidents Reagan and Bush and now George W., seem to quote him constantly!! He was a role model for leadership and they know it. It was the late great Barry Goldwater who said, " Jack Kennedy, could have been the best President we've had so far"! I couldn't agree more.
Rating:
Summary: Trash? Yes - but it's also mostly true...
Review: Basically, how you rate "The Dark Side of Camelot" all comes down to how you feel about the Kennedys, as the previous reviews on this book have clearly demonstrated. If you admire the Kennedys, then this book is "trash" and Hersh's claims about John F. Kennedy's Presidency are "wildly exaggerated" or "just not true". But if you don't like the Kennedys, then Hersh's claims are "without doubt" and "undeniably the truth". Books about John F. Kennedy usually fall into one of these two groups - the scholarly, mostly admiring "serious" books which look primarily at the issues Kennedy dealt with as President and look only briefly at his many personal flaws; and the so-called "sensational" books which focus primarily on JFK's wild private life and look only briefly at the major historical events of his term of office (the Bay of Pigs, Cuban Missile Crisis, etc.). I tend to look at Hersh's book somewhat differently - I think that many of Hersh's allegations are indeed true, and there's little doubt (as many other books and sources have confirmed Hersh's allegations) the John F. Kennedy was anything but a saint in his private life. However, I'm still not convinced that his private behavior had much effect on his judgements and decisions on the big moments of his Presidency. For example, does anyone (except his strongest critics) believe that Kennedy consulted Marilyn Monroe (or one of his other mistresses) before giving the order to allow Cuban exiles to invade Cuba at the Bay of Pigs to overthrow Fidel Castro (Would Monroe even know where Cuba was)? Most of Hersh's claims have been made elsewhere, although Hersh does come up with new testimony from ex-Secret Service agents, aides, and others to butress his arguments. Specifically, the major charges are: 1) That Kennedy, with the help of his sinister, enormously wealthy father, "bought" the 1960 presidential election by stealing enough votes to defeat JFK's great rival, Richard Nixon. There was some evidence of major vote-stealing in Illinois (Nixon carried 92 of 101 counties in Illinois but still lost the state by only 9,000 votes, mostly because of a huge Kennedy vote in Chicago). President Eisenhower encouraged Nixon to contest the results there, but Nixon, in a graceful move, refused to. Hersh implies that the Mafia in Chicago, specifically mob boss Sam Giancana, stole the votes necessary for JFK to win in Chicago, and that Kennedy and Giancana privately communicated through a woman they both shared sexually, Judith Campbell-Exner. Exner's story has been repeated in other books, and there is little doubt that she and Kennedy had a relationship. However, Illinois alone wouldn't have changed the outcome of the election, and Nixon would still have needed to win another big state to change the result. His best bet may have been in Texas, another state that JFK won by a close margin and where there were also claims of vote fraud. However, the Texas angle has never been investigated as thoroughly as the Illinois vote, and we may never truly know who should have won the 1960 presidential election - we can only speculate. 2)That as President Kennedy repeatedly fooled around with huge numbers of women, thus leaving himself open to blackmail from foreign governments or hostile internal forces (such as the mafia). Again, there's considerable evidence that Kennedy did fool around - two of his secretaries were called "Fiddle" and "Faddle" and took nude swims with him in the White House pool. Again, the real charge is whether or not these women compromised his ability to do his job, and that's harder to prove. That Kennedy treated most of these women like live sex toys is undeniable - he didn't seem to take most of them seriously (nor, according to author Gore Vidal, a relative of Jackie Kennedy, did his wife. According to Vidal, she often used the word "it" , not "she" or "her", when referring to her husband's mistresses). Kennedy also supposedly had a fling with a woman who was later suspected of being a spy for the Communist East German government, and who was quickly deported when Bobby Kennedy learned of the suspicions about her. These are serious charges, and Kennedy does seem to have been guilty of, at least, extremely poor judgement. And, finally, 3)that Kennedy systematically used the power of the Presidency to cover up his shenanigans, thus breaking the law repeatedly and committing criminal acts. If true, this would place Kennedy in the Nixon range of Watergate-type scandals, which means that he should have been impeached. Again, there is little doubt that Kennedy used the Secret Service and other agencies to hide his behavior from outsiders, and his brother did use his power as Attorney General to silence embarrassing stories and try to dig up dirt on potential enemies (such as Nixon, the Kennedys had the IRS audit his taxes several times from 1961-1963, with no result). Of course, MANY politicians have done the same, and while it may not be morally right, the Kennedys were neither the first nor the last politicians to do so. Whether this makes them especially evil or sinister is dubious. In short, it is my belief that Hersh's claims, although largely true, still don't provide a clear link between JFK's private life and his public (political) life. Was Kennedy a terrible person? As Hersh proves, the private Kennedy was often a sexually deviant, amoral man. But as for Kennedy the President (and they are different things), I don't believe he was a great President, but he also wasn't the awful leader that Hersh and some others make him out to be. Today many historians rate JFK as about average - in the middle of the pack. And that's about where I would place him, too. And that's also why I'm giving "The Dark Side of Camelot" three stars - Hersh's research and allegations are worth reading, but whether there's a link between what Hersh describes and Kennedy's political behavior remains to be seen.
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