Vintage matte-finish 14 x 11 photo of Kennedy playing catcher during a game of pickup baseball, with Mansfield as umpire and Jackson at bat, undated but taken circa 1955 and signed and inscribed circa early 1960s in fountain pen, “To Janet Dennis—With best wishes, John F. Kennedy,” “To Janet Dennis—with best wishes, Henry M. Jackson,” and “To Janet Dennis with best wishes from Mike Mansfield, Majority Leader, U. S. Senate.” Reverse bears a United Press International Photo ink stamp. In fine condition, with a few creases to the upper left corner and moderate contrast to portions of Mansfield’s inscription and signature.
Although the Republicans held control of Congress in the early 1950s, the future of the Democratic party was bright, with several young and talented new senators on board, including John F. Kennedy in Massachusetts, Henry Jackson in Washington, and Mike Mansfield in Montana. Taken on the athletic fields of Georgetown University during one of their semi-regular summer Sunday softball games, this famous photo captures the three friends as a group, while still highlighting the vastly different upbringings that gave them such a broad view. In his heavy work boots and undershirt, Jackson looks unnatural at bat, like a logger plucked from the woods of Everett, Washington, and given a bat for the first time. Kennedy, on the other hand, decked in a polo, khaki shorts, and boat shoes, looks tan and confident, as if he just stepped off a yacht. According to Robert Kaufman’s definitive biography on Jackson, Kennedy often staged such scenes to ‘convey an image of physical robustness that his poor health belied.’ His debilitating back disease prevented him from even running to first base during their games—he needed a pinch runner. Inscribed to Janet Dennis, wife of Kennedy’s friend and Democratic Mississippi legislator James Coleman, this is a wonderful photo capturing an early moment in the careers of JFK and two fellow up-and-coming politicians. Pre-certified John Reznikoff/PSA/DNA and RR Auction COA
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