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Delayed Bombshell

Aired May 15, 2003 - 13:37   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Buzz in Washington today about another woman admitting to a presidential affair. The president we're talking about, the late John F. Kennedy. The woman in question lives is Mimi Fahnestock. She lives in New York City, and that's where our Jason Carroll is right now with more on the story.
Hi, Jason.

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon to you, Kyra.

She goes by the name Mimi Fahnestock, but her real name is Marian. She is 60 years old. She is a mother. She is a grandmother. She's an avid member of the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church. And she claims she had an affair with John F. Kennedy some 40 years ago when she was a 19-year-old intern. She decided to come forward after reports surfaced about that alleged affair. Earlier today, Kyra, she released a statement.

It reads very simply, "From June 1962 to November 1963, I was involved in a sexual relationship with President Kennedy. For the last 41 years, it is a subject that I have not discussed. In view of recent media coverage, I have now discussed the relationship with my children and my family, and they are completely supportive. I will have no further comment on this subject. I would request that the media respect my privacy and the privacy of my family in this matter."

Fahnestock's secret started to come out when a former Kennedy staffer told a biographer about this so-called affair. That staffer could not remember Mimi's last name, only the first name. One of the local newspapers did some research, tracked her down. That's why Mimi Fahnestock decided to come out with this revelation.

Earlier today, had an opportunity to chat with one of Mimi's friends, and she talked about this historical revelation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOAN "BITSY" TATNALL, FAHNESTOCK'S FRIEND: I'm surprised, but it's kind of a "so what" and she is the least likely person I ever would have expected to have had a romance, but I think probably Jack Kennedy would have gone to bed with anybody so -- not that Mimi's just anybody. She's very attractive, smartest girl in our class, very good at track, and I think she got her job, as I recall, because she went to Farmington.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CARROLL: A little more information about Fahnestock, she attended an exclusive prep school in her early days in Farmington, Connecticut. She was a debutante presented to society. She apparently initially went to the White House to try to interview the first lady for the school paper that she was working for at the time.

Obviously, Kyra, historians are going to be trying to put this into some sort of perspective, trying to draw comparisons to what was going on during the Kennedy administration when this alleged affair was happening.

If you look back, September 30th, 1962, that's when the first black student was admitted into the University of Mississippi. Thousands were protesting, obviously a lot of racial unrest in the country at that time.

October, 1962, the country right in the middle of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Again, she was an intern between June 1962 and November of 1963. She eventually left in '63, just a few weeks before President Kennedy was assassinated -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Jason, real quickly, I'm just curious, did her husband and kids know about this, or did she have to tell them, because this all started to come out? How did she handle the family?

CARROLL: We're still learning that, Kyra. It's still pretty early on in this. I can tell you, based on what we've learned from the statement, it appears as if this was a secret she carried around with her, and that she just most recently revealed to her family. Again, that's just according to the statement.

Obviously, we'd like to hear more from this woman, but right now, she's -- the only statement that she's giving is the one that you've just heard.

PHILLIPS: I can understand you'd want your privacy.

All right, Jason Carroll, thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired May 15, 2003 - 13:37   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Buzz in Washington today about another woman admitting to a presidential affair. The president we're talking about, the late John F. Kennedy. The woman in question lives is Mimi Fahnestock. She lives in New York City, and that's where our Jason Carroll is right now with more on the story.
Hi, Jason.

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon to you, Kyra.

She goes by the name Mimi Fahnestock, but her real name is Marian. She is 60 years old. She is a mother. She is a grandmother. She's an avid member of the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church. And she claims she had an affair with John F. Kennedy some 40 years ago when she was a 19-year-old intern. She decided to come forward after reports surfaced about that alleged affair. Earlier today, Kyra, she released a statement.

It reads very simply, "From June 1962 to November 1963, I was involved in a sexual relationship with President Kennedy. For the last 41 years, it is a subject that I have not discussed. In view of recent media coverage, I have now discussed the relationship with my children and my family, and they are completely supportive. I will have no further comment on this subject. I would request that the media respect my privacy and the privacy of my family in this matter."

Fahnestock's secret started to come out when a former Kennedy staffer told a biographer about this so-called affair. That staffer could not remember Mimi's last name, only the first name. One of the local newspapers did some research, tracked her down. That's why Mimi Fahnestock decided to come out with this revelation.

Earlier today, had an opportunity to chat with one of Mimi's friends, and she talked about this historical revelation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOAN "BITSY" TATNALL, FAHNESTOCK'S FRIEND: I'm surprised, but it's kind of a "so what" and she is the least likely person I ever would have expected to have had a romance, but I think probably Jack Kennedy would have gone to bed with anybody so -- not that Mimi's just anybody. She's very attractive, smartest girl in our class, very good at track, and I think she got her job, as I recall, because she went to Farmington.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CARROLL: A little more information about Fahnestock, she attended an exclusive prep school in her early days in Farmington, Connecticut. She was a debutante presented to society. She apparently initially went to the White House to try to interview the first lady for the school paper that she was working for at the time.

Obviously, Kyra, historians are going to be trying to put this into some sort of perspective, trying to draw comparisons to what was going on during the Kennedy administration when this alleged affair was happening.

If you look back, September 30th, 1962, that's when the first black student was admitted into the University of Mississippi. Thousands were protesting, obviously a lot of racial unrest in the country at that time.

October, 1962, the country right in the middle of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Again, she was an intern between June 1962 and November of 1963. She eventually left in '63, just a few weeks before President Kennedy was assassinated -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Jason, real quickly, I'm just curious, did her husband and kids know about this, or did she have to tell them, because this all started to come out? How did she handle the family?

CARROLL: We're still learning that, Kyra. It's still pretty early on in this. I can tell you, based on what we've learned from the statement, it appears as if this was a secret she carried around with her, and that she just most recently revealed to her family. Again, that's just according to the statement.

Obviously, we'd like to hear more from this woman, but right now, she's -- the only statement that she's giving is the one that you've just heard.

PHILLIPS: I can understand you'd want your privacy.

All right, Jason Carroll, thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com