He escorted Mrs. Stephen Smith, sister of the late President, to . "Early on in their friendship, Lem sent Jack such a note and Jack replied in their usual jocular way, adding in parentheses, 'Please don't write to me on toilet paper any more. "Jack made a big difference in my life," Billings said in his oral history for the Kennedy library, adding, "He may have been the reason I never got married.". Otherwise he attended without female accompaniment. Bobby Kennedy Jr. read the eulogy. Definitions: Cause of death vs risk factors. Copyright 20142023 The Editorial Board of Public Seminar, All Rights Reserved. "Raffish and yet prissy," they write of Billings "a sort of court chronicler reporting on the old days which even Bobby and Ethel didn't recall and functioning as the all-purpose cheerleader, godfather, and pallbearer who could always be counted on. Lem and Jack were insulated by money, and by the reticence of journalists to open closet doors that powerful men, gay and straight, preferred to leave closed. 50 Lemoyne Billings Premium High Res Photos - Getty Images (Page 4), "When Jack wasn't trying to get Lem to sing on family occasions, he was cajoling him into playing sports -- usually touch football, a game Lem came to loathe. The Depression had hurt the Billings family financially, and Lem Billings was at Choate on scholarship. Jack Kennedy and Lem Billings met at Choate and remained friends until the Dallas gunfire that ended Kennedy's life thirty years later. Their lifelong relationship caused some of the presidents advisers to fear Russian agents may use the information as blackmail. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use. The two became friends, then roommates. He may have been the reason I never got married. ', The Kennedy patriarch, Joe, a noted philanderer himself, was suspicious of Billings' sexual preference from the start of his son's close friendship with him. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/661850801540d07650fabf52ced798bc30b638466ac906855c1e19da231d68b5.jpg. Part Two Looking Out of the Frame: Camelot's Gay Court - OutHistory The story about Lem Billings '39 and JFK was very interesting and even moving (cover story, April 12). Description: In this interview, Billings discusses John F. Kennedy's time at Choate, his family life, and their first trip to Europe together, among other issues. Eventually, the two friends made contact, however, and began exchanging letters just as they had when both were at home." From there we would helicopter right to his father's front lawn. Although Alford refused, she did not always have the self-confidence to say no: earlier, she had fellated a staff member in Jacks presence. Pamela Long Wiggins, who was convicted of accessory to murder after the fact in connection with the Billings murders, died Thursday in state prison. Jack's best friend was Lem, and he would want to remind everyone of that today. Allegheny Cemetery. [17] In 1956 he was an usher at the wedding of Kennedy's sister Jean to Stephen Edward Smith. [21][22] The next year, Kennedy named him to a board to plan America's participation in the New York World's Fair of 19645. Billings, Kirk LeMoyne: Oral History Interview - JFK #1, 3/25/1964 The bond between Billings and John F. Kennedy continues to be of interest to many, with a new wave of attention cresting on social media apps like TikTok, where users have pored back over candid photos of the young men together. But this may, in fact, just be gossip. Jack & Lem: John F. Kennedy and Lem Billings: The Untol Knowing that, like many men who lived double lives, he could have had a wife and family, Billings regarded his friendship with Jack as a gift. "[27] Arthur Schlesinger thought Billings "used to glare at me when we occasionally encountered each other in the company of JFK, and for a time I took this rather personally. I have no evidence one way or another, but I would discount [any sexual activity.]. That he is believed to have been gay at a time when homosexuality was still illegal even being somewhat open about his sexuality, including within the powerful Kennedy clan sheds light on the strength of his ties to the family. We might even call it a romantic friendship. In 1965, Mrs. Kennedy invited Billings to accompany her and her children to England for the unveiling of a memorial to Kennedy at Runnymede. "'Of course, there was always Cape Cod in Massachusetts when the president wanted to be near the water,' Lem remarked. Poor guy. [14] In 1958, he moved to the Manhattan advertising firm Lennen & Newell[15] as an advertising executive. In her memoir, Times To Remember, published eleven years after Jack's assassination in Dallas in 1963, she wrote that Billings had 'remained Jack's lifelong close friend, confidant, sharer in old memories and new experiencesHe has really been part of 'our family' since that first time he showed up at our house as one of 'Jack's surprises. Joe generously paid for half the cost of Lem's ticket on the way over, saying Lem could pay at least part of it back when he graduated from Princeton. When JFK was assassinated, he turned his attention to his nephew Bobby Kennedy Jr. Joseph Kennedy Sr. called him "my second son," and he sometimes acted as escort for several of the Kennedy women. Major Character Death; John F Kennedy/ Lem Billings; John F. Kennedy; Lem Billings; Friends to Lovers; Hurt/Comfort; Summary. Still, the Kennedy clan accepted even welcomed Lem Billings into their exclusive inner-circle, practically adopting him, and he became a part of the family. In less than a year, the country would be at war." [37], Billings' role as "first friend" was assessed by many observers at the time and since. One reason is that, in retrospect, the Kennedy presidency provides a transition from the years of what historian David K. Johnson calls the lavender scare and the unbuttoned, experimental 1960s that launched the gay rights movement. Having been given special access to the Billings papers by Robert Kennedy, Jr., Pitts was either unable to verify a sexual relationship, or he was unwilling to cite his source. 'What the hell have you been doing? According to the book, a gift from Billings a whale's-tooth scrimshaw was buried with him. Search - Lipstick Alley Of course, he had always loved the Cape and was completely happy there.'" Needless to say, JFK may have had, in a sense, two widows. Ethel's alcoholic, philandering brother, George Skakel Jr., actually booted Billings in the a** at the church, knocking him into the aisle. Like millions of other young Americans, they faced an uncertain future. May I come inside?" Language: English Words: 1,469 . [59], He escorted Jean Kennedy Smith, sister of the President, to a gala ballet performance in 1966[61] and Ethel Kennedy, the president's sister-in-law, to the 1971 opening of the Kennedy Center. A funny photo of Senator John McCain catching himself after he nearly left the stage in the wrong direction after shaking hands with Senator Barack Obama. During the night of May 28, 1981almost two decades after JFK's untimely death - 65-year-old Lem Billings died in his sleep of an apparent heart attack. (Page 35), Jack and Lem in a Palm Beach photo booth just before their European tour, 1937, "Jack and Lem's summer in Europe began on July 1, 1937. This is fascinating, Claire. Billings reportedly told Kennedy of his romantic intentions in prep school (JFK pictured chatting with Marilyn Monroe and Robert F Kennedy). Elisa Lam's Cause of Death & Autopsy: Cecil Hotel Mystery - Heavy.com As Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee recalled much later, "I suppose it's known that Lem was gay.. [47], Billings spent less time with the President in the fall of 1963. Some of his partners saw the escape from monogamy as liberating too, understanding their romps with the President as special and carefree episodes that they were happy to flaunt. "[41] Gore Vidal, who was banned from the White House after a run-in with Billings,[42] was critical of Billings,[43] but also thought Billings played an important role as an aide to Kennedy, who was often ill or in pain. But even before then, Billings was a Kennedy fixture. "Because of him, I was never lonely. He had interests of his own that Jack didn't necessarily share. From the time John F. Kennedy and Kirk LeMoyne "Lem" Billings met at Choate, until the President's assassination thirty years later, Jack and Lem remained best friends. Either way, it was a courageous move in view of the casualties the navy was suffering in the Pacific at the time. Plastic surgeon reveals five cosmetic procedures she would NEVER get - from dangerous Brazilian butt lifts BEL MOONEY:Why does caring for my dad take over my life? Billings had once told Bobby that. Billings had once told Bobby that when he died he wanted the pall-bearers to be members of Bobby's circle of young friends, whom he knew well and with whom he had done drugs. The parents who fear their 11-year-olds will be scarred for life by the graphic sex education lessons that Two Insulate Britain protesters are jailed for contempt of court after they defied a judge's orders not to 'Derek fights on, it makes me fall in love with him all over again:' Kate Garraway reveals there are days French authorities fear 'narco-tourists' could flock to Normandy beaches after 'more than two tonnes of Hopes for cervical cancer vaccine after trials in mice showed it reduced tumours 80 per cent of the time. When their brother Bobby married Ethel Skakel in a royal-like wedding in Greenwich, Connecticut, the staunchly conservative republican and seemingly homophobic Skakels let their feelings about Billings' gayness be known. ', Their arrangement, Quirk asserted, 'enabled Jack to sustain his self-delusion that straight men who received oral sex from other males were really only straights looking for sexual release,' and he further observed, 'Jack was in love with Lem being in love with him and considered him the ideal follower adorer. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. 0 references. "[25]:244 Sometimes he stayed for longer periods. Mom who lost both sons to fentanyl blasts laughing Biden, Two Russian tanks annihilated with bombs by Ukrainian armed forces, Isabel Oakeshott receives 'menacing' message from Matt Hancock, Pavement where disabled woman gestured at cyclist before fatal crash, Pro-Ukrainian drone lands on Russian spy planes exposing location, 'Buster is next!' (Page 24), Lem and Bobby, Waterville Valley, N.H., circa 1967"'When Bobby joined the political fray, no one was happier than Lem. Ironically, Motlow, who had sustained a stroke in 1940, died that same year . Lem Billings '39's Life | Princeton Alumni Weekly [30], The press frequently reported on his presence at Kennedy family events, such as the arrival of the Kennedy children in Washington in February 1961. They werent even related. Billings was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on April 15, 1916, the third child of Frederic Tremaine Billings (18731933) and Romaine LeMoyne (18821970). John F. Kennedy and Lem Billings, right, who was a classmate from the Choate School and Princeton University, outside a drugstore, ca. ", Last edited on 24 December 2022, at 15:36, "JFK's Best Friend Lem: Transcript | JFK Library", Princeton University Undergraduate Senior Theses, 1924-2018 Art and Archaeology, 1926-2018, Alfred E. Clark, "Adolph Toigo, Ex-Chairman of Advertising Agency Dies," January 1, 1982, "End Comes at Lennen & Newell," April 12, 1972, "Miss Jean Ann Kennedy Married," May 20, 1956, "Kennedy Names Friend," September 20, 1961, "U.S. Board Formed to Advise on Fair," January 12, 1962, "Choate Unveils Kennedy's Portrait," May 5, 1963, "Prayer for Nation Joined by Kennedy," January 2, 1961, "Caroline Learns Father Isn't Much of a Kite Pilot," July 7, 1963, "Caroline's 2 Hamsters Hunted in White House," March 5, 1961, "2 Kennedy Sisters in Poland for Visit," September 2, 1961, "Huntington Hartford Weds Diane Brown in New Jersey," October 8, 1962, Luther Turmelle, "Book details JFK's friendship with gay man," May 16, 2007, "Friend of Kennedy Named To Head Memorial Group," July 8, 1964, "Humphreys Attend a Gala Ballet Premiere," January 19, 1966, Nan Robertson, "Glittering Audience Attends Kennedy Center's Opening," September 9, 1971, Michael C. Jensen, "Managing the Kennedy Millions," June 12, 1977, Doris Kearns Goodwin, "Fitzgeralds and Kennedys," March 8, 1987, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lem_Billings&oldid=1129296144, This page was last edited on 24 December 2022, at 15:36. Naval Reserve and served in the South Pacific until being discharged in 1946. I am sure the good Lord knows that heaven is Jesus and Lem and Jack and Bobby loving one another.'. [68] He is buried in Allegheny Cemetery in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.[69]. And all the while, Lem Billings was there: waiting, serving, comforting and helping the Kennedy family adjust to the public glare. Lem Billings andBobby Kennedy Jr became close after JFK's death and allegedly took drugs together. Court documents say man was paid with meth to kill El Dorado - KOLR A telephone conversation between President Kennedy and Lem Billings. Yesterday was Jack's birthday. Claire Potteris professor of history at The New School, and Executive Editor of Public Seminar. Featuring interviews with Ben Bradlee, Gore Vidal, Ted Sorenson, friends, family, and many others, award -- winning journalist David Pitts begins the story with the early friendship between the men.