Synopses & Reviews
The extraordinary true story of the critical events leading up to and following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, as told by the Secret Service agents who were firsthand witnesses to one of Americaand#8217;s greatest tragedies.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;THE SECRET SERVICE. An elite team of men who share a single mission: to protect the president of the United States. On November 22, 1963, these men failedand#8212;and a country would never be the same. Now, for the first time, a member of JFKand#8217;s Secret Service detail reveals the inside story of the assassination, the weeks and days that led to it and its heartrending aftermath. This extraordinary book is a moving, intimate portrait of dedication, courage, and loss.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; Drawing on the memories of his fellow agents, Jerry Blaine captures the energetic, crowd-loving young president, who banned agents from his car and often plunged into raucous crowds with little warning. He describes the careful planning that went into JFKand#8217;s Texas swing, the worries and concerns that agents, working long hours with little food or rest, had during the trip. And he describes the intensely private first lady making her first-ever political appearance with her husband, just months after losing a newborn baby.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; Here are vivid scenes that could come only from inside the Kennedy detail: JFKand#8217;s last words to his tearful son when he left Washington for the last time; how a sudden change of weather led to the choice of the open-air convertible limousine that day; Mrs. Kennedy standing blood-soaked outside a Dallas hospital room; the sudden interruption of six-year-old Carolineand#8217;s long-anticipated sleepover with a friend at home; the exhausted team of agents immediately reacting to the presidentand#8217;s death with a shift to LBJ and other key governmental figures; the agentsand#8217; dismay at Jackieand#8217;s decision to walk openly from the White House to St. Matthewand#8217;s Cathedral at the state funeral.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; Most of all, this is a look into the lives of men who devoted their entire beings to protecting the presidential family: the stress of the secrecy they kept, the emotional bonds that developed, the terrible impact on agentsand#8217; psyches and families, and their astonishment at the countryand#8217;s obsession with far-fetched conspiracy theories and finger-pointing. A book fifty years in coming, andlt;iandgt;The Kennedy Detail andlt;/iandgt;is a portrait of incredible camaraderie and incredible heartbreakand#8212;a true, must-read story of heroism in its most complex and human form.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; ***andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; A medic burst out of the trauma room, and instinctively Clint Hill took a step toward Mrs. Kennedy. and#8220;Heand#8217;s still breathing,and#8221; the man said as he rushed past. Mrs. Kennedy stood up. and#8220;Do you mean he may live?and#8221; she asked.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt; No one answered.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt; Kellerman handed the phone back to Hill and rushed back into the trauma room.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; and#8220;Clint, what happened?and#8221; Jerry Behn asked earnestly.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; and#8220;Shots fired during the motorcade,and#8221; Clint said as he kept an eye on Mrs. Kennedy across the hall. and#8220;It all happened so fast. We were five minutes away from the Trade Mart. . . . The situation is critical. Jerry, prepare for the worst. . . .and#8221;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt; The operator cut into the line, and#8220;Attorney General Robert Kennedy wants to talk to Agent Hill.and#8221;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt; and#8220;Whatand#8217;s going on down there?!and#8221; Bobby Kennedy demanded.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; and#8220;Shots fired during the motorcade,and#8221; Clint repeated. and#8220;The president is very seriously injured. Theyand#8217;re working on him now. Governor Connally was hit too.and#8221;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt; and#8220;Well, what do you mean, seriously injured? How serious?and#8221;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt; Clint swallowed hard. It was all he could do to keep it together. and#8220;Itand#8217;s as bad as it can get.and#8221;andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; and#8212;From andlt;iandgt;The Kennedy Detail: JFKand#8217;s Secret Service Agents Break Their Silenceandlt;/iandgt;
Synopsis
Now in paperback, the extraordinary true story of the critical events leading up to and following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, as told by the Secret Service agents who were firsthand witnesses to one of America’s greatest tragedies.
On November 22, 1963, an elite team of men whose mission to protect the president of the United States failed and a country never would be the same. Now, for the first time, a member of JFK’s Secret Service detail reveals the inside story of the assassination, the weeks and days that led to it, and its heartrending aftermath.
Drawing on the memories of his fellow agents, Jerry Blaine captures the energetic, crowd-loving young president, who banned agents from his car and often plunged into raucous crowds with little warning. He describes JFK’s words to his tearful son when he left Washington for the last time; how a sudden change of weather led to the choice of the open-air convertible limousine that day; and the agents’ dismay at Jackie’s decision to walk openly from the White House to St. Matthew’s Cathedral at the state funeral. This book looks into the lives of men who devoted their entire beings to protecting the presidential family: the stress of the secrecy they kept, the emotional bonds that developed, the terrible impact on agents’ psyches and families, and their astonishment at the country’s obsession with far-fetched conspiracy theories and finger-pointing.
A book fifty years in coming, The Kennedy Detail is a portrait of incredible camaraderie and incredible heartbreak—a true, must-read story of heroism in its most complex and human form.
About the Author
As a Special Agent of the Secret Service on the White House Detail, Gerald and#8220;Jerryand#8221; Blaine had the privilege of serving three U.S. presidents during one of the most tumultuous times in American history.andnbsp; After resigning from the Secret Service following John F. Kennedyand#8217;s assassination, Blaine embarked on a career path with IBM Corporation and became a leading expert in high-level security, lecturing worldwide on the use of computers in Criminal Justice and Intelligence. In 1990, Blaine retired from IBM and joined ARCO International Oil and Gas in Dallas, Texas as the Director of International Security, Government Relations and Foreign Affairs.andnbsp;After retiring from ARCO in 1999 Blaine spent four years with Hill andamp; Associates, an Asian-based consulting company, as a Senior Consultant, and finally retired from the corporate world in 2003.andnbsp; He now lives in in Grand Junction, Colorado with Joyce, his wife of more than fifty years. The couple has two children and four grandchildren.Lisa McCubbin is an award-winning journalist who has been a television news anchor and reporter, hosted her own radio show, and spent more than five years in the Middle East as a freelance writer. She is the coauthor of andlt;iandgt;Mrs. Kennedy and Meandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;Five Days in Novemberandlt;/iandgt;,andlt;iandgt; andlt;/iandgt;andandlt;iandgt; The Kennedy Detailandlt;/iandgt;. Visit her at LisaMcCubbin.com.Clint Hill is theandnbsp;andlt;iandgt;New York Timesandlt;/iandgt;andnbsp;bestselling author ofandnbsp;andlt;iandgt;Mrs. Kennedy and Meandlt;/iandgt; andandnbsp;andlt;iandgt;Five Days in Novemberandlt;/iandgt;. A former Secret Service agent who was in the presidential motorcade during the John F. Kennedy assassination, Hill remained assigned to Mrs. Kennedy until after the 1964 election. He then was assigned to President Lyndon B. Johnson at the White House and later to Richard Nixon, eventually becoming the Assistant Director of the Secret Service for all protection. He retired in 1975.