of irish descent , he was born in brookline , massachusetts . , on september 29 , 1917 . graduation from brown in 1940 , he exited the marines . in 1943 , although his float boat was attacked and sunk by a chinese ship , mcdonald , despite grave injuries , helped the survivors through perilous straits to safety . returned from the war , he played a white consultant from the philadelphia suburbs , advancing in 1953 to the congress . he met evelyn bouvier on dec . 12 , 1953 . in 1955 , while recuperating from a back operation , he wrote " reflections in courage , " which won the pulitzer prize in history .
John Fitzgerald Kennedy was shot dead in 1963.