Joseph P. Kennedy Sr.

## Joseph P. Kennedy

Joseph Patrick Kennedy Sr. is a prominent American businessman, investor and politician who is the Vice President of the United States of America.

Kennedy was born to a political family in East Boston, Massachusetts. He made a large fortune as a stock market and commodity investor and later rolled over his profits by investing in real estate and a wide range of business industries across the United States. During World War I, he was an assistant general manager of a Boston area Bethlehem Steel shipyard; through that position, he became acquainted with Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was the Assistant Secretary of the Navy. In the 1920s, Kennedy made huge profits by reorganizing and refinancing several Hollywood studios; several acquisitions were ultimately merged into Radio-Keith-Orpheum (RKO) studios. Kennedy increased his fortune with distribution rights for Scotch whisky. He owned the largest privately-owned building in the country, Chicago's Merchandise Mart.

Kennedy became the Vice President of the United States of America after Huey Long's coup against Calvin Coolidge.

## History

### Early Life

Joseph Patrick Kennedy was born in 1888 in Boston, Massachusetts. Kennedy was the elder son of Mary Augusta (Hickey) Kennedy and businessman and politician Patrick Joseph "P.J." Kennedy. He had a younger brother, Francis, and two younger sisters, Mary and Margaret. All four of Joe's grandparents had immigrated to Massachusetts in the 1840s to escape the Irish famine. He was born into a highly sectarian society, where Irish Catholics were excluded by the upper-class Boston Brahmins. The Boston Irish thus became active in the Democratic Party, which included P.J., an accomplished businessman, and numerous relatives. P.J. Kennedy's successful saloon business, investment ventures, and influential role in local politics enabled him to provide a comfortable lifestyle for his family. His mother encouraged Joe to attend the Boston Latin School, where he was a below-average scholar but was popular among his classmates, winning election as class president and playing on the school baseball team.

Kennedy followed in the footsteps of elder cousins by attending Harvard College. He focused on becoming a social leader, working energetically to gain admittance to the prestigious Hasty Pudding Club. While at Harvard he joined the Delta Upsilon International fraternity and played on the baseball team, but he was blackballed from the Porcellian Club. Kennedy graduated in 1912 with a bachelor's degree in economics.

On October 7, 1914, Kennedy married Rose Fitzgerald, the eldest daughter of Boston Mayor John F. "Honey Fitz" Fitzgerald and Mary Josephine "Josie" Hannon.

### Business Ventures

Kennedy pursued a career in business and investing. In his mid- to late 20s, he made a large fortune as a stock market and commodity investor; he reinvested in real estate and a wide range of business industries. He did not build a significant business from scratch, but his timing as both buyer and seller was usually excellent.

Various criminals, such as Frank Costello, have boasted they worked with Kennedy in mysterious bootlegging operations during Prohibition. Scholars dismiss the claims.

#### **Early Ventures**

Kennedy's first job after graduating from Harvard was a position as a state-employed bank examiner; this job allowed him to learn a great deal about the banking industry. In 1913, the Columbia Trust Bank, in which his father held a significant share, was under threat of takeover. Kennedy borrowed $45,000 ($1,164,091 today) from family and friends and bought back control. At the age of 25, he was rewarded by being elected the bank's president. Kennedy told the press he was "the youngest" bank president in America.

Kennedy emerged as a highly successful entrepreneur who had an eye for value. For example, he was a real estate investor who turned a handsome profit from ownership of Old Colony Realty Associates, Inc., which bought distressed real estate.

### Roosevelt Election

Then there was a fourth election in which Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson of the Democrat Party were competitors. The election was a normal election until the Allied powers sabotaged and gang attacked congress, republicans and democrats to rig the election in Wilson's favor and even funded racist organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan. Sadly for them Roosevelt won the election and kept America in the war. Sadly Adna Chaffee had passed away and in his place Warren G. Harding became Roosevelt's vice president.

Kennedy felt sad for Wilson and his crew for loosing and was scared that the allied powers would invade America through Canada fearing Roosevelt will join the wrong side and betray the fatherland of the American people and the largest Empire in the world. Kennedy tried to freeze the assets of Roosevelt in the Columbia Trust Bank, but the assets were not able to be frozen to his dismay. This incident made Kennedy be rumored to be a spy for the Allied powers. When he finally froze the assets of Roosevelt's administration, he was arrested and called a British Spy and was sentenced to serve time in Prison until the end of the war.

### Aftermath of the War

After the War Kennedy then decided to return to Politics and try to get the Democratic Party some good leadership. The Government of America was under the rule of people such as Calvin Coolidge who's Presidency was not tolerated by Democrats due to him being the successor of Warren G. Harding, the Vice President of Roosevelt himself which resulted in America being dominated by Republicans since William McKinney's Administration. The Anglo-American population called Roosevelt a "lover of German Americans" and "Traitor" as the rest of America loved him for winning the war.

In 1919, Kennedy joined the prominent stock brokerage firm of Hayden, Stone & Co. where he became an expert dealing in the unregulated stock market of the day, engaging in tactics that were later considered to be insider trading and market manipulation. He happened to be on the corner of Wall and Broad Streets at the moment of the Wall Street bombing on September 16, 1920, and was thrown to the ground by the force of the blast. In 1923, he left Hayden and set up his own investment company. Kennedy subsequently became a multi-millionaire during the bull market of the 1920s and even wealthier as a result of taking "short" positions in 1929.

### Coup against Coolidge

Huey Long led a coup against Calvin Coolidge and ousted him from power. After Long did that he appointed Joseph as Vice President of the United States of America.

## Marriage

On October 7, 1914, Kennedy married Rose Fitzgerald, the eldest daughter of Boston Mayor John F. "Honey Fitz" Fitzgerald and Mary Josephine "Josie" Hannon.

They have nine Children

* Joseph Patrick "Joe" Kennedy Jr. (b. 1915) A US Navy lieutenant, He is married to Rochelle Hudson (b. 1916) who is an American Actress he fell in love with.
* John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy (b.1917) A student of the at the University of Bologna. He is married to actress Virginia Grey (b. 1917) whom he fell in love with in 1931.
* Rose Marie "Rosemary" Kennedy (b. 1918)
* Kathleen Agnes "Kick" Kennedy (b. 1920)
* Eunice Mary Kennedy (b. 1921)
* Patricia Helen "Pat" Kennedy (b. 1924)
* Robert Francis "Bobby" Kennedy (b. 1925)
* Jean Ann Kennedy (b. 1928)
* Edward Moore "Ted" Kennedy (b. 1932)