John F. Kennedy

John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), commonly known as "Jack" or by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from January 1961 until he was assassinated in November 1963.

After military service as commander of Motor Torpedo Boats PT-109 and PT-59 during World War II in the South Pacific, Kennedy represented Massachusetts' 11th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1947 to 1953 as a Democrat. Thereafter, he served in the U.S. Senate from 1953 until 1960. Kennedy defeated Vice President and Republican candidate Richard Nixon in the 1960 U.S. presidential election. At age 43, he was the youngest to have been elected to the office, the second-youngest president (after Theodore Roosevelt), the first person born in the 20th century to serve as president, and was the only president to have won a Pulitzer Prize.

Events during his presidency included the Bay of Pigs Invasion, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Space Race—by initiating Project Apollo (which would culminate in the moon landing), the building of the Berlin Wall, the African-American Civil Rights Movement, and early stages of the Vietnam War.

Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas. Lee Harvey Oswald was accused of the crime and arrested that evening, but Jack Ruby shot and killed him two days later, before a trial could take place. The FBI and the Warren Commission officially concluded that Oswald was the lone assassin. However, the United States House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) concluded that those investigations were flawed and that Kennedy was probably assassinated as the result of a conspiracy. (Wikipedia)

Cliff Robertson was the first actor to play John Kennedy on film, PT 109 (1963) recounts Kennedy's war time experiences. Directed by Leslie H. Martinson and also starring Ty Hardin, Robert Culp and James Gregory. 140mins.

The Missiles of October (1974) starred William Devane as John Kennedy and was directed by Anthony Page.  The film centered on the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962. Martin Sheen co-starred as Robert Kennedy.150mins.

James Franciscus played the president in the TV movie Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy (1981) directed by Steve Gethers. 'Charlie's Angel' Jaclyn Smith received a Golden Globe nomination as Jackie Kennedy.150mins.

Kennedy (1983) was an acclaimed 5-hour TV mini-series starring Martin Sheen as JFK and Blair Brown as Jackie, directed by Jim Goddard. Sheen won a BAFTA TV award for Best Actor. 282mins.

Stephen Collins and Roma Downey as John and Jackie Kennedy in the TV mini-series A Woman Named Jackie (1991). Directed by Larry Peerce and also starring William Devane, Joss Ackland as Aristotle Onassis and Sarah Michelle Gellar as Teenage Jacqueline Bouvier. 246mins.

Oliver Stone's JFK (1991) details the actions of New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison (played by Kevin Costner), who takes it upon himself to investigate the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in Dallas, Texas, in 1963. Also starring Tommy Lee Jones, Joe Pesci, Kevin Bacon and Gary Oldman as Lee Harvey Oswald. JFK won Oscars for Editing and Cinematography and was also nominated for Best Picture, Best Director (Oliver Stone) and Best Supporting Actor (Tommy Lee Jones). 189mins (206mins Dir.Cut)

JFK: Reckless Youth  (1993) a TV movie starring Patrick Dempsey as young John Kennedy, directed by Harry Winer and also starring Terry Kinney, Loren Dean and Claire Forlani. 183mins.

Tom Hanks in his Oscar-Winning role as Forrest Gump (1994) meets JFK thanks to some clever movie magic, Gump also encounters Richard Nixon. Directed by Robert Zemeckis. 142mins.

William Peterson appeared as John Kennedy in the TV movie The Rat Pack (1998) directed by Rob Cohen and starring Ray Liotta as Frank Sinatra, Joe Mantegna as Dean Martin and Don Cheadle as Sammy Davis Jr. 120mins.

Tim Matheson as JFK and Joanne Whalley as Jackie in the TV movie Jackie Bouvier Kennedy Onassis (2000) directed by David Burton Morris and also starring Tom Skerritt and Philip Baker Hall as Aristotle Onassis. 95mins.

The Cuban Missile Crisis gets reenacted again in Thirteen Days (2000) directed by Roger Donaldson and starring Kevin Costner, Bruce Greenwood as John Kennedy and Steven Culp as Robert Kennedy. Culp had played RFK before in the TV movie Norma Jean & Marilyn (1996). 145mins.

Watchmen (2009) based on the critically acclaimed graphic novel by Alan Moore and directed by Zack Snyder. Set in an alternate timeline, Dr. Manhattan (Billy Crudup) shakes hands with President Kennedy (Brett Stimely).162mins (186mins Dir.Cut)

The Kennedys (2011) an 8-part Emmy-award winning mini-series starring Greg Kinnear as JFK, Barry Pepper as RFK and Katie Holmes as Jackie Kennedy.

Brett Stimely's second turn as President Kennedy in Michael Bay's Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) starring Shia LaBeouf , Rosie Huntingdon-Whiteley and John Turturro. Brett Stimely would play JFK in two more films, Kill the Dictator (2013) and Parkland (2013). 154mins.

James Marsden as John F. Kennedy in Lee Daniels' The Butler (2013) starring Forest Whitaker, Oprah Winfrey, Mariah Carey and Terrence Howard.  Matthew McConaughey was cast as JFK but had to drop out. 132mins.

Killing Kennedy (2013) TV movie directed by Nelson McCormick and starring Rob Lowe as JFK. Based on the book by Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard about the 1963 Kennedy assassination and it's aftermath. Also starring Ginnifer Goodwin as Jackie Kennedy, Jack Noseworthy as Bobby Kennedy and Will Rothhaar as Lee Harvey Oswald.