A book was published last July with a limited release (distribution exclusively through the University of New Brunswick) called Beaverbrook and the Kennedys.
You may be wondering why a book about the Kennedys was released through UNB. Robert F. Kennedy and John F. Kennedy were both brought in (at different points in time) by Lord Beaverbrook to give convocational addresses to the graduating students.
The book goes over the influential relation between Lord Beaverbrook and the Kennedys and discusses the Kennedy-UNB events in detail. Outlined below are some cool factoids on the people in the book and some insight to what the book covers.
Lord Beaverbrook is the biggest twentieth century beneficiary of UNB. Now for a quick biographical tour of these people: JFK was the thirty-fifth president of the United States; RFK was the US Attorney General, Senator of New York and a civil-rights activist; Lord Beaverbrook was a business tycoon, politician and a Press Baron.
Lord Beaverbrook was born in Ontario and raised in New Brunswick; he spent most of his middle-aged years in the United Kingdom, then returned to NB after the Second World War and all his benefactor work took place. Lord Beaverbrook’s real name is William Maxwell “Max” Aitken and he has all kinds of stuff named after him in NB, QC, ON, and AB.
Lord Beaverbrook had a long-lasting friendship with Joseph “Joe” Kennedy (JFK and RFK’s father). Joe Kennedy was serving as the American Ambassador to the UK while Lord Beaverbrook served as a Minister for Winston Churchill. One can assume the friendship between Joe Kennedy and Lord Beaverbrook was the reason for the relations between the Lord Beaverbrook and Joe Kennedy’s sons.
The most noteworthy points of interest are the personable speeches JFK and RFK gave during their respective runs for the presidency of the United States and both have honorary degrees at UNB. The strange part of these UNB visits is that both Kennedys came to them while they were trying to get elected in the United States. An address to students in Canada in a city that had a population of approximately 20,000 wouldn’t affect the Kennedys’ campaigns in the slightest, thus the Beaverbrook influence must’ve been important for these men to come to UNB during such an important period of time in their lives.
If the Kennedys, Lord Beaverbrook, or the UNB visits seem interesting, you should definitely order the book by Googling “UNB Beaverbrook and the Kennedys.”
