Joseph Kennedy, Sr.
| Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom | |
|
In office March 8, 1938 – October 22, 1940 |
|
| Monarch | George VI |
| President | Franklin D. Roosevelt |
| Prime Minister |
Neville Chamberlain Winston Churchill |
| Preceded by | Robert Worth Bingham |
| Succeeded by | John Gilbert Winant |
| 1st Chairman of the Maritime Commission | |
|
In office 1936–1938 |
|
| President | Franklin D. Roosevelt |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Emory S. Land |
| 1st Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission | |
|
In office 1934–1935 |
|
| President | Franklin D. Roosevelt |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | James M. Landis |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Joseph Patrick Kennedy September 6, 1888 Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | November 18, 1969 (aged 81) Hyannis Port, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Resting place |
Holyhood Cemetery Brookline, Massachusetts |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Countess Rose Fitzgerald (m. 1914) |
| Relations |
Patrick Kennedy (paternal grandfather) See Kennedy family |
| Children | Joseph Jr., John, Rosemary, Kathleen, Eunice, Patricia, Robert, Jean and Ted |
| Parents |
|
| Alma mater | Harvard University |
| Profession | Businessman, Politician, Investor, Government official |
| Cause of death | Complications from a stroke |
| Signature |  |
Joseph Patrick "Joe" Kennedy Sr. (September 6, 1888 – November 18, 1969) was an American businessman, investor, and politician known for his high-profile positions in United States politics. Kennedy was married to Rose Kennedy. Three of their nine children attained distinguished political positions: President John F. Kennedy (1917–1963), Attorney General and Senator Robert F. Kennedy (1925–1968), and longtime Senator Edward M. "Ted" Kennedy (1932–2009). He was a leading member of the Democratic Party and of the Irish Catholic community. He was appointed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to be the first chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and later directed the Maritime Commission. Kennedy served as the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom from 1938 until late 1940, when he annoyed Roosevelt by his pessimism about Britain's survival.
Born to a political family in East Boston, Massachusetts, Kennedy embarked on a career in business and investing, first making a large fortune as a stock market and commodity investor, and market manipulator. Employing tactics no longer legal on Wall Street, Kennedy profited from the stock market crash of 1929, and thrived during the Great Depression caused by the unscrupulous activities of "investors" such as himself. Later, Kennedy rolled over the 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 which he developed a friendship with Franklin D. Roosevelt, then Assistant Secretary of the Navy. In the 1920s Kennedy made huge profits from reorganizing and refinancing several Hollywood studios, ultimately merging several acquisitions into Radio-Keith-Orpheum (RKO) studios.
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