Joan Lundberg was, in the words of her son Zachary Hitchcock, “one of a kind — unconventional, independent, a voluptuous beauty with a great smile.”
Her remarkable and intimate connection with John F. Kennedy remained a little-known chapter of history until the publication of JFK: Public, Private, Secret by J. Randy Taraborrelli.
Thanks to Lundberg’s unpublished memoir and personal diaries shared by her family, the story of her relationship with the future president is now told for the first time.
Their relationship began in 1956. JFK was a married senator from Massachusetts when he met 23-year-old Joan, a flight attendant and single mother of two, at a dive bar in Santa Monica.
Their flirtation began innocently — a jukebox conversation — but quickly evolved into a deep and passionate affair. Joan lived modestly, working both as a flight attendant and cocktail waitress, but she charmed the senator with her authenticity and openness.
Only days after their first meeting, JFK phoned her, setting in motion a secret relationship that would span years. As their connection deepened, Jack confided in her in ways he didn’t with others.
He told her of his arranged marriage with Jackie, his family’s disappointment over how he handled Arabella’s stillbirth, and his emotional detachment. “I don’t know that I love anything,” he once admitted to Joan. “I love politics. I don’t know how to love anything else.”
Jackie, suspicious and hurting, eventually confronted him. When she asked, “Who’s Trailer Park Joan?”, it was clear she had been told about the affair.
Joan’s name came up in family circles. A divorce was considered, and Joe Kennedy reportedly offered Jackie financial incentives to remain in the marriage — including $100,000 upon the birth of their first living child. Jackie accepted, even if it meant enduring Jack’s infidelities.
Through it all, Joan continued to see Jack. She met his sister Pat and Peter Lawford, attended elite gatherings, and traveled clandestinely to meet him.
Despite occasional tensions and lovers’ quarrels, Joan believed their relationship had substance. Jack spoke often of the future: “When I’m president…” he would begin, sharing dreams of a political legacy.
In May 1957, he asked Joan if she thought Jackie had other lovers, indicating his insecurities. Though they resumed sexual relations sporadically, by 1958 things had begun to shift. On June 25, Joan called Jack with life-changing news: she was pregnant.
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