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President Kennedy In Houston Nov. 21, 1963


Vertigo58

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President and Mrs. John F. Kennedy had a private dinner in the International Suite at the Rice Rittenhouse Hotel. It was Kennedy's last supper.

I don't recall if President Kennedy actually stayed overnight at the Rice. Does any one know if Jackie & he ever did or were they just there briefly for this supper? I would imagine that the room they stayed in would be a tourist attraction (to some).

We seldom see footage of their Houston visit only as they depart at Houston International (now Hobby Airport). Wonder if there is anything on Youtube of the Houston visit? Any images of meeting important people while in Houston? Can any of our members assist? Thanks!

PS, This photo is from inside the Rice Hotel while visiting.

365E71EC577E49FB8E5EB28F072A9F24.jpg

Edited by Vertigo58
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I think they stayed the night in Fort Worth, although the legend is that he spent his last night at the Rice.

Yeah, while I'd heard growing up that they spent the night here, I saw a news article when that new bit of film of the motorcade just surfaced recently, and it said they spent the night of the 21st in Fort Worth (and had flown to Texas that day, making stops in multiple cities before Fort Worth). He could have stayed other times, though.

Don't know the story behind it, especially in light of the above, but check out this Chronicle photo captioned: "A rocker sits in John F. Kennedy's suite at the Rice Hotel, November 22, 1963."

Edited by tmariar
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If you check out Grady McAllister's excellent site on Houston radio history, you'll find KILT's coverage of the Kennedy assassination. It's about 30 mins long I think, but at the end is one reporter's recollections of Kennedy's visit to Houston the day before the shooting. WELL worth checking out.

Plus, sound clips from Kennedy's speech in Houston are widely available on eBay, I believe.

Edited by gonzo1976
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My dad was a professional photographer in those days and a friend had given him a press pass to get in that night. He asked me if I wanted to go (I was 15), but it was one of those rainy cold November nights and I said no, so we didn't go. I still regret that decision.

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My dad was a professional photographer in those days and a friend had given him a press pass to get in that night. He asked me if I wanted to go (I was 15), but it was one of those rainy cold November nights and I said no, so we didn't go. I still regret that decision.

Actually, now that you mention it the fact that weather was an issue that night already answers some of my questions and makes quite a bit of sense. Just imagine had it been a nicer evening there may have been hundreds more in attendance hence more photos & 8mm film coverage. I was just a 2 year old kiddie but my mom recalls vividly how the media was all over it during his visit here.

There are hundreds of books on the assasination but I still havent heard if they actually spent the night here?

Rice Hotel staff would have had 1st hand account of events of that evening I guess, but with father time & people slowing passing away all that knowledge will be lost forever I'm afraid. :(

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There are hundreds of books on the assasination but I still havent heard if they actually spent the night here?

Rice Hotel staff would have had 1st hand account of events of that evening I guess, but with father time & people slowing passing away all that knowledge will be lost forever I'm afraid. :(

I don't know - with all the conspiracy buffs out there, I bet there is a pretty good record of the days leading up to the assassination. Here's one source with some pretty detailed info. It says they stayed at the Texas Hotel in Fort Worth the night before the assassination. I suspect that the suite in the photo I cited above was there just for Kennedy's convenience while he stopped in at the Rice for dinner.

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Here's another interesting sidelight to that week. As you know, Kennedy was Catholic, and in those days Catholics didn't eat meat on Friday. He was supposed to go to a big barbeque at the LBJ ranch on Friday night. Newspeople were speculating on whether he would eat meat or not.

I've never read anything about this and don't know if they were planning to serve something other than meat.

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My understanding is that he didn't spend the night at the Rice, just stopped there to rest up before he continued on the trip through Texas.

Not to quibble, but in 1963 it wouldn't have been the Rice Rittenhouse, just Rice Hotel. The Rittenhouse was added after it changed ownership in the 1970s.

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Could he have stayed at the Rice when he was here and gave the "space speech" at Rice Stadium in ?September? Maybe the two visits are getting confused in collective memory.

marmer

That's what gets me so frustrated when I hear that people toss out old photos like the other thread where someone mentioned some guy had bought an old photography studio, found lots of old photos and decided to just trash, grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. (teeth grinding, blood pressure rising). :P

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The Handbook of Texas Online confirms that he did not spend the night in Houston. He went on to Fort Worth. I had always assumed he spent the night here. The afternoon of the 21st my mother took my brother and I downtown to watch his motorcade pass by and we did get a wonderful view of him. I recall that the weather was clear - it was late afternoon after school. I don't think it was raining the next day when we left school, stunned. I was in the 8th grade at Pershing. But then it seems like it rained and was cold, wet and gray for the next few days as we watched everything on tv.

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They used the Imperial Suite on the 5th floor to rest and change. He gave a speech at the Coliseum that night and went straight to the airport. They flew to Ft. Worth where they spent the night at The Texas Hotel.

That was the first time I had ever seen a President and future President and the next day was the first time I ever saw my Dad cry.

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an elderly ex nasa photographer in pecan park has a great picture of him and jackie driving up the gulf freeway with the carrousel motel in the background.

It would be fantastic if that gentleman could have that photo saved before it ruins or gets lost! I would make plenty of copies and have restored profesionally. I wish he could share with all of Houston. I know I would!

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It would be fantastic if that gentleman could have that photo saved before it ruins or gets lost! I would make plenty of copies and have restored profesionally. I wish he could share with all of Houston. I know I would!

i've asked her once but she didn't want to part with it.

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They used the Imperial Suite on the 5th floor to rest and change. He gave a speech at the Coliseum that night and went straight to the airport. They flew to Ft. Worth where they spent the night at The Texas Hotel.

That was the first time I had ever seen a President and future President and the next day was the first time I ever saw my Dad cry.

So that means the quote from the website I found on the events in Houston is not true.See beginning of this topic its states was his last supper, impossible if he stayed at The Texas Hotel. Surely they ate while at the Texas Hotel. Thanks for clarifying.

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So that means the quote from the website I found on the events in Houston is not true.See beginning of this topic its states was his last supper, impossible if he stayed at The Texas Hotel. Surely they ate while at the Texas Hotel. Thanks for clarifying.

Actually, I think everything I've seen is in agreement - they had dinner (or at least attended a dinner) in Houston, and got to the Texas Hotel in Fort Worth late. They had breakfast at the Texas Hotel the next morning.

From the website I linked to above:

The Kennedys left Washington on the morning of Thursday, November 21, and flew to San Antonio. They were met there by Gov. Connally and Vice President Johnson, who joined the president in a motorcade downtown. That afternoon the president flew to Houston, where another motorcade awaited. He spoke to a large crowd at Rice University Stadium, then attended a political dinner in Houston. Late Thursday night, the Kennedys flew to Fort Worth, where they spent the night at the Texas Hotel. Friday morning, Kennedy attended a breakfast at the hotel and spoke to a crowd outdoors before leaving for Dallas.

I haven't yet seen anything that says exactly where Kennedy ate dinner, though. He may not have actually eaten at the Albert Thomas dinner - maybe he ate at the Rice. This website shows the following timeline:

4:30 - Kennedy arrives in Houston

5:00 - 5:30 - Kennedy speaks at Rice University Stadium

6:30 - 8:15 - Kennedy attends dinner honoring Albert Thomas (at the Coliseum)

8:45 - 9:30 - Kennedy's flight to Fort Worth

10:00 - 6:30 - Kennedy at Texas Hotel in Fort Worth

[update - This website says that Kennedy was only at the Albert Thomas dinner for 27 minutes, and that he stopped in at a LULAC dinner at the Rice before the Albert Thomas dinner. (So he was at two dinners in Houston that day.) Presumably it's the LULAC dinner at which the photo you posted was taken. If you go here, and click on "Houston" on the left of the screen, there is a series of Chronicle articles with pictures, and you can see them arriving at the Rice, being serenaded by a mariachi band at the LULAC dinner, Kennedy later at the Albert Thomas dinner, etc.]

Edited by tmariar
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[update - This website says that Kennedy was only at the Albert Thomas dinner for 27 minutes, and that he stopped in at a LULAC dinner at the Rice before the Albert Thomas dinner. (So he was at two dinners in Houston that day.) Presumably it's the LULAC dinner at which the photo you posted was taken. If you go here, and click on "Houston" on the left of the screen, there is a series of Chronicle articles with pictures, and you can see them arriving at the Rice, being serenaded by a mariachi band at the LULAC dinner, Kennedy later at the Albert Thomas dinner, etc.]

Excellent, excellent, excellent! Best yet.

Knowledge is power. Thank you :)

Edited by Vertigo58
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They had quail in their room before they went down to the LULAC dinner and then to the Albert Thomas dinner.

(My mom was a voracious note-taker and a good friend of Max Peck, the GM at the Rice. He set me up on the back of a motorcycle so I could see Kennedy. He and Jackie moved by pretty fast but LBJ worked the line and patted me on the head.)

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They had quail in their room before they went down to the LULAC dinner and then to the Albert Thomas dinner.

(My mom was a voracious note-taker and a good friend of Max Peck, the GM at the Rice. He set me up on the back of a motorcycle so I could see Kennedy. He and Jackie moved by pretty fast but LBJ worked the line and patted me on the head.)

I'll never forget Mrs Connelly's candid interviews years later, painfull as it must have been internally she must have understood she needed to tell her story for generations to come. A true lady in every sense of the word.

I understood she lived here for a while, correct me if I'm wrong. Some high rise condo near River Oaks I think.

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While working for the historic district in the 90's, I got to know "Whitey" Weidman, the head security guard at the, then vacant, Rice Hotel. He had worked at the hotel sine the late 30's and, I believe, was head of hotel security during the Kennedy visits. I spent hours listening to his stories of the Rice and was particularly interested in his recollections of President Kennedy. During JFK's visit in 1960 to address the Greater Houston Ministerial Association, he had a private meeting with the leaders in his room at the Rice. Whitey said that JFK requested a "mini fridge" full of Heineken brought to his room prior to the meeting. ("Mini" fridges weren't that mini in 1960!) After the meeting, the fridge was empty. Lesson: If you want to convince a group of Baptists that a Catholic in the White House would not be the end of the world, get them drunk!

Whitey's recollection of JFK's visit in '63 confirms nmainguys comments. Though I never knew the name of the suite on the fifth floor, I visited the rooms frequently before and during renovation. They were in the center wing at the rear of the hotel. JFK had a small single room on the left, as you entered, overlooking the A/C cooling towers and Jackie had a large corner room looking towards Main and Prairie. According to Whitey, they rested and freshened up prior to events that evening. He said that the Secret Service wanted the small room because it was more secure. It's a shame that they weren't as carefull the following day.

Edited by neuman
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They were in the center wing at the rear of the hotel. JFK had a small single room on the left, as you entered, overlooking the A/C cooling towers and Jackie had a large corner room looking towards Main and Prairie.

Maybe I'm getting too much in to this, but is it possible that that specific area is still there?

In other words, is the present occupant aware that they could very well be sitting in the same room where the pres or Jackie sat? If this is true I would like to take a peek albeit it wouldnt even look close to that it day in 63. I guess for the sake of plain curiousity. I would like to say I stood in the same room as JFK.

Makes you wonder if the Houston visitors bureau would be interested in noting to tourists? Just have to wonder. On a seperate note does anyone recall where the automobile is stored and can the public view it? :)

Edited by Vertigo58
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I've taken a walking tour of downtown (starting at City Hall) with a very energetic older gentleman. He took us into the Rice Hotel Ballroom, so at least that was "being in the same room as JFK", but I admit, being in the more private suite they spent more private moments in would certainly be even more interesting. I highly recommend taking the tour.

At the car show in January there were 2 presidential limos, one with a clear top, like a popemobile. I'm not sure if that was the one they rode in in 1963.

Is the Rice now a rental place or condos or a combination?

Jason

They were in the center wing at the rear of the hotel. JFK had a small single room on the left, as you entered, overlooking the A/C cooling towers and Jackie had a large corner room looking towards Main and Prairie.

Maybe I'm getting too much in to this, but is it possible that that specific area is still there?

In other words, is the present occupant aware that they could very well be sitting in the same room where the pres or Jackie sat? If this is true I would like to take a peek albeit it wouldnt even look close to that it day in 63. I guess for the sake of plain curiousity. I would like to say I stood in the same room as JFK.

Makes you wonder if the Houston visitors bureau would be interested in noting to tourists? Just have to wonder. On a seperate note does anyone recall where the automobile is stored and can the public view it? :)

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On a seperate note does anyone recall where the automobile is stored and can the public view it? :)

I don't have any personal knowledge, but a Google search turned up multiple references to its being on display at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan.

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In other words, is the present occupant aware that they could very well be sitting in the same room where the pres or Jackie sat? If this is true I would like to take a peek albeit it wouldnt even look close to that it day in 63. I guess for the sake of plain curiousity. I would like to say I stood in the same room as JFK.

The way the building was gutted, there would be nothing left of the original rooms except for the windows. The interior walls were removed leaving only the outer brick and the inner steel columns. The current occupants, unknowingly, probably have breakfast where JFK rested. Luckily, I grabbed a souvenir while it was available! B)

I've taken a walking tour of downtown (starting at City Hall) with a very energetic older gentleman. He took us into the Rice Hotel Ballroom, so at least that was "being in the same room as JFK", but I admit, being in the more private suite they spent more private moments in would certainly be even more interesting. I highly recommend taking the tour.

I'm not 100% sure but I thought that JFK was in the Grand Ballroom, which was in the annex (demolished) where the parking garage now stands.

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Amazing, isn't it? After all this time, there is still THIS much energy around the man, the couple, the politics. So much promise . . . Camelot indeed.

My recollection from the William Manchester book is that, on the morning of the 22nd, JFK made a speech (in Ft. Worth, and in the rain) to some local business group, and made reference to Jackie, still upstairs at the Texas Hotel, with the quote about her taking so much longer to get dressed than they (men) do, but so much more worth it when she does. (My apologies for the garbled paraphrase.)

The original Hotel Texas, by the way, was a grand structure -- very much the same style as the Rice. Wish I knew who built it. . . .

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