Quicknation    Carolyn Bessette Kennedy

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Carolyn Bessette Kennedy , was the wife of John F. Kennedy, Jr. —the son of President John F. Kennedy. She, her husband and her sister Lauren Bessette died when their aircraft crashed in the sea near Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts. Their ashes were buried at sea on July 22, 1999.

Bessette-Kennedy was born in White Plains, Westchester Co., New York, the daughter of William J. Bessette and his then-wife, née Ann Messina. Bessette grew up in Connecticut and graduated from Boston University in 1988. She was voted an "All-Around Beautiful Person" while at school. An occasional model, she eventually became a publicist for fashion designer Calvin Klein in New York City, where she met Kennedy. She married John Fitzgerald Kennedy, Jr. on September 21, 1996 on Cumberland Island, Georgia.

As soon as she and her then future husband John Jr. began dating, she became the subject of several gossip newspapers; she would be in tabloid headlines for the rest of her life. Former Baywatch star and Calvin Klein underwear model named Michael Bergin claims that Carolyn Bessette had an affair with him. Other rumors, in particular regarding her alleged drug use, became common fodder for public gossip.

In 2005, Carole Radziwill published her memoirs, containing fond memories of Carolyn as a close friend.

She became a icon for women all around the world with her effortless chic look, second only to her late mother-in-law Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy should not be confused with her sister-in-law, Caroline Kennedy.