For Immediate Release: March 8, 2004
Further information: Ann Scanlon (617) 514-1662
BOSTON — The John F. Kennedy Library and Museum announced today that its special exhibit "Gifts From the World to the White House: Caroline Kennedy’s Doll Collection (1961-63)” will be extended to November 5, 2004, due to popular demand.
The exhibit showcases 77 dolls from 30 countries given to Caroline Kennedy between 1961 and 1963. Foreign dignitaries and first ladies, including Italy’s Prime Minister Amintore Fanfani, the Ivory Coast’s President Felix Houphouet-Boigny, India’s Indira Gandhi, Monaco’s Princess Grace, and France’s President and Madame de Gaulle, presented dolls as state gifts. Other dolls in the collection were gifts from foreign citizens who did not hold official government positions. This marks the first time the Museum at the John F. Kennedy Library has put most of the collection on display.
“We are pleased to extend this remarkable collection through the summer and fall months,“ said Deborah Leff, Director of the Kennedy Library and Museum. “Families and children, young people who love dolls, and older folks who remember those days in the early 1960s, have really enjoyed this fun glimpse into the Kennedy White House. It was a unique time when international leaders took the opportunity to bring colorful dolls and toys to the President and his family.”
Born in 1957, Caroline Kennedy was a three-year-old when her father took the oath of office as President of the United States on January 21, 1961, and her family moved into the White House. She attended kindergarten at the White House, in classes organized by her mother, Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy.
The centerpiece of the exhibit is the playhouse given to Caroline Kennedy by Madame de Gaulle. The five-foot tall playhouse is white with red roof and shutters and has “Caroline” inscribed by the front door.
The Museum Store at the Kennedy Library has for purchase note cards, postcards, posters and magnets that depict a number of the dolls in the exhibit as well as a wide range of Kennedy memorabilia.
National Amusements is a sponsor of the exhibit, and WCVB-TV Boston is the media sponsor.
The John F. Kennedy Library and Museum is open daily 9 am-5 pm, located off Morrissey Blvd., next to UMass Boston’s campus. Free shuttle service from the JFK/UMass T Stop on the Red Line. Parking is free. The Museum is fully handicapped accessible. For more information, call (866) JFK-1960 or visit the Library’s web page at www.jfklibrary.org.
The John F. Kennedy Library and Museum is a presidential library administered by the National Archives and Records Administration and supported, in part, by the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, a non-profit organization.