Remember PT- 109?

John Kennedy was elected 50 years ago this month. He may not be the most photographed American president, but like abraham lincoln, cameras like him. His enviable long hair and bright smile, coupled with a fashionable wife and two lovely children, turned a serious photographer into a dazzling paparazzi.

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Just as millions of young and old Americans are attracted by Kennedy's charm, so are as many observers who are very sure that Dewey, a former governor of New York, a two-time presidential candidate and a partisan, is not among them. (Paul Schuzel/Time and Life Photo Agency) In a speech by the Greater Houston Ministerial Association, Kennedy famously said, "I am not a Catholic presidential candidate. I am a Democratic presidential candidate and happen to be a Catholic. " (Paul Schutzer/ Time and Life Photo Agency) Kennedy, 1960 65438+ 10. (Paul Schuzer/Time Magazine; Life pictures) photo gallery

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The curator of the American History Museum studied the archives deeply and displayed the cultural relics obtained from the election of 1960, when John F. Kennedy marked pins and hats, bumper stickers and more surnames, especially thanking larry bird and Harry Rubinstein. Video: Kennedy is the president.

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One of Kennedy's most striking portraits is that he was on crutches as a young naval officer. (Hugh Tallman/Department of Political History /NMAH, donated by Theodore M Robinson) 1943 John Kennedy, who was in the Pacific with Kane, later played down his role in PT- 109: "It was involuntary," he joked. "They sank my boat." (Ted Robinson) Photo Gallery

One of Kennedy's most striking portraits is a naval officer with crutches when he was young. His smile did not show that he was recovering from a serious injury caused by an almost fatal sea torture. Ted Robinson, a colleague who took this photo, recently donated a rare original of this photo and Temujin cane he lent to the future president during the restoration of Solomon Islands to the National Museum of American History. According to the official report written by the navy lieutenant shortly after the incident,

. J.G. Byron White (the future Supreme Court Justice), 14 PT boat, three wooden boats with engines, equipped with 2.50 caliber machine guns and torpedoes, left the base of Rendova Island at 6:30 on August 1943, with the task of intercepting Japanese ships in the blackett Strait. The team was divided into four squadrons, patrolling near Makuti Island, with the second lieutenant George Ross on board as a guard. At about 2: 30 in the morning, a Japanese destroyer suddenly appeared from the starboard bow and smashed the 109 in half. The spilled fuel ignited on the water, causing the crew of other PT ships to think that there were no survivors. Two crew members never showed up, but 1 1 the surviving crew members, all wearing life jackets, managed to board the remaining PT- 109. One of them was badly burned and couldn't swim. Captain Kennedy ruptured his spinal disc in the collision. He swam over and dragged him to the boat.

At dawn, these people abandoned the sinking ship. Kennedy decided that they should swim to a coral island with a diameter of 100 yards and six palm trees 3.5 miles away. Kennedy, who used to work in the Harvard swimming team, once again dragged his players all the way. The report said irrelevantly: "14 [2 pm], Captain Kennedy went ashore with badly burned McMahon, intending to lead the way to scout the island."

In the next two nights, Kennedy took a waterproof flashlight and Ross sometimes swam into the strait alone from the island, hoping to intercept an American torpedo boat. He struggled with injuries, fatigue and strong current, and didn't see the patrol. On August 5, Kennedy and Ross swam to a nearby island and found a canoe, a box of Japanese rice cakes and fresh water. They also saw two islanders leave in a canoe. When they returned to the island where the crew were waiting, they found that two indigenous people had landed and were collecting coconuts for the crew. A coconut shell is on display at the Kennedy Library in Boston. Kennedy wrote a message on the coconut shell: "The commander of Nauru Island/the locals know posit/ he can drive/1 1 needs a living boat/Kennedy."

Kennedy asked the islanders to take coconuts to the base in Rendova. The next day, eight local people appeared on Kennedy Island, with information from Australian coastal observers-they showed coconuts to people on another island. The islanders took Kennedy by canoe to the scout Reginald Evans, who reported to Rendova by radio. Similarly, in Byron White's words: "There, the PT ship was arranged to meet [Kennedy] in Ferguson Strait at 2230[ 10:30] that night. Therefore, he was taken to the assembly point and finally managed to contact the Provisional Technical Secretariat at 2315 [11:15]. He boarded the cruise ship and guided it to other survivors. " Kennedy boarded the cruise ship 157: Captain Ted Robinson was one of the crew. "9 1 year-old, living in Sacramento, California.

Robinson recalled that he and Kennedy later became Solomon's tent partners. Robinson said, "His feet are still not good." So I lent him the crutch I got from the village chief and took a picture of him. "

Soon after, Robinson added that the Marines were trapped when they raided the Japanese-controlled island of Trichet. He said, "They landed on the enemy island in the middle of the night." The next morning, their commander reported by radio that he and his soldiers were surrounded and armed to the teeth. The commander of the marine corps who received the news said that they would be rescued after dark. According to Robinson, the marine replied, "If you can't come before dark, don't bother." "

The marine corps commander asked a volunteer to rescue the marine corps soldiers before dawn. "I'm not there," Robinson told me, "but if I were there, I would hide behind the biggest palm tree I could find." But Kennedy volunteered. Robinson said: "A full load of fuel can get him to his destination, and he can be dragged home halfway. He took off to rescue the Marine Corps. "

Owen Edwards is a freelance writer and the author of Elegant Solutions.