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Quiz about The Kennedys A Timeline Of Tragedy
Quiz about The Kennedys A Timeline Of Tragedy

The Kennedys: A Timeline Of Tragedy Quiz


If any American family of modern times could be said to be "royalty", it was the Kennedys. Time and again tragedy struck people in the family tree of Joseph and Rose Kennedy. Let's explore "the Kennedy curse".

A multiple-choice quiz by darksplash. Estimated time: 4 mins.
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Author
darksplash
Time
4 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
401,066
Updated
Mar 15 24
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
8 / 10
Plays
349
Awards
Top 35% Quiz
Last 3 plays: Guest 165 (4/10), Guest 136 (10/10), Guest 74 (5/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. The first death in our timeline of tragedies involving members of the Kennedy family occurred in 1944. How did Joseph P. Kennedy Jr die? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. In 1948, Kathleen Kennedy Cavendish died when the plane she was in crashed. Where did this happen? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. November 22nd, 1963, was a fateful day for the Kennedy family and for the USA. Conspiracy theories persist about the death of President John F. Kennedy. According to the official inquiry report, how many bullets struck him? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. On June 5, 1968, Robert F. Kennedy was shot to death in a hotel during an election campaign. In which state had he just won the presidential primary election for the Democrats? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. There was to be more tragedy for the Kennedy family when David Kennedy, a son of Robert, died in Florida in 1984. What was the cause of his death? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. In 1997, a second son of Robert Kennedy died tragically young. How did Michael Kennedy die? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. In 1999, John F. Kennedy Jr, the president's son, died with two other members of his family in a plane cash. Where did it occur? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Joseph Kennedy and his wife, Rose, had nine children. How did the fourth of their sons, Ted, die? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. In 2019, Saoirse Kennedy Hill, granddaughter of Robert Kennedy, died at Hyannis Port, Massachusetts. What was the cause of death? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. The 'Kennedy Curse' struck again in April 2020 when Maeve Kennedy Townsend McKean and her son Gideon went missing and were later found to have died in an accident. How did that happen? Hint



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. The first death in our timeline of tragedies involving members of the Kennedy family occurred in 1944. How did Joseph P. Kennedy Jr die?

Answer: Died in aircraft explosion on top secret mission

Joseph P. Kennedy was the eldest of the family of nine, and some say he was his father's favourite. During WW2, Kennedy volunteered to fly with the US Navy and served initially in the Caribbean. In 1943, his squadron of B24 bombers was sent to England.

He flew enough missions to qualify for leave, but twice declined. On August 12, 1944, he took part in a top secret mission to fly a Liberator bomber packed with bombs on a drone mission. The idea was that Kennedy and a colleague would bail out, leaving their aircraft to be radio-controlled by others accompanying them. At 6.20 that morning, two explosions ripped the Liberator apart and the two pilots died.
2. In 1948, Kathleen Kennedy Cavendish died when the plane she was in crashed. Where did this happen?

Answer: France

At the age of 28, she had already been widowed by the death of her husband, William John Robert Cavendish, Marquis of Harrington, in WW2. Kathleen Kennedy was the fourth child of Joe and Rose Kennedy. In 1938, her father was appointed US ambassador to the Court of St James, and she travelled with him to London. During that trip she met her husband-to-be. The Kennedy family returned to the USA on the outbreak of WW2.

In 1943, she travelled to England again and got married. Her husband was called up to the army a few weeks later and died in combat on September 10, 1944. Kathleen, now Lady Harrington, continued to live in England and died on May 13, 1948 in a plane crash in the south of France. She was aged just 28.

In 1964, meanwhile, her brother Edward M. Kennedy, the youngest of the clan, escaped death in a plane crash.
3. November 22nd, 1963, was a fateful day for the Kennedy family and for the USA. Conspiracy theories persist about the death of President John F. Kennedy. According to the official inquiry report, how many bullets struck him?

Answer: Two

According to the National Archives: "Lee Harvey Oswald fired three shots at President John F. Kennedy; the second and third shots he fired struck the President; the third shot he fired killed the President." The shots were fired from behind the president and from the sixth-floor window of a building from a rifle owned by Lee Harvey Oswald, the archives record. Kennedy had been president for just 1,044 days.
4. On June 5, 1968, Robert F. Kennedy was shot to death in a hotel during an election campaign. In which state had he just won the presidential primary election for the Democrats?

Answer: California

Robert Kennedy had just celebrated his success in the Democratic primary when he was shot at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. Like the death of his brother, conspiracy theories emerged.

In 2019, Robert F. Kennedy Jr met his father's convicted killer, Sirhan Sirhan, in a California prison. Afterwards he told reporters: "I was disturbed that the wrong person might have been convicted of killing my father." It had previously been speculated that a second gunman was present and shot the senator.
5. There was to be more tragedy for the Kennedy family when David Kennedy, a son of Robert, died in Florida in 1984. What was the cause of his death?

Answer: Drug overdose

Aged just 28, David Kennedy was found dead in a Palm Beach, Florida, hotel room on April 25, 1984. He had struggled for several years with drug addiction. Newspaper reports suggested he had never got over the trauma of his father's death.
6. In 1997, a second son of Robert Kennedy died tragically young. How did Michael Kennedy die?

Answer: Skiing accident

Michael Kennedy died in Aspen, Colorado, on December 31, 1997. He was aged 39 when he skied into a tree. He was an expert skier, but it is thought he died playing a 'game' that combined downhill skiing with American football.
7. In 1999, John F. Kennedy Jr, the president's son, died with two other members of his family in a plane cash. Where did it occur?

Answer: Martha's Vineyard

Kennedy was at the controls of the plane when it crashed into the sea on July 16, 1999. His wife, Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, and her sister, Lauren Bessette, also died. An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board surmised the crash happened after Kennedy became disoriented in hazy conditions.

The bodies of the three victims were recovered five days after the crash and next morning their ashes were scattered at sea. An autopsy report concluded they died from multiple injuries. Once again the C word -conspiracy - raised its head after the death. There were claims of a cover-up over the crash.
8. Joseph Kennedy and his wife, Rose, had nine children. How did the fourth of their sons, Ted, die?

Answer: Cancer

Edward M. Kennedy was also a senator and had survived the scandal of the "Chappaquiddic Island" incident in which an aide died when he drove a car off a bridge. He died on August 25, 2009, at the age of 77. His sister, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, had died two weeks earlier.
9. In 2019, Saoirse Kennedy Hill, granddaughter of Robert Kennedy, died at Hyannis Port, Massachusetts. What was the cause of death?

Answer: Accidental overdose

Kennedy Hill then aged 22, had spoken of her struggles with depression. In 2007, it was reported that she had been a target in an attempted abduction near her home.
10. The 'Kennedy Curse' struck again in April 2020 when Maeve Kennedy Townsend McKean and her son Gideon went missing and were later found to have died in an accident. How did that happen?

Answer: Canoe overturned

On April 2, Maeve Kennedy Townsend McKean, aged 40, and her son Gideon, aged eight, went missing in a canoe on the Chesapeake Bay. She was a granddaughter of Robert F. Kennedy Sr. Her body was recovered from the water five days after she and her son disappeared. The body of her son was recovered by divers on April 8, 2020.
Source: Author darksplash

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor trident before going online.
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