Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy seemed to have it all as John F. Kennedy Jr.’s wife, living a life of American royalty. But the tragic death of Princess Diana reportedly left a lasting mark on her.
Carole Radziwill, Kennedy's cousin and a former Real Housewives of New York star, shared details of how the Princess of Wales' death impacted Bessette in the 2025 CNN documentary, American Prince: JFK Jr. “It was very profound,” she said in the documentary, as reported by In Style.
“I mean, Princess Diana, she was our age, pretty much. The underlying way in which she died, which was being literally hounded to death by paparazzi. That lesson was definitely not lost on Carolyn.”
PEOPLE Magazine quoted Kathy McKeon, a former assistant to Jacqueline Kennedy, who revealed how Bessette struggled with the press as they followed her every move after her engagement and marriage to Kennedy. The following commentary between McKeon, Kennedy, and Bessette reportedly took place on the day of Diana's funeral, September 6, 1977.
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McKeon explained, “John said, ‘Tell Carolyn how my mom handled photographers.’ I said, ‘She was nice to them—she smiled and gave them one good picture.’ He said, ‘Carolyn, did you get that? You’re treating them all wrong.’ She said, ‘I hate those bastards.’“
“She couldn’t take that,” McKeon added. “She wasn’t brought up with it. John was. Carolyn wasn’t. She wanted peace and quiet and for nobody to bother her.”
Kennedy's George Magazine colleague, Gary Ginsberg, compared Bessette's issues with the paparazzi as similar to Diana's. His quotes were reprinted by Us Weekly.
“Princess Diana was living that struggle [with the paparazzi] so publicly, her fights with the paparazzi during that period [were notorious],” Ginsberg said. “I’m sure Carolyn was watching it and feeling like she was the American version of it. It probably just increased her sense of isolation and frustration.”
Princess Diana died on August 31, 1997, when her driver, Henri Paul, lost control of the vehicle she, Dodi al-Fayed, and Trevor Reese-Jones were passengers in while trying to evade paparazzi in Paris, France. Only Jones survived.
Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy died just 22 months later, on July 16, 1999, when the plane her husband, John F. Kennedy Jr., piloted crashed into the Atlantic Ocean en route to a family wedding at Martha's Vineyard. Her sisterLauren Bessette was also on board. All three perished on impact.
The FX series Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette begins February 12 at 9 p.m. ET, with three episodes, titled "Pilot," "The Pools Party," and "America's Widow." For the next six weeks, a new installment will air on Thursdays and stream on Hulu, a total of nine episodes.
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