All items guaranteed authentic without limit

Your cart

Your cart is empty

[History] Kennedy, John F. (1917–1963). The Earliest Known Signed Photograph of Kennedy, inscribed in high school to his lifelong best friend, Lem. . Choate Graduation Portrait of John F. Kennedy inscribed "To Lemmer [Kirk Lemoyne Billings] the gayest son I know -In memory of two tense years and in hopes of many more- your old Pal and supporter! Ken" also signed by the photographer and dated 1935. 7 1/2 x 5 inches. 13 1/2 x 10 inches framed.


Already displaying his movie-star good looks, it is easy to see in the 18-year-old Kennedy's face and playful, somewhat cryptic and charged inscription, the face and character that would become the now-familiar President Kennedy. Of the thousands of signed JFK photos known to exist, this is the earliest. It is also a most remarkable testament to the in some ways highly surprising fact that Kennedy was able to ignore the mores of the day and keep such a close association with a closeted gay man.


"I’m not that kind of boy,” Jack had angrily written to Lem after his friend made a sexual advance early in their friendship. But Jack didn’t end the relationship. From the time John F. Kennedy and Kirk LeMoyne “Lem” Billings met at Choate - the 'tense' years of the photograph's inscription - until the President’s assassination thirty years later, Jack and Lem remained best friends. Lem was a virtual fixture in the Kennedy family who even had his own room at the White House. The history of their friendship is detailed in the book "Jack and Lem: John F. Kennedy and Lem Billings: The Untold Story of an Extraordinary Friendship," (David Pitts, Da Capo Press, 2008) and the present photograph is described in detail in this volume.

[History] Kennedy, John F. (1917–1963) The Earliest Known Signed Photograph of Kennedy, inscribed in high school to his lifelong best friend, Lem.

Regular price
Unit price
per 
Fast Shipping
Secure payment
Shipping calculated at checkout.

Have questions? Contact us

Secure payment

[History] Kennedy, John F. (1917–1963). The Earliest Known Signed Photograph of Kennedy, inscribed in high school to his lifelong best friend, Lem. . Choate Graduation Portrait of John F. Kennedy inscribed "To Lemmer [Kirk Lemoyne Billings] the gayest son I know -In memory of two tense years and in hopes of many more- your old Pal and supporter! Ken" also signed by the photographer and dated 1935. 7 1/2 x 5 inches. 13 1/2 x 10 inches framed.


Already displaying his movie-star good looks, it is easy to see in the 18-year-old Kennedy's face and playful, somewhat cryptic and charged inscription, the face and character that would become the now-familiar President Kennedy. Of the thousands of signed JFK photos known to exist, this is the earliest. It is also a most remarkable testament to the in some ways highly surprising fact that Kennedy was able to ignore the mores of the day and keep such a close association with a closeted gay man.


"I’m not that kind of boy,” Jack had angrily written to Lem after his friend made a sexual advance early in their friendship. But Jack didn’t end the relationship. From the time John F. Kennedy and Kirk LeMoyne “Lem” Billings met at Choate - the 'tense' years of the photograph's inscription - until the President’s assassination thirty years later, Jack and Lem remained best friends. Lem was a virtual fixture in the Kennedy family who even had his own room at the White House. The history of their friendship is detailed in the book "Jack and Lem: John F. Kennedy and Lem Billings: The Untold Story of an Extraordinary Friendship," (David Pitts, Da Capo Press, 2008) and the present photograph is described in detail in this volume.