February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
However, a spokesman for the Boston-based institution, Tom McNaught, denied this: “This is a very dignified presidential library and we wouldn’t have anything like that on display,” he said.
McNaught added: “They’re not coming to the museum, nor would they be. We celebrate JFK’s public life but his private life is different.
He said the report was “amusing” and that Allen was a “wonderful storyteller.”
But Allen has stuck to his claim that a deal has been done with the museum.
The martyred president’s yellowing, baggy boxers date from his service as a navy lieutenant in World War II. Kennedy first rose to national prominence for his heroic actions after the vessel he commanded, PT-109, was rammed by a Japanese destroyer in August 1943.
The boxers, which have “Jack Kennedy” sown on the waistband, went on display at Louis Copeland men’s wear store in Dublin last week, alongside a shirt Allen bought for $2,000 at a New York auction of Kennedy memorabilia in early July.
“”We have had people all around the world looking to get photos of the shorts,” said Copeland, Dublin’s most prominent tailor.
He added that the white cotton boxers, with snap closures and drawstring waist, are of good quality.
“I think the shorts are stylish. I haven’t seen any like this before,” he added.
A young teenaged shop assistant was less impressed. “”I was expecting more presidential ones, maybe with golden edging,” she said.
Copeland said he was surprised at the size of the boxers: “They are about a 33-inch waist which is quite small. You always think of famous people as being big but he wasn’t too tall.”
Allen explained his interest in collecting presidential memorabilia: “I grew up in an Irish home with pictures of John F. Kennedy on the wall. I became aware that he was a wonderful orator and statesman. His message these days is still as fresh.”
The shirt and shorts bought by Allen were part of a catalog of items collected by Kennedy employees Mary Gallagher and Providencia Paredes.
“Obviously, Mrs. Kennedy [his mother] was a hoarder — she collected everything he wore,” Copeland said.