Not many public figures from the middle part of the 20th century are as closely identified with LIFE magazine as John Fitzgerald Kennedy. In fact, from his days as a decorated war hero in the late 1940s, through his years as a senator, into the White House and up until the very moment of his assassination, LIFE photographers spent an enormous amount of time (and film) on the ambitious Democrat from Massachusetts.
That he married a woman as magnetic and stylish as the former Jacqueline Bouvier only further guaranteed that the two young cultural and political icons would never be absent from the weekly’s pages for long.
Here, LIFE.com features a series of photographs — many of which are classics, several of which never ran in LIFE — made during the decade and a half when John Kennedy was on his way to becoming, for a time, the most powerful person on earth.
Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter @lizabethronk.
Rep. John F. Kennedy, 1947.Al Fenn—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesSenatorial candidate John F. Kennedy attends a tea party given by female supporters, 1952.Yale Joel—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesSen. John Kennedy at Cape Cod with his fiancee, Jacqueline Bouvier, 1953.Hy Peskin CollectionJohn and Jackie Kennedy at their wedding reception, September 1953.Lisa Larsen—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesSenator John F. Kennedy, 1957.Hank Walker—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesJohn and Robert Kennedy at a hearing of a Senate select committee on labor racketeering, 1957.Paul Schutzer—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesSen. John Kennedy plays football with his nephew, Bobby Jr., at his brother Robert's Virginia home, Hickory Hill, 1957.Paul Schutzer—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesJohn and Jackie Kennedy with their baby daughter, Caroline, in their Georgetown home, 1958.Nina Leen—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesJohn Kennedy with his daughter Caroline in 1958.Ed Clark—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesIn a picture that he later called his favorite photo of himself, Senator John F. Kennedy walks the dunes near Hyannis Port, Mass., 1959. Mark Shaw/mptvimages.comNot published in LIFE. Presidential candidate John F. Kennedy leaps from a car while campaigning, 1960.Paul Schutzer—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesNot published in LIFE. John F. Kennedy gives a speech while standing on a kitchen chair in West Virginia's coal country, 1960.Hank Walker—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesNot published in LIFE. Sen. John Kennedy campaigns in West Virginia, 1960.Hank Walker—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesDemocratic National Convention, Los Angeles, 1960.Ralph Crane—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesJohn and Robert Kennedy confer in a Los Angeles hotel suite during the 1960 Democratic National Convention.
Hank Walker—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesNot published in LIFE. John F. Kennedy rides in a car with his wife Jackie upon his return home from the Democratic National Convention in 1960.Paul Schutzer—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesSen. John Kennedy with his young daughter Caroline at home after he was named the Democratic Party presidential nominee in 1960.Alfred Eisenstaedt—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesSen. John F. Kennedy on a private plane during his presidential campaign, 1960.Paul Schutzer—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesNot published in LIFE. Young female supporters of Sen. John F. Kennedy await his arrival at a campaign appearance in Michigan, 1960.Paul Schutzer—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesNot published in LIFE. Senator John F. Kennedy checks over a speech at a stop during his presidential campaign, 1960.Paul Schutzer—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesPresidential candidates John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon at the time of their famous television debates, 1960.Ed Clark—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesNot published in LIFE. John Kennedy on the campaign trail, 1960.Paul Schutzer—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesNot published in LIFE. President-elect John F. Kennedy, his wife Jackie and others walking to JFK's inauguration, January 1961.Paul Schutzer—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesMarian Anderson sings at John F. Kennedy's inauguration, 1961.George Silk—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesPresident Harry Truman signs President John Kennedy's program at a luncheon after JFK's inauguration, 1961.Paul Schutzer—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesPresident John F. Kennedy and his wife Jaqueline in their box at his Inaugural Ball, January 1961.Paul Schutzer—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesPresident John F. Kennedy in the Oval Office, 1961.Cornell Capa—MagnumBoyd Leedom (a member of the National Labor Relations Board), President John F. Kennedy, Senator Frank W. Carlson, the Rev. Billy Graham and Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, 1961.Paul Schutzer—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesPresident John Kennedy tosses the first ball of the season at a baseball game, 1961.Joe Scherschel—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesPresident John Kennedy pins NASA's Distinguished Service Medal on Alan Shepard's chest, 1961.Joe Scherschel—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesPresident John F. Kennedy meets with former President Dwight Eisenhower at Camp David in the midst of the Bay of Pigs crisis, 1961.Ed Clark—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesJohn F. Kennedy in the White House, 1961.Paul Schutzer—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesPeople in a department store watch as President John Kennedy announces a blockade of Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962.Ralph Crane—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesDuring a visit to West Germany President John F. Kennedy looks over a section of the Berlin Wall, June 1963.John Dominis—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesPresident John Kennedy signs autographs during his landmark visit to Ireland in June 1963.John Dominis—Time & Life Pictures/Getty ImagesPresident John Kennedy and Attorney General Robert Kennedy (standing at window) in the Oval Office, 1962.Art Rickerby—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images
