Jackie Kennedy's White House Tour - Happy Birthday, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis!

Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis was born July 28, 1929. Today would have been her 81st birthday. She died much too young, at the age of 64, from cancer (non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma). As we know, her husband John F. Kennedy also died much too young, at the age of 46, and her son, JFK Jr., at the age of 38.  

I didn't get to experience life in America while the Kennedys were in the White House because I wasn't born yet, but  while growing up I got to see many video clips on TV of the Kennedys in the White House, and I knew even as a child that there was something special about that family. Jackie O seemed like a princess to me. A princess in a pillbox hat.

I grew up loving pillbox hats because of Jackie O.  I also loved pink Chanel suits and big sunglasses, all because of Jackie O. 

She was classy, elegant, and had such a sense of style. Clearly she appreciated design, as we can see in Jackie's White House Tour above. She respected each piece in the White House, and clearly didn't take her time there for granted. She wanted to know the history behind each piece, and wanted to make sure we had the opportunity to know the history behind each piece too. She was only 32 years old in this video, but she had the class of a much older woman.

Don't you just love Jackie O's voice? She had one of the most fascinating voices of all time. Jackie's voice was soft spoken, but not shy. She was calm, yet confident. I love the expression in her eyes when she describes these objects, and the smile on her face when she talks about the drinking glasses, and how the prettiest ones she found came from West Virginia. She was proud of these pieces she described, but she was not pretentious.

She was much different than many of the celebrities we see who give tours of their homes these days on shows like "Cribs". I'm talking about the celebrities who love to let the audience know how expensive certain items were, or who show off their cars all lined up in the driveway, or their Cristal that just happens to be in the refrigerator. When they give a tour of their private bedrooms, they often say "This is where the magic happens." as they gesture to the bed.

Can you imagine Jackie O saying that or showing off that way? 

It seemed to me that she wanted to show us the White House not to brag in any way, but to share it with us because it wasn't just the home they lived in - she wanted to share America's house with us. 

If you would like to see more of Jackie Kennedy's tour of the White House, look here: http://www.hulu.com/watch/5135/nbc-news-time-capsule-jacqueline-kennedy-the-white-house-tour

Thanks to CBS for posting the clip of Jackie's White House Tour on YouTube.