EXCLUSIVE: JFK Told Little Brother Teddy 'It's OK to Cheat on Your Wife' — and Tragic Joan Heard Remark on Film of Their Wedding
JFK didn't exactly give his little brother, Ted, the best marriage advice.
Oct. 8 2025, Published 4:00 p.m. ET
JFK had some advice for his younger brother, Ted, on the day he was set to marry his bride, Joan: remember to cheat, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The shocking comments have resurfaced following Joan's death at the age of 89.
What Did Joan Kennedy Hear JFK Tell Ted?
JFK is believed to have urged his little brother to 'cheat' on his wife.
On Ted's marriage day, JFK joked he should consider being unfaithful, a comment that was supposed to be between siblings. However, Joan is believed to have gotten word of the crack when she heard it while watching a video of their wedding.
According to author Adam Clymer in his book, Edward M. Kennedy: A Biography, the future president had apparently forgotten he and Ted were wearing microphones to capture the 1958 wedding on video.
Joan appeared to be hesitant about tying the knot with Ted, as she and her father, Joe, had canceled the wedding for a year because, according to Joan, "I didn't have the feeling I wanted to marry him."
However, according to Clymer, Joe blew up and "bullied everyone into following through as planned."
Ted's Second Wife 'Saved' Him
Joan and Ted's marriage was doomed from the start it seemed, as the couple split in 1982.
Joan seemed to know the marriage was doomed from the start, as the couple would part ways in 1982 – according to the author, Ted's drinking and suspected womanizing were major reasons why.
While Joan would not remarry, Ted did in 1992 to Victoria Reggie, and she had a huge positive impact on his life.
"Vicki saved Ted's life," an insider previously said. "They fell in love, and she brought him back from the brink and got him to stop drinking. He had to stop or Vicki would have left him."
Vicki is also said to have helped the politician grieve the tragic death of his nephew, JFK Jr., in 1999.
Joan died on October 8, 2025.
A source said: "Vicki convinced Ted to see a psychiatrist, which he had never done in his life. When John died, Ted was crushed and wanted to die. Vicki was unfailing in her love. But Ted was so depressed. Finally, she told him to get help. Ted couldn't go back to the Senate in this condition. He couldn't even leave the house. So he agreed.
"Without Vicki, Ted never would have come back after this latest Kennedy tragedy. Her love has been one of his greatest blessings."
Ted died in 2009 at the age of 77 of a brain tumor. And now, 16 years later, his ex-wife, Joan, has also passed.
The Kennedy Curses Lives On?
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Ted died in 2009 of brain cancer.
According to an online obituary, Steve Kerrigan, chairman of the Massachusetts Democratic Party, confirmed Joan "passed away peacefully in her sleep" at her Boston home on October 8.
In addition to the pain she experienced during her marriage, Joan suffered further heartbreak when two of the three children she welcomed with Ted were diagnosed with cancer.
Ted Jr. was diagnosed with bone cancer in 1973, shortly before his 12th birthday. After unsuccessful rounds of chemotherapy, doctors amputated his right leg and saved his life.
Her eldest child and only daughter, Kara, was diagnosed with lung cancer at age 42 in 2002. A risky surgery, in which a portion of her lung was removed, soon followed. Despite the successful surgery, Kara died at age 51 of a heart attack in 2011.
