3 shows about the Kennedys to watch after 'Love Story'

Katie Holmes and Greg Kinnear in The Kennedys
(Image credit: Reelz Channel)

A true and tragic American dynasty, the Kennedy family has been the subject of global fascination for decades, an enthrallment only boosted more by the recent FX miniseries "Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette".

Having just wrapped up its nine-episode run on Friday, March 26, the Ryan Murphy-produced drama documented the tumultuous 1990s romance between John F. Kennedy Jr. (played by Paul Anthony Kelly) — the only son of U.S. president John F. Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy — and his wife Carolyn Bessette (Sarah Pidgeon) from their whirlwind courtship through their untimely deaths in a July 1999 plane crash.

Article continues below

'The Kennedys'

The Kennedys Trailer - YouTube The Kennedys Trailer - YouTube
Watch On

Playing JFK and Jackie, Greg Kinnear and Katie Holmes lead this 2011 miniseries biopic, which chronicles the Kennedy family's rise to political power and social influence across eight episodes, originally airing on the Reelz Channel and now available to stream on Prime Video.

Narrated by Joseph Kennedy Sr. (Tom Wilkinson), the ambitious patriarch of the famed clan, the Emmy-winning series kicks off with Joe Sr.'s time as the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom in the late 1930s, follows son John F. Kennedy's early presidential ambitions and courtship of then-Jacqueline Bouvier, and recounts the horrific assassinations of both John and his brother Robert Kennedy (Barry Pepper, in an Emmy-winning performance) in the 1960s.

And if you want to keep the political binging going, there's also a follow-up miniseries, 2017's "The Kennedys After Camelot," which picks up after John F. Kennedy's death and sees Holmes reprise her role as Jackie O, with Matthew Perry as brother-in-law Ted Kennedy.

Watch "The Kennedys" on Prime Video now

'JFK: One Day in America'

JFK: One Day In America | Official Trailer | National Geographic - YouTube JFK: One Day In America | Official Trailer | National Geographic - YouTube
Watch On

A November 1963 day in Dallas, Texas, became a tragically notable one: It was the day that then-U.S. President John F. Kennedy was assassinated during a presidential motorcade through Dealey Plaza, at the hands of Lee Harvey Oswald, a former U.S. Marine.

Sixty years after that generation-defining event, National Geographic's three-part docuseries "JFK: One Day in America" explores the events of that day almost in real-time and offers insights into the president's final hours, from the shooting itself to the full-scale manhunt that followed, via testimonies from Secret Service agents and first-person witnesses.

"This is the rare production that enables us to psychologically travel into that memory and feel something that isn’t unduly manipulated, to feel genuinely present for once in this history instead of taking it in as a spectacle," praised critic Melanie McFarland for Salon.com.

Watch "JFK: One Day in America" on Hulu now

'Bobby Kennedy for President'

Bobby Kennedy For President | Official Trailer [HD] | Netflix - YouTube Bobby Kennedy For President | Official Trailer [HD] | Netflix - YouTube
Watch On

Though John was the only Kennedy sibling to make it into the White House, his brother Robert "Bobby" Kennedy was just as politically motivated, serving as the U.S. attorney general from 1961 to 1964 and later New York Senator from 1965 onwards. And like his older bro, RFK had presidential aspirations as well, kicking off a bid for the presidency in 1968 against incumbent President Lyndon B. Johnson, Senator Eugene McCarthy, and later Vice President Hubert Humphrey.

That presidential campaign and the years leading up to it are the subject of this gut-wrenching four-part Netflix series, which combines historic footage and insider interviews to recount Kennedy's political journey, from his work with the civil rights movement to his own assassination just five years after that of his brother, which put an untimely end to those Oval Office dreams.

Watch "Bobby Kennedy for President" on Netflix now

More from Tom's Guide

Christina Izzo is a writer-editor covering culture, food and drink, travel and general lifestyle in New York City. She was previously the Deputy Editor at My Imperfect Life, the Features Editor at Rachael Ray In Season and Reveal, as well as the Food & Drink Editor and chief restaurant critic at Time Out New York. 

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.