American Dynasties: The Kennedys

Family patriarch Joseph P. Kennedy aspires to hold the ultimate position of power by becoming President of the United States, but wartime disgrace extinguishes his dream. His ambitions are passed to his eldest children, but when two tragically die in plane crashes before they turn thirty, the mantle is passed to a reluctant heir. The sickly John F. Kennedy must now shoulder his father's ambitions, and the burden of rebuilding the family's reputation.

John F. Kennedy launches a long-shot bid for power, but the seemingly perfect candidate is hiding dark secrets that could damage his political future. He must rely on the guidance and protection of his family, the popularity of his young and glamorous new wife Jackie and the influence of the Kennedys' many connections, to have any chance of reaching the White House. On Election Day, Jack is victorious, making his father's dream of a Kennedy in the White House a reality.

A new era begins as John F. Kennedy is sworn-in as the youngest-ever elected American president and his wife Jackie invites the cameras in to witness her transformation of the White House. But the triumph of victory is short-lived. As his first year in office is marked by crisis both at home and abroad, the young President leans heavily on his family. In doing so, he finds new solace in his brother Bobby, who is instrumental in helping him navigate the challenges and disasters of 1961.

As the world teeters on the brink of destruction, the Kennedy administration is rocked by fresh scandals that threaten to destroy Jack's marriage, derail his presidency, and ruin any hope of re-election. The President and his brother Bobby must work together to avoid nuclear Armageddon and to protect the Kennedy family's legacy.

Just as Jack begins to hit his stride as President, an assassin's bullet brutally cuts short the family's dream of a Kennedy in the White House. Numbed by grief, and hounded by press and public, his wife Jackie becomes the guardian of his legacy, crafting the legend of Camelot. Younger brother Bobby, haunted by family expectation softened by heart-ache, becomes a champion of the dispossessed and becomes the family's next great political hope.

As Bobby Kennedy follows in his brother's footsteps and sets his sights on the presidency, tragedy strikes again when he is assassinated in Los Angeles. The only living Kennedy son and youngest brother of Bobby and Jack, Ted Kennedy, is next in line. His career is dogged by scandal and misfortune before he eventually goes on to a stellar career in the Senate. After his death in 2009, a new generation of Kennedys prepare to pick up the political mantle and continue the family legacy.