Rory Kennedy’s movie about her mom Ethel Kennedy screens at JFK Library
Ethel and daughter Rory Kennedy at the JFK Library for the screening of Rory's documentary about her mother. (Globe staff photo / Bill Greene)
Rory Kennedy screened her adoring documentary about her mom, Ethel Kennedy, at the JFK Library Monday. The film, a labor of love simply titled “Ethel,” premieres on HBO Oct. 18. The doc spans Ethel Kennedy’s life with husband Robert Kennedy, her life (with 11 children) after his assassination in 1968, and her political awakening. “My mother was terrific,” Rory told us, standing beside her mom at a reception before the screening. “I’ve been making documentaries for many years. This is what I would call a [point-of-view] film, so it’s very much a personal film about my mother and my family.” Of course, we couldn’t resist asking about country star Taylor Swift, who’s dating Rory’s 18-year-old nephew, Conor. “I love Taylor Swift. We’re huge fans,” she said. “I love her new song and she’s been really, really supportive and wonderful. We’re so happy she’s in our life.” Among those attending the sold-out screening were Joan Kennedy, former state Democratic Party chairman Phil Johnston, American Red Cross of Eastern Mass. CEO Jarrett Barrios, and Hugh Doyle, an engineer on the USS Kirk during the fall of Saigon at the end of the Vietnam War. (We’re told Doyle is involved in Rory Kennedy’s next film.)
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Mark Shanahan joined The Boston Globe in
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covered City Hall, and the Lewiston Sun-Journal, where he was the
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