A heart-wrenching schedule of President Kennedy's final hours have sold as part of the highly-publicised auction of his memorabilia, which was held on February 17 in Massachusetts.
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While many reports have focused on JFK's bomber jacket, which saw outstanding bids, most of the deeply personal items consigned from the estate of his aide and closest friend Dave Powers have been overlooked by the media, but not by collectors.
The schedule sold for $65,000, making an outstanding 1,200% increase on its $5,000 high estimate. It details the president's movements on November 21-22, 1963, along with Powers' handwritten timeline of the assassination and the events that took place directly after.
Although a seemingly clinical document, Powers' close friendship with the president is subtly revealed with the text, as he writes on multiple occasions, "my president is dead". It is well worn through Powers' personal use, as he repeatedly recounts the tragic day.
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Also featuring in the sale was a copy of the Inaugural Addresses of the President of the United States, which was intended as a Christmas gift from the president to Powers in 1963. Instead, it was inscribed in the flyleaf: "The President was going to give you this for Christmas�ǪJackie".
Fulfilling her husband's wishes, Jackie Kennedy has also written, "You and I will miss him most", confirming Powers' close relationship with JFK. One of 85 specially bound copies of the 1961 edition, the book made a 28% increase on its $25,000 high estimate to sell for $32,000.
Items from the sad Christmas of 1963, as America mourned its charismatic president, are some of the most valuable of all JFK memorabilia. Paul Fraser Collectibles has a Christmas card for sale that the president signed in advance. 30 of these cards were signed by the president, though ours is a unique example.