Category: Campaign 1952
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Luce Likes Ike, No Time for Kefauver
Henry Luce, the publisher of Time and Life magazines, was a huge supporter of Dwight Eisenhower. No wonder his magazine was so snotty about Kefauver!
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Porcine Populism: The Presidential Campaigns of Henry Krajewski
Kefauver wasn’t the only 1950s presidential hopeful who came up short. There was also Krajewski, the New Jersey pig farmer and bar owner, whose views were a little… different.
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Estes Kefauver: Not an Organization Man
Kefauver was a principled politician, which cause stumbling blocks for his ambitions. In particular, his refusal to build a political organization made his campaigns harder than they had to be… and may have been hazardous to his health.
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Stevenson Toons In for ’56?
Eisenhower’s 1952 relied on the sales of Madison Avenue -and Disney – to roll to victory. After resisting those techniques the first time around, the Stevenson/Kefauver campaign gave them a try in ’56. How did it turn out? Judge for yourself.
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Kefauver: Tabbed for “Bigger Things” from the Beginning?
Think Kefauver’s rise from freshman Senator in ’48 to Presidential candidate in ’52 was really quick? Turns out he was being talked up for national office even earlier… as in immediately.
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If You Go Chasing Rabbits: Solving a Photographic Mystery
Follow me as I track down the story behind a magazine photograph. I try to figure out not only where Kefauver was… but when and why
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“The Gag Stuff Is Out”
Some things never change – including the ridiculous stories that get written during political “silly season.” In this case, the dead time between conventions led to a silly story about a bizarre “ban.”
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Sing Along With Keef, Part 2: “Senator From Tennessee”
Estes Kefauver’s probe of organized crime turned him into a national hero, and inspired movies, TV shows… and even songs. Here’s a song that speaks to Kefauver’s crime-busting reputation.
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Kefauver and LBJ: Two Paths to Power
Estes Kefauver and Lyndon Johnson had a number of things in common: two liberal-leaning, ambitious Southern Democrats who joined the Senate in the same year. But their approach to politics – and the pursuit of power – couldn’t have been more different.
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Sing Along with Keef: “Estes Is Bestes”
The song most associated with Kefauver was “The Tennessee Waltz,” for better or for worse (and definitely for worse after a long campaign). But there’s a long-forgotten campaign song that captures his folk-hero appeal.
Estes Kefauver for President 