Edward “Ted” Kennedy, far right, was viewed by most as the weakest, least intelligent and least imposing of the Kennedy men. Suffocating under the weight of his older brothers’ acts of heroism (eldest brother Joe was killed in War War II, Jack’s exploits in the same war were documented ad nauseam; and some view Bobby as the greatest crime fighter this nation has ever seen), Teddy resorted to reckless womanizing and alcoholism until that Chappaquiddick incident nearly destroyed his career, imperiled his freedom and killed his chances for the presidency.
Over the ensuing decades, however, Ted Kennedy became a legendary liberal lion whose endorsement helped put the first African American into the White House — exactly 40 years after Sen. Robert F. Kennedy (above, center) had predicted it.
