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Kennedys 4.0 Can the country's most enduring political dynasty maintain its clout and mystique for another generation? BY EVE ZIBART Joseph Sr. with Edward on his lap. standing, from left: Joseph Jr., Kathleen, Rosemary, Eunice (standing, in polka dots), and Jean N seated, from left: Patricia, Robert, Rose, John, and The Kennedy family 1.0 and 2.0. cultural figures... Not quite Lincoln, but more than Sinatra." o political clan ever has gripped the American imagination like the Kennedys have. The premier political band of brothers, John, Robert, and Edward—universally known as Jack, Bobby, and Ted—wielded privilege and power, creating a political cult of person- ality that few candidates have been able to equal in modern American history. They were the first made-for-TV politicians—and with their con- tinual riptide of trouble and tragedy, they also might be called the first tabloid dynasty. More than 30 years before candidate Bill Clinton played sax on The Arsenio Hall Show, JFK bantered on The Jack Paar Tonight Show. If there had been social media 60 years ago, the Kennedys would have been "liked" by millions. And their images seem indelible. Award-winning author and journalist Richard Reeves, who has written two books on the Kennedy administra- tion, calls those in the Camelot generation, especially JFK, "enduring 100 bostoncommon-magazine.com Most Americans can't remember a time, going back to 1946, when there wasn't at least one Kennedy in Congress; sometimes there were three. But the political waters have grown choppier in recent years. No new Kennedy has been elected to Congress since 1995; one tried and failed, and at least one other backed out. While the family remains hugely influential, espe- cially when it comes to fundraising, most family members have chosen public service in the private sector rather than the political arena. So it was inevitable that when Joseph Kennedy III announced in February that he would be running for Barney Frank's Congressional seat, the sound bites would fly: Is the Kennedy name still magic? Is Joe III the clan's comeback kid? And might he and his generation—which was being called "Kennedy 4.0" even before Joe 4.0—be the fresh new faces of the longest-running political dynasty in American history? photography by bachrach/getty images (family portrait). opposite page: Kayana szymczaK/getty images (Joseph); hUlton archiVe/ getty images (JfK anD JacKie); John moore/getty images (schlossberg); astriD staWiarz/getty images (KicK); ron galella/Wireimage (shriVers); three lions/hUlton archiVe/getty images (JfK anD robert); KeVin Winter/getty images (schWarzeneggers)