Social Scene

Juliana Zovak • March 17, 2016

Everything in Mary Barelli Gallagher’s Alexandria home has a special story, and almost all of it involves the Kennedys.

Gallagher, 88, was personal secretary to Jacqueline Kennedy from 1957 to 1964, which includes the Kennedy presidency. Before that, she was Sen. John F. Kennedy’s secretary and worked briefly for Jackie’s mother.

Gallagher took care of many of the first lady’s affairs even before the White House, including reporting her expenses to her husband, a task she was issued thanks to a St. Patrick’s Day toothache.

The senator had been scheduled to march in a St. Patrick’s Day parade in Boston, but when Gallagher arrived at the Georgetown home to organize Mrs. Kennedy’s affairs, she found him at home with a puffy cheek and a toothache. He became interested in the expenses and requested that Gallagher keep him informed of his wife’s excessive spending, a job that would take up much of her extra time in the next years.

“Any time our paths would cross in the White House, I’d end up with homework because he’d ask me about her bills,” she said. “I like to say, ‘His toothache became my headache.’ ”

Gallagher recalled the time just before the 1961 inauguration when she was with Jackie, who said to JFK’s press secretary Pierre Salinger: “Oh, Pierre, Mary has to come to the White House.” Gallagher responded, “Are you talking about this Mary?” Jackie reassured her, “Mary, it’ll be just like Georgetown.” (She sometimes stayed in the White House living quarters.)

During all her time and work with the Kennedys, more than 50 years ago, Gallagher saved notes, photos and gifts, many of which will be part of a presidential exhibition by Bonhams at Decatur House on Lafayette Square March 25. The night before, she, and others who worked at the White House, will discuss their time there, as well as display their Kennedy-related items, their reminders of years spent with the president, first lady and family.

Through Gallagher, our relationship with Jackie also involved details like clothes, as she and Jackie were the same size, standing at five foot seven. Sometimes, Gallagher received hand-me-downs — and even pets.

Tom Kitten was young Caroline Kennedy’s cat, but Mrs. Kennedy entrusted him to Gallagher due to her husband’s allergies. Caroline often visited Tom Kitten and played with Gallagher’s sons, Chris and Greg, with their adventures documented in photos of the three sitting on the kitchen counter or standing around the piano while a Secret Service agent played. Jackie’s and the children’s visit to Gallagher’s Belle Haven home — where she has lived since 1954 — got a mention in the newspapers.

When Tom Kitten died, Gallagher’s husband Ray dug a grave for the cat in their backyard next to a memorial for Tippy, a golden retriever also given to them by Mrs. Kennedy. As her husband filled in the grave, Gallagher said to him, “I don’t think you’ve quite finished!” Tom Kitten’s tail was still sticking out.

Gallagher also has memories and items more indicative of the lifestyle she observed while working for Jacqueline Kennedy, including a leopard-fur pillbox hat and purse.

The fur came from a well-recognized Somali leopard coat that the first lady wore on her trip to India. Gallagher had arranged for Ted Kahn of Ben Kahn Furs to bring the piece to Mrs. Kennedy, and her wearing it led to high demand. In appreciation, Kahn later had the gifts made for Gallagher.

While the first lady’s leopard coat was popular, her most recognized outfit is the pink Chanel suit she wore in Dallas, famously blood spattered when her husband was shot. (The pillbox hat was lost.) Gallagher has another outfit worn that day — her own, a pink jumper with a white and pink striped blouse and a long tan coat.

She vividly recalls that fateful 1963 day, riding a few cars behind the president and seeing policemen running with guns drawn but not knowing what had happened. When her bus arrived at the Dallas Trade Mart, rumors were flying that the president had been shot. At the hospital, as the doctor emerged from the operating room, he quietly instructed Gallagher to support the first lady. “Dr. Burkley told me to go stand next to Jackie but not to change the expression on my face,” she said.

That Christmas, she received a chilling gift. It was an etching of the White House, inscribed, “For Mary, with greatest appreciation and affection,” signed by both the president and the first lady and dated Christmas 1963. The president had been assassinated in November.

Gallagher said she considers the first lady’s finest singular achievement to be “the brilliant renovation” of the White House, shown to the world during a national television interview and tour in February 1962.

Jacqueline Kennedy left Washington in 1964 and married Aristotle Onassis in 1968. As the American public questioned Kennedy’s motives, Gallagher felt an obligation to add her own story of everyday life with Jackie to the record and published the memoir, which she had originally written just for her sons.

Just as her mementos serve as relics of her time with the Kennedys, her 1969 book, “My Life with Jacqueline Kennedy,” offers a uniquely personal perspective on the first lady. At the time, the book was criticized for being too revealing and personal.
“She was a human being like we all are,” Gallagher said. “And she had a right to live her life as she felt like it.” [gallery ids="117231,117224,117242,117236" nav="thumbs"]

Georgetowner •

More than 300 guests gathered at the Willard Hotel March 3 to benefit the Bishop Walker School for Boys, a tuition-free school for boys from low-income communities, east of the Anacostia River. The dinner featured remarks from Ron Suskind, author of “Hope in the Unseen,” and a surprise appearance by Cedric Jennings, the Ballou High School student featured in the book. [gallery ids="117174,117171" nav="thumbs"]

Robert Devaney •

Philanthropist Ann Nitze arranged a jewelry pop-up at her 28th Street home by Susie Hoimes of San Francisco. The vintage jewelry on display owned the room and shone with the glamour of Chanel style along with other famous names beyond its costume ornamentation.

Mary Bird •

The exhibit, “Dark Fields of the Republic: Alexander Gardner Photographs 1859-1862,” now at the National Portrait Gallery inspired choreographer Dana Tai Soon Burgess to create “The Foster Suite: The Remains of Loss and Longing,” which his Dana Tai Soon Burgess Dance Company presented in the Gallery’s Kogod Courtyard in two performances Feb. 28. The site served as infirmary during the Civil War where Clara Barton and Walt Whitman attended to the war wounded. At a post-performance reception at NoPa restaurant and bar, Burgess offered a toast to dance. His company will embark on two international tours as a State Department cultural envoy. [gallery ids="117166,117160" nav="thumbs"]

Mary Bird •

Gwendolyn C. Russell joined authors Bryan Denson and chef Mike Soper for an afternoon book signing at Martin’s Tavern Feb. 26. Russell, who knows the D.C. scene well, wrote “Capital Ladies Club? under the pen name Gurdie Correll. The plot follows the friendships of four women on the fast track who are eventually forced to confront their inner demons and move forward in the spotlight of our nation’s capital.

Mary Bird •

Robin and Jay Hammer co-chaired a special evening of celebration at the Mellon Auditorium on March 5 as Washington Performing Arts honored its President Emeritus Doug Wheeler. Following cocktails and a silent auction, National Public Radio’s Nina Totenberg emceed a program with Children of the Gospel Choir and alumnus bass-baritone Soloman Howard. Chef Nora Pouillon created a menu prepared by Occasions Caterers. President & CEO Jenny Bilfield noted that next year will mark the organization’s 50th anniversary. Violinist Midori performed a tribute performance and auctioneer CK Swett raised impressive sums to support WPA’s artistic and educational arts initiatives. [gallery ids="117150,117155,117143,117164" nav="thumbs"]

Robert Devaney •

Friends of Vincent Orange met at the Watson Place home of Johanna and Phil Sfreddo to support his re-election and ongoing legislative agenda. The at-large Council member told the lively group that government efforts can help citizens fulfill their version of Maslow?s hierarchy of needs. “We need more affordable housing, but the city is doing very well,” Orange said. Then, the dancing and talking resumed.

Mary Bird • March 10, 2016

Rebecca and Hugo Medrano, basking in their recent 14 Helen Hayes Awards nominations, simply had a good time Feb. 6 as Noche de GALA presented “Señorita y Madame” by Venezuelan playwright Gustavo Ott. It reveals the inside scoop on the secret war of cosmetic industry leaders Elizabeth Arden and Helena Rubenstein, who make current politics look civilized. There is humor, history, pathos and fine acting by stars Ana Verónica Muñoz and Luz Nicolás, bolstered by the supporting cast. An after party at the theater was an opportunity to savor the biting humor — along with a buffet. [gallery ids="102246,129320,129337,129313,129328,129331" nav="thumbs"]

Robert Devaney •

It was a classic and lively Washington meet-and-greet during the after party for the Feb. 4 opening night of “The City of Conversation” at Arena Stage. The play — which pivots at the Robert Bork nomination to the Supreme Court in 1987 — takes place over a 30-year period in a Georgetown home. Ralph Neas, who was chairman of the Block Bork Coalition, said afterwards the take-away line of the drama was that Supreme Court appointments matter. [gallery ids="102238,129404" nav="thumbs"]

Georgetowner •

The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society hosted its annual Light The Night Walk Awards Party Feb. 4 — World Cancer Day — at Pinstripes, bringing honored heroes and supporters together to celebrate the success of the 2015 Light The Night Walk Presented by BDO.

Fox5’s Tom Fitzgerald emceed the event which featured inspirational remarks from blood cancer survivors and their family members and included awards for top supporters. The 2015 Light The Night Walk raised $2.8 million for LLS’s mission — to find a cure for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma and to improve the quality of life of patients and their families. [gallery ids="102241,129376" nav="thumbs"]