(KENNEDY, John F.)
"A Challenge to Youth" in Vim
Washington, D.C., President's Council on Physical Fitness, (1964). The President's Council on (originally) Youth Fitness was established under Eisenhower, but languished there (mostly under Vice President Nixon) until the Kennedy administration, where fitness gained emphasis as part of Kennedy's "New Frontier." Kennedy went so far as to try to reprise Theodore Roosevelt's directive that Marines be able to walk 50 miles in a set time (often reported as 20 hours), an idea that became a bit of a fad, with walkers including then Attorney General Robert Kennedy. This booklet, Vim: A Complete Exercise Plan for Girls 12 to 18 (there was a corresponding booklet, Vigor, for boys) was issued in 1964 under Lyndon Johnson, but concludes with a posthumous message from President Kennedy "prepared especially for this book in November, 1963." Five paragraphs, with sentiments such as "Each of you must accept -- now and for the rest of your lives -- responsibility for your own fitness in the great national effort to build a stronger and more vigorous America." A glimpse at a singular moment in American history, and an issue that has continued to confound the nation and its policy makers. 24 pages, stapled spine, this copy with a small tear and tape repair and a bit of edge darkening; a good copy.
[#032652]
SOLD
All books are first printings of first editions or first American editions unless otherwise noted.