Farewell, Honorable Namesake


I was saddened yesterday when I learned that JFK’s right-hand man Ted Sorensen had died. We were not related — although I did have a pleasant email exchange with his grandson (or grandnephew?) once. I always thought maybe I’d get to meet Ted someday, and we could rap about our shared Sorensen-ness. Alas, it’s too late. But I did get a kick out of this quote in his NYT obituary:

Mr. Sorensen once said he suspected that the headline on his obituary would read “Theodore Sorenson, Kennedy Speechwriter,” misspelling his name and misjudging his work…

Apparently not even Ted could escape the dreaded “-son” misspelling. Speaking for myself, it has caused countless problems with appointments and reservations. I’m actually surprised when anyone gets it right. But I digress. Here’s to Theodore Sorensen, one of history’s better figures to have shared a name with. (Apologies to all you Nixons out there!)



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Jen Sorensen is a cartoonist for Daily Kos, The Nation, In These Times, Politico and other publications throughout the US. She received the 2023 Berryman Award for Editorial Cartooning from the National Press Foundation, and is a recipient of the 2014 Herblock Prize and a 2013 Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award. She is also a Pulitzer Finalist.

 

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