RFK Jr. book alleges he was 'cruel' to late wife Mary about her weight, told her 'she had squandered her beauty'
RFK Jr. book alleges he was 'cruel' to late wife Mary about her weight, told her 'she had squandered her beauty'
Sharareh DruryTue, April 7, 2026 at 10:38 PM UTC
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Credit: SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty
A new biography of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. delves into the marital strain between the current U.S. health secretary and his second wife, Mary Richardson Kennedy.
Within the pages of RFK, Jr.: The Fall and Rise, investigative reporter Isabel Vincent utilizes interviews and details from the secretary of health and human services' private diaries to detail Mary's struggles with being a Kennedy wife, depression and alcohol use, her challenging divorce from RFK Jr., and the final months of her life leading up to her suicide.
In an exclusive excerpt given to PEOPLE, Vincent writes that Mary was "terrified" of RFK Jr.'s bullying, "especially during the divorce negotiations."
"But, Mary fiercely wanted to remain married. 'It was the Kennedys or nobody,'" a source shared for the biography.
RFK Jr. wed Mary on April 15, 1994, shortly after he separated from his first wife, Emily Black. The two had four children together: Conor, Kyra, Aidan, and William. RFK Jr. filed for divorce in 2010, and Mary died by suicide in 2012 before the divorce was finalized.
'RFK, Jr.: The Fall and Rise' by Isabel Vincent
Three days after RFK Jr. filed for divorce, Mary was arrested for drunk driving and ultimately pleaded guilty to driving while impaired.
"Mary did not want a divorce, and she did not want to lose custody of her children," the excerpt reads. "Following her arrests, she attended AA meetings, but most of all, she pored over Kennedy’s diaries. In many ways, she was trying to reassure herself that she had been married to a chronic philanderer for nearly 20 years."
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A source quoted in the book shares how Mary "was waiting and hoping for Bobby" in the last year of her life. "And Bobby was cruel about her weight, telling her that she had squandered her beauty. He would put his arm around her and criticize her. It was ugly," the source says.
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. with wife Mary Richardson in 2002.Credit: RJ Capak/WireImage
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The biography notes that friends of RFK Jr. "say that the death of his estranged wife weighed heavily on [Kennedy]" even if he had already begun a relationship with his now third wife, actress Cheryl Hines.
"I know Bobby well enough to know that Mary’s suicide is a weight he will carry for the rest of his life. That’s going to haunt him," a former close friend says in the biography.
RFK, Jr.: The Fall and Rise by Isabel Vincent goes on sale April 14 and is available for preorder now, wherever books are sold.
If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
on Entertainment Weekly
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