Joan Bennett Kennedy, Ted Kennedy's first wife, dies at 89

Joan Bennett Kennedy, the first wife of the late U.S. senator Edward M. Kennedy, died Wednesday at her home in Boston. She was 89. A family spokesman said she died peacefully in her sleep, and the Massachusetts Democratic Party said funeral arrangements will be announced by the Carr Funeral Home in Charlestown.

Bennett Kennedy rose to public attention as a model and classically trained pianist before marrying Ted Kennedy in 1958. She accompanied the Kennedy family on the campaign trail, frequently playing piano at events, and later pursued a master’s degree in music education from Lesley University. She performed with orchestras internationally, served on boards for Boston arts organizations, and in 1992 wrote The Joy of Classical Music, a book aimed at making classical music more accessible.

Her life was closely tied to the larger Kennedy family story. In the 1960s she witnessed the election and assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the later murder of Robert F. Kennedy. The couple’s marriage endured further strains following the 1969 Chappaquiddick incident, in which a car driven by Ted Kennedy went off a bridge and a passenger, Mary Jo Kopechne, died. The episode and...