Adlai Stevenson
- Norman Rockwell (1894-1978)
- Aug 12, 2016
- 1 min read
Painting by Norman Rockwell for the cover of the Saturday Evening Post, October 6, 1956. Adlai Stevenson II was an American politician and diplomat, serving as the 31st Governor of Illinois from 1949 to 1953 and as the 5th U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations from 1961 to 1965.
Adlai ran for president in 1952, against Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower, losing by a landslide. He tried and failed again in 1956. He attempted to get the Democratic presidential nomination again in 1960, but John F. Kennedy got the nomination instead. Nevertheless, he is credited with paving the way for a new generation of politics and greatly impacted the Democratic party.
His grandfather, Adlai Stevenson I, was Vice President of the U.S. under President Grover Cleveland, from 1893 to 1897. His father, Lewis Stevenson, was appointed Secretary of State of Illinois from 1914 to 1917.
When he was 12 years old, Adlai accidentally shot and killed a 16 year old, Ruth Merwin, while giving a gun demonstration. He later attended Princeton University.
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