Abell, Bess, 1933-

Elizabeth Hughes Clements was born in Evansville, Ind., on June 2, 1933. She spent her early childhood in Morganfield, Ky., before moving to Washington, where her father served as a congressman, and then to Frankfurt, Ky., during his tenure as governor.

She received a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Kentucky in 1954 and the next year married Tyler Abell, who later trained as a lawyer and worked on the Kennedy-Johnson campaign. He, too, came from a well-connected family: His father, George Abell, was a former journalist and assistant chief of protocol from 1963 to 1970; his mother, Luvie Moore Pearson, was a noted Washington hostess; and his stepfather was prominent Washington columnist Drew Pearson.

Mrs. Abell volunteered in the 1960 campaign that thrust Lyndon Johnson to the vice presidency, under President John F. Kennedy, and became personal secretary to Johnson’s wife, Lady Bird Johnson, after their victory. Upon Kennedy’s assassination in 1963, Lyndon was sworn in as president, Lady Bird became first lady, and soon after, Mrs. Abell was named social secretary.

Mrs. Abell served as White House social secretary until Johnson left office in 1969. During the Carter administration, she was executive assistant to Joan Mondale, the wife of Vice President Walter Mondale. Later, Mrs. Abell operated Bess Abell Enterprises, a Washington public relations firm, and with her husband oversaw the development of Merry-Go-Round Farm, a community of homes in Potomac, Md., built on land previously owned by Pearson.

"...I took a part-time job down at the Democratic National Committee."

"At that time when I was working down at the committee, I started writing some letters for Mrs. Johnson and for the girls, which really they were unaware of; I really don't know now whether Mrs. Johnson knows about this today or not. But as it should have been, the people who were handling letters handled, first, Kennedy letters, then Johnson letters, then Mrs. Kennedy letters, and nobody was doing any of Mrs. Johnson's mail. And the volume really wasn't that great, but I did start writing letters for her. I felt that I knew her well enough, that it was more of a plus for me just to write the letter and sign her name."