The Richard Nixon administration was famous for several things, including the Apollo 11 landing and the Watergate Scandal. During this period, Martha Mitchell played a crucial role when she spoke of White House employees’ illegal actions and exposed some of the secrets that still turn heads.
Yet, despite the fame of John Mitchell’s wife, Martha, her son Clyde Jay Jennings preferred to maintain a low profile. Read this article to learn more about his life.
Who is Clyde Jay Jennings?
Clyde Jay Jennings is the son of Martha Mitchell from her marriage to Clyde Jennings, Jr. He was an army officer from Virginia, who was honorably discharged a short time after their marriage in 1946. The couple moved to New York and had their only son, Clyde Jay Jennings, in 1947.
There’s no accurate information regarding Clyde’s exact date of birth. But, records show that he spent the first ten years of his life living in New York with his parents. Unfortunately, the couple started to have some issues, and they separated in 1956. Their divorce was finalized in 1957.
During the same year, Martha Mitchell met an ambitious lawyer, and her son approved her relationship with the soon-to-be Richard Nixon’s Attorney General, John Mitchell. The couple married in 1957 and had a daughter, Marty, in 1961. She is Clyde’s only sibling.
John Mitchell and Martha Mitchell moved to Washington, D.C., after the New York-based lawyer turned politician was appointed by his friend, Richard Nixon, as the United States Attorney General.
Living in Washington, D.C.
The 10-year-old Clyde Jay Jennings probably felt excited about living at the Watergate Complex. But soon, his mother started to gain a reputation as an outspoken socialite.
There were lots of rumors about her having a drink or two, and then calling reporters to gossip about top-secret information she found by going through her husband’s papers. She was even featured on the cover of Time Magazine in 1970 and was publicly known as Martha the Mouth or The Mouth of the South.
How Was the Relationship Between Martha Mithcell and Her Son?
We don’t know much about Clyde Jay Jennings’ life during Nixon’s administration. But he was probably supportive of his mother, especially after she tried to expose the illegal actions of the White House employees.
In 1972, Martha Mitchell was extremely concerned about what happened behind closed doors and contacted one of the reporters to express her desire to leave her husband. She read that some men were arrested for a break-in to steal documents at the Watergate Complex and learned that her husband authorized those actions.
As she expressed her concerns to a reporter, someone grabbed the phone and she was held captive. She was later drugged and prevented from talking to the public.
During this time, a popular term began to spread, the Martha Effect. It refers to an incident when a medical professional labels a patient’s accurate account of events as the result of paranoia or delusion.
The couple separated in 1973, and everyone seemed to cut ties with Marha except for her son. He remained by her side, defending her, even when others tried to frame her as a mentally unstable person.
In 1975, Martha Mitchell fell ill, and her health quickly deteriorated. During this period, Clyde Jay Jennings was her spokesperson and the only one she could trust. He remained by his side until she died in 1976.
Life After Watergate
Although there is no information regarding Clyde Jay Jennings’ education, family life, and net worth, we know that he worked at the U.S. Government Accountability Office in the 1980s. He might have chosen this job as he was influenced by his mother’s quest to find the truth.
This means that Jennings is retired by now. So, he’s probably leading a quiet life with his family, away from the media. He might have been supportive of his mother, but he obviously doesn’t share her love for being under the spotlight.
Today, many of his mother’s claims have proven to be true, while others were never confirmed. Yet, he probably believed that she was telling the truth, despite all the propaganda. We don’t know if he has a good relationship with Marty, his only sister. But we know that after John and Martha Mitchell divorced, the couple never saw each other again.
Wrap Up
Clyde Jay Jennings is the only son of Martha Mitchell, the wife of Nixon’s Attorney General from her first marriage. He has one half-sister and lived with his mother when she moved to Washington, D.C. after she married John Mitchell.
Although Martha Mitchell was known for her love to speak about political secrets, Clyde Jay Jennings prefers to maintain a low profile. We don’t know any information about his private life, but we’re positive he worked for the GAO in the 1980s. He was also the only one by his mother’s side till her death.