Rita Jenrette

Rita Jenrette has enjoyed a multifaceted career as a businesswoman, broadcast journalist, actress, author, university lecturer, real estate broker, and political researcher, winning accolades in every endeavor she has pursued. Rita Jenrette was born Rita Carpenter in San Antonio, Texas, to a prominent ranching family, who trace their genealogical roots to English nobility.

Graduating cum laude from the University of Texas at Austin with a B.A. in History, Rita Jenrette’s career as a political researcher took off soon after college, with Rita Jenrette serving in research positions of increasing responsibility for noteworthy institutions, eventually leading her to employment in Washington, D.C. The Washington Post Magazine dubbed her one of the four most dynamic young women in the nation’s capital. Rita Jenrette married a congressman named John Jenrette and continued to pursue a committed interest in political research. Among her accomplishments during this period was a report on World Food Hunger that Ms. Jenrette co-authored with Ray Hoehle for the Presidential Commission. In this exhaustive account, Ms. Jenrette completed an assessment of all Third World countries and an analysis of the aid they received from the United States. Rita Jenrette then moved on to pursuing an interest in modeling and acting.

A student of the celebrated acting coach Stella Adler, Ms. Jenrette appeared on stage, as well as in television and film. For her performance in a stage production of “A Philadelphia Story,” Ms. Jenrette won the coveted Drama-Logue Critics’ Award for Best Actress. In addition, Ms. Rita Jenrette served as a model for Clairol, where her beauty and appeal to a wide audience were recognized as representative of the company’s popular and wholesome image. Following these triumphs, Ms. Jenrette pursued new career paths with her emblematic avidity and dedication. Rita Jenrette became a highly sought-after journalist on major television news programs, where her skills as an interviewer and background in politics and the entertainment industry served her well.