Kennedy half dollar , first minted in 1964 , is a fifty-cent coin currently issued by the United States Mint . Intended as a memorial to the assassinated 35th President of the United States John F. Kennedy , it was authorized by Congress just over a month after his death . Use of existing works by Mint sculptors Gilroy Roberts and Frank Gasparro allowed dies to be prepared quickly , and striking of the new coins began in January 1964
assassinated
Assassination of John F. Kennedy
Kennedy half dollar