Differences Between 1964 Accented Hair & “Regular” Kennedy Half Dollars

Variety attribution is one of the most popular topics we address with PCGS educational articles. Among the many sought-after varieties is one that still holds collectors’ attention more than six decades on: the 1964 Accented Hair Kennedy Half Dollar. There are a plethora of reasons why the Kennedy Half Dollar remains among the beloved modern coin series, including the mystique surrounding President John F. Kennedy, who was tragically assassinated at the age of 46 during his motorcade procession through Dallas in 1963.

The concept for the Kennedy Half Dollar was born within hours of the fallen president’s death. Mint Chief Engraver Gilroy Roberts and sculptor-engraver Frank Gasparro quickly prepared the new coin by skillfully repurposing medallic designs they had created featuring the late president a couple of years earlier. By the spring of 1964 the new halves were drawing untold millions of Americans to local banks for keepsake examples.

Just as financial institutions were receiving their first shipments of circulation-issue Kennedy Half Dollars during the first months of 1964, proofs were being prepared for collectors. Some of these earliest proofs feature a design quirk that the president’s widow, former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, wasn’t much fond of: prominent hairlines over her husband’s ear. These heavy hairlines, seen only on the first proof Kennedy Half Dollars of 1964, gained the numismatic nickname “Accented Hair.” The U.S. Mint modified the design by softening the hair detail over Kennedy’s ear on the obverse, creating the design seen on all Kennedy Half Dollars struck since.

It’s unclear exactly how many 1964 Accented Hair Kennedy Half Dollars were struck, but they are extremely scarce. Even more important, they’re believed to have been the very first design of the Kennedy Half Dollar struck, giving this one-year-only type even more numismatic significance. In PR67, the 1964 Accented Hair Kennedy Half Dollar retails for around $165, while a PR69 fetches a much loftier $950. In the highly desirable grade of PR68DCAM, the coin trades for around $10,000. The all-time record price for the 1964 Accented Hair Kennedy Half Dollar is an astounding PCGS PR69DCAM that hammered for $46,800 in a 2024 auction.