The Obamas go to Washington amid anticipation that they will construct an African-American version of the glamorous “Camelot” era of John F. Kennedy’s presidency.

It would not be the first time that the nation’s capital – and its most prestigious residence – had been lavished with a presidential makeover.

Every president leaves a very personal mark on Washington that has nothing to do with the great issues of the time. Franklin D. Roosevelt built a swimming pool at the White House; Dwight Eisenhower installed a putting green; George Bush Sr added a horseshoe-throwing pit; Bill Clinton made himself a running track.

Mr Obama has already made clear his plans for 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue: the man who has hailed the basketball court as a model of racial equality – and who played “B-ball” on the very day he was elected – to the highest office in the land wants to build an indoor court.

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Once they move in on January 20, the couple are expected to throw open its doors to celebrities and intellectuals in a way that President Bush has not done.

Michelle Obama, described as “the love of my life” by her husband, is apparently destined to become a fashion icon on a par with Jacqueline Kennedy. Their daughters, Sasha, 7, and Malia, 10, will draw admiring comparisons with the Kennedy children; they have already said that they expect life in the White House to be “cool”.

The family will occupy the White House living quarters on the top two floors of the 100-room, 208-year-old mansion; presidential children have generally enjoyed their surroundings – which include a private cinema. One of the family’s first tasks will be to select furnishings from catalogues of more than 40,000 pieces in the White House collection.

“There are some parallels to when John F. Kennedy came to town and there were big, social relations between Hollywood and Washington,” Dan Glickman, chairman of the Motion Picture Association of America, told the Hollywood trade paper Variety yesterday. JFK’s daughter Caroline accompanied Mr Obama to his victory party on Tuesday night.

The Obama court will be much more rainbow-hued than the Kennedy White House, with a president who is likely to embrace the African-American culture of the overwhelmingly black American capital.

Mrs Obama, who had already scaled back her professional life, plans to give up her highly paid hospital management job in Chicago. She has said that she plans to devote herself to women’s issues and to support military spouses – although she has also said that she would not seek a West Wing office, as Hillary Clinton did.

The gregarious Obamas are more likely than the early-to-bed Bushes to venture away from the grounds of the White House their social life. But the heightened security concerns surrounding a black president probably mean that Mr Obama will not be able to don his cyclist’s helmet and take a ride down the National Mall – whereas Mr Clinton used to jog down it at will.

Perhaps the biggest social statement that the Obamas will make will be where they send Sasha and Malia to school. The girls attend private school in Chicago and are likely to stay in private education in Washington.

Traditionally, Democrat presidents send their children to the Sidwell Friends School, where Chelsea Clinton was a pupil. The school is such a Democratic bastion that one Bush Administration official was warned, when he made a tour of it with his child, that the school “despises” President Bush.

The Obamas could make a political statement, however, and send their daughters to one of Washington’s predominantly black state schools such as Wilson High, or the “School Without Walls”, which is near the White House.

Many previous presidents have attended St John’s Episcopal Church, just across the road. However, the Obamas, who have not joined another church since distancing themselves from the controversial Rev Jeremiah Wright in Chicago, are expected to join one of Washington’s vibrant black churches.

Leading black figures in Washington society might hope to prosper with Mr Obama in the White House. The incoming president also has a core of close friends from Harvard Law School who practise in Washington and these will provide him with counsel and distraction.

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