ronald reagan: an american story - spring 2011

8/7/2019 Ronald Reagan: An American Story - Spring 2011

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onald Reagan’s careers in entertainment and politics spanned six decades and

took him from the heart of the Midwest to Hollywood to Washington and into

the history books. Here are images of some of the high points of his life.R An AMericAn Story

rald raga



GROwING Up

Opposite top: Reagan (right) grew up in Dixon, Illinois, where he attended

public schools and worked as a lieguard at a local swimming pool. He

was credited with 77 rescues in seven summers. Ater high school, where

he was student body president, he went on to Eureka College in Eureka,

Illinois, and graduated in 1932.

NANCY

Right: Ater the war, Reagan was elected president o the Screen Actors

Guild and served rom 1947 to 1954. His marriage to Jane Wyman ended in

1948, and in 1952 he married Nancy Davis. The couple is shown here with

his best man, actor William Holden, and his wie, Ardis.

ON THE AIR

Opposite left: Ater college, Reagan got a job with WOC radio in Daven-

port, Iowa, beore moving on to WHO radio in Des Moines. At WHO,

Reagan recreated play-by-play accounts o Chicago Cubs games using wireservice reports.

THE GIppER

Opposite middle: In 1937, he took

a screen test while in Caliornia

and got a seven-year contract

with Warner Brothers. Perhaps his

most amous role was in the 1940

flm, Knute Rockne—All American. In

it, he played George (The Gipper)

Gipp.

IN UNIfORM

Opposite right: Reagan was called

to active duty in the Army in

1942 and eventually assigned to

the First Motion Picture Unit in

Culver City, Caliornia. During his

service, he appeared in hundreds

o training flms and was also

assigned to help sell war bonds.

He was promoted to captain

in 1943. Ater his discharge in

December 1945, he returned to

acting. In all, he made 53 motion

pictures.

ON TO TV

Like many motion picture

actors, Reagan turned to

television in the 1950s.

He signed a contract as aspokesman or General

Electric, hosting its TV

show, General Electric

Theater, and touring the

country giving speeches on

conservative, pro-business

topics rom 1954 to 1962.



THE SwITCH

Left: Reagan changed his politicalregistration rom Democrat to

Republican in 1962, later saying, “I didn’t

leave the Democratic party. The party

let me.” He is shown here campaigning

in 1964 with GOP presidential nominee

Barry Goldwater at the International

Hotel in Los Angeles. His work or

Goldwater caught the attention o

political proessionals in Caliornia.



GOVERNOR

Opposite, top right: In 1966, Reagan

jumped into politics as a candidate,

deeating two-term incumbent Caliornia

Gov. Edmund G. “Pat” Brown; he won

reelection in 1970. As governor with

a Democratic legislature, he soughtto erase the state budget defcit with

cuts and reorms in state programs and

agreeing to new taxes. He is shown

here celebrating his 1966 victory or

governor at the Biltmore Hotel in Los

Angeles.

VICTORY

Opposite bottom: Reagan ran or President

in 1980, deeating President Jimmy Carter.As he gave his inaugural address, Iran

released the 52 U.S. hostages they had

held or 444 days during the Carter

administration. Reagan wrote his own

inaugural speech, which included the

line, “In this present crisis, government

is not the solution to our problems,

government is the problem.”

A BULLET

On March 30, 1981, John W. Hinkley,

Jr., attempted to assassinate Reagan as

he emerged rom a Washington hotel.

A bullet barely missed his heart but

pierced his let lung. His press secretary,

a Secret Service agent, and a

Washington, D.C., policeman were

also wounded. Four days later, he

is shown with his wie, Nancy, at

George Washington Hospital; he

had told her, “Honey, I orgot

to duck.”

TAx CUTS

Above: With Republicans in control o the

Senate as a result o the 1980 elections,

Reagan pushed or his program o tax

cuts, which he eventually got, with the

help o conservative Democrats in

the House. Here, Reagan addresses

the nation in July 1981 about the

tax cut legislation, the frst o many

televised addresses that helped to

solidiy his reputation as “The Great

Communicator.”

A fIRST

Above: When Justice Potter Stewart

retired rom the Supreme Court in 1981,

Reagan turned to an Arizona judge and

ormer legislator, Sandra Day O’Connor,

to be his nominee—the frst woman to

become a Supreme Court justice. His

three appointments moved the high

court urther to the conservative side

o the political spectrum.

Prologue 1Ronald Reagan



“TIp”

Right: Although Reagan and Democratic leaders in Congress

were oten at odds over major issues, Reagan kept the

relationship cordial, especially with Democrat Thomas P. “Tip”

O’Neill, who was House Speaker or Reagan’s frst six years

in ofce. Although they traded political barbs at each other

during the day, they agreed that there would be no politics

ater 6 p.m. Here, in early 1983, the two Irishmen argued

during an Oval Ofce meeting.

GORBACHEV

Below: Reagan and Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev

greet during the Geneva summit in November 1985. Reagan

kept pressure on the Soviets by increasing U.S. deense

budgets as the Soviet economy was alling apart. Reagan and

Gorbachev signed an arms limitation treaty, and eventually, the

Soviet regime collapsed.

14 Prologue

SOUL MATE

Right: Reagan tries to control his dog “Lucky” as he walks with British

Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in the Rose Garden in early

1985. The two conservatives were in synch on many issues

and had great admiration or each other. Thatcher

gave a eulogy at Reagan’s uneral in 2004.

THE RANCH

For relaxation,

Reagan retreated

to his hilltop

ranch near

Santa Barbara,

called “Rancho

del Cielo,” or

“Ranch in the

Sky.” There, he

rode horseback and oten did chores such as cutting wood or

clearing brush.



THE wALL

In June 1987, Reagan

gave a speech at the

Berlin Wall, and over

the objections o his top

advisers, uttered one o

the most amous lines

o his presidency: “Mr.

Gorbachev, tear down

this wall.” The wall, a

symbol o the Cold War,

ell in 1989, and a piece

o it is now an artiact at

the Reagan Presidential

Library.

fAMILY

The Reagan amily gathered at their

house in Pacifc Palisades, Caliornia,

in 1976. From let to right: Patti Davis,

Nancy Reagan, Ronald Reagan, Michael

Reagan, Maureen Reagan, and Ron Reagan.

Maureen, now deceased, and Michael are

the children o Reagan and his frst wie,

actress Jane Wyman. Patti and Ron are

the children o Reagan and Nancy.

THE DIARY

Throughout his presidency, Reagan kept a diary in which he commented on events o

the day, his personal eelings about individuals, and how he elt generally about things.

The diaries have been edited and published. Here, it is seen on the desk in his ofce

in the White House residence.

Prologue 1Ronald Reagan

ronald reagan: an american story - spring 2011

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