PRESENTATION OUTLINE
Ronald Reagan
February 6, 1911- June 5, 2004
Ronald Reagan was born in Tampico, Illinois on February 6, 1911. His family including an older brother Neil lived in an apartment above a store along the towns Main Street.
When Reagan was born, his father said he looked like a "Fat little Dutchman" and nicknamed him Dutch.
In his early childhood, his family lived in a series of small Illinois towns. They moved often because his father couldn't hold a steady job, sometimes being fired because he was an alcoholic.
In 1920, The Reagan's moved to Dixon Illinois. Dixon was the biggest city the family had lived in yet.
Reagan attended Dixon High School, where he played football ,was student body president, and acted in school plays.
During summer vacations, Reagan worked as a lifeguard, saving many people from drowning. He graduated from Dixon high school in1928.
Reagan attended Eureka College in Illinois on an athletic scholarship.
Like in high school, Reagan played football, ran track, captained the swim team and was in the drama club.
During his college years, Reagan was influenced by the Sunday broadcast sermons of Father Coughlin. This was during the Depression and Coughlin also addressed politics and economics during his sermons.
After college, Reagan decided he wanted to become a sports broadcaster in Chicago. But was unable to find work.
He Returned home and soon after, got his first job broadcasting football games in Davenport Iowa, 75 miles from Dixon.
Reagan was also inspired by President Roosevelt's fireside chats to the nation during the Depression.
Reagan had become a local celebrity and the radio station had him interviewing visiting sports greats.
Reagan took his celebrity to Hollywood and signed a seven year contract with Warner Brothers in 1937.
His best know role was as Notre Dame football star George Gip in the movie "Knute Rockne, All American".
Another important role for Reagan was the film "Kings Row".
In 1940, Reagan married actress Jane Wyman. They had a daughter Maureen and adopted a son named Michael. They divorced in 1948.
During World War II, Reagan was disqualified from combat duty, but used his talents to make army training films. He left the military with the rank of captain.
Reagan served as President of the Screen Actors Guild from 1947 to 1952.
There he met actress Nancy Davis, who sought his help for wrongly being listed as a possible communist sympathizer on the Hollywood Blacklist. They married in 1952.
The Reagan's had two children, Patricia and Ronald.
In 1954, he became the host of the "General Electric Theater", a weekly TV series. Touring The United States as a representative of General Electric, Reagan began to change his political views, becoming more conservative.
Reagan became a nationally known political figure in 1964, giving a televised speech for conservative Republican Presidential Candidate, Barry Goldwater.
Two years later, Reagan ran for governor of California. His opponent Edmund Pat Brown's strategy was to run and anti-actor campaign. Reagan won easily, and was easily re-elected again in 1970 for a second term.
Reagan ran for the Republican Presidential nomination in 1968 and 1976. Both were unsuccessful. He ran again in 1980 and received his parties nomination.
Because of a failing economy, and an overall feeling of malaise, Reagan easily defeated incumbent President Jimmy Carter.
He announced during his 1981 inaugural speech that "Government is not the solution to our problems; Government is the problem". He called for "America to be a beacon of hope for those who do not have freedom".
On March 30, 1981, Reagan was shot in an assassination attempt by John Hinckley Jr. When secret service agents got him into his limousine they discovered that he had been hit.
The doctors at the hospital found that the bullet nearly missed his heart and pierced one of his lungs. Reagan jokingly told Nancy "Honey I forgot to duck".
Domestically, President Reagan implemented tax cuts to stimulate the economy, reduced restrictions on business and streamline social programs.
In 1981, Reagan appointed the first woman to the U.S.
Supreme Court, Sandra Day O Connor.
Reagan's priority in foreign affairs was the Cold War with the Soviet Union. He shocked a lot of people by calling the Soviet Union "The Evil Empire" in a speech.
He announced in 1983, The Strategic Defense Initiative, a plan to develop space based weapons to protect America from Soviet Nuclear missile attacks.
In 1983, Reagan sent a peace keeping force of 800 U.S. marines to Lebanon.
A year later 241 Americans were killed when suicide bombers attacked the marine barracks in Lebanon.
Reagan sent U.S. forces to Grenada in 1983. This was In keeping with the Reagan Doctrine of helping anti-communist movements. Grenada had been overthrown by Marxist.
During his second term, he forged a diplomatic relationship with the chairman of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev. They signed a historic agreement in 1987 to eliminate mid range nuclear missiles.
Also in 1987, Reagan spoke at Germany's Berlin Wall, challenging Gorbachev by saying "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall"!
29 months later, Gorbachev did allow the people of Berlin to tear down the wall and unite Germany. Reagan returned for some symbolic photographs chipping away at the wall.
When Reagan left office in 1989, he and Nancy moved back to their home in Los Angeles California.
In November 1994, Reagan revealed in a handwritten letter to the American people that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.
Reagan died on June 5, 2004. A state funeral was held in Washington D.C.
Reagan was buried on
the grounds of his Presidential library in Simi Valley California.
