Fortieth President of the United States - Republican Ronald Reagan was at the helm of the superpower for eight whole years, from 1981 to 1989. He occupied the Oval Office at a very respectable age, and before going into politics, he was a rather sought-after film actor - an extraordinary and undoubtedly great personality.
Childhood and student years
Ronald Reagan was born in February 1911 in the village of Tampico, Illinois, into a rather poor family (his father was an ordinary seller). When Ron was still young, the family wandered around the state in search of a better life, but eventually returned to Tampico.
At the age of fifteen, Ron got his first job in his life - he was hired as a lifeguard on one of the beaches. He worked in this capacity for seven years in a row, every swimming season. Already in these years, Ronald showed himself as a very purposeful person - he saved twenty dollars a week for further education, and as a result became a student of the Faculty of Economics and Sociology at Law College (Eureka is a city in Illinois). Reagan graduated from this college in 1932.
Career in Hollywood
Upon completion of his studies, Ronald took a job as a radio commentator in Davenport, and later he was taken to a larger station in Des Moines (both Des Moines and Davenport are cities in Iowa). In 1937, Ronald's cherished desire came true - he began his acting career in Hollywood, the Warner Brothers studio offered the promising guy a contract. In total, during his life, he starred in about fifty films, among them "Cowboy from Brooklyn" "The Road to Santa Fe", "John Loves Mary".
During World War II, Reagan served in the Air Force's Special Forces stationed in Hollywood. Educational, documentary and propaganda films were created here. Reagan was not allowed to go to the front because of his poor eyesight.
From 1947 to 1952, Reagan served as acting president of the Screen Actors Guild. Administrative work took up a lot of his time, which naturally led to a decrease in the number of roles in films. His last time as a professional actor, he showed himself in the TV series "Days in Death Valley", which was released in 1964 and 1965.
Ronald Reagan's wives and children
The politician was married twice. The first wife was Jane Wyman, a Hollywood star, with whom Reagan married and got married in 1940. The next year, the couple had a daughter, Maureen. Six years later, Jane became pregnant again, but the born girl Christina died almost immediately. To cope with this tragedy, the couple decided to adopt a two-year-old boy from an orphanage named Michael. But this did not help save the marriage. Jane soon filed for divorce. It annoyed her that Ronald was constantly busy at the Screen Actors Guild. This divorce officially took place in 1949.
Reagan married the second time in 1952 to the beautiful actress Nancy Davis. Ronald and Nancy had two children together - daughter Patricia and son Ron Prescott. It is worth noting that it was Nancy who performed the duties of the first lady with dignity when her husband was the head of the country.
Political activity
Initially, Ronald was in the US Democratic Party, but in the fifties his views shifted to the right. In 1962 he became a Republican, and in 1964 he delivered the legendary "Time to Choose" speech. In this speech, the former actor campaigned for Barry Goldwater, a Republican who was then fighting for the presidency. In fact, with this speech, Reagan's personal career in politics began. Then he was offered to participate in the election of the governor of California. Reagan won the most votes in this election, and on January 3, 1967, he took over as head of state. In 1970 he was re-elected for another term.
Reagan ran from the Republicans in the presidential elections in 1968 and 1976. But both of these campaigns were not very successful for him. He managed to achieve a big triumph only in 1981 (then he won against Jim Carter).
During his first presidential term, Reagan pursued an aggressive foreign and fairly balanced domestic policy. And ordinary Americans appreciated this - in 1984 he was again elected President of the States. A year later, Mikhail Gorbachev came to the post of General Secretary of the Soviet Union. These two leaders fundamentally changed the relationship between the most powerful superpowers and ended the Cold War.
Last years
After stepping down as president, Reagan settled on his own luxurious estate in California. In the next few years, he made many public appearances, met with politicians and other prominent people both from the United States and from other countries. In 1991, the Reagan Presidential Library opened with fanfare in Simi Valley. This library, by the way, is still functioning.
In 1994, the situation deteriorated sharply: Reagan became a victim of Alzheimer's disease, in connection with which he stopped giving speeches and giving interviews. The intellectual abilities of the former head of the country began to decline, memory problems began … Ronald Reagan, with the support of his faithful wife Nancy, fought the disease for another ten years. His life ended on June 6, 2004.
