Ronald Reagan
president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and actor / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ronald Wilson Reagan (/ˈreɪɡən/ RAY-gən; February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor. He was the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. Before becoming president, he was the 33rd governor of California from 1967 to 1975. He was also the 9th and 13th president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1947 to 1952 and again from 1959 until 1960.
Ronald Reagan | |
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40th President of the United States | |
In office January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989 | |
Vice President | George H. W. Bush |
Preceded by | Jimmy Carter |
Succeeded by | George H. W. Bush |
33rd Governor of California | |
In office January 2, 1967 – January 6, 1975 | |
Lieutenant | |
Preceded by | Pat Brown |
Succeeded by | Jerry Brown |
9th and 13th President of the Screen Actors Guild | |
In office November 16, 1959 – June 12, 1960 | |
Preceded by | Howard Keel |
Succeeded by | George Chandler |
In office November 17, 1947 – November 9, 1952 | |
Preceded by | Robert Montgomery |
Succeeded by | Walter Pidgeon |
Personal details | |
Born | Ronald Wilson Reagan (1911-02-06)February 6, 1911 Tampico, Illinois, U.S. |
Died | June 5, 2004(2004-06-05) (aged 93) Bel Air, Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
Cause of death | Pneumonia caused by Alzheimer's disease |
Resting place | Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Center |
Political party | Republican |
Other political affiliations | Democratic (before 1962) |
Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) |
Spouse(s) | |
Relations | Neil Reagan (brother) |
Children | |
Parents | |
Alma mater | Eureka College (BA) |
Profession |
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Awards | |
Signature | |
Military service | |
Allegiance | United States |
Branch/service | U.S. Army Air Forces |
Years of service | 1937–1945 |
Rank | Captain |
Unit | 18th AAF Base Unit |
Reagan got a degree from Eureka College in 1932 and became a sports broadcaster in Iowa. In 1937, Reagan moved to California, where he became a film actor. From 1947 to 1952, Reagan was the president of the Screen Actors Guild. In the 1950s, he worked in television and spoke for General Electric. From 1959 to 1960, he again was the Screen Actors Guild's president. In 1964, "A Time for Choosing" gave Reagan attention as a new conservative figure. He was elected governor of California in 1966. During his time as governor, he raised taxes, turned the state budget deficit into a surplus, and ended student protests in Berkeley. After running against and losing to president Gerald Ford in the 1976 Republican presidential primaries, Reagan won the Republican nomination and then a landslide victory over incumbent Democratic president Jimmy Carter in the 1980 United States presidential election.
In his first term, Reagan created "Reaganomics", which included economic deregulation and cuts in both taxes and government spending during a period of stagflation. He grew an arms race and moved Cold War policy away from détente with the Soviet Union. He also survived an assassination attempt, had a feud with public sector labor unions, expanded the war on drugs, and ordered the invasion of Grenada in 1983. In the 1984 presidential election, Reagan was re-elected over former vice president Walter Mondale in another landslide victory. Foreign policy took over Reagan's second term, including the 1986 bombing of Libya, the Iran–Iraq War, the secret sale of arms to Iran to fund the Contras, and a more calm approach in talks with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev that led to the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty.
Reagan left the presidency in 1989 with the American economy having seen far less inflation, less unemployment, and the United States having entered its then-longest period of economic growth. At the same time, the federal debt had nearly increased three times since 1981 as a result of his cuts in taxes and increased military spending, despite cuts to domestic discretionary spending. Alzheimer's disease made Reagan's post-presidency difficult and his physical and mental capacities quickly got worse, which led to his death in 2004. His presidency is a part of the Reagan era, and he is considered an important conservative figure in the United States. Historians and scholars have ranked Reagan among the upper tier of American presidents, although he tends to be disliked in left-wing politics because of his domestic policies.