The Writer's Almanac
It's the birthday of the fortieth President of the United States, Ronald Reagan, (books by this author) born in Tampico, Illinois (1911). His father suffered from alcoholism. Reagan was eleven years old when he first came upon his father drunk and passed out on the front porch. Reagan wrote about the incident in his 1965 memoir Where's the Rest of Me. He said, "That was my first moment of taking responsibility. ... I bent over him, smelling the sharp odor of whiskey from the speakeasy. I got a fistful of his overcoat. Opening the door, I managed to drag him inside and get him to bed. In a few days, he was the bluff, hearty man I knew and loved and will always remember."
Reagan learned the art of improvisation in school as a result of his nearsightedness. He couldn't see the blackboard, even sitting in the front row, but he said, "I bluffed my lessons and got fairly good marks, considering."
He went on to use this talent at his first job out of college as a radio announcer for the Chicago Cubs. Reagan moved from broadcasting to a job as an actor in B movies. By the mid-1950s his career as an actor had stalled but he was slowly growing more interested in politics.
He became a Republican in 1962, and in 1964 the Republican Party asked him to give a half-hour address at the convention to nominate Barry Goldwater. The speech was so good that a group of Republicans got together and persuaded Reagan to run for governor of California.
It was the first time that a Hollywood celebrity had used his media savvy and name recognition to start a career in politics. When Reagan won his governor's race he was asked what he planned to do as governor. He said, "I don't know. I've never played a governor."
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