I Wish I Knew That: U.S. Presidents: Cool Stuff You Need to Know by Editors Of Reader's Digest, Patricia Halbert Page A
Authors: Editors Of Reader's Digest, Patricia Halbert
Tags: United States, Children's Books, History, Education & Reference, Biographies, Children's eBooks, Government, U. S. Presidents & First Ladies
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1981–1989
RONALD REAGAN
The Great Communicator
----
“Don’t be afraid to see what you see.”
Born
February 6, 1911 Tampico, Illinois
Political Party
Republican
Vice President
George H.W. Bush
First Lady
Nancy
Children
Maureen, Michael, Patricia, Ronald, and Christine (died in infancy)
Pets
Lucky, a Bouvier des Flandres; Rex, a King Charles spaniel
----
An Actor First
At 69, former movie star Ronald Reagan was the oldest president ever to enter the White House. He joked: “Thomas Jefferson once said, ‘We should never judge a president by his age, only by his works.’ And ever since he told me that, I stopped worrying.”
The Actor
Called the Great Communicator, Reagan was perfectly at ease in front of cameras and large crowds. His years in Hollywood had prepared him for one of the greatest demands of the job: winning people over. “How can a president not be an actor?” he asked.
He made more than 50 movies for Warner Brothers Studios, usually cast as the wholesome all-American kid. Only Errol Flynn received more fan mail than he did. He then went to work for General Electric as a television host and became familiar to even more Americans.
Political Life
When he entered politics, he rose quickly, serving as governor of California for eight years. He beat his opponent in his first run for governor by almost a million votes.
PRESIDENTIAL FIRST
Ronald Reagan was the first (and only) president to have been divorced. He was divorced from actress Jane Wyman, his first wife, and married to actress Nancy Davis, his second wife, when he took office.
----
FUN FACT
Reagan was hard of hearing, especially in his right ear. During his movie career in the 1930s, an actor fired a pistol near his head, which caused his hearing problems. He began wearing hearing aids in 1983—first in his right ear, then later in his left.
----
When he ran for president, he campaigned on his belief that government was too big, and that reducing taxes for the rich would help everyone when their wealth “trickled down” to people who didn’t have as much money. Instead of economics, critics called it Reaganomics. He won in a landslide.
Shortly after he took office, a deranged gunman tried to assassinate him outside of a hotel in Washington, D.C. While doctors got ready to take the bullet out of his lung at the hospital, he joked to Nancy, the First Lady, “Sorry, honey, I forgot to duck.”
His Legacy
Reagan is remembered for pushing for the end of the Cold War with the Soviet Union (even though he once called it the “evil empire”), cutting taxes, and trying to make the government work better. “I have wondered at times,” he said, “what the Ten Commandments would have looked like if Moses had run them through the U.S. Congress.”
41st President ~ 1989–1993
GEORGE H.W. BUSH
Poppy
----
“We are not the sum of our possessions.”
Born
June 12, 1924 Milton, Massachusetts
Political Party
Republican
Vice President
J. Danforth (“Dan”) Quayle
First Lady
Barbara
Children
George W., Robin (who died as a child), John Ellis “Jeb,” Neil, Marvin, and Dorothy
Pet
Millie, a springer spaniel
----
Before Politics
George Bush put off going to college and joined the military during World War II. He was the youngest pilot in the Navy and flew 58 combat missions in the Pacific. He won the Distinguished Flying Cross for bravery. He came home and graduated with honors from Yale, worked in the oil business, and then got into politics.
Training for the Presidency
By the time Ronald Reagan picked him to run as vice president, Bush had served in several top government jobs, including head of the Central Intelligence Agency, or CIA.
As vice president, he organized all branches of the military to cooperate and try to stop the flow of illegal drugs into the United States. Operation Blue Lightning, as it was called, equipped jets, speed boats, and helicopters with state-of-the-art sensors and tracking devices to snag drug smugglers
RONALD REAGAN
The Great Communicator
----
“Don’t be afraid to see what you see.”
Born
February 6, 1911 Tampico, Illinois
Political Party
Republican
Vice President
George H.W. Bush
First Lady
Nancy
Children
Maureen, Michael, Patricia, Ronald, and Christine (died in infancy)
Pets
Lucky, a Bouvier des Flandres; Rex, a King Charles spaniel
----
An Actor First
At 69, former movie star Ronald Reagan was the oldest president ever to enter the White House. He joked: “Thomas Jefferson once said, ‘We should never judge a president by his age, only by his works.’ And ever since he told me that, I stopped worrying.”
The Actor
Called the Great Communicator, Reagan was perfectly at ease in front of cameras and large crowds. His years in Hollywood had prepared him for one of the greatest demands of the job: winning people over. “How can a president not be an actor?” he asked.
He made more than 50 movies for Warner Brothers Studios, usually cast as the wholesome all-American kid. Only Errol Flynn received more fan mail than he did. He then went to work for General Electric as a television host and became familiar to even more Americans.
Political Life
When he entered politics, he rose quickly, serving as governor of California for eight years. He beat his opponent in his first run for governor by almost a million votes.
PRESIDENTIAL FIRST
Ronald Reagan was the first (and only) president to have been divorced. He was divorced from actress Jane Wyman, his first wife, and married to actress Nancy Davis, his second wife, when he took office.
----
FUN FACT
Reagan was hard of hearing, especially in his right ear. During his movie career in the 1930s, an actor fired a pistol near his head, which caused his hearing problems. He began wearing hearing aids in 1983—first in his right ear, then later in his left.
----
When he ran for president, he campaigned on his belief that government was too big, and that reducing taxes for the rich would help everyone when their wealth “trickled down” to people who didn’t have as much money. Instead of economics, critics called it Reaganomics. He won in a landslide.
Shortly after he took office, a deranged gunman tried to assassinate him outside of a hotel in Washington, D.C. While doctors got ready to take the bullet out of his lung at the hospital, he joked to Nancy, the First Lady, “Sorry, honey, I forgot to duck.”
His Legacy
Reagan is remembered for pushing for the end of the Cold War with the Soviet Union (even though he once called it the “evil empire”), cutting taxes, and trying to make the government work better. “I have wondered at times,” he said, “what the Ten Commandments would have looked like if Moses had run them through the U.S. Congress.”
41st President ~ 1989–1993
GEORGE H.W. BUSH
Poppy
----
“We are not the sum of our possessions.”
Born
June 12, 1924 Milton, Massachusetts
Political Party
Republican
Vice President
J. Danforth (“Dan”) Quayle
First Lady
Barbara
Children
George W., Robin (who died as a child), John Ellis “Jeb,” Neil, Marvin, and Dorothy
Pet
Millie, a springer spaniel
----
Before Politics
George Bush put off going to college and joined the military during World War II. He was the youngest pilot in the Navy and flew 58 combat missions in the Pacific. He won the Distinguished Flying Cross for bravery. He came home and graduated with honors from Yale, worked in the oil business, and then got into politics.
Training for the Presidency
By the time Ronald Reagan picked him to run as vice president, Bush had served in several top government jobs, including head of the Central Intelligence Agency, or CIA.
As vice president, he organized all branches of the military to cooperate and try to stop the flow of illegal drugs into the United States. Operation Blue Lightning, as it was called, equipped jets, speed boats, and helicopters with state-of-the-art sensors and tracking devices to snag drug smugglers
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