1932 Ronald Reagan graduated from Eureka College.

1937 Reagan began his acting career.

1966 Reagan is elected Governor of California.

1980 Reagan is elected President. George Bush is his Vice President.

1981 Reagan is shot and wounded in an assassination attempt.

1983 U.S. invades Grenada.

1988 George Bush is elected President.

1993 Reagan has Alzheimer and retreats from public life.

Ronald Wilson Reagan
1981-1989
40th President

Ronald Wilson Reagan was born in Tamp ic, Illinois on February 6, 1911.

When he was young he worked as a life guard for seven summers. In that time he made 79 rescues.

Ronald Reagan announced Chicago Cubs games for WHO radio in Des Moines. Later he became a famous movie and television actor.

Reagan was in the military during WWII.

At 73, he was the oldest person ever elected president. (This was his election to his second term.) He was 69 when elected the first time.

Reagan's Vice President was George Bush (1981-1989).

President Reagan was the oldest president in history; he was just shy of his 78th birthday on leaving office.

Reagan was the only professional actor to be elected President.

Reagan's would-be assassin, John Hinkley wanted to assassinate the President to impress actress Jodie Foster. After the assassination attempt he was put in a mental institution.

After John Hinckley tried to kill him, former sportscaster Dutch Reagan, said to his wife: "Honey, I forgot to duck."

A young boy gave Reagan a goldfish which Reagan kept in a fish tank which had the presidential seal on it.

Ronald Reagan was President during the Grenada Invasion, 1983

President Reagan was the first President to appoint a female Supreme Court Justice, Sandra Day O'Connor.

Ronald Reagan was the only President to have been divorced. He was also one of three Presidents who had adopted children.

In 1986, he signed the legislation making Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday a federal holiday.

One of his most famous speeches was at the Berlin Wall on June 12, 1987. He demanded "Mr Gorbachev, tear down this wall!"

President Ronald Reagan at a political rally, By Michael Evens,
February 8, 1982.
Ronald Regain Presidential Library.

Ronald Reagan kept a jar of jelly beans on his desk.

He became the first U.S. president to address Japan's legislature.

President Ronald Reagan was twice named "Man of the Year" by Time Magazine.

Ronald loved to ride horses and tend his ranch. He had a King Charles Spaniel named Rex.

In his retirement years he was diagnosed as having Alzheimer's Disease.
President Ronald Reagan died on June 6, 2004. He was 93 at the time of his death.

He was the second longest living man who was President. He was passed by Gerald Ford on November 12, 2007 when Ford became 93 years and 121 days old. Ford lived just over a month longer than Reagan.

Quick Facts

40th President
1981-1989

Born: Tampico, IL
Feb. 6, 1911

Inaugurated President
First Term: Jan. 20, 1981
Second Term: Jan. 20, 1985

Party: Republican

Died: Bel Air, Cal., June 5, 2004 age 93

References:

• The Presidents of the United States. 22 September 2004
• Davis, Gibbs and Ilus. David A. Johnson. Wackiest White House Pets. New York: Scholastic Press, October 2004
• James, Barber and Amy Pastan. Smithsonian Presidents and First Ladies. New York: DK Publishing, 2002
• Harnsberger, Caroline Thomas. Treasury of Presidential Quotations. Chicago: Follett Publishing Company, 1964
• Kane, Joseph Natan. Facts about the Presidents from Washington to Johnson. New York: H.W. Wilson Company, 1964.
• National Park Service Web Site on Presidential Trivia: http://www.nps.gov/pub_aff/pres/trivia.htm.

Additional Sources:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents
http://www.historyplace.com/specials/portraits/presidents/index.html
www.freep.com
http://www.umkc.edu/imc/prestriv.htm
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Rhodes/4062/trivia.html
http://www.freep.com/news/inaug/trivia/index.htm
http://www.ipl.org/div/potus/

If you have comments or corrections, please send them to jim@anewadventure.org.