702203
Ronald Reagan
Scroll down to see images of the item below the description
Ronald Wilson Reagan, 1911-2004. 40th President of the United States. Matted color photograph of Reagan with a visitor inscribed and signed on the mat To Dale Buehler - With Very Best / Wishes & Regards, / Ronald Reagan.
This appears to be a post-presidential photograph, but it bears a nice example of Reagan's handwriting and signature.
A native of Tampico, Illinois, Reagan got a job as a radio sports announcer after graduating from Eureka College. In 1937, Hollywood movie producers gave him an acting contract. Reagan appeared in 53 films over the next two decades.
As president of the Screen Actors Guild, Reagan became embroiled in disputes over the issue of Communism in the film industry. A supporter of President Harry S. Truman, a Democrat, in 1948, Reagan’s political views eventually shifted from liberal to conservative. He toured the country as a television host, becoming a spokesman for conservatism. He was elected governor of California by a margin of a million votes in 1966 and was re-elected in 1970.
Reagan sought the 1976 Republican presidential nomination but lost to incumbent President Gerald R. Ford, who narrowly lost to Jimmy Carter in the general election. Reagan went on the speaking circuit and began a daily radio program that kept him in the public eye. In 1980, Reagan finally won the Republican nomination. With voters troubled by inflation and by the year-long confinement of Americans in Iran, he went on to defeat Carter overwhelmingly, winning 489 electoral votes to Carter's 49. At age 68, he was the oldest person ever elected President.
A skillful communicator, Reagan exuded an affable charm. His grace and wit after he was wounded in an assassination attempt 69 days into his term caused his popularity to soar.
Beneath Reagan's charm, however, was an iron will. In foreign policy, Reagan sought to achieve "peace through strength." During his two terms he increased defense spending 35%, but he sought to improve relations with the Soviet Union. In dramatic meetings with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, he negotiated a treaty that would eliminate intermediate-range nuclear missiles. Domestically, Reagan cut taxes, refusing to raise them when defense spending created a large deficit. In 1986, he secured an overhaul of the income tax code, eliminating many deductions and exempting millions of people with low incomes. At the end of Reagan's administration, the country was enjoying its longest recorded period of peacetime prosperity without recession or depression.
This photo is matted in white and gray, and Reagan has inscribed and signed it on the white mat. The photo itself has some surface scratches. The inscription and signature are a bit faded from prior framing, and the ink has browned but is still strong. Overall the piece is in fine condition.
Matted but unframed.
This item has been sold.
Click here for other presidential items that we are currently offering.
|
