Matinee Classics - Ronald Reagan Biography & Filmography

Ronald Reagan ACTOR

PHOTOS

RONALD REAGAN BIOGRAPHY & FILMOGRAPHY:

Ronald Reagan was born on February 6, 1911, in Tampico, Illinois. In 1920, after years spent moving from city to city, he and his family settled down in Dixon, Illinois. He went to Dixon High School and then went to Eureka College on a partial athletic scholarship. Here he majored in sociology and economics, although he was also very involved in the school’s drama program. Graduating right in the middle of The Great Depression, Reagan found it difficult to find work. He finally landed a broadcasting job with WOC, a small radio company in Davenport, Iowa. Soon after, WOC was absorbed by the Des Moines, Iowa stationed WHO, and Reagan became the chief sports announcer for the Chicago Cubs. It was while working here that the memorable incidence when Reagan’s wire was dead for six minutes happened. During the time that he could make no connections, he improvised an entire fictional play-by-play, which showed his imagination and cleverness.

While in California in 1937 for the spring training of the Chicago Cubs, Reagan took a screen test that resulted in a seven year long contract with Warner Brothers Pictures. His first role was as a sports announcer in “Love is on the Air” (1937) starring with June Travis, Willard Parker, Raymond Hatton and Eddie Acuff. He appeared in many other films after which earned him decent critic reviews, but nothing very special. Pictures like “Swing Your Lady” (1938) starring Humphrey Bogart, Frank McHugh, Louise Fazenda, Allen Jenkins, Nat Pendleton and Penny Singleton, “Secret Service of the Air” (1939), and “Murder in the Air” (1940) gave Reagan the bland 'good guy' roles, but not until he acted in “Knute Rockne, All American” (1940) co-starring Pat O'Brien, did he receive the subsistence he needed to really make him famous. In the movie, he played the renowned Notre Dame Football star George Gipp. However, Reagan did not believe his best acting skills to have been demonstrated yet, for in 1942 he gave his personal favorite performance in “Kings Rows” starring alongside Ann Sheridan, Robert Cummings, Betty Field, Charles Coburn, Judith Anderson, Minor Watson and Claude Rains. He played an amputee and even used on of the lines in the movie: “Where’s the Rest of Me?” for the title of his first autobiography. Unfortunately, after the draw of the 1940's, the actor’s career began to wilt, as he started finding work mainly in B-movies because his contract with Warner Bros. expired such as "Cattle Queen of Montana" (1954) co-starring Barbara Stanwyck and featuring Chubby Johnson, Jack Elam and Morris Ankrum and "Hellcats of the Navy" (1957) starring his wife to be Nancy Davis, who would eventually change her name to Nancy Reagan.

During the Second World War, he served as a non-combative captain in the Army Air Corps, and also turned out a number of training videos. Additionally, to boost morale, he acted in some wartime films like “For God and Country” (1943), “Rear Gunner” (1943) and "This is the Army" (1943) costarring Kate Smith, Alan Hale Sr., George Murphy, Joan Leslie, George Tobias and Dolores Costello. In 1947 he returned to Hollywood. He had a five year long term of being the Screen Actors Guild president, which he had joined in 1938. The actor became president of the guild once again in 1959. It was around this time that Reagan started to become absorbed in the politics of Hollywood and disputes over Communism in the film industry. He did however, continue to appear in films. He played lead, opposite Shirley Temple and Rory Calhoun, in “That Hagan Girl” (1949). In 1949 he furthermore co-starred in the popular “The Hasty Heart” co-starring Richard Todd and Patricia Neal. A year later, he played one of his most infamous roles as a college professor who made friends with his lab project, a chimpanzee, in “Bedtime for Bonzo” (1951) also starring Diana Lynn and Walter Slezak. The film made Reagan the butt of many jokes, especially during his political career. The actor additionally appeared in the last Warner Bros. picture he would ever make the biopic of the famous baseball player Grover Cleveland Alexander, “The Winning Team” starring with Doris Day and Frank Lovejoy. However, in this decade he also discovered television, which he involved himself much more in than motion pictures. In 1954, the actor began his eight year involvement as the “General Electric Theater” aka "G.E. True Theater" television show host and spokesperson. As well, he appeared in over ten other TV series.

The sixties marked the last decade of Reagan’s participation in acting. He uncharacteristically portrayed the villain in “The Killers” (1964) starring alongside Angie Dickinson, Lee Marvin, John Cassavetes, Claude Akins, Norman Fell, Dan Haggerty and Clu Gulager, which was his final effort for the film industry. His farewell to acting came, however, on eight separate episodes of the western drama series “Death Valley Days” (1964-65). All in all, he appeared in over sixty movies and sixteen varying television shows, so he deserved a break. He did not rest though, for in 1966 he became the Governor of California. Following, he worked his way up the political ladder, becoming the California governor yet again in 1970, and finally, being inaugurated as president in 1981 and serving two terms.

Ronald Reagan was as popular a politician as he was an actor. For his hard work and determination in politics, he was awarded the most prestigious honor: president; for his talent and perseverance in the acting world, he was given a Golden Boot, Hollywood Citizenship Award from the Golden Globes, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Sadly, all good things must end. On November 5, 1994, Reagan declared to the American public that he had recently been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Over the next decade, his health and mind both deteriorated, eventually leading to the ninety three year old’s death on June 5, 2004.

Filmography

1964 Death Valley Days

1964 Kraft Suspense Theatre

1964 The Killers

1963 Wagon Train

1963 Heritage of Splendor

1961 The Dick Powell Theatre

1961 The Young Doctors

1961 Zane Grey Theatre

1960 Startime

1960 The DuPont Show with June Allyson

1957 Hellcats of the Navy

1956 General Electric Summer Originals