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More copies of this ISBN:This title in other formats:Reagan: A Life in Lettersby Kiron K Skinner
Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:Ronald Reagan may have been the most prolific correspondent of any American president since Thomas Jefferson. The total number of letters written over his lifetime probably exceeds 10,000. Their breadth is equally astonishing — with friends and family, with politicians, children, and other private citizens, Reagan was as dazzling a communicator in letters as he was in person. Collectively, his letters reveal his character and thinking like no other source. He made candid, considerate, and tough statements that he rarely made in a public speech or open forum. He enjoyed responding to citizens, and comforting or giving advice or encouragement to friends. Now, the most astonishing of his writings, culled in Reagan: A Portrait in Letters, finally and fully reveal the true Ronald Reagan. Many of Reagan's handwritten letters are among the most thoughtful, charming, and moving documents he produced. Long letters to his daughter Patti, applauding her honesty, and son Ron Jr., urging him to be the best student he can be, reveal Reagan as a caring parent. Long-running correspondence with old friends, carried on for many decades, reveals the importance of his hometown and college networks. Heartfelt advice on love and marriage, fond memories of famous friends from Hollywood, and rare letters about his early career allow Reagan to tell his own full biography as never before. Running correspondence with young African-American student Ruddy Hines reveals a little-known presidential pen pal. The editors also reveal that another long-running pen-pal relationship, with fan club leader Lorraine Wagner, was initially ghostwritten by his mother, until Reagan began to write to Wagner himself some years later. Reagan's letters are a political and historical treasure trove. Revealed here for the first time is a running correspondence with Richard Nixon, begun in 1959 and continuing until shortly before Nixon's death. Letters to key supporters reveal that Reagan was thinking of the presidency from the mid-1960s; that missile defense was of interest to him as early as the 1970s; and that few details of his campaigns or policies escaped his notice. Dozens of letters to constituents reveal Reagan to have been most comfortable and natural with pen in hand, a man who reached out to friend and foe alike throughout his life. Reagan: A Life in Letters is as important as it is astonishing and moving. Review:"Reagan: A Life in Letters shows that he was a born proselytizer. Decades before he entered politics, his compulsion to seize and hold attention, whether by script or speech or merely looking splendid, was phenomenal." Edmund Morris, The Washington Post Review:"Taken together, [these letters] provide remarkable and otherwise unobtainable insight into a singularly important and fascinating American life: "Dutch" up close and personal." Publishers Weekly Review:"As additional material in the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library becomes available, it is likely that many books claiming to present the 'real' man will be published. But few things reveal more about an individual's thoughts, values, and character than his letters....Thousands are printed in these two books, many for the first time." Thomas J. Baldino, Library Journal Synopsis:When he was an eleven-year-old boy, Ronald Reagan picked up a pen. It was the beginning of a prodigious career of letter writing that didn't end until the onset of his Alzheimer's Disease. Reagan wrote to everyone--from ordinary Americans to Hollywood celebrities, sometimes exchanging only a few letters, sometimes continuing the correspondence for years. Ronald Reagan's letters--numbering upwards of ten thousands and stretching over more than seventy years--comprise the single best source for understanding his public and private life, his beliefs and character--in short, a well and fully lived life. From his youthful days of financial struggle, through the Hollywood years, his two terms as California governor, to the extraordinary presidency, Reagan never stopped writing friends, family, supporters, and even opponents. In these letters he revealed his innermost thoughts and, often, made political history. Reagan's writing is surprisingly intimate and unselfconscious. In this collection, readers can get a real sense of the young man who loved football; the actor who rose to stardom in Hollywood and became friends with Frank Sinatra and John Wayne; the budding politician; a divorced man; loving father and husband; a loyal pen-pal who maintained contact with a young black man throughout his presidency and several friends throughout his life; and a respected world leader. Only a very small portion of these letters have ever before been published. Skillfully edited and annotated, this definitive collection will surprise Reagan's allies and detractors alike, and is essential for anyone interested in our fortieth president or the times in which he lived. Synopsis:In this definitive collection of the former president's letters, readers can get a real sense of the young man who loved football; the actor who rose to stardom in Hollywood and became friends with Frank Sinatra and John Wayne; and the politician who became a respected world leader.
Synopsis:A collection of letters from the former president offers insight into his public and private life of more than seventy years, from his early struggles and Hollywood achievements to his political career. Description:Includes bibliographical references (p. [838]-883) and index.
About the AuthorKiron K. Skinner is an assistant professor of political science at Carnegie Mellon University, and a Hoover Institution research fellow. Her articles have appeared in The Wall Street Journal and National Interest. She earned her Ph.D. from Harvard University. Annelise Anderson has been a senior research fellow at the Hoover Institution since 1983. In 1980 she was a senior policy adviser to the presidential campaign of Ronald Reagan, and from 1981 to 1983 she served as associate director for economics and government with the Office of Management and Budget. She earned her Ph.D. in economics from Columbia University. Table of ContentsCONTENTS Foreword by George P. Shultz Introduction Frequent Correspondents Chapter One: The Early Years Chapter Two: Home and Family Chapter Three: Health and Personal Appearance Chapter Four: Old Friends Chapter Five: Hollywood Years and Friendships Chapter Six: Governorship Chapter Seven: Running for Office Chapter Eight: Core Beliefs Chapter Nine: Economic Policy Chapter Ten: Domestic Policy Chapter Eleven: The Cold War I: Ideology and Institutions Chapter Twelve: The Cold War II: Politics, Arms, and Missile Defense Chapter Thirteen: The Middle East and Southwest Asia Chapter Fourteen: Terrorism and the Iran-Contra Scandal Chapter Fifteen: The Americas Chapter Sixteen: The International Scene Chapter Seventeen: The Oval Office and Reelection Chapter Eighteen: The Media Chapter Nineteen: The Critics Chapter Twenty: Reaching Out Chapter Twenty-one: The Lighter Side Chapter Twenty-two: American Leaders Chapter Twenty-three: Foreign Leaders Chapter Twenty-four: Pen Pals Chapter Twenty-five: Back to California A Note on Methods References, Sources, and Interviews Notes Acknowledgments Index of Letters General Index
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