Ronald Reagan

Ronald Reagan was President of the United States from 1981 to 1989, so his term dominated the eighties. He was born in 1911 in Illinois, but after being a radio announcer in Iowa for a while, he moved to California in 1937. He was an actor, and starred in a few movies, but was best known for being president of the Screen Actors' Guild, a kind of union for actors. He became Governor of California in 1966.

His politics were conservative, and people generally approved of "Reaganomics," which was a name for his economic policies, which are often called "supply-side." He fought public sector unions, and made strong speeches against Gorbachev and the Soviet Union. In spite of wanting to be known as "pro-family," he had a rocky family life, with difficult relations among his children and first and second wives, though this was very rarely made public. He died in 2004.


___ 1. What was one job he did not do?
a. radio announcer
b. actor
c. economist
d. politician

___ 2. Which is the image that most people probably have of him?
a. popular conservative President in the 80's
b. one of the best actors ever
c. famous for speaking against Soviet Union
d. having public feuds among his family

___ 3. What are "Reaganomics?" a. his foreign policy
b. supply-side economic policies
c. public sector unions
d. conservative voters