Ronald Reagan: the record and the legends

The Gipper. The 40th president, 1981-1989, from California. Every story here is tagged Record, meaning it’s documented, or Legend, meaning it gets told a lot and doesn’t hold up. Each one links to its source.

President: 40th
In office: 1981-1989
Home state: California
Party: Republican
Height: 6'1"

The record

RecordStarting in 1926, Reagan spent seven summers as a lifeguard on the Rock River in Dixon, Illinois. He was credited with saving 77 people, and he kept count by cutting a notch in a log for each one.Source: Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Biographical Sketch and Timeline
RecordHis first radio job was calling Chicago Cubs games he couldn't see. The plays came in over a telegraph, and Reagan filled in everything else live on the air.Source: Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Biographical Sketch and Timeline
RecordEven as president he spent his vacations at Rancho del Cielo, his ranch in the mountains above Santa Barbara, riding horses, cutting brush and chopping wood.Source: Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Camp David and Rancho del Cielo
RecordThe nickname the Gipper came from a movie. Reagan played the dying football star George Gipp in Knute Rockne, All American in 1940.Source: Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Biographical Sketch and Timeline

The legends

LegendReagan was badly hurt in an attack in March 1981 and still walked into the hospital on his own. He told Nancy, Honey, I forgot to duck. You'll read that he borrowed the line from the boxer Jack Dempsey. That gets repeated a lot, but no archive confirms it.Source: Miller Center, Reagan Shot in Chest

What he cared about

Cutting taxes. He signed a big tax cut in his first year.
Building up the military to face the Soviet Union, including a plan for a missile defense shield.
Shrinking the federal government's role and cutting back business regulation.

The full record

His administration was slow to treat AIDS as a priority. He didn't call it a top priority until 1985, years into an epidemic that hit gay men hardest.

How he fights in POTUS KO

A lifeguard's reach and a rancher's stamina

Reagan stayed calm almost anywhere, from a river rescue to a hospital gurney, and he was built for the long haul: swimming, riding and chopping wood into his 70s. In the ring he keeps you at a distance and outlasts you.

See POTUS KO

Questions about Ronald Reagan

Where did Reagan's nickname the Gipper come from?

The nickname the Gipper came from a movie. Reagan played the dying football star George Gipp in Knute Rockne, All American in 1940.

Was Ronald Reagan a lifeguard?

Starting in 1926, Reagan spent seven summers as a lifeguard on the Rock River in Dixon, Illinois. He was credited with saving 77 people, and he kept count by cutting a notch in a log for each one.

Did Reagan really say Honey, I forgot to duck?

Reagan was badly hurt in an attack in March 1981 and still walked into the hospital on his own. He told Nancy, Honey, I forgot to duck. You'll read that he borrowed the line from the boxer Jack Dempsey. That gets repeated a lot, but no archive confirms it.