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Ronald Reagan was the 40th President of the United States of America. He held the office from 1981 to 1989.

Ronald Reagan was born in Tampico, Illinois on February 6, 1911 to John and Nelle Reagan, in a flat above a store. He was raised in nearby Dixon, Illinois. He graduated from Eureka College in 1932, and got a job as a radio sports announcer at WHO Radio in Des Moines, Iowa. In 1937, a screen test earned him a Hollywood contract and he appeared in a total of 53 films over the next two decades. He also served in the U.S. Army Air Force during the 1940’s.

Reagan first became involved in politics as the president of the Screen Actors’ Guild during a time when Communism in the film industry was causing much controversy. In 1966 he was elected Governor of California by a margin of a million votes and he was reelected in 1970. One year after his second term as Governor, he ran for president for the first time.

Reagan married twice. His first wife was actress Jane Wyman. They were married on June 25, 1940 and had a daughter in 1941. They also adopted a son in 1945. They were married for eight years. Ronald remarried in 1952 to actress Nancy Davis. They also had two children: A daughter in 1952 and a son in 1958.

Ronald Reagan ran for President of the United States on three separate occasions. The first in 1976, failed. He ended up with only 1 electoral vote. The second, in 1980, was a different story, and Reagan won against the incumbent President, Jimmy Carter, by a landslide. Carter received only 49 electoral votes while Reagan gained the remaining 489. In his re-election in 1984, Reagan won 525 votes against Walter Mondale’s 13 electoral votes.

While in office, Ronald Reagan survived an assassination attempt. On March 30, 1981, John W. Hinkly shot at the President outside of the Washington D.C. Hilton Hotel.

Reagan is known for major policy changes during his Presidency. He envisioned a smaller government and a greater America. His achievements toward this end were known as the Reagan Revolution, which aimed to re-energize the American people and reduce their dependence upon Government. Reagan also built legislation to stimulate economic growth, curb inflation, increase employment, and strengthen national defense. He worked at cutting taxes and government spending. In foreign policy, Reagan worked for "peace through strength." During his two terms he increased defense spending 35 percent, but also improved relations with the Soviet Union.

Since the end of his administration, the United States has enjoyed its longest period of peacetime prosperity without recession or depression.

In the late 1990’s, Reagan was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease.