Ronald Reagan: Difference between revisions

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The 1984 victory over Democratic candidate Walter Mondale was one of the largest electoral beatdowns in US history -- [[Landslide Election|a 49-state landslide]], with Mondale only winning his home state of Minnesota (and even then, by a small margin) and [[Washington DC]].

It was during Reagan's time in office that AIDS was recognized. He famously did little about it until [[~~Its~~ Personal|his friend and fellow actor]] Rock Hudson died from AIDS.

It was during Reagan's time in office that AIDS was recognized. He famously did little about it until [[It's Personal|his friend and fellow actor]] Rock Hudson died from AIDS.

Late in his life, Reagan began succumbing to Alzheimer's Disease. The time and speed of its onset is somewhat contended, especially as to how much of his tenure as president was possibly compromised by it. As a result, the most well-known satirical portrayal of Reagan is as a bumbling [[Cloudcuckoolander]], or, at the very least, a doddering old man.

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Reagan appeared in quite a number of movies between 1937 and 1964, but nothing especially famous. Because he was extremely near-sighted, he could not go overseas and so spent [[World War II]] making training films.

In 1940, he played real-life American Football Player George "The Gipper" Gipp in the movie ''Knute Rockne, All American'' (about a Notre Dame football coach), which featured the line, "Win one for the Gipper." "The Gipper" became one of Reagan's nicknames. Another film Reagan (in)famously played in was ''Bedtime for Bonzo'', in which he [[~~Everythings~~ Better With Monkeys|costarred with a chimpanzee]] in a standard [[Aint No Rule]] story, and eventually became his [[Never Live It Down]] film. (Actually, Reagan always displayed a sense of humor about this movie; he's famously said to have once signed a promo photo of himself and Bonzo with the inscription "I'm the one with the wristwatch.") There's also a common story that he was originally slated to star in ''[[Casablanca]]'', but [[The Other Wiki]] seems to think it's not actually true.

In 1940, he played real-life American Football Player George "The Gipper" Gipp in the movie ''Knute Rockne, All American'' (about a Notre Dame football coach), which featured the line, "Win one for the Gipper." "The Gipper" became one of Reagan's nicknames. Another film Reagan (in)famously played in was ''Bedtime for Bonzo'', in which he [[Everything's Better With Monkeys|costarred with a chimpanzee]] in a standard [[Aint No Rule]] story, and eventually became his [[Never Live It Down]] film. (Actually, Reagan always displayed a sense of humor about this movie; he's famously said to have once signed a promo photo of himself and Bonzo with the inscription "I'm the one with the wristwatch.") There's also a common story that he was originally slated to star in ''[[Casablanca]]'', but [[The Other Wiki]] seems to think it's not actually true.

His most famous role was probably in the 1942 film ''Kings Row'', which contains the famous line: "Where's the rest of me?" (his character had [[An Arm and A Leg|lost both of his legs]].) ''Where's The Rest Of Me?'' was the title of his 1965 autobiography. He had a memorable [[Playing Against Type]] role as a brutal crime kingpin in his last film, ''The Killers'' (1964).

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{{quote| ''Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!''<br />

''The United States will not contain Communism, [[Take That|it will transcend Communism]]. We'll not bother to denounce it, we'll dismiss it as a sad, bizarre chapter in human history [[The Great Politics Mess Up|whose last pages are even now being written.]]'' }}

* [[Beam Me Up Scotty]]: The President never said that ketchup was a vegetable. <ref> Actually it was a government report on school nutrition that apparently considered ketchup to be a substitute for vegetables. Whether that is true or not, Reagan himself had nothing to do with it.</ref>

* [[Beam Me Up, Scotty]]: The President never said that ketchup was a vegetable. <ref> Actually it was a government report on school nutrition that apparently considered ketchup to be a substitute for vegetables. Whether that is true or not, Reagan himself had nothing to do with it.</ref>

* [[Big Good]]: To the modern-day Republican party and the conservative movement, particularly for shifting the political spectrum significantly more to the right in his time. Conversely...

** [[Big Bad]]: To the liberal and progressive Democrats at the time of his tenure, and even now, who view him as the start of America's [[Morally Bankrupt Banker|problems with the banking industry]].

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* [[Fan Dumb]]: His modern supporters, who have more or less deified him, are willfully ignorant of the facts that contradict many of their policies -- namely, the blatanly false claim that Reagan never raised taxes, when in fact they were raised eight times. And the anti-Hollywood crowd who foams at the mouth whenever a liberal celebrity voices an opinion, saying that actors have no business in politics obviously aren't familiar with Reagan's first job.

* [[Friendly Enemy]]: Gorbachev.

* [[Full Name Basis]]: Nowadays, out of respect, his supporters primarily refer to Ronald Reagan by his full name.

* [[Full-Name Basis]]: Nowadays, out of respect, his supporters primarily refer to Ronald Reagan by his full name.

* [[Go Karting With Bowser]]: Reagan and Speaker of the House Tip O'Neill clashed fiercely over politics, but supposedly were quite friendly after the debates were over.

** More famously, Reagan and Gorbachev apparently got along very well, despite being the leaders of opposing superpowers.

* [[Happily Married]]: The love story of "Ronnie and Nancy" is often touted as one of the greatest love stories of modern American politics.

* [[Is This Thing On]]: Reagan, during a mic test; the USSR responded with [[Dude Not Funny]]

* [[Is This Thing On?]]: Reagan, during a mic test; the USSR responded with [[Dude, Not Funny]]

{{quote| "My fellow Americans, I'm pleased to tell you today that I've signed legislation that will outlaw [[Dirty Communists|Russia]] forever. We [[Nuclear Option|begin bombing]] in five minutes."}}

* [[Love It or Hate It]]: Very, ''very'' much so. Those that love him are typically those that praise his no-nonsense demeanor, his humor and his 'popularization' of modern conservative ideas. By contrast, those that hate him tend to view him as little more than an actor paid to play the role of a leader, while secretly looking out for the interests of his corporate donors. Needless to say, as with most politicians, it's a ''bad'' idea to bring up either argument in a conversation.

** Interestingly, although there are certainly many Americans who strongly dislike Reagan, he has turned out to be one of the more popular Presidents in U.S. history, in that there are actually a lot of moderate Democrats who generally like Reagan even if they didn't agree with all of his policies. Nowadays, these moderate Democrats are often nicknamed the "Blue Dog Democrats," but during [[The Eighties]] and [[The Nineties]] they were quite reasonably called "[[Exactly What It Says On the Tin|Reagan Democrats]]."

* [[Nice Job Breaking It Hero]]: During the [[Cold War]], Reagan was among those that wanted to defeat communism and the Soviet Union, and to achieve that end, he supported and helped propped up several regimes at the time that would later cause the U.S. any manner of trouble or embarrassment, including those of Saddam Hussein of Iraq and Hosni Mubarak of Egypt. Furthermore, he trained, equipped and funded an the Islamist Mujahideen resistance fighters in Afghanistan, whose most notable top fighter ended up being [[Osama Bin Laden]].

* [[Nice Job Breaking It, Hero]]: During the [[Cold War]], Reagan was among those that wanted to defeat communism and the Soviet Union, and to achieve that end, he supported and helped propped up several regimes at the time that would later cause the U.S. any manner of trouble or embarrassment, including those of Saddam Hussein of Iraq and Hosni Mubarak of Egypt. Furthermore, he trained, equipped and funded an the Islamist Mujahideen resistance fighters in Afghanistan, whose most notable top fighter ended up being [[Osama Bin Laden]].

** This last point is a misconception; Bin Laden's role in the [[Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan|Afghanistan war]] was parallel to the US's - an outside supporter of the Mujahideen. He was no friend of the Great Satan, even in the 80s. However, Reagan and his administration certainly do bear some responsibility for equipping and training the Mujahideen (positioning them ideally to become warlords) with virtually no concern over what this would do to Afghanistan once the Soviets left.

** In the 1980's, [[Modern Egypt|Egypt under Mubarak]] was seen as being not just an ally against the Soviets but as an important moderating force in the Middle East and a front-line ally against [[Muammar Gaddafi|Colonel Qadaffi]] (remember that the U.S. fought a series of sea and air clashes with [[Useful Notes/Libya|Libya]] over the so-called "Line of Death" and then bombed Libya in retaliation for terrorist attacks), and the U.S. also wanted to bolster Egypt to reward it for having made peace with Israel.

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*** Then again, it was the first Democratic President in 12 years, [[Bill Clinton]], who [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gramm

* [[Obfuscating Stupidity]]: Many in the public saw Reagan as a cute old grandfatherly figure if they were fans of his, or an "amiable dunce" if they were his opponents. In the decades since his presidency, declassified documents and interviews with people close to him reveal that Reagan was arguably quite clever and politically savvy, particularly when it came to his relationship with Mikhail Gorbachev.

* [[What the Hell Hero]]: Even the staunchly anticommunist [[Margaret Thatcher]] was angry about the US invasion of Grenada (apparently she had been reassured by Reagan just days before that the invasion was not going to happen).

* [[What the Hell, Hero?]]: Even the staunchly anticommunist [[Margaret Thatcher]] was angry about the US invasion of Grenada (apparently she had been reassured by Reagan just days before that the invasion was not going to happen).

* [[Wide Eyed Idealist]]: Especially in his speeches, his idealism about freedom [[Eagle Land|and the American way of life]] shows though (see the slogans "it's morning in America", "this Wall will fall" etc). As his actions on Grenada and Nicaragua show, he was capable of being much more hard-headed in private.

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* Issue #344 of ''[[Captain America]]'' had The Viper using a serum she got from Slithers (a minor [[X Man]] villain) turning Ronald and Nancy into [[Brainwashed and Crazy]] serpent-men with the rest of Washington, DC in an earlier stage of the transformation. The Captain (as he was known at the time because of a dispute with the government) didn't manage to stop the plot before throwing down with the suddenly scaly Commander-In-Chief who was clad only in his underwear. Reagan even used old glory as a weapon during the fight. While Cap was preoccupied with the president, Viper was able to make a [[Villain Exit Stage Left]] but she was not able to get very far before she was stopped and defeated by Cobra (who is usually an enemy of [[The Mighty Thor]]). He said it was payback for Cap helping Sidewinder retake control of the Serpent Society and had nothing to do with his political affiliation.

* In the 1980's Action Comics ran a Deadman storyline in which at one point Deadman and the Devil drop in at a Washington soiree, possess Reagan and Gorbachev, respectively, then switch to Mrs. Gorbachev and Mrs. Reagan, respectively. [http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4077/4735401341_490b2a2b3a_b.jpg And then] [http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4081/4736048912_eefddf6eb1_b.jpg they fight].

* In ''[[Watchmen]]'' (an [[Alternate History]] where [[Richard Nixon]] is still president), editors at a right-wing newspaper mock the idea of a "cowboy actor" like Robert Redford running for president; the film [[Viewers ~~Are~~ Morons|dispenses with subtlety]] and has them mocking the idea of Reagan ''himself'' running, despite the fact that he would be eight years ''older'' on taking office and probably beginning to show signs of Alzheimer's, not to mention losing some of the original irony.

* In ''[[Watchmen]]'' (an [[Alternate History]] where [[Richard Nixon]] is still president), editors at a right-wing newspaper mock the idea of a "cowboy actor" like Robert Redford running for president; the film [[Viewers are Morons|dispenses with subtlety]] and has them mocking the idea of Reagan ''himself'' running, despite the fact that he would be eight years ''older'' on taking office and probably beginning to show signs of Alzheimer's, not to mention losing some of the original irony.

* [[Two Words]]: ''[http://www.comics.org/series/16342/ Reagan's Raiders]''

* The very first issue of ''[[Jon Sable Freelance]]'' featured a clever, forceful Reagan blackmailing Sable into helping with presidential security against an assassin who happened to be an old enemy of Sable's.

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'''Alien 2:''' [[Humans Are Morons|Or stupidity]]? Have you ever seen eyes so vacant? }}

* In ''V for Vendetta'', neo-fascist dictator Adam ''Susan'' is intended as a reference to Ronald ''Reagan'' (and to Margaret Thatcher as well)

* ''[[Give Me Liberty]]'' has President Rexall, a Reagan [[Expy]] who ends up as a [[~~Brainina~~ Jar]] and goes on to serve three terms.

* ''[[Give Me Liberty]]'' has President Rexall, a Reagan [[Expy]] who ends up as a [[Brain In A Jar]] and goes on to serve three terms.

== [[Film]] ==

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* Ronald Reagan is a member of the cast of ''[[Shortpacked (Webcomic)|Shortpacked]]'', after the owner of the eponymous toy store heard one of his employees remark "Bring back anything from the '80s, and it's money in the bank" (just ''how'' he was "brought back" is [[Rule of Funny|never really addressed]] although [[Imported Alien Phlebotinum]] capable of resurrecting the dead ''does'' exist in [[Walkyverse|the strip's universe]]). "Ronnie" is played as a kindly old man, slightly absentminded, with an occasional tendency to burst into a [[Patriotic Fervor]] and total inability to retain information about AIDS.

** He is also portrayed as remarkably accepting of homosexuality, despite his politics, a stance he explains by reminding people that he got his start in Hollywood and personally knew Rock Hudson.

* ''[[Subnormality (Webcomic)|Subnormality]]'' not only claims that Ronald Reagan [[Card Carrying Villain|is evil]], but that he is an excellent [[Villain Song|freestyle rapper]]. He's on a date with [[Margaret Thatcher]], who is also evil.

* ''[[Subnormality (Webcomic)|Subnormality]]'' not only claims that Ronald Reagan [[Card-Carrying Villain|is evil]], but that he is an excellent [[Villain Song|freestyle rapper]]. He's on a date with [[Margaret Thatcher]], who is also evil.

== [[Web Original]] ==

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* In ''[[A World of Laughter a World of Tears]]'', a young Reagan hosts the Micky Mouse Club TV show (which turns into a mouthpiece for political propaganda).

* Reagan is the candidate for the Republican nomination for President in 1976 in ''[[Fear Loathing and Gumbo On The Campaign Trail Seventy Two]]''; he narrowly loses the election to Democratic candidate George Wallace. Reagan then runs for the Republican nomination again in 1980 but loses the primary election to Donald Rumsfeld.

* ''[[The Onion]]'' did a report on the GOP [http://www.theonion.com/video/zombie-reagan-raised-from-grave-to-lead-gop,14385/ raising Ronald Reagan from the grave] so that [[~~Everythings~~ Deader With Zombies|Zombie Reagan]] can be the new face of the Republician party.

* ''[[The Onion]]'' did a report on the GOP [http://www.theonion.com/video/zombie-reagan-raised-from-grave-to-lead-gop,14385/ raising Ronald Reagan from the grave] so that [[Everything's Deader With Zombies|Zombie Reagan]] can be the new face of the Republician party.

* Appeared briefly in a review by [[The Nostalgia Chick]]. With the [[Star Wars|Imperial March]] playing over his picture.

* He's mentioned in ''[[Nineteen Eighty Three Doomsday]]'' as having survived [[World War III|Doomsday]] and managed to escape the crumbling US for Hawaii. But en route to Australia, his plane vanishes in the South Pacific, leaving George Bush Sr. as the head of the American exile community.

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== [[Real Life]] ==

* Although not technically fiction, Phillip Adams gave Reagan a [[Fan Nickname|Detractor Nickname]]: "Ronnie Raygun" -- a reference to the Strategic Defense Initiative, which sought to put the United States at the front of technological arms race during the cold war by putting satellites in space to shoot down any nuclear missiles headed the US's way with [[Frickin Laser Beams]], nicknamed the "[[Star Wars]]" project.

* Although not technically fiction, Phillip Adams gave Reagan a [[Fan Nickname|Detractor Nickname]]: "Ronnie Raygun" -- a reference to the Strategic Defense Initiative, which sought to put the United States at the front of technological arms race during the cold war by putting satellites in space to shoot down any nuclear missiles headed the US's way with [[Frickin' Laser Beams]], nicknamed the "[[Star Wars]]" project.

* The lack of good ''Saturday Night Live'' sketches about him has been rectified a bit by Dana Carvey's "Reagan Oracle" routine, portraying him as having masterminded every presidential election of the next twenty years at the end of his own term.

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[[Category:The Presidents]]

[[Category:Actors]]

[[Category:Ronald Reagan]]

[[Category:Ronald Reagan]][[Category:Pages with comment tags]]

[[Category:Trope]]