RONALD REAGAN
Discussing Kings Row, his best movie role.
Typescript signed: "Ronald Reagan", 1p, 8¼x9½. In full: "Every performer has one picture that becomes his or hers in a way that's not always easy to describe. The film I'll never forget is 'King's Row' (sic). Not only was it the picture and the part that brought me stardom, it was one of those rare films that every once in a while earns the rating of 'classic'. Start with a best-selling novel, an excellent screenplay, a top director named Sam Wood and a cast that included Maria Ouspenskaya, Charles Coburn, Claude Raines, Judith Anderson, Betty Field, Ann Sheridan and Bob Cummings and you have some of the ingredients. The story of 'Kings Row', a small mid-West town at the turn of the century is basically a story of friendship between two young men. But added to this is romance, mystery and tragedy. Violence, too, as a doctor, cloaked in respectability but with a fanatical belief that he was ordained to punish wrong doing, amputated both legs of 'Drake McHugh', the young town playboy. This was the part I played. Drake, brought down in this terrible way, retreats from life completely until Paris Mitchel (Bob Cummings) and 'Randy' (Ann Sheridan), who both love Drake, light the spark that makes him realize his life isn't ended---only changed. I remember this picture for more than its success as a film. The story itself left a lasting impression. Wasn't it Robert Louis Stevenson who wrote---'So long as we are loved by others we are indispensable and no man is useless while he has a friend.'" Kings Row was released by Warner Bros. in 1942. It was nominated for three Academy Awards including Best Picture. Reagan's line when he awoke in his hospital bed, without his legs, became the title of his 1965 autobiography: Where's the Rest of Me? Ronald Reagan (1911-2004) had two careers: actor and politician. His first movie was Love is on the Air (1937) and his 53rd and last film was The Killers (1964). In 1965, he wrote his autobiography, Where's the Rest of Me?, a line from his role as Drake McHugh in King's Row (1942). Reagan left his job hosting television's Death Valley Days during the 1965-1966 season, when he entered politics. Elected Governor of California in 1966, he was reelected in 1970. Reagan began his campaign for the presidency and narrowly lost the 1976 Republican nomination to Gerald Ford. He was elected President in 1980 and was reelected in 1984. After leaving office in 1989, he wrote his second autobiography, An American Life. On February 6, 2001, Reagan became just the third U.S. President to reach the age of 90 and the nation's longest living President until Gerald Ford (d. 2006) lived 45 days longer. Lightly creased. 2 file holes at blank left margin. Fine condition.