I was born in 1971. To me, Ronald Reagan has always been “President Reagan.” Of course, everybody knows that he used to be an actor. But there is one thing that I can’t quite wrap my brain around: What sort of an actor was he?
I’m familiar with his best known roles–Knute Rockne, the Bedtime for Bonzo guy, the host of G.E. Theater on TV for years, and of couse a star player in the blacklisting scandals. But I can’t seem to get a sense of how he was seen by the public. Was he popular and beloved? Was he cheesey? Was he a top celeb or was he rather B-list? We know he wasn’t considered a “great actor,” but was he considered a bad actor? Was he the kind of guy that the literati liked to make fun of?
What actors of today is he comparable to? Was he a Keifer Sutherland or a Kevin Spacey orsomeone else, and how?
Thanks in advance. I’ve been trying to figure this out for years.
He was considered serviceable – the type of actor the studios kept on payroll and found roles for. He wasn’t a top star, but played the lead from time to time and was a dependable supporting player.
As to how Reagan was considered by Hollywood (ignoring politics as much as possible).
Definitely a B-movie for the most part. Looking over his IMDB listing, I note “Dark Victory” and “Knute Rockne …” as notable films and minor roles in those. “Brother Rat” less so.
I believe “Kings Row” was considered his biggest film by RR himself.
He didn’t make anything notable during WWII except for really crappy service films. Given that any male actor of any stature found tons of juicy roles in those times, this speaks volumes.
His career was in the toliet by the late 40’s and did the GE Theater from '54-62. That was: a. simple hosting duties, b. gotten via his new political connections. (My mother knows his makeup artist from those days, but that’s another story.)
So a less than stellar career that fizzled early and hosting a pretty lousy show in his later days.
It’s interesting, considering how popular he was during his presidency, that his movies weren’t shown a lot on TV or anything. Was there some political reason for this, or were the movies just so bad or unremarkable that nobody in the '80s wanted to watch them.
His major films are almost unbelievably bad and are of historical interest only. In Bedtime For Bonzo, for example, the monkey actually gives a more nuanced performance than Reagan.
His other notable roles included “FBI collaborator” and “President of The United States”. These performances were a bit more believable but–like his earlier films-- often strayed into B-movie territory (SDI program). His role as a red-baiting hysteric was considered a great success and he managed to ruin the lives of countless innocent people. No oscar, though. The FBI also attempted to plant him as a mole inside the American Communist Party, but Reagan was considered “too dumb” by the ACP for membership.
Handsome? His brand of smarmy, snake-oil-salesman charm was actually considerd fetching in his day…I don’t know, depends on your definition of handsome.
His major films are almost unbelievably bad and are of historical interest only. In Bedtime For Bonzo, for example, the monkey actually gives a more nuanced performance than Reagan.
His other notable roles included “FBI collaborator” and “President of The United States”. These performances were a bit more believable but–like his earlier films-- often strayed into B-movie territory (SDI program). His role as a red-baiting hysteric was considered a great success and he managed to ruin the lives of countless innocent people. No oscar, though. The FBI also attempted to plant him as a mole inside the American Communist Party, but Reagan was considered “too dumb” by the ACP for membership.
During WWII he bravely elected to stay in Hollywood and make propaganda films rather than serve in the army. When asked about his personal experience with war, he often referred to these films leading some to wonder whether or not Reagan grasped the difference between reality and movies.
Was he handsome? His brand of smarmy, snake-oil-salesman charm was actually considerd very fetching in his day…I don’t know, depends on your definition of handsome.
The temper of one or two of the previous replies betrays a political bias infecting critical judgement. And incorrect – Lt. Ronald Reagan did serve in the U.S. Army Signal Corps during World War II.
Someone above wrote, “He didn’t make anything notable during WWII except for really crappy service films.” To the contrary, he made four Hollywood features during World War II, including A-pictures King’s Row (Oscar nominee, Best Picture), Desperate Journey, and This Is the Army.
Reagan was in several good A-movies, many B-movies, and was always a serviceable actor in either. His political detractors tried to paint him as a hack actor. Cheap shot. I hated him as president, didn’t vote for him, but have enjoyed his movies. A rundown of highlights:
Dark Victory (1939). Bette Davis stars as a society woman with a fatal illness; Reagan is a sympathetic friend.
Knute Rockne All American (1940). One of Reagan’s most famous roles, as college football star George Gipp, who on his deathbed asks his coach Rockne to “win one for the Gipper”.
Kings Row (1942). Reagan took the title of his autobiography Where’s the Rest of Me from one of his lines in this A-picture about the dark side of life in a small town, a prototype for Peyton Place and Blue Velvet. Reagan is a playboy whose dalliance with the daughter of the town surgeon results in tragedy.
Desperate Journey (1942). Good World War II adventure pic about a bomber crew downed behind enemy lines in Germany. Reagan co-stars with Errol Flynn.
This Is the Army (1943). Big-budget Warner Bros. musical with a song score by Irving Berlin about an Army service show from WW1 that is recreated by Reagan in WW2.
The Voice of the Turtle (1947). Movie version of the John Van Druten’s romantic comedy about a luckless in love woman who meets a soldier on a weekend pass. The turtle in the title, by the way, is short for turtledove.
The Hasty Heart (1949). Well-written and acted adaptation of stage drama about an anti-social corporal in Burma at the close of World War II who doesn’t know he is dying. Reagan is solid as the commanding officer who tries to reach out to him.
Louisa (1950). Cute comedy about how two families handle it when their elderly widowed parents fall in love.
So there you have it: comedy, drama, action, romance, musical. He could do all fairly well.
Here’s an old showbiz story:
Jack Warner (of the Warner Bros) upon hearing Reagan was running for Governor of California, said, “No, no–Jimmy Stewart for Governor, Ronald Reagan for Best Friend!”
Reagan was mainly a B-movie actor who appeared in a few A-movies as a second lead. The equivalent today would be a bland TV actor who did the occasional theatrical film. Mark Harmon and James Brolin come to mind.
No! Reagan was not a B-Movie actor! Its hard to qualify in todays terms, but B-Movie was about the equivalent of direct-to-video. Reagan was never in the first rank of actors at the time - say, Clark Gable or Errol Flynn- but he was a reliable second choice: call him Kurt Russell to Harrison Ford. Say what you will about his politics, but the man had a respectable and successful movie career.
Oh, and The Killers {1964, Ronald Reagan vs Lee Marvin} was brilliant. Reagan, for perhaps the first time in his career, played the villain.
Reagan starred in numerous B-movies, especially early in his career. For example, the series of four features he made for Warner Bros. in 1939-1940 in which he played Secret Service agent “Brass” Bancroft. All had running times of 57-61 minutes. A-movies usually had running times of 100 minutes or more.
B-movies were not the equivalent of today’s direct-to-video market, which is a sign of desperation. A better comparison would be starring in mid-level television series, like the late Robert Urich did. Reagan usually had the male lead in B-movies, and the second male lead in A-movies.