Ronald Reagan

President of the United States from 1981-1989, Ronald Reagan was known as a staunch conservative, a cheery optimist, and an implacable foe of Soviet communism. Ronald Reagan began his career as a sports announcer on radio, then moved to Hollywood and became a movie star. Reagan made over fifty movies as a reliable supporting actor or benign leading man, but his real calling seemed to be in politics. He served as the governor of California (1967-75) and then in 1980 defeated Democrat Jimmy Carter to become the 40th U.S. president. He advocated lower taxes and higher defense spending, and aggressively challenged the Soviet Union with his rhetoric. Reagan's two terms in office were clouded by an exploding budget deficit, high unemployment and deep recession, and, in the last years, a back-door scheme to fund anti-communist forces in Central America -- the so-called Iran Contra affair that led to the trial and conviction (later overturned) of Lt. Col. Oliver North. Reagan, however, emerged from the troubles unscathed, and went on to become a lasting hero of the Republican Party. He stepped down after two full terms and was succeeded by his vice-president, George Bush the elder. Ronald Reagan announced in 1994 that he was suffering from Alzheimer's Disease. He spent the next ten years in seclusion and increasingly poor health until his death in 2004.