Nancy Reagan: Archives, Letters, Memoirs, & Interviews Offering A New Look at the Former First Lady

Americans already knew about the more than half-century love affair between Ronald Reagan and Nancy Davis Reagan. They knew about her image as an “ice queen,” the feuding with Barbara Bush, and her ouster of thorny Chief of Staff Donald Regan.

But until Karen Tumulty’s book, “The Triumph of Nancy Reagan,” was released by Simon & Schuster in early April, perhaps only the closest insiders knew the scope of Nancy Reagan’s impact on her husband, his two-term presidency, and major events like her role in helping to end the Cold War with the Soviets.

It is Nancy Reagan’s “consequential role” on policy and administration that sets this instant bestseller apart after Tumulty embraced the hard work of reporting and writing over four and half years – 400 interviews, devouring archives, diaries, letters, other books, and gaining the confidence of those who knew the Reagans the best, like her aide Nancy Reynolds, Chief of staff and adviser Jim Baker, Secretary of State George Schultz, and probably Ronald Reagan’s closest friend and adviser, Stuart Spencer. Other members of the cast include Ed Rollins, Ed Meese, two of Ronald Reagan’s White House doctors, and scores more.

Their love affair started with a blind date in 1949, though Davis had already had her designs on her future husband, Tumulty reported. Reagan’s first wife, Jane Wyman, had grown tired of him and had “left the marriage,” Tumulty said. Regan was at a low point and was immediately drawn to Davis, an actress whose screen test with MGM Studios was set up by Spencer Tracy. At the time, Ronald Reagan was recovering from a leg broken in six places and had just finished two months in traction. He would later say, “if Nancy hadn’t come along ...” he doesn’t know what would have happened with his life or career.

Such a theme came back again and again. Not long after their marriage began, Ronald Reagan hit a nadir. His acting career was on the decline, and he was forced to take a master of ceremonies job in a floor show at a Las Vegas nightclub. But not long afterward, he was offered the host role for General Electric Theater, and the new television show “took off.” All the while, Nancy was at his side as her husband found himself appearing before tens of thousands of GE workers at plants across the country. “This is when he really develops the feel for politics that take him to the governorship of California (in 1966),” Tumulty said. It’s when he “gets his feelings for average Americans and their beliefs and concerns.”

After his governorship, Reagan boldly decided to challenge sitting Republican President Gerald Ford in the 1976 primary – a race that went all the way to the Republican National Convention before Ford prevailed. Of all the victories to come, that was the most memorable race for the Reagans, even though a defeat, Tumulty said. Nancy Reagan later admitted she was “losing faith” by the time the campaign reached North Carolina – so broke that they had to pay for their hotel rooms in advance. She treated her North Carolina reception hosts badly, was balled out on the plane by aide Nancy Reynolds for her rudeness, and suddenly realized she had betrayed her husband’s efforts. But no more. From that point on, she was a different person and her support and devotion to Ronald Reagan would never flag during his years in politics, his 10-year battle with Alzheimer’s, and even after his death in 2004. British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher may have been Ronald Reagan’s political soulmate, but Nancy Reagan was clearly his real soulmate and guardian of his presidency and legacy. Nancy Reagan was mostly responsible for talking her reluctant husband into running for president in 1980 because, as she told him, “this is your moment.” She also tried to talk him out of seeking re-election in 1984.

Nancy Reagan had never had it easy, as Tumulty’s reporting bore out. Reagan brought two children from his previous marriage into the Davis-Reagan marriage, and they had another two, though even the Reagans might have admitted they were “not very good parents,” Tumulty observed. Ron Jr. often discussed his parents’ total devotion to each other and acknowledged that no one else, including the children, could penetrate that bubble.

Nancy Davis, who was born Anne Frances Robbins in New York City, had an extremely difficult and traumatic childhood, and her insecurities would re-emerge during the White House years, especially after the attempted assassination of her husband. Her parents separated and she was raised by an aunt and uncle in Maryland. “Her mother left her almost as soon as she was out of diapers,” Tumulty noted.

Years later, when her husband was shot in March 1981, Nancy’s feelings of total abandonment came roaring back.

This program was a part of Global Summit XII, originally live-streamed on May 24, 2021.