ON BOARD
An unknown photographer captured a glamorous Hollywood couple,
Nancy and Ronald Reagan, aboard a yacht in California in 1964. Little did
anyone realise at the time that Ronald was on the cusp of his not insignificant
second career.
Two months after this photo was taken, the actor gave the speech that
launched his political journey. In support of presidential candidate Barry
Goldwater, “A Time for Choosing” thrust Reagan into the national political
spotlight overnight. While Goldwater ultimately lost to Lyndon Johnson,
Reagan swept his first race two years later and became governor of California.
The rest, as they say, is history.
Reagan’s relationship with yachting in general was intertwined with his
philosophy of smaller government and greater freedom. As he wrote in his
2001 book Stories in His Own Hand: The Everyday Wisdom of Ronald Reagan,
“Socialists ignore the side of man that is of the spirit... They don’t understand
that we dream – yes, even of some time owning a yacht.”
His predecessor, Jimmy Carter, put an end to the practice of presidential
yachts, but that didn’t stop Reagan. Four years after the last official vessel was
auctioned off, The Washington Post reported that the White House was looking
for a boat on which Reagan could host foreign dignitaries and take leisurely
cruises while recuperating from his gunshot wound following the 1981
assassination attempt. While nothing came of that search, President Reagan
did commission a 29-metre classic fantail motor yacht called Electra as a Coast
Guard vessel and used her as his official yacht while he was in California.
She still sails today out of Newport Beach.Eye Opener
The launch of an American dream
PHOTOGRAPHY: REAGAN PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY38Words Kate Lardy