Ronald Reagan's 102nd Birthday

Above, actor Michael Landon joins Reagan at a California Primary reception
at the Ambassador Hotel on primary election night in June 1980.  Photo by
Armand Vaquer.

Today is the 63rd anniversary of Ronald Reagan's 39th birthday (as he would have put it).

102 years ago, Reagan was born February 6, 1911 in Tampico, Illinois.  He died June 5, 2004 in Bel Air, California.  He was the 40th president of the United States and served from January 20, 1981 to January 20, 1989.

His presidential library is located in Simi Valley, California.

The story behind the above photo:

Back in 1980, I was the area chairman for former Gov. Ronald Reagan's Reagan For President campaign in my congressional district (Hawthorne, Lawndale, Gardena and parts of Los Angeles).

On the night of the California Primary in June 1980, the campaign set up their election night headquarters at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles.  This may have been the first California Primary election night victory party at the Ambassador for a presidential campaign since the assassination of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy there in June 1968, but I am not sure of this.  The Ambassador Hotel has since been demolished a few years ago and a new high school has been built at the site.

Reagan was due to give his victory speech that night in the Embassy Ballroom.  Prior to this, a private reception was held in a small room near the Embassy Ballroom for area chairmen.  I attended this reception and took the above photo and several others of the Reagan family and actor Michael Landon.  The photo above was also published by the Los Angeles County Republican Central Committee's monthly newspaper, The Trunkline on the front page.