Movie Nights with the Reagans

by Mark Weinberg

  Jane Fonda had finally reached an understanding with her father. “I was grateful for having had On Golden Pond with him and that I’d managed to tell him I loved him before it was too late,” she recalled. “I could feel myself making peace with the fact that though he hadn’t given me all I needed from him, he’d given me plenty.”XXIV Hopefully Patti has come to the same conclusions.

  The last time I saw Patti was at her mother’s 2016 funeral. She spoke movingly about her parents and her feelings of separation from them, which she put in perspective:

  “My parents were two halves of a circle, closed tight around a world in which their love for each other was the only sustenance they needed,” she said. “While they might venture out and include others in their orbit, no one truly crossed the boundary into the space they held as theirs.”XXV

  Of her mother, she said: “I tried her patience, and she intimidated me. We were never mild with one another. Whether we were distant and angry or bonded and close, our emotions burned up the color chart. Nothing was ever gray, but there were moments in our history when all that was going on between us was love. I choose to remember those moments.”XXVI Of which, I’m sure there were many.

  5

  CHARIOTS OF FIRE

  Starring:

  Ben Cross, Ian Charleson, Sir John Gielgud

  Directed by:

  Hugh Hudson

  Viewed by the Reagans:

  October 3, 1981

  The Film That Inspired a President

  With the cool autumn winds threatening to close in on Camp David, soon to be followed by ice and snow that could blanket the riding trails, the president decided to take his horse on a new adventure one October weekend. For the last ride of his first year in office, he would take a different route than usual. He rode out of the back gate of the secured Camp David compound into the surrounding Catoctin National Forest. He followed an old road that led to the remnants of a summer hotel, the Valley View Manor, with a notable history. Once owned by the attractive socialite Bessie Darling, it was the scene of her murder on Halloween night 1933 at the hands of a jealous lover. A decade later, during the Second World War, it became a lodging for visiting dignitaries before closing down and falling into disrepair.

  The stories fascinated Reagan; he wanted to see the place for himself. “It’s a tumbled ruin now,” he recorded.I Parts of a staircase and an old stone wall were among the fragments still standing. A cold wind blew among the trees, and after spending some time at the grim setting, the president turned his horse homeward, toward the comforts of Aspen and movie night.

  This weekend’s offering, Chariots of Fire, would be the second film the Reagans watched that week. Earlier, at the White House, they had screened The French Lieutenant’s Woman, starring Jeremy Irons and Meryl Streep. This movie was something of a racy offering for them, involving affairs, adultery, and story lines from two different time periods. The president found it a “beautiful and unusual film.”II

  That was faint praise compared with his thoughts on Chariots of Fire, which had been released in the United States only about a week before. The film, which went on to win the Oscar for best picture, would quickly become one of President Reagan’s favorites. It tells the story of athletes competing as runners for Great Britain in the 1924 Summer Olympics, centering on two of the greatest in British history: Eric Liddell (played by Ian Charleson) and Harold Abrahams (Ben Cross). Both men were driven not just by national pride and competitive spirit but also by their faith.

  Liddell was a devout Christian, a child of missionaries who later became a missionary himself, and treated his natural athletic talent as a gift from God. He earned his victories not for his own glory but for God’s. He even refused to race on Sunday, leading to a dramatic situation in the film.

  Harold Abrahams, however, was Jewish, and as such, experienced prejudice despite his admission to the elite ranks of students at Cambridge University. In an early scene, Abrahams must confront a bigoted college student but soon settles into Cambridge life. He pushes himself as a runner to triumph over those who look down on him—to “run them off their feet.”

  The film follows the parallel stories of Liddell and Abrahams, and their competition against each other in various races over the years. Both qualify to represent Britain in the 1924 Olympics, each overcoming his own hurdles to win gold medals. Chariots of Fire had many picturesque scenes, none more so than the runners training on a beach. It was filmed on the North Sea in the charming university town of St. Andrews, Scotland, and quickly became an iconic moment of the film. The unorthodox modern, heavily electronic score by the Greek composer Vangelis, by turns haunting and triumphant, helped drive the drama, and the opening theme became a number one single.

  The movie’s title came from the hymn “Jerusalem,” which was itself based on a poem by William Blake and has become a revered national hymn in Great Britain. One verse reads:

  Bring me my Bow of burning gold;

  Bring me my Arrows of desire:

  Bring me my Spear: O clouds unfold!

  Bring me my Chariot of fire!

  Chariots of Fire not only celebrated Britain’s past athletic glory in the 1924 Olympics but also was a movie of its time. The early scenes, set at Cambridge in 1919, show a Britain still under the shadow of World War I. The new students, including Harold Abrahams, are regaled by an inspirational speech from their college master, who pays tribute to the young men of the previous generation who “died for England and all that England stands for.” He then calls on Abrahams and the others to “discover where your true chance of greatness lies . . . and let no power or persuasion deter you in your task”—setting the challenge before them of helping shepherd their country out of the devastation of the war years.

  So it was in 1981, when Britain was again finding its way out of a period of gloom, this time economic. In the late 1970s, Britain’s flagging economy and double-digit inflation had earned it the epithet “sick man of Europe.”III But in 1979 the Conservative Party was elected into power, and a new prime minister took office with a plan to grow the economy with unapologetic free-market reforms: Margaret Thatcher. Already by 1980, inflation was dropping precipitously. When Chariots of Fire was released the following year, it looked as if Britain was once again entering a period of prosperity. Indeed, the movie seemed to reflect the Thatcherite themes of self-reliance, faith, and optimism to overcome serious obstacles.

  Thatcher’s election paralleled Ronald Reagan’s one year later. Both the United States and the United Kingdom had elected conservative leaders; believers in the free market who weren’t afraid to stand firm against the Soviet Union.

  Reagan and Thatcher were well matched politically and personally, leading to one of the strongest periods of cooperation between the United States and Britain, and one of the most influential partnerships between world leaders since the end of World War II.

  Though I had few interactions with Margaret Thatcher (she was one of the first foreign leaders the Reagans honored with a visit to Camp David), from my observations, the two had an easy rapport and high regard for each other. Thatcher was smart and serious. Reagan fascinated her. He shared her basic philosophy but couldn’t be more stylistically different. Thatcher biographer Charles Moore points out that Reagan’s “easygoing ways” contrasted with the prime minister, a “hyperactive, zealous, intensely knowledgeable leader, who injected energy into all her doings but also displayed what Reagan considered to be the elegance of a typical, gracious English lady.”IV

  These differences were on display in planning the first state dinner of the Reagan administration, held just a few weeks after he took office, in honor of Thatcher’s visit to Washington. White House aides were eager to show the style of the new First Couple. One goal of the event was to showcase the look of the new administration and throw off the grungy, downtrodden style that some associated with the Jimmy Carter White House. Career diplomat Jim Rentschler, who served on the National Security Council staff for b
oth presidents and was involved in the planning, recalled:

  “Some of the Carter people used to walk about the White House in bare feet. As soon as Reagan came in, out went the memos banning jeans, banning sandals, and requiring everyone to wear a suit. Glamour was a word often used, and class too.”V

  What better opportunity to demonstrate the difference than with a glittering state dinner? It was decided to make it a white-tie affair—the ultimate in formal occasions—and “infused with Hollywood glamour,” as Rentschler remembered.VI (He was appointed US ambassador to Malta by President Reagan in 1982.)

  As it turned out, Mrs. Thatcher was not comfortable with such Hollywood glamour. According to Charles Moore, she requested that the attire for the dinner be downgraded to black tie instead of white, concerned that “some of her people would not have the requisite clothing.” Indeed, she had her own personal and political problems with the aesthetic: “She was the grocer’s daughter. She didn’t want to come over here dressed up like that. It was an impoverished time in Britain, after all.”VII The Reagans understood and were happy to settle on black tie.

  On the night of the dinner, Reagan toasted Thatcher by praising the “special relationship” between the United States and the United Kingdom and their shared tradition of democracy. He promised Thatcher, “Together we’ll strive to preserve the liberty and peace so cherished by our peoples. No foe of freedom should doubt our resolve.”VIII In those early days of the Reagan-Thatcher partnership, when the outcome of the Cold War was still far from certain, Reagan invoked the humor of Winston Churchill in another trying time:

  “[I]n the dark days of World War II, he could call attention to the fact that the enemy had threatened to wring the neck of the United Kingdom. And after the Battle of Britain, as he was speaking, who will ever forget him leaning over that podium and saying, ‘Some chicken. Some neck.’ ”IX The dinner attendees erupted in laughter.

  In her toast, Thatcher quoted a writer who, she said, had visited London just after World War II. “He wrote that ‘in spite of the homesickness, the hunger, and annoyance at socialist bumbling, my farewell to London held its measure of regret. There were friendships made and cherished to this day.’ ” Then she made her big reveal: “Mr. President, you were that homesick and hungry author,” she said to Reagan, and promised him that on his next visit he could expect two things: “The first is the friendship of the British people, and the second, that the years of socialist bumbling are at an end.”X

  The visit was an undisputed success, and a history-making partnership began. Reagan and Thatcher got along better than anyone could have imagined. There were no glitches, and the chemistry was exactly as one would have hoped. Jim Brady, my boss in the Press Office, joked, “We needed a crowbar to pull them apart.”XI

  In Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan found a person whose brilliance he respected, whose world vision he shared, whose strength and courage he admired, and whose company he enjoyed. And the feeling was mutual. That summer, during a G7 summit meeting they both attended in Canada, Mrs. Thatcher observed the president doodling—an eye, a male torso, several heads, and a possible self-portrait. He left the piece of paper on the conference table. She took it, put it with her papers, and brought it back with her to her flat at 10 Downing Street.XII

  Reagan had spotted Thatcher’s leadership skills early on. He often told the story about their first meeting in 1975 in England, before he was elected president and before she was elected prime minister. Later an Englishman asked him what he thought of the rising star of the Conservative Party. Ronald Reagan replied she would make an excellent prime minister. The questioner looked aghast, frowned, and in a disapproving tone that suggested the idea was unimaginable (at least to him), said: “A woman? Prime minister?” To which Ronald Reagan replied, “Well, you had a queen named Victoria once, who did rather well.” The questioner said sheepishly, “By Jove, I’d forgotten all about that.” It’s a sweet story, and a fitting prelude to the Reagan-Thatcher era, but Reagan’s biographer Lou Cannon notes that it may well be apocryphal.XIII

  What is unmistakable to Cannon, and to anyone else who knew Reagan well, is that he was an “ardent Anglophile.” According to Cannon, “It was widely believed that Reagan’s Anglophilia was a product of World War II, when Hollywood was ardently pro-British,” but he speculates further that “Reagan’s admiration for Britain may have been formed during his Illinois boyhood rather than in Hollywood.” The staunchly British hero of an antiwar play called Journey’s End may have inspired young Reagan.XIV A 1928 drama, Journey’s End was about the officers in a British Army infantry company in northern France in World War I. It chronicles the experiences of Captain Denis Stanhope, originally played by Sir Laurence Olivier, who turns to alcohol to help him cope with the stresses of battle.

  Reagan’s appreciation for British culture was not limited to its movies or its Conservative political leaders. He and Mrs. Reagan also formed a personal connection with one of the long-standing pillars of British society: the monarchy. A close camaraderie developed between the Reagans and the royal family. The president admired the queen’s lifetime of service to her country and her sensible, unpretentious style when they were together. But I believe it was her love of horses, which he shared, that helped establish the bond between them. Ronald Reagan was known to say that riding with the queen at Windsor Castle in 1982 was one of his fondest memories of his time as president.

  I had not been sure what to expect when I met Queen Elizabeth II myself, but I found her delightful. Her Majesty was gracious, pleasant, and so much more “real” than I imagined. She was not at all fussy, and looked at life with a keen sense of humor and a taste for adventure. When she and her husband, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, visited the Reagans at the ranch, a terrible rain blanketed the whole Santa Barbara area, causing several last-minute logistical adjustments to the planned program. She was not bothered a bit. (Incidentally, in Chariots of Fire, her uncle Edward, who became king in 1936, only to abdicate the throne later that year to marry an American divorcée, attempts to persuade Eric Liddell to race on a Sunday.)

  Prince Philip, on the other hand, was known to be temperamental. It was hearsay, but I was told he could be impatient and even unpleasant about logistical matters such as when motorcades would be moving, and who would and would not be allowed to ride with the queen and him. In fairness, he did seem to have taken on the tough job of making sure the operation surrounding the queen ran smoothly while she remained the center of attention—the “bad cop” in the relationship, as it were. And always a step behind her.

  The queen and Prince Philip always received the Reagans when they were in London. One special day in 1989, former president Reagan visited the queen to receive his honorary knighthood. Officially it was known as Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Most Honorable Order of the Bath. The queen presented it to him at a private luncheon at Buckingham Palace. No kneeling or swords were involved. When the queen and Prince Philip were showing the Reagans out of the Palace afterward, Her Majesty noted that the president was not holding on to the box containing his insignia tightly. “Oh, please don’t drop it,” she cautioned. Luckily, he didn’t!

  Mrs. Reagan became true friends with the queen in her own right over the years. This relationship blossomed when Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip visited the West Coast in 1983, and the First Lady joined the royal couple for dinner at the legendary San Francisco restaurant Trader Vic’s, accompanied by some fifty members of the White House and royal staffs. Everybody loosened up. The queen had a gin martini (Tanqueray) before dinner, and it was vodka and orange juice for Mrs. Reagan. Dinner, the press reported, was “Indonesian lamb, finishing the meal with rum ice cream topped with pecans.”XV

  Some White House staff members present were shocked by Prince Philip’s salty language in front of the queen and Mrs. Reagan, but neither woman seemed to notice or care. One Trader Vic’s bartender told the press, “The queen was laughing a lot. A Secret Service man s
aid it was the first time he had seen her smile.”XVI

  The Reagans also had a special relationship with the queen mother, a fixture of the British monarchy for more than a century. At one state dinner at Buckingham Palace in 1984, Reagan provided some impromptu entertainment by reciting the poem “The Shooting of Dan McGrew” by the British-Canadian poet Robert W. Service. As it turned out, the queen mother shared Reagan’s love for Service’s writing. Mrs. Reagan recalled that during the president’s recitation at that dinner, the queen mother piped up and fed him several of the lines.XVII

  On one postpresidency visit to London, the Reagans called on the queen mother and Princess Margaret at Clarence House, where the queen mother was then living. I, along with two other staffers who had accompanied the Reagans, waited in a nearby parlor. After less than ten minutes, word came that the queen mother wanted to visit with the Reagan staff, and we were shown into an ornate drawing room full of beautiful furniture. Exquisite art hung on the walls. There was also a large grand piano, on top of which sat an opened box of Ritz crackers.

  As soon as we entered, the queen mother came to us and asked if we had been to London before, and how we were enjoying the trip. She said we must try some “of our wonderful restaurants,” and I asked if we could use her name if we had trouble getting in. She laughed. Since then, I’ve often thought of her whenever I snack on a Ritz cracker.

  The Reagans were equally fond of Charles, Prince of Wales, and his wife, the then-princess Diana—and vice versa. Charles is smart, savvy, and politically astute. He hired a former Reagan aide, Robert Higdon, to run his American foundation. On the few occasions that I saw Princess Diana, she seemed shy. It’s not that she was standoffish, she just wasn’t as gregarious as her husband. I remember one trip to London in particular when the Reagans called on Charles and Diana and their young family at Kensington Palace. As we were leaving, I saw the two young princes, William and Harry, in their pajamas watching us from the window.