"Researcher in the hallway." "Roger."
I just finished my fifth day of research at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, and it looks like I'll wrap up there tomorrow. For now, would you perhaps like a tour of the Happiest Place on Earth (Simi Valley branch)?
Every morning the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library climbs up out of the mist, ready to strike at unwary doctoral students and buses full of elderly travelers...
As you park, make sure to watch out for the F-14. You might not be expecting one to be there. It gets to park on the grass, though, because it has missiles. You will not get to park on the grass, because you won't have missiles. I hope.
Most of my time has been spent in the unmarked research room, of course, nestled beyond two layers of security and numerous government issued service weapons concealed in government issued bulky jackets (after the assassination attempt in 1981, I think Reagan's security detail swore that no hastily-scrawled draft memorandum will suffer the same fate). While waiting for deliveries of boxes of departmental reports and policy papers I have managed to wander around a bit, however, and one of the archivists snuck me into the museum on Monday, which was mind boggling.
First, there is a replica of the Oval Office, where I managed to piss off a docent by engaging in some illicit flash photography (I thought it was off, I swear). The room is supposedly an exact replica of when Reagan held court there. It's smaller than you'd think. The West Wing makes the place look huge. But Martin Sheen is like five-foot-nothing, which probably adds to the illusion. But I digress...
And then, down the hallway, is a Marine One helicopter. Because I guess the Marines are just giving those away...
And a presidential motorcade. The limo's license plate says "GIPPER." I'm serious. There is a kiosk in the museum that places clips from Reagan's movies and it spends a disproportionately large amount of time on Knute Rockne All American (1940), because Reagan's ten minutes of screen time as George Gipp was one of the high points in his acting career. But I digress again...
And, oh yeah, they managed to cram Air Force One in there. Which was freakin' impressive. (To answer the obvious question: the Air Force flew it to Bakersfield and gave it to Nancy Reagan, Boeing personnell took the wings and engines off, and huge trucks drove the whole damn thing to Simi Valley in the middle of the night, where Boeing personnell reassembled it and hoisted it up onto concrete supports.) The public is allowed inside, but they are not allowed to take pictures because we don't photos of that cutting edge 1970s-era technology getting into the wrong hands.
And me, looking presidential as I climbed inside. I just had to buy this cheesetastic photo. It's my one souvenir from this trip, and I will treasure it always. The CD that stores this photo also has photos and a video tour, so I guess national security concerns only apply to civilian photographers.
Like with the Oval Office, this Air Force One is surprisingly small. It is nothing like the one President Harrison Ford flew on. The Boeing 707 entered service in 1972 during the Nixon administration, and this was luxurious then. It shares a lot of the features of the modern Boeing 737, so those of you flying on Southwest Airlines anytime soon (like I will be on Saturday) will get to share the same flying experience as numerous presidents. Except the presidents had bigger and more comfy seats. And they didn't cram 130 people in Air Force One back then. OK, so the experience itself will be nothing like what Reagan encountered, but the plane itself will look pretty similar.
This sign is amusing in its own right, but I think it also perfectly sums up the Republican Party's foreign policy ever since Reagan got elected president in 1980.
There is also Reagan's Country Cafe, where they serve "F-14 Fighter Dogs" and "Air Force One Burgers." And beer.
For those who are interested, one point of comparison: the Gerald Ford Presidential Library in Ann Arbor, Michigan, had Ford's college football jersey on display, and that's about it. Reagan just has to keep rubbing it in about the 1976 primary, doesn't he?
After a week here, I'm starting to think Ronald Reagan was the greatest man who ever lived. Somebody slap me.
Every morning the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library climbs up out of the mist, ready to strike at unwary doctoral students and buses full of elderly travelers...
As you park, make sure to watch out for the F-14. You might not be expecting one to be there. It gets to park on the grass, though, because it has missiles. You will not get to park on the grass, because you won't have missiles. I hope.
Most of my time has been spent in the unmarked research room, of course, nestled beyond two layers of security and numerous government issued service weapons concealed in government issued bulky jackets (after the assassination attempt in 1981, I think Reagan's security detail swore that no hastily-scrawled draft memorandum will suffer the same fate). While waiting for deliveries of boxes of departmental reports and policy papers I have managed to wander around a bit, however, and one of the archivists snuck me into the museum on Monday, which was mind boggling.
First, there is a replica of the Oval Office, where I managed to piss off a docent by engaging in some illicit flash photography (I thought it was off, I swear). The room is supposedly an exact replica of when Reagan held court there. It's smaller than you'd think. The West Wing makes the place look huge. But Martin Sheen is like five-foot-nothing, which probably adds to the illusion. But I digress...
And then, down the hallway, is a Marine One helicopter. Because I guess the Marines are just giving those away...
And a presidential motorcade. The limo's license plate says "GIPPER." I'm serious. There is a kiosk in the museum that places clips from Reagan's movies and it spends a disproportionately large amount of time on Knute Rockne All American (1940), because Reagan's ten minutes of screen time as George Gipp was one of the high points in his acting career. But I digress again...
And, oh yeah, they managed to cram Air Force One in there. Which was freakin' impressive. (To answer the obvious question: the Air Force flew it to Bakersfield and gave it to Nancy Reagan, Boeing personnell took the wings and engines off, and huge trucks drove the whole damn thing to Simi Valley in the middle of the night, where Boeing personnell reassembled it and hoisted it up onto concrete supports.) The public is allowed inside, but they are not allowed to take pictures because we don't photos of that cutting edge 1970s-era technology getting into the wrong hands.
And me, looking presidential as I climbed inside. I just had to buy this cheesetastic photo. It's my one souvenir from this trip, and I will treasure it always. The CD that stores this photo also has photos and a video tour, so I guess national security concerns only apply to civilian photographers.
Like with the Oval Office, this Air Force One is surprisingly small. It is nothing like the one President Harrison Ford flew on. The Boeing 707 entered service in 1972 during the Nixon administration, and this was luxurious then. It shares a lot of the features of the modern Boeing 737, so those of you flying on Southwest Airlines anytime soon (like I will be on Saturday) will get to share the same flying experience as numerous presidents. Except the presidents had bigger and more comfy seats. And they didn't cram 130 people in Air Force One back then. OK, so the experience itself will be nothing like what Reagan encountered, but the plane itself will look pretty similar.
This sign is amusing in its own right, but I think it also perfectly sums up the Republican Party's foreign policy ever since Reagan got elected president in 1980.
There is also Reagan's Country Cafe, where they serve "F-14 Fighter Dogs" and "Air Force One Burgers." And beer.
For those who are interested, one point of comparison: the Gerald Ford Presidential Library in Ann Arbor, Michigan, had Ford's college football jersey on display, and that's about it. Reagan just has to keep rubbing it in about the 1976 primary, doesn't he?
After a week here, I'm starting to think Ronald Reagan was the greatest man who ever lived. Somebody slap me.