41: The Fracture of Reagan's First Marriage, Hollywood's Red Scare, and the Appearance of Nancy Davis. Max Boot discusses the marriage between Ronald Reagan and Jane Wyman, which was considered an "odd combination." Wyman was drawn to Reagan because he wa

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The Fracture of Reagan's First Marriage, Hollywood's Red Scare, and the Appearance of Nancy Davis. Max Boot discusses the marriage between Ronald Reagan and Jane Wyman, which was considered an "odd combination." Wyman was drawn to Reagan because he was a "nice guy" and a "white knight," though Reagan was "very hard to get to commit." By the eve of World War II, Reagan was professionally ascending, but the war derailed his commercial film career as he spent the entire conflict in Hollywood making training and propaganda films. When the war ended, there was diminished demand for his services, while Jane Wyman's career soared after the war. Reagan became increasingly active in the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and Hollywood politics, still an "idealistic liberal" and New Dealer, while Wyman became uninterested in politics, leading them to drift apart. The political climate was dominated by Congress's search for communists in Hollywood. Reagan served as the unpaid president of SAG and navigated the "treacherous politics" of the McCarthy era skillfully, appearing liberal when testifying before HUAC while quietly acting as an FBI informant. Jane Wyman initiated the divorce in 1948, shocking Reagan and leaving him adrift. Nancy Davis then entered his life, leading to a marriage that made sense, as Nancy wanted to be a wife and mother and threw herself into the role of the "perfect wife." Reagan needed a strong woman, and Nancy became absolutely integral to his career advancement, acting as a shrewd political figure who often handled hiring and firing.

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