TY - JOUR T1 - The Forgotten Man JF - California History SP - 22 LP - 40 DO - 10.1525/ch.2017.94.2.22 VL - 94 IS - 2 AU - Robertson, Brian Y1 - 2017/05/01 UR - http://ch.ucpress.edu/content/94/2/22.abstract N2 - Richard Nixon's first congressional campaign in 1947 has long been steeped in political mythology and controversy. This article argues that Nixon's first campaign and the development of the political moniker “the forgotten man” evolved from a masculine ideology that emphasized independence, hard work, and a resistance to government handouts that dominated Southern California in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Nixon's emphasis on “the forgotten man” as a masculine ideology played a significant role in his first electoral victory and remained a part of his campaign rhetoric and style throughout his political career. Based on original research drawing on material from the Richard Nixon Oral History project at California State University Fullerton, the Wardman Library at Whittier College, and the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum Foundation, the article provides a fresh perspective on American and Californian political culture. ER -