Ronald Reagan productions. Reagan was twice elected President of the Screen Actors Guild—the labor union for actors—where he worked to root out Communist influence. In the 1950s, he moved into television and was a motivational speaker at General Electric factories. Reagan had been a Democrat until 1962, when he became a conservative and switched to the Republican Party. In 1964, Reagan's speech, "A Time for Choosing", supported Barry Goldwater's foundering presidential campaign and earned him national attention as a new conservative spokesman. Building a network of supporters, he was elected Governor of California in 1966. As governor, Reagan raised taxes, turned a
Ronald and Nancy Reagan Research Institute Ronald and Nancy Reagan Research Institute The Ronald and Nancy Reagan Research Institute, an affiliate of the National Alzheimer's Association in Chicago, Illinois, is an initiative founded by former United States President Ronald Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan to accelerate the progress of Alzheimer's disease research. The center was dedicated in 1995. The development of the institute marked an important milestone in the maturation of Alzheimer's research; in 1982, most Alzheimer's research projects posed broad questions regarding the nature and effects of the disease, while the Reagan institute largely introduced – and expanded – the biological segment of disease