Michael Reagan

Michael Reagan
Born	John Flaugher a.k.a: John Bourgholtzer (1945-03-18) March 18, 1945 Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Residence	Toluca Lake, Los Angeles, California U.S.
Alma mater	Arizona State University (dropped-out)
Occupation	Radio talk show host
Religion	Born Again Christian
Spouse(s)	Pamela Gail Putnam (m. 1970–71) Colleen Sterns (m. 1975)
Children	Cameron [1] [1] and Ashley Reagan
Parents	Irene Flaugher Lange (196-1986) John Bourgholtzer (adoptive) Ronald Reagan (1911–2004) Jane Wyman (1917–2007)

Michael Edward Reagan (born John Flaugher; March 18, 1945) is a former American radio host and former boat salesman. His nationally syndicated radio show, The Michael Reagan Talk Show, aired on stations throughout the United States on the Premiere Radio Networks before being dropped, after which it moved to Radio America. After Radio America dropped the show it was picked up by American Family Radio for about one year. The show is no longer on the air. He is the adopted son of Ronald Reagan and his first wife Jane Wyman.

During the 2012 elections, Michael Reagan left the Republican Party, switched sides and endorsed and actively campaigned ^[2] for Democratic congressman Brad Sherman a pro-choice Congressman ^[3] who is considered a liberal member of Congress.^{[4] [5]}

On September 20, 2012 Michael Reagan was sued by the creator of the @Reagan.com email service. Michael Reagan was sued along with his partners Tim Kelly (Timothy Michael Kelly) ^[6] and Jay Hoffman ^[7] and his company The Reagan Group for fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud, conversion, breach of partnership agreement, breach of fiduciary duty, promissory estoppel and unjust enrichment, for dealings related to the Reagan Email service. ^[8] The lawsuit is still going on as of January 2014 ^[9]

Early life

He was born in Los Angeles, California, to Irene Flaugher (born 1916^[10]- died December 26, 1985^[11]), an unwed woman from Kentucky^[12] who became pregnant through a relationship with U.S. Army corporal John Bourgholtzer^[13] (died 1993). He was adopted by Ronald Reagan and Jane Wyman shortly after his birth.

Michael grew up with the Reagan family in Beverly Hills, California, and later nearby Pacific Palisades. He was sent to boarding school when he was six and spent a total of four days per month visiting his father and mother.^[14] One childhood story he has told that introduced him to politics was how at the age of 8, he asked his father for a raise in his allowance. At the time, around 1953, his allowance was $1 a week. Ronald Reagan said that since he was paying 90 percent of his earnings to the federal government as income tax, he was not able to increase Michael's allowance. This, according to Michael, was how he was introduced to the subject of tax cuts and how that affected people.^[14]

In 1964 he graduated from the Judson School, a boarding school outside of Scottsdale, Arizona.^[15] At his high school graduation, Ronald Reagan introduced himself to his son by saying, "My name is Ronald Reagan. What's yours?" He replied, "I'm your son Mike." "Oh," said Ronald Reagan. "I didn't recognize you."^[15] He briefly attended Arizona State University.^[16]

According to Nancy Reagan in her memoirs published in 1989, Reagan disclosed to his parents in 1987 that "at the age of 8, he had been sexually molested by a camp counselor, who had also taken nude pictures of him.... Poor Mike had spent his whole life wracked with guilt and in constant fear that these pictures would someday surface in a way that might embarrass him and, especially, his adoptive father."^[17] Speaking at the opening of the Michael Reagan Center in Spring, Texas, October 7, 2005, Michael said, "At 8 years old, I thought I was going to hell." Michael said the experience drastically changed him: "I cussed God and his Son. I wanted to do anything I could to earn my way into hell." Michael said he was horrified that the pictures would be made public and ruin the lives of his family.^[18]

Marriages and family

Sometime prior to September 1970, Reagan was working as a salesman for the clothing company Hart, Schaffner & Marx. He then became a director of special events catering at Michaelson Food Service Company in Los Angeles. It was while in this last job that he announced his engagement to Pamela Gail Putnam (born 1952), an aspiring dental assistant.^[19] Pamela was the daughter of Duane Putnam, who was then the Atlanta Falcons football line coach. The couple married later that year, but were divorced a year later in 1971.

He married Colleen Sterns, an interior decorator, in 1975.^[16] Together, they have two children, son Cameron and daughter Ashley. Reagan and his wife live in the Toluca Lake area of Los Angeles.^[20]

Media career

As a young man, Reagan raced boats and later also sold them at a Sea Ray boat dealership in Van Nuys, California. He set world records in power boat racing,^[21] and raised more than $1.5 million for charities like the United States Olympic Team, Cystic Fibrosis and Juvenile Diabetes Foundations and the Statue of Liberty Restoration Fund through his race team. His efforts were recognized when he became a recipient of the Victor Award for outstanding sports and humanitarian achievement.

Michael Reagan addresses sailors of the USS Ronald Reagan, 2002

His first entertainment broadcast job was as a game show host in charge of the original syndicated version of Lingo, which was taped in Canada but broadcast in the United States. The show lasted only for the 1987–1988 season, and Michael left the show before its demise in the wake of financial problems with the show's producers.

In the mid-1970s Reagan began his radio career with "On Energy". His big break in talk radio started in the Southern California local market as a guest host for Michael Jackson's^[22] talk radio show slot on KABC in Los Angeles. After this beginning, he landed a talk show spot on KSDO radio in San Diego, California. Reagan's rating success in the San Diego market gave him the opportunity to take his talk show nationwide in 1992 with the Premiere Radio Networks, later being dropped from the network. Reagan also does public speaking to groups. He also delivers conservative commentary from time to time on cable television news programs such as the Fox News Channel as well as on the Internet for websites such as NewsMax.^[20][23]

In 1988, he authored with Joe Hyams an autobiographical book Michael Reagan: On The Outside Looking In.^[24] In 2005 he wrote "Twice Adopted" about his feelings of rejection being adopted, parents divorcing and becoming a Christian.^[25]

After his show was dropped from the Premiere Radio Networks, it was picked up by the Radio America Network. In January 2009, Reagan's show was removed from the Radio America lineup and replaced by Roger Hedgecock.^[26] Reagan said that he wished Hedgecock well and that he will continue syndication through American Family Radio.^[27] As of May 2010, AFR has dropped Reagan's show, and his site no longer makes any mention of a radio show. The Michael Reagan Talk Show has not been picked up by any other network at this time.

Reagan interjected his broadcasts with provocative and controversial statements. Reacting to the Mark Foley scandal in 2006, Reagan said, "Any member of Congress who was aware of the sexual emails and protected the congressman should also resign effective immediately."^[28]

In June 2008, Christian conservative activist Mark Dice launched a campaign urging people to send letters and DVDs to troops stationed in Iraq which support the theory that the 9/11 attacks were an "inside job". "Operation Inform the Soldiers", as Dice has called it, prompted Reagan to comment that Dice should be killed for treason. Reagan said on June 10, 2008: "How about you take Mark Dice out and put him in the middle of a firing range. Tie him to a post, don't blindfold him, let it rip and have some fun with Mark Dice." Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, a liberal/progressive media criticism organization, asked Radio America at the time to explain whether it permits "its hosts to call for murder on the air".

Post-media career

In 2010 Reagan began selling email addresses with the suffix @Reagan.com for an annual price of $39.95 per year. Reagan claims that the service is meant to combat competitors such as Apple, Hotmail, AOL and Gmail which invest money into liberal causes.^[29]

On the February 10, 2011 episode of Eternal Word Television Network's The World Over with Raymond Arroyo, Reagan discussed his reversion back to the Catholic faith.^[30]

On September 20, 2012 Michael Reagan was sued by the creator of the @Reagan.com email service. Michael Reagan was sued along with his partners Tim Kelly and Jay Hoffman ^[7] and his company The Reagan Group for fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud, conversion, breach of partnership agreement, breach of fiduciary duty, promissory estoppel and unjust enrichment, for dealings related to the Reagan Email service.^[8]

Reagan was said to be considering a challenge to Sen. Dianne Feinstein in 2012^[31] but stated that chairing the Citizen Legislature Act "is better for me and the state".^[32]

See also

• List of newspaper columnists

References

Bibliography

• Jones, George F., German-American names, Genealogical Pub. Co., 2006, ISBN 0-8063-1764-7

External links

• Michael Reagan's website
• Tough Love, Reminisces of his childhood and his adoptive mother
• The Reagan Legacy Foundation, a non-profit, charitable organization founded by Michael Reagan, adopted son of former President Ronald Reagan.
• Michael Reagan Center for Advocacy & Research, a non-profit, charitable organization dedicated to research and advocacy in the area of public policies that benefit the safety, stability and well-being of children and families.

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