Ronald Reagan and Jane Wyman were madly in love when they first began dating. However, Wyman started to worry about not being engaged two years later. She did the unthinkable in an effort to encourage Ronald to pop the question.
Former US President Ronald Reagan’s second wife Nancy comes to mind when people discuss his romantic relationships. However, the late politician’s marriage to Jane Wyman, his first wife, also made news, particularly after it was revealed what she had done to obtain his hand in marriage.
On the set of the romantic comedy “Brother Rat” in 1938, the former couple got acquainted. Wyman was six years younger than Ronald, who was 27 and had never been married before, and was going through a second divorce.
Regardless of the latter’s romantic predicament, she was initially interested in Ronald. Wyman’s son said, “Mom was apparently charmed with him at first glimpse.
Wyman acknowledged that she was attracted to the actor the moment she set eyes on him. They began dating soon after their first encounter and developed a closer relationship.
After a while of dating, the actress became aware of her man’s “huge knowledge,” his generosity toward others, and his motherly love, something she had never experienced.
Wyman was even more smitten with Ronald because of all these qualities. But it was only a matter of time before things started to go awry. More information about the former couple’s relationship may be found here, including how Wyman nearly committed suicide.
In fact, the politician’s gestures were effective, and the couple made a few attempts at reconciliation before Wyman filed for divorce in June 1948. In court documents, the actress alleged that her ex-husband had a political and Screen Actors Guild obsession. She also admitted that they no longer shared any interests.
In 1949, the couple reached a divorce settlement. Wyman provided her justifications for the divorce, but Michael and Maureen had opposing viewpoints. They thought that the divorce between their parents was precipitated by Christine’s passing.
Michael acknowledged that the fact that Ronald and Wyman’s divorce occurred less than a year after Christine’s passing was not an accident. He thought that despite the fact that he was battling for his life at another hospital, his mother somehow held Ronald responsible for their daughter’s birth and death.
Michael claims that Wyman was so deeply affected by the loss of his baby sister that even decades after Christine’s demise, the actress’s will still featured Christine’s name.
Wyman and Ronald hardly ever discussed their split in the media. The distance was so great that Ronald’s memoirs barely contained one paragraph about the actress. The sentence said:
“I got married to Jane Wyman, another contract worker at Warners, the same year I produced the Knute Rockne movie. Maureen and Michael, the two magnificent children we had from our marriage, were born, but our marriage did not last, and in 1948 we divorced.”
Wyman, on the other hand, had a purpose for her aloofness and silence. When Ronald was elected governor of California in 1968, the actress was questioned about why she never mentioned his political career. Wyman’s response was as follows:
“I’m not doing it out of resentment or because I disagree with his political views. I’ve always had a Republican registration. However, discussing ex-husbands and ex-wives is improper. I also know absolutely nothing about politics.”
Ronald and Nancy Reagan got married a second time in 1952 after getting divorced. Two children, Ron Reagan and Patti Davis, were born into their marriage. The former president and his wife remained united in marriage until his untimely death in June 2004.
Wyman, though, married the same man twice. In 1952, she married Fred Karger, but the couple split up three years later.
They got remarried in 1961, but regrettably, it only lasted for four years. Wyman remained single until her death in September 2007.