The Reagan Years in the Palisades

Ronald and Nancy Reagan resided in the Pacific Palisades for 29 years (1953-1982) before moving to Washington, D.C., after he was elected to the presidency. The Reagans bought their first house in the Riviera on upper Amalfi Drive, shortly after their marriage. In her autobiography Nancy wrote, ‘A lot of our friends felt we were foolish to move so far from the heart of Hollywood, but we wanted to be farther out of town and have never regretted it.’ At the time, Reagan had just completed a 5-year stint as president of the Screen Actors Guild and had appeared in a series of box office flops, including ‘Bedtime For Bonzo’ and ‘Tropic Zone.’ In 1954, Reagan began hosting ‘General Electric Theater,’ and in January 1957, he and Nancy moved to the innovative G.E. showcase house at 1669 San Onofre Dr., designed by architect William R. Stephenson. The nearly 5,000-sq.-ft. ranch-style home featured 3-bedrooms, 3-baths, a film projection room, servants quarters, an octagonal pool and a panoramic view of Santa Monica Bay. The property also featured all-GE electrical installations, inside and out, to control temperature, heat, light and the intercom system. For the Reagans, the Palisades was a retreat where the family could live relatively undisturbed until he was elected California governor in 1966. After that, the family spent most of the next eight years in Sacramento. While trips to the Palisades were rare, the couple caused a stir whenever they showed up to vote at their neighborhood polling station. In early 1981, the Reagans put their home on the market for $1.9 million, and it was finally purchased a year later by Morris and Belle Halpern. They sold to Norman and Irma Switzer in 1988. Before the Reagans left for Washington, there was a farewell party for them at the Riviera Country Club, where they were feted by 500 invited guests from the community. Shortly afterwards, the couple ended their formal association with the Palisades when they chose to locate the Western White House at their Santa Barbara ranch.