Live July 9, 2011 -- Former first lady Betty Ford, whose candor about her own battles with substance abuse helped erase much of the stigma attached to addiction, has died. [3][5], In August 1947, she was introduced by mutual friends to Gerald Ford, a lawyer and World War II veteran who had just resumed his legal practice after returning from Navy service, and was planning to run for the United States House of Representatives. Ford assisted in fundraising for the little-known Hospital for Sick Children in Washington, D.C., whose patients were predominantly African American. Betty's two older brothers were Robert (d. 1971) and . His wife, Betty, was the first lady during this time period. Betty Ford. The cause of Betty Ford's death was never disclosed. Ford did indirectly indicate her willingness to step into the role of first lady by affirming that she would make any sacrifices required for her husband to carry out his constitutional obligations, but also opined that it would be traumatic if the nation had to endure a president being forced from office. The official cause of death listed on the Los Angeles County document obtained by CNN . It amounted to as aestheticization of breast cancer and her coverage became the major discursive model for looking at all breast cancer survivors. The cause given for her death was "natural. . [69], During their final year in the White House, the Fords hosted eleven state dinners. Following her White House years, she continued to lobby for the ERA and remained active in the feminist movement. I did not know at the time what was going on. . President Richard Nixon selected Gerald Ford to serve as his vice president after the resignation of Vice President Spiro Agnew. In 2005, Ford relinquished her chair of the center's board of directors to her daughter Susan. Shortly after they married, he began to sell insurance for another company. [3] It was never confirmed whether his death had been accidental or a suicide. [68], As First Lady, Ford was an advocate of the arts. ", Tasha N. Dubriwny, "Constructing breast cancer in the news: Betty Ford and the evolution of the breast cancer patient.". Betty Ford was at his side. She became famous for her candor. [3][5], In 1942, Elizabeth Bloomer married William G. Warren,[5][4] whom she had known since she was 12. I'm sure I've saved at least one personmaybe more. On Aug. 9, 1974, Nixon stepped down following the Watergate scandal. [49], Ford ranked as one of the top-10 most admired women in the results of Gallup's annual most admired man and woman poll every year from 1974 (the year her husband first became president) through 1991,[50][51][52] with the exception of Gallup having failed to conduct such a poll in 1976 (the final full year of her husband's presidency). [15] This open affection was evident from the beginning of Gerald Ford's presidency. Ford made the decision that year to erect a tent in the White House Rose Garden to host dinners outside. You may not think that creating a humane, healing environment for people with addiction is a remarkable concept. He was a Bristol, Tennessee, native who had a 40-year career as a music . She suffered from severe arthritic pain in her neck and muscle spasms. On August 9, 1974, Betty Bloomer Ford was thrust onto the world stage when her . Betty Ford. Ford would ultimately develop an addiction to prescription medication (and would ultimately confront and recover from this addiction in 1978). Penn State World Campus (2013). Betty and Gerald Ford embrace in the White House in 1974. Since she passed, fans have wondered what Betty White's cause of death was and how she died three weeks before her 100th birthday. [54] She placed first in 1975. [36] As first lady, remarking on her honest candor and the sometimes-controversial remarks it resulted in, Ford declared, "I am not very good at making up stories." Because the pills were prescribed by a physician, she did not believe that she had a . By not being the "political wife" of self-sacrificing legend, she both reflected and advanced public views about women in politics. [114], In 1975, when Time named "American women" as its "Time Person of the Year",[39] the magazine profiled Ford as one of eleven women selected to represent "American women". Betty Ford dies at 93; former first lady. [83] The fact that Ford had, for years, been given tranquilizers to treat a pinched nerve in her neck, was public knowledge as far back as her time as second lady. [3] The broadcast of the interview saw strong interest from the public. Her taboo-busting honesty about abortion, sex, gay rights, marijuana and the Equal Rights . They took away my tension and my pain". "[21][24] The Fords had planned to make a diplomatic trip to European nations after the midterm elections. [16][100] Ford left $500,000 to the Betty Ford Center. She became well known for her openness. [3][20] However, notably, Ford had not managed to address her increasing prescription pain medication dependency, which sometimes saw her taking as many as twenty pills in a single day. [80] In November 1977, Ford appeared at the opening session of the National Women's Conference in Houston, Texas. "[3][13] For their honeymoon, the two briefly traveled to Ann Arbor, Michigan, where they attended a college football game between the Michigan Wolverines and the Northwestern Wildcats, before driving to Owosso, Michigan, to attend a campaign rally for Republican presidential nominee Thomas Dewey. (National Archives Identifier 187012) She paused her divorce, and supported him, living at Warren's family's home for the next two years as his health recovered. In public, she was one of the most visible and outspoken first ladies in history. Ford's family has traveled to California and expects to arrange a service in Palm Springs soon, Barbara Lewandrowski, a family spokeswoman, told The Associated Press. [5], In 1936, after graduating from high school, Bloomer proposed continuing her study of dance in New York City, but her mother refused on account of the relatively recent loss of her husband. [50] In 1974, Ford placed second in the poll. On December 26, 2006, Gerald Ford, the 38th president of the United States, died at home in Rancho Mirage, California at 6:45 p.m. local time (02:45, December 27, UTC). Jacqueline Kennedy, Pat Nixon and Betty Ford all smoked cigarettes but were never photographed doing so. [5] With her father's passing, her family lost its primary breadwinner, and her mother began working as a real estate agent to support the family. [31] Active in social policy, Ford broke new ground as a politically active presidential spouse. "[3], At the time her husband assumed the presidency, reporters speculated on what kind of first lady Ford would be, as they thought her predecessor, Pat Nixon, as noted by one reporter, to be the "most disciplined, composed first lady in history. For more, click here: http://abcn.ws/BettyFordRIP [24] However, by the spring of 1974, Ford was seen as embracing her position as second lady, becoming less reclusive and more active. "Early on, she went to the head usher and asked why the staff didn't return her good morning greetings," Smith told ABC News. In this statement, Ford disclosed, "I have found I am not only addicted to the medication I have been taking for my arthritis but also to alcohol". [21] During her time as first lady, there had even been some speculation about substance abuse by friends and members of the press who observed occasional slurred speech from Ford. You see, Betty (played on The First Lady by Michelle Pfeiffer and Kristine Froseth) was married to William before she wed former President Gerald Ford (Aaron Eckhart). Betty Ford may be the most famous and least known First Lady in history. [99] In 2003, Ford was awarded the Woodrow Wilson Award by the Woodrow Wilson Center of the Smithsonian Institution. Betty Ford passed away in June 2011 at the age of 93. In the opinion of The New York Times and several presidential historians, "Mrs. Ford's impact on American culture may be far wider and more lasting than that of her husband, who served a mere 896 days, much of it spent trying to restore the dignity of the office of the president. Emergency responders, including police, showed up at her home Friday morning as a standard procedure. I got the stuff and got back to my place and did it. Betty" (2013). The LA County death . [109], In 2021, Zogby Analytics conducted a poll in which a sample of the American public was asked to assess the greatness of twelve First Ladies from Jacqueline Kennedy onwards. [53] The poll gauges Americans' most admired men and women without providing respondents any pre-arranged list of names. "I certainly did not want it, and neither did our children. She served as the honorary president of the National Lupus Foundation, regarding lupus as a disease which impacted women, yet received minimal public attention. Tennessee Ernie Ford, as he came to be known, was an ordinary man but his overwhelming success later led to his downfall. "[23], The media "broke" the story that Ford had a previous marriage and had been divorced, initially reporting it as a secret revelation. This experience has been credited with further cementing Ford's understanding of gender-based income inequalities between individuals doing the same work. Ford also became involved in causes related to HIV/AIDS. [76] Many of Ford's most significant contributions as an activist came following the Fords' departure from the White House. Hazelden . [69], The Fords opted to have eclectic array of guests at their state dinners, including notable celebrities from the entertainment industry. Her own battle with breast cancer led to her advocacy for early breast cancer detection. [5], Growing up, she was subject to teasing about her surname, with other kids in school calling her "Betty Pants" (a play on "bloomers" being a name for a type of lower-body garment). She successfully lobbied her husband to award the Presidential Medal of Freedom to choreographer and dancer Martha Graham in 1976. In private, she triumphed over serious personal adversity. She died in her sleep, in her. Ford was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by George H. W. Bush in 1991. She explained that, while her husband had attended two sessions with a psychiatric doctor, those sessions were for her care, and not care of his own. Ford also served as the second lady of the United States from 1973 to 1974 when her husband was vice president. [116] She also received that year's "Commitment to Life Award" from the Los Angeles AIDS Project. [72][73], Of the state dinners she planned, Ford said, "From the beginning, Jerry and I tried to make the White House a place where people could have fun and enjoy themselves. If she could help women win full equal rights with men under the U.S. Constitution, Betty Ford wanted to give it her all. As a supporter of abortion rights and a leader in the women's rights movement, she gained fame as one of the most candid first ladies in history, commenting on the hot-button issues of the time, such as feminism, equal pay, the Equal Rights Amendment, sex, drugs, abortion, and gun control. The campaigns of the previous three presidents that sought election to an additional term (Dwight D. Eisenhower, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon) had needed to manufacture campaign publicity involving their first ladies (Mamie Eisenhower, Lady Bird Johnson, and Pat Nixon). [37] Ford ultimately played an important role in the 1976 election campaign. Ford, who died Friday at age 93, was not intimidated by the public spotlight, and used her position to passionately promote causes important to her. She also organized her own dance group and taught dance at various sites in Grand Rapids, including the Calla Travis Dance Studio. During these two years, she lived upstairs while he was nursed downstairs[3] She worked jobs in order to support both herself and Warren. "[34] Ford was open about the benefits of psychiatric treatment, and spoke understandingly about marijuana use and premarital sex. She regularly drove her children around to their activities, such as her sons' Little League Baseball games and her daughter's dance classes. [25] By late 1974, Ford had shifted to exclusively serving wine that was American-cultivated at state dinners. This set a contrast with First Lady Pat Nixon, who routinely rejected invitations to give formal speeches. Become a member and. As first lady, Betty Ford was active in social policy and shattered precedents as a politically active presidential wife (Time considered her "the most since Eleanor [Roosevelt . On April 1, 1978, her family staged an intervention which forced her to acknowledge the negative impact that her addiction was having on her health and family relationships. [3] Following her husband's death, Ford continued to live in Rancho Mirage. In 1965, Ford suffered a significant nervous breakdown, erupting in severe crying that had appeared inexplicable to others. Ford had believed it to be of great importance for the administration to show an expression of direct concern pertaining to the assassination, while Nixon's staff disagreed with her. Betty Ford is awarded the nation's highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, by President George H. W. Bush, 1991. Some women protested Ford's lobbying for the ERA by carrying placards outside of the White House reading "Betty Ford, Get Off the Phone". [21] That same year, her husband brought up the possibility that he might retire from congress in 1977, which would make the 1974 United States House of Representatives election the last he would run in. She made countless contributions to our country, and we especially appreciate her courage in calling attention to breast cancer and substance abuse. [32] On September 4, 1974, weeks after becoming first lady, Ford conducted press conference in the State Dining Room of the White House in which she remarked that she, "would like to be remembered in a very kind way; also as a constructive wife of a president. [14] The Fords would ultimately be married for the next 58 years, until Gerald Ford's death. In public, she was one of the most visible and outspoken first ladies in history. From a young age, she had a passion for dancing. This is the only time that a major United States presidential candidate's spouse has delivered their concession on their behalf. [25] The first of these came only a week into Ford's presidency, hosting King Hussein of Jordan on August 16, 1974. "[88], Ford continued to be an active leader and activist of the feminist movement after the Ford administration. ', "October 10, 1973: Vice President Spiro Agnew Resigns", "How Betty Ford Made History Inside The White House and Beyond", "Betty Ford: unaffected, but not a 'plain country girl', "March 13, 1974 - Vice President and King Hussein of Jordan", "Betty Ford: Feminist, Social Liberal, Republican", "Betty Ford as First Lady: A Woman for Women", "Back in View, a First Lady With Her Own Legacy", "Betty's popularity rises because of her big mouth", "Presidents Advisors Urging Bigger Role for Betty Ford", "Digitized from Box 39 of the Sheila Weidenfeld Files at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library", "Person of the Year: A Photo History - TIME", "Betty Ford, again putting on a brave face", "The Mary Tyler Moore Show: Watch Betty Ford's Memorable Cameo", "LOOK: Proof Betty Ford Was A Total Badass", "The story behind an iconic Betty Ford photo", "Then and Now: First Ladies | Roper Center for Public Opinion Research", "12 Jan 1984, 9 - The News and Observer at Newspapers.com", "Religious leaders make gains in most-admired lists", "First lady Nancy Reagan is most-admired woman", "Bush, Gorbachev Are 1-2 In Popularity Poll", "President, Barbara Bush Top 'Most Admired' Lists", "1 Jan 1978, 21 - Tampa Bay Times at Newspapers.com", "Carter First On 'Most Admired Man' List", "Reagan Replaces Pope as Most Admired Man", "Golda Meir Named As 'Most Admired'; Betty Ford Second", "Special Encore PresentationInterview with Gerald Ford", "Betty Ford 'in TipTop Shape' After Grueling FourDay Trip", "Mrs. Ford Helps 'Remember the Ladies' of Revolutionary Era", "A Certain Comfort: Betty Ford as First Lady", "Notable State Dinners at the White House", "Top 10 Memorable State-Dinner Moments - TIME", "That time FDR served hot dogs to the king, and three other strange state dinner facts", "Factbox: Notable first ladies and their travels", "After Funeral Service, Betty Ford Buried Next to Husband", "NBC News Signs Betty Ford to Pact For Two Specials", "Equal Rights Plan and Abortion Are Opposed by 15,000 at Rally", "Betty Ford Says That She Is Addicted to Alcohol", "Former first lady Betty Ford says the six years", "Addiction Treatment Betty Ford Center Rancho Mirage, CA", "Betty Ford targets children of addicted families", "Former First Lady and Women's Rights Advocate: Betty Ford", "Betty Ford, The Junior League of Grand Rapids", "Former first lady Betty Ford says she is disappointed", "Betty Ford's death marks the passing of a lost generation of moderate Republican women", "Heroes of the Presidential Medal of Freedom", "Fords receive congressional gold medal - October 27, 1999", "Palm Springs Walk of Stars: By Date Dedicated", "Ex-First Lady, Advocate for Substance Abuse Treatment Betty Ford Dies", "Betty Ford Funeral: Family, Friends Eulogize Former First Lady", "Betty Ford Sculpture Unveiled at Ford Museum", "Eleanor Roosevelt Retains Top Spot as America's Best First Lady Michelle Obama Enters Study as 5th, Hillary Clinton Drops to 6th Clinton Seen First Lady Most as Presidential Material; Laura Bush, Pat Nixon, Mamie Eisenhower, Bess Truman Could Have Done More in Office Eleanor & FDR Top Power Couple; Mary Drags Lincolns Down in the Ratings", "Ranking America's First Ladies Eleanor Roosevelt Still #1 Abigail Adams Regains 2nd Place Hillary moves from 5th to 4th; Jackie Kennedy from 4th to 3rd Mary Todd Lincoln Remains in 36th", "Ranking America's First Ladies Eleanor Roosevelt Still #1 Abigail Adams Regains 2nd Place Hillary moves from 2nd to 5th; Jackie Kennedy from 7th to 4th Mary Todd Lincoln Up From Usual Last Place", "The Zogby Poll: Greatness of the past 12 First Ladies", "Here's how 20 real-life first ladies compare to the actors who have played them", "White House Couples That Have Been Portrayed on Screen", "Review | 'The First Lady' turns three compelling women into Emmy bait", "Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement", Ashley, Jeffrey S. "The Social and Political Influence of Betty Ford: Betty Bloomer Blossoms", Borrelli, Maryanne. [3], Ford did not take any solo trips aboad as first lady. This led her to seek psychiatric assistance. [3][14][17] Gerald Ford had ambitions to rise to the rank of speaker of the house, and therefore maintained a busy travel schedule, regularly crisscrossing the United States to fundraise and campaign on behalf of other Republicans in hopes that they would, in turn, provide him with the support he'd eventually need to become speaker. [3] At one point, Ford disclosed to the public that her husband had previously promised her that he would retire from the House of Representatives in 1976 in order to return to private legal practice and dedicate more time to his family. "[69], Dishes that Ford particularly liked serving at state dinners included wild rice,[25][74] Columbia River salmon, souffl, and flamb. She got a job as assistant to the fashion coordinator for Herpolsheimer's, a local department store. [84], Ford supported gay and lesbian causes, speaking in favor of same-sex marriage and against discrimination in the United States military. Reactions to Ford's death came in quickly from subsequent occupants of the White House. The Golden Girls star, who passed away on Dec. 31 at age 99, died due to a cerebrovascular accident, according to her death certificate obtained by PEOPLE on Monday. Best known for her leadership in the founding of the Betty Ford Clinic in California to treat addiction. YouTube Betty White showing off her aquarium. After graduating from high school in 1936 she attended the Bennington School of Dance in Vermont for two summers, where she met choreographer Martha Graham. [37][33] In January 1976, the editors of the New York News Service wrote that Ford was, "one of the most charming and popular First Ladies ever to occupy the White House". [99] On May 8, 2003, Ford received the Woodrow Wilson Award in Los Angeles for her public service, awarded by the Woodrow Wilson Center of the Smithsonian Institution. Where did Betty Ford die? Gerald R. Ford, the nation's 38th president, died on this day in 2006. [40], In 1985, Ford received the Award for Greatest Public Service Benefiting the Disadvantaged, an annual award given by the Jefferson Awards. The President outlined his criteria for the post: quality, confirmability, ageso that the nominee could be there for a whilebreadth on the Court so the Court did not have eight people of any. ", Hummer, Jill Abraham. "In the end, simply by being herself, she made it easier for millions of American women to be themselves," Smith told ABC News. [40] In 1977, the World Almanac included Ford in its ranking of the 25 most-influential American women. "Issues of Openness and Privacy: Press and Public Response to Betty Ford's Breast Cancer. "[34] This reflects a common trend of American first ladies often being more popular than the presidents to which they are married. As Betty Ford recounted at the time, the wedding was delayed until shortly before the election because, "Jerry was running for Congress and wasn't sure how voters might feel about his marrying a divorced ex-dancer.". [67] The spike in women self-examining after Ford went public with the diagnosis led to an increase in reported cases of breast cancer, a phenomenon known as the "Betty Ford blip". The union did not last, and they divorced amicably several years later. Ford had declared that she would be accompanying her husband at campaign functions, "when he wants me to. [3], Ford filmed an interview with the television news program 60 Minutes which was broadcast on August 10, 1975. After her pinched nerve, she began suffering several effects, including muscle spasms, periphrasic neuropathy, numbing the left side of her neck, and arthritis on her shoulder and arm. It focuses on the middle school teacher Betty Ford's murder. AP. A mutual friend, Peg Neuman, suggested to Gerald that he should ask her out, so he called her. First Lady Barbara Bush holds the medal. [7][30] Ford regarded Roosevelt a role model. [7][34][37] However, polling would show that her comments were accepted by many Americans. This prospect elated Ford. Gena Rowlands won both an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award for her portrayal of Ford. Ford was credited with rejuvenating the ERA movement and inspiring more women to continue working for the ERA. [3], As she became a more active second lady, Ford adopted an objective of promoting the arts. She was also awarded the Congressional Gold Medal as a co-recipient with President Ford in 1998. Ford would become the 38th president of the United States. The march was led by prominent feminist leaders, including Ford, Bella Abzug, Elizabeth Chittick, Betty Friedan and Gloria Steinem. . [45] A Ford family friend said that he "about fell off his chair" when he saw the photo for the first time. [19] For a long time, it was unclear whether Gerald Ford shared his wife's pro-abortion rights viewpoint. She was 93. [102] After the service, Betty Ford was buried next to her husband on the museum grounds. After her initial anger over the intrusion in her life, Betty remained. Betty Ford became the first lady of the United States when her husband, Gerald Ford, assumed the office following President Richard Nixon's resignation. LOS ANGELES, California -- Actress Betty White passed away in her sleep on Friday, her agent has confirmed to ABC News. Betty Ford. However, she abused these prescriptions, regularly taking many more pills than prescribed. "I'm not out to rescue anybody who doesn't want to be rescued," she once said. [105] In the 2014 Siena Research Institute survey survey, Ford and her husband were ranked the 19th-highest out of 39 first couples in terms of being a "power couple". [9][10] He died the day before his 60th birthday. [35] In a 1975 interview with McCall's, Ford remarked that she was asked just about everything, except for how often she and the president had sex. First Lady Betty Ford held her first official press conference in the State Dining Room on September 4, 1974. John Robert Greene. She visited states, including Illinois, where ratification was believed to have the most realistic chance of passing. [3], Ford's busy life took a toll. [3], Ford had an extremely busy schedule by July 1974. Bloomer disliked the surname. Her father's tragic death. [3][5], Bloomer's mother was opposed to her pursuing a career in dance and insisted that she return home, and, as a compromise, they agreed that Bloomer would return home for six months and, if she still wanted to return to New York City at the end of that time, her mother would not protest further. "And if they'd asked me that I would have told them," she said, adding that her response would be, "As often as possible. JAKE TAPPER, KATIE HINMAN and MARTHA RADDATZ, founder of the Betty Ford Center for substance abuse and addiction. [21] In addition to the arts, Ford also gave focus to projects helping the disabled during her time as second lady. [3], In November 1975, it was reported by the Associated Press that Ford's husband's advisors, who had previously worried her outspoken comments would hurt him in the 1976 presidential election, were now recognizing her popularity and desiring for her to have a greater role in the campaign. Her philanthropic support additionally placed a specific focus on charities serving children with special needs. Ford, a Rancho Mirage resident who died in July 2011, had told The Desert Sun that she opposed the idea of national expansion. The series is all set to release on the OTT platform on the 9th of May. [34] Ford's popularity often was higher than her husband's. In an interview on CBS' "60 Minutes," she talked about marijuana, equal rights for women, abortion and the possibility of a premarital affair for her daughter, Susan. She continued to serve as Chairman-Emeritus of the Betty Ford Center and enjoyed her role as grandmother and great-grandmother to her still-growing family. At 8:49 p.m. local time, President Ford's wife of 58 years, Betty Ford, issued a statement that confirmed his death: "My family joins me in sharing the difficult news that Gerald Ford, our beloved husband, father, grandfather . [3] The campaign made a deliberate effort, ahead of the 1976 Republican National Convention, of sending Ford to liberal and moderate-leaning states and not more conservative states in the western and southern United States. In this statement, she also praised the reputation of the hospital's addiction treatment program, and declared her pleasure to have the opportunity to attend the treatment. She was also involved in her husband's political career by fulfilling the commitments expected of congressional spouses to help elevate her husband's regard among his House colleagues. [55] After her tenure as first lady ended, she would top the poll for a second time in 1978, the year she had established herself as an advocate for people with drug and alcohol dependence. Among the revelations in the biography: 1. Phyllis Schlafly accused Ford of acting improperly by intervening in state affairs. Through the work she did at the Betty Ford Center, Ford recognized the link between drug abuse and AIDS. No one confronted life's struggles with more fortitude or honesty, and as a result, we all learned from the challenges she faced. After leaving. However, not everything Ford did as first lady broke tradition. "[19], Ford avidly supported the proposed Equal Rights Amendment. Betty: A Glad Awakening. Born in Lake View Hospital, Betty Ford spent the first weeks of her life with her parents and brother in an apartment in the East Rogers Park suburb of Chicago, but the family shortly after relocated to Denver, Colorado. On Aug. 9, 1974, Nixon stepped down following the Fords ultimately... To ABC news calling attention to breast cancer native who had a passion for dancing and Martha! 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[ 21 ] in addition to the arts people with addiction is a remarkable.... Triumphed over serious personal adversity Award and a Golden Globe Award for her death was disclosed... Dancer Martha Graham in 1976 a passion for dancing an activist came following the Watergate scandal [ 10 ] died. 60 Minutes which was broadcast on how did betty ford die 9, 1974, Ford had an extremely schedule... Was a Bristol, Tennessee, native who had a 40-year career as a co-recipient with president Ford in ranking. Up at her home Friday morning as a co-recipient with president Ford in its ranking of the National 's! For another company recover from this addiction in 1978 ) how did betty ford die stepped down following the Watergate.!
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