[53] The poll gauges Americans' most admired men and women without providing respondents any pre-arranged list of names. Established in 1949 on lakeside acreage in Center City, Minnesota, the Hazelden Betty Ford . [7] Early into her time in the White House, during a televised tour of the White House she once again noted that she and her husband shared the same bed. Elizabeth Anne "Betty" Bloomer Ford was the widow of former United States President Gerald R. Ford and served as the First Lady of the United States from 1974 to 1977. With Betty Ford you had a progressive woman . Afterwards, Ford stated she was impressed with the conduct of the refugees. [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. Ford also served as the second lady of the United States from 1973 to 1974 when her husband was vice president. [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. She would be given prescription medication, including Valium. Betty Ford dies at 93; former first lady. [94] The amendment did not receive enough states' ratification. Ford would become the 38th president of the United States. What many don't know is that she was also a talented modern dancer. As a young girl, Betty took up dancing, which quickly became her passion. She visited states, including Illinois, where ratification was believed to have the most realistic chance of passing. [33], Steinhauer of The New York Times described Ford as "a product and symbol of the cultural and political timesdoing the Bump dance along the corridors of the White House, donning a mood ring, chatting on her CB radio with the handle First Mamaa housewife who argued passionately for equal rights for women, a mother of four who mused about drugs, abortion and premarital sex aloud and without regret. Shortly after they married, he began to sell insurance for another company. [25][26] At the first state dinner that she arranged as first lady, Ford revived dancing as an activity of White House state dinners. Betty White died from a stroke suffered on Dec. 25, 2021, six days before her Dec. 31 death at age 99, according to her death certificate, the Associated Press reports. [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". In the 1950s Bette Ford turned heads and raised eyebrows when she became a model-actress-bullfighter. The march was led by prominent feminist leaders, including Ford, Bella Abzug, Elizabeth Chittick, Betty Friedan and Gloria Steinem. Ford's recent predecessor Lady Bird Johnson was among other first ladies that did not conduct solo trips abroad. [53] In 1977, the year her husband left office, she placed fourth. [3][5][6] While she was still in high school, she started her own dance school, instructing both youth and adults. [3][24] Ford was the only individual in attendance at the funeral not directly ingrained in the civil rights movement, with the exception of Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter. [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". [19] Ford's abortion position differed from the political platform of the Republican Party. She was married to Gerald Ford for 58 years. The November 12, 1974 state dinner for Austrian Chancellor Bruno Kreisky saw the first instance in which a wine from the Fords' home state of Michigan was served at a White House state dinner, with wine from the Tabor Hill Winery being served. [3], On March 12, 1974, the Fords hosted a state dinner for King Hussein of Jordan after president Nixon, with a week's notice, asked Vice President Ford to take over for him in hosting the already-scheduled state dinner. "[34] Ford was open about the benefits of psychiatric treatment, and spoke understandingly about marijuana use and premarital sex. In April 1974, she made her first official solo trip as second lady when she spent two-days visiting the states of Georgia and Tennessee to help in publicizing the "ARTRAIN", which was a traveling exhibit of art, visual displays, and performance pieces housed in six railway cars, and which was to travel through small towns across the southern United States. TMZ was the first to report the news.. A cerebrovascular accident, commonly known as a stroke, is a loss of blood flow to part of the brain, which damages brain tissue. Betty Ford was 93 years old when she died; therefore, she can be said to have died from old age. ", Hummer, Jill Abraham. She was the wife of President Gerald R. Ford, the 38th President of the United States. [3], Before the end of December, Ford played a role in establishing the Republican Women's Federal Forum, partnering with Barbara Bush, whose husband George H. W. Bush was chairman of the Republican National Committee at the time. Her father's tragic death. [16][100] Ford left $500,000 to the Betty Ford Center. 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. In public, she was one of the most visible and outspoken first ladies in history. She suffered from severe arthritic pain in her neck and muscle spasms. [3][19] Ford took doses of this medication in excess of her prescription. 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). Seated (lr): Lady Bird Johnson, Pat Nixon, Rosalynn Carter, Ford; Standing (lr): Nancy Reagan, Barbara Bush, President Bill Clinton speaks with the Fords at the White House ceremony awarding the at a 1999 Presidential Medal of Freedom ceremony, Ford with other U.S. First Ladies at the 1994 National Garden Gala, which was themed "A Tribune to America's First Ladies". She instead attended the Bennington School of Dance in Bennington, Vermont, for two summers, where she studied under director Martha Hill with choreographers Martha Graham and Hanya Holm. [15] An anecdote that was later reported was that, when Gerald Ford left Grand Rapids for Washington, D.C., Betty Ford's new sister-in-law Janet Ford remarked to her, "with Jerry, you'll never have to worry about other women. On August 9, 1974, Betty Bloomer Ford was thrust onto the world stage when her . [3], Ford filmed an interview with the television news program 60 Minutes which was broadcast on August 10, 1975. Hazelden . Former first lady Betty Ford has died at the age of 93. She decided to establish the Betty Ford Center with gender specific treatment for men and women (Northouse, 2013) Northouse, P. G. (2013). Betty Ford began taking prescription pain killers in the 1960s for a pinched nerve. ", Tobin, Leesa E. "Betty Ford as first lady: A woman for women.". Elizabeth Bloomer, who was known from childhood as Betty, was born in 1918 in Chicago and grew up in Michigan. As it turns out, Betty Ford did send a letter to Michelle Obama. Married and divorced in her 20s, in 1947 her life changed forever when she met Gerald R. Ford. Kalb shares a few things you may not know about the 38th . [53], In Good Housekeeping's annual readers' poll of most admired women, Ford placed second in 1974[60] and first in 1975. [19] Ford had, particularly, become addicted to prescription medication (opioid analgesics) that she had been originally prescribed in the early 1960s to treat a pinched nerve. He was a Bristol, Tennessee, native who had a 40-year career as a music . Fellow first lady Nancy Reagan also was "deeply saddened" by the news. She worked a production line for a frozen food company in Fulton, New York. [3], Ford's busy life took a toll. [31] Active in social policy, Ford broke new ground as a politically active presidential spouse. [95], Ford tackled the stigmatized issue of HIV/AIDS during the HIV/AIDS crisis. [84], Ford published her first memoir in 1978, The Times of My Life, in which she discussed her battle with addiction. [3] President Ford died, aged 93, of heart failure on December 26, 2006, at their Rancho Mirage home. 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. [5] After he recovered, they were divorced on September 22, 1947. [36], During her time as first lady, Ford was an outspoken advocate of women's rights and was a prominent force in the Women's Movement of the 1970s. The couple moved frequently because of his work. [25][26] The dinner was held in the John Quincy Adam's Drawing Room, one of the Diplomatic Reception Rooms at the United States Department of State headquarters at the Harry S Truman Building. Take a look at images from Betty Ford's years in the White House. "When other women have this same operation, it doesn't make any headlines," she told Time. She regularly drove her children around to their activities, such as her sons' Little League Baseball games and her daughter's dance classes. Betty Ford, who died yesterday at the age of ninety-three, got married the year she turned twenty-four, to a furniture salesman who did not become the President of the United States. Because of her leadership, many lives were saved.". The cause of Betty Ford's death was never disclosed. White House photographer David Hume Kennerly took a photo of her on the table. Bush. In 1965, Ford suffered a significant nervous breakdown, erupting in severe crying that had appeared inexplicable to others. At one point, they lived in Toledo, Ohio, where Elizabeth was employed at the department store Lasalle & Koch as a demonstrator, a job that entailed being a model and saleswoman. [75], During the Fords' 1976 trip to mainland China, when being shown an exhibition by a Chinese arts college dance group, Ford decided to join the dancers. 'Not at all,' he replied. ", President Carter and his wife Rosalynn, who succeeded the Fords in the White House, recalled "a close personal friend and our frequent partner in bipartisan efforts to improve mental health and substance abuse care in our nation. LOS ANGELES, California -- Actress Betty White passed away in her sleep on Friday, her agent has confirmed to ABC News. [69], During their final year in the White House, the Fords hosted eleven state dinners. In 2005, Ford relinquished her chair of the center's board of directors to her daughter Susan. [19] The use of Ford in such a manner to promote her husband's candidacy was not the work of the campaign itself, but rather, produced by supporters outside of the campaign organization. During her stay at the White House, her dependency on these drugs seemingly dissipated. Betty Ford wanted to be a professional dancer A month after moving into the White House, Betty Ford was diagnosed with breast cancer and had a mastectomy. During his testimony, Gerald Ford was questioned about attending psychiatric care. Her overall approval rating was, at times, as high as 75%. In December 1999, he told interviewer Larry King that he, too, was pro-abortion rights and had been criticized for that stance by conservative forces within the Republican Party. Following her White House years, she continued to lobby for the ERA and remained active in the feminist movement. Bette Ford came to New York City from a small town outside of Pittsburgh, PA, with big dreams . President Obama noted how Betty Ford "distinguished herself through her courage and compassion. She made countless contributions to our country, and we especially appreciate her courage in calling attention to breast cancer and substance abuse. She studied dance under Martha Graham in New York, working as a fashion model to finance her studies. However, Ford simply responded by giving the explanation that it was not something she had tried to hide, but, rather, something she had only not shared with the news media because none of them had broached the topic in their previous questions to her. [7], When Ford herself began the process of recovering from her own alcoholism, she disclosed to the public that both her father and her brother Bob had suffered from alcoholism as well. By her second birthday, however, she was living in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the city she always considered her home. During and after her years in the White House, 1974 to 1977, Mrs. Ford won . [34] Ford's popularity often was higher than her husband's. I did not know at the time what was going on. [69], The Fords opted to have eclectic array of guests at their state dinners, including notable celebrities from the entertainment industry. As we told you back in 2020, Betty rarely left her home once the COVID-19 pandemic began.. After this, Betty Ford was transparent with the news media that she had received psychiatric care. Among the nations that Ford accompanied her husband to were China, Poland, Romania, and Yugoslavia. [3] As a mother, Ford never spanked or hit her children, believing that there were better, more constructive ways to deal with discipline and punishment. [3], Ford was also used, both by Ford supporters and detractors, as a symbol of liberal Republicanism, with her politics contrasting with the Republican Party's conservative and moderate wings. 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. She wrote about it in her book, "A Glad Awakening." First Lady Barbara Bush holds the medal. [3], As she became a more active second lady, Ford adopted an objective of promoting the arts. White's death was confirmed Friday by Jeff Witjas, her longtime agent and friend. 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. "I'm not out to rescue anybody who doesn't want to be rescued," she once said. "[19], Ford avidly supported the proposed Equal Rights Amendment. After leaving the White House, Betty Ford publicly acknowledged her addiction to alcohol and painkillers. [69] At the state dinners of the Ford presidency, the president and first lady always led off the dancing, and dancing often lasted beyond midnight. In 2003, Ford produced another book, Healing and Hope: Six Women from the Betty Ford Center Share Their Powerful Journeys of Addiction and Recovery. LR: Nancy Reagan, Ladybird Johnson , Hillary Clinton, Rosalyn Carter, Ford, Barbara Bush, The Fords post for a photograph with three other U.S. first couples (George H. W. and Barbara Bush, Bill and Hillary Clinton, Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter) during at the 2000 White House Historical Association Dinner, Ford attends a National Press Club event in 2001, The Fords with President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush at the White House in 2003 at a celebration President Ford's 90th birthday, Ford and her husband at a June 2005 Gerald R. Ford Foundation dinner, Betty Ford with her husband and President George W. Bush on April 23, 2006, Ford leans over President Ford's coffin during memorial services for him held December 30, 2006 in the United States Capitol rotunda as part of the his state funeral, Ford being escorted by Army Major General Guy C. Swan III during a portion of the state funeral of her late husband, Betty Ford died of natural causes on July 8, 2011, three months after her 93rd birthday, at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage. "In the end, simply by being herself, she made it easier for millions of American women to be themselves," Smith told ABC News. 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. "My understanding is it was natural causes. After leaving the White House in 1977, Ford continued to lead an active public life. [25] The first of these came only a week into Ford's presidency, hosting King Hussein of Jordan on August 16, 1974. "[7], Betty and Gerald Ford had four children together: Michael Gerald Ford (born 1950), John Gardner Ford (nicknamed Jack; born 1952), Steven Meigs Ford (born 1956), and Susan Elizabeth Ford (born 1957). [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). 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). [3], After her husband's narrow defeat, there was some anecdotal speculation that Ford may have both have helped to alienate conservative Republicans from voting for her husband and at the same time helped attract him support from liberal and moderate Republicans, Democrats, and independents. [3] Gerald Ford was confirmed as vice president by the United States Congress on December 6, 1973, and Gerald Ford took the oath of office before a joint session of the United States Congress, placing his hand upon a bible which Betty Ford held. [40], In 1985, Ford received the Award for Greatest Public Service Benefiting the Disadvantaged, an annual award given by the Jefferson Awards. [19] For a long time, it was unclear whether Gerald Ford shared his wife's pro-abortion rights viewpoint. "Did they dislike her? [25] By late 1974, Ford had shifted to exclusively serving wine that was American-cultivated at state dinners. [65] Ford decided to be open about her illness because "There had been so much cover-up during Watergate that we wanted to be sure there would be no cover-up in the Ford administration. The Betty Ford Center, which already has helped change the lives of thousands of people, will be her lasting legacy of care and concern. Penn State World Campus (2013). [7], In May 1975, during a four-day trip,[62] Ford met with former Prime Minister of the Republic of Vietnam Nguyn Cao K to discuss Southeast Asia refugees. [45] A Ford family friend said that he "about fell off his chair" when he saw the photo for the first time. Her acceptance speech spoke hopefully of the prospect that attitudes towards HIV/AIDS would shift, being de-stigmatized as cancer and alcoholism had (in part due to her contribution). [101], In July 2018, a statue of Ford was unveiled outside of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Showtime's "The First Lady" flips the camera's focus to the women who brought about transformational change from the East Wing of the White House. While her death is a cause for sadness, we know that organizations such as the Betty Ford Center will honor her legacy by giving countless Americans a new lease on life. In 1985, Ford received the Los Angeles AIDS Projects "Commitment to Life Award". [25], Ford dancing with comedian Marty Allen in the Entrance Hall of the White House of the White House during a September 21, 1976 state dinner in honor Liberian President William Tolbert, Ford reviews the table settings while preparing for the September 21, 1976 state dinner in honor of Liberian President William Tolbert, Ford and Social Secretary Maria Downs give the media a tour of the tent errected in the South Lawn for the July 1976 state dinner honoring Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip of Great Britain, Ford and Social Secretary Maria Downs inspect centerpiece sculptures designed by Frederic Remington and Charles Russell ahead of an October 1975 state dinner honoring Anwar Sadat, the president of Egypt, The Fords escort Japanese Emperor Hirohito and Empress Kjun down the Cross Hall towards the East Room during an October 1975 state dinner honoring the Japanese royals, Ford accompanied her husband abroad on several diplomatic trips. [3][97] In 1999, she and President Ford were jointly awarded Congressional Gold Medals. 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. And I loved pills. [3] Following her husband's death, Ford continued to live in Rancho Mirage. She died peacefully, surrounded by her family, at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, California. ", Gould, Lewis L. "Modern first ladies in historical perspective. [3], The Fords meet with President Ronald Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan in the White House Oval Office in March 1981. However, even after this, Ford continued with her planned campaign schedule. As was the case during Gerald Ford's vice presidential swearing-in, Betty Ford held the bible upon which he placed his hand while taking his oath of office. The Washington Post reported that Ford's disclosure of alcoholism came as a surprise to a number of Ford's close friends, who had regarded her as merely a social drinker and were oblivious to her drinking problem. We were proud to know her. [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. Actress Betty White died after suffering a stroke six days prior, according to her death certificate. During her life she helped change the way Americans think and talk about breast cancer, women's rights and substance abuse. 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. [7] Weeks later, when the Fords moved from their Virginia residence into the White House[3] their king size bed was photographed being moved into the White House, which prompted Betty to quip that they had been outed for breaking the tradition of first couples keeping separate bedrooms in the White House. [3], After Gerald Ford's defeat by Jimmy Carter in the 1976 presidential election she delivered her husband's concession speech because he had lost his voice while campaigning. But, before . Betty's two older brothers were Robert (d. 1971) and William Jr. After the family lived briefly in Denver, Colorado, she grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where she graduated from Central High School. She died Friday at the Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, Calif. and her cause of death was not immediately clear. Betty Ford, the former First Lady of the United States who died on July 8 aged 93, exemplified the American virtue of positive thinking to overcome illness and addiction, and used her . Ill health prevented Ford from attending the funeral of former First Lady Lady Bird Johnson's in July 2007, and her daughter Susan Ford Bales instead represented her at the funeral service. [7][38][37], In 1975, when Time named the "American women" as its "Person of the Year",[39] the magazine profiled Ford as one of eleven women selected to represent "American women". Shortly after she decided to file for divorce, Warren fell into a coma. [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". [53][51] Contrarily to her, while President Ford ranked in the top-10 positions of most admired men in multiple years,[56][57][58][59] he never managed to top it. [21], Both Betty and Gerald Ford refuse to comment on speculation that President Nixon might be forced out of office due to the Watergate scandal. [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." Stroke six days prior, according to her death certificate Betty took up dancing which. That was American-cultivated at state dinners social policy, Ford broke New ground a! As it turns out, Betty Ford has died at the White in. She worked a production line for a frozen food company in Fulton, New York quickly became her passion California! Therefore, she was living in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the year her husband 's who. 75 % in 1918 in Chicago and grew up in Michigan was one of the United States interview with conduct... The amendment did not know at the Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage 's popularity often higher! 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