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Some information about this episode
James Brady
Since Lucy not only mentioned James Brady, but gave some bio information about him, I thought I’d feature him in the blog post. Mr. Brady acted as President Ronald Reagan’s Press Secretary from 1981 until the shooting later that same year. However, before that, James had been deeply politically active since the mid-1960s.
He managed several campaigns through the early-1970s, then moved into more senior positions. He was appointed to be Special Assistant to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Special Assistant to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget; Assistant to the Secretary of Defense; and member of the staff of Senator William V. Roth, Jr. (R-DE). He also served as Press Secretary in 1979 to presidential candidate John Connally.
John Connally withdrew from the race after the primary, making way for Ronald Reagan’s run, and Brady started his tenure with the future president at that time. Brady became Director of Public Affairs and Research for the Reagan-Bush Committee, then Spokesperson for the Office of the President-elect. After Reagan took office, Brady became White House Press Secretary.
When John Hinckley made his assassination attempt at the Hilton in Washington, DC, Brady was shot in the head. This was a non-fatal injury (at the time of the shooting), although he suffered serious and catastrophic wounds. When pictures first surfaced during the event’s aftermath, Brady appeared as though he might be dead – thus leading to all media outlets reporting him as such. Word came in that he was taken to the hospital along with the President, and was alive. Some broadcasters were so upset by the miscommunication, that their emotions made it to air. The doctor who treated him was also told of the error, and said, “No one has told me and the patient.”
The wound left him with slurred speech and partial paralysis that required the full-time use of a wheelchair. He also suffered deficits in memory and thinking, such as failing to recognize people. He lived the rest of his life using a wheelchair and had his speech affected. Brady was unable to work as the White House Press Secretary but remained in the position until the end of the Reagan Administration with Larry Speakes and Marlin Fitzwater performing the job on an “acting” or “deputy” basis.
For the rest of his life, James and his wife Sarah Brady lobbied for stricter handgun control and assault weapon restrictions. The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, also known as “the Brady Bill”, was named in his honor. Brady received the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws from McKendree College, Lebanon, Illinois, in 1982. Sarah and James Brady were each awarded a doctorate degree (of Humane Letters) by Drexel University in 1993. In 1994, James and Sarah received the S. Roger Horchow Award for Greatest Public Service by a Private Citizen, an award given out annually by the Jefferson Awards Foundation. In 1996, Brady received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Bill Clinton, the highest civilian award in the United States.
James Brady passed away as a result of his injuries in 2014, thirty-three years after the shooting. However, his death was ruled by the medical examiner as a homicide caused by the gunshot wound he received in 1981. Hinckley did not face charges in Brady’s death because he was found not guilty by reason of insanity in 1982.
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You Lookin’ at Me?
The Time Team go back to the day that President Reagan was shot by John Hinckley. However, even though Hinckley fails, he escapes. A young Officer Denise Christopher is part of the detail and is injured. The Time Team helps her catch Hinkley. Denise is targeted by Rittenhouse agents to keep the Time Team from being assembled. The Time Team get Denise to go to FBI training.
Christopher’s Mettle
Dhriti Sirivastava, AKA Denise Christopher, has been rebelling against her parents because of culture constraints that are against her own beliefs. As we know from present-day Agent Christopher, her life as an FBI Agent are important – not only to the time-team, but to her as well. She’s also a lesbian, which her parents would not want to hear. They already have a marriage arranged for her – and they want it soon. Both their concern about her profession and their marriage machinations would have put her on a course to making her future a miserable one. “Cagney” and “Lacey” help to give her the courage to stand up to her parents.
Miss Conception
At the end of the episode, Jessica is looking at family pictures. When Wyatt sees a picture of her brother Kevin, he asks her how her brother survived his childhood leukemia. She tells him that cutting edge treatment saved him, but he realizes that her family would have needed an inordinate amount of money for that sort of treatment at the time. She evades the question by announcing that she’s pregnant! (dramatic music sting!)
On March 30
1822 – The Florida Territory is created in the United States
1842 – Ether anesthesia is used for the first time, in an operation by the American surgeon Dr. Crawford Long.
1856 – The Treaty of Paris is signed, ending the Crimean War.
1861 – Discovery of the chemical elements: Sir William Crookes announces his discovery of thallium
1867 – Alaska is purchased from Russia for $7.2 million, about 2-cent/acre ($4.19/km²), by United States Secretary of State William H. Seward.
1870 – Texas is readmitted to the Union following Reconstruction.
1981 – U.S. President Ronald Reagan is shot in the chest outside a Washington, D.C., hotel by John Hinckley, Jr.; three others are wounded in the same incident.
1982 – Space Shuttle program: STS-3 Mission is completed with the landing of Columbia at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico.
2017 – SpaceX conducts the world’s first reflight of an orbital class rocket
Notable Births:
1632 – John Proctor, farmer hanged for witchcraft in the Salem witch trials
1746 – Francisco Goya, Spanish-French painter and sculptor
1811 – Robert Bunsen, German chemist and academic
1853 – Vincent van Gogh, Dutch-French painter and illustrator
1864 – Franz Oppenheimer, German-American sociologist and economist
1874 – Charles Lightoller, English 2nd officer on the RMS Titanic
1874 – Nicolae Rădescu, Romanian general and politician, Prime Minister of Romania
1902 – Brooke Astor, American socialite and philanthropist
1913 – Marc Davis, American animator (one of Disney’s “Five Old Men”)
1929 – Richard Dysart, American actor
1930 – John Astin, American actor
1937 – Warren Beatty, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1945 – Eric Clapton, English guitarist and singer-songwriter
1950 – Robbie Coltrane, Scottish actor
1957 – Paul Reiser, American actor and comedian
1962 – MC Hammer, American rapper and actor
1964 – Tracy Chapman, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1965 – Piers Morgan, English journalist and talk show host
1968 – Celine Dion, Canadian singer-songwriter
1979 – Norah Jones, American singer-songwriter and pianist
1988 – Richard Sherman, American football player
Notable Deaths:
1840 – Beau Brummell, English-French fashion designer
1986 – James Cagney, American actor and dancer
2002 – Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother of the United Kingdom
2003 – Michael Jeter, American actor (The Fisher King, The Green Mile)
2005 – Mitch Hedberg, American stand-up comedian
2013 – Phil Ramone, South African-American songwriter and producer, co-founded A & R Recording
2015 – Roger Slifer, American author, illustrator, screenwriter, and producer (Lobo (DC), Omega Men (DC))
Next Episode’s Summary & Promo
THE GENERAL / CHINATOWN
“The General” When the Mothership jumps to South Carolina in 1863, the Time Team partners up with a courageous Union spy and military leader, Harriet Tubman – AKA “The General” – to thwart Rittenhouse’s plan to alter the outcome of the Civil War. Back in the present, Rittenhouse hits the team where it hurts the most. “Chinatown” SEASON FINALE – When Jiya (Claudia Doumit) makes a daring escape from Rittenhouse that strands her in San Francisco’s Chinatown in 1888 with no way home, the fractured Time Team goes back to save her in this emotional and action-packed finale that leaves the team questioning everything.
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Links from this episode:
Friend of the show, Michael Ahr, writes about this episode on DenofGeek.com
Fangirlish review about “The Day Reagan Was Shot” is here.
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