Registrar Of Marriages 1947 To 1948

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BETTY FORD : Former U.S. first lady Betty Ford has died, the director of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum in Ann Arbor, Mich., said Friday. She was 93.

Elaine Didier confirmed the death of the former first lady, The Washington Post reported. There were no immediate details on the cause or place of death.

Ford, whose husband Gerald Ford succeeded Richard Nixon as president in 1974, was known for her public outspokenness on social issues, including her own substance abuse, an experience that was instrumental in her founding of the Betty Ford Center for substance abuse and addiction in Rancho Mirage, Calif.

President Barack Obama Friday said Betty Ford "distinguished herself through her courage and compassion."

"As our nation's first lady, she was a powerful advocate for women's health and women's rights," Obama said in a statement issued by the White House. "After leaving the White House, Mrs. Ford helped reduce the social stigma surrounding addiction and inspired thousands to seek much-needed treatment. 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."

Former first lady Nancy Reagan issued a statement saying she was "deeply saddened this afternoon when I heard of Betty Ford's death," ABC News reported.

"She has been an inspiration to so many through her efforts to educate women about breast cancer and her wonderful work at the Betty Ford Center," Reagan said. "She was Jerry Ford's strength through some very difficult days in our country's history, and I admired her courage in facing and sharing her personal struggles with all of us."

Former President George H.W. Bush issued a statement saying he and former first lady Barbara Bush "loved Betty Ford very much."

"She was a wonderful wife and mother; a great friend; and a courageous first lady. No one confronted life's struggles with more fortitude or honesty, and as a result, we all learned from the challenges she faced," the former president said. "The Betty Ford Center, which already has helped change the lives of thousands of people, will be her lasting legacy of care and concern."

Born Elizabeth Bloomer in 1918 in Chicago, Betty Ford was raised in Michigan and studied dance under Martha Graham in New York, where she also worked as a fashion model. After her first marriage ended in divorce, she met Gerald Ford in 1947 and they were married in 1948, the year he was first elected to Congress from Michigan.

Centennial Tributes: Hume Cronyn Part I

When I planned to do a tribute to Hume Cronyn on what would be his 100th birthday, I never imagined that I'd have to break it into two parts, but the more I delved into his history, the more I realized the piece would be a long one because Cronyn's career was not only a long one, it was multifaceted. Believe it or not, I'm omitting a lot of what he did, just to make this salute as short as it is. In fairness, this tribute to the actor-screenwriter-playwright-author-director-producer-lyricist should ideally have led with a solo photo of the man, but his life and career was so inexorably linked with that of his second wife Jessica Tandy, it would be just as wrong not to include her since she figures so prominently in his story. Cronyn and Tandy met in 1940, wed in 1942 and stayed together until her death in 1994. In that time, the two of them collaborated in their first film together in 1944 and would go on to make a total of nine feature films, one feature documentary, appear in 10 plays shown on TV in the 1950s (one of which he directed), co-star in a short-lived 1954 sitcom (which he produced and began life as a radio show they did together), make five TV movies together, appear on countless talk shows and TV specials as a couple and, of course, teamed on the same Broadway productions 14 times, earning them the title of The First Couple of the American Theater. Cronyn did do plenty on his own though, not just as an actor, but as I mentioned earlier as a writer, not only of plays but of TV movies as well as two screenplays for Alfred Hitchcock, who directed Cronyn in his film debut in 1943, as well as his autobiography. While Hume Cronyn, born on this date in 1911 in London, Ontario, Canada, certainly left his imprint on all entertainment mediums and in most of the possible roles associated with that industry, that almost wasn't going to be the course of his life's career. His father, also named Hume , was a banker and prominent member of the Canadian Parliament in Ontario and insisted his son go to law school so Cronyn studied law at McGill University in Montreal even though young Hume already had his sights set on a career in the theater. While at McGill, he also took an interest in boxing and developed skills good enough that he nearly landed a spot on Canada's 1932 Olympic boxing team as a featherweight, except he dropped out of McGill after the 1930-31 term and headed over the border to the United States.

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