(3 of 3)
Ronald, 22, is a dedicated and disciplined professional at an age when his siblings were still searching for direction. He is also impetuous. Last November Ron surprised his parents with his sudden wedding to live-in Girlfriend Doria Palmieri, 29, a literary researcher. Four years earlier he had stunned them by dropping out of Yale to become a ballet dancer. And last month he created a stir by informing New York magazine that he would not shake hands with Jimmy Carter at the Inauguration because the President "has the morals of a snake." Said Ron: "I will never forgive the he way he called my father a racist and a warmonger," though he later regretted the outburst as an "unfortunate moment of candor."
Of the four children, Ron was the closest as a youth to his father and the best student. He remembers being "seduced by dance movies from the time I was eight," but did not begin to study until age 19, when he entered Los Angeles' Stanley Holden Dance Center, which was recommended by longtime Reagan Friend Gene Kelly. Within two years he was offered a scholarship by the prestigious Joffrey school in New York City. Seven months later he became an alternate member of the Joffrey II troupe, and last fall made his debut as a regular member. "His improvement is phenomenal," says Company Director Sally Bliss. "Ron has no tension in his dancing and incredible concentration. I think he's really going to make it." Concurs Anna Kisselgoff, chief dance critic for the New York Times: "You don't have to be a Republican to tell that Ron Reagan is a very talented dancer." Yet Ron remains modest about his progress and cautious about his newly acquired notoriety. Says he: "You realize very fast that you could become another Margaret Truman."