Hail to the chief!
MARION McMULLEN looks at how US presidents stepped up to the mark at their inaugurations
JOHN F KENNEDY famously marked his inauguration as US president by saying: “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.” The 43-year-old politician became the youngest person to be elected president when he addressed the Washington crowd in 1961 and he marked his inauguration in style.
Frank Sinatra and actor Peter Lawford threw a star-studded ball for him that included performances and speeches from celebrities like Tony Curtis, Gene Kelly, Nat King Cole and Ella Fitzgerald.
Opera singer Marian Anderson sang The Star-Spangled Banner at the inauguration itself, 86-year-old poet Robert Frost recited his poem The Gift Outright and West Side Story composer Leonard Bernstein composed Fanfare For The Inauguration of John F Kennedy.
It was a cold day though and army flame throwers were needed to clear snow away from roads and it was the first time the parade was shown on television in colour.
More than three tons of red, white and blue jelly beans featured in the inauguration celebrations of Ronald Reagan in 1981. He developed a jelly bean habit when he gave up smoking and the blueberrry Jelly Belly beans were created in his honour.
The inauguration was the first close-captioning broadcast for the deaf and hard of hearing while Harry S Truman’s second inauguration in 1949 was the first ceremony to ever be televised.
America’s first president ,George Washington, had to borrow cash to attend his inauguration in New York City in 1789. He was a man of few words and he holds the record for the shortest speech – 135 words – for his second inauguration in 1793.
Ronald Reagan also holds the record for the coldest inauguration day although it was so cold for Ulysses S Grant’s ceremony in 1873 that the food and champagne froze as well as hundreds of poor caged canaries which had been brought in for the event.
It was dead pigeons that were a problem for Richard Nixon in 1973. He did not want them to spoil his motorcade so had trees along the route treated with a chemical to stop them perching. Instead the pigeons ate the toxic mixture with the result that the streets were strewn with dead and dying birds.
Gerald R Ford became president in 1974 following the resignation of Nixon in the aftermath of the Watergate scandal and said “I assume the Presidency under extraordinary circumstances. This is an hour of history that troubles our minds and hearts”.
He also told people this is “not an inaugural address, not a fireside chat, not a campaign speech – just a little straight talk among friends”.
Peanut farmer Jimmy Carter’s 1977 parade featured a giant peanut balloon while Aretha Franklin sang God Bless America.
Bill Clinton was the first “baby boomer” to become president in 1993 and the day included a two-hour outdoor music concert with a bill that included Bob Dylan, Diana Ross, LL Cool J, Michael Bolton and Aretha Franklin. His procession also included an Elvis Presley impersonator on a float.
His second inauguration in 1997 was the first to be streamed live on the internet and the national anthem was sung by Santita Jackson, the daughter of civil rights leader Jesse Jackson. The ceremony was followed by 14 official galas.
George H W Bush pledged in his 1989 speech “a moment rich with promise” and his son George W Bush followed him in 2001. Meatloaf and Chuck Norris were among the Hollywood celebrities at the ceremony.
Singer Macy Gray sang at his second inaugural in 2005 where VIP guest packages could cost you up to $50,000. He said in his speech “we are ready for the greatest achievements in the history of freedom”.
Franklin D Roosevelt became president in 1933 during the Great Depression and nearly two inches of rain fell on Washington during his second inaugural speech in 1937 when he said “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself”.
He travelled to the White House with outgoing President Herbert Hoover for the two mile trip and they both wore the traditional top hat for the ceremony which attracted an estimated crowd of 150,000.
Meanwhile, bad weather proved the death of US president William Henry Harrison. The 68-year-old was the ninth US president and holds the record for the longest inaugural speech in history at nearly 8,500 words long.
He delivered his address in Ohio in the cold and pouring rain without a scarf or overcoat to protect him against the elements.
It took him nearly two hours to deliver his speech and he developed pneumonia. He died just 31 days later, becoming the shortest serving president in history and the first to die in office.