Guide Note:Barbara Bush was the First Lady of the United States from 1989-1983, and the mother of President and former Texas governor George W. Bush, as well as former Florida governor Jeb Bush. She was raised in Rye, New York. Her father, Marvin Pierce, was the president of the McCall Corporation, which publishes Redbook and McCall's. The Pierce's were related to former president Franklin Pierce; Barbara's great-great grandfather, James, was his fourth cousin. While First Lady, Mrs. Bush worked with the White House Historical Association, raising $25 million for the White House Endowment Fund. She was also very active in literacy issues, and has since founded the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy, to continue her work. Since leaving the White House, she has also engendered a fair share of controversy, by making comments that seemed frivolous about topics such as television news coverage of the Iraq War and the refugees from Hurricane Katrina. Its been reported that Ellen Burstyn will play her in the upcoming Oliver Stone movie Bush.

Fast Facts:

Full name: Barbara Pierce Bush
Resides: Houston, Texas and Kennebunkport, Maine
Born: June 8, 1925
Birthplace: Flushing, Queens, New York City
Parents: Pauline Robinson and Marvin Pierce
Attended: Smith College, but did not graduate
Married: George H. W. Bush, 1945
Children:
1. George W. Bush, 1946
2. Pauline Robinson "Robin" Bush, 1949-1953
3. John Ellis "Jeb" Bush, 1953
4. Neil Mallon Bush, 1955
5. Marvin Pierce Bush, 1956
6. Dorothy Bush Koch, 1959

Quotes:

1984, regarding Geraldine Ferrarro: "I can't say it, but it rhymes with rich"
2003, on Good Morning America, about television news: "I watch none. He [former President Bush] sits and listens and I read books, because I know perfectly well that, don't take offense, that 90 percent of what I hear on television is supposition, when we're talking about the news. And he's not, not as understanding of my pettiness about that. But why should we hear about body bags and deaths, and how many, what day it's gonna happen, and how many this or that or what do you suppose? Or, I mean, it's not relevant. So, why should I waste my beautiful mind on something like that, and watch him suffer."

Categories

History | First Ladies | Politics | Political Spouses

View Note History

Barbara Bush

The Mahalo Top 7

Official Site: The Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy
The White House: Barbara Pierce Bush
Wikipedia: Barbara Bush
National First Ladies' Library: Barbara Bush
American Rhetoric: Barbara Bush -- 1990 Wellesley College Commencement Address
George Bush Presidential Library and Museum: Biography of Barbara Pierce Bush
Google Video: Barbara Bush on Charlie Rose: September 13, 1994 (Time: 56:54)

Barbara Bush Background and Profiles

Literacy

Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy: Lessons Learned
KUHF (Houston, TX): Barbara Bush Speaks on Literacy(March 3, 2008)
The New York Times: Barbara Bush Announces Formation of Literacy Foundation (March 7, 1989)

Iraq War Comments

Snopes.com: Barbara Bush 'Beautiful Mind' Quote(August 20, 2005)
CommonDreams.org: Her Beautiful Mind (April 29, 2004)
The New York Times: The Spoils of War Coverage (April 13, 2003)

Katrina Controversy

Houston Chronicle: Katrina Funds Earmarked to Pay for Neil Bush's Software... (March 23, 2006)
Editor & Publisher: Barbara Bush: Things Working Out 'Very Well' For... (September 5, 2005)
The New York Times: Barbara Bush Calls Evacuees Better Off (September 7, 2005)

Barbara Bush Images and Media

Google Images: Barbara Bush Photos
Yahoo! Images: Barbara Bush Photos
Google Video: Barbara Bush Videos

Barbara Bush Books and Research

Amazon.com: Barbara Bush Books
Google Books: Barbara Bush: A Memoir
Google Books: Barbara Bush Books

Barbara Bush Blogs and Message Boards

Cinematical: Oliver Stone Casts Dubya's Parents (March 27, 2008)
The Postnational Monitor: If Being First Lady Makes One Experienced Then... (March 22, 2008)
FromTheLeftSideofMyBrain: Barbara Bush’s MOST Embarrassing Moment (December 12, 2007)

Barbara Bush Timeline

1925: Born on June 8, 1925 in Flushing, Queens, New York City
1945: Marries George H. W. Bush
1949: Her mother, Pauline Pierce, dies in a car accident
1953: Her daughter, Robin, dies of leukemia
1981-1989: Second Lady of the United States, in the administration of Ronald Reagan
1989-1993: First Lady of the United States

Barbara Bush Satire and Humor

Internet Weekly: Ma Bush's Killer Brood
Humor Database: Barbara Bush's View of Harriet Miers

Related Searches

George H. W. Bush | George W. Bush | Laura Bush | Jenna Bush

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