FDR: Our last president to wear a pinky ring. What a dude:

[Captain Hilts]

[agent46]

1. the cigarette holder

That was classic!

[tishaLA]

13. Cigarette holder which wigs me

Cigarette holder which wigs me
Over my shoulder, he digs me.
Out cattin' my satin doll.

Baby, shall we go out steppin'?
Careful, amigo, you're flippin',
Speaks Latin that satin doll.

He's nobody's fool so I'm playing it cool as can be.
I'll give it a whirl but I ain't for no boy catching me,
Switch-a-rooney!

Telephone numbers, well you know,
I'm doin' my rhumbas with uno
And that 'in my Satin Doll.

And now, ladies and gentlemen, the Queen: Ella: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DDyMe3T9LA

[Captain Hilts]

19. Ella was THE coolest woman of the 20th Century. FDR probably the coolest man. GREAT to

put her here. Katharine Hepburn comes close, but she didn't have to overcome nearly so much, which is a key to Ella.

[agent46]

32. A stellar talent

It doesn't get much cooler than that! And FDR...

It's all about the qualities in a person that express their unique greatness and their individual humanity. Our society doesn't seem to value such things much anymore.

[Captain Hilts]

30. He said his doctor told him to stay as far away from cigarettes as possible, hence, the holder.

The WH staff could determine his mood by the angle of the holder.

[Drunken Irishman]

2. FDR is the image you get when you think of the classic president.

Not the early presidents like Jackson and Cleveland - with the weird hair and beards. But the presidents that looked like presidents.

There haven't been many since Roosevelt. I don't think Truman looked very presidential. Kennedy looked presidential. Johnson didn't. Nixon didn't. Ford didn't. Reagan did. Bush Senior kind of did in the egg-head type way. Clinton not so much. Dubya didn't at all. Obama does, however. I think Pres. Obama looks very presidential in that classic sense.

[Art_from_Ark]

3. Neither Jackson nor Cleveland had a beard

Truman and Lyndon Johnson look "presidential enough" to me. And I thought that Reagan looked like a blubbering old fool.

[Captain Hilts]

4. I think Obama and Clinton and JFK all look too young. But the thing about FDR

is that he is so completely comfortable in his own skin.

He is what he is: a dude.

Whether he's in his bathing suit, an Indian head dress, or a rain-soaked suit. He is who he is and he's perfectly comfortable with that.

[Drunken Irishman]

6. FDR certainly looked comfortable.

And looked as if he enjoyed being president.

[Captain Hilts]

8. Yes. FDR, JFK, RR, and Clinton clearly enjoyed it. The others, not so much. nt

[Drunken Irishman]

5. Sorry. I meant Jackson with the hair.

You're right. Cleveland didn't have a beard. He had a stache.

[Captain Hilts]

7. You have a pretty narrow vision of what a president looks like, actually.

LBJ didn't but GHWB did?

Clinton doesn't but Kennedy does?

[Drunken Irishman]

9. I do.

Clinton didn't look presidential. He looked like a typical guy. That isn't a bad thing. Hell, I think it helped him. But he did not look very presidential to me.

Kennedy did. Kennedy was young, but Kennedy had that classic look with very strong features. He seemed at ease, but also very forceful.

Of course, it's all opinion.

Now GHWB I think he's the least presidential looking of those I listed who I thought were presidential. But like I said, I only put him as one because he had that egg-head look (which is funny, because he was far from being an egg-head). Of course, I might think that way because Bush was the first president I ever remember seeing on television.

[vaberella]

11. I love your responses. So forthright; kind of a, "Yeah and what of it!" response. n/t

[jefferson_dem]

16. I agree with all your cataloging. And...you know what concerns me...

Right out of central-fucking-casting:

[Captain Hilts]

28. Tall. Good voice. Looks good in a suit. Yes, he could be president. nt

[Drunken Irishman]

33. Yup. He certainly does look presidential. But, IMO, so did Kerry.

And that really didn't help him in 2004.

[rasputin1952]

17. FDR had a magnificent voice and timbre as well...

his timing was impeccable.

When I listen to some of his speeches, I feel like he's right there with me...he had an amazing charisma.

Other than Lincoln, he saw the nation through the worst crises and did it well. One of the great things about FDR...when something didn't work, he got others to try something different until something did work, he wasn't afraid to fail, and was open to ideas that others thought "wild". he got things accomplished by sheer will on occasions and had the ability to bring opposing forces together to bear on problems that faced the nation.

Even without the imposition of a presidential term limit...I cannot think of anyone that could possibly be elected to 4 terms as PotUS this day in age...that alone speaks volumes about the man.

He also had the intellect and capability to post people of incredible talent into key positions...George Marshall is a perfect example.

[Captain Hilts]

18. Yes - the voice is really important, especially with the advent of radio. STILL is.

This is still a hurdle female candidates have to surmount. There's a reason all those financial and insurance ads use male voices - people just don't respond to women's voices as having authority. I recently saw a discussion of PR folks discussing how when you are doing ads for female political candidates, you can't show as much footage of them speaking. People feel as though they're being lectured in elementary school and stuff like that.

The other key thing for FDR that separates him from ALL other presidents is this: the presidency can be liberating only for a crippled man. All others find it confining. Not so FDR. Suddenly he's got teams to carry him everywhere, build ramps, etc. It was a physically liberating existence for him.

George C. Marshall is MY guy! He actually was a true progressive and said that running the CCC was a vitally important experience to help prepare for WWII. Not a laugh in a truckload of Marshall, but he wasn't there to be charming.

[rasputin1952]

25. About Marshall...

he was the only one who didn't laugh when FDR cracked a joke...even if it was hysterically funny. FDR once told him that the reason he trusted marshall so much, was he knew he wasn't a toady, like so many others that were near the president.

The 2 people FDR could really trust were Marshall and Eleanor, and in that order.

Which brings up another exceptionally interesting aspect of the FDR presidency...Eleanor; what a phenomenal woman she was...:D

[mitchum]

34. Jackson had despicable policies, but the GREATEST hair of any president!

[FrenchieCat]

10. Smoking and drinking!

My how things have changed.....
including what a typical President looks like.

[krispos42]

12. Holy shit, those hearts are real!

I thought you were just playing around with your sigline, like some DUers did during name-change amnesty last year...

:wow:

[FrenchieCat]

14. Yep.....I"m heart Fat and Heavy......

Considering I had no funds to give this time round, (ask Skinner).
I was as surprised as you were, which is why I actually thank folks in my sig line....
but I guess DU folks, Well....they like me after all (a la Sallie Field)! :)

[Captain Hilts]

22. The typical president has a deep voice, is tall, wears a Brooks Brothers-type suit and has an Ivy

League Education and is a man.

[Jamastiene]

15. FDR was just plain cool.

:thumbsup:

[Captain Hilts]

20. And he knew it!

FDR: I'm cool!
ER: Yeah, yeah...say 'cheese'!

[Jamastiene]

23. I wish somebody would Photoshop the pic in the OP with

"Mr. Smoooooth" in lolcat font written out on top and FDR rocking it" across the bottom. Dude was just so cool. :headbang:

[Captain Hilts]

21. Wow. Folks have unrecommended this thread! I welcome their anger! nt

[Jamastiene]

24. I relish their hatred.

:headbang:

[Captain Hilts]

26. Back at you buddy!

[Ohio Metal]

27. The Dude Abides n/t

[PBS Poll-435]

29. K&R

Love ya, Mookie.

[Captain Hilts]

31. Back at you. You're my favorite Dallas resident!

[girl_interrupted]

35. K&R FDR was one of the best