A Time for Choosing - wikipedia A Time for Choosing A '' Time for Choosing Speech '' Play media In support of Goldwater, Reagan delivers the address, A Time for Choosing. The speech launches Reagan to national prominence. Date October 27, 1964 ( 1964 - 10 - 27 ) Duration 29 : 33 Location Los Angeles County, California, U.S. Also known as `` The Speech '' Type Televised campaign speech Participants Ronald Reagan Website Video clip, audio, transcript This article is part of a series about Ronald Reagan Electoral history Political positions Early life Career Films Public image Governor of California Governorship 1976 General election Primaries Convention 40th President of the United States Presidency Timeline Policies Domestic Reaganomics Foreign Reagan Doctrine International trips Appointments Cabinet Judicial appointments First Term Campaign for the Presidency 1980 general election Primaries Convention 1st inauguration Assassination attempt Invasion of Grenada Cold War Second Term Re-election campaign 1984 general election Primaries Convention 2nd inauguration Cold War Libya bombing Challenger disaster Iran -- Contra affair `` Tear down this wall ! '' INF Treaty Post-Presidency Presidential Library Medal of Freedom Bibliography An American Life The Reagan Diaries Alzheimer 's diagnosis State funeral Legacy Speeches and debates `` A Time for Choosing '' Reagan Era Reagan Award `` A Time for Choosing '', also known as `` The Speech '', was a speech presented during the 1964 U.S. presidential election campaign by future president Ronald Reagan on behalf of Republican candidate Barry Goldwater. The speech launched Reagan into national prominence. Contents 1 Background 2 Aftermath 3 References 4 Further reading 5 External links Background Many versions of the speech exist, since it was altered over many weeks. Contrary to popular belief, however, the speech was not given at the 1964 Republican National Convention in San Francisco, California as a nomination speech for presidential candidate Senator Barry Goldwater ; Richard Nixon gave that nomination speech. Reagan, though he campaigned for Goldwater, did not use `` A Time for Choosing '' until October 27, 1964, when it was part of a pre-recorded television program, Rendezvous with Destiny. In his autobiography, An American Life, Reagan recalled going to bed that night `` hoping I had n't let Barry down. '' Speaking for Goldwater, Reagan stressed his belief in the importance of smaller government. In the speech, he revealed his ideological motivation : `` The Founding Fathers knew a government ca n't control the economy without controlling people. And they knew when a government sets out to do that, it must use force and coercion to achieve its purpose. So we have come to a time for choosing. '' He also said, `` You and I are told we must choose between a left or right, but I suggest there is no such thing as a left or right. There is only an up or down. Up to man 's age - old dream -- the maximum of individual freedom consistent with law and order -- or down to the ant heap of totalitarianism. '' The speech raised $1 million for Goldwater 's campaign, and is considered the event that launched Reagan 's political career. Aftermath To this day, `` The Speech '' is considered one of the most effective ever made on behalf of a candidate. Nevertheless, Barry Goldwater lost the election by one of the largest margins in history. Soon afterwards, Reagan was asked to run for Governor of California ; he ran for office and won election in 1966. Reagan was later dubbed the `` Great Communicator '' in recognition of his effective oratory skills. References Jump up ^ Reagan, Ronald ( 1990 ). An American Life : The Autobiography. New York City : Simon & Schuster. p. 143. ISBN 0671691988. Retrieved 31 March 2014. When it was over, the others in the room said I had done well. But I was still nervous about it and, when I went to bed, I was hoping I had n't let Barry down ^ Jump up to : `` A Time for Choosing ''. PBS. Retrieved April 17, 2007. Jump up ^ Richard A. Harris, Daniel J. Tichenor. A History of the U.S. Political System : Ideas, Interests, and Institutions, Volume 1. Santa Barbara, California : ABC - CLIO, 2009. p. 384 Jump up ^ Cannon, Lou ( June 6, 2004 ). `` Actor, Governor, President, Icon ''. The Washington Post. p. A01. Retrieved January 26, 2008. Jump up ^ Cannon ( 2001 ), p. 36 Jump up ^ Peter Schweizer ; Wynton C. Hall ( 2007 ). Landmark Speeches of the American Conservative Movement. Texas A&M University Press. p. 42. Retrieved April 26, 2012. Further reading Bimes, Terri. `` Ronald Reagan and the New Conservative Populism. '' ( Institute of Governmental Studies, 2002 ). online Friedenberg, Robert V. ( 2002 ). Notable Speeches in Contemporary Presidential Campaigns. Greenwood. pp. 143ff. Kiewe, Amos, Davis W. Houck, and Davis L. Houck. A shining city on a hill : Ronald Reagan 's economic rhetoric, 1951 -- 1989 ( Greenwood, 1991 ) Perlstein, Rick ( 2009 ). Before the Storm : Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus. Nation Books. pp. 509ff. Ritter, Kurt W. `` Ronald Reagan and ' the speech ' : The rhetoric of public relations politics. '' Western Journal of Communication ( 1968 ) 32 # 1 pp. 50 -- 58 External links Wikisource has original text related to this article : A Time for Choosing Ronald Reagan, `` A time for choosing '' ( 1964 ) Online Transcript, audio, and video of the broadcast Analysis of `` The Speech '', The History Channel Ronald Reagan 40th President of the United States ( 1981 -- 1989 ) 33rd Governor of California ( 1967 -- 1975 ) Life and politics Birthplace Pitney Store Boyhood home Rancho del Cielo Filmography Presidential Library Death and state funeral Political positions Governship of California Namesakes and memorials Presidency First inauguration Second inauguration Domestic policy Economic policy Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 Tax Reform Act of 1986 Assassination attempt Strategic Defense Initiative Foreign policy Reagan Doctrine Cold War 1st term 2nd term 1985 Geneva Summit 1986 Reykjavík Summit INF Treaty 1987 Washington Summit 1988 Moscow Summit Invasion of Grenada Iran -- Contra affair International trips The Grace Commission Cabinet Federal judicial appointments Supreme Court controversies Administration scandals `` We begin bombing in five minutes '' Speeches Ronald Reagan Speaks Out Against Socialized Medicine `` A Time for Choosing '' Reagan 's Neshoba County Fair `` states ' rights '' speech First inaugural address Second inaugural address `` Ash heap of history '' `` Evil empire '' `` Tear down this wall ! '' State of the Union : 1982 1984 1985 1986 Books Where 's the Rest of Me ? ( 1965 autobiography ) ( with Richard G. Hubler ) An American Life ( 1990 autobiography ) ( with Robert Lindsey ) The Reagan Diaries ( 2007 ) ( edited by Douglas Brinkley ) Elections California gubernatorial election, 1966 1970 Republican Party presidential primaries, 1968 1976 1980 1984 Republican National Convention 1968 1976 1980 1984 Ronald Reagan presidential campaign, 1980 `` There you go again '' `` Make America Great Again '' United States presidential election, 1976 1980 1984 `` Morning in America '' `` Bear in the woods '' Popular culture In fiction In music U.S. Postage stamps The Day Reagan Was Shot ( 2001 film ) The Reagans ( 2003 film ) Reagan ( 2011 documentary ) The Butler ( 2013 film ) Killing Reagan ( 2016 film ) `` What would Reagan do ? '' Family Jack Reagan ( father ) Nelle Wilson Reagan ( mother ) Neil Reagan ( brother ) Jane Wyman ( first wife ) Nancy Reagan ( second wife ) Maureen Reagan ( daughter ) Michael Reagan ( adopted son ) Patti Davis ( daughter ) Ron Reagan ( son ) Rex ( dog ) ← Jimmy Carter George H.W. Bush → Book Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=A_Time_for_Choosing&oldid=805876525 '' Categories : Speeches by Ronald Reagan 1964 speeches United States presidential election, 1964 Hidden categories : All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from March 2016 Articles containing video clips Talk Contents About Wikipedia Deutsch עברית Português Scots Simple English Edit links This page was last edited on 18 October 2017, at 05 : 38. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. 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Question: where was a time for choosing speech given
Answer: Los Angeles County, California, U.S.; Los Angeles County, California, U.S.; part of a pre-recorded television program, Rendezvous with Destiny