President’s son gives lessons on A.I.D.S.

Press, 15 July 1987, Page 12

President’s son gives lessons on A.I.D.S.

NZPA-Reuter Los Angeles The son of the President of the United States stands before a television camera holding a condom.

“The scene is frank. It is part of a film that is very frank and very explicit. But A.LD.S. is a life and death issue,” said Ronald Reagan, aged 26, son of the President.

Mr Reagan, a ballet dancer turned television reporter, has given his time free to the making of a film on A.LD.S. which he hopes will help shock the American public into trying to protect itself from the disease.

“My wife and I have lost about a dozen friends to A.I.D.S. and this seemed a decent way to serve their memory," Mr Reagan told Reuters. “I hold up a condom and tell the audience what it is.”

In one segment of the 27-minute documentary, he criticises the United States Government for not doing enough to fight A.I.D.S.

“Write to your congressman,” he says, “or someone higher up.” “I hope the film, which is entitled ‘A.I.D.S.: Chang-

ing the Rules’ and was produced by a non-profit organisation, will be seen,” he said. “The film has only just been completed and there is no way of knowing whether it will get on the air.”

The film, which will be offered to television stations and available in video cassette, is part of a renewed effort by the entertainment industry to halt the spread of acquired immune deficiency syndrome. In the film “Dragnet,” the actor,? Tom Hanks, reaches for a box of condoms as he is about to take a lady to bed. He discovers the box is empty and calls off the lovemaking. James Bond, played by Timothy Dalton, has to make do with just one girlfriend instead of his usual three in the movie “The Living Daylights.”

“Indiscriminate sex is out,” the Bond scriptwriter, Richard Maibaum, said. “It is just the sensible and responsible thing to do in reflecting the world round us.”

Mr Reagan said that he had discussed the A.LD.S. issue with both his mother and father. “I let them know I was

going to make a film. My father has not seen it, but both my parents are supportive of what I do,” he said.

“There is a whole bunch of people in Washington who are not doing enough to combat A.1.D.5.,” he said.

Wearing an old pair of jeans, a khaki shirt and sneakers without socks, Mr Reagan sat relaxed, curled up on a hotel sofa. "In the film, Beverly Johnson, the model, talks very frankly about the sexual practices that could lead to A.1.D.5.,” he said.

“You see A.I.D.S. victims who are in an advanced state of the disease, and that is mot a pretty sight.

“But we wanted the film to give a powerful message. When I was asked to take part in it, I didn’t need a second to say yes.” He said: “A.LD.S. is, for whatever reason, a controversial subject. But when I take part in a film on the matter, it becomes a little more controversial. , 1 “The fact that lam my father’s son made the producers think it would draw more attention to the film.”