Leslie Goddard to Portray Lady Bird Johnson

April 9 at 2 pm at the Geneseo Public Library​

Leslie Goddard portraying Lady Bird Johnson

The Geneseo Public Library is thrilled to welcome Leslie Goddard back for another presentation on April 9 at 2 pm.  Leslie is well known in this area.  She has just recently portrayed Lily Pulitzer and has done presentations for us on various other female personalities.

It’s 1969 and Lady Bird Johnson has returned to Texas at the end of her husband’s presidency.  As she welcomes visitors to her home, she reminisces about her years in Washington, the experiences that brought her to the White House, and how she forged her own path as an advocate for the environment, civil rights and her husband.

Lady Bird Johnson was born Claudia Alta Taylor on December 22, 1912 in Karnack, Texas in an antebellum plantation house. Opinions differ about whether the name Lady Bird refers to a bird or a ladybug.  The nickname virtually replaced her first name for the rest of her life. Her father and siblings called her Lady and her husband called her Bird, the name she used on her marriage license. As a teenager, some classmates called her Bird to provoke her since she reportedly was not fond of the name.

As first lady, she broke new ground by interacting directly with Congress, employing her press secretary and making a solo electioneering tour.  She advocated beautifying the nation’s cities and highways, saying “Where flowers bloom, so does hope” and “The environment is where we all meet, where we all have a mutual interest.”

The Highway Beautification Act was informally known as “Lady Bird’s Bill.”  She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977 and the Congressional Gold Medal in 1984, the highest honors bestowed upon a U.S. civilian. She has been consistently ranked in Siena College Research Institute surveys as one of the most highly regarded American first ladies per historians’ assessments.

Be sure to mark your calendar so you don’t miss Leslie Goddard’s portrayal of Lady Bird Johnson.