Reagan's diaries published for 'history'

LOS ANGELES, June 1 (UPI) -- Former first lady Nancy Reagan said she published her late husband's diaries so readers could learn more about the former U.S. president.

"The Reagan Diaries," edited by historian Douglas Brinkley, are being published three years after Ronald Reagan's death, CNN reported Friday.

"I just thought that there was so much in this diary that people didn't know about Ronnie, and that they really should know about Ronnie," she told CNN's "Larry King Live" in an interview broadcast Thursday.

"And for history's sake, it's so important," she said.

"He did not write it for history," Nancy Reagan said. "He wrote it for himself. As a matter of fact, he used all the material that was in the diary to write his autobiography. It would remind him of things."

Reagan said one thing most people do not know about her late husband is that he prayed for John Hinckley, the man who attempted to assassinate him in 1981.

"As I remember, he said, 'I can't ask for God to look after me if I am not ready to forgive this man,'" Nancy Reagan said.