Reagan to Hold 48th--and Last--Press Parley

President Reagan will hold a prime-time news conference at 5 p.m. PST Thursday, his first formal question-and-answer session in nearly six months and the 48th of his presidency, the White House announced today.

The press session, to be held in the East Room of the White House, will come a day after Reagan’s meeting in New York with Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev, and will likely be Reagan’s last such formal news conference before he leaves office Jan. 20, spokesman Marlin Fitzwater said.