Topic: Jim Wright

James Claudette Wright, Jr. (born December 22, 1922), usually known as Jim Wright, is a former Democratic U.S. Congressman from Texas who served 34 years in the U.S. House of Representatives and was the Speaker of the House from 1987 to 1989.

Wright was born in Fort Worth, Texas. He attended Fort Worth and Dallas public schools, eventually graduating from Oak Cliff High School, then studied at Weatherford College and the University of Texas at Austin. In December 1941 he enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces, and after training was commissioned as a U.S. Army Air Forces 2nd Lt. as a bombardier in 1942. He earned a Distinguished Flying Cross flying combat with the 380th Bomb Group (Heavy) in the South Pacific during World War II. His retelling of his wartime exploits is contained in his 2005 book The Flying Circus: Pacific War — 1943 — As Seen through A Bombsight.

After the war, he made his home in Weatherford, Texas where he joined partners in forming a Trade Show exhibition and marketing firm. He also joined the Democratic Party. In 1946 he won his first election, to the Texas State House of Representatives, where he served from 1947 to 1949. He was Mayor of Weatherford from 1950 to 1954, serving as President of the League of Texas Municipalities in 1953.