Don Conway Wright (born January 23, 1934) is an American

editorial cartoonist An editorial cartoonist, also known as a political cartoonist, is an artist who draws editorial cartoons that contain some level of political or social commentary. Their cartoons are used to convey and question an aspect of daily news or curren ...

. He is the winner of two

Pulitzer Prizes The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made hi ...

, having received one in 1966 and a second in 1980.

Biography

Born on January 23, 1934 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, California. When he was a child Wright and his family moved across the United States, to

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. Wright graduated from Miami Edison High School in 1952. He had a job as a copyboy at the

Miami News ''The Miami News'' was an evening newspaper in Miami, Florida. It was the media market competitor to the morning edition of the '' Miami Herald'' for most of the 20th century. The paper started publishing in May 1896 as a weekly called ''The Miami ...

, from 1952 to 1956, which gave Wright his avid interest in

cartoons A cartoon is a type of visual art that is typically drawn, frequently animated, in an unrealistic or semi-realistic style. The specific meaning has evolved over time, but the modern usage usually refers to either: an image or series of images ...

.Don Wright Papers
Syracuse University, 8 Jan 2010, Retrieved 9/16/2010

Career

While the Miami News refused to give Wright a job in the art department, in case he was drafted in the war, the newspaper did give him a job as a photographer. Shortly after, Wright was drafted and served in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

as a photographer, before returning to the Miami News as its graphics editor in 1958. Shortly after rejoining the

, Wright resigned. Not wishing to lose Wright, the Miami News offered to publish some of his cartoons. By 1963, Wright's editorial cartoons, on local issues, were regular features on the newspaper's editorial page. While at ''The Miami News'', Wright frequently played pranks on other reporters, particularly humorous columnist

John Keasler John Irvin Keasler (August 3, 1921 – September 5, 1995) was an American newspaper columnist for ''The Miami News'', which folded in 1988. Keasler grew up in Plant City, Florida, which is 26 miles east of Tampa. He got his start in journalism wit ...

. Wright's colleagues returned the favor. Wright would toss his keys on his desk when he came in each evening. When Wright would leave his office for lunch or the restroom, they would slip an extra key on the keyring. After a while, the keyring grew so heavy that Wright swore and exclaimed, "What the hell! I don't even know what some of these keys are for!". Wright continued to work for ''The Miami News'' until it ceased publication in 1988. In 1989, Wright moved to ''

The Palm Beach Post ''The Palm Beach Post'' is an American daily newspaper serving Palm Beach County in South Florida, and parts of the Treasure Coast. On March 18, 2018, in a deal worth US$42.35 million, ''The Palm Beach Post'' and ''The Palm Beach Daily News'' we ...

'' where he worked until his retirement in August 2008. Wright's work has been syndicated by both the ''Washington (DC) Star'' and ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. As of 2012, Wright continues to draw editorial cartoons distributed by Tribune Media Services.

Books

His cartoons have been published in at least two books: ''Wright On! A Collection of Political Cartoons'' (1971) and ''Wright Side Up'' (1981).

Awards

Wright received the

Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning The Pulitzer Prize for Illustrated Reporting and Commentary is one of the fourteen Pulitzer Prizes that is annually awarded for journalism in the United States. It is the successor to the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning awarded from 1922 t ...

in 1966, for his cartoon "You Mean You Were Bluffing?", and another in 1980. Wright won the

National Cartoonist Society The National Cartoonists Society (NCS) is an organization of professional cartoonists in the United States. It presents the National Cartoonists Society Awards. The Society was born in 1946 when groups of cartoonists got together to entertain the ...

Editorial Cartoon Award for 1985. He has won the

Sigma Delta Chi Award The Sigma Delta Chi Awards are presented annually by the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) (formerly Sigma Delta Chi) for excellence in journalism. The SPJ states the purpose of the award is to promote "the free flow of information vital ...

for Distinguished Service in Journalism twice. He has also won the Inter American Press Award three times, the

Overseas Press Club The Overseas Press Club of America (OPC) was founded in 1939 in New York City by a group of foreign correspondents. The wire service reporter Carol Weld was a founding member, as was the war correspondent Peggy Hull. The club seeks to maintain ...

Award five times, the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Journalism Award twice, the National Headliner Award and the Best of Cox Award twice.Palm Beach Post
2010, Retrieved 9/16/2010

Notes

References

Brief biography of Don Wright
- URL retrieved August 9, 2008

External links

* accessed 7 April 2009. * accessed 7 April 2009.

at Syracuse University (primary source material) {{DEFAULTSORT:Wright, Don American editorial cartoonists Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning winners 1934 births Living people