Wes Wise (1929–2022)

We are sorry to learn of the passing of former Dallas mayor Wes Wise at the age of 94. In 1963, Wise was a broadcaster with local CBS affiliate KRLD-TV as well as president of the Dallas Press Club. In October of that year, Wise captured on film the accosting of U.N. Ambassador Adlai Stevenson in Dallas. And after covering President Kennedy’s fateful visit to the city on November 22, 1963, Wise briefly spoke with a distraught Jack Ruby in Dealey Plaza the following day. More than twenty-five years later, Wise became an early supporter of The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. From 1992 to 1997, he was a consultant and interviewer for the Museum’s newly-launched Oral History Project; Wise conducted video interviews with a number of notable community leaders including Erik Jonsson, Stanley Marcus, John Stemmons and Tom Landry. Wise also recorded two oral histories himself and participated in several public programs at the Museum, often joining his KRLD co-authors to discuss their book, When the News Went Live: Dallas 1963 (2004). Wise was a longtime friend of our institution, and he will be truly missed. Our sincere condolences to his family and friends.


A 2013 panel discussion with the When the News Went Live authors may be viewed here.