Frederick Thomas "Rick" Gray Jr. (born March 22, 1951) is an American politician, writer, actor, and former attorney and educator. Appointed by Governor John N. Dalton as

Secretary of the Commonwealth of Virginia __NOTOC__ The secretary of the Commonwealth is a member of the Virginia Governor's Cabinet. The office is currently held by secretary Kelly Gee. Duties of the secretary of the Commonwealth # Serving as the Keeper of the Flag and seal of Virginia, ...

in 1978, Gray resigned in 1981 in solidarity with jailed air traffic controllers that were on strike. Gray spent several decades in Virginia teaching, writing, and acting before moving to

Cannon Beach, Oregon Cannon Beach is a city in Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Its population was 1,690 at the 2010 census. It is a popular coastal Oregon tourist destination, famous for Haystack Rock, a sea stack that juts out along the coast. In 2013, '' ...

in 2018. He is currently running for the

Oregon House of Representatives The Oregon House of Representatives is the lower house of the Oregon Legislative Assembly, the upper house being the Oregon State Senate. There are 60 members of the House, representing 60 districts across the state, each with a population of ...

in the 32nd district.

Early life and education

Rick Gray was born in

Hopewell, Virginia Hopewell is an independent city (United States), independent city surrounded by Prince George County, Virginia, Prince George County and the Appomattox River in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. At the 202 ...

to Frederick T. Gray and Evelyn Helms Johnson Gray and grew up in the historic

Bermuda Hundred Bermuda Hundred was the first Hundred (county division), administrative division in the English overseas possessions, English colony of Virginia Colony, Virginia. It was founded by Sir Thomas Dale in 1613, six years after Jamestown, Virginia, ...

community in

Chesterfield County, Virginia Chesterfield County is a County (United States), county located just south of Richmond, Virginia, Richmond in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. The county's borders are primarily defined by the James River to the north an ...

. After graduating from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

and the

University of Virginia Law School The University of Virginia School of Law (Virginia Law) is the law school of the University of Virginia, a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819 as part of his "academical village", and now ...

, he practiced law at Williams, Mullen & Christian in

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

until his appointment as Secretary of the Commonwealth.

Secretary of the Commonwealth

Gray reformed Virginia's lobbyist disclosure rules by requiring disclosure of any entertainment costing more than $100, or any gifts which cost more than $5, despite pressure from lobbyists who had donated to Dalton's campaign for governor. Once considered a rising star in the

Virginia Republican Party The Republican Party of Virginia (RPV) is the Virginia chapter of the Republican Party. It is based at the Richard D. Obenshain Center in Richmond. As of May 2024, it controls all three statewide elected offices, 5 out of 11 U.S. House seats, a ...

, Gray opposed the nomination of

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...

as the

GOP The Republican Party, also known as the Grand Old Party (GOP), is a right-wing political party in the United States. One of the two major parties, it emerged as the main rival of the then-dominant Democratic Party in the 1850s, and the tw ...

candidate for president in 1980 and left the Republican Party rather than support Reagan. During the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization strike in 1981, Gray declined to fly in solidarity with jailed air traffic controllers, and subsequently resigned as Secretary of the Commonwealth as a result of the backlash from Virginia Republicans.

Teaching, acting, and writing career

Between 1982 and 2004 Gray taught history at Midlothian High School in Chesterfield County, William Monroe High School in

Greene County, Virginia Greene County is a county in Virginia in the eastern United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 20,552. Its county seat is Stanardsville. Greene County is part of the Charlottesville, VA Metropolitan Statistical Area. In rec ...

, and the Appomattox Regional Governor's School in

Petersburg, Virginia Petersburg is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 33,458 with a majority bla ...

. He also began drama acting, including a UVA Drama production of ''Much Ado About Nothing'' with students

Tina Fey Elizabeth Stamatina "Tina" Fey (; born May 18, 1970) is an American actress, comedian, writer, and producer. Known for her comedic roles in sketch comedy, television and film, Fey has received List of awards and nominations received by Tina Fe ...

and

Sean Patrick Thomas Sean Patrick Thomas is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Derek Reynolds in the 2001 film '' Save the Last Dance'' and as Jimmy James in '' Barbershop'' (2002), '' Barbershop 2: Back in Business'' (2004), and '' Barbershop: The N ...

. Gray later performed with the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, the Virginia Shakespeare Festival, and Richmond Shakespeare. Gray also wrote columns for the Chester, Virginia ''Village News'' and the ''

Style Weekly ''Style Weekly'' is an online alternative media outlet that was previously an alternative weekly newspaper started in November 1982 for news, arts, culture and opinion in Richmond, Virginia. History ''Style'' was originally owned by Landmark ...

'' in Richmond. He continued to act and write after moving to

Staunton, Virginia Staunton ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 25,750. In Virginia, independent cities a ...

in 2012 and finally to Cannon Beach in 2018.

Candidate for the Oregon House of Representatives

Gray ran as an independent in

Oregon's 32nd House district District 32 of the Oregon House of Representatives is one of 60 House legislative districts in the state of Oregon. As of 2021, the boundary for the district contains all of Clatsop County, Oregon, Clatsop and Tillamook County, Oregon, Tillamook ...

in the November 2022 general election.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gray, Frederick T., Jr. American columnists University of Virginia School of Law alumni Male actors from Virginia 1951 births Living people American male Shakespearean actors American male stage actors Virginia lawyers Virginia Republicans 20th-century American lawyers Oregon independents 20th-century American educators People from Clatsop County, Oregon People from Staunton, Virginia People from Hopewell, Virginia Schoolteachers from Virginia 21st-century American journalists American male journalists 20th-century American journalists 20th-century Virginia politicians