Quick Facts
Biography
Wayne Richard Grisham (January 10, 1923 – January 19, 2011) was a U.S. Representative from California.
Biography
Born in Lamar, Colorado, Grisham graduated from Jordan High School, Long Beach, California, 1940. A.A., Long Beach City College, Long Beach, California, 1947. B.A., Whittier College, Whittier, California, 1949. Graduate work, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California from 1950 to 1951. He was in the United States Army Air Forces, fighter pilot in the European Theater from 1942 to 1946. Shot down and was a prisoner of war. He was a teacher. He served as businessman. He served as president, Wayne Grisham Realty from 1958 to 1978. He served as chairman of the board of directors, First Mutual Mortgage Co. from 1974 to 1978. He served as member of La Mirada City Council from 1970 to 1978. He served as Mayor of La Mirada from 1973 to 1974 and 1977 to 1978. He served as delegate, California League of Cities and National League of Cities from 1970 to 1978.
Grisham was elected as a Republican to the Ninety-sixth, succeeding retiring incumbent Del Clawson, and to the succeeding Congress (January 3, 1979 – January 3, 1983).
He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination to the Ninety-eighth Congress in 1982, after redistricting combined his district with that of fellow Republican David Dreier.
He served as director of the Peace Corps in Nairobi, Kenya, 1983.
He was elected to the California State Assembly in 1984 and was reelected in 1986. In 1987, he ran for the California State Senate in a special election, but was defeated by Democratic Norwalk City Councilman Cecil Green. He was narrowly defeated for reelection to the state Assembly in 1988.
He was a resident of La Mirada, California.