Born: December 6, 1918
Murfreesboro, Tennessee

Died: August 15, 2009
Santiago, Chile

Malcolm Richard Wilkey

Judge, U. S. Court of Appeals for District of Columbia Circuit. Nominated by Richard M. Nixon on February 16, 1970, to a seat vacated by Warren E. Burger; Confirmed by the Senate on February 24, 1970, and received commission on February 25, 1970. Assumed senior status on December 6, 1984. Service terminated on November 8, 1985, due to retirement.

Harvard University, A.B., 1940
Harvard Law School, LL.B., 1948

Portrait Ceremony
Transcript of ceremony: December 17, 1992

Frame Dimensions
Oil on canvas 40″ X 36″

Artist
Herbert E. Abrams (1921 – 2003) was a portrait artist who painted a number of dignitaries including President Jimmy Carter, President George H. W. Bush, and General William C. Westmoreland, the first prominent official he painted. He also painted the portrait of First Lady Barbara Bush. His portrait of Arthur Miller hangs in the National Gallery. Mr. Abrams has painted over 200 portraits which have been displayed not only in the nation’s capital but also in state houses, courthouses, museums, and medical schools around the country.

Mr. Abrams lived in Warren, Connecticut. Since he never knew which days would be his most productive, he went to his studio each morning to paint. He used light in an effort to bring his subjects to life. He is quoted as saying, “I live in the pursuit of light.” For Mr. Abrams, a subject’s eyes were often the focal point of a portrait: “There is so much variety in the eyes that they reveal a good deal.”

Professional Career:

U.S. Army Major, 1941-1945
U.S. Army Reserve Lieutenant Colonel, 1946-1953
Private practice, Texas, 1948-1954
Instructor, University of Houston School of Law, 1949-1954
U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas, 1954-1958
Assistant attorney general, Office of Legal Affairs, U.S. Department of Justice, 1958-1959
Assistant attorney general, Criminal Division, U.S. Dept. of Justice, 1959-1961
Private practice, Texas, 1961-1963
General counsel and secretary, Kennecott Copper Corporation, 1963-1970
U.S. Ambassador to Uruguay, 1985-1990

Judges of the D.C. Circuit Courts