Jack Ryan (fictional character)

:This page is about the fictional character; for other uses, see Jack Ryan

Brief Biographical Information

According to information found in the books, films, and extra canon information from Tom Clancy himself, a brief biography of Jack Ryan can be assembled. Ryan was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of a Baltimore police detective. After attending high school, Jack earned a degree in Economics from Boston College and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps via the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC). (This differs from the film Hunt for Red October, which states he is a 1973 graduate of the Naval Academy.)

Related Topics:
Canon - Baltimore, Maryland - High school - Economics - Boston College - Second Lieutenant - United States Marine Corps - Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps - Hunt for Red October - Naval Academy

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Ryan left the Marines after being seriously injured in a helicopter accident off the coast of Crete. He then briefly worked as a stockbroker for Merrill Lynch. He was very successful earning approximately US$6 million, but Jack found the work unsatisfying. While there, he met his future wife Cathy Muller, a medical student and daughter of a senior company executive.

Related Topics:
Helicopter - Crete - Merrill Lynch

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Ryan left Merrill Lynch and earned a Ph.D. in history from Georgetown University. While at Georgetown, he briefly worked at the university's Center for Strategic and International Studies there he caught the attention of Father Tim Riley, who passed his name on to an acquaintance at the CIA. He chose to become an author and accepted a position as a history teacher at the United States Naval Academy.

Related Topics:
Ph.D. - Georgetown University - CIA - United States Naval Academy

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He also began working as a CIA analyst in the early 1980s (depicted in the chronologically early book of the series, Red Rabbit) as an expert on the Soviet political bureau (Politburo). During his tenure at the CIA, Ryan helped a Soviet missile submarine captain defect (Marko Ramius in The Hunt for Red October). Eventually, Ryan earned the trust of high Administration officials and progressed to Deputy Director of the CIA, and thence to the position of National Security Advisor. In Debt of Honor, Ryan was named as Vice President of the United States. He later became President after a terrorist attack killed the incumbent (Executive Orders).

Related Topics:
CIA - 1980s - Red Rabbit - Soviet - Politburo - The Hunt for Red October - Deputy Director - National Security Advisor - Debt of Honor - Vice President of the United States - President - Executive Orders

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Ryan married Caroline (Cathy) Muller, a prominent eye surgeon. The couple have four children: Olivia (Sally), John (Jack Junior), Katie, and Kyle Daniel. Ryan was invested as a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order by Queen Elizabeth II for his role in preventing the abduction and assassination of the Prince and Princess of Wales (Charles and Diana, although never actually named as such in the novels). The abduction was related to IRA terrorist attacks during the Irish Troubles in the late 1980s (Patriot Games).

Related Topics:
Royal Victorian Order - Elizabeth II - Charles - Diana - IRA - Irish Troubles - Patriot Games

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Jack Junior has become one of the leading characters in the newest Clancy novels. In The Teeth of the Tiger, he appears as an analyst for a private anti-terrorist organization along with his cousins, Brian and Dominick Caruso. Brian is a United States Marine and Dominick is an FBI agent. The three are recruited separately for the organization. This provides Clancy with a way of prolonging the Jack Ryan franchise without promoting him further, although by this time the only promotion left was, as critics liked to jokingly point out, the Pope. Though, considering Ryan's dedication to public service and his penchant for breaking with tradition, some have speculated that he could become the first American United Nations secretary-general.

Related Topics:
The Teeth of the Tiger - United States Marine - FBI - Pope - United Nations

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