Ross Perot

In 1992, he split from the Republican Party to create the Reform Party.

Inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in 1985.

Was lampooned on the US children's show Song of the Cloud Forest (1969) in the form of a bird puppet named "H. Ross Parrot".

In 1962, Perot started his own business, Electronic Data Systems, with money given to him by his wife. Today, the company is worth billions of dollars and has more than 70,000 employees. Perot has worked closely with the U. S. government over the past three decades, helping to conduct several rescue missions and prisoner negations with foreign nationals.

In 1957, he was honorably discharged from the Navy and started to work for IBM as a salesman.

In 1956, Perot married Margot Birmingham.

Upon his graduation in 1953, he was commissioned as a Naval officer and served on a destroyer and aircraft during the Korean War for four years.

In 1949, Perot was admitted to the United States Naval Academy (serving in several positions, including class president).

He made Eagle Scout in 1943, and was a recipient of the distinguished Eagle Scout Award.

Changed his birth name from Henry Ray Perot to Henry Ross Perot in 1940, to honor his brother, Gabriel Ross Perot Jr. (His brother died in 1927, aged 3 years old.).

Perot was born on June 27, 1930, in Texarkana, Texas, to an impoverished family. He was the son of Lula May (Ray), a secretary, and Gabriel Ross Perot, who worked in cotton contracts. He started working various odd jobs at age seven.