UTPB is honoring Darryl James as our hometown hero at the UTPB Football game on Saturday, Sep. 21.
From flying helicopters in Vietnam to building a successful career as a petroleum geologist, James' journey shows the power of hard work. Now an accomplished author, his story continues to inspire our community.
Darryl James Bio
Darryl James attended Rutgers University and received a BS and MS in Planetary Sciences. He supported himself through six years of college with a state scholarship and playing guitar in a rock band on weekends. At Rutgers, he joined Army ROTC and was commissioned a second lieutenant.
After graduation, Darryl entered the Army at Ft. Knox, Kentucky, and became a tank platoon leader. Three months later, he entered primary helicopter flight school at Ft. Wolters, Texas, and advanced training at Ft. Rucker, Alabama. Ten months later, he began a tour in Vietnam, flying a scout helicopter with the Americal Division. Darryl flew various missions, including convoy cover, liaison, scouting, and aerial observation.
After Vietnam, he returned to Fort Wolters and served on the colonel's staff. The Army's Armor Branch urged him to apply to become a scientist/astronaut in the Apollo Program. The Army sought company-grade officers who were rotary-wing-qualified with a master's degree in science (preferably geology). He filled out the application and became a 10-minute celebrity at Fort Wolters. A few months passed, and the Army didn't give him definitive status on his astronaut application. Darryl was due to be discharged and had to make a decision. He elected to accept a job offer as a petroleum geologist with Exxon in New Orleans and was honorably discharged as a captain in June 1970.
After three years in New Orleans, Exxon transferred him to Midland, Texas, and later to Stavanger, Norway. Returning to Midland in 1977, Southland Royalty Company recruited him, and he became their District Geological Manager. That year at Southland's office, Darryl met a Texas Tech sophomore working during her Christmas vacation in their geologic file room. When she graduated, he married that sweetheart. Her name is Lynn, and they will be married 45 years in May.
Soon after getting married, Meridian Oil acquired Southland in a hostile takeover and promoted him to Regional Exploration VP. In '90, Meridian (now Burlington Resources) offered him a transfer to Houston. He declined, became an independent geologist/engineering petroleum consultant, and worked for Oddesa Exploration and H. L. Brown for several years. Later, he became a partner in a new company, Tall City Exploration. They sold their company in 2015.
Darryl and Lynn have three children. Their oldest daughter, Tiffany, and husband, Mike, own Nessie, a UK-based company specializing in software development and programs for dyslexic children. Their daughter, Becky, and her husband, Matt, are surgeons in Midland. Their son, Tim, is an engineer with a startup space company in Midland.
Darryl, retired, is now an author. He has 12 published fiction and nonfiction books, plus several short stories.
