Harry Thomason

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Harry Z. Thomason, (born 1940), is an American film and television producer and director best known for the television series Designing Women. Thomason and his wife Linda Bloodworth-Thomason are close friends of President Bill Clinton and U.S. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and played a major role in President Clinton's election campaigns.

Harry Z. Thomason was born in Hampton, Arkansas, the son of a Baptist deacon. He was a Little Rock, Arkansas high school speech teacher and football coach.

In 1983 Thomason and his wife formed Mozark Productions, the vehicle for several successful television series including Designing Women and Evening Shade.

Thomason was a close friend of Bill Clinton and produced the glowing biographical film The Man from Hope, the centerpiece of the 1992 Democratic National Convention. Thomason and his partner Darnell Martens provided charter air service for the Clinton campaign and served as an image consultant.

After Clinton was elected, Thomason became embroiled in the Travelgate scandal. His partner Martens reported that he had heard rumors that the White House Travel Office was corrupt and disloyal to the Clintons. This view of the Travel Office was compounded by a series of leaks at the White House unfavorable to the Clintons. Thomason began pressing Hillary Clinton to investigate the travel office. When the financial irregularities were discovered the White House called in the FBI. The resulting firings generated a great deal of negative press coverage and an investigation of the events surrounding it, including Thomason and Martens' air service.

Thomason served as co-chairman of the 1992 Presidential Inauguration Committee and once again worked as an image consultant at the beginning of the Lewinsky scandal. Thomason ended up testifying before the Lewinsky Grand Jury.