Green’s Dictionary of Slang

(orig. US) often used ironically, a clever person, a ‘know-it-all’.

1899		W.J. Kountz Billy Baxter’s Letters 16: You know me, Jim; I am one of those bright lights who tries to keep up with a lot of guys who have nothing to do but blow their coin.
1913–14		Van Loan ‘Out of His Class’ in Taking the Count 200: Arthur snorted with disgust. ‘You’re a bright boy, you are!’.
1926		‘Sapper’ Final Count 817: He was one of mother nature’s bright boys, wasn’t he?
1934		H. Roth Call It Sleep (1977) 306: Go right in, my bright.
1936		‘Josephine Tey’ Shilling for Candles 22: And in all civilisation only one person said, ‘Who is Christine Clay?’—a bright young man at a Bloomsbury party.
1949		R. Chandler Little Sister 61: A bright boy doesn’t lay open that easy.
1959		W. Hall Long and the Short and the Tall Act I: The third day’s hump we’re on – three days out and bright boy’s sweating on a kit inspection!
1960		C. Himes Big Gold Dream 137: You look like a bright boy.
2001		‘Randy Everhard’ Tattoo of a Naked Lady 15: ‘Pay you later?’ ‘That’s right, bright boy.’.

(US black) knowing too much.

1953

L. Durst Jives of Dr. Hepcat (1989) 10: Jackson you are on Jim time, and I can’t be lame to flag your train now don’t get the bright disease and think I’m mad, but in my book you’re way upstairs.

see under spark n.¹

an ironical, thus negative description of a person or circumstance.

1879		Honor Bright 1: Even old Heavysides, the master of the class at King's College which Pat adorned, would look up over his spectacles from certain blotted exercises and say, ‘Well, sir, this is a Bright specimen, I must say’.
a.1888		OED n.p.: Mod. (Ironical) He is a bright specimen!
1897		Hartford Republican (KY) 11 June 2/3: It was a bright specimen of that sort of politics which is bringing ruin to the country.
1905		Williston Graphic (ND) 27 Apr. 3/2: Mrs O’Toole smiled maliciously. ‘My dear [...] it was the condition which this bright specimen of manhood made to repay him [etc].