The prospect of using light to probe or manipulate quantum materials has become an active area of interest. Here, we investigate a quantum wire -- treated as a finite-sized one-dimensional electron gas -- that is coupled to a single photonic mode. This work focuses on the radiative properties of the wire when it is prepared in some excited state. One of our key results addresses the photon cascade initiated by the creation of a single electron-hole pair. Repeated photon emission leads to the generation of entanglement between the electron and hole and the emission rates exhibit Dicke-like superradiance. In general, the radiation is characterized by a competition between superradiance and Pauli blocking. We find that the one-dimensional electron gas represents an ideal system for investigating quantum coherent phenomena and quantum entanglement. This work has direct relevance to applications in quantum computation and quantum transduction.