The Hold Steady
A whole world resides inside a Hold Steady CD, one in which Catholic girls tap a drug haze for a sense of spirituality,...
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In This Issue
The Manly Mr. Crowe
Russell Crowe is clad in a black jersey with a shamrock and bulldog embroidered on the left breast, and the name Jim Braddock, Crowe’s character in Cinderella Man, emblazoned on the right...
MoreFirst Word: Survivors
It is one thing to see the Depression in photographs — black-and-whites of men in suits and hats lining up for food. It’s another when it is recreated on screen by good actors, and a...
MoreClinton Launches Suicide Prevention Program
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton launched a major new suicide prevention program in Dublin. The program being run by RehabCare is aimed at tackling a growing number of suicides in Ireland,...
MoreGovernment Favors EU Poll
The Irish Government is likely to press ahead with a referendum on the EU Constitution despite consecutive rejections of the treaty in France and Holland. Britain postponed holding a referendum...
MoreDublin Population Faces Boom
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) predicts that the population of Greater Dublin area will exceed two million people by the year 2021. It is estimated that the region will by then be home to an...
MoreIrish Language Confuses Tourists
Visitors to Gaeltacht (Gaelic-speaking) areas on the west coast of Ireland may be in for a surprise, following a government directive on the public use of Irish language. The Placenames Order 2004...
MoreDonleavy Archive U.S.-Bound
Author J.P. Donleavy (pictured right) is in negotiations with a U.S. university for the sale of his literary archive. The Brooklyn-born author who has been resident in Ireland since 1946 came to...
MoreAn Unforeseen Victory
No one in the boxing world thought Ireland’s Kevin McBride stood a chance against Mike Tyson in the American’s latest comeback fight on June 11. Prior to the Tyson fight, McBride, known...
MoreJohn Duddy Wins Again
June 11 was a big night for the Irish in boxing. In Washington, D.C., journeyman Kevin McBride outlasted a fading Mike Tyson to put the final nail in Iron Mike’s career coffin. But...
MoreWhen Bono Met Jenna
Last May, a horde of celebrities showed up at Madison Square Garden in New York to enjoy a spectacular U2 concert (part of their Vertigo tour). Prior to launching into the song “Miracle...
MoreDeep Throat Revealed
When John O’Connor, an Irish-American lawyer residing in San Francisco, recently revealed the identity of “Deep Throat,” the source responsible for bringing down Richard Nixon in...
MoreMoonstruck But Not Starstruck
John Patrick Shanley joked that when his family learned he had won the Pulitzer Prize for Doubt, they warned him not to get a big head and “start wearing a white suit.” On accepting his...
MoreLassie Lands in Ireland
Shooting began in Ireland in May on the new Lassie film, which stars Peter O’Toole and Samantha Morton. The film, written and directed by Charles Sturridge, is based on Eric Knight’s 1938...
MoreIrish Artist’s “Dark Heart” is on Exhibition at the U.N.
At the outset of the first Gulf War, Irish artist Michelle Rogers painted a series about the conflict. Her work garnered attention from Amnesty International, which in 1993 commissioned her to paint...
MoreIrish Eye on Hollywood
It will be hard to get away from rising Irish superstar Cillian Murphy this summer. After breaking through with roles in critically acclaimed films such as Cold Mountain, 28 Days, Later and Girl with...
MoreIrish Jim
As James J. Braddock was rising out of boxing obscurity, and winning over the hearts of a Depression-ravaged nation, the legendary journalist Damon Runyan famously dubbed Braddock “Cinderella...
MoreThe Survivor
On the corner of 34th and Broadway the crowds of tourists and harried workers tried to look the other way. But it was hard to ignore the tall tanned handsome man in the crisp white shirt with the...
MoreRoots: Feeney
The surname Feeney is one of the most common names in Counties Sligo and Mayo. (My own grandfather Patrick Feeney emigrated from Co. Sligo in the 1920s). Taken from the original Gaelic form, O...
MoreHow the Irish Saved Washington’s Early Civilization
Two hundred years ago, the city of Washington was just over ten years old and, quite frankly, a mess. One visitor reported that it was little more than a boggy marsh dotted by tree-stumps, with...
MoreThe Majestic Shannon
Ever thought about Ireland just for a weekend? Well, now you can. Especially if you live in the Boston area. On May 2, 2005, American Airlines began scheduled flights from Logan to Shannon, and in so...
MoreGavin’s Flower Power
“I’ve got to go. Diarmuid’s show is coming on.” My otherwise devoted mother has cut short more than one transatlantic phone call with those words. If you haven’t yet...
MoreThe Hold Steady
A whole world resides inside a Hold Steady CD, one in which Catholic girls tap a drug haze for a sense of spirituality, where small-town-Minnesota kids struggle for cool nicknames, and where a pimp...
MoreA Sampling of the Latest Irish Books
Biography THE SECRET LIFE OF OSCAR WILDE Neil McKenna There is no shortage of Oscar Wilde biographies out there. And, at this point, it would seem difficult to suggest that there are any...
MoreMother Antonia
Two years ago, Washington Post journalist Mary Jordan, introduced Mother Antonia to our readers. That same year, she and her husband, a fellow journalist at the Post, won a Pulitzer Prize for a...
MoreSee You in September
Americans vacation in July. Europeans do it in August. No one goes anywhere in September. During the peak summer months, regardless of continent, the shops are crowded, the beaches are jammed,...
MorePhoto Album: Grandma Carrie
Pictured in this photograph is my Scotch-Irish grandmother, Carrie (O’Neal) Miller, the shining light in our family. Over the years, she wore a variety of hats: cook, nanny, housekeeper, nurse,...
MoreHibernia
John Duddy Wins Again
June 11 was a big night for the Irish in boxing. In Washington, D.C., journeyman Kevin McBride...
An Unforeseen Victory
No one in the boxing world thought Ireland’s Kevin McBride stood a chance against Mike Tyson...
Deep Throat Revealed
When John O’Connor, an Irish-American lawyer residing in San Francisco, recently revealed the...
Dublin Population Faces Boom
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) predicts that the population of Greater Dublin area will exceed...
Lassie Lands in Ireland
Shooting began in Ireland in May on the new Lassie film, which stars Peter O’Toole and...
Irish Eye on Hollywood
It will be hard to get away from rising Irish superstar Cillian Murphy this summer. After breaking...
Clinton Launches Suicide Prevention Program
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton launched a major new suicide prevention program in Dublin. The...
Donleavy Archive U.S.-Bound
Author J.P. Donleavy (pictured right) is in negotiations with a U.S. university for the sale of his...
Irish Language Confuses Tourists
Visitors to Gaeltacht (Gaelic-speaking) areas on the west coast of Ireland may be in for a...
Irish Artist’s “Dark Heart” is on Exhibition at the U.N.
At the outset of the first Gulf War, Irish artist Michelle Rogers painted a series about the...
When Bono Met Jenna
Last May, a horde of celebrities showed up at Madison Square Garden in New York to enjoy a...
Moonstruck But Not Starstruck
John Patrick Shanley joked that when his family learned he had won the Pulitzer Prize for Doubt,...
Government Favors EU Poll
The Irish Government is likely to press ahead with a referendum on the EU Constitution despite...