Irish America

Irish America

By Joseph McBride August / September 1999

JFK Superstar: The Kennedys of Hollywood

By Joseph McBride

August / September 1999

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The day Kennedy was elected president, my father, Raymond McBride, borrowed my 1928 "Al Smith for President" button and wore it to work at the Milwaukee Journal as a witty reminder of how far Irish Catholics had come in American national life. I was fortunate to have the opportunity of meeting JFK on three occasions in 1960 and 1962 because my mother, Marian, was vice-chairman … [Read more...] about JFK Superstar: The Kennedys of Hollywood

An American Champion

By Mary Pat Kelly

July/August 1996

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John Brendan Kelly, father of Princess Grace of Monaco, won two Olympic Gold medals in 1920 and one in 1924, competing in a sport which was the reserve of gentlemen, the single and double sculls. He remains the only American ever to win the Gold in single sculls. Kelly came from a family of achievers, whose story is embedded in Irish America. His daughter, Grace Kelly, became … [Read more...] about An American Champion

One Hundred Years of Irish Olympians: Days of Glory

By Colin Lacey and Kevin O'Neill Shanley

July/August 1996

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As the 1996 Olympic Games begin in Atlanta, Georgia, we look at some of the Irish Olympians since the first modern Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, one hundred years ago.  1896, Athens, Greece James Brendan Connolly - John Pius Boland - Thomas Burke James Brendan Connolly became the first Olympic champion of the modern era when he won the Gold for the U.S. in the … [Read more...] about One Hundred Years of Irish Olympians: Days of Glory

Independence Day on the JFK

By Mary Pat Kelly

July/August 1996

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"I don't think I had one conversation with any Irish person during my first year as the Defense Attaché in the American Embassy in Dublin where the name of John Fitzgerald Kennedy did not come up," says Colonel Bill Torpey. "Everyone, it seemed, had their own story about President Kennedy, and I began to think how wonderful it would be to bring his namesake, the aircraft … [Read more...] about Independence Day on the JFK

Broadway’s Queening Glory

By Patricia O'Haire

May / June 1998

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All in all, it was a great day for the Irish. That was the consensus of most of the news media gathered at Sardi's restaurant one cold May morning earlier this year to hear the list of this year's Tony nominees announced. In just about every category for a straight play, the name of the Irish entry, The Beauty Queen of Leenane, was read. Six nominations it had, the most of … [Read more...] about Broadway’s Queening Glory