“I’d love to make a movie in Ireland sometime,” Clint Eastwood said when I caught up with him at a recent Hollywood Irish event. “The best part of me is the Irish part – Egans on my mother’s side – she had roots in Monaghan and I’ve been there many times. It’s one of my favorite places to golf.” Eastwood was being presented with the inaugural John Ford Award at a special … [Read more...] about The Directors: Clint Eastwood Receives First John Ford Award
Jack Foley and the Art of Sound
Jack Donovan Foley, the American grandson of Irish immigrants, invented “foley art,” a sound-effects technique still used in films today – so subtle and perfect that viewers don’t notice anything has been added. Something was not quite right on the stage of Alice Tully Hall at New York City’s Lincoln Center one night last September. It was the U.S. premiere of the recently … [Read more...] about Jack Foley and the Art of Sound
Breaking the Code of Silence: The Irish and Drink
By Dr. Garrett O'Connor, Contributor
“Drinking in Ireland is not simply a convivial pastime, it is a ritualistic alternative to real life, a spiritual placebo, a fumble for eternity, a longing for heaven, a thirst for return to the embrace of the Almighty." – John Waters We Irish are known for being courageous, compassionate, spiritual, creative, difficult, resourceful, witty, sad, lovable, clannish, hot-headed, … [Read more...] about Breaking the Code of Silence: The Irish and Drink
Glenn Close’s Irish Odyssey:
Albert Nobbs
Glenn Close tells Patricia Danaher about her Irish dream project Albert Nobbs - the film that just earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Actress.
When Glenn Close puts her mind to something, the fates seem to have a way of conspiring to make it a reality, even if in some cases it takes decades. Take her latest movie, Albert Nobbs, as an example. Based on a novella by late … [Read more...] about Glenn Close’s Irish Odyssey:
Albert Nobbs
Sláinte! Wine: Another Irish Triumph
The legacy of the Celts in Ireland and how, in the absence of grapes, they used their wine making skills to create a honey-wine. Odds are, you’re familiar with the fact that beer, stout and whiskey have been mainstays of Celtic culture for eons. What I’ll bet you don’t know is that the Celts also played a key role in the development of humanity’s fascination with wine. Not … [Read more...] about Sláinte! Wine: Another Irish Triumph