Peter Quinn writes about his immigrant grandfather. ℘℘℘ The man on the horse is my paternal grandfather, Patrick Francis Quinn. The date is September 5, 1904. Pat is about to take his place as grand marshal of the New York City Labor Day Parade. The horse was rented for the occasion. I have the sash he is wearing in the photograph, a piece of faded blue silk embroidered … [Read more...] about The Perils of Pat
My Guiding Star
My grandparents were born in the Irish midlands in the 1870s, the decade that the Home Rule movement began. My grandfather Mick O'Rourke, a thatcher, was from Drumgilda, County Leitrim. My grandmother Martha Thompson was a Ballinamuck woman. She worked in her grandmother's shop in Drumlish before her family sold a heifer to raise her passage so that at 16, in 1894, she could … [Read more...] about My Guiding Star
George Mitchell
The Peace Maker
Former U.S. Senator George Mitchell has earned a hallowed place in the annals of Irish and Irish-American history for the crucial role he played in chairing the All Party talks in Northern Ireland that culminated in the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.
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On chairing the All Party talks: It's a labor of love and I mean it. I believe this is a moment of historic opportunity that … [Read more...] about George MitchellThe Peace Maker
Maureen O’Hara
Hollywood Colleen
Throughout her film career, Maureen O'Hara captured the essence of the Irish colleen in all its contradictions. In The Quiet Man, as Mary Kate, she went toe-to-toe with John Wayne's Jack Thornton, in one of the most rugged screen courtships in the history of film.
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There were a lot of Irish actors in Hollywood at that time, weren't there?
Yes, Barry Fitzgerald, Arthur … [Read more...] about Maureen O’HaraHollywood Colleen
Confessions of a
Bronx Irish Catholic
Over the years, I've spent an inordinate amount of time thinking about what it means to be Irish. Occasionally, my public writings and ruminations on the subject have led to me being described (and dismissed) as a "professional Irishman." If only it were true! Unfortunately, I'm still a semi-pro, forced to make a living at activities unrelated to my ethnic investigations.
A … [Read more...] about Confessions of a
Bronx Irish Catholic