"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
July August 1996 Issue
A Man Called Beckett
He was a Nobel Prize winner, an Irishman who lived most of his life in a foreign country. A man who wrote in both English and French, he was one of this century's towering literary figures, turning out a total of 19 plays and several books. He was also a major influence on most contemporary playwrights, yet remained an enigma, a thoroughly private person, until his death in … [Read more...] about A Man Called Beckett
Michael Flatley, the Irish-Chicagoan creator of Riverdance who was fired by producers two days before the London premiere, is alive and kicking and is ready to rock `n' roll with a brand new show. It started modestly in 1994, a seven-minute distraction during the intermission of the glaringly unfashionable Eurovision Song Contest. Two years, 1.2 million audience members, and … [Read more...] about
In Off the Road
An inside look at Ireland's Travelers The children you see in these photographs are Irish Travelers – so called because their families travel about stopping in roadside camps and at the few government-built campsites. Their numbers are estimated to be 25,000. The origins of the Irish "Traveler" also known as "Tinker", has long been in question. Modern scholars suggest that … [Read more...] about In Off the Road
Brothers in Love
Irish American director Ed Burns strikes again with his new movie, She's the One. Anyone concerned that director Ed Burns might suffer a sophomore slump after the phenomenal success of his debut movie, The Brothers McMullen, need not worry. His second film, She's the One, is, if anything, a more self-assured piece of filmmaking. As writer, director and star of the movie, … [Read more...] about Brothers in Love




