One of Ireland's top hoteliers, Paddy Fitzpatrick, passed away on August 16. He was 72. Fitzpatrick bought his first hotel, the Killiney Castle Hotel in Dublin, in 1971 and turned it into a success. Four years later, he purchased the Shannon Shamrock in Co. Clare, and took it from a money loser into a profit-making property within one year. The Fitzpatrick family owns the … [Read more...] about Hotelier Paddy Fitzpatrick Passes
Issues
FBI, M15 Ran Secret Informer
The FBI and the British intelligence agency, MI5, operated American spy David Rupert in the Republic of Ireland for four years without telling the Irish authorities. Rupert is the key witness against Michael McKevitt, who will be tried in a Dublin court for directing terrorism. McKevitt is the alleged head of the Real IRA, the Republican splinter group that carried out the … [Read more...] about FBI, M15 Ran Secret Informer
NYC’s Famine Memorial
The haunting Irish Hunger Memorial, unveiled on July 16 in downtown Manhattan, offers visitors a stunning view of the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. This is fitting, given that these landmarks have greeted generations of Irish immigrants to New York City. Sadly, however, as visitors will learn, your eyes cannot avoid another site -- Ground Zero, just footsteps from the … [Read more...] about NYC’s Famine Memorial
Irish Eye on Hollywood
Liam Neeson played German businessman Oskar Schindler in the acclaimed film Schindler's List. And he was recently seen on Broadway as a tortured Puritan in Arthur Miller's The Crucible. So why should anyone be surprised that the Ballymena-born Hollywood star portrays a Russian in his latest film, K-19: The Widowmaker? Neeson's ethnic-bending role is just one of several … [Read more...] about Irish Eye on Hollywood
Innisfree Holidays Begin
In July, the Langone family – the first of nearly 250 families to take part in the Innisfree Program – arrived in Ireland. the program, which is run by the US-Ireland Alliance, offers a week's vacation in Ireland to the families of firefighters and police officers killed on September 11th. Sheila Langone of Roslyn Heights, Long Island lost two sons, Peter, 41, a firefighter, … [Read more...] about Innisfree Holidays Begin