When Thomas Gleason, 79, leads the St. Patrick's Day Parade up Fifth Avenue he will be following in his father's footsteps. His father, the late Thomas W. "Teddy" Gleason, was Grand Marshal in 1983. A World War II veteran, Thomas Gleason joined the Marines at the end of 1941. He served in the Marshall Islands and the Marianas (from where the Army Air Corps' long-range bombers … [Read more...] about New York’s Grand Marshal
Hibernia
John Hume Retires
John Hume, often known as the "architect of the peace process" who vowed to spill sweat not blood, has retired from political life. His announcement came weeks after his opponent, the Democratic Unionist leader Rev. Ian Paisley, said that he was retiring. At 67 years old, Hume has suffered ongoing health problems since 1999. Hume, a founding member of the SDLP (Social … [Read more...] about John Hume Retires
Belfast Arts Festival Opens in April
New Yorker Adrianna Dufay and fellow University of Washington Professional Acting Training Program (PATP) graduate Annie McAdams will be debuting their new play, Pippi and Nancy, at this year's Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival in Belfast, which opens on April 29. In its fifth year, the week and a half-long festival will include an eclectic range of music, comedy, theatre, … [Read more...] about Belfast Arts Festival Opens in April
Rose Festival Saved
The future of the Rose of Tralee Festival, which features girls of Irish ancestry from around the world competing for the festival crown, was in grave doubt at the end of 2003, when Siobhán Hanley, the event's chief executive admitted that they needed to raise Euro250,000 to save the annual event. The Irish government refused to bail out the festival, saying that Euro500,000 … [Read more...] about Rose Festival Saved
Bono Portrait Unveiled
Bono looked admiringly at the soft white portrait painted by one of today's greatest Irish painters, Louis le Brocquy, an artist whom Bono has admired since he was 13, at an unveiling at the National Gallery of Ireland in Dublin. The U2 frontman described le Brocquy as "one of the grandmasters of European painting." The portrait, entitled Image of Bono, is the fifth in a series … [Read more...] about Bono Portrait Unveiled