Fifteen years ago in March 1995, historian and author Thomas Cahill published How The Irish Saved Civilization, the first of his seven-volume Hinges of History series. A national phenomenon, the book appeared on the New York Times bestseller list for nearly two years and changed the public’s understanding of the Irish people’s role in preserving Western civilization during the … [Read more...] about Civilization: Then and Now
Interviews
Brian Dennehy’s Journey into Eugene O’Neill
Brian Dennehy, who is being honored with the 2010 Eugene O’Neill Lifetime Achievement Award, speaks with Aliah O’Neill. If Brian Dennehy says the Irish can do no wrong, we should probably be inclined to believe him. At 72, the veteran actor of film, television and stage has not only become famous for his portrayals of the working-class Irish American, he has also starred in … [Read more...] about Brian Dennehy’s Journey into Eugene O’Neill
“Bloody Sunday:” James Nesbitt’s Personal Odyssey
On January 30, 1972 members of the British Army fired upon unarmed civil rights marchers in Derry, killing 14 people, 13 outright, and one who would die later from his wounds. The marchers, about 15,000 strong, had been protesting internment without trial, which was introduced in Northern Ireland in August 1971, and involved mass British army arrests of more than 340 people … [Read more...] about “Bloody Sunday:” James Nesbitt’s Personal Odyssey
The Mighty Quinn
The remarkable Quinn Bradlee has a new memoir that offers a moving account of living with disabilities. How do you make your mark when your parents, Ben Bradlee and Sally Quinn, are among the most famous figures in Washington lore and you have been born with a significant disability that makes many basic things in life difficult? You surpass them with a tale so full of … [Read more...] about The Mighty Quinn
Fighting Irish Girl: Maureen Dowd
Her mother was an Irish rebel, and her father a good cop who could spot a phony a mile away. These inherited traits turned Maureen Dowd into an award-winning columnist and author. Somewhere in Australia there’s an Irish lad called Rowan McCormick who broke Maureen Dowd’s heart. When she went back in the early 1970s to visit her homestead in County Clare, hard by the … [Read more...] about Fighting Irish Girl: Maureen Dowd