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Jesse Owens

Charles Riley: Jesse Owens’ ‘Irish Father’

By Chuck Leddy

March/April 1997

November 22, 2024 by Leave a Comment

The fascinating relationship between Coach Charles Riley and his pupil, the legendary, Jesse Owens, is an engrossing human interest story about a gentle, selfless, Irish American school teacher who became a second father to a disadvantaged Black adolescent. From completely different backgrounds, Owens and Riley grew to love and respect each other at a time of overt racial … [Read more...] about Charles Riley: Jesse Owens’ ‘Irish Father’

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May 12, 1937

On this day, George Carlin, one of America’s best stand-up comedians, was born to an Irish father, Patrick Carlin and Irish American mother, Mary Bearey. He was raised on West 121st Street in Upper Manhattan. In a career spanning fifty years, Carlin pushed the envelope in terms of performance. His “Seven Dirty Sins” routine was central to a U.S. Supreme Court case on the government’s right to regulate indecent material on the public airwaves. In a 2006 interview with Irish America magazine, Carlin talked about a trip he made to Ireland. “Most of all I remember the faces, the wonderful faces. I remember thinking, ‘I know these people. This is my herd.'” Carlin passed away in June, 2008.

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