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October / November 2001

Martin McGuinness: The Man, The Myth, The Minister

The evolution of Martin McGuinness – from high school dropout and IRA man to political leader seeking an end to violence and, finally, his emergence as Northern Ireland’s Minister for...

“History says, don’t hope on this side of the grave. But then, once in a lifetime the longed for tidal wave of justice can rise up, and hope and history rhyme.” – Seamus...

Sinn Féin has come in for scathing criticism in the past weeks, with many blaming the party for the deadlock in the peace renegotiations, after the Stormont Assembly was suspended at the beginning...

A new inquiry into the Omagh bomb disaster three years after it took the lives of 29 men, women and children has been announced by the RUC. However, the RUC itself is denying allegations that it...

Frank McCourt’s life-altering trip to Haiti with Concern Worldwide. ℘℘℘ “Beyond the powers of description” are not the words you would expect to come out of a Pulitzer...

The beautiful Morgan Library in New York puts the Irish master of wit and self-proclaimed ‘lord of language’ under a glass box this September. “Oscar Wilde: A Life in Six Acts” will display...

Also available for viewing for the first time, or at least it was before it was auctioned off, was a previously unknown draft of one of the final chapters of James Joyce’s Ulysses. The Eumaeus...

There must be something in the water of Nenagh, County Tipperary. The town’s offspring seem to have unusually high traces of medal. Make that gold medal. 1956 Olympic 1,500 meter winner, Ronnie...

A visit to Ireland with Poet Laureate Billy Collins. ℘℘℘ What draws an assortment of poets to Ireland to study with Billy Collins? If you’ve been to the Beara Peninsula, you...

Dubliners Alan Concannon, Tadgh Honan, Gerry Lynch Tyrone-man Noel McGillian stand dressed in Civil War regalia as part of the 140th anniversary re-enactment of the Battle of First Manassas or the...

On July 18, 2001, Dorothy Marie and Gwen Hennessey of the Sisters of St. Francis of The Holy Family, left their fellow sisters and friends to report to Pekin Federal Correctional Institute in...

That one?!” Noreen Walshe responded to a fan at the Irish Arts Center in New York who told her that one of the paintings the Meath artist chose to display was a personal favorite....

The latest proposed implementation plan on policing in Northern Ireland has been rejected by Sinn Féin, whose chairman Mitchell McLaughlin said the proposals – jointly put forward by the Irish...

Freshmen Chris Barrett and Luke McCabe, two New Jersey 18-year-old surfers are even smarter than their SATs show: they figured out how to get their education paid for by turning themselves into...

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned of substantial risks for the Irish economy as a result of the slowdowns in the U.S. and Europe, but has nevertheless painted a pretty favorable...

For those thirsty for more on the interior lives of America’s royal family, rarely or never seen photographs of the Kennedys are available for downloading or purchase on the web. MPTV has...

An 18-year-old Protestant man from Glengormley was shot to death by loyalists in front of his father recently – because his killers believed he was a Catholic. The murder of young Gavin Brett in...

Apparently, Bill Clinton appreciated more than a dew perks as President. While in L.A. for a radio and television conference, Clinton hit the golf course with his brother Roger, Jack Nicholson, and...

Chicago alderman Thomas Murphy’s attempt to bridge cultural gaps seems to have gone unappreciated. Murphy represents the 18th Ward on the city’s Southwest Side, with an 85 percent black...

New York’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade, one of the last major celebrations left to the Irish in America, has come under a barrage of criticism these past years; from ILGO, the Irish Gays...

Congratulations are in order for James Houlihan of Dublin and Kevin O’Regan of Tallaght, Ireland. In 1997, they won the Redington Scholarship, established in honor of Irish immigrant Joseph P....

Author Susan Cahill tells what prompted her to write For the Love of Ireland: A Literary Companion for Readers and Travelers. ℘℘℘ I grew up in New York City in an Irish-American family...

Homeopathy is hot as more people are choosing natural plants and herbs over prescription drugs to heal their ailments. Aware of the growing demand, the small but growing Irish company, Dolphin Sea...

With the plethora of music sites on the web today, a new one dances apart form the other. Or jigs away, rather. Launched by Irish music business veteran Gerry Dornan, Irishmusicmail.com (inactive)...

For those who want the gold without the uh, golf, a bit of paradise just opened in Caddyshack, a golf-themed restaurant owned by comedian Bill Murray (featured on the cover of Irish America in 1988)...

He called his wife “Dingbat.” He called his daughter a “weepy Nellie atheist.” Puerto Ricans “spics”; Jews “yids.” He was terrified of African...

This July, the Diocese of Providence, Rhode Island announced that no longer would the haunting tune of “Danny Boy” which so many have used to say goodbye to their loved ones, be...

Can an Irish horse win the prestigious Breeders Cup? ℘℘℘ In 1907 the Epsom gallery was horrified to see an Irish owned, Irish trained (if Berkshire bred) horse, Orby, storm to victory at...

By the time Judy Garland made her first and only concert appearance in Dublin in July 1951, she had been an international star for more than a decade. She had starred in 27 feature length films,...

I had never really been all that comfortable with my Irish heritage. I’ve always been scared that our American society views the Irish as a bunch of drinkers, big talkers who cannot be relied...

On July 1st, 1920, my grandfather saved the only no-hitter ever thrown by the Hall of Fame pitcher Walter Johnson. Grandpa played first base for the Washington Senators, and he and Johnson were in...

How one Man’s dream became a reality. It all began with a castle. In 1987, a husband and wife from the nearby town of Ballyvaughan purchased a 16th-century tower house. Newtown Castle, along...

RECOMMENDED For decades, one simple question has split the Irish on both sides of the Atlantic into two warring factions: Do you love or loathe The Quiet Man, that 1952 stage Irish classic...

For many years, the conventional wisdom about Nora Barnacle, James Joyce’s longtime companion and eventually his wife, was that she was an ignorant but “country cute” peasant from...

Mirth-Making Heroes There are folks who think of “Celtic” music as a gently soothing, slightly ethereal style, heavy on the harps and tin whistles. They haven’t heard At the...

Ask anyone to name five favorite holidays, and it’s a sure bet Halloween will be on the list. Then ask how the celebration came to be. More than likely you’ll be told Halloween means All...

Irish literature and lore shows Mulligan little respect. The very opening sentence of James Joyce’s acclaimed Ulysses introduces Buck Mulligan, a ribald braggart who, before many pages, is...

There was a terrible silence in Omagh in the days after the bombing. It seemed that not even birdsong could be heard in a town that was full of life and joy and laughter when the world turned upside...

Cigarette in mouth and mates by his side, Corporal James L. O’Brien stands on a street in Paris in 1918. O’Brien and his friend, Pat Donovan (far left) joined “because we felt...

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October / November 2001

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