Description
Book SynopsisIn his six previous books, William O’Shaughnessy, one of the nation’s best known and most beloved community broadcasters, has told the tales of the power brokers and visionaries of politics, government, business and industry, the arts, fine living—world famous figures like Joe DiMaggio, Fred Astaire, Nelson Rockefeller, the Bushes, Kennedys, and so many others.
He elevated each encounter with his wisdom, wit, insight … and compassion, and what emerged through words that carried the weight of authority as they danced with the delight of Nijinsky was nothing less than transformative for both subject and reader. In O’Shaughnessy, we have our modern day Plutarch, whose prose has run across the decades like a power strip illuminating the lives of the nation’s most incandescent leaders from every arena.
Henry Kissinger, Rush Limbaugh, Mario Cuomo, Jacob K. Javits, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, John V. Lindsay, Dan Rather, President Richard Nixon, President Donald J. Trump, Jimmy Breslin, Pope Francis—his list of on-air guests and from-the-notebook subjects is the broadcasting world’s premier who’s who list.
A “vivid man about town” known for his blazers, Belgian loafers, and the Yankees World Series ring given to him in appreciation by George M. Steinbrenner, O’Shaughnessy shared the gift of vividness not only with the great and powerful but also with the local characters who made their mark “about town,” the “Townies” of Westchester, a/k/a the “Golden Apple,” and beyond.
Folks who may have been touched by fame, they were devoutly invested in the fortunes of their home heath, and O’Shaughnessy amplified their passions, priorities, quests, hurdles, and triumphs as a friend and champion who wielded the most respected and influential “megaphone” in the Eastern Establishment … and far beyond. He shared the counsel and companionship of political influencers, and leading lights from the media, the arts, the sporting world, and the constellation of fine living … who all were blessed with the heart and soul of a Townie.
The Townies derives its power to inform and captivate from the radiance of these good people, their good will, and their good deeds, which shine brighter than the lights of Broadway on a Saturday night. Enjoy!
Table of ContentsPreface | xi
Acknowledgments | xix
The Political Power Brokers
Robert Abplanalp | 3
Andy Albanese 11
Judge Richard Daronco | 16
Bill Luddy | 19
J. Raymond McGovern | 22
Andrew P. O’Rourke | 24
Bill Plunkett | 27
Frederic B. Powers | 35
Hugh Price | 38
Bill Scollon (Help Me with This Kennedy Thing) | 49
Kirby | 51
Walter Nelson Thayer | 53
Whitney Moore Young Jr. | 58
Westchester Guiding Lights
Rocco Bellantoni | 63
Remarks of William O’Shaughnessy
(Page Morton Black) | 67
John Branca | 70
John Brophy | 72
William Butcher | 74
The Townie Soapbox Orators
(Ines Candrea) | 77
Joe Candrea | 81
Hugh Doyle | 83
Dr. Richard Fraser | 86
Hon. Salvatore T. Generoso | 94
Arthur Geoghegan | 97
Theodore R. Greene | 99
Napoleon Holmes | 103
Edwin G. Michaelian | 106
Peter Mustich | 111
Nelson: A Child of the Neighborhood | 113
The Last Townie (Dominic Procopio) | 118
Remarks of William O’Shaughnessy
(The Robert Merrill Postal Station) | 120
“Colonel” Marty Rochelle | 124
Alvin R. Ruskin | 127
“Joe Slick” | 130
Masters of Media and the Arts
Vincent Bellew | 135
Louis Boccardi | 137
Ossie Davis | 140
Ruby Dee | 145
Jean Ensign | 151
Music Man (Murray Grand) | 152
The Herald Tribune: Death on the Ninth Floor | 155
Nancy Q. Keefe | 159
Nancy Q. Keefe (A Remembrance) | 162
Charles Osgood | 164
Hugh Shannon | 167
Michael Scott Shannon | 171
The Writer Talese (Gay Talese) | 174
Legends of Arthur Avenue
(and a Publican)
Joseph Migliucci | 179
Mama Rose Migliucci | 182
Mario Pop Migliucci | 187
Jimmy Neary | 191
This Sporting | Life
Ann T. Mara | 197
Mr. Mara (Wellington Mara) | 202
John Scully | 205
Higher Powers
Father Terry Attridge (Interview) | 211
The Priest | 221
Monsignor Edward Connors | 224
Monsignor Ed Connors (Interview) | 227
Father John O’Brien | 236
Litchfield Hills Luminaries
Charlie Kafferman | 243
“Lacey” | 247
Caryl Donnelly Plunkett | 251
Philip Roth | 255
Closing Thoughts
Another “Thoughts and Prayers” Day | 261
Something to Believe In | 264
WO Responds to a Facebook Query | 269
Funeral Mass for William O’Shaughnessy | 272
Index | 283
