Malachy McCourt
Malachy McCourt | |
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.JPG) McCourt in 2011 | |
| Born | Malachy Gerard McCourt September 20, 1931 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Died | March 11, 2024 (aged 92) New York City, New York, U.S. |
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| Occupations |
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| Political party | Green Party of New York |
| Spouses |
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| Children | 4 |
| Relatives |
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Malachy Gerard McCourt (September 20, 1931 – March 11, 2024) was an American actor and writer of Irish ancestry. He was the 2006 Green Party candidate for governor of New York, losing to the Democratic candidate Eliot Spitzer. He was the younger brother of author Frank McCourt.
Early life[edit]
Malachy Gerard McCourt was born in Brooklyn on September 20, 1931, the son of Irish parents Angela (née Sheehan) and Malachy McCourt.[1][2] By the time of his death in 2024, he was the longest-lived of their seven offspring, following the death of his younger brother Alphonsus in 2016.[3] McCourt was raised in Limerick, Ireland, and returned to the United States in 1952.[1]
Career[edit]
McCourt acted on stage, on television and in several movies, including The Molly Maguires (1970), The Brink's Job (1978), Q (1982), Brewster's Millions (1985), Tales from the Darkside as Dr Stillman in the "Ursu Minor" episode (2/10 - 1985), The January Man (1989), Beyond the Pale (2000), and Ash Wednesday (2002). He appeared on several New York City-based soap operas: Another World, Ryan's Hope, Search for Tomorrow, and One Life to Live. He is also known for his annual Christmas-time appearances on All My Children as Father Clarence, a priest who shows up to give inspirational advice to Pine Valley citizens.[citation needed]
In 1970, McCourt released a spoken word album on vinyl, And the Children Toll the Passing of the Day, with photos on the back of the album cover; the producer was David Hess.[4][5]
In the 1970s, he hosted a talk show on WMCA.[6]
McCourt occasionally appeared on various programs on New York City's political radio station, WBAI, as late as 2023.[7] Among the shows on which he appeared were Radio Free Éireann. He was also a regular guest artist at Scranton Public Theatre in Scranton, Pennsylvania, having performed in Inherit the Wind, Love Letters, and A Couple of Blaguards, which he co-wrote with brother Frank McCourt. He hosted a Sunday morning call-in radio forum on WBAI.[8] He also had a short-lived role as a Catholic priest on the HBO prison drama Oz. McCourt played Francis Preston Blair in Gods and Generals (2003).[citation needed]
McCourt was the owner of Malachy's, a bar on Third Avenue in New York City.[1] One of his frequent patrons was his friend the actor Richard Harris, who worked for a short time behind the bar for McCourt.[citation needed]
Writing[edit]
McCourt wrote two memoirs, titled A Monk Swimming and Singing My Him Song, detailing respectively his life in Ireland and his later return to the United States. He also authored a book on the history of the ballad "Danny Boy", and put together a collection of Irish writings, called Voices of Ireland.[citation needed]
A Monk Swimming[edit]
| Author | Malachy McCourt |
|---|---|
| Country | Ireland |
| Genre | Memoir |
| Publisher | HarperCollins |
Publication date | 1998 |
| Pages | 304 |
| ISBN | 0-00-711683-7 |
| Followed by | Singing My Him Song |
In 1998, McCourt authored A Monk Swimming, a memoir of his life in Limerick, Ireland, and of his experiences when he came to the United States. The book recounts the journey and the many obstacles that McCourt had to overcome. After first working as a longshoreman, he was able to open a successful Manhattan tavern frequented by entertainment celebrities, and appeared on television talk shows, although neglecting his wife and child.
This memoir picks up roughly where Frank McCourt, the author's older brother, left off at the end of his Pulitzer Prize–winning Angela's Ashes. This book was written and published before the elder McCourt published his own sequels, 'Tis and Teacher Man.
Malachy McCourt's account of his early years in New York City and its surrounding areas lends a different, if not altogether more brusque, account of Frank and Malachy McCourt's respective returns to their native United States, and the migration of Michael and Alphie McCourt, from their native Limerick.
Some notable sections include:
- A chance meeting with Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh at a football club reception for the couple.
- A "summer of content" in Long Island spent living, drinking, and carrying on with married women in Ocean Bay Park and Fire Island at night while selling The Bible door-to-door across the Great South Bay in Bay Shore.
- The description of the Ancient Order of Hibernians as "Ireland's most mediocre sons" (paraphrase). This seems to be tied to their banning of homosexual groups from marching in the New York City St. Patrick's Day Parade.
The title is a mondegreen of "amongst women", a phrase from the Catholic rosary prayer, Hail Mary.
The book is dedicated to Paul O'Dwyer, a New York City politician, humanitarian, and fellow Irishman who had recently died at the time of the book's publication. McCourt and O'Dwyer were close friends and politically like-minded.
Politics[edit]
In April 2006, McCourt announced that he would seek to become governor of New York in the November 2006 election as a Green Party candidate. Running under the slogan "Don't waste your vote, give it to me", McCourt promised to recall the New York National Guard from Iraq, to make public education free through college, and to institute a statewide comprehensive "sickness care" system. McCourt polled at 5% in a 10 October Zogby poll, versus 25% for Republican John Faso and 63% for Democrat Eliot Spitzer.[9] McCourt was endorsed by Cindy Sheehan, mother of a fallen soldier in the Iraq War.[10][11] The League of Women Voters excluded him from the gubernatorial debate.[12] He came in a distant third in the general election, received 40,729 votes (or just under 1%), 9,271 votes short of what was required to gain automatic access in the 2010 election.
Personal life[edit]
McCourt married Linda Wachsman, and had two children with her: daughter Siobhán and son Malachy III; he had two more children by his second wife, Diana Galin: sons Conor and Cormac.[13] He also has a stepdaughter, Nina Galin.[14][15]
In 1960, he was one of the four founding members of the Manhattan Rugby Football Club.[16] Malachy appears in his older brother Frank McCourt's memoirs.
McCourt was portrayed by Peter Halpin in the film version of his brother's memoir Angela's Ashes.[17]
In 2023, McCourt told The New York Times that he was ill with a number of health problems, including a heart condition, skin cancer, prostate cancer and a form of muscular degeneration.[7] He died in a Manhattan hospital on March 11, 2024, at the age of 92.[1][18]
Bibliography[edit]
- "I Am Not Myself At All" essay in The Face in the Mirror: Writers Reflect on Their Dreams of Youth and the Reality of Age (2009) Victoria Zackheim, editor Prometheus Books ISBN 978-1-59102-752-2
- Bush Lies in State (2004) Sensei Publications ISBN 0-9755746-0-4
- Harold Be Thy Name: Lighthearted Daily Reflections for People in Recovery (2004) Carhil Ventures ISBN 978-1-56649-296-6
- History of Ireland (2004) Running Press ISBN 978-0-7624-3181-6
- The Claddagh Ring: Ireland's Cherished Symbol Of Friendship, Loyalty And Love (2003) Running Press ISBN 0-7624-2014-6
- Danny Boy: The Legend of the Beloved Irish Ballad (2003) New American Library ISBN 0-451-20806-4
- Voices of Ireland: Classic Writings of a Rich and Rare Land (2002) Running Press ISBN 0-7624-1701-3
- Singing My Him Song (2000) HarperCollins ISBN 978-0-06-019593-9
- A Monk Swimming: A Memoir (1998) Hyperion ISBN 0-7868-6398-6
- Through Irish Eyes: A Visual Companion to Angela McCourt's Ireland (1998) Smithmark Publishing ISBN 978-0-7651-0887-6
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d Roberts, Sam (March 11, 2024). "Malachy McCourt, Actor, Memoirist and Gadabout, Dies at 92". The New York Times. Retrieved March 11, 2024.
- ^ Dunleavey, M. P. (August 24, 1997). "Another Angle on the Family McCourt". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 29, 2018.
- ^ Hayes, Kathryn (July 3, 2016). "Alphie McCourt, brother of Frank McCourt, dies aged 75". The Irish Times. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
- ^ Malachy McCourt - And the Children Toll The Passing of the Day, Mercury, 1970, retrieved January 24, 2017
- ^ "Malachy McCourt – And The Children Toll The Passing Of The Day". Discogs. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
- ^ Foley, Dylan (March 30, 1998). "Up Next From McCourt Inc.: Brother Malachy's Memoirs". Observer. Retrieved January 29, 2018.
- ^ a b Shapiro, Laurie Gwen (March 12, 2023). "Malachy McCourt Still Has a Few Stories Left to Tell". The New York Times. p. MB1. Retrieved March 11, 2024.
- ^ http://archive.wbai.org/files/mp3/060916_133001rfeireann.MP3[dead link]
- ^ "Zogby Poll: Dems on Top in Major New York Races". Zogby International. 10 October 2006. Archived from the original on 3 January 2007. Retrieved 1 November 2006.
- ^ Benjamin, Elizabeth (October 3, 2006). "Peace Mom For McCourt". Times Union. Albany, New York. Archived from the original on November 26, 2006. Retrieved November 5, 2006.
- ^ http://gpnys.dreamhosters.com/?p=312[dead link]
- ^ "Green Party Candidates McCourt and Duncan Tour State, Debate Exclusion Fires Resolve to Reach Voters". Green Party of the United States. October 3, 2006. Archived from the original on June 18, 2013. Retrieved June 30, 2013.
- ^ Shapiro, Laurie Gwen (March 10, 2023). "Kicked Out of Hospice, Malachy McCourt Wants One Last St. Patrick's Day". The New York Times. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
- ^ Witchel, Alex (July 29, 1998). "AT LUNCH WITH: Malachy McCourt -- How a Rogue Turns Himself Into a Saint; The Blarney Fails to Hide an Emotional Directness". The New York Times. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
- ^ Dewan, Shaila K. (May 3, 2000). "Recalling a Victory for the Disabled". The New York Times. Retrieved February 21, 2024.
- ^ Freeman, Allyn (October 19, 2017). "Down Memory Lane – New York City Rugby 1975". Rugby Today. Retrieved January 29, 2018.
- ^ "Peter Halpin". IMDb. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
- ^ "Irish-American actor raised in Limerick has died". Live95 FM. March 11, 2024. Retrieved March 11, 2024.
External links[edit]
- personal website
- Malachy McCourt at IMDb
- Malachy McCourt discography at Discogs
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Academics | |
| People | |
| Other | |
- 1931 births
- 2024 deaths
- 20th-century American male actors
- 20th-century American male writers
- 20th-century American memoirists
- 20th-century Irish male actors
- 20th-century Irish male writers
- 21st-century Irish memoirists
- American emigrants to Ireland
- American male film actors
- American male television actors
- American male video game actors
- American male radio actors
- American male stage actors
- American male voice actors
- American people of Irish descent
- Candidates in the 2006 United States elections
- Green Party of the United States politicians
- Male actors from Limerick (city)
- Male actors from New York City
- Irish male film actors
- Irish male radio actors
- Irish male stage actors
- Irish male television actors
- Irish male video game actors
- Irish male voice actors
- Writers from Limerick (city)