(click on music bar to hear Maureen singing
"Danny Boy" if you have 'Real Player loaded)
"Where
have all the flowers gone?.."
The world keeps turning
- technology keeps advancing; the wide screen has become wider, the
soundtracks
have become louder, and the heroes and heroines have given way to
computer
digital enhancement. What a wonderful thing to know that actress
Maureen O'Hara is still out there - still glowing, and very subtly, yet
surely, becoming an icon in the real world. The image of Maureen O'Hara
that began in this country in 1939 as her film role of Esmeralda in
"The
Hunchback of Notre Dame," now embodies over 50 years of quality classic
films. So indelible is her persona as a strong, intelligent, beautiful
woman, that you can feel an almost desperate need to cling to all she
represents.
We still need our heroes and heroines and Maureen remains a very
special
lady of elegance with a most regal presence at the age of 87.
by: June Parker
Beck © (updated 3-9-08)
Grand Marshal of the
New
York City St. Patrick's Day Parade 1999
The
New York City St. Patrick's Day Parade is the largest parade in the
world.
Over 2 million people attend
the parade and another 2 million watch
on TV. There are over 350,000 people marching with
bands
from all over the world including the Tokyo Bagpipe Band and bands from
Ireland, Irish American Veterans and military from the U.S. The
1999
parade is dedicated to the immigrants of the 20th century.
Maureen
O'Hara is only the third woman to be selected as grand marshal in the
history
of the parade.
The annual
parade down Fifth Avenue to honor the patron saint of Ireland is a New
York tradition that dates as far back as 1766. The festivities kick off
at 44th Street and Fifth Avenue with bagpipers, high school
bands,
and the ever-present politicians making their way up Fifth Avenue to
86th
Street, where the parade will probably finish around 2:30 or 3:00
pm.
The best viewing spots are toward the north end of the parade route,
away
from the shopping and work-a-day crowds that throng The sidewalks below
59th Street. Try sitting on the upper steps of The Metropolitan Museum
of Art for a great view or catching a close-up view of the marchers
where
the parade turns east on 86th Street. The New York Convention
&
Visitors Bureau says that the St. Patrick's Day Parade is the largest
and
most famous of the many parades held in the city each year.