Jimmy Breslin

Infobox Writer


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name = James Breslin
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birthdate = birth date|1930|10|17|mf=yes
birthplace = Jamaica, New York
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occupation = Journalist, Novelist
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Jimmy Breslin (born October 17, 1930) is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American columnist and author. He has written numerous novels, and columns of his have appeared regularly in various newspapers in his hometown of New York City. He was a regular columnist for the newspaper "Newsday" until his retirement on November 2, 2004, and still has occasional pieces there.

Biography

Born in Jamaica, New York, he ran an unsuccessful campaign as an independent for the position of president of the New York City Council in 1969. He allied himself with the late writer Norman Mailer, who was running for the position of mayor at the same time, on a platform which proposed the secession of New York City from the rest of New York state. Both were soundly defeated.

His career as an investigative journalist led him to cultivate ties with various Mafia and criminal elements in the city, not always with positive results. In 1970, he was viciously attacked and beaten at The Suite, a restaurant then owned by Lucchese crime family associate Henry Hill. The attack was carried out by mobster Jimmy Burke, who objected to an article Breslin had written involving another member of the Lucchese family, Paul Vario. Though Breslin suffered an epistaxis and a major concussion, he survived the ordeal without any permanent injury. In 1977, at the height of the Son of Sam scare in New York City, the killer, who was later identified as David Berkowitz, addressed letters to Breslin. Excerpts from these were published.

Among his notable columns, perhaps the best known was published the day after John F. Kennedy's funeral, focusing on the man who had dug the president's grave. [ [http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/digging-grave-an-honor.htm Digging John F. Kennedy's Grave Was An Honor: November 1963 ] ] The column is indicative of Breslin's style, which often highlights how major events or the actions of those considered "newsworthy" affect the "common man."

Breslin has received numerous accolades throughout his career. In 1985, he received a George Polk Award for Metropolitan Reporting, while in 1986, he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary. After fellow Newsday columnist Ji-Yeon Mary Yuh described one of Breslin's articles as sexist, Breslin appeaered on the Howard Stern Show and called her a "slant-eyed cunt" and a "yellow cur", stating that "the fucking bitch doesn't know her place". Breslin was widely criticized for his racists and sexist outburst. He apologized and was suspended for two weeks without pay. [Tony Kornheiser. "The Real Jimmy Breslin". The Washington Post; May 9, 1990.] [Dorothy Ing Russell. "Jimmy Breslin, Coward and Bully". The Washington Post. May 13, 1990] [Alex S. Jones. "Breslin Is Given 2-Week Suspension". The New York Times. May 9, 1990.]

He has been married twice. His first marriage, to Rosemary Dattolico, ended with her death in 1981. They had six children together: sons Kevin, James, Patrick and Christopher, and daughters Rosemary and Kelly. His daughter Rosemary died June 14, 2004 from a rare blood disease. Since 1982, he has been married to former New York City Council member Ronnie Eldridge.

Works include

* 1962 ASIN B0007DY5XS
* 1963 Can't Anybody Here Play This Game?
* 1969 World of Jimmy Breslin ISBN 0-345-21651-2
* 1969
* 1970 The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight ISBN 0-316-11174-0
* 1973 World without End, Amen ISBN 0-670-79020-6
* 1976 How the Good Guys Finally Won ISBN 0-345-25001-X
* 1977
* 1978 .44 ISBN 0-670-32432-9
* 1983 Forsaking All Others ISBN 0-449-20250-X
* 1986 Table Money ISBN 0-89919-312-9
* 1988 He Got Hungry and Forgot His Manners ISBN 0-89919-311-0
* 1988 The World According to Jimmy Breslin ISBN-13 978-0899193106
* 1991 ISBN 0-89919-984-4
* 1997 ISBN 0-316-11879-6
* 2002 ISBN 0-940159-77-5
* 2002 ISBN 0-316-12032-4
* 2002 The Short Sweet Dream of Eduardo Gutierrez ISBN 0-609-60827-4
* 2004 The Church That Forgot Christ ISBN 0-7432-6647-1
* 2005 America's Mayor: The Hidden History of Rudy Giuliani's New York -preface to Robert Pollner's book. ISBN 1-932360-58-1
* 2007 America's Mayor, America's President? The Strange Career of Rudy Giuliani - Preface to Robert Pollner's next book ISBN 1-933368-72-1

References

External links

* [http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/j/jimmy_breslin.html Jimmy Breslin Quotes]
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* [http://www.alicubi.com/articles/edroso_06.html Online profile of Breslin]