Front Row Dress Circle

Happy Saint Patrick’s Day to everyone! don’t you just love this day of the year? even if you don’t have a drop of Irish blood you still feel the spirit and want to go out and celebrate. It’s the one day of the year when everybody can be Irish.

Hollywood has always loved all things Irish and many actors were Irish themselves, or were the children of Irish immigrants. There have been a fair number of films set, or even filmed in , Ireland itself so let’s celebrate the Irish side of Hollywood today!

* Pat O’Brien was born in the US in 1899 to Irish parents and never lost his Irish brogue. He starred in movies from the 30’s onwards with Angels with Dirty Faces being one of his most memorable. He starred in 8 films with James Cagney and was a self proclaimed fascist and supporter of Franco.

* James Cagney was born 1899 in New York to Irish parents; his Dad was a bartender. He never actually uttered those famous words…you dirty rat!

* You would never know it from the eloquent way he speaks but Peter O’Toole was born in Connemara, Ireland in 1932. He lost his Irish brogue during his drama training, something Richard Burton never did with his Welsh accent.

* Tyrone Power was two generations removed from his Irish ancestry but portrayed legendary West Point Academy instructor Marty Maher in the wonderful film The Long Gray Line with Maureen O’Hara. His Irish accent though was not very convincing…in my opinion anyway.

* John Wayne created the wonderful film, The Quiet Man, in tribute to his Irish ancestry. It was filmed on location in Connemara and fans from all over the world visit the location every year. The small village of Cong, where the action was filmed,  had electricity especially installed so that director John Ford could move in with his production team. The landmarks and cottages are still there and if you have seen the movie and go there you will be able to pick them out. The little bridge from the film, in the middle of nowhere, has a sign on it to commemorate the scene filmed there with John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara.

* Ryan’s Daughter was shot in the isolated beauty of the Dingle Peninsula, the village used in the film was constructed entirely from stone by the production team so that it would withstand the elements during filming. Director David Lean had to wait a year before a suitably dramatic storm appeared to shoot some scenes. The people from the village of Dunquin were hired as extras for the filming. The region was almost economically destitute at the time and the movie gave the region a huge boost with regards to tourism.

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