Manhattan Turns Emerald on St. Pat's Day

N E W   Y O R K, March 1, 2004 -- Manhattan: the other Emerald Isle.

Yes, it's a long, long way from Tipperary. No, St. Patrick neverdrove the snakes out of Times Square. But every March, a touch ofIreland descends across Manhattan, converting it into Dublin on theHudson.

From the top of the Empire State Building, swathed in Gaelicgreen light for St. Patrick's Day, to the bottom of Manhattan,where the Irish Hunger Memorial recalls the deadly famine, Marcharrives in New York like a lion and leaves like an Irish lamb stew.

The Hunger Memorial, dedicated two years ago to the 1 millionIrish victims of the 1845-52 famine, sits on Vesey Street in lowerManhattan between the Hudson River and the site of the World TradeCenter terrorist attack.

A Tiny Piece of Land

The stark, spare site recreates the Irish countryside, with itsgently sloping hills and stones collected from all 32 counties inIreland — including a single gravestone marked with a Celtic cross.Visitors walk into a ruined fieldstone cottage imported from CountyMayo.

Looking south from its top is the view that greeted millions ofIrish immigrants in New York Harbor: Ellis Island, flanked by theStatue of Liberty.

The memorial occupies a historically significant one-quarter ofan acre. In 1847, British law stipulated that no Irishman occupyingland larger than that size was entitled to assistance in the faceof the killer crop failure.

"The Almighty, indeed, sent the potato blight, but the Englishcreated the famine," reads one of the quotes on the memorial'sside.

The mood is much brighter at McSorley's Old Ale House, an EastVillage landmark since 1854. You won't find a lot of tourists atthe East Seventh Street bar, and there's good reason for that.

"It's very hard to get an ale-drinking tourist trap," explainsowner Matty Maher, himself a native of County Kilkenny. It's a classic Irish saloon, putting the shame to its paleimitators with their green beer. There are just two drinks servedinside — dark ale, and light ale. The cost is $2.50 for one, $4 fortwo — and nobody drinks just one.

Although most Manhattan bars are open until 4 a.m., McSorley'scloses at 1 a.m. "If you're not drunk by 1 a.m.," Maher explains,"you're not trying very hard."

McSorley's has long provided inspiration for artists, with poete.e. cummings, singer Woody Guthrie and painter John Sloan amongits clientele across the centuries. Gregory de la Haba's sketchbookof scenes from the bar is the centerpiece of a March tribute toMcSorley's featured at the Ireland House.

The exhibit on the campus of New York University runs throughApril 9, and a catalog with an introduction by noted author FrankMcCourt (Angela's Ashes) is available.

In midtown, Fifth Avenue gets a green stripe every year for thenation's largest St. Patrick's Day parade, a New York Citytradition since 1766. An estimated 2 million people and 150,000marchers turn out for the March 17 spectacular, far more thansimilar parades in Savannah, Ga., Chicago, Boston — or even Dublin.

Cathedral at Center of Parade

At the corner of Fifth and 50th Street rises St. Patrick'sCathedral, the 19th century landmark where Cardinal Edward Eganwill review the parade. Open its enormous bronze front doors, andstep back into history.

The cathedral, with its ornate stained glass windows, is biggerthan a football field. Two popes have visited St. Patrick's;funerals and wakes for many dignitaries have been held inside.

Among those remembered inside were Robert F. Kennedy, former NewYork governor Al Smith, and New York Yankees greats Joe DiMaggioand Billy Martin. Across from the grand cathedral on 51st Street is the St.Patrick's Gift Shop, with an assortment of religious medals andkeepsakes.

Two blocks east, at 51st Street and Lexington Avenue, alittle-known bit of Irish history hides inside the front door ofthe Metropolitan Hotel: a plaque identifying the site as thebirthplace of Ireland's most dominant politician of the 20thcentury, Eamon De Valera.

De Valera, born in a long-defunct children's hospital on Oct.14, 1882, returned to his mother's native Ireland at the age of 3,eventually taking up the cause of Irish independence. He onlyescaped execution after the 1916 Easter Rebellion because of hisAmerican citizenship.

Inspiring a Lost Weekend

It's a short hop from the De Valera plaque to the Third Avenuehome of another famed Irish haunt: P.J. Clarke's, launched in 1884and later named for an immigrant named Patrick J. Clarke.

While not quite as old as McSorley's, Clarke's has a legacy ofits own. Ray Milland filmed a memorable scene from The LostWeekend at the bar, earning an Academy Award for his portrayal ofa tortured alcoholic.

Buddy Holly proposed to his wife at the bar, and Johnny Mercerwrote the hit song "One For My Baby" on a Clarke's bar napkin. Inhis drinking days, Irish-born actor Richard Harris would walk inand order "the usual": six double vodkas, lined up neatly alongthe bar.

One of the bar's current owners offers a bit of celebrity cache,too: actor Timothy Hutton.

When it comes to Irish music in New York, few do it better thanBlack 47. The band, led by transplanted Irishman Larry Kirwan, justreleased a new album, New York Town, featuring its musicaleulogy for Sept. 11 victim Father Mychal Judge. Black 47's only New York date in March is set for St. Patrick'sDay at a non-traditional venue: B.B. King's Blues Club on 42ndStreet, right off Times Square.

No green beer will be served.

If You Go ...

GETTING AROUND: All venues in Manhattan are easily accessible bysubway. For details and schedules, visit www.mta.nyc.ny.us/nyct/. ST. PATRICK'S DAY PARADE: Kicks off 11 a.m. at 44th Street andFifth Avenue; marchers walk north to 86th Street. The paradeusually runs into the late afternoon. IRISH HUNGER MEMORIAL: Located at the corner of Vesey Street andNorth End Avenue in Battery Park City, between Ground Zero and theHudson River; www.batteryparkcity.org/ihm.htm IRELAND HOUSE: Part of New York University, on Fifth Avenuebetween Eighth Street and Washington Square Park. Call (212)998-3950 for details. On March 12, Ireland House co-sponsors anappearance by the Karan Casey Band at 9 p.m. at the WashingtonSquare United Methodist Church at 135 W. 4th St.; admission $15.Visit www.nyu.edu/pages/irelandhouse for details. McSORLEY'S OLD ALE HOUSE: Located at 15 E. 7th St. P.J. CLARKE'S: Located at 915 Third Ave. near 55th St.;http://www.pjclarkes.com/ ST. PATRICK'S CATHEDRAL: Located on Fifth Avenue and 50thStreet. BLACK 47: Web site: http://black47.com. Appearing March 17 atB.B. King's Blues Club, 237 W. 42nd St.; shows at 7 p.m. and 10p.m. Tickets are $22 and can be ordered online through thewww.bbkingblues.com Web site or by calling Ticketmaster at (212)307-7171.