By Tim Connolly
Sen. Edward M. Kennedy was in Worcester this week to promote his idea of spending more federal dollars on medical research.
Chatting with a reporter as he walked through the library of WPI's Higgins House, Kennedy abruptly stopped and grabbed for a book. "My favorite set of books," he said with some excitement.
The books, which seemed to be used more as wallpaper than as actual tools for study, were imposing - 10 tall, thick volumes. Kennedy grabbed a book, and with only a little trouble, located what he was looking for. "This is the best speech you'll ever read," he said pointing to a speech by Charles Francis Adams Jr.
The speech, collected in the "World's Best Orations," was first delivered in Quincy on July 4, 1869. It commemorated the sixth anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg. Adams, a descendant of President John Adams, fought in that battle.
Kennedy first read the speech while recuperating from injuries received in a plane crash. The books, published in 1899, were his father's, but they were given to him by Jackie Kennedy. Her husband, President John F. Kennedy, had read the books while recuperating from one of his many illnesses.
Adams was considered a great speaker in his time. The speech is filled with vivid references to Gettysburg and a challenge to protect the peace that was won on the battlefields of the Civil War.
"This speech is one that my brother based his 1960 inaugural on," Kennedy said. "He's talking to the veterans of the Civil War and calling on them to lead in peace. My brother, a veteran of World War II, was making a similar challenge. "
Kennedy made about 30 younger members of his extended family read the speech before he led them on a recent trip to Gettysburg.
Cellucci overlooked at Pittsfield parade
Gov. Paul Cellucci made the trip to Pittsfield to march in New England's largest Fourth of July parade.
Too bad the local press didn't notice.
An estimated 120,000 people lined South, North and Wahconah streets on a warm, sunny morning. Cellucci, sans suit coat, looked comfortable with his shirtsleeves rolled up. He was talking to people, shaking hands and waving a lot. He was in top parade form.
Cellucci was walking with his running mate, Jane Swift, a former state senator from nearby North Adams. They were the only statewide candidates in the parade.
The July 5 Berkshire Eagle mentioned Swift in its front page coverage but did not report that Cellucci was there.
Ouch!
Chance to get president's tie lost The New Yorker magazine for July 13 has a small item that mentions President Clinton's habit of complimenting strangers on their neckties.
I can vouch for that. Two years ago I met Clinton in Boston and after shaking his hand he said, "I love your tie. " I said, "Thank you. " And that was that.
A few days later I bumped into a friend who said I should have removed my tie and given it to the president. Clinton would have removed his tie and given it to me. My friend claims to have seen this happen several times. "You would have had a president's tie," he said.
I've retold this story hundreds of times (this is the first time in print) and I always end it with another friend's reaction. He said, "You wouldn't have had a president's tie, you would have had the tie of some guy from Mississippi who traded with the president the day before. " Roaster says Weld was truly a Blue Blood
"Did you know that Gov. Weld actually had a troubled childhood and that he was actually arrested as a teen-ager? " asked former U.S. Rep.
Peter I. Blute, R-Shrewsbury.
Blute recently attended a roast of William F. Weld and he was particularly impressed with the story from one roaster who said Weld belonged to a gang in his youth. It was called "The Blue Bloods. " Weld and several members of the Bloods were arrested for giving bad investment advice to old widows.
Weld performed other pranks, the roaster said, like standing outside the open windows of college professors' offices and speaking in sentences with dangling participles.
After the roast, Weld gave Blute an autographed copy of his soon-to-be-published novel, "Mackerel by Moonlight. "
"He signed it "To Peter, an inspiration for this book,' " Blute recalled. "I said, "Wow, thank you governor. ' Then Weld leaned over and says, "That's how I sign all of them. ' " Kerry staying in touch with small business
U.S. Sen. John F. Kerry was pilloried by then Gov. William F. Weld during their 1996 campaign for his lack of work on behalf of small businesses despite his high ranking on the Senate Committee on Small Business.
Well, Kerry is spending all morning Monday on small business issues. At 9 a.m. in the Thomas P. O'Neill Federal Building, Kerry will chair a hearing on micro-lending. At 11 a.m., Kerry and Patrick McGowan, regional administrator of the Small Business Administration, will discuss strategies for small businesses to become more family friendly.
Names in the news Michael Duffy, a Republican running for state auditor, is the great-grandson of Richard Duffy, a New York city detective credited with arresting the infamous gangster, Legs Diamond, not once, but twice. ... The U.S. Chamber of Commerce this week endorsed state Sen. Matthew J. Amorello, R-Grafton, in his campaign in the 3rd Congressional District. ... Watertown state Sen. Warren E. Tolman, a Democrat running for lieutenant governor, maintained his good standing with organized labor this week by speaking at a rally of union painters in Harvard Square. The union painters were complaining that Harvard University recently hired a company they consider "anti-worker. " ...
The Concord Coalition and The Senior Advocate newspaper will sponsor a public forum on the future of Social Security from 7 to 8:30 p.m. July 21 at The Willows, 1 Lyman St., Westboro. ... Terence Meehan, a Democrat running in the 16th Worcester State Representative District, is serving a free spaghetti lunch to older residents of the district at 12:30 p.m. July 23. Meehan is planning to speak to the crowd. ... Brian J. Donnelly, a Democrat running for governor, has appointed Felix Arroyo, as an adviser on Latino issues for his campaign. ... State Rep.John J. Binienda, D-Worcester, has been named "Legislator of the Year" by the executive board of the Massachusetts Police Association.
The award will be presented at a luncheon on Thursday at Anthony's Pier 4 restaurant in Boston. ... There were few surprises in the Massachusetts AFL-CIO endorsements released recently. State Rep. Guy W. Glodis was endorsed in the 2nd Worcester Senate District and Carolyn Serra Grenier was chosen from among four Democrats running in the 16th Worcester State Representative District. Susan Weagle of Millbury, a Democrat running in the 7th Worcester State Representative District, also won union backing.
Sen. Edward M. Kennedy was in Worcester this week to promote his idea of spending more federal dollars on medical research.
Chatting with a reporter as he walked through the library of WPI's Higgins House, Kennedy abruptly stopped and grabbed for a book. "My favorite set of books," he said with some excitement.
The books, which seemed to be used more as wallpaper than as actual tools for study, were imposing - 10 tall, thick volumes. Kennedy grabbed a book, and with only a little trouble, located what he was looking for. "This is the best speech you'll ever read," he said pointing to a speech by Charles Francis Adams Jr.
The speech, collected in the "World's Best Orations," was first delivered in Quincy on July 4, 1869. It commemorated the sixth anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg. Adams, a descendant of President John Adams, fought in that battle.
Kennedy first read the speech while recuperating from injuries received in a plane crash. The books, published in 1899, were his father's, but they were given to him by Jackie Kennedy. Her husband, President John F. Kennedy, had read the books while recuperating from one of his many illnesses.
Adams was considered a great speaker in his time. The speech is filled with vivid references to Gettysburg and a challenge to protect the peace that was won on the battlefields of the Civil War.
"This speech is one that my brother based his 1960 inaugural on," Kennedy said. "He's talking to the veterans of the Civil War and calling on them to lead in peace. My brother, a veteran of World War II, was making a similar challenge. "
Kennedy made about 30 younger members of his extended family read the speech before he led them on a recent trip to Gettysburg.
Cellucci overlooked at Pittsfield parade
Gov. Paul Cellucci made the trip to Pittsfield to march in New England's largest Fourth of July parade.
Too bad the local press didn't notice.
An estimated 120,000 people lined South, North and Wahconah streets on a warm, sunny morning. Cellucci, sans suit coat, looked comfortable with his shirtsleeves rolled up. He was talking to people, shaking hands and waving a lot. He was in top parade form.
Cellucci was walking with his running mate, Jane Swift, a former state senator from nearby North Adams. They were the only statewide candidates in the parade.
The July 5 Berkshire Eagle mentioned Swift in its front page coverage but did not report that Cellucci was there.
Ouch!
Chance to get president's tie lost The New Yorker magazine for July 13 has a small item that mentions President Clinton's habit of complimenting strangers on their neckties.
I can vouch for that. Two years ago I met Clinton in Boston and after shaking his hand he said, "I love your tie. " I said, "Thank you. " And that was that.
A few days later I bumped into a friend who said I should have removed my tie and given it to the president. Clinton would have removed his tie and given it to me. My friend claims to have seen this happen several times. "You would have had a president's tie," he said.
I've retold this story hundreds of times (this is the first time in print) and I always end it with another friend's reaction. He said, "You wouldn't have had a president's tie, you would have had the tie of some guy from Mississippi who traded with the president the day before. " Roaster says Weld was truly a Blue Blood
"Did you know that Gov. Weld actually had a troubled childhood and that he was actually arrested as a teen-ager? " asked former U.S. Rep.
Peter I. Blute, R-Shrewsbury.
Blute recently attended a roast of William F. Weld and he was particularly impressed with the story from one roaster who said Weld belonged to a gang in his youth. It was called "The Blue Bloods. " Weld and several members of the Bloods were arrested for giving bad investment advice to old widows.
Weld performed other pranks, the roaster said, like standing outside the open windows of college professors' offices and speaking in sentences with dangling participles.
After the roast, Weld gave Blute an autographed copy of his soon-to-be-published novel, "Mackerel by Moonlight. "
"He signed it "To Peter, an inspiration for this book,' " Blute recalled. "I said, "Wow, thank you governor. ' Then Weld leaned over and says, "That's how I sign all of them. ' " Kerry staying in touch with small business
U.S. Sen. John F. Kerry was pilloried by then Gov. William F. Weld during their 1996 campaign for his lack of work on behalf of small businesses despite his high ranking on the Senate Committee on Small Business.
Well, Kerry is spending all morning Monday on small business issues. At 9 a.m. in the Thomas P. O'Neill Federal Building, Kerry will chair a hearing on micro-lending. At 11 a.m., Kerry and Patrick McGowan, regional administrator of the Small Business Administration, will discuss strategies for small businesses to become more family friendly.
Names in the news Michael Duffy, a Republican running for state auditor, is the great-grandson of Richard Duffy, a New York city detective credited with arresting the infamous gangster, Legs Diamond, not once, but twice. ... The U.S. Chamber of Commerce this week endorsed state Sen. Matthew J. Amorello, R-Grafton, in his campaign in the 3rd Congressional District. ... Watertown state Sen. Warren E. Tolman, a Democrat running for lieutenant governor, maintained his good standing with organized labor this week by speaking at a rally of union painters in Harvard Square. The union painters were complaining that Harvard University recently hired a company they consider "anti-worker. " ...
The Concord Coalition and The Senior Advocate newspaper will sponsor a public forum on the future of Social Security from 7 to 8:30 p.m. July 21 at The Willows, 1 Lyman St., Westboro. ... Terence Meehan, a Democrat running in the 16th Worcester State Representative District, is serving a free spaghetti lunch to older residents of the district at 12:30 p.m. July 23. Meehan is planning to speak to the crowd. ... Brian J. Donnelly, a Democrat running for governor, has appointed Felix Arroyo, as an adviser on Latino issues for his campaign. ... State Rep.John J. Binienda, D-Worcester, has been named "Legislator of the Year" by the executive board of the Massachusetts Police Association.
The award will be presented at a luncheon on Thursday at Anthony's Pier 4 restaurant in Boston. ... There were few surprises in the Massachusetts AFL-CIO endorsements released recently. State Rep. Guy W. Glodis was endorsed in the 2nd Worcester Senate District and Carolyn Serra Grenier was chosen from among four Democrats running in the 16th Worcester State Representative District. Susan Weagle of Millbury, a Democrat running in the 7th Worcester State Representative District, also won union backing.
