On Saturday we were invited to a family barbecue in Westport, Conn., complete with fireworks at Compo Beach….
By Dee Richard
By the time you read this, the Fourth of July will have come and gone and we will be in the middle of summer. Hope your Fourth was a happy one.
On Saturday we were invited to a family barbecue in Westport, Conn., complete with fireworks at Compo Beach. On the Fourth a friend offered to take us on his boat for a close-up of the Macys’ spectacular fireworks. I hope you were able to see them, if not in person then at least on your TV. Every year they get better and better. It’s a must-see event for everyone.
On June 30 while flipping through the Daily News, I was rather distressed to find an article mentioning counsel to Queens Republican Party Perry Reich and his reported involvement in a legal matter concerning a judge.
State Sen. Serphin Maltese said he hoped it would soon get straightened out. Reich said he turned the entire matter over to his attorney and has confidence in the attorney’s capability. His lawyer said the case will come up in court in the fall, giving him time to “collect the facts and vindicate my client.” Good luck, Perry.
However, what did seem to be an odd part of the newspaper article was that it mentioned that Reich was one of Joel Steinberg’s lawyers 17 years ago. The day the article appeared in the paper was the same day Steinberg was released from prison. It appeared that the newspaper was trying to equate a possible connection between the two events. But to what end? It neither helped nor hurt the Steinberg story nor did it have any bearing on or connection to the Reich story. There will be more details later.
The New York Press Club held its annual awards dinner at the Water Club June 28. Baysider Mary Murphy, weekend anchor/reporter of WB11 News at Ten, was presented with one of the evening’s three Rev. Mychal Judge Awards for her “Al-Qaeda’s Forgotten Victim” story. Congratulations, Mary, and thanks for keeping Queens on the journalistic map.
The co-sponsor for the evening was the New York State Bar Association, which elected a new president this year. He is Kenneth Standard. Congratulations, Kenneth, and the Press Club wishes to thank you and the bar association’s continued and much-appreciated support.
Speaking of the Press Club, we attended veteran newsman and club treasurer Barney Confessore’s wake last Friday. Barney was the club’s Rock of Gibraltar, having served the club for more than 40 years. He also ran the ABC News Service, an adjunct of the Long Island Daily Press, which was like a training school for interns and cub reporters. Many well-known journalists credit Barney with being their mentor.
Talking about the Long Island Daily Press, the building in which it was located still stands even though the paper closed more than 25 years ago. In fact, the woman who owns the building, Rita Stark, is the same woman who wrote out the consecutively numbered infamous checks that caused Councilman Sheldon Leffler his recent problems with the law. Small world, isn’t it?
Back to Barney. The Press Club had held a big 75th birthday party for him five years ago, shortly after which he retired. His assistant, Anne Marino, has been at the helm ever since. Rest in peace, Barney. You’ve been the New York Press Club’s most lovable old curmudgeon. The world is a much sadder place without you. We miss you and will remember you always in our prayers.
If you remember, the Little Neck-Douglaston Memorial Day Parade was subjected to a downpour of torrential rains. It was impossible to give out the awards as planned. This past Sunday they made arrangements to bestow the awards on the recipients at the Ernie Pyle Building in Fort Totten.
The event was not too well-attended due to the fact that the end of June is graduation time, wedding time and the beginning of many people’s vacations. That is a lot of tough competition.
Those who did attend enjoyed themselves and appreciated their awards. A big thanks to Assemblyman Michael Gianaris for traveling from Astoria to Fort Totten to assist in giving out some of the awards.
This has been a phenomenally slow week. Therefore, this column will be rather short. Be sure you check out the photos on the Focus on Queens page.
Remember to call me at 718-767-6484, fax me at 718-746 0066 and keep the e-mails coming in to deerrichard@aol.com.
Treat yourself to some happy times by doing something you really enjoy.
Till next week, Dee
