July 24, 2023
The Irish American Writers and Artists Association (IAW&A) presents the prestigious 2023 Eugene O’Neill Lifetime Achievement Award to St. Bonaventure alumnus and longtime New York Times reporter and columnist Dan Barry of ’80.
A celebration is planned for October 16th at the 5th & MAD restaurant in Midtown Manhattan.
Named after a playwright who embodies the highest level of artistic achievement, the annual O’Neill Awards recognize Barry’s exemplary contributions to the arts. This year’s event coincides with Eugene O’Neill’s 135th birthday.
For The Times, Barry writes on a myriad of topics including sports, culture, New York City, and the nation. He writes both the “About New York” and “This Land” columns. His work has won numerous journalism awards and has been nominated twice for the Pulitzer Prize. In 1992, he won the George He Polk Award as part of the Providence Journal research team, and in 1994 he won the Pulitzer Prize as part of that team for his research into the Rhode Island court system.
Barry is a three-time Emmy winner for documentaries produced by The Times and is the author of several books, including “Pull Me Up: A Memoir.” “The Boys in the Bunkhouse: Slavery and Redemption in Heartland” and “Bottom of the 33rd: Hope, Redemption, and Baseball’s Longest Game” won the PEN/ESPN Award for Sports Literature.
Appearing on the Jandri Correspondence School’s Wall of Distinguished Alumni, Barry was named the school’s Graduate of the Year in 1994 and was awarded an honorary degree by the university in 2016.
Irish American Writers & Artists President Maria Deasy said it was an honor to honor Barry.
“In 2014, IAW&A honored acclaimed author Pete Hamill. It was my first O’Neill Awards ceremony as a member of the Board. It’s a great honor to come full circle in honoring Dan, a virtuoso of honest reporting and a writer of natural eloquence,” she said.
IAW&A Vice President Brendan Costello Jr. said, “Whatever the subject matter, Dan Barry’s writing captures the humanity of every story with poignant empathy.”
Barry joins notable O’Neill Award winners including Peter Quinn, Joanie Madden, Malachy McCourt, Patricia Harty, Pete Hamill, Judy Collins, Charlotte Moore, Ciaran O’Reilly, William Kennedy, Kate Mulgrew, John Patrick Shanley and Larry Kirwan.
For more information on IAW&A, please visit https://iamwa.org/.
