RIP Eugene McCarthy

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Man. A big day for the obit departments.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Saturday, 10 December 2005 21:32 (twenty years ago)

I actually learned more about him from that obituary than anything else beforehand -- he was always a name to me, no more. Sounds a fascinating figure...

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Saturday, 10 December 2005 21:43 (twenty years ago)

I wonder who will make more front pages, Pryor or McCarthy?

Only knowing his political career from the history books, I have a lot of respect for McCarthy. But the thing that most sticks with me about him is a really heartbreaking piece he wrote for The Washington Post some years ago about one of his daughters, an alcoholic who died when she passed out in a snowbank. He was very candid about his relationship with her, how he tried to help her and also pulled away in frustration and mostly how much he loved her. It's one of the saddest things I've ever read about parenthood.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Saturday, 10 December 2005 21:44 (twenty years ago)

I, uh, sorry to say, assumed he was already dead...

Well, RIP, and a big "what if ..."

― D.I.Y. U.N.K.L.E. (dave225.3), Saturday, 10 December 2005 21:52 (twenty years ago)

(ha, and I just realized that the piece about the alcoholic daughter was by McGovern, not McCarthy. shows what i know.)

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Saturday, 10 December 2005 21:57 (twenty years ago)

I was gonna say...

My mom, a classic bleeding heart liberal, worked for "Clean Gene" in the fateful 68 campaign. Just putting a Vote for McCarthy sticker on the bumper of our Ford station wagon was viewed as an act of insurrection in a neighborhood where the favored bumper sticker read AMERICA - LOVE IT OR LEAVE IT! By the time he ran again in the 1976 primaries the world had changed but you still had to admire his guts. For my money, he would've been a better president than RFK.

RIP.

― m coleman (lovebug starski), Saturday, 10 December 2005 22:34 (twenty years ago)

rest in peace

― kingfish trampycakes (kingfish 2.0), Saturday, 10 December 2005 22:53 (twenty years ago)

at this late date it seems bizarre that a published poet and liberal catholic ex-seminarian would have even an outside shot at becoming US president but for a few months he was a real contender. 1968.

the current equivalent would not be howard "primal scream" dean but a (probably nonexistent) moderate republican who would dare to point a finger at our lame-duck emperor's lack of appropriate attire.

― m coleman (lovebug starski), Saturday, 10 December 2005 22:59 (twenty years ago)

"He once spent a year in a monastery."(!)

― youn, Saturday, 10 December 2005 23:17 (twenty years ago)

ugh.. Dec 10th is a pretty known day for obits, isn't it.. Lennon.. Darby... :(

― dali madison's nut (donut), Saturday, 10 December 2005 23:43 (twenty years ago)

A guy I work with who was 18 in '68 got all reverent talking about McCarthy. He said to be draft age and have a major figure like that running for president against the war felt monumental.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Sunday, 11 December 2005 02:18 (twenty years ago)

If he was good enough for hunter, he was good enough fror me. not that our standards are that high. please let it live.

― Amity Wong (noodle vague), Sunday, 11 December 2005 03:03 (twenty years ago)

I thought that was going to be a joke thread about a ventriloquist's dummy.

I've got it straight now. Thanks.

― Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Sunday, 11 December 2005 03:03 (twenty years ago)

well i did not think the girl could be so cool.

― Amity Wong (noodle vague), Sunday, 11 December 2005 03:05 (twenty years ago)

my mom and dad thot he was the person to end the war in veitnam, and gave him some money in 68, when they were working with the friends service committee, relocating draft dogders

― anthony easton (anthony), Sunday, 11 December 2005 08:53 (twenty years ago)

To hear one his great talks, go here and scroll down... he's speaking about Bush, Sr. btw:
http://jellobiafra.sleepdeprived.ca/

― andy ---, Monday, 12 December 2005 18:51 (twenty years ago)

Strangely, he endorsed Reagan in 1980.

McCarthy got page 1 (below fold) in the NYT. Pryor got a bottom photo and page 61.

― Dr Morbius (Dr Morbius), Monday, 12 December 2005 18:55 (twenty years ago)

I will always be grateful to Eugene McCarthy for what he did in 1968. He broke the unanimous facade of the pro-war establishment. When he won 39% in New Hampshire it was so shocking that LBJ withdrew from the race.

The ultimate tragedy was that the general election devolved into Humphrey vs. Nixon, so the anti-war vote had nowhere to go. Oh, yeah - Richard Daley (The Elder) can fry in hell. Thx bye.

― Aimless (Aimless), Monday, 12 December 2005 19:04 (twenty years ago)

my mom told me "senator mccarthy just died," which made me do a double-take.

― J.D. (Justyn Dillingham), Monday, 12 December 2005 19:08 (twenty years ago)

Fans of Gene McCarthy might also get a kick out of Justice William O. Douglas, another case of "How the fuck did somebody so cool get into government?" (the answer is FDR):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_O._Douglas

― andy --, Monday, 12 December 2005 19:11 (twenty years ago)

42% in NH, to pick a nit.

Reading Fear & Loathing '72, if McCarthy had managed to win the '68 nomination -- which means RFK would've stayed on the sidelines, or been killed earlier? -- I think the Dem Establishment might've sabotaged him the way they did McGovern in '72.

― Dr Morbius (Dr Morbius), Monday, 12 December 2005 19:12 (twenty years ago)

Oh, most clearly and certainly they fucked him over at the convention and handed it to Humphrey.

― Aimless (Aimless), Monday, 12 December 2005 19:24 (twenty years ago)

I don't know the nuts n bolts -- were RFK's delegates coerced /'encouraged' not to defect to McCarthy? cuz y'know, Humphrey was 'electable,' like Kerry.

― Dr Morbius (Dr Morbius), Monday, 12 December 2005 19:26 (twenty years ago)

will always be grateful to Eugene McCarthy for what he did in 1968. He broke the unanimous facade of the pro-war establishment. When he won 39% in New Hampshire it was so shocking that LBJ withdrew from the race.

OTM

Interesting relationship w/LBJ spelled out in Caro's 'Master of the Senate'.

― M. White (Miguelito), Monday, 12 December 2005 21:50 (twenty years ago)

Hitchens playing nice: http://www.slate.com/id/2132129/

― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Monday, 12 December 2005 23:30 (twenty years ago)

Pryor got a bottom photo and page 61.

yeah and the obit basically ended at like '89 or something. no mention of "lost highway" and not much on the man's later years.

― hstencil (hstencil), Tuesday, 13 December 2005 00:32 (twenty years ago)

Interesting piece from the '68 campaign that the National Review had kicking around. Before you have hives, it's actually quite a winning portrait of the man at a stop on the campaign trail.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Tuesday, 13 December 2005 03:49 (twenty years ago)

wow pryor wins the headline competition hands down. Interesting commentary on pop culture. More intriguing to me is that while the new CLooney film "Good night and good luck is about McCarthy, still Pryor has had more press. But I live in LA - has it been different elsewhere? I haven't had time to read this whole thread yet, so if I have missed posts about this - sorry and disregard - Iwill come back and read the thread when time permits.

― Wiggy (Wiggy), Tuesday, 13 December 2005 04:39 (twenty years ago)

Good night and good luck is about McCarthy

no, it's about JOSEPH mccarthy, not EUGENE mccarthy.

― hstencil (hstencil), Tuesday, 13 December 2005 04:41 (twenty years ago)

and really it's more about edward r. murrow, but still, sheesh.

― hstencil (hstencil), Tuesday, 13 December 2005 04:41 (twenty years ago)

stence - "I live in LA"

― j blount (papa la bas), Tuesday, 13 December 2005 04:51 (twenty years ago)

Joseph McCarthy was candace bergan's half-brother.

― Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Tuesday, 13 December 2005 05:12 (twenty years ago)

...and had a reputation as quite a blockhead.

― Aimless (Aimless), Tuesday, 13 December 2005 05:29 (twenty years ago)

Is that your nose or are you eating a tomato?

― Dr Morbius (Dr Morbius), Tuesday, 13 December 2005 14:24 (twenty years ago)

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