Malachy McCourt to Receive First Origin in Bloom Literary Award

On Friday, June 16, beloved New York fixture Malachy McCourt receives the first Origin in Bloom Literary Award, a new annuAl Bloomsday award honoring the work of an Irish or Irish-American author.

McCourt will receive the award at this week's 4th annuAl Bloomsday Breakfast, hosted by Origin Theatre Company and Bloom's Tavern, 208 East 58th Street, on Friday June 16. The annual free event -- New York's only site-specific Bloomsday breakfast -- features readings from "Ulysses," musical interludes, and a juried costume contest.

On hand to honor McCourt and to help inaugurate the new prize will be the award's nominating committee, which includes the Irish Voice's Cahir O'Doherty; Irish America Magazine's Patricia Harty; historian and curator Turlough McConnell, and the Irish Echo's Peter McDermott.

"There is no better champion for artists, the arts, the little guy, and the big-hearted than our dear friend, Malachy McCourt," said George Heslin, artistic director of Origin Theatre Company and the producer of the "Origin's 4th Bloom... @ Bloom's Tavern of Course!" ... a grand tradition since 2014! "That is why this award is so meaningful to us. Though he always brushes these kinds of things off, Malachy deserves our undying love for all that he does." Adds Bloom's Tavern co-owner and GM Noel Donovan, "Malachy McCourt is a New York Irish institution. A welcoming presence, a man who smiles the way others breathe."

The Brooklyn-born McCourt is being honored for his lifetime literary output, which includes his recently published whimsical collection of personal essays (written with BrIan McDonald) about the meaning of death, "Death Need Not Be Fatal." In addition to this fascinating and often inspirational collection, the sometimes politician, perennial activist, and WBAI radio host, is also the author of "Danny Boy," "A Monk Swimming," and "Malachy McCourt's History of Ireland," among others.

Among the notables in the cast are the singer FrEddie White; the singer Niamh Hyland; the actors Malachy McCourt, Aedin Moloney, Charlotte Moore, David O'Hara, Paula Nance, David Staller, Terry Donnolly, and Fiona Walsh; The James Joyce Reading Group and David O'Leary of Trí -- The New Irish Tenors. Throughout the morning, the Irish-folk-rock troubadour Alan Gogarty, on guitar, interacts with morning's guests.

The breakfast features a costume competition for the "Best, or Most Creatively, Dressed Molly or Leopold Bloom." The winner -- either a man or woman -- will be selected from among the guests by a blue-ribbon panel chaired by the internationally recognized image strategist Margaret Molloy. A $2000 Dinner and NYC Fun Package will be offered to the grand-prize winner.

Bloomsday commemorates the Dublin summer morning chronicled in James Joyce's landmark novel "Ulysses," which takes place in a single day, June 16, 1904.

James Joyce first serialized "Ulysses" beginning in 1918. Considered a masterpiece of modernism, it was banned in the U.S. before the book was published in its entirety in France in 1922. Bloomsday observances around the world date back to 1924.

Produced by Origin Theatre Company, "Origin's 4th Bloom... @ Bloom's Tavern of Course!" takes place at Bloom's Tavern, 208 East 58th Street, on Friday June 16 from 7:30am to 10am. The FREE event -- New York's only site-specific Bloomsday breakfast -- is fueled by a traditional Irish breakfast, with blood sausage and kidney pie among the edible delicacies, and refreshing summer drinks. For information and reservations go to www.origintheatre.org.