| Edwin A. Lahey | |
| Birth Name: | Edwin Aloysius Lahey |
| Birth Date: | 1 November 1902 |
| Birth Place: | Chicago, Illinois, US |
| Death Place: | Washington, D.C., US |
| Occupation: | Journalist |
| Employer: | Chicago Daily News, Knight Newspapers |
| Credits: | , which produces label "Notable credit(s)"; or by |
| Works: | , which produces label "Works"; or by |
| Label Name: | , which produces label "Label(s)" --> |
| Spouse: | Grace Seidcheck |
| Parents: | Alice Burns, James F. Lahey |
| Awards: | Nieman Fellowship, Elijah Parish Lovejoy Award |
Edwin A. Lahey (1902–1969) was a 20th-century American journalist, known for his coverage of Al Capone and John Dillinger, the labor beat, and personal knowledge of Philip Murray, Lee Pressman, James Carey, John L. Lewis, Robert A. Taft, and Thomas E. Dewey. US Representative William H. Ayres called him "a crusader for all of us in these United States of America," while Knight Newspapers's John S. Knight, called him "the best newspaper reporter in my profession."[1] [2] [3] [4]
Edwin Aloysius Lahey was born on January 11, 1902, in Chicago. His parents were Alice Burns and machinist James F. Lahey. He dropped out of school at an early age, possibly by fourth grade.
Lahey as an office boy, shipping clerk, railroad yard clerk, and dishwasher. In 1927, he joined The Glen Ellyn, Illiniois, Beacon, followed by The East St. Louis Journal and Associated Press.
In 1929, he joined Chicago Daily News, which he later said was "the only paper I ever wanted to work."
In 1936, the Chicago Daily News assigned Lahey to the labor beat. In 1937, he covered sit-down strikes in the Automobile and Steel industries.[1] These included the Little Steel Strike.[5] In 1959, Lahey recalled for oral history:
In my association with the C.I.O., which was very, very close and intimate, more so than—I'm not immodest when I say so, but I was closer to the operation of the C.I.O. than most of the people in the C.I.O., not to mention the newspapermen, because my best friends after I moved to Washington, were Philip Murray, the president of the C.I.O., and Lee Pressman, the general counsel of the C.I.O.Shortly after a Nieman Fellowship at Harvard 1939, Lahey investigated an Illinois state auditor, which resulted in the official's imprisonment.
In 1941, the Chicago Daily News assigned Lahey to Washington, DC. There, he met with Murray and Pressman twice a week.
During World War II, he covered first the China-Burma-India front and later Europe, Africa, and Latin America. In 1956, the Chicago Daily News made Lahey bureau chief there. In 1959, when Chicago Daily News sold to Marshall Field III, Lahey remained with Knight Newspapers as chief correspondent. He spent 28 years covering news in the nation's capital.
Famous stories include the resignation of Martin Durkin (former labor leader and President Dwight D. Eisenhower's first Secretary of Labor and an interview with US Senator Robert A. Taft (which led to reconciliation between Taft and Eisenhower following Taft's defeat for the 1952 Republican Party presidential primaries.
In 1951, during tense negotiations between Walter Reuther of the United Auto Workers and George Meany of the AFL–CIO, Lahey wrote, "the final act of complete labor unity awaits only the retirement or passing of three onetime cronies, Green, Murray, and John L. Lewis" and "competitive civil war" in labor organizing.[6] [7]
Lahey married Grace Seidcheck and had two children and several grandchildren.
He was a heavy drinker early but gave it up early and in 1940 joined Alcoholics Anonymous.
He was a member of the National Press Club, Harvard Club, and Gridiron Club.
He befriended Felix Frankfurter while a Nieman Fellow at Harvard.
Edwin A. Lahey died age 67 on July 17, 1969, of complications of emphysema at the Washington Hospital Center.
On July 22, 1969, US Representative William H. Ayres extolled Lahey before the United States House of Representatives. His last employer, John S. Knight, founder of Knight Newspapers said of him, "During my time as editor and publisher of the Chicago Daily News, the only man of whom I stood in awe was Ed Lahey, the best newspaper reporter in my profession."
In 1978, when the Chicago Daily News closed, the New York Times listed Lahey among the newspaper's top "reporting talent."[8]
In 1996, the New York Times noted Lahey's reluctance to use news leaks: "The background interview is a vicious device because it lets officials escape responsibility."[9]
In 2008, M. A. Lyons published a collection of writings by parent Louis M. Lyons, which included a chapter entitled, "Edwin A. Lahey: Chicago Daily News."[10]
Lahey remains known for his sardonic summaries and statements:
Articles:
Television, film:
Books, pamphlets: