Alamo and Houli
Fox’s Pizza, Guinness, Big Corner Tavern, Madden Funds and Flood Brothers Disposal present the Hibernian Radio Hour as we return to our First Responders Tour at our new recording location, Big Corner Tavern, and this week we welcome back one of our favorite guests for the 12th time, James “Duke” Lynch AKA: Alamo! He’s just back from his first ever trip to Ireland and he brought plenty of stories back with him! Alamo is a U.S Marine Corps Vietnam Veteran and a retired 39 year veteran of the Chicago Police Department. He is a South Shore native who attended St. Philip Neri School and Lyons Township High School. This guy is a man of valor, Bronze Star recipient, having lost both knees in the war and still returning to combat after his recovery in Hawaii. He is a devoted fan of John Wayne, admiring him so much that he had to repeat the 5th grade because he skipped school for a full month to go see “The Alamo” 60 times in the theater! He even took time off work to attend John Wayne’s funeral and managed to find his way into the private section where he rubbed shoulders with celebrities like Jimmy Stewart and James Arness. This Chicago legend has been awarded more awards than we can count including the Friend Indeed Award for carrying two children out of a burning building as well as housing his neighbors after another fire. He spent 15 years as a bodyguard to Mayor Richard M. Daley and grew up in a police family – his father and grandfather were both cops. Alamo begins his interview by sharing his cancer journey with Houli and he explains that he honestly thought he was dying after the doctor told him he had 6 months to live… His 41 years of sobriety is a hot topic and how he had the urge to drink during his Irish trip. “You have to have hope!” He delves into some of the wonderful places he visited on the Emerald Isle including Cong where some of ‘The Quiet Man’ was shot. He and Houli both have a shared interest in Irish history and share some of their family history including the fact that The Duke’s great-uncle was killed on Talbot Street during the Irish Civil War. He shares his experience visiting the GPO on Easter Monday and some other historic landmarks he saw during his week-long trip such as the Cliffs of Moher. Alamo chats about his lovely dog Shannon who sadly passed away while he was in Ireland and shares some stories from his time working as a ‘wagon man’; the officer who picked up dead bodies. The new Mayor-elect, Brandon Johnson, and his political views is also a hot topic with these two pals as they both fear for Chicago’s future. “This guy is ten times worse than Lori Lightfoot..” – Alamo. These two old friends end another wonderful interview this week with some advice for our listeners – “One thing about the Irish, they never forget a grudge!”. Houli brings us up to date on some upcoming events including two book signings he will be doing for his latest book, “Chicago Irish Mythology” on Sunday April 23 at Clancy’s IPub from 3-5pm and May 4th at Ken’s on Western Ave. Come out and say hi! Then it’s over to the latest obituaries followed by a well-needed trip to our favorite place known as “Houli-Town”.
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