A monumental biography of Chicagos six-term mayor that elevates the
coarse and cunning political boss to the status of an American
icon.Its hard to argue with the assertion of journalists Cohen
(Time) and Taylor (Chicago Tribune) that Daley was the biggest
political boss of the last century. The only child of a
working-class, Irish-Catholic family, Daley started out as a
laborer in the city's infamous stockyards and, despite the fancy
suits and limousines he later indulged as prerogatives of power,
always claimed to be just another hard-working man who took care of
the people who voted for him. In the city's working-class
Bridgeport neighborhood, the young Daley did the boring detail work
that local Democratic precinct captains didnt like, got out the
vote, kicked back to those who favored him, and never forgot a
face. More a plodder than a charismatic leader, Daley worked his
way through law school, remained faithful to his wife, refrained
from smoking or drinking, and never stole from the public
troughthough he had no problems lying to the press and collecting
two salaries (beginning in 1955) as both mayor and Democratic Party
chairman. A stickler for clean streets, he surrounded himself with
glad-handers, thugs, bureaucratic hacks, and ward heelers who doled
out patronage jobs, exploited racist fears, and salted election
returns. The darling of the national Democratic Party after
Illinois provided the crucial votes that put Kennedy in the White
House in 1960, Daley let the citys business elite launch
urban-renewal schemes that improved the skyline while reinforcing
racial and economical segregation. He became a national
embarrassment when journalists were beaten by police during the
1968 Democratic convention, but (despite numerous scandals) he
remained in control of the city up to the moment he died in 1976.A
breathlessly engrossing history of a classic urban political
machine and the powerbroker who ran it his way. (16 pages b&w
illustrations, not seen) (Kirkus Reviews)
"This is Chicago, this is America." With those words, Chicago mayor Richard J. Daley famously defended his brutal crackdown on protestors at the 1968 Democratic convention. Profoundly divided racially, economically and socially, Chicago was indeed a microcosm of America, and for more than two decades Daley ruled it with an iron fist. The last of the big city bosses, Daley ran an unbeatable political machine that controlled over one million votes. From 1955 until his death in 1976, every decision of any importance -- from distributing patronage jobs to picking Congressional candidates -- went through his office. He was a major player in national politics as well: Kennedy and Johnson owed their presidencies to his control of the Illinois vote, and he made sure they never forgot it. In a city legendary for its corruption and backroom politics, Daley's power was unrivaled.
Daley transformed Chicago -- then a dying city -- into a modern metropolis of skyscrapers, freeways and a thriving downtown. But he also made Chicago America's most segregated city. A man of profound prejudices and a deep authoritarian streak , he constructed the nation's largest and worst ghettoes, sidestepped national civil rights laws, and successfully thwarted Martin Luther King's campaign to desegregate Northern cities.
A quarter-century after his death, Daley's outsize presence continues to influence American urban life, and a reassessment of his career is long overdue. Now, veteran journalists Adam Cohen and Elizabeth Taylor present the definitive biography of Richard J. Daley, drawn from newly uncovered material and dozens of interviews with his contemporaries. In today's era of poll-tested, polished politicians, Daley's rough-and-tumble story is remarkable. From the working-class Irish neighborhood of his childhood, to his steady rise through Chicago's corrupt political hierarchy, to his role as national powerbroker, American Pharaoh is a riveting account of the life and times of one of the most important figures in twentieth-century domestic politics. In the tradition of Robert Caro's classic The Power Broker, this is a compelling life story of a towering individual whose complex legacy is still with us today.
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