An Introduction to Dr. Eoin McKiernan’s television programs 1962-1965

Brian Miller, Director of the Eoin McKiernan Library, will give an introduction to the groundbreaking television programs about Irish culture, current events and history produced by Dr. McKiernan in the early 1960s. Filmed at the recently completed KTCA-TV studio on Como Avenue in St. Paul, the 53 half-hour episodes of Ireland Rediscovered and Irish Diary proved very popular and, by 1965, were being broadcast in 36 cities.

With help from a Minnesota Historical Society grant, the McKiernan Library has digitized these fascinating programs and has made them available online.

Ireland Rediscovered and Irish Diary were the launching point for the entire academic discipline of Irish Studies in the U.S. and the impetus for Dr. McKiernan’s Irish American Cultural Institute. To McKiernan, the programs’ success “indicated that there was an audience ‘out there’” for Irish history and culture beyond the romanticized and commercialized depictions he called “shamrockery.”

In this talk, Miller will speak about the context surrounding the creation and propagation of these shows while also sharing highlights from the newly-digitized programs themselves.

This is a hybrid event. You can attend in person at the Celtic Junction—RSVP.

Prefer to join us online? Register HERE to attend the Zoom webinar.