O'DONNELL, L. A. 1925-

PERSONAL: Born October 19, 1925, in Gary, IN; son of L. A., Sr. (in business) and Carolyn Emily (a homemaker; maiden name, Senn) O'Donnell; married Rosemarie Kohne (a teacher and librarian), July 25, 1953; children: Hugh, Daniel, Thomas, Kathleen Emily O'Donnell Conley. Ethnicity: "Irish." Education: University of Notre Dame, A.B., 1949; Loyola University of Chicago, M.S., 1953; University of Wisconsin—Madison, Ph.D., 1961. Politics: "Precinct committee member." Religion: Roman Catholic. Hobbies and other interests: Sculpture, watercolor, hiking, travel, family genealogy.

ADDRESSES: Home and office—16 Stonehenge Lane, Malvern, PA 19355.

CAREER: Writer. Loyola University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, instructor in labor relations and director of Internship Program in Industrial Relations, 1953–55; University of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, began as instructor, became assistant professor of economics, also lecturer in labor and management, 1958–62; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Washington, DC, economist, 1962–67; Villanova University, Villanova, PA, associate professor of economics, 1967–94. George Washington University, lecturer, 1966–67; Pennsylvania State University, University Park, lecturer at Union Leadership Academy, 1982–84. U.S. Department of Labor, conducted field research on manpower and job security in the longshore industry, 1963–64. Soup Kitchen of Norristown, PA, volunteer, 1991–92. Military service: U.S. Navy, 1943–45.

MEMBER: Industrial Relations Research Association, American Conference for Irish Studies, Pennsylvania Labor History Society (member of board of directors), Chester County Art Association.

AWARDS, HONORS: Ford Foundation fellow, 1960; grant from Irish American Cultural Institute, 1996.

WRITINGS:

Irish Voice and Organized Labor in America, Greenwood Press (Westport, CT), 1997.

Contributor to books, including On the Condition of Labor and the Social Question One Hundred Years Later, edited by T. O. Nitsch, J. L. Phillips, and I. L. Fitzsimmons, Edwin Mellen Press (Lewiston, NY), 1994; and The Encyclopedia of the Irish in America, University of Notre Dame Press (Notre Dame, IN), 1999. Contributor of articles and reviews to journals, including New York Irish History, Eire-Ireland, America, Commonweal, Old Limerick Journal, Monthly Labor Review, International Journal of Social Economics, and History of Political Economy.

WORK IN PROGRESS: My Enterprising Grandfather, W. H. O'Donnell, 1850–1928; The Careys of Philadelphia, 1784–1879; and Genealogy of the O'Donnells from Limerick to America.

SIDELIGHTS: L. A. O'Donnell once told CA: "My primary motivation for writing is a love of words and their meaning—the clarity and variety of expression in the English language. There is also the publish-or-perish factor in academia. Influences on my work include a college course on Shakespeare and one on the essay, and the work of Updike and others in the New Yorker and David McCullough. I was inspired to write on the subjects I have chosen when I recognized the need for unions while working in steel mills in Gary, Indiana. Other inspirations include the study of labor relations, the importance of social justice, a belated appreciation of history, love of biography, and family genealogy."

"Those who influenced my work were two labor priests—Reverends George G. Higgins of Washington, D.C., and Charles Owen Rice of Pittsburgh—and Professors Charles W. Anrod of Loyola University and Jack Barbash of University of Wisconsin (Madison). The most surprising thing discovered is that competent and considerate editors can be of great help."