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i EDMOND M. HANRAHAN OReilly on Racing Scribe Pays Visit to Offices Of New Racing Commissioner By TOM OREILLY j f . 1 , 1 - - - y - :, NEW YORK, N. Y., May 8. — Anyone i approaching the law offices of New Yorks new racing commissioner, Edmond Martin Hanrahan, on the 18th floor of a downtown skyscraper at 14 Wall street, is likely to be overwhelmed at the Celtic character of the names on the door. First, the firm name gets top billing: Listed: "Sullivan, Donovan, Hanrahan, McGovern and Lane. Then, to one side, are listed the following: "Cornelius J. Sullivan, Decd. Gerald Donovan Edmond M. Hanrahan Joseph W. McGovern John Lane Edward A. Silliere Ed. note: a goombah Celt! Lindley J. Murray William H. Coogan Richard P. Donovan Robert R. Cardany Warren J. Dawson Richard E. Mannix Leo B. Connelly." Consequently, it is hardly a surprise, once inside the spacious reception room, to find 1 the place decorated tastefully with valu- able prints of William Jones, 1744, showing , views of "The Salmon Leap at Leixlip," • The Castle of Carlingford," The Water- * fall of Wicklow" and "A View of Carling- i ford Harbour." The commissioner, a dapper, balding. , pink and gray gentlemen, with bushy brows and clear blue eyes, who at 51, resembles * the late George M. Cohan, explains that 1 these prints were presented to the firm by ] Sullivans widow who, along with Donovan, was the co-founder of the firm. Cornelius . Sullivan had been a partner of Delancey Nicoll, one of the great New York* legal s names in the nineties. In addition to being i a renowned district attorney, he had been counsel for the New York Giants, under Andrew Friedman and was himself a con- , siderable baseball star at both Amherst and , Harvard. He also was an outstanding amateur golfer, back in the days when few , people played the game in this country and at his death, in 1932, he still held a five j handicap. Donovan Giant of Man On being introduced to the senior part- J ner. Gerald Donovan, you are impressed by the size of the man. He is a giant, hand- , some, athletic gentleman of the Jack Kelly type and you discover that he played tackle i for some great Brown University teams back in the days when the Carlisle Indians were the scourge of the nations gridirons. Donovan, by the way, works at a desk formed by joining two beautiful ancient Irish Chippendale tables, which had been used as serving tables in a Celtic castle years ago. Both Donovan and commissioner Hanrahan take occasional holidays in Ireland having fun on the grounds of their ancestors. In addition to the customary diplomas and honorary degrees conferred on him by Fordham and St. Johns Universities, Han-rahans office contains family pictures of his father, the late Martin Hanrahan: his daughter, Patricia Anne, a student at Eden Hall Academy, Torresdale, Pa.; an autographed photo of Harry Truman, a framed letter of commendation from Speaker Sam Ray burn, upon his resignation as chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission and a pair of prints showing Londons "Old Bailey" and "The Four Courts," flanking an imposing engraving of be-wigged Lord Russell of Killowen, "the last and only Irish Catholic ever to serve as Lord Chief Justice of England, since the Reformation, a situation: which is. of course, understandable." Great Admirer of Lord Russell The commissioner is a great admirer of Lord Russell, who, as counsel for the London Times, commanded the highest retainer fee in the Empire. "I read his life and found it very interesting. Thats what I have the most fun doing when I visit Dublin. Browsing in the book-shops. I could do i it for days if I had the time." Commissioner Hanrahan was born in i Cortland, N. Y., between Syracuse and [ Bingham ton, "David Harum country. My • fattier was in the trucking business. My grandparents on both sides came from i Ireland. The OGonnans — that was my mothers name — came from Cork and Tip- erary. The Hanrahans from West Heath i and Kerry." I Hanrahan came to New York City In i 1 , * i , * 1 ] . s i , , , j J , i i i [ • i i i 1924 spending one year at Fordham. Then he entered Fordham law school at night s and clerked for Sullivan and Donovan dur- j ing the day. He began practice in 1929. The j firm handles strictly commercial law and never touches a criminal case. They are, I among other things, bond counsels for ] many municipalities including Albany, Rome, i :nghamton and the state of Rhode Island. In 1946 President Truman appointed him ! to the Securities and Exchange Commission ; and in 1948 he became its chairman, hold- : ing that position until the end of 1949. The SEC. as you know, administers the public ! utility holding company act, all chapter 10 bankruptcies, designed to protect the public security holders involved; polices the regulations regarding the sales of securities by investment banking firms and works with the various stock exchanges in putting in rules for public protection. The biggest cases handled during his regime were the Kaiser-Fraser financing contract with the Otis Company and the Tucker Motor Car Company fiasco. A twinkly, kindly man, in a gray cheviot, plaid socks, tan shoes and wearing a green tie with white stripes, Hanrahan smilingly observed, during the interview: "Lets be frank about this thing, I took this job principally because the governor and I and the late Jim Forrestal were good friends in the old Washington days. I wasnt approached by the governor, at first, but by other groups. My wife was extremely ill and I wasnt interested. She passed away in January. The governor then asked me about the job, himself. Hes a good governor and I want to help him. "Previously, I went racing like any other New Yorker. Last time I was there was in November. We were coming home from a golf game and decided to catch the last few races. I find the job very interesting, engaging and challenging. Ive only been around one month — I was sworn in April 9 — and I am naturally feeling my way. I enjoy administrative work and hope I can be of real help. One thing, he added with a laugh. "The price is right — nothing. "You can strike out that last as irrelevant," he said, quickly, when he saw it was being written down, but agreed to let it go as a gag. He hasnt attended racing this year because during the Easter vacation he took his daughter and son, Edmond, 19. a pre-medical student at Fordham, to the Bahamas. At other times he has been busy with his law practice. He keeps fit playing golf at the Garden City, National and Westhampton golf clubs. He learned the game as a caddy in Cortland. He lives at 200 East 66th street, with summer places at Westhampton, L. I., and Lake Placid. He is, among other things, a chairman of the board of Colonial Air Lines. On his visits to Dublin he spends much time in the courts and has become friendly with Thomas F. Bacon, Irelands most noted barrister and Conn Curran, famed clerk of "the Four Courts." His first works to this interviewer were, "I am delighted and charmed to find so many honest Irish names in racing." If they ever want to change the name of that law firm Sullivan, Donovan, Hanrahan, etc. Ive got a title for it: Erin go braugh!
