Love Canal Chemical Waste Landfill (Niagara Falls, N.Y.)]]> Chemical plants -- Waste disposal -- Environmental aspects -- New York (State) -- Niagara Falls]]>
The half hour presentation, was written, produced and reported by Marie Rice, who co-anchored the special with WIVB anchor John Beard. It featured some of the most emotional testimony from Love Canal family members whose loved ones were sick and dying due to chemical exposure. More than seven hundred families were demanding that they be relocated and that their grievances be properly addressed.

Tests determined that residents had suffered “ominous” rare chromosomal damage. Lois Gibbs, who ultimately led the Love Canal Homeowners Association to victory, later attributed Buffalo news coverage to the successful outcome. The grassroots crusade has been credited with launching the environmental justice movement in the United States.

President Jimmy Carter came to Niagara Falls to sign legislation that met homeowners demands and led to the creation of the Superfund. Formerly known as the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, the program is designed to provide emergency responses to sites contaminated by hazardous substances. By one count there are 40,000 federal Superfund sites across the United States.]]> Rice, Marie (Producer, Writer, Host)]]> News 4 Buffalo (WIVB-TV Newsroom)]]> Murphy, Kurt (Graphic Artist)]]> Beard, John (Co-host)]]> Swan, Ray (Editor)]]> A Toxic Nightmare: The Awakening [The Story of Love Canal Pt. 1]

]]> eng]]> Buffalo (N.Y.)--Biography.]]> Women--New York (State)--Buffalo--Biography.]]>
WIVB-TV’s Rich Newberg covered the O’Brien story for years,
capturing the spirit of John, who honored the wish of his late sister and helped raise funds for a play about her life. “Hit Me Again” was in presented in Buffalo in April 1991.

John died in 1992 at the age of 39. He was the oldest survivor of dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa. Maureen was 27 when she passed away in 1984. She died as her mother was changing here dressings. Both brother and sister appeared much older than their years. At John’s funeral it was said by his brothers that “he made friends out of strangers and family out of friends.”

The series of reports ends with the tribute to Irene. Newberg interviews Michael who recalls Mother Theresa giving Irene her rosary. There is a scene of the brother and sister in the audience during Mother Theresa’s presentation at Niagara University. Speaking of his mother’s spirit, Michael says, “It was genuine humility…” He added, “She just thought that she was fulfilling God’s will and purpose for her life.”
]]> Newberg, Rich (Reporter, Archivist)]]> Grosvenor Room of B&ECPL (repository)]]> eng]]> Grant, Gordon]]> Rare Book Room of the B&ECPL (repository)]]> eng]]> Early Twentieth Century (1900-1925)]]> Grain elevators--New York (State)--Buffalo]]> Grain trade--New York (State)--Buffalo]]> “They are so out of scale to anything that you see in your life that they are like a distant landscape right in front of you all the time.”

More than a grain elevator enthusiast, Lynda Schneekloth is a scholar of these giant concrete and steel structures. On a frigid and windy Buffalo day in February 2020, she braved the cold to point out their inner-workings, why they were built the way they were, why they’re considered architectural wonders – and why so many of us are intrigued by them. Schneekloth was interviewed in February 2020 by Kate Kaye.

NOTE: This story features detailed descriptions of Buffalo’s grain elevator architecture, Buffalo’s grain elevator and cultural preservation, internal grain elevator machinery and processes.

]]> Kaye, Kate]]> https://redtailmedia.org/spilling-grain/]]> Schneekloth, Lynda]]> Grosvenor Room of B&ECPL (repository)]]> eng]]> DeJac, Lynn]]> Criminal investigation--United States--Case studies]]>

In 2007, DeJac’s conviction was vacated after Buffalo Police cold case detective Dennis Delano brought forth DNA evidence he claimed linked DeJac’s ex-boyfriend, Dennis Donohue, to Crystallynn’s death. Donohue could not be charged because he had testified before a grand jury and was granted immunity from prosecution. However, he was later convicted of murdering a woman he had once dated.

DeJac, according to the Innocence Project, became the first woman to be exonerated of murdering someone based on DNA evidence. She had given birth to twin boys while behind bars and later married their father, Chuck Peters, while serving her sentence. She also had an older, estranged son, Edward.

WIVB-TV Senior Correspondent Rich Newberg and News 4 Chief Photographer Mike Mombrea Jr. were with DeJac the day of her release and also documented the reunion with her family. During a live interview that evening, DeJac told Newberg, "The truth will set me free."

Shortly after the state of New York paid DeJac a settlement of $2.7 million dollars, she was diagnosed with cancer. She died at age fifty on June 18, 2014. Her husband and twin sons, Keith and Douglas were with their mother when she passed away.

]]> Newberg, Rich (Writer, Reporter)]]> Mombrea, Mike Jr. (Photographer, Editor)]]> Hutchinson, Dave (Photographer)]]> Micole, Mike (Live truck technician)]]> Meegan, Martha (WIVB-TV Assignment Editor)]]> Murphy, Kurt (Graphic artist)]]> Theater programs -- New York (State) -- Buffalo.]]>
Buffalo's Star Theatre (W. Genesee and Pearl Streets) was a vibrant theatre venue from 1888 to 1919.]]> Star Theatre (Buffalo, N.Y.)]]> Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616]]> Modjeska, Helena, 1840-1909]]> Herman, Charles D.]]> Pratt, Lynn]]> Lonergan, Lester, 1869-1931]]> Fielding, Marguerite]]> Fisher, John C., approximately 1854-1921]]> eng]]> Late Nineteenth Century (1850-1900)]]> Rare Book Room of the B&ECPL (repository)]]> eng]]> Early Twentieth Century (1900-1925)]]> Postcards--New York (State)--Buffalo.]]> Photographic postcards.]]> Forest Lawn (Cemetery : Buffalo, N.Y.)]]> Cemeteries--New York (State)--Buffalo.]]> ENG]]> Postcards--New York (State)--Buffalo.]]> Photographic postcards.]]> Main Street (Buffalo, N.Y.)]]> ENG]]> Postcards--New York (State)--Buffalo.]]> Photographic postcards.]]> Main Street (Buffalo, N.Y.)]]> Plazas--New York (State)--Buffalo--Lafayette Square.]]> Mrs. Smith (author)]]> ENG]]> Postcards--New York (State)--Buffalo.]]> Forest Lawn (Cemetery : Buffalo, N.Y.)]]> Cemeteries--New York (State)--Buffalo.]]> ENG]]> Postcards--New York (State)--Buffalo.]]> Photographic postcards.]]> Forest Lawn (Cemetery : Buffalo, N.Y.)]]> Cemeteries--New York (State)--Buffalo.]]> Mr. Brign (author)]]> ENG]]> Treidler, Adolph]]> Rare Book Room of the B&ECPL (repository)]]> eng]]> Early Twentieth Century (1900-1925)]]> Burton, Charles]]> Rare Book Room of the B&ECPL (repository)]]> eng]]> Early Twentieth Century (1900-1925)]]> WI/P&GA]]> Rare Book Room of the B&ECPL (repository)]]> eng]]> Early Twentieth Century (1900-1925)]]> Labor--New York (State)--Buffalo.]]> Playwriting.]]> Interview One
Manny Fried turns 80 and reflects on his life and the struggles he endured after being blacklisted from 1956 to 1972 for his political beliefs. He says that growing up as one of nine children, “We were taught to be honest and stick up for your rights.” In his books and plays he writes about relationships inside the labor movement. “I tried hard to be a voice for the American worker,” he tells Rich Newberg.

He talks about refusing to answer any questions by the House Un-American Activities Committee, and about receiving support from Albert Einstein. Fried says the committee did not have a constitutional right to exist. He says he has no regrets, even though his life has been tough. He says, “I’ve tried to embody my experience in plays I write and the novels I write.”

The interview is conducted at the Alleyway Theater before scenes are rehearsed for his play “Big Ben Hood.” Fried says the underlying theme is, “The need to be true to yourself, the need to have integrity, and the need to make a choice and not try to stand on the fence.”

When the interview ends, the actors on stage celebrate Manny Fried's birthday, surprising him with a song and a cake. He joins them on stage and blows out the candles with one breath. The actors, including Jim Santella, pay tribute to Fried, pointing out his honesty and integrity.
March 1, 1993
Interview Runs: 12:36
21:18 including b-roll

Interview Two
In 1994 Manny Fried is interviewed by Rich Newberg at home, where he discusses his lawsuit against the FBI and the price he paid for being labeled “the most dangerous man in Western New York.”

At age 81, he discusses the lawsuit he filed against the FBI based on testimony he learned two years earlier from a former FBI worker. He says the woman told him that the FBI set up 25 agents to follow him around the clock, bug his conversations, read his mail and work toward getting him indicted.

Fried says the most important goal of his lawsuit is to “have them admit what they did... and to make amends and so it’s not easy for them to do it again.” He says former FBI director J. Edgar Hoover, through his agents, damaged his marriage and convinced neighbors not to allow their children to play with his children. Fried says the agents assigned to his case also convinced friends of his wife Rhoda, who came from an upper class Buffalo family, to stop socializing with her. He says they went to her friends’ employers or clients and pressured them to stay away from the Fried family.

Rhoda’s family owned the upscale Park Lane Restaurant and apartment building on Gates Circle in Buffalo. She had been a part owner but was barred from entering the restaurant according to Fried, after a priest called for a boycott of the establishment.
Fried blames the actions of government agents for breaking his wife’s spirit and believes they were probably responsible for her death. He says she had become an alcoholic and a heavy smoker and eventually had a stroke.

He says he has no regrets having been a member of the Communist Party in Western New York, whose goals locally he says were to “better the standard of living, the wages and the working conditions of the people here.” But he adds, “The only sense of guilt I have about this whole thing is what my wife and kids went through and the part I played in sticking up for these ideals.” He says, “They went through hell on account of it and that bothers me yet!”

The number one hope expresses at age 81 is that “working people are able to get decent jobs and don’t have to worry where their bread’s coming from.” He adds, “I want people to have enough to eat. I want them to have decent homes. I want them to get along. That’s what I want.”

[June 9, 1994]
[Interview Runs: 31:01]
[32:58 including b-roll]]]> Newberg, Rich (Writer, Reporter)]]> 1994-06-09]]> Murphy, Kurt (Graphic Artist)]]> eng]]> Labor--New York (State)--Buffalo.]]> Playwriting.]]>
His refusal to answer questions from the House Un-American Activities Committee earned the respect of Albert Einstein, who sent him a note on April 16, 1954 saying, “You did the right thing and fulfilled your duty as a citizen.”

After finding it impossible to find work in the US, Fried took a job with a Canadian company as a life insurance salesmen. He established his voice as a playwright, author, actor and teacher. He began teaching creative writing at Buffalo State College in 1972.

Later in life he sued the FBI for emotional and financial damage, claiming he and his family were harassed and intimidated by twenty-five agents under the direction of J. Edgar Hoover. Fried’s book, “The Un-American,” retells the nightmare he and his family were made to endure.

When Manny Fried passed away in 2011 at the age of 97, Buffalo News columnist Colin Dabkowski wrote, “He remained a guiding presence in Buffalo’s theater, literary and social activist communities and was widely regarded as the most important figure on Buffalo’s theater scene.”

Manny Fried told his story to Rich Newberg, who produced three reports in 1993 and 1994.]]> Newberg, Rich (Writer, Reporter)]]> 1994-06-02
1994-06-09]]> Murphy, Kurt (Graphic Artist)]]> eng]]> Westminster Presbyterian Church (Buffalo, N.Y.)--Directories]]> Westminster Presbyterian Church (Buffalo, N.Y.)]]> Grosvenor Room of B&ECPL (repository)]]> eng]]> Postcards--New York (State)--Buffalo.]]> Buffalo (N.Y.)--Buildings, structures, etc.]]> Banks and banking--New York (State)--Buffalo.]]> [illegible (author)]]> ENG]]> Catholic Church--Liturgy--Texts--Manuscripts]]> Manuscripts, Latin (Medieval and modern)]]> Psalters]]> Rare Book Room of B&ECPL (repository)]]>