Breslin, Jimmy

orig. James Earl Breslin

born Oct. 17, 1929, Jamaica, N.Y., U.S.

U.S. columnist and novelist.

During his long newspaper career Breslin became known as a tough-talking voice of his native Queens, a working-class New York City borough. He started as a copyboy, then established himself as a sportswriter; later, as a syndicated columnist and contributor to numerous publications, he wrote with passion and personal involvement on politics and social issues, often focusing on injustice and corruption. He won a 1986 Pulitzer Prize for newspaper columns championing ordinary citizens. Among his books are the novel The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight (1969).

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▪ American columnist and novelist

byname of  James Earl Breslin 

born Oct. 17, 1929, Jamaica, N.Y., U.S.

      American columnist and novelist.

      During his long newspaper career Breslin became known as a tough-talking voice of his native Queens, a working-class New York City borough. He started as a copyboy, then established himself as a sportswriter; later, as a syndicated columnist and contributor to numerous publications, he wrote with passion and personal involvement on politics and social issues, often focusing on injustice and corruption. He won a 1986 Pulitzer Prize for newspaper columns championing ordinary citizens. Among his books are the novel The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight (1969), the memoir I Want to Thank My Brain for Remembering Me (1996), and The Good Rat (2008), a nonfiction book about the Mafia.

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