Mary Higgins Clark This is Me

 Web References

1. 1. Petition to Abolish the H-1B Visa Program

   www.h1bpetition.zazona.com/H1B - [Cached]

   Published on: 3/11/2004   Last Visited: 5/18/2004

   Mary Clark Enron, Ohio

2. 2. Daily Record lifestyle - Bestseller Clark tells Washingtons' love story

   www.dailyrecord.com/lifestyle/ - [Cached]

   Published on: 10/22/2002   Last Visited: 10/22/2002

   Bestselling author Mary Higgins Clark won't be talking about mystery books at her Oct. 25 appearance at Washington Headquarters museum in Morristown.
   
   Although she is best known as the queen of the mystery genre, Clark will be speaking about her first love, history, and the novel "Mount Vernon Love Story" - the first book she ever wrote and sold.
   
   The story of the marriage of George and Martha Washington was originally published in 1969 as "Aspire to the Heavens." It was not a big seller, and Higgins went on to fame as a popular mystery writer. But she is delighted that it was republished in June by Simon & Schuster and the Mount Vernon Ladies Association.
   
   "It was as though your first child was ignored," the author said, speaking by phone from her Bergen County home. "It's my Cinderella novel. I put three years of real research into that. I started writing it in 1965, the year after my husband died."
   
   A descendant of George's Washington's brother found the book, "God knows where, in a garage sale perhaps," Clark said with a laugh. "And he said to the Mount Vernon historical society that they should republish it. I'm so pleased, because it was a favorite of mine."
   
   The $75-a-person fundraiser starts at 7 p.m. and includes a wine and cheese reception and a book signing session with the author. Copies of the novel will be available for purchase.
   
   ...
   Initially, Clark researched Washington for a series of radio programs called "Portrait of a Patriot."
   
   "I kept putting Washington off," she recalled, "because I thought he was a very dull man." Instead, she discovered him to be an engaging figure, known for his dancing, his riding and his vigor.
   ...
   "Only two letters survived," Clark said, explaining that Martha had burned all their personal correspondence after her husband's death.
   ...
   Clark did her primary research at Mount Vernon and at the New York Public Library.
   
   "I was very proud that when the historian at Mount Vernon read it, she had only the tiniest of changes to suggest (for the new edition)," Clark said. "I originally said two bullets went through his coat and two through his hat. She said all four bullets went through his coat. I had Patsy getting up from the table and collapsing. They said, no, she went upstairs to her room and collapsed." Those were the only things Clark changed.
   
   "It's amazing when you think of how young they were," Clark added. "Jefferson was barely 30 when wrote the Declaration of Independence. Washington was only 26 when he fought the last of the French and Indian Wars. We see pictures of them as old men, but we should realized how young they were and brave they were to stand up to the King of England. They had a sense of purpose, to live free or die."
   
   Clark also has a memoir due out Nov. 19 entitled "Kitchen Privileges," taken from the sign her mother kept. The book chronicles her childhood in the Bronx, N.Y., and stories of her Irish mother and her marriage, ending with her first million-dollar sale. She is also working on her next mystery novel, "Second Time Around," due out in April.
   
   "It's about a gal who goes to a psychiatrist or maybe a psychologist," she explained, "I'm still not sure which, because her husband committed suicide, and everyone feels that she was aware he was cheating everyone in his business dealings."
   
   As usual, Clark has hit on a hot topic, working off the recent scandals at Enron, Worldcom and other businesses.
   
   "It's something people are interested in. You have to wonder how much the wives knew when they having these trips and fancy parties at these companies. Maybe they just thought it was normal. That's what I am exploring in the book."
   
   The proposed 7,500- to 9,000-square-foot addition to Washington's Headquarters will be jointly funded by the National Park Service and The Washington Association, which was founded in 1873 by four prominent Morristown citizens who purchased and preserved the Ford Mansion, which served as Gen.
   ...
   Mary Higgins Clark

3. 3. Articles

   www.metronational.com/news/art - [Cached]

   Published on: 2/2/2001   Last Visited: 2/18/2003

   "We had to find a way to communicate to our employees about this new building going up before our eyes," said Mary Clark, Enron's director of internal communications. "We are trying to find new ways to communicate to our diverse, global organization."
   
   The idea for Building Guy was hatched by Enron employees, who also went about doing most of the creative work for the in-house campaign.
   ...
   "We think it says a lot about us as a company," Clark said. "We use technology not only in our business, but also to communicate with our employees in a cool way."