Walter Curley

Walter Curley
Curley in 1973
57th United States Ambassador to France
In office July 6, 1989 – February 11, 1993
President	George H. W. Bush
Preceded by	Joe M. Rodgers
Succeeded by	Pamela Harriman
United States Ambassador to Ireland
In office September 18, 1975 – May 2, 1977
President	Gerald Ford
Preceded by	John D. J. Moore
Succeeded by	William V. Shannon
Personal details
Born	(1922-09-17)September 17, 1922 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	June 2, 2016(2016-06-02) (aged 93) New York City, New York, U.S.
Spouse	Mary Taylor Walton
Children	Margaret C. Wiles Patrick Curley John Walton Curley James Curley
Residence(s)	New York City, New York, U.S.
Alma mater	Yale University Harvard University
Occupation	Diplomat, Businessman
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Marine Corps
Rank	Captain
Battles/wars	World War II

Walter Joseph Patrick Curley Jr. (September 17, 1922 – June 2, 2016) was the 57th United States Ambassador to France from 1989 to 1993, and the United States Ambassador to Ireland from 1975 to 1977.^[1][2] Curley was New York City's Commissioner of Public Events and Chief of Protocol from 1973 to 1974, during the administrations of John Lindsay and Abraham Beame.^[3]

Career

He wrote two books on royalty, Vanishing Kingdoms, and Monarchs in Waiting, as well as two memoirs, Letters from the Pacific: 1943–1946, and Almost a Century: An American Life East and West of Suez. Curley was a graduate of Phillips Academy, Yale University and Harvard Business School. Curley was in the Marine Corps during World War II, serving from 1943 to 1946, seeing combat on Iwo Jima and Okinawa. He was a captain and was decorated with a Bronze star. Curley died in New York City.^[4][5]

His nomination as United States Ambassador to France was controversial as he was one of several made by Bush of long-time financial backers and financial supporters including Peter F. Secchia (Ambassador of Italy), Joseph Zappala (Ambassador of Spain), Mel Sembler (Ambassador of Australia), Frederic Bush Morris (Ambassador of Luxembourg), and Joy Silverman (Ambassador of Barbados).^[6]

Works

• Curley, Walter J. P. (1959). Letters from the Pacific: 1943–1946. privately printed. ASIN B00NZK2AXM.
• Curley, Walter J. P. (1973). Monarchs-in-waiting. Dodd, Mead and Company. ISBN 978-0396068402.
• Curley, Walter J. P. (2004). Vanishing Kingdoms: The Irish Chiefs and Their Families. The Lilliput Press. ISBN 978-1843510550.
• Curley, Walter J. P. (2017). Almost a Century: An American Life East and West of Suez. Small Batch Books. ISBN 978-1937650674.

References

1. "Walter Joseph Patrick Curley Jr. (1922–2016)". history.state.gov. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
2. "The Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training Foreign Affairs Oral History Project AMBASSADOR WALTER J. P. CURLEY" (PDF). Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training. 30 November 1998. Archived (PDF) from the original on 24 June 2024. Retrieved 23 July 2024.
3. "Walter J. P. Curley". NNDB. Retrieved 2009-02-21.
4. Roberts, Sam (June 8, 2016). "Walter Curley, Venture Capitalist and U.S. Ambassador, Dies at 93". The New York Times. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
5. "WALTER CURLEY (1922 – 2016)". legacy.com. June 5, 2016.
6. "True to tradition. President Bush is rewarding his long-time financial backers and political supporters with desirable ambassadorships, mostly in Western Europe". The Financial Times. April 2, 1990.

External links

• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Walter J. P. Curley Papers (MS 2009). Manuscripts and Archives. Yale University Library.

Diplomatic posts
Preceded by Joe M. Rodgers	U.S. Ambassador to France 1989–1993	Succeeded by Pamela Harriman
Preceded by John D. J. Moore	U.S. Ambassador to Ireland 1975–1977	Succeeded by William V. Shannon