The "And Furthermore Club" was probably in full swing by 1960. It was located around the kitchen table at 5100 Main St. Trumbull.

The cast of characters varied, but Barbara McCarthy and Jack Kieran were first among equals.

The tabletop was always crowded with empties – usually Piels or Old Bohemian – and a big ashtray filled with butts.

The conversation wasn’t top-shelf all the time, but most of us who caught a piece of it remember it as convivial, stimulating, and pretty high-quality, even if slightly alcohol soaked. Sure, politics got discussed, but it was more of a general conversation about life – kids, the schools, TV, sports, trends in society, and why people did what they did. I mostly listened, but it was a good place to start verbalizing opinions you had to defend credibly. It could be very funny, and could get a bit agitated when feelings ran high – but it was always civil, and especially generous toward half-baked adolescent blithering.