William M(aybe) Feehan was allegedly killed at his command post at
the foot of
the south tower of
the World Trade Centre when it fell.
Info from
http://www.livingtributes.com/livingtri ... ?memid=833(
http://www.livingtributes.com/livingtri ... ?memid=833)
It should be so eeezy to ascertain
the reality of such a character, and I feel a bit tin-hatty questioning it, but amongst
the weak evidence for his existence I see obvious skullduggery.
Wiki speaks only of his career:
William M. Feehan (1929 ? September 11, 2001) was a member of the Fire Department of New York.... Feehan held every rank within the department, starting with Probationary Firefighter upon his appointment on October 10, 1959. He was promoted to Lieutenant in 1964 and eventually to Chief of Department in 1991. In 1992, he was appointed Deputy Fire Commissioner. Upon the resignation of Fire Commissioner Carlos M. Rivera, he briefly served as Acting Fire Commissioner through the end of Mayor David N. Dinkins administration from August 31, 1993 until December 31, 1993.
He shifted about a bit from inception in ‘59 until ’94. NYT obit adds, "He was first assigned to Ladder Company 3, and then to Ladder Companies 18 and 6. He also served in Engine Company 59, and in Rescue Company one." Doubt anyone bothered putting his name on a door. Wiks continues
After incoming Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani picked Howard Safir to become Fire Commissioner of the City of New York [Jan 1st, 1994] Feehan returned to his previous title of First Deputy Fire Commissioner of the City of New York and served in that position until his death.
Six straight years in
the post of First Deputy FC. This position is based at FD HQ, where Feehan is listed in Sept 2001. So, as
the FDFC, what exactly is it that you do do?
The latest FDFC was sworn in on March 30th this year
http://www.nyc.gov/html/fdny/html/event ... 010a.shtml Daniel (Don) Shacknai joined
the force in 2002 as Deputy Commissioner for Intergovernmental Affairs and Management Initiatives. He was named Deputy Commissioner of Legal Affairs in January 2007 before becoming FDFC. Mr. Shacknai previously served as Deputy General Counsel for
the New York City Administration for Children's Services (ACS). “Before joining ACS, he worked at
the law firm of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett and clerked for
the Honorable Myron H. Bright of
the U.S. Court of Appeals for
the Eighth Circuit.” source
Shacknai's never worn a helmet. He would have been as much use as a lawyer at
the foot of
the south tower. Feehan, on
the other hand, had “knowledge and cunning in battling fires himself [which] made him
the stuff of legend to his firefighters.” (NYT).
I'm driving at
the possibility that nobody ever saw this Legend, since his record puts him everywhere at once. Sort of everywhere and nowhere.
Pre 2001
April 2001: WMF is advertised speaker at Rotary Club of NY meeting (pdf document:
http://www.nyrotaryhistory.org/Bulletin ... l%2024.PDF)) and introduced thus:
Commissioner Feehan has been a member of the uniformed force of the New York City Fire Department since 1959. He has served in all levels of command and management in the Department. His major projects include:
a) Realignment and reorganization of the Marine Division.
b. Critical involvement in implementing the reorganization of the Bureau of Fire Prevention which resulted in an additional 20,000,000 in annual funds saved.
c) Conceptual and operational management of the Roster Staffing System, which saved the Department more than 40,000,000 per year.
d) Budget consultations with the former commissioner and decision making in this area.
He interacted daily, with all levels of the mayor’s staff, especially with the Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Fire Commissioner, all labor relations were
within the purview of his authority and responsibility. His experience at managing emergency operations, includes: the World Trade Center explosion, the LaGuardia air crash, and the 14th Street subway derailment.
The club looks considerably more up-market than
the flier.
http://www.princetonclub.com/
Other pre 2001 mentions
Quoted in an interview with
The Daily News (Dec 20th, 2000), in which he said of
the Navy Yard fire of 1960: ''It was
the largest number of body bags I had ever seen. I was in Korea and never saw that many.'' Speaking in
the last year of his life about his first on
the job.
1998: Commenting on fire at
The Central Synagogue on Manhattan's East Side, a 126-year-old twin-towered?
http://www.nytimes.com/1998/08/29/nyreg ... gewanted=2 :
Nov 24 1998. Archives of
the Mayors Press Office; WMF allegedly in attendance at opening of new Fire Company 133, with Pete Ganci.
http://www.nyc.gov/html/om/html/98b/pr538-98.html
THE MAN in ACTION

To me, Feehan looks doctored into this scene. It’s posted above with a comparison image that seems to be
the hatless head that is grafted onto
the body in this image.

Here he (sort of) is again with Deputy Assistant Chief Steven DeRosa, Rudi Dudi and Assistant Chief Ed Butler.
AT REST:

This image looked ok from a distance in black and white. In colour it's not so pucker. Eyes, darling, eyes.
That CNN memorial impression at
the top is not much better, is it?
Did anyone actually meet
the guy, had anyone heard of him, attended an address by him. Do we really have nothing concrete, extra-media on this identity? Sheeesh.