Dapper O'Neil

Dapper O'Neil
O'Neil (second from right) next to Boston mayor Raymond Flynn (second from left)
Boston City Councilor At-Large
In office 1971–1999
Preceded by	Louise Day Hicks
Succeeded by	Michael F. Flaherty
President of the Boston City Council
In office 1992–1992
Preceded by	Christopher A. Iannella
Succeeded by	Thomas Menino
Personal details
Born	April 12, 1920
Died	December 19, 2007(2007-12-19) (aged 87)
Political party	Democratic
Alma mater	Staley School of the Spoken Word

Albert Leo "Dapper" O'Neil (April 12, 1920 – December 19, 2007) was an American politician who served as a socially conservative member of the Boston City Council for twenty-eight years. He served on the Boston Licensing Board and was an operative for the legendary Boston Mayor James Michael Curley.

He graduated from Roxbury Memorial High School and attended Suffolk University Law School, but left before graduating to serve in the United States Army during World War II. After the war, he graduated from the Staley School of the Spoken Word with a degree in oratory. He worked with a railroad company and was then employed by the state housing board.

In a 1978 interview, O'Neil explained that he got his nickname because his mother was very meticulous about how her children dressed, and where he grew up (the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston) "everybody had a nickname."

From 1948 to 1961 O'Neil ran for office five times, three times for state representative and one apiece for City Council and School Committee, losing all five races. He then chauffeured for Massachusetts gubernatorial candidate Endicott Peabody. After Peabody was elected Governor of Massachusetts he appointed O'Neil as his patronage secretary, but his tenure in that capacity was short-lived. According to some reports, O'Neil was contacted by an aide to Massachusetts Senator Edward M. Kennedy and asked to provide a Kennedy supporter with a state job. O'Neil, not a fan of Kennedy's liberal policies, allegedly told the staffer to "go to hell." Kennedy's office demanded O'Neil's termination, which Peabody granted almost immediately. But in 1963, Peabody appointed him to the Boston Licensing Board. In 1967 O'Neil ran for mayor of Boston, finishing eighth with only 0.95% of the vote.