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Read
about the intimate, private stories of
everyone behind the scenes of this
most publicized child custody fight in
history.
Read about how Danny and his
beleaguered, loving parents struggled
to live a normal life—and
triumphed—but in unexpected ways.
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The Story
When 'Baby Richard' erupted onto TV screens and
headlines around the world, it became a
gut-wrenching epic. The little boy was wrenched
from the arms of his adoptive mother and handed
over to his biological father, whom he had met
only one hour before. This telecast scene was the
dramatic climax to four years of unprecedented
court battles and media frenzy. Even the Illinois
State legislature got into the act by hastily
passing 'The Baby Richard Act'-in emergency
session-in an attempt to prevent his father from
claiming him. Read about how the
public reacted with shock and indignation; how
hate mail and death threats affected the child and
his new family.
Danny ('Baby Richard') became an icon, a
curiosity, and a pathetic victim... all at the age
of four. 'Experts'... none of whom even met him...
pronounced him 'doomed', 'scarred for life', and
'irreparably damaged'. Read about
how 'Baby Richard sightings' threatened the little
boy and his parents; how politicians and
celebrities across the country leaped into the
controversy..., yet did nothing for the real-life
child; how the author, Dr. Karen Moriarty, went
from therapist to advocate to 'family', resulting
in attacks against her and defamation.
In Canada, Australia, and countries across Europe,
Baby Richard became an 'American tragedy'. His
father's story was told in other countries but not
in the United States! He became a favorite hate
figure; no one would hire him for a job; and no
one wanted even to hear his side of the fight for
his baby. Read about how
betrayal, lies, and an extortion attempt led to
the adoption fiasco; how his birth mother--whose
story has never been revealed--struggled to get
her baby back.
Insatiable media, at fever pitch, captured every
twist and turn of the saga for front-page fare and
lead stories on TV programs across the country.
Bob Greene... best-selling author and Chicago
Tribune columnist, syndicated in nearly 200
newspapers... grabbed onto the story and wouldn't
let go. Read about how Greene
wrote more than 100 columns about 'Richard'
without ever speaking to his birth parents or the
child... fabrications presented as real; how
Greene, 'the voice of voiceless children', was
unmasked by a young woman with whom he admitted to
'sexual misconduct' when she was just a teenager;
how this woman got Greene fired; and what she has
to say about the painful scandal... in an
exclusive interview.
Danny tells his own story for the first time. What
is his life like? How does he feel about being
'Baby Richard'? Read about the
intimate, private stories of everyone behind the
scenes of this most publicized child custody fight
in history; how the conflict escalated everywhere
and turned the three branches of Illinois
government against each other; how the major
participants were felled by the 'Baby Richard
Curse'. Read about how Danny and
his beleaguered, loving parents struggled to live
a normal life... and triumphed... but in
unexpected ways.
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