User:Seaframonks/sandbox

Friend and Family life
Fallon had a very private family life. We do know that he was married to Rose Anne Donnellan (1 July 1926). They had 6 children together.Fallon had a tight knit friendship with Sean O’Casey, the one person in Fallon’s private life that he openly spoke about. Fallon became godfather to O’ Casey's son Brian in 1928. Their close association commenced with his playing in many of O’ Casey's work including ‘Nanny passes’ (1924), and ‘Juno and paycock’ (1924).

Tension soon started when O'Casey intended him for the role of Peter Flynn in ‘The plough and the stars’ (1926) but the director, Lennox Robinson, disagreed and he was given the minor part of Captain Brennan on 8 February 1926. Their relationship deteriorated after Casey's departure for London in 1926 while Fallon and his family resided in Whitworth Road, Drumcondra, Dublin, close to UCD where Fallon soon taught after retiring, his final rift with O'Casey derived from his negative review of ‘Red roses for me’ (1943) in Dublin in June 1946. His opinion of drama – that it should be psychologically true to the characters it represents – was as sincere as his appreciation of boxing, often discussed in his regular haunt, Daly's of Eden Quay. Both are vigorous arts and his opinions of O'Casey's work were unwelcome, perceived perhaps to be ungrateful swipes at a former mentor.

When Sean O’Casey died at his home in Torquay, the South of England on 18th of September 1964, Fallon paid tribute to O’Casey outside the house at 422 Circular road Dublin where O’Casey lived for a while. Despite their differences, Gabriel still carried respect for him, especially being godfather to O’ Casey's son Breon. He published a painful account of Sean O'Casey and the relationship that they shared (1965) and resigned his directorship of the Abbey Theatre in 1974.