James Owen Hannay was an Irish clergyman who wrote dozens of novels, stories and plays under the pen name "George A. Birmingham." General John Regan is a sharp satirical play about a charming huckster who spearheads a campaign to honor a purported local hero by erecting a statue in his honor in the small Irish village of his birth. The drama hit too close to home when it was first staged in Ireland — locals rioted to protest the perceived slight against the Irish people.