Constitution Award Goes To Ben Bradlee

By Thomas J. Brady, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER This article contains material from the Associated Press and Inquirer staff writer Michael Klein
Posted: September 20, 1997

Ben Bradlee, vice president and former editor of the Washington Post, will receive the ``We the People'' award from the National Constitution Center this fall.

The Philadelphia-based center, a nonprofit organization that promotes awareness of the U.S. Constitution, gives the award annually to a person who has made a noteworthy contribution to upholding constitutional principles.

``Bradlee's career in journalism has been an extraordinary journey,'' Mayor Rendell said. ``His service and the Washington Post have taken courageous stands and upheld both the letter and the spirit of this great document.'' He added that Bradlee ``has shown us what it means to hold the most important office in a republic - not president or senator or mayor - but citizen.''

Constitution Center president Joseph Torsella said Bradlee was receiving the award 25 years after the Watergate scandal uncovered by the Post.

BUILDING UP AN APPETITE * The night after his arrest for climbing the Blue Cross-Blue Shield Tower with his bare hands, French adventurer Alain Robert (also known as Spiderman) ate Thai chicken noodles and chicken quesadillas at the one-story Continental in Old City.

So, you were expecting him to gulp down some flies, maybe?

EXERCISING A PREROGATIVE * New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson is getting ready to go to Hawaii - and he's really getting ready. He plans to swim 2.4 miles, ride his bike for 112 miles, and cap the day with a 26.2-mile run, as a participant Oct. 18 in the Ironman Triathlon World Championship.

On weekdays, the 44-year-old governor begins training before dawn so he can arrive at the Capitol in Santa Fe by 8 a.m. In a typical week, he runs 45 miles, cycles 30 miles, swims two miles, and lifts weights for more than three hours. No word on when he has time to run the state.

MOTHER OF ALL BIRTH SUITES * Leeza Gibbons' baby will be the first to be born in the lap of luxury at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.

The talk show host was the first patient to sign up for a ``deluxe maternity suite,'' with 18th-century-style furniture, art, a computer and a fax machine.

The hospital also offers its high-roller patients personal caregivers, a masseuse, manicurist and extra security.

Extra security? Probably baby blankets for both baby and new mommy.

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