McManus, Member of Manhattan Political Royalty, Celebrates Birthday It had the feel of a nominating convention, or an Election Day victory party. The big-name Manhattan politicians were there, and so were hundreds of rank-and-file voters. Hundreds of balloons lined the ceiling, the food and drink were free, and a jazz combo belted out "Happy Days Are Here Again." The event, James McManus's birthday party, held in the basement of the Sacred Heart church on West 51st Street, was as traditional an event as there is in Manhattan politics. Mr. McManus, who turned 77 on Monday, stood in the middle of the floor, swarmed by well-wishers, including older people using walkers and canes and the many political celebrities who turned out with entourages. Mr. McManus has been the Democratic Party district leader in Hell's Kitchen for more than half a century. He is the fourth-generation scion of the McManus Midtown Democratic Club, one of the last of the Tammany Hall Democratic clubs in New York City. If Mr. McManus seems born into politics, then even his date of birth, Sept. 10, seems opportune, said Mickey Spillane Jr., Mr. McManus's nephew and the club's president. Mr. Spillane, whose father was Mickey Spillane, the Hell's Kitchen bookmaker and loan shark who was known as the "last of the gentleman gangsters" and who was murdered in 1977, said the club used to hold a traditional party in early September to mobilize voters to turn out for the local primary elections. "But new rules came along that prevented judges and politicians from coming to political events, so the club started calling it Jim's birthday party, so everyone could come," Mr. Spillane said. The timing was perfect. That's a little bit of Tammany Hall for you. Another little bit was Mr. Spillane's humorous confession that he became a club member at age 13, "when I became old enough to vote." At the door, club members handed out fliers declaring in large type which candidates to pull the lever for in the primary on Thursday, including Thomas Greco, the club's executive vice president and the owner of a local bar, who is running for the State Senate. The McManus club has controlled politics in Hell's Kitchen and beyond for more than a century. It was created by Mr. McManus's great grand-uncle, Thomas J. McManus, who in 1892 defeated the legendary George Washington Plunkitt for district leadership. "No Democratic club in Manhattan can turn out this many people," Mr. Grego said as he looked out over the several hundred people in the room. The club still boasts more than 6,000 dues-paying members, and Mr. McManus, who at age 26 took over in 1963 from his father, Eugene McManus, still holds office hours every Monday and Thursday a 6 p.m. at the club's West 53rd Street clubhouse - one of the last in Manhattan. It helps constituents with personal or governmental problems, with the hope that they cast votes for McManus-backed candidates on Election Day. Members in attendance Sunday night helped themselves to a buffet table of cold cuts and salads. Above the band was a large banner wishing Mr. McManus a happy birthday from the franchise restaurant mogul Dennis Riese, who Mr. McManus said financed and catered the party. "My father did some favor for his father 80 years ago - neither of us remember what - but Dennis's father, on his deathbed, told Dennis, 'Take care of Jim McManus,' and he has," said Mr. McManus, who runs a funeral home on West 43rd Street. Among those in attendance were Assemblymen Keith L.T. Wright and Richard N. Gottfried; William C. Thompson, the former New York City comptroller; Borough President Scott M. Stringer of Manhattan; and Councilwoman Gale A. Brewer. People shook Mr. McManus's hand and leaned in to whisper in his ear. One man in a corduroy blazer said the Board of Elections was assigning him to the wrong polling site; Mr. McManus said he would take care of it. Standing near Mr. McManus, Mr. Wright proclaimed himself "a disciple of Jimmy." Mr. Stringer said he was one of many politicians who "came and sat at his knee" when first breaking into politics. The crowd sang "Happy Birthday," and Mr. Stringer yelled, "We're proud that you're our leader." Then Mr. McManus yelled to the crowd, "Without you, the club would be nothing, and you are the army behind the organization. And remember, I'm a nobody, you're a nobody, you're a nobody - but together, we're somebody, and that's the main thing. The crowd roared, but Mr. McManus had one more thing to say: Everyone in the room had to go out on Thursday to vote for Mr. Greco. "Every vote counts," Mr. McManus said. It will be a very small turnout, so I need each and every one of you to come out and give Tom the vote.