Biografías, página 154 de 934

Paul Bern, known throughout the movie business as Hollywoods Father Confessor, earned a reputation for being a loyal and supportive friend and for becoming one of MGMs most respected and creative directors. After his death, though, he was said to have grown so depressed and despondent over his own apparent sexual inadequacies that he committed suicide, and he would be denounced for attempting to rape his new bride Jean Harlow. In this biography, the author uncovers startling new facts and argues that MGM knew the real story of Berns death--that an estranged, mentally ill common-law wife murdered him. MGM understood that the earlier spouse rendered Berns marriage to Harlow, its fastest-rising star, ambiguous if not bigamous, so the studio staged a suicide and embarked on a very public tarnishing of his memory. Included are 93 rare photos, many lost for decades, along with three appendices examining the handwriting on an alleged suicide note and Berns will and estate.

Still broadcasting today, the worlds first radio station was invented by Charles Herrold in 1909 in San Jose, California. His accomplishment was first documented in a notarized statement written by him and published in the Electro-Importing Companys 1910 catalog: We have given wireless phone concerts to amateur wireless men throughout the Santa Clara Valley. Being the first to broadcast radio entertainment and information to a mass audience puts him at the forefront of modern day mass communication. This biography of Charles Herrold focuses on how he used primitive technology to get on the air. Today it is a 50,000-watt station (KCBS, in San Francisco). The authors describe Herrolds story as one of early triumph and final failure, the story of an everyman, an individual who was an innovator but never received recognition for his work and, as a result, died penniless. His most important work was done between 1912 and 1917, and following World War I, he received a license and operated station KQW for several years before running out of money. Herrold then worked as a radio time salesman, an audiovisual technician for a high school, and a janitor at a local naval facility, still telling anyone who would listen to him that he was the father of radio. The authors also consider some other early inventors, and the directions that their work took.

Sophie Tucker appeared in only seven American stage musicals and appeared only twice on Broadway but, then, it was difficult to cast her in a show. A buxom and ebullient performer, she--and her audiences--quickly found that playing herself was most effective. This is a biography of a vaudeville and cabaret performer who saw herself as one of the first liberated women and one of the last red hot mamas. It tells the story of her birth as her mother traveled to Boston from Russia, her childhood in Boston, and her first public performance at Polis Vaudeville Theatre at the age of 13. It also tells the story of her troubled marriage to Louis Tuck and the birth of their son, her meeting with Willie Howard, a vaudeville veteran who encouraged her to go to New York and pursue a stage career, her discovery by Flo Ziegfeld (of the Ziegfeld Follies), and her rise to headliner status under the guidance of her agent William Morris. She was best known for appearing on stage with just a piano player, and openly discussing her life and Jewish upbringing.

It has been said that sport is the great leveler, that on the playing field everyone is of equal status. Through the years, however, few institutions have better embodied Americas ideals and prejudices than baseball. Jackie Robinsons debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers marked the first time an African American participated in a major league contest in the 20th century, and his abilities verified what many had believed all along--that African Americans could compete with white players and excel. The experiences and important contributions of six African American baseball players from the 1900s to the present day are presented in this work. The players are Andrew Rube Foster, perhaps the most important figure in black baseball during the first quarter of the 20th century; Satchel Paige, whose talent quickly became known in organized baseball and was built into a near mythical figure by an enchanted press; Larry Doby, who took the field with the Cleveland Indians three months after Jackie Robinson appeared with the Dodgers; Curt Flood, remembered less for the exceptional player he was than for challenging baseballs reserve clause; Dave Parker, the first black player to make a million dollars a year but also a prominent witness to the Pittsburgh drug trial; and Barry Bonds, known for his clashes with fans and the media but most recently revered for his MVP season in 2002 and record-breaking 73 home runs in 2001.

I just did it, and I probably made more mistakes than the average person who makes a first film. I didnt really have any help, and I wouldnt take any help. I had to do it on my own. Once I made my first film I considered myself a film-maker. I lost all interest in the theater and never went back--Monte Hellman In 1970, an LA Times headline described Monte Hellman as Hollywoods best kept secret. More than thirty years later, Hellman and his work are still secrets, his genius recognized only by a small but passionate group of admirers. This book is both a biography of Hellman and a critical study of his films, which include The Shooting, Two-Lane Blacktop and Ride in the Whirlwind. It also covers films to which Hellman has contributed as an editor, actor and producer, as well as those on which he has worked, in various capacities, without onscreen credit, such as Shatter and Robocop. Attention is focused on the hallmarks of Hellmans work, including his dominant themes and obsessive characters, and all the films are subjected to close stylistic analysis.

Willard Gayheart, a pencil artist from eastern Kentucky who now lives in southwestern Virginia, presents the history, people and culture of the Appalachian region. This book combines a biography of Gayheart with a portfolio of his work and his comments on his inspirations and techniques. His art has its roots in his childhood and his memories of that time inspire him today. Gayheart is also known for his portrayals of Appalachian musicians and ways of life, and many such drawings are reproduced here.

With a grandfather who drove a horse car in 1900 and who later had a 25-year career as a chauffeur for a wealthy family, Nelson Bolan has a unique viewpoint about the automotive industry during the first half of the 20th century. In later years, Bolan began his own car acquisitions. His first, a 1929 Chevrolet, was purchased for $100 in celebration of his brothers safe return from World War II and his own high school graduation. It had an outside gasoline gauge, and if the driver forgot to read the gauge before getting into the drivers seat, he had no way of knowing how much fuel he had. (Chevrolet made the change to dashboard gauges in 1930.) The car also had actual wooden floor boards, which were removed and reinstalled easily when servicing was necessary. This automotive memoir includes a chapter for each of Bolans first forty cars, including photographs of the actual vehicles where possible. Most were well aged at the time of purchase; the earliest was a 1917 Dodge Brothers. A nostalgic but factual recollection of each car in the order it was acquired, the book includes interesting information about each model and Bolans mechanical adventures from the 1940s to the 1990s.

A brilliant woman who happened to disrobe for a living, Gypsy Rose Lee was commonly known as the intellectual stripper. Born Rose Louise Hovick in 1911, she had meager beginnings, no formal education, and a mentally ill stage mother who criticized and demeaned her daughter. Despite these hurdles, Gypsy climbed to the peak of every career she tackled: she triumphed as an actress, novelist, playwright, artist, political activist, and, ultimately, a star. Appendices cover Gypsys will and estate, the original production and Broadway revivals of her play Gypsy, and complete filmographies and discographies. The book contains many rare and never-before-published photographs.

This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the worlds literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work._,

The Shadow in the Garden: A Biographer's Tale

This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the worlds literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work._,

This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the worlds literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work._,

This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the worlds literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work._,

This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the worlds literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work._,