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Author: Steven Gaines Publisher: Crown ISBN: 0307346285 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 290
Book Description
From the acclaimed bestselling author of Philistines at the Hedgerow comes a remarkably revealing profile of the Miami Beach no one knows–a tale of fabulous excess, thwarted power, and rekindled lives that will take its place among the decade’s best works of social portraiture. Created from a mix of swampland and dredged-up barrier reef, Miami Beach has always been one part drifter-mecca and one part fantasyland, simultaneously a catch basin for con men, fast-talk artists, and shameless self-promoters, and a Shangri-La for sun worshippers and hardcore hedonists. In Miami Beach it’s often said that "if you’re not indicted you’re not invited." But the city’s mad, fascinating complexity resists easy stereotyping. Fool’s Paradise is more than just a present-day profile of a dark Eden. Gaines journeys back into the city’s social and cultural history, unearthing stories of the resort’s past that are every bit as absorbing–and jaw-dropping–as those of its present. The book begins with a snapshot of the city’s current excess (this is, after all, a sun-washed hamlet that boasts, on a per capita basis, more bars–and breast implants–than any other place in America), then plunges into the Beach’s origins, chronicling the audacious rise of such hoteliers as the Fontainebleau’s Ben Novack and the Eden Roc’s Harry Mufson, the sharp-elbowed tactics of Al Capone and Frank Sinatra, and the Mac-10 shooting sprees of the Marielito and Colombian drug lords. From there, the narrative shifts to two wildly eccentric souls who gave their lives to preserving the city’s architectural dazzle and creating its color palette, introduces us to "the Most Powerful Man in Miami Beach," and arrives finally in the modern day, where we meet, among others, a kinky German playboy who once owned a quarter of South Beach and publicly flaunts his sexual escapades; a fabulously successful nightclub promoter whose addictive past seems to have given him a portal into the night world’s id; and a gaggle of young sexy models, dreamers, and schemers on a mission to achieve significance. Evoking the Beach’s surreal blend of flashy Vegas and old Hollywood glamour, as well as its manic desperation and reckless wealth, Gaines persuasively demonstrates that though the Beach is–in the words of its most famous drag queen–"an island of broken toys . . . a place where people get away with things they’d never get away with anyplace else," it casts an irresistible spell.
Author: Steven Gaines Publisher: Crown ISBN: 0307346285 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 290
Book Description
From the acclaimed bestselling author of Philistines at the Hedgerow comes a remarkably revealing profile of the Miami Beach no one knows–a tale of fabulous excess, thwarted power, and rekindled lives that will take its place among the decade’s best works of social portraiture. Created from a mix of swampland and dredged-up barrier reef, Miami Beach has always been one part drifter-mecca and one part fantasyland, simultaneously a catch basin for con men, fast-talk artists, and shameless self-promoters, and a Shangri-La for sun worshippers and hardcore hedonists. In Miami Beach it’s often said that "if you’re not indicted you’re not invited." But the city’s mad, fascinating complexity resists easy stereotyping. Fool’s Paradise is more than just a present-day profile of a dark Eden. Gaines journeys back into the city’s social and cultural history, unearthing stories of the resort’s past that are every bit as absorbing–and jaw-dropping–as those of its present. The book begins with a snapshot of the city’s current excess (this is, after all, a sun-washed hamlet that boasts, on a per capita basis, more bars–and breast implants–than any other place in America), then plunges into the Beach’s origins, chronicling the audacious rise of such hoteliers as the Fontainebleau’s Ben Novack and the Eden Roc’s Harry Mufson, the sharp-elbowed tactics of Al Capone and Frank Sinatra, and the Mac-10 shooting sprees of the Marielito and Colombian drug lords. From there, the narrative shifts to two wildly eccentric souls who gave their lives to preserving the city’s architectural dazzle and creating its color palette, introduces us to "the Most Powerful Man in Miami Beach," and arrives finally in the modern day, where we meet, among others, a kinky German playboy who once owned a quarter of South Beach and publicly flaunts his sexual escapades; a fabulously successful nightclub promoter whose addictive past seems to have given him a portal into the night world’s id; and a gaggle of young sexy models, dreamers, and schemers on a mission to achieve significance. Evoking the Beach’s surreal blend of flashy Vegas and old Hollywood glamour, as well as its manic desperation and reckless wealth, Gaines persuasively demonstrates that though the Beach is–in the words of its most famous drag queen–"an island of broken toys . . . a place where people get away with things they’d never get away with anyplace else," it casts an irresistible spell.
Author: Neil Hutchison Publisher: Proglen Trading Co., Ltd. ISBN: 0987090208 Category : Humor Languages : en Pages : 278
Book Description
Following hot the heels of his best seller, Money Number One, Neil Hutchison continues his in-depth investigation into the tourist playground of Pattaya. This collection of short stories, originally published individually under the pseudonym 'A Fool in Paradise', form a collage of insights into the machinations of this fantastic city on the eastern seaboard of Thailand. Anyone who has read Money Number One will enjoy this follow-up book as it reinforces the conclusions drawn and advice presented in the former through the personal experiences of the author. The tales are fast-paced, humourous, well written and ALL TRUE. Well, almost. Sir Winston Churchill quipped that "Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm." If that is true, then Neil is a success story because his love and enthusiasm for Pattaya and its people has not diminished over the years. The highs, lows, ups, downs, laughter and tears portray a convincing analysis of the human condition. As Neil says, "Pattaya is to a writer what a room full of fruit bowls is to an artist." The last story, 'Footprints in the Sand', is a particularly poignant tale of just how the city can affect its visitors and guests, even those who should know better. Written with his heart firmly on his sleeve, it proves that no matter how smart we think we are or how old we get, we just never learn. This tale is a 'must read' for any foreign male contemplating a long-term liaison with a Thai lady.
Author: Mike Lupica Publisher: Penguin ISBN: 0525542108 Category : Fiction Languages : en Pages : 385
Book Description
When an unknown man is found murdered in Paradise, Jesse Stone will have his hands full finding out who he was--and what he was seeking. When a body is discovered at the lake in Paradise, Police Chief Jesse Stone is surprised to find he recognizes the murder victim--the man had been at the same AA meeting as Jesse the evening before. But otherwise, Jesse has no clue as to the man's identity. He isn't a local, nor does he have ID on him, nor does any neighboring state have a reported missing person matching his description. Their single lead is from a taxi company that recalls dropping off the mysterious stranger outside the gate at the mansion of one of the wealthiest families in town. . . . Meanwhile, after Jesse survives a hail of gunfire on his home, he wonders if it could be related to the murder. When both Molly Crane and Suitcase Simpson also become targets, it's clear someone has an ax to grind against the entire Paradise PD.
Author: John Gierach Publisher: Simon and Schuster ISBN: 0743291735 Category : Fiction Languages : en Pages : 227
Book Description
A lighthearted and lyrical new collection of observations on fly-fishing by the author of Still Life with Brook Trout features whimsical complaints about what the author believes is wrong with the world, both within and outside the fishing community. 50,000 first printing.
Author: Neil Hutchison Publisher: Proglen Trading Co., Ltd. ISBN: 6169082569 Category : Humor Languages : en Pages : 257
Book Description
Enter Pattaya with your eyes wide open, not like a lamb to the slaughter. The original guide to Pattaya by Neil Hutchison, author of A Fool in Paradise. From landing at Bangkok airport through to going home again, everything is covered. From hotels to entertainment, from motorbike taxis to Baht buses, from beer bars to go go bars, and from bar hostesses to freelancers, you will find it in this book. And most of all find out how the Thai entertainment workers think about their visitors. Or as Neil says: "The politically correct single man's survival guide to the adult entertainment of Pattaya, Thailand." What others say: "A must for male visitors to the Land of Smiles." Bernard Trink (Bangkok Post) "A fun read with an important message. ... I would recommend that the single male, with fire in his heart and conflagration in his jocks should study the book before having his first beer. He will save more than the price of the book. ... Should be incorporated in the price of incoming plane tickets and made compulsory reading." Lang Reid (Pattaya Mail)
Author: Anita Konkka Publisher: Dalkey Archive Press ISBN: 9781564784223 Category : Fiction Languages : en Pages : 140
Book Description
Overeducated, unemployed, recently dumped, and depressed, the 38-year-old nameless narrator is a familiar American character, except she's Finnish. It is the 1980s, her married Russian lover has recently left her, and the narrator compulsively writes in her journal as she tries to put her life back together. Obsessed with omens, astrology, dreams, fortune-tellers, and other objects of the paranormal, the narrator is both funny and morose.
Author: Neil Hutchison Publisher: Proglen Trading Co., Ltd. ISBN: 6169082577 Category : Humor Languages : en Pages : 305
Book Description
The study of human stupidity is not a new science but it certainly makes fascinating reading. An interesting thing about the human race is that if there is a way to screw up, someone will eventually stumble upon it. Enter the fool. By the author of the Pattaya best seller Money Number One and the updated Money Still Number One, this the sequel to A Fool in Paradise, adding a further 32 stories to the colourful tapestry that is Pattaya, Thailand. In the opinion of many people including the author, Pattaya is the most wonderful place on the planet. As with A fool in Paradise, the stories are all true or based on true events. 'A Brief History of Pattaya' takes a lighthearted look at what the history books don't tell you whereas 'Miss Goodbar' offers advice to foreign men on how to choose, woo and cohabit with their Thai dream girl. 'Boys at Play' is the unofficial, unauthorized and unholy account of one holiday of lifetime. When you take six mischievous Aussie mates, add ten days of unsupervised freedom and put them together in South East Asia's number one party town, you get a true adventure of unbelievable proportions; full of fun, laughter, love, sex and tragedy. Why tragedy? Because none of them could ever speak about it, except amongst themselves. Apart from one photograph, this remains the only record of their tale. So pull up a chair, take your shoes off and relax. For your reading pleasure, The Fool is Back!
Author: Stewart Justman Publisher: Ivan R. Dee Publisher ISBN: Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 358
Book Description
Through the channels of the mass media, celebrity psychologists urge us to realize that society has robbed us of our authentic selves. That every moral standard or prohibition imposes on our selfhoods. That what we have inherited from the past is false. That we ourselves are the only truth in a world of lies. That we must challenge "virtually everything." That we must "wipe the slate clean and start over." Each of these "principles" is a commonplace of pop psychology, and each has almost unimaginably radical implications. Where did pop psychology come from, and what are its promises--and fallacies? How is it that we have elevated people like Phil McGraw, Theodore Rubin, Wayne Dyer, M. Scott Peck, Thomas Harris, John Gray, and many other self-help gurus to priestly status in American culture? In Fool's Paradise, the award-winning essayist Stewart Justman traces the inspiration of the pop psychology movement to the utopianism of the 1960s and argues that it consistently misuses the rhetoric that grew out of the civil rights movement. Speaking as it does in the name of our right to happiness, pop psychology promises liberation from all that interferes with our power to create the selves we want. In so doing, Mr. Justman writes, it not only defies reality but corrodes the traditions and attachments that give depth and richness to human life. His witty and astringent appraisal of the world of pop psychology, which quotes liberally from the most popular sources of advice, is an essential social corrective as well as a vastly entertaining and stimulating book.
Author: Dean Stewart Publisher: Heyday Books ISBN: 9781890771416 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 263
Book Description
Carey McWilliams (1905-1980) -- lawyer, activist, historian, editor of The Nation for two decades -- wrote the history of California as no one else could, or would. Alternately scathing, amusing, and disturbing, his sharp and literate accounts shatter the myths meant to obscure the real workings of the state, revealing always the relationship between the exploited and those who would exploit them.Readers will find that McWilliams's writing on history and the issues of his day is still relevant -- in fact, it is the basis for the field that we now call California studies
Author: Steven Gaines
Author: Steven Gaines
Author: Neil Hutchison
Author: Mike Lupica
Author: John Gierach
Author: Neil Hutchison
Author: Nancy Flowers Wilson
Author: Anita Konkka
Author: Neil Hutchison
Author: Stewart Justman
Author: Dean Stewart