Street

I'm a little late with this review--others have already said it, perhaps better--but if spending time with an entertaining gent who was hired by Walt Disney before Disneyland opened and who participated in making it successful beyond anyone's imagination sounds interesting, there is no other book. A real joy to read.

Van France sprinkles pixie dust on the world with his candid, written experiences of working for the "work horse", Walt Disney and subsequent management after his death at the Happiest place on Earth (TM). Mike Fiott, an avid Disneyana collector and late publisher of the Art of Laughter Magazine, gave me this book to relish and absorb. I met Van in 1996, and at that time,the late publisher stopped printing the book. Van stated he was tired of signing them!(Yeah, sure!) Van loved the attention of his admiring fans who enjoyed listening to anecdotes of his day-to-day living and working the "Disney" way. If you can find this book, acquire it and enjoy the interesting insight that only Van could share.It really comes to my surprise that Van passed away last October(10/99). He will be missed.

MET VAN IN 1982 AND ENDED UP WORKING WITH HIM ON ASSORTED PROJECTS IN HIS OLD BEAT UP TRAILER ON THE BACK LOT BY THE CLYDESDALES, FOR 4 YEARS. HERE IT IS, JAN 1, 00 AND FOUND VAN HAS LEFT US ON THE 13TH OF OCT, 99. HIS LOVE FOR DISNEYLAND WAS BOUNDLESS. THOSE THAT KNEW HIM, WILL NEVER FORGET HIM. I RECALL THE DAY HE CALLED AND TOLD ME HE HAD RECEIVED HIS "WINDOW ON MAIN STREET", WALT'S HOLLYWOOD WALK OF FAME. BEFORE HE COULD CONTINUE, I TOLD HIM I ALREADY KNEW WHERE THEY HAD PLACED HIS MONIKER, ABOVE THE OLD TOBACCO SHOP. ASKED ME HOW I KNEW. TOLD HIM THERE WAS NO PLACE ELSE TO PUT HIM, SINCE HE SMOKED LIKE A DIESEL TRUCK. VAN DID MANY THINGS FOR DISNEYLAND IN CAL, FL., AND JAPAN THAT HE NEVER PUBLICIZED. HE DIDN'T WANT FAME OR MONEY, HE LIVED WITH THE SATISFACTION OF A JOB WELL DONE AND MAKING THE LIVES OF THOSE AROUND HIM BETTER. BUY IT AND ENJOY A TRUE INSIDERS LOVE OF DISNEYLAND. HE WILL BE MISSED.

This book, rich with wonderful old photos, gives a concise history of the last 100 years of the financial culture that has come to be known as Wall Street. A good blend of text, photos, and charts make this book interesting to the non-financial reader.

The author divided the book into decades and each chapter outlined the changes that occurred over those years.

At the beginning of the last century, Wall Street was known for its lack of financial regulation regarding trades. Scandals and outright swindles abounded. Four years after the Crash of 1929, FDR's administration passed nationwide banking and securities laws to make sure that this kind of disaster did not happen again.

Unfortunately, the real and distasteful inner workings of Wall Street were revealed in the Senate hearings. An SEC commissioner called investment bankers "financial termites". This knowledge scared investors away for the next 20 years.

In the early 50s, investing became popular with middle class investors for the first time in a generation, and mutual funds were developed after being gone for 30 years.

The 60s brought the birth of the modern mergers and acquisitions business in the U.S, and the days of small brokerage firms were coming to an end.

The 70s brought extensive reforms concerning commissions while the 80s were the years of junk bonds, insider trading scandals, and the savings and loan crisis.

The author called the 80s the decade of greed and the 90s the decade of boom. The Internet has brought about a totally new way of trading stocks and has made up-to-the-minute financial news available to everyone.

The changes in the last 100 years on Wall Street have been phenomenal, mirroring the technological changes in our society.

Charles R. Geisst's enjoyable book chronicles Wall Street in the twentieth century. He effectively captures the feel of the various boom and bust periods. The clear, informative text is supplemented with incredible black and white photographs of each period's key events and people, making it very evocative and intriguing. We at ... recommend this book to anyone - not only someone in business - who wants to learn about Wall Street's history. It would make a great gift for anyone who works in the financial industry or for a young person who is interested in how money works.

I enjoyed looking at the pictures and reading the headlines. Very educational and informative.

This novel is Goodis's classic tale of urban desolation. Like a bleak, sparse George Bellows painting, Goodis' world is master strokes of grim description from torn overcoats to bloodied maws to swearing Santas. At the center is Ralph Creel, a lazy bum torn between his romantic soul and his animalistic instincts. Ralph Creel is a fighter, a survivor, a supremely Goodis creation who like us all, eventually gives in to life, to the Fat Blonde on the Street Corner, but not before he allows the reader to witness some moments of Grace./(I am putting this in a second time because amazon did not print my name the first time!)

This novel is Goodis's classic tale of urban desolation. Like a bleak, sparse George Bellows painting, Goodis' world is master strokes of grim description from torn overcoats to bloodied maws to swearing Santas. At the center is Ralph Creel, a lazy bum torn between his romantic soul and his animalistic instincts. Ralph Creel is a fighter, a survivor, a supremely Goodis creation who like us all, eventually gives in to life, to the Fat Blonde on the Street Corner, but not before he allows the reader to witness some moments of Grace./

Forget the title--this book is not about sex. At least, not very much (only a brief reference or two). What it's about is what it's like to live as a young poor person in Philadelphia. The book was written in the 1950's, it's written about the 1930's, but as a former resident of Philadelphia, I can attest to the fact that it is as accurate a depiction of today's world as any other decade. The novel is a small gem that captures the essence of being unemployed and poor in the big city, but without being depressing or moralistic in any way. Doesn't sound like much of a recipe for success, but Goodis is a master at bringing a mood to life. He accomplishes with understatement what most novelists never achieve: genuine, believable characters in real settings. This book has not, to my knowledge, been made into a film as his other works have, which is probably due to the unusual plot structure (basically, not much excitement goes on in the book), but the trueness of his vision soars beyond any limitations. I lived in similar circumstances to the characters in the book, and was astonished at the accuracy that Goodis gives to real life. It's amazing. Worth a read, even if you are only marginally interested. It's a brief page turner that leaves you longing for more, just as the characters in the book feel. This book is a revelation.

I have read this book twice; once during summer holidays and then again this past weekend, and I enjoyed it in a different way very much each time. There is a greater maturity in the work than before; Lentz has learned to use dialogue effectively and with good wit, especially with the difficult dialect and idiom of places as diametrically opposed as Bayou Cajun country and Boston, Massachusetts are. His capture of local colour really washes well; I thoroughly like the story line, but even moreso the underlying, gurgling innuendo and hidden asides. The setting in New Orleans works really well too, and moves the book along.

I am a long time fan of David Lentz! I am there in New Orleans as he draws me in, making the sights and sounds and aromas all fill me with longing to return to this city. Even the first page
captured me and I knew immediately this was a book I would treasure. The snow outside my home disappeared as I was there with a beignet and cafe au lait becoming friends with all the characters on the pages. I highly reccommend this book to everyone who has loved New Orleans and the writing style of Mr.Lentz who is able to work magic with a pen.

I was in search of a novel set in New Orleans and was pleasantly suprised to find that David Lentz (a personal favorite of mine) had wrtitten this gem. Aeneas, the protagonist, was a very dynamic character; I could releate to many facets of his personnality. There was enough New orleans to make anyone dream of packing up and moving south, but it never overpowered the storyline. I highly recommend this, as a beach novel or curled up under a blanket on a winter day. It is thought provoking and enertaining at the same time.

I have known Eddie Gilbert personally for over a decade, and I find that at 80 years old he continues to work as hard as most people in their 30's. He is a driven man, whose ambition is boundless.

This recent book is a swift read and covers the major events in Eddie's life in a well researched and balanced way. From the heights of two separate fortunes to the depths of two jail stints, it is really an amazing story. The most amazing part is that it is true. Eddie Gilbert is still making history today as a very, very successful real estate investor. Everything he touches turns to gold. He is a very loyal family man, who values friendships and would do everything to follow through on his word.

I recommend reading the book, not for its literary merits, which are very modest, but for the truly extraordinary story of the many lives of Eddie Gilbert.

Pick it up and you won't be able to put it down!

Richard Whittingham has always produced exciting and important books (in military history, police novels, sports history, etc.). So it shouldn't have come as a surprise when I picked up his latest, "Boy Wonder of Wall Street" (biography), and had trouble putting it down. But I was surprised. After all, what's to admire about another financier (yawn), especially one who has been labeled an "embezzler" and a "crook"(ugh)? Well, Whittingham has produced again. "Boy Wonder" is spellbinding. It's a consistently surprising, revealing and ultimately heart-warming tale of a truly unforgettable character. Rarely in biography (and fiction, for that matter) is an ending of sweet redemption so winningly delivered --- and I have given away nothing with that statement except that this is a terrific read that will stay with you a long time. Need a new hero in your life? Eddie Gilbert's your man. Five stars!

Down These Wicked Streets, edited by D. L. Browne and Kevin Burton Smith (Wicked Company, tradepaper, 253 pages).

D. L. Browne, an author of many pen names, is the founder of Wicked Company, a mystery community particularly active in the iUniverse world. Kevin Burton Smith is the editor and founder of The Thrilling Detective Website and a member of Wicked Company--when he isn't otherwise boosting the causes of noir--and, often, feminism--across the Internet. Here, the two rapscallions have put together an anthology of seven short mysteries featuring PIs.

The stories vary from fun to compelling, and none is dull. D. L. Browne's own "Just One of Those Things," is very Raymond Chandler stylish, with an added soupcon of D. L.'s truly incomparable wit. Her PI in skirts, Mary Kelly, a detective agency operative, can be caught on most days reading Black Mask magazine while slouching around at her desk. But when the story opens, Kelly's given the assignment of helping a wealthy client buy back some letters from his Chinese femme fatale lover. Kelly fairly swoons when she meets the man she's to help make the drop, but she manages to hold onto her mental clarity to the bitter--and, yes, of course it's bitter--end.

Sharon Potthoff 's Genevieve Lovisa owns her own agency--now--in "The Face of Iniquity." She has been left the business by her beloved uncle Mitch, who died recently of a heart attack. And because of his death, she is too depressed to take a new client, Mrs. Crestwell, who wants the goods on her philandering husband. When Mr. Crestwell turns up late and not particularly lamented... well, you see, Lovisa is forced by curiosity, and the sweet allure of money, to take the case. Potthoff handles the contemporary story satisfyingly with nice skill, dropping clues hither and yon to end up smashingly with a very tied-together conclusion.

Yes, the anthology also has stories by male noirish and hardboiled types, including a Doug McCool tale by Miles Archer--who previously wrote about Doug in a novel from Clocktower Books. In this one, "The Art of War," McCool takes on a mild meatpacker's appeal for help in keeping the mob from taking over his business. The great enjoyment for the reader is seeing how Doug can fix a totally impossible situation, which he handles with tons of machismo and a little bit of old-fashioned `it's who you know...' Tension abounds in this well-paced piece with a 70s flavor. Nice writing.

Barry Evetts' story features journalist Lucinda Leung who starred in Barry's The Panama Affair and who simply had to return to Venezuela in "El Fraudito Chinito." Leung is here at the invitation of Uncle Fang--not really her uncle--who was murdered the day before she arrives. Evetts has a lot of hooks in this and manages to heighten the suspense and the drama while depicting the culture of Caracas, which, as a long-time resident there, he knows better than well. Good story.

"Night Bird" by Katie de Koster introduces Frank Grant, a PI who comes across a bird-in-need on his surveillance of a drug-dealing bad guy. Here, we have a Wicked Company female writing as a male PI and she does so boldly, not hesitating at any turn of the sexual agenda. Her Frank Grant is as macho--and as clever in outfoxing both the police and the bad guys--as a guy's gotta be and the story is thoroughly action packed. A big twist early in the story takes the remainder in an unexpected direction.

In "Nothing to It," author Chris McKenzie settles on a pair of investigators, a male freelance researcher moonlighting as a delivery man and female intrepid private eye Sydney Blake. The two become, in not fast friends, at least interdependent, as they try to flee from murderous thugs. In this, gender politics play a role, with Sydney being the more aggressive and fearless of the pair. Action-adventure is the keyword for this story.

"Secret Smile" a tale of Toledo by Tribe, the lead-off for the book, is probably the most noir of the bunch. Also, an action-dominated piece, this one is written in the present tense and features characters so hardboiled that should they fall from a high place and crack, nothing soft or gushy would be revealed.

The book, on the whole, is a good addition to the mystery-short reader's library.

The best story of the bunch is Browne's own "Just One of Those Things," which introduces detective Mary Kelly. "Just One of Those Things" has all the ambiance and adventure of a solid BLACK MASK pulp detective story, but it is primarily a sad parable about beautiful high society and movie people who refuse to own up to their responsibilities. People who end up paying the ultimate price when, instead, they attempt to bury their mistakes. Browne's style is polished and confident, she has a knack for intriguing phrases (two examples: "I felt the brush of his charm in my bones" and "I may not always land on my feet, but the good thing about landing on your knees is you're in a perfect position to beg"), and she rarely forgets to color descriptions with fragrances. D.L. Browne is a writer worth watching and reading.

Coming in a close second is "The Art of War" by Miles Archer. I was happy to see his 1970s detective, Doug McCool, the hero of TOO MANY SPIES SPOIL THE CASE, back in this new story. In "The Art of War," McCool is hired to dissuade an Ohio mob gang from muscling in on a Butchertown-or South San Francisco, as the local Chamber of Commerce prefers-family's waste disposal business. Using Sun Tzu's classic treatise "The Art of War" as his guidebook, McCool proceeds to do just that, turning the tables on the gangsters in a series of violent mêlées that kick off in South San Francisco and conclude on the mob's own doorstep in Cleveland.

Archer as hip to 1970s San Francisco as Dashiell Hammett was to the Bay City in the 1920s. I only wish "The Art of War" was longer so Archer could have had imbued it with a greater sense of peril for his protagonist. Like TOO MANY SPIES SPOIL THE CASE, McCool is battling a ruthless, insidious, and all-pervading enemy; unlike TMSSTC, however, McCool has the upper hand in this dicey situation from the get-go and never relinquishes it. (It seems the wisdom of Sun Tzu is timeless!) In spite of this criticism, if you like your detectives to be good joes at heart who will go the mat for the little guy, or are just a fan of solid writing, you must read Miles Archer's "The Art of War." And if you haven't read TOO MANY SPIES SPOIL THE CASE, get that, too.

For a bit of South American daring-do there is Barry Evetts' "El Fraudito Chinto" (The Little Chinese Fraudster). Evetts' Chinese-American journalist, Luicinda Leung, returns from THE PANAMA AFFAIR (iUniverse, 2000), this time teaming up with Evetts' newest character, Domingo Muratti, troubleshooter and fixer-of-problems for international corporations.

The titular character is one Michelangelo Fang, patriarch of a malicious brood of offspring in Caracas, Venezuela, where Fang operates an illegal immigration service. There is plenty of local color (Evetts lives in Venezuela), and Leung and Muratti make a pleasant professional couple (Muratti is married). With his exotic looks, taste for fine clothes, food, and wine, and a nifty Alfa Romero Giuletta in the garage, Muratti is an undeniably fun character, as is Leung, although I would have liked to see her acting more like a journalist and less like a target in this story.

Colorado native Chris McKenzie introduces freelance researcher Jamie Landon and private investigator Sydney Blake in "Nothing To It."

There is not much mystery here, if you discount trying to deduce who set up Landon to be mugged while he is delivering an antique vase to an antique warehouse for "a friend of a friend." The story begins with Landon escaping his muggers only to run into Blake, who is fleeing a gang of thugs masquerading as the warehouse's security guards. There are more escapes along the way, and enough fighting and witty patter to fill a decent Monogram serial chapter. Not much is revealed about Landon or Blake's background or personalities in this brisk adventure, but they are affable characters and this first story is a pleasant divergence.

Katie de Koster knows how to feed wild birds, as will you if you read "Night Bird." You might be tempted to give up on this story about halfway through because of the volume of information it contains about feeding wild birds, but if you do you will miss out on some fine fiction in the best pulp detective tradition. The kind where an innocent person dies as a consequence of a guilty associate's crime, and it is only through the thickheaded determination of a private eye that the innocent's name is cleared and the guilty made to pay for their sins.

If you like Quentin Tarantino and Vertigo Comics, you will like "Secret Smile," a post-modernist detective story by Tribe. Tribe can write and he is a good stylist, which is to his benefit since, in post-modernism, style equals substance. Post-modernism also produces introspective paragraphs like this:

"Are things still secret if you can find them with little or no effort? Or are secrets only things you never know?"

If that sounds heavy to you, then go for it. If "Murmur not at the ways of providence" sounds better, then "Secret Smile" probably isn't your bag, kid.

"The Face of Iniquity" is by S.P. Pottoff, the authoress of THE TWISTED TRIANGLE (iUniverse, 2000). This story introduces Genevieve Lovisa, a likable but insecure detective. I would like to see Lovisa in a future story, but her promising premiere mystery is marred by an over-dependence on coincidences and clues whose answers should be immediately obvious to Lovisa because they certainly are the reader. Pottoff likewise attempts to create suspense by teasing instead of revealing facts a few times too many. Still, her skill as a wordsmith is obvious.

DOWN THE WICKED STREETS is a darn good box of chocolates with overall solid stories that introduce a handful of worth-watching-for authors. Here is hoping this anthology from Wicked Company is only the first of many.

Collaboratively edited by D. L. Browne and Kevin Burton Smith, Down These Wicked Streets: Seven Tales Of Original Detective Fiction is an compelling anthology of unique private-eye stories from seven undeniably talented writers of the "Wicked Company Writers Community". The stories range from a woman who unexpectedly inherits her uncle's detective agency, to Doug McCool, good guy aided by the power of an ancient text. An outstanding collection, recommended for detective fiction buffs, Down These Wicked Streets features hard-boiled action, subtle intrigue, conflict, sultry agendas and more.

I'm proud to be able to say that I my unit supported the 1st and 5th Marines in this historic battle.

The battle would make a great movie. I would love to see Stephen Speilberg tell this story on film.

The book was outstanding, I loved it

Like a Time Machine, Fire in the Streets catapulted me 31 years back into the battle for Hue City. Eric Hammel's account is a historical, vividly accurate account of what every Marine would surely describe as their time in hell. It certainly was mine. Mr. Hammel's research enabled me to know the why's and the where's of my unit's activities, and gave me a much broader understanding of what the grunt Marine accomplished in the month long house to house fight. This is an excellent book!

Dennis Freed, Lima 3/5 WIA 2/24/68 - Hue City

I was one of those corporals that Eric Hammel mentions on page 303 who served as a platoon commander of Bravo 1/5. Mr. Hammel has meticulously constructed a book that is an enjoyable read and an important one for everyone who wants to understand what it was like to participate at the front line. It is, I believe, an important body of information in the history of the war in Viet Nam.

Hue was a unique battle in Viet Nam and "Fire in the Streets" is the best, most informative, most complete, and, from what I know, the most accurate description of the events before, during and after the event. I say this from the perspective of someone who not only lived the battle but has read every book on the subject that I can find. I think any student of this war can better understand the grunt's perspective of Hue and Viet Nam after reading this book.

I need to point out, however, that Lance Corporal Paul Cheatwood (page 286) was a mortarman with Bravo Company, not Charlie. I was his squad leader at the time of the ambush described. I had passed through the ambush when the machine gun opened up and I was forced to take cover between a dead pig and a concrete wall about 24 inches high. Everytime I moved I could hear bullets thudding into the pig and bouncing off the concrete. I had taken bullet fragments in my hand and one of my associates, for reasons that escape me, popped a CS (tear gas) canister upwind. I was considerably distressed by my situation and not coming up with a plan when I heard Cheatwood yell, "I see them!" He stood up firing his M-16. When it ran out of ammo he picked up another M-16 and walked deliberatly toward the ambush firing into the soldiers there. When the second M-16 ran out of ammo he pulled two grenades off his vest and threw them into the building. When they exploded he leaned in with a .45 and made certain that they had gone on to their reward.

Further, and more incredibly, Cheatwood didn't lead a patrol, as outlined on page 289. As the rest of us dragged the wounded to safety he gathered up all of the hand grenades he could carry and went BY HIMSELF, on his own initiative, behind enemy lines and personally inflicted some serious damage on the NVA. His courageous actions and self-sacrifice bought us enough time to get our act together.

The ambush put us in a very precarious position and, had the enemy counterattacked, we would easily have been overrun. I believe they didn't because of Cheatwood's one-man assault. Several of us put Cheatwood in for a Congressional Medal of Honor and I am, to this day, chagrined that he did not get it. Paul Cheatwood suffered permanent, grievous disabilities from the injuries that he suffered that day. I personally believe that he was denied the Medal of Honor because he was an enlisted man recommended by enlisted men. He deserves everything the Medal of Honor represents and it is a great shame that he did not get it.

One way or the other, the men of Bravo 1/5 owe Cheatwood a great deal.

However, this is about "Fire in the Streets." I am personally grateful to Eric Hammel for his book. It provides a level of recognition and dignity to those of us who fought in Hue and I urge anyone who is reading this to read the book. It's complete, its well done, and its important.

Mark Mead (former sergeant, USMC Bravo 1/5) soltura@hotmail.com

I THINK THIS BOOK WOULD BE A GOOD BOOK FOR SOMEONE WHO LIKES R.L. STINE. THE COUNSLERS AT THE CAMP HAVE BEEN HYPMATIZED. THEY TAKE KIDS AWAY ONCE THE KIDS HAVE WON THEIR SIXTH GOLD COIN,A COIN YOU CAN WIN FOR PLAYING THE ACTIVITIES. THE KIDS ARE TAKEN SOMEWHERE,SOMEWHERE FORBIDDEN!

Dear Reader,

I just got thruogh with a book called Horror at Camp Jelly Jam. You should read the book it is good.It is a little scary. You're going to like the end.I think you should get the book it is really good.

Your friend,

Ray-Ray

Shocker on Shock Street is a great book because of all of the suspense. It keeps you on your toes and you never know what is going to happen next. It thrills and chills until the end. It keeps you reading on. I give it two thumbs up.

This wonderful book consideres the civic street from many perspecitives and describes it with poetic attention. The author has spent days on these great streets and brings careful measurement and observation to his carefully crafted text. If everyone planning streets and highways in America read this book and visited one of two of these great streets, it would enable a huge improvement.

This book studies the street not from the simple American perspecitve of high velocity traffic sewar, but from the realities of a place to hang out. eat lunch, shop, socialize, people watch, court, celebrate and be. The read how these places work in this book is to realize how much our desperate focus on the automobile costs us.

Buy this book and photocopy some of its illustrations for your next public hearing on town planning.

This book showcases some of the greatest streets in the world. Not only does it provide examples of great streets but it speaks about the criteria of being "great". The drawings are very nice as well, and this book would make a great addition to any architect, planner or travel enthusiasts' library.

This is an absolute must-read for anyone interested in the study of urbanism.

Hey, I bought this book thinking it was by the real Frank Messina. LOL. What a sham! Warning. This book is not by the legendary spoken word artist Frank Messina, better check out frankmessina.com for the real one. But the author gets 2 stars just for having a cool name.

A book I thoroughly enjoyed. Well written with a heartfelt sensitivity you don't see that much anymore. I recommend this book highly.

A totally refreshing story brimming with warmth and and sensitivity and written beautifully. Thank you, Frank Messina.