This history of jazz, spanning the twentieth century, is the first to place it within the broad context of American culture. Burton Peretti argues persuasively that this distinctive American music has been a key thread in the tapestry of the nation's culture. The music itself, its players and its audience, and the critical debates it has prompted, tell us much about changes in American life since 1910. Mr. Peretti traces the emergence of jazz out...

"Albert Einstein's face is still one of the most recognizable in the world and he's widely considered to be the first modern-day celebrity. While many of his discoveries continue to define our daily lives, it's not just his genius that continues to shape our world. Today, more people know Einstein as an icon rather than a theorist-decades after his death, he's a celebrity with a massive online following. The Einstein Effect shows all the ways his...

"Variety is not only a fascinating look at the history of entertainment as reported by the world's most highly-regarded commentator of show business news, it is also a history of American popular culture, and a record of the influence and confluence of art, life, and Hollywood. Illustrated with hundreds of front pages, articles, and new and archival photographs spanning Variety's more-than-century old archives, it includes personal anecdotes written...

In the United States, the 1960s were a period of unprecedented change and upheaval-but the year 1968 in particular stands out as a dramatic turning point. Americans witnessed the Tet offensive in Vietnam; the shocking assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy; and the chaos at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. At the same time, a young generation was questioning authority like never before-and popular culture, especially...

Bryson examines closely the events and personalities of the summer of 1927 when America's story was one of brawling adventure, reckless optimism and delirious energy.

"Here in 144 color pages, with more than 200 color slides, Charles Phoenix tells the story of an era in American history--the Space Age, the Jell-O Salad Days, the Prom Time... yes, indeed, the Mid-Century. A little kitsch here, a lotta love there, some sadness, some joy and most of all, a rollicking good time"--Provided by publisher

Exuberant and ambitious, The Fifties delves into a decade that remains a monumental and lasting turning point in American history Joe McCarthy. Marilyn Monroe. The H-bomb. Ozzie and Harriet. Elvis. Civil rights. It's undeniable: The fifties were a defining decade for America, complete with sweeping cultural change and political upheaval. This decade is also the focus of David Halberstam's triumphant The Fifties, which stands as an enduring classic...