No comments about Legacy: Walter Chrysler and the Chrysler Museum.

No comments about Young Henry Ford: A Picture History of the First Forty Years (Great Lakes Books).

No comments about Lords and Laborers of the Press: Men Who Fashioned the Modern British Newspaper (New Horizons in Journalism).

2 comments about Copywriter: A Life of Making Ads and Other Mistakes.

1. For close to 20 years, ending in the late 1980s, Ray Welch dominated New England advertising awards. He was the Woody Allen of the industry, writing self-deprecating (but hilarious and strategically spot-on) ads, and later becoming one of the area's most effective voice-over announcers. He was also one of the most well-liked personalities in the community -- I should know, I was there -- and a great story-teller.

   These are his stories. They're all funny. Many of them also reveal truths of ad agency life, the kinds of people attracted to that business, and the thinking that goes into a great campaign.

   Welch had art-director friends each design a separate chapter, and told them to go wild. The designs are readable -- these are top-level art directors we're talking about -- and range from whimsical to surprising. Not a bad thing in a book of stories.

   The book reads the way I remember that era. Except Welch obviously had a lot more fun.




2. I was there too. Bit player at another agency, but saw, heard, smelled (OK, tasted too -- I had a Saab with a Scotch compartment) the same wonderful ambiance that was advertising in the Renaissance '80s. Ray has it down. He records a time loved -- and lost -- to mega business. Oh, well.

No comments about Ross Sterling, Texan: A Memoir by the Founder of Humble Oil and Refining Company.

No comments about George Westinghouse: Gentle Genius (HC).

3 comments about The Predators' Ball: The Junk-Bond Raiders and the Man Who Staked Them.

1. If you love Milken and Boesky and inspired to be one,this book is for you. In this book God had give us the answer why you and and me cannot be billioinaires.Look at page 10."Breakfast was served at 6 A.M., a concession to popular tastes by Milken, who was at his desk each day by 4.30 A.M."



2. For those interested in the Wall Street culture of the '80s, where Michael Milken was "King of the Universe", this is a must read. It's a page turner. Superb read. It details the deals and operations of how Michael Milken became the Junk-Bond King... and so called "King of the Universe". Milken was able to raise almost unlimited amounts of capital by cleverly convincing practically everyone on Wall Street that junk bonds offered one of the best returns on Wall Street while at the same time supposedly having historicly very low default rates, which turned out to be the grand lie. He used this capital to fund the corporate take-over mania of the '80s, which dozens, maybe hundreds of S&L's participated in, and ultimately led to the bankruptcy of the S&L industry, and U.S. S&L bail-out mess.

   Other required reads: "Den of Thieves": Once upon a time in the '80s, four men nearly destroyed Wall Street. How they made billions and how they got caught. by James B. Stewart. Superb, outstanding nonfiction book by an outstanding journalist, written in storybook fashion, which makes for a can't put down, page turner about Michael Milken: head of high yield securities, Ivan F. Boesky: arbitrageur - investor, Martin Siegel, investment banker with Kidder Peabody, Dennis B. Levine, investment banker. Must read.

   Another must read: "A License to Steal: The untold story of Michael Milken and the Conspiracy to Bilk the Nation, by Benjamin J. Stein. Another outstanding book on the operations of Milken.

   I've read these three outstanding books. Any other outstanding books on Michael Milken???




3. Quite obviously Ms. Bruck did her homework on this book because there is much detail. However, her continual usage of the word "junk" to always refer to any type of high-yield security shows that she has passed sentence before the trial.
   Most of the book is a very detailed account of what happened, but clearly she does not understand the economics or the legal aspects of any of the deals therein. She portrays Michael Milken as a devious crook, yet reality characterizes him much differently. Ms. Bruck attacks the deals but has no idea what makes them good or bad, so she assumes wealth-making to be evil.

2 comments about Newhouse: All the Glitter, Power, & Glory of America's Richest Media Empire & the Secretive Man Behind It.

1. The book shows how American media are controlled by a single family company. It owns many of the famous and influential publishing companies, magazines, and newspapers. It is a very dangerous situation that American media are under control by the handful people. As a matter of fact, the author mentioned in the paperback edition that the Newhouse company banned any mention of this book in their publications. The book, which won the 1995 "best media book" prize, seems to be neglected, but this is a very important book that more people should read. A sole purpose of media isn't a simple means of entertainment for people, and isn't mere profit organizations for the owner either. Media have the responsibility to execute the social role, and its fair execution is questionable under such a monopoly situation. The author proposes not-for-profit newspapers, and I believe it is time to consider to go back to such a fundamental point. Through various incidents the Newhouse company have initiated, the book leads us to consider what media mean to us. It is a very good book to think what true journalism means to us.



2. This is a biography as much of a media empire as it is of a man. While Maier spends as much time as he can on the private side of S.I. Newhouse Jr., he in the end focus on what is most seen of this most private of media moguls-- his media properties.
   
   Maier uses the device of choosing figures and brands important to Newhouse history (Roy Cohn, Random House, Tina Brown, the New Yorker) and spending a chapter on each one, tracing their history in relation to both Newhouse and Advance Publications. While a good device for giving a thorough overview, be warned that it does make for a slightly disconnected read. I found that I had to flip back through the chapters to remember how events relating to particular chapters related to each other in time.
   
   Nonetheless, one of the more complete media biographies you are likely to encounter and a must read if interested in magazine history.

5 comments about Autobiography of Andrew Carnegie (Cosimo Classics Biography).

1. This book was pracitically written for the ambitious young man, as there are many references to this. Mr. Carnegie serves as a great role model, which I feel is quite important, especially considering the terrible events in schools lately. Carnegie emphasizes the importance of self-improvement, knowing your talents, being kind, and also the importance of public speaking. You will learn important lessons thru personal anecdotes of his life. This book should be required reading for every adolescent attending high school.



2. It has been over a year since I ground my way through this book. My lack of adaptability to the Olde Worlde English may have contributed to this. I found this to be a long book about an interesting individual whose sole purpose for writing the book, I have concluded, was to leave a lasting, self-congratulatory reminder of his own life. I must disagree with a previous review that stated it was a must for any young ambitious person. I am; it wasn't.
   For sheer inspiration from another person's life, I would recommend works on Lincoln, the Wright brothers (Kill Devil Hill), Richard Branson, Edison, Spielberg, Mme Curie, Bruce Lee, Iacocca and Einstein.



3. The vanity of today's uneducated society is breathtaking. White is black and black is white and 'a little knowledge' is indeed proving very dangerous. This book (along with the autobiography of Benjamin Franklin) should be read by every American citizen - to relearn what America once represented.

   For example, Carnegie Steel, the world's largest company in 1900, was NOT a corporation; it was a private partnership. The sale of the company to JP morgan (for half a billion dollars) was done on a handshake; a contract was a mere afterthought. Reputation and honesty and customer service were THE guiding principles of the era. 'Individual responsibility' was considered a good thing in those days.

   America now has more lawyers per capita than any other nation on Earth. Our politicians now attempt to micro-manage every detail of our lives. You break a fingernail and sue the universe. We have become terrified of freedom. Read this book if you want to understand how America rose from a third world country to a superpower between 1800 and 1900 - without government intervention or welfare or all the millions of rules and regulations we now hold so dear. We have traded away our freedom for security. The price is higher than you think.




4. I'll admit that my primary motivation for reading this book was somewhat shallow--I basically wanted to read about how one of history's most successful businessmen amassed so much wealth. To be honest, the book didn't really give as many details as I would have liked on that particular interest. But what I got along the way made the book worth it.

   First and foremost, after reading 350 pages of Carnegie writing about his life you feel like you really start to know him, to get a sense of what kind of human being he was, and even to get a sense of his somewhat remarkable confidence level that exists in conjunction with his pretty inspiring level of benevolence and compassion. But I think even more than getting a sense of Carnegie, you get a sense of the time he lived in. Some of the most engaging parts of the book for me were the first-hand accounts of Lincoln during the Civil War, or Carnegie's conversations with President Harrison about a small uprising in Chile. You also hear about how he handled the strikes of steel workers, an occurence I'd only read about in history books but never learned directly about from the perspective of the manager.

   All throughout Carnegie peppers with his nuggets of wisdom, and you get the feeling he knows people want them really badly but that he chooses to give them sparingly.

   In the end, I probably will never re-read this book, but I feel better educated about one of history's greatest industrialists, greatest benefactors, and the time he lived in after having read it. If you have a nascent interest in history, you will most likely enjoy this book; if you're looking for a "how to make your millions" from a master, I would look elsewhere.




5. Born in Scotland but an immigrant to the United States as a teenager, Andrew Carnegie has been variously characterized as a "captain of industry" or a "robber baron" by those who have chronicled his rise to wealth and fame in the latter nineteenth century. After selling his steel company to J.P. Morgan at the turn of the century, Carnegie devoted himself to philanthropic goals. He gave away more than $350 million to various causes and endowed more than 250,000 libraries. His philanthropic activities were underpinned by a fundamental belief in the virtue of hard work, perseverance, and self-improvement through education, hence his emphasis on libraries and the endowing of other educational organizations. Fundamentally, this book offers a restatement of the "Horatio Alger" myth of the "American dream" of success through personal commitment. At the same time Carnegie seeks to pass on his wisdom gained through a lifetime of effort. A significant and fascinating statement of American industrial individualism that is required reading for all who wish to understand the history of the United States in the latter nineteenth century, Carnegie's autobiography also served as a model for many others to follow. Unfortunately, few achieved the success that Carnegie enjoyed despite the diligence they may have registered.

5 comments about Legacy: A Biography of Moses and Walter Annenberg.

1. Just finished Legacy after a whirlwind of reading. Couldn't put it down. Each chapter of this brilliant biography flowed into the next. Author Ogden has done a magnificent job of weaving this father/son story together, managing to illustrate much of the American century through their compelling (and inspring) tale. Reads like a great novel. I will be recommending Legacy to everyone I know.



2. In this engaging and wonderfully written biography, Ogden describes with consummate skill the origins, careers, hardships and accomplishments of two remarkable men, Walter Annenberg and his father, Moses. Facinating insights on business dealings (sometimes hardball), White House maneuverings (not always exemplary), politics, government, social discimination and class structure in America from the end of the 19th century to the present abound. The childhoods and early family environments of both Annenbergs (quite different for each) are well described. The complexity of the father/son relationship (partly due to very different temperaments) and its continuing influence long after Moses Annenberg's death in 1942 is especially poignant. One need not have a special interest in media empires to find this book engrossing; an interest in the capacity to endure, adapt creatively, and prevail in stunning and magnanimous fashion is quite sufficient. This is a distinctly American 20th century story of the highest order.



3. After having read Legacy I had all of my beliefs about the Great Walter Annenberg confirmed. This man is truely a great and magnanimous individual. His donations are really unprecedented and you could say he has done more for education than any other American. I truely love this man. As an alum of the Peddie school I was astounded by his massive gift in 1993 and I do hope his actions will inspire other alumni to make similiar or even larger gifts.



4. Legacy does an accurate job of portraying POP the way he wanted it and believe me, he certainly controlled the content. As one who is most familiar as an insider, I can say that his goal was to build the image of greatness. Yes, Pop, you were great and no matter what the cost. In the end you won. To the family, you know how he was. Gbird if you get this, im still here, faithful as ever, yet still controlled by old walter from the grave.



5. Since James Annenberg Levee was my roommate and fraternity brother, I was curious about his famous family. The book is well researched, informative and readable. A great rags to riches saga.