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Coffin Corner Boys: One Bomber, Ten Men, and Their Harrowing Escape from Nazi-Occupied France
by Carole Engle Avriett Capt. George W. StarksA story of adventure, survival, loyalty, and brotherhood... Taking off from England on March 16, 1944, young Lt. George Starks and the nine-man crew of his Flying Fortress were assigned to the "coffin corner," the most exposed position in the bomber formation headed for Germany. They never got there. Shot down over Nazi-occupied France, the airmen bailed out one by one, scattered across the countryside. Miraculously, all ten survived, but as they discarded their parachutes in the farmland of Champagne, their wartime odyssey was only beginning. Alone, with a broken foot and a 20mm shell fragment in his thigh, twenty-year-old Starks set out on an incredible 300-mile trek to Switzerland, making his way with the help of ordinary men and women who often put themselves in great danger on his behalf. Six weeks later, on the verge of giving up, Starks found himself in the hands of a heroic member of the French Resistance—he calls him "the bravest man I've ever known"—who got him safely across the heavily guarded border. Similar ordeals awaited the other nine crewmen, who faced injury, betrayal, captivity, hunger, and depression. It was nothing short of miraculous that all ten came home at the end of the war. George Starks emerged from his ordeal with two passions—to stay in touch with his crew whatever the obstacles and to return to France to find and thank the brave souls to whom he owed his life. His enduring loyalty enabled him to do both. "The story of George Starks is one that brings to life the fighting spirit, heroism, and patriotism shown by the U.S. Army Air Corps in WWII. This book is inspirational and a must-read for anyone interested in WWII history in general and the Mighty Eighth Air Force in particular." —HENRY SKIPPER, President and CEO of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force "Rarely do we read true stories about the fearsome, persevering, enduring, unselfish love of country displayed by Dr. George Starks. He doesn't like to be called a hero, but no other word can rightly portray him better. He is my hero and after reading this book, he will be yours too." —BRENDA ELMGREN, former chief administrative of cer of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force "...readers will catch a glimpse into rst-hand accounts of what very young men did in serving our country at a time when the world was at war—and how brave people abroad responded to their mission. You will be inspired and engrossed at every turn of the page of this remarkable book." —BILL FREDERICK, former Mayor of Orlando
A Coffin for King Charles: The Trial and Execution of Charles I
by C. V. WedgwoodThe reign of Charles I, defined by religious conflict, a titanic power struggle with Parliament, and culminating in the English Civil Wars, the execution of the king, and the brief abolition of the monarchy, was one of the most turbulent in English history. <p><p>Six years after the First Civil War began, and following Charles' support for the failed Royalist uprising of the Second Civil War, an act of Parliament was passed that produced something unprecedented in the history of England: the trial of an English king on a capital charge. There followed ten extraordinary weeks that finally drew to a dark end on January 30, 1649, when Charles was beheaded in Whitehall. <p><p>In this acclaimed account, C. V. Wedgwood recreates the dramatic events of the trial and Charles's final days, to vividly bring to life the main actors in this tragic and compelling story.
Cogan's Woods: A Celebration of Hunting, Family, and Kentucky
by Rick Bass Ron EllisIn Cogan's Woods Ron Ellis fondly recalls annual August hunting trips with his father: heading towards the great forests of Kentucky in the passenger seat of the family Mercury, exploring the foggy woods and hills above the Ohio River. While they searched for game, Ellis' father imparted his wisdom to his son, passing on a legacy of appreciation for the natural world. This lyrical account of a beloved time and place celebrates a father-son relationship nurtured by a landscape that shapes the men and draws them back year after year.
Cognitive Style and Perceptual Difference in Browning’s Poetry (Studies In Major Literary Authors Ser.)
by Suzanne BaileyCurrent work on speech pragmatics and visual thinking calls for a radical reassessment of the problem of obscurity or difficulty in Robert Browning’s work. In this innovative study, Bailey reinterprets Browning's life and work in the context of contemporary theories of language and attention, drawn from the cognitive sciences. Specifically, new readings of under-examined historical sources show the extent to which Browning’s cognitive and perceptual worlds differed from the norm, aligning him with Victorians like Sir Francis Galton or fellow-artist William Wetmore Story. Exploring how perceptual biases are transformed in the language of the poems, Bailey demonstrates how the cognitive sciences can ground a new biographical practice, drawing attention to such matters as the creative process and the ethics of understanding individuals who think differently. In doing so, she re-energizes debates about this unusual Victorian poet, his later works, and the nature of literary style.
Cojear con Dios: La guía de Jacob y el Antiguo Testamento para un discipulado turbulento
by Chad BirdJacob pareciera ser cualquier cosa menos un discí pulo ejemplar. Es un hombre embustero, mentiroso, egoí sta y ambicioso que tiene hijos con cuatro mujeres y lidera una familia disfuncional plagada de envidias y traiciones. Pero Jacob es tambié n Israel, el homó nimo de la comunidad de Dios en el Antiguo Testamento, escogido y bendecido. Como tal, este santo pecador que cojea junto al Señ or, agobiado por la debilidad y asediado por los problemas, es el fiel reflejo de todos los que seguimos a Jesú s. En su vida vemos nuestras vidas, nuestras luchas, nuestros fracasos y muy especialmente al Dios que nos ama y nos escoge como suyos. Al examinar su biografí a, desde su pendencia con Esaú en el vientre hasta su muerte en la vejez en Egipto, aprenderemos má s acerca de nosotros mismos y el Dios que está con nosotros y por nosotros en Jesú s el Mesí as.
Cokie: A Life Well Lived
by Steven V. RobertsThe extraordinary life and legacy of legendary journalist Cokie Roberts—a trailblazer for women—remembered by her friends and family.Through her visibility and celebrity, Cokie Roberts was an inspiration and a role model for innumerable women and girls. A fixture on national television and radio for more than 40 years, she also wrote five bestselling books focusing on the role of women in American history. She was portrayed on Saturday Night Live, name checked on the West Wing, and featured on magazine covers. She joked with Jay Leno, balanced a pencil on her nose for David Letterman, and was the answer to numerous crossword puzzle clues. Many dogs, and at least one dairy cow, were named for her. When the legendary 1980s Spy Magazine ran a diagram documenting all her connections with the headline “Cokie Roberts – Moderately Well-Known Broadcast Journalist or Center of the Universe?” they were only half-joking.Cokie had many roles in her lifetime: Daughter. Wife. Mother. Journalist. Advocate. Historian. Reflecting on her life, those closest to her remember her impressive mind, impish wit, infectious laugh, and the tenacity that sent her career skyrocketing through glass ceilings at NPR and ABC. They marvel at how she often put others before herself and cared deeply about the world around her. When faced with daily decisions and dilemmas, many still ask themselves the question, ‘What Would Cokie Do?’In this loving tribute, Cokie’s husband of 53 years and bestselling-coauthor Steve Roberts reflects not only on her many accomplishments, but on how she lived each day with a devotion to helping others. For Steve, Cokie’s private life was as significant and inspirational as her public one. Her commitment to celebrating and supporting other women was evident in everything she did, and her generosity and passion drove her personal and professional endeavors. In Cokie, he has a simple goal: “To tell stories. Some will make you cheer or laugh or cry. And some, I hope, will inspire you to be more like Cokie, to be a good person, to lead a good life.”
The Colantonio Files
by Frederick ColantonioThe people I’ve met in my life were the impetus for writing this book. They are the good, bad and ugly people. Those I remember the most are those who were good to me and helped me along the way to become a professional broadcaster and newspaper journalist. Others were not kind and often said aloud that I would fail at achieving my goals. One relative went so far as to ask “Why can't you hold a job?" He knew nothing of how unstable the job market was at the time for the jobs I held. It did not deter me; it fueled my desire to succeed. I knew what I wanted out of life and that is what I am currently doing. Mark Twain once said "A man is a crank until his idea succeeds and then is no longer a crank." The people I have dealt with in life were neighbors, relatives and working associates. Some are critical even at the writing of this book. Some were bullies who picked on me from the time I could walk until I hit the age of 21 years old. Some have already died. It all comes out in the wash as my Irish grandfather, Harry J. Joyce used to tell me. Sadly many who were unkind to me were unwilling to help people in need. Coffins don't have pockets was a phrase my parents often used. My mother said to me that she had two words of wisdom for me. They were not ‘thank you those two words were BE NICE. It is the legacy I want to leave behind.
Colantonio To You
by Frederick A. ColantonioI have learned and worked at a total of 41 jobs. I had 12 full time jobs and 29 part-time jobs. Presently, about six companies I worked for are still in existence. All the other companies have folded, merged or been bought out. In life, it's sometimes hard putting two plus two together to discover the character of a person. I often wondered how a person got to be so negative and deceiving.
Cold: Extreme Adventures at the Lowest Temperatures on Earth
by Ranulph FiennesThere are only few human beings who can adapt, survive and thrive in the coldest regions on earth. And below a certain temperature, death is inevitable. Sir Ranulph Fiennes has spent much of his life exploring and working in conditions of extreme cold. The loss of many of his fingers to frostbite is a testament to the horrors man is exposed to at such perilous temperatures. With the many adventures he has led over the past 40 years, testing his limits of endurance to the maximum, he deservedly holds the title of 'the world's greatest explorer'. Despite our technological advances, the Arctic, the Antarctic and the highest mountains on earth, remain some of the most dangerous and unexplored areas of the world. This remarkable book reveals the chequered history of man's attempts to discover and understand these remote areas of the planet, from the early voyages of discovery of Cook, Ross, Weddell, Amundsen, Shackleton and Franklin to Sir Ranulph's own extraordinary feats; from his adventuring apprenticeship on the Greenland Ice Cap, to masterminding over the past five years the first crossing of the Antarctic during winter, where temperatures regularly plummeted to minus 92ºC. Both historically questioning and intensely personal, Cold is a celebration of a life dedicated to researching and exploring some of the most hostile and brutally cold places on earth.
Cold: Extreme Adventures at the Lowest Temperatures on Earth
by Ranulph FiennesThere are only few human beings who can adapt, survive and thrive in the coldest regions on earth. And below a certain temperature, death is inevitable. Sir Ranulph Fiennes has spent much of his life exploring and working in conditions of extreme cold. The loss of many of his fingers to frostbite is a testament to the horrors man is exposed to at such perilous temperatures. With the many adventures he has led over the past 40 years, testing his limits of endurance to the maximum, he deservedly holds the title of 'the world's greatest explorer'. Despite our technological advances, the Arctic, the Antarctic and the highest mountains on earth, remain some of the most dangerous and unexplored areas of the world. This remarkable book reveals the chequered history of man's attempts to discover and understand these remote areas of the planet, from the early voyages of discovery of Cook, Ross, Weddell, Amundsen, Shackleton and Franklin to Sir Ranulph's own extraordinary feats; from his adventuring apprenticeship on the Greenland Ice Cap, to masterminding over the past five years the first crossing of the Antarctic during winter, where temperatures regularly plummeted to minus 92ºC. Both historically questioning and intensely personal, Cold is a celebration of a life dedicated to researching and exploring some of the most hostile and brutally cold places on earth.
Cold
by Ranulph FiennesFew humans have evolved who can survive and thrive in the bitter cold. Below a certain temperature, death is inevitable. This book is about this aspect of our environment and about Sir Ranulph Fiennes' own life experiencing the extreme cold, from his adventuring apprenticeship 40 years ago on the Greenland Ice Cap to masterminding over the past 5 years the crossing of the Antarctic during winter; the 'coldest journey on Earth', where temperatures will regularly plummet to minus 92ºC. Cold has altered history on many great occasions. Hannibal crossed the high Alps under conditions of extreme cold; soldiers of the mighty armies of Hitler and Napoleon died in their thousands on the frozen Russian steppes from frostbite gangrene. In the past 150 years men and women have also seen the cold as a natural challenge as adventurers and explorers from all over the world have attempted to conquer the coldest regions of the globe. Today, parts of the world subject to extreme cold are the focus of intense geopolitical pressure, as President Putin claims Arctic coastal waters to be Russian, in readiness for the predicted melting of sea-ice, sending submarines to plant Russian flags on the seabed as a warning to would-be non-Russian mineral prospectors, and similar claims are made on the Antarctic. And yet a few degrees of climate change in Antarctica could easily trigger the detachment of huge ice sheets which would slide into the Southern Ocean. As sea levels rise some of the biggest coastal cities in the world would be submerged - a catastrophe that would render insignificant the most devastating of past tsunamis. Sir Ranulph Fiennes has spent a lifetime working in conditions of extreme cold - his frostbitten fingers are a testament to the horrors that man can experience in such temperatures, but he also knows that the life he has led owes a great deal to the cold. Both scientifically rigorous, historically questioning and intensely personal, this book is both a warning of the dangers we face with our relat
Cold: The Record of an Antarctic Sledge Journey
by Laurence McKinley Gould David Abbey PaigeCOLD: The Record of an Antarctic Sledge Journey, first published in 1931, is the account of the Byrd Antarctic Expedition by its second in command, Laurence Gould. The book documents life at the "Little America" base station and provides a lively account of the group's five-person, 1500 mile dog-sled journey across Antarctica. COLD, filled with details of cold-weather equipment and survival, cooking and food needs, the Antarctic landscape, their hardy dogs, and more, remains a classic in the field of Antarctic literature. Included are 37 pages of photographs and maps.
Cold: Three Winters at the South Pole
by Wayne L. WhiteWinter owns most of the year at the South Pole, starting in mid-February and ending in early November. Total darkness lasts for months, temperatures can drop below -100 degrees Fahrenheit, and windchill can push temperatures to -140 degrees. At those temperatures a person not protected with specialized clothing and an understanding of how to wear it would be reduced to an icicle within minutes. Few people on the planet can say they know what it feels like to walk in the unworldly, frigid winter darkness at the South Pole, but Wayne L. White can—having walked several thousand miles and never missing a day outside during his stay, regardless of the conditions. As the winter site manager of the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station in Antarctica, White was responsible for the selection, training, and health and safety of the forty-two- and forty-six-person crews. Motivated by the determination and bravery of historical pioneers such as Roald Amundsen, Robert Falcon Scott, and Ernest Shackleton, White honed his leadership skills to guide a diverse group of experienced and talented craftsmen, scientists, and artisans through three winters, the longest term of any winter manager. Despite hardships, disasters, and watching helpless as a global pandemic unfolded far beyond their horizon, his crews prevailed. In Cold White documents his time in these extreme elements and offers a unique perspective on the United States Antarctic Program at the South Pole.
Cold-Blooded: A True Story of Love, Lies, Greed, and Murder
by Carlton SmithFrom a New York Times–bestselling journalist: The story of the murder of a California attorney at the hands of the lethally cunning wife he never doubted. A wealthy and well-connected legal ace and the proud owner of a champion show horse, Larry McNabney had every reason to love his life. But when he disappeared in September 2001, his wife, Elisa, claimed he joined a cult. When Larry&’s body was found in a shallow grave three months later, Elisa was already gone. In a red convertible Jaguar, her brown hair dyed blond, Mrs. McNabney was speeding toward a new life in Florida—and a brand new identity. Who was Elisa McNabney? Beautiful, seductive, and ruthless, she had thirty-eight aliases and a rap sheet a mile long. Carlton Smith, coauthor of the true crime classic The Search for the Green River Killer, reveals one shocking surprise after another in this harrowing tale of broken vows and deadly betrayal.
Cold Climates Clips: An Alaskan Traveling Trainer's Essays, Observations, Anecdotes, and Childhood Stories
by Sharon LatteryCold Climate Clips is a book for folks who are keen on adventure; appreciate diversity, travel and enjoy humor! Readers will gain a valuable vision of Alaska's rural villages and small communities through the eyes of a person infatuated with her job and the people she worked with for more than 30 years. The stories in Cold Climate Clips take place prior to the technology we have today--before an issue could be settled with a facsimile, email or a call on a cellular phone. Enjoy the humorous and joyful adventures of the author's childhood as a precocious girl, growing up free in small, but busy Skagway. Alaska during the 40s and 50s. Cold Climate Clips is an adventure book. Be prepared for more than a chuckle! From beginning to end Cold Climate Clips speaks to the reader about a woman who worked affably and good naturedly with a blend of people and learned her best social skills growing up in small town Skagway, Alaska! It demonstrates strongly her love of Alaska and its people.
Cold Comfort
by Gil McelroyWhen his father died, award-winning poet and curator Gil McElroy was given a box of photographs that documented his father's military career. Beginning in the Second World War and continuing right through to the end of the Cold War, the senior McElroy staffed Canada's network of electronic defence, including the Distant Early Warning Line - a network of radar stations stretching along the Arctic coast from Alaska to Baffin Island. Established in the early 1950s, the DEW Line provided advance warning of an aircraft or missile attack. There, servicemen lived in isolated radar stations, watching surveillance screens for the telltale blips that threatened nuclear annihilation.McElroy reflects on the sacrifices these men made, living away from their families for great lengths of time - for the "greater good" of protecting North American airspace and Western values.At the same time, Cold Comfort follows McElroy's experience of growing up as an itinerant military brat, who moved from one posting to another, and the military family's attempts to hold together in the face of the father's absence. Cold Comfort also explores the utter enigma that was the author's father. Examining the contents of the box of photographs, image by image, McElroy attempts to come to terms with the mysterious photographer, a man better understood by his military compatriots than by his own family.Further, Cold Comfort provides the backstory to McElroy's most recent collection of poems, Ordinary Time, which offers an unsettling history of the utter failures of these remote surveillance technologies to make "our" world either better known or reliably predictable.
Cold Crematorium: Reporting from the Land of Auschwitz
by József DebreczeniOne of the New York Times Book Review's 10 Best Books of 2024A lost classic of Holocaust literature translated for the first time—from journalist, poet and survivor József Debreczeni"As immediate a confrontation of the horrors of the camps as I’ve ever encountered. It’s also a subtle if startling meditation on what it is to attempt to confront those horrors with words…Debreczeni has preserved a panoptic depiction of hell, at once personal, communal and atmospheric." —New York Times"A treasure...Debreczeni’s memoir is a crucial contribution to Holocaust literature, a book that enlarges our understanding of 'life' in Auschwitz." —Wall Street Journal"A literary diamond...A holocaust memoir worthy of Primo Levi." —The Times of LondonJózsef Debreczeni, a prolific Hungarian-language journalist and poet, arrived in Auschwitz in 1944; had he been selected to go left, his life expectancy would have been approximately forty-five minutes. One of the “lucky” ones, he was sent to the right, which led to twelve horrifying months of incarceration and slave labor in a series of camps, ending in the “Cold Crematorium”—the so-called hospital of the forced labor camp Dörnhau, where prisoners too weak to work awaited execution. But as Soviet and Allied troops closed in on the camps, local Nazi commanders—anxious about the possible consequences of outright murder—decided to leave the remaining prisoners to die in droves rather than sending them directly to the gas chambers.Debreczeni recorded his experiences in Cold Crematorium, one of the harshest, most merciless indictments of Nazism ever written. This haunting memoir, rendered in the precise and unsentimental style of an accomplished journalist, is an eyewitness account of incomparable literary quality. The subject matter is intrinsically tragic, yet the author’s evocative prose, sometimes using irony, sarcasm, and even acerbic humor, compels the reader to imagine human beings in circumstances impossible to comprehend intellectually. First published in Hungarian in 1950, it was never translated into a world language due to McCarthyism, Cold War hostilities and antisemitism. More than 70 years later, this masterpiece that was nearly lost to time will be available in 15 languages, finally taking its rightful place among the greatest works of Holocaust literature.
The Cold, Hard Truth On Men, Women, and Money: 50 Common Money Mistakes and How to Fix Them
by Kevin O'LearyFrom bestselling author and television superstar Kevin O'Leary comes a new financial guide that takes you through money mistakes at every stage of life and teaches you how to avoid them. DON'T SPEND TOO MUCH. MOSTLY SAVE. ALWAYS INVEST. This is simple advice, but it's often the simple advice that's easy to swallow and hard to follow. Kevin O'Leary understands that getting a handle on your personal finances can be challenging at any age. Whether you're a parent struggling to explain savings to your children, a student contemplating a big loan to pay for school, a newly engaged couple considering joint bank accounts, or a baby boomer entering retirement, Kevin offers solid, practical advice to help you make and keep more money. As a lead shark on ABC's "Shark Tank," Kevin's success with money management and in business is legendary. But he's made mistakes along the way, too, and he's written this book so others can benefit from his experiences and learn how to avoid debt, how to save money, and how to invest for a brighter future. Each chapter is geared to a specific age or stage in life and looks closely at your relationship with money and how simple changes in thinking and decision-making can result in more cold hard cash in your wallet or bank account. You'll find real-life examples of common money mistakes and strategies for avoiding them, "Cold Hard Truth" quizzes and charts aimed at boosting your financial wisdom, and tips and tricks for making more money and growing it faster to achieve financial freedom.
Cold Oceans
by John TurkFrom its opening passages, Jon Turk's Cold Oceans chronicles explorations in both exterior and interior landscapes. In honest, accessible prose, Turk retraces more than two decades of his varied and stirring adventures--attempting to round Cape Horn solo in a kayak, rowing the Northwest Passage, dogsledding the east coast of Baffin Island, and kayaking from Ellesmere Island to Greenland. As Turk plunges headlong through icy seas, repeated and assorted blunders, and bouts of personal lows, he transcends mere adventure storytelling to explore a changing notion of himself, deepening relationships, and the nature of failure and true success. These passages contain some of Cold Oceans's greatest riches.
Cold Sweat: My Father James Brown and Me
by Robin Fisher Yamma BrownBeing the child of a global superstar is never easy, but being the daughter of the "Hardest Working Man in Show Business"--that's a category unto itself. Like every little girl, Yamma Brown wanted her father's attention, but fame, drugs, jail, and the complicated women in James Brown's life set the stage for an uncommon childhood. She got caught in the same trap as her mother, doing things in her adult life and troubled marriage that, as a child, she'd promised herself she'd never do. The struggles she went through, both as a child and as an adult, make for a gripping read and, in the end, a profound examination of the nature of celebrity, violence, and survival. Though packed with celebrity appearances ranging from Michael Jackson to Al Sharpton, Cold Sweat ultimately focuses on an everyday issue faced by millions of women--domestic violence--and in this book Yamma faces it in an honest and powerfully moving way.
The Cold War
by Fidel CastroInterviewed by CNN for the television series "The Cold War," Cuban President Fidel Castro provided his perspective on the Cold War in a wide-ranging discussion. Castro offers a number of historical revelations in his discussion of the Cuban Revolution, relationships with the Soviet Union and the United States, the Cuban Missile Crisis, U.S.-Latin American relations as a whole, and the fall of the Soviet Union. Castro concludes that the United States won the Cold War at the expense of the Socialist Bloc and the third world, but that socialism will eventually triumph globally. Distributed by Consortium Book Distribution. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
Cold War Boys: Previously Unpublished Tales of Derring-Do from Pilots and Crew of the Lightning, Phantom, Hunter, Tornado and Other Aircrafts
by Richard PikeWhen the US president, Harry S Truman, declared the Truman Doctrine in March 1947, he could not have known that the resultant Cold War would persist for over 40 years until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991. In addition to nuclear and conventional military friction between the Eastern and Western blocs, the struggle for dominance involved a remarkable range of activities including the space race, psychological efforts, espionage, even rivalry at sporting functions and technological events. This diversity is reflected in the 20 chapters of Cold War Boys which opens with a vivid description from the author of survival procedures used by English Electric Lightning pilots in the event of nuclear war. From there on, various contributors share their original experiences on a range of fixed-wing aircraft and rotorcraft across the world including tales from RAF Germany, the Falklands and the Far East. Each story demonstrates some of the intriguing circumstances faced by aircrew and ground crew whose tenacity and professionalism had to cope with miscellaneous situations of danger, excitement, risk, pathos and humor. This book serves as a reminder of what air forces faced during the Cold War years as the ever-present threat of nuclear war persisted. A must for all aviation fans.
Cold War Command: The Dramatic Story of a Nuclear Submariner
by Dan Conley Richard WoodmanA British nuclear submariner sheds critical light on the Royal Navy&’s Cold War operations in this revealing military memoir. The role played by the Royal Navy's submarines throughout the Cold War remains largely shrouded in secrecy. In Cold War Command, Captain Dan Conley, RN (Ret.), offers an insider&’s look at commanding nuclear hunter-killer submarines. As captain of the HMS Courageous and HMS Valiant, Conley was tasked with covertly following Soviet submarines in order to destroy them should there be any outbreak of hostilities. Conley recounts his early career in diesel submarines, as well as his exceptional success against the Soviet Navy at the height of the Cold War. He was involved in the initial deployment of the Trident nuclear weapon system and divulges previously unknown facets of nuclear weapons strategy and policy during this period. He also describes the Royal Navy's shortcomings in ship and weapons procurement, assessing how these failures led to the effective bankrupting of the Defense budget as it entered the 21st century.
Cold War, Cool Medium: Television, McCarthyism, and American Culture
by Thomas DohertyConventional wisdom holds that television was a co-conspirator in the repressions of Cold War America, that it was a facilitator to the blacklist and handmaiden to McCarthyism. But Thomas Doherty argues that, through the influence of television, America actually became a more open and tolerant place. Although many books have been written about this period, Cold War, Cool Medium is the only one to examine it through the lens of television programming. To the unjaded viewership of Cold War America, the television set was not a harbinger of intellectual degradation and moral decay, but a thrilling new household appliance capable of bringing the wonders of the world directly into the home. The "cool medium" permeated the lives of every American, quickly becoming one of the most powerful cultural forces of the twentieth century. While television has frequently been blamed for spurring the rise of Senator Joseph McCarthy, it was also the national stage upon which America witnessed -- and ultimately welcomed -- his downfall. In this provocative and nuanced cultural history, Doherty chronicles some of the most fascinating and ideologically charged episodes in television history: the warm-hearted Jewish sitcom The Goldbergs; the subversive threat from I Love Lucy; the sermons of Fulton J. Sheen on Life Is Worth Living; the anticommunist series I Led 3 Lives; the legendary jousts between Edward R. Murrow and Joseph McCarthy on See It Now; and the hypnotic, 188-hour political spectacle that was the Army-McCarthy hearings. By rerunning the programs, freezing the frames, and reading between the lines, Cold War, Cool Medium paints a picture of Cold War America that belies many black-and-white clichés. Doherty not only details how the blacklist operated within the television industry but also how the shows themselves struggled to defy it, arguing that television was preprogrammed to reinforce the very freedoms that McCarthyism attempted to curtail.
Cold War Navy SEAL: My Story of Che Guevara, War in the Congo, and the Communist Threat in Africa
by James M. Hawes Mary Ann KoenigFor the first time, a Navy SEAL tells the story of the US's clandestine operations in North Vietnam and the Congo during the Cold War. Sometime in 1965, James Hawes landed in the Congo with cash stuffed in his socks, morphine in his bag, and a basic understanding of his mission: recruit a mercenary navy and suppress the Soviet- and Chinese-backed rebels engaged in guerilla movements against a pro-Western government. He knew the United States must preserve deniability, so he would be abandoned in any life-threatening situation; he did not know that Che Guevara attempting to export his revolution a few miles away. Cold War Navy SEAL gives unprecedented insight into a clandestine chapter in US history through the experiences of Hawes, a distinguished Navy frogman and later a CIA contractor. His journey began as an officer in the newly-formed SEAL Team 2, which then led him to Vietnam in 1964 to train hit-and-run boat teams who ran clandestine raids into North Vietnam. Those raids directly instigated the Gulf of Tonkin Incident. The CIA tapped Hawes to deploy to the Congo, where he would be tasked with creating and leading a paramilitary navy on Lake Tanganyika to disrupt guerilla action in the country. According to the US government, he did not, and could not, exist; he was on his own, 1400 miles from his closest allies, with only periodic letters via air-drop as communication. Hawes recalls recruiting and managing some of the most dangerous mercenaries in Africa, battling rebels with a crew of anti-Castro Cuban exiles, and learning what the rest of the intelligence world was dying to know: the location of Che Guevara. In vivid detail that rivals any action movie, Hawes describes how he and his team discovered Guevara leading the communist rebels on the other side and eventually forced him from the country, accomplishing a seemingly impossible mission. Complete with never-before-seen photographs and interviews with fellow operatives in the Congo, Cold War Navy SEAL is an unblinking look at a portion of Cold War history never before told.