The true—and often shocking—stories behind some of the biggest names in business.We live our lives immersed in name brand products. What most of us don't know is that the origins of many of the most well-known and beloved brands in the world are shrouded in controversy, drug use, and sometimes even blatant racism.A Secret History of Brands cuts through the rumors and urban legends and paints a picture of the true dark history of famous brands, like...

Thirteen sensational tales of sex, lies, violence, and murder from the early decades of Hollywood.The dawning of the nineteenth century brought with it a new era for entertainment. Vaudeville was the preferred form of entertainment, until the popularization of the silent film. This new medium proved to be a draw for many of the stars of the Vaudevillian stage and soon they migrated to the exciting possibilities that the movies had to offer. Audiences were instantly ...

The film Ghostbusters was released in June 1984 and became a cultural phenomenon and an instant classic, reaching No. twenty-eight in the American Film Institute’s top 100 comedies of all time and voted funniest film of the past twenty-five years by Entertainment Weekly in 2008. The release of the film marked the beginning of a franchise that would include a sequel (with a third film being released in 2016, more than thirty years later), comics, television series and action figures. In thi...

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles has been a powerhouse franchise ever since the debut of the indie comic book back in 1984. The TMNT have captivated kids and those young at heart for over thirty years now with several movies, multiple cartoon series, ongoing comics and one of the most extensive and playable toylines in history. The golden era of TMNT for many fans was from 1988 to 1995 and it’s that vintage era that this book aims to focus on. When you’re dealing with such an expansive fra...

We live our lives immersed in name brand products. It's hard to drive down the street without seeing a plethora of chain restaurants, car dealerships, branded clothing they're all around us. What most of us don't know is that the origins of many of the most well-known and beloved brands in the world are shrouded in controversy, drug use and sometimes even addled with blatant racism.A Secret History of Brands cuts through the rumors and urban legends and paints a picture of...

Disney/Pixar's Toy Story has been a magical part of our lives for over twenty years now. The film put Disney back on track and ushered in a new era in animation. John Lasseter's brainchild about Andy's toys that come to life when he's not around has given us beloved characters like Woody, Buzz Lightyear, Bullseye, and Jessie. The trilogy about toys naturally spawned immense amounts of collectible toys for fans to collect and enjoy. Toy Story Collectibles features highlights from the past t...

Find out where great ideas come from.A father cleans up after his toddler and imagines a cup that won't spill. An engineer watches people using walkie-talkies and has an idea. A doctor figures out how to deliver patients to the operating room before they die.By studying inventions like these — the sippy cup, the cell phone, and an ingenious hospital bed — we can learn how people imagine their way around "impossible" problems to discover groundbreaking answe...

From 1934 until 1944 Mussolini met Hitler numerous times, and the two developed a relationship that deeply affected both countries. While Germany is generally regarded as the senior power, Christian Goeschel demonstrates just how much history has underrepresented Mussolini's influence on his German ally.Goeschel, a scholar of twentieth-century Germany and Italy, revisits all of Mussolini and Hitler's key meetings and asks how these meetings constructed a powerful image of a strong ...

Pulitzer Prize-winning historian James MacGregor Burns devoted his legendary career to the study of leadership in all its aspects—from politics to business. Leadership, Burns's pioneering study, introduces the highly influential theory of "transformational leadership," stating that the best leaders are those who inspire others to come together toward the achievement of higher aims. Featuring fascinating case studies drawn from history, Leadership is the classic text for a...

A scholarly, absorbing narrative of Stalin’s last days and the turbulent wake of his dictatorship.Joshua Rubenstein’s riveting account takes us back to the second half of 1952, when no one could foresee an end to Joseph Stalin’s murderous regime. He was poised to challenge the newly elected US president Dwight Eisenhower with armed force and was also broadening a vicious campaign against Soviet Jews. Stalin’s sudden collapse and death in March 1953 was as dramatic and mysterious as...

In The Fall of the Ottomans, award-winning historian Eugene Rogan brings the First World War and its immediate aftermath in the Middle East to vivid life, uncovering the often ignored story of the region's crucial role in the conflict. Bolstered by German money, arms, and military advisors, the Ottomans took on the Russian, British, and French forces and tried to provoke jihad against the Allies in their Muslim colonies. Unlike the static killing fields of the Western Front, the w...

Here are overlooked or forgotten tales from the world's greatest conflict. These are stories of courage, daring, and stupidity, some of which would challenge the imaginations of Hollywood scriptwriters.Some of the many true tales that author Donald Aines recounts include:● He would never be cast as a dashing war hero, but a cast member of The Addams Family television show volunteered for one of the most dangerous jobs the Army Air Force had to offe...