"Prepare to be enthralled by 'Optimism,' the remarkable memoir that unfolds the extraordinary life of Batt Johnson, a true pioneer in American broadcasting history. His journey, punctuated by groundbreaking achievements and daring exploits, serves as a testament to the power of resilience, determination, and the unwavering pursuit of one's dreams. At the heart of Batt Johnson's narrative lies a performance that etched his name into the annals of television history—a portrayal as the husban...

Rich and Famous in Thirty Seconds is written by a veteran of more than thirty years in show business and is filled with inside secrets and helpful tips, many not taught in university programs. It has in-depth interviews with successful actors, teachers, agents, and casting directors. Special chapters on marketing, getting jobs, and actors tax deductions provide stimulating insight. Additional chapters are dedicated to broadcasters, models, and children who want to succeed in the f...

There is no better authority on jazz than the creators, educators, and writers who have made this enigmatic musical style a major force internationally as well as in American history. The answer to the question what is jazz? is as complex and diverse as those involved in it. This book takes the question to noted musicians, scholars, and composers, creating a documentary style of oral history that makes you feel as if you are actually in the room as they put the sounds they know as music in...

Powerful Principles for Presenters is the textbook used at New York University and Cornell University in Batt Johnson's public speaking class. It features proven communication techniques from commercials, television, and film professionals and explains their effective use for anyone. This helps you lose any self-consciousness, gain confidence, and deliver your message with as much power as politicians, actors, broadcasters, high profile business executives, and other public speakers seen i...

A New York Times bestseller, Music Is History combines multi-Grammy Award winner Questlove’s deep musical expertise with his curiosity about history, examining America over the past fifty years.Focusing on the years 1971 to the present, Questlove finds the hidden connections in the American tapestry, whether investigating how the blaxploitation era reshaped Black identity or considering the way disco took an assembly line approach...

"You have to bear in mind that [Questlove] is one of the smartest motherf*****s on the planet. His musical knowledge, for all practical purposes, is limitless." --Robert ChristgauA punch-drunk memoir in which Everyone's Favorite Questlove tells his own story while tackling some of the lates, the greats, the fakes, the philosophers, the heavyweights, and the true originals of the music world. He digs deep into the album cuts of his life and unearths some pivotal moments in black art...

**In this New York Times bestseller, Rolling Stone founder, co-editor, and publisher Jann Wenner offers an expansive memoir from the beating heart of classic rock and roll.“Touchingly honest” and “wonderfully deep.” —Bruce Springsteen**Jann Wenner has been called by his peers “the greatest editor of his generation.”His deeply personal memoir vividly describes and brings you inside the music, the politics, and the lifestyle of a generation, an epoch...

Take a seat and settle in—it's a gigantic treasury of trivia and humor for our twenty-fifth (is that porcelain?) anniversary!IBPA Benjamin Franklin Award Gold Winner in HumorForeWord Reviews Book of the Year Awards, Honorable Mention in Humor"Fully Loaded" is putting it mildly. This behemoth of a book is overflowing with incredible stories, surprising facts, weird news, little-known origins, forgotten history, fun wordplay, and ever...

Can't Stop Won't Stop is a powerful cultural and social history of the end of the American century, and a provocative look into the new world that the hip-hop generation created.Forged in the fires of the Bronx and Kingston, Jamaica, hip-hop became the Esperanto of youth rebellion and a generation-defining movement. In a post-civil rights era defined by deindustrialization and globalization, hip-hop crystallized a multiracial, polycultural generation's wor...

In the wake of his deeply powerful viral videos ("Before You Call the Cops" and "Walking While Black"), Tyler Merritt shares his experiences as a black man in America with truth, humor, and poignancy.Tyler Merritt's video "Before You Call the Cops" has been viewed millions of times. He's appeared on Jimmy Kimmel and Sports Illustrated and has been profiled in the New York Times. The viral video's main point—the more you know someone, the ...

The popular bathroom reader series is back with this collection that's flush with laughs.It's new, it's improved, it's the funniest ever! Back by popular demand, this newly revised edition includes plenty of all-time favorites, along with more than twenty-five pages of new content. That's page after page after page of laugh-out-loud dumb jokes, dumb jocks, toasts, pranks, kings, kittens, caboodles, and, of course, poorly translated kung fu movie subtitles such as "...

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • An inspiring and entertaining collection of unforgettable true stories about finding unexpected beauty in life’s transitions—from Lin-Manuel Miranda, Elizabeth Gilbert, Quiara Alegría Hudes, and many more.“The Moth taught me how to be vulnerable, how to take my time, and how to listen to someone else’s story and share in their moments of triumph, laughter, or, yes, sometimes embarrassment with an open heart.”—Mike Birbig...