Showing results by narrator "Scott Clem" in All Categories

The ‘60s closely reflected the glossy, idealistic portrayal of John F. Kennedy. But the idealism and optimism of the decade was quickly shattered, starting with Kennedy’s assassination in 1963. By the time Bobby Kennedy was killed, references to the infamous “Kennedy Curse” became more common. But if such a curse did truly exist, it originated with the oldest brother and the one originally expected to achieve a preeminent place in politics, Joseph Kennedy, Jr.

The British East India Company served as one of the key players in the formation of the British Empire. From its origins as a trading company struggling to keep up with its superior Dutch, Portuguese, and Spanish competitors to its tenure as the ruling authority of the Indian subcontinent to its eventual hubristic downfall, the East India Company serves as a lens through which to explore the much larger economic and social forces that shaped the formation of a global British Empire.

Dozens of books are published each year trying to instruct parents on how to raise good, responsible children, but things still go wrong from time to time. Of course, it’s rare that children turn out like Lyle and Erik Menendez did. For weeks in 1993, Americans were glued to their television, watching as the lurid testimony was given and refuted on Court TV. The Menendez Brothers: The History of the Family Murders that Shocked America looks at one of the most famous true crime cases of the 20th century.

In the last year, Egypt has undergone a revolution that expelled its authoritarian leader of nearly 30 years, and implemented elections that have pitted the Egyptian military in a power struggle with the Muslim Brotherhood, the long-time Islamic opposition group with ties to Hamas and elements of al-Qaeda. Making everything that much more surreal, the events have played out before well placed television cameras with continuous "real time" coverage of the revolution, and ongoing turmoil, and foreign nations around the world eagerly await or dread the end result.

In the summer of 1992, federal agents surrounded a few acres of land isolated in Ruby Ridge, Idaho, where Randy Weaver, his wife Vicki, his 14-year-old son Samuel, and his three young daughters were staying. Weaver was a former Green Beret who had come to the attention of the ATF and other federal agencies for a number of reasons, including associations with white supremacist groups and the possession of illegal shotguns.

Nearly 2,000 years before Homer wrote his epic poems, the Minoan civilization was centered on the island of Crete, a location that required the Minoans to be a regional sea power. And indeed they were, stretching across the Aegean Sea from about 2700-1500 BCE, with trade routes extending all the way to Egypt.

People love mysteries, which is a good thing since history is so replete with them. This is especially true among seafaring people, and of all the mysteries of the deep, few rise to the level of the Mary Celeste. In many ways, it is a story more suited for an episode of The X-Files than it is for any history book. There is the unlucky ship that began her sailing career under a cloud of bad fortune and accident.

NFL star O.J. Simpson has probably been more famous for his antics off the field than on the field. He was acquitted of the murder of his wife, Nicole Brown, and her friend, Ron Goldman. But the football star was sentenced to 33 years imprisonment for a number of felonies, including kidnapping and armed robbery in 2008. Currently, he is serving his 33-year sentence, which allows him to be paroled only after nine years, in Lovelock Correctional Center in Nevada. But what happened? What made him kill his wife? If he really did kill her, how come he was acquitted?

Buzz Aldrin: The Life and Legacy of the Second Astronaut to Walk on the Moon profiles his life and chronicles the most memorable space mission in history. You will learn about Buzz Aldrin like never before.

It is rare in the world of music for a general consensus to form over who was the best at anything. Many would call The Beatles the greatest rock band, but it's easy to find strongly opinionated dissenters. However, when it came to playing a guitar and laying the soundtrack for the psychedelic era, just about everyone agrees there was Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970) and then there was everyone else. Anyone arguing otherwise either never heard his music or saw him perform.

The name Allan Pinkerton was for decades synonymous with private detective; indeed, the work “Pinkerton” was generally used for any private detective whether or not they were associated with the Pinkerton National Detective Agency. The all-seeing eye that served as the symbol of his company and the slogan - “We Never Sleep” - projected an image of a detective working tirelessly to pursue a desperate criminal and bring them to justice.

Attempting to cover all the forms the "Goddess of Love" encapsulates is no small affair. The roles she played in romance, marriage, procreation, and all of the other desires of humanity were myriad, but the aim of this book is to paint a slightly different, perhaps more esoteric version of Aphrodite from the usual image of her in mythology books.

Before its destruction in the attacks on September 11, 2001, the World Trade Center in New York consisted of two of the world's most recognizable buildings, representing the strength and wealth of New York City in particular and the United States in general. That was the goal all along for philanthropist David Rockefeller, who had largely self-financed the development of One Chase Manhattan Plaza in the late 1950s in the hopes that the 70 story skyscraper would help spur further development nearby.

To get a sense of the kind of prestige that Claude Monet enjoys within the art world, one need only learn that his Le Bassin Aux Nympheás (1919) - from his series of paintings featuring water lilies - sold for the equivalent of more than $70 million. This is a staggering price, especially considering that early in his life, Monet had been so poor and debt-ridden that some of his paintings were taken from him by creditors.

Meyer Lansky: The Infamous Life and Legacy of the Mob’s Accountant profiles the controversial life of one of organized crime’s most notorious figures. You will learn about Meyer Lansky like never before.

Most people’s busy lives, combined with the absence of information on the subject of PCOS, has led many women to an unexplainable, uphill battle against acne, depression, irregular menstrual cycles, and weight gain. Even worse, infertility can be a very possible, albeit reversible, symptom of PCOS. In this book, you will find everything you need to know about reversing PCOS.

A pack of men in sharp, tailored suits and dark sunglasses strut down the street. Their eyes are shielded, but the icy scowl on their faces is a clear sign to stay out of their paths. A few of their collars hang open, showing off a glimpse of the vibrant and intricate ink work on their chests, and presumably, their entire bodies. Tattoos are the norm these days, but then, one suddenly spots a man with a peculiarly pint-sized pinkie.

The leading men of the 1940s and ‘50s ably represented the visual and cultural expectations of those decades in their iconic films. Some were handsome and glib with quasi-classical dialogue, some could sing, and a few could dance, while others brought an imposing athletic presence to thrillers, westerns, and urban crime dramas.

Gunsmiths in early 19th-century America were helped along by noted artisans from Germany, Switzerland, and other European powers, but despite advances made in the European and American musket, the requirement of an exterior spark and percussion to ignite powder for a single-shot discharge remained the paradigm. Similarly, the era was unable to move past the cumbersome weapon that required at least half a minute to reload. The military compensation for such an ungainly and vulnerable process was the alternation of troop lines, in which one fired while the other reloaded from behind.

Lying in the middle of a plain in modern-day Iran is a forgotten ancient city, Persepolis. Built two and a half thousand years ago, it was known in its day as the richest city under the sun. Persepolis was the capital of Persia, the largest empire the world had ever seen, but after its destruction, it was largely forgotten for nearly 2,000 years, and the lives and achievements of those who built it were almost entirely erased from history.