Известные люди

Book DescriptionRay Charles (1930-2004) led one of the most extraordinary lives of any popular musician. In Brother Ray, he reveals his story unsparingly, from the chronicle of his musical development to his heroin addiction to his tangled romantic life. Overcoming poverty, blindness, the loss of his parents, and the pervasive racism of the era, Ray Charles was acclaimed worldwide as a genius by the age of thirty-two. By combining the influences of gospel, jazz, blues, and country music, he invented, almost single-handedly, what became known as "soul." And throughout a career spanning more than a half century, Ray Charles remained in complete control of his life and his music, allowing nobody to tell him what he could or couldn?t do.

Trashy celebrity bios are usually diminished by the fact that we've already heard the stories about Lonnie and Burt, or Madonna and Sean, or whoever the current target is. Author Stephen Fried manages to get all the sleaze value plus a lot of surprises by choosing supermodel Gia Carangi as his topic. Although her face is widely recognized, Gia finished her modeling career in a blaze of heroin and disease just before the time when models became celebrities with name recognition. Her life is the perfect fodder for the exploitation market, but Fried goes beyond that with fluid prose and a reporter's nose for tracking down sources. His stories about her teenage years, with their mix of late nights in Philadelphia's gay clubs, manic worship, and glam-style imitation of David Bowie, as well as tales of Gia's ability to seduce her friends, male and female, are the product of a lot of work and make for very interesting reading. Gia's unabashed homosexuality and early death from AIDS make her.

Academy Award-winning actress, former fashion model and Hollywood party girl, and current Goodwill Ambassador for the UN Refugee Agency, Angelina Jolie is constantly in the media spotlight. Unlike many Hollywood stars who do their best to avoid the press, her openness about her complicated and often outlandish life has endeared her to fans worldwide. Her most famous screen roles are covered in this biography, from Gia to Lara Croft, which established her as one of the highest paid actresses in Hollywood. Also explored is her reputation for living on the edge, and Angelina's refreshing honesty around tempestuous romantic relationships, bisexuality, wild partying, and breakdowns and thoughts of suicide. Finally, her recent roles as philanthropist, mother, and half of a Hollywood golden couple with Brad Pitt, are also discussed in this inspiring must-read book for fans of this continually fascinating global superstar.

Book Description From the way we build to the way we live, Frank Lloyd Wright?s influence on American architecture is visible all around us. Now, Ada Louise Huxtable, the Pulitzer Prize- winning architecture writer for The Wall Street Journal ?and chief architecture critic for The New York Times for nearly twenty years?offers an outstanding look at the architect and the man. She explores the sources of his tumultuous and troubled life and his long career as master builder as well as his search for lasting, true love. Along the way, Huxtable introduces readers to Wright?s masterpieces: Taliesin, rebuilt after tragedy and murder; the Imperial Hotel, one of the few structures left standing after Japan?s catastrophic 1923 earthquake; and tranquil Fallingwater, to which millions have traveled to experience its quiet grace. Through the journey, Huxtable takes us not only into the mind of the man who drew the blueprints, but also into...

Michael Jackson first entered a recording studio in November 1967, just three months after his ninth birthday. Two years later he and his older brothers scored their first hit, 'I Want You Back' - and, despite set-backs that would have ended the career of a lesser man, Michael's legion of fans remain as loyal today as they have ever been. This is the story of the man and his music...

With over ten million albums sold and multiple Grammy nominations, the hard rock band Godsmack has become one of the most successful groups of the last decade. The band's driving beats and searing lyrics have garnered widespread acclaim, while their well-known work ethic has earned the industry's respect. Fans who attend Godsmack concerts are sure to be rewarded with a fiercely energetic show. The force behind the band comes largely from founder and front man Sully Erna. Onstage, growling into the microphone with characteristic intensity, he appears perfectly at home, and it's no wonder. Erna has been immersed in the world of rock ever since he got his first drum set at the age of five. Given his achievements, that early start might suggest that his career was a straight shot to the top. The truth is, Erna took so many detours during the years between his first drums and Godsmack's first contract that, more than once, he nearly forgot his destination. In The Paths We Choose, he...

Book Description Telling much more than the story of a single man's life and work, this autobiography is an amazing look at the entire 20th century from the eyes of one of the greatest voices in science fiction. This story of a man plagued with a perpetual sense of wonder at the world around him begins with Williamson's youth and his family's struggle to survive on farms in the arid southwestern United States. Early attempts at education, the publication of his first story, his service in the Pacificduring World War II, and his eventual success in the genre of science fiction are all detailed to tell the life of this Hugo Award–winning author.

Reprint edition

Book DescriptionThomas Kinkade is America's most collected living artist. His mass appeal surely stems from his unique ability to emphasize simple pleasures and convey inspirational messages through his paintings. The Thomas Kinkade Story celebrates the twentieth anniversary of Kinkade's first published work and includes an intimate look at the artist's life and paintings through the eyes of Rick Barnett. The book examines each period in Kinkade's career, beginning in his early days as he meets the mentors who will influence him, moving on to his life in the eighties as he becomes a recognized painter and a husband, and continuing through the nineties as he paints groundbreaking scenes of national parks and San Francisco, and progresses from his English Cottage period to his use of soft light and broken color. The book also showcases never-before-seen private photographs and paintings, including new works that embody Kinkade's 21st century style.

An introduction to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. A short essay provides an overview of his professional life and selected blogs provide commentary on his performance.

German Panzer ace Michael Wittmann was by far the most famous tank commander on any side in World War II, destroying 138 enemy tanks and 132 anti-tank guns with his Tiger. This classic of armored warfare is both combat biography and unit history, as Patrick Agte focuses on the life and career of Wittmann but also includes his fellow Tiger commanders in the 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler. Volume Two follows Michael Wittmann and his unit into Normandy to defend against the Allied invasion. A week after D-Day, Wittmann achieved his greatest success. On June 13, 1944, near Villers Bocage, the panzer ace and his crew attacked a British armored unit, single-handedly destroying more than a dozen tanks and preventing an enemy breakthrough. The exploit made Wittmann a national hero in Germany and a legend in the annals of war. He was killed two months later while attempting to repulse an Allied assault, but the book continues beyond his death until the Leibstandarte’s...