In this candid and riveting memoir, for the first time ever, Nike founder and CEO Phil Knight shares the inside story of the company s early days as an intrepid start-up and its evolution into one of the world s most iconic, game-changing, and profitable brands. In 1962, fresh out of business school, Phil Knight borrowed $50 from his father and created a company with a simple mission: import high-quality, low-cost athletic shoes from Japan. Selling the shoes from the trunk of his lime green Plymouth Valiant, Knight grossed $8,000 his first year. Today, Nike s annual sales top $30 billion. In an age of startups, Nike is the ne plus ultra of all startups, and the swoosh has become a revolutionary, globe-spanning icon, one of the most ubiquitous and recognizable symbols in the world today. But Knight, the man behind the swoosh, has always remained a mystery. Now, for the first time, in a memoir that is candid, humble, gutsy, and wry, he tells his story, beginning with his crossroads moment. At 24, after bac
"Miller is an excellent historian...and a fine biographer....[His] artful arrangement of his conclusions...makes the booksomething of an intellectual thriller."-- New York Times BookReview. The most important scientist of the twentieth century and themost important artist had their periods of greatest creativityalmost simultaneously and in remarkably similar circumstances. This fascinating parallel biography of Albert Einstein andPablo Picasso as young men examines their greatestcreations--Picasso's Les Demoiselles d'Avignon and Einstein'sspecial theory of relativity. Miller shows how these breakthroughsarose not only from within their respective fields but from largercurrents in the intellectual culture of the times. Ultimately,Miller shows how Einstein and Picasso, in a deep and importantsense, were both working on the same problem.
From October to December of 1888, Paul Gauguin shared a yellowhouse in the south of France with Vincent van Gogh. They were theodd couple of the art world -- one calm, the other volatile -- andthe denouement of their living arrangement was explosive. Makinguse of new evidence and Van Goghs voluminous correspondence, MartinGayford describes not only how these two hallowed artists paintedand exchanged ideas, but also the texture of their everyday lives.Gayford also makes a persuasive analysis of Van Goghs mentalillness -- the probable bipolar affliction that led him to commitsuicide at the age of thirty-seven. The Yellow House is a singularbiographical work, as dramatic and vibrant as the work of thesebrilliant artists.
Elizabeth Taylor passed away on March 23, 2011 in Los Angelesat the age of 79. For decades, Elizabeth Taylor has been a part of our lives. Nowacclaimed biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli looks past the tabloidversion of Elizabeth's life and offers the first‐ever fullyrealized portrait of this American icon. You'll meet hercontrolling mother who plotted her daughter's success from birth,see the qualities that catapulted Elizabeth to stardom in 1940sHollywood, understand the psychological and emotional underpinningsbehind the eight marriages, and, finally, rejoice in Elizabeth'smost bravura performance of all: the new success in family,friendships, and philanthropy she achieved despite substance abuseand chronic illness. It's the story of the woman you thought youknew, and now can finally understand.
Thriller takes us back to a time in 1982 when MichaelJackson was king of the charts, breaking the color barrier on MTV,heralding the age of video, and becoming the ultimaterepresentation of the crossover dreams of Motown’s Berry Gordy, whohelped launch Jackson’s career with the Jackson 5. In this incisiveand revealing examination of the making and meaning of Thriller , Nelson George illuminates the brilliant creativeprocess (and work ethic) of Jackson and producer Quincy Jones,deftly exploring the larger context of the music, life, and seismicimpact of Michael Jackson on three generations. All this from agroundbreaking journalist and cultural critic who was there. Georgequestions whether the phenomenon Jackson became is even possibletoday. He revisits his early writings on the King of Pop andexamines not only the stunning success of Thriller but alsoJackson as an artist, public figure, and racial enigma—includingthe details surrounding his death on June 25, 2009.
Bruce Lee has been recognized primarily for his physicalskills and tactical principles in the art of unarmed combat. ButBruce Lee: Artist of Life reveals that Lee was a man who was equalparts poet, Philosophysopher, scientist, actor. producer, director,author, choreographer, Martial Artsl artist, husband, father, andfriend, dedicated to artistic expression with the goal ofself-knowledge. Bruce Lee: Artist of Life is a collection ofwritings comprising eight parts: writings on Chinese Gung Fu,Philosophysophy psychology, Jeet Kune Do, acting, andself-knowledge, as well as a section of Lee's poetry and letters,revealing a side of Bruce Lee rarely seen letters, revealing a sideof Bruce Lee rarely seen previously. As John Little writes in theIntroduction, "No matter what the topic...you get the distinctimpression from reading Lee's words that hee, indeed, was a 'realman,' a real human being, who was in fact laying bare hissoul."
This is a startling memoir of a successful journalist'sjourney from the deserted and dusty mining towns of the AmericanSouthwest, to an antique filled apartment on Park Avenue. JeanetteWalls narrates her nomadic and adventurous childhood with herdreaming, 'brilliant' but alcoholic parents. At the age ofseventeen she escapes on a Greyhound bus to New York with her oldersister; her younger siblings follow later. After pursuing theeducation and civilisation her parents sought to escape, Jeanetteeventually succeeds in her quest for the 'mundane, middle classexistence' she had always craved. In her apartment, overlooked by'a portrait of someone else's ancestor' she recounts poignantremembered images of star watching with her father, juxtaposed withrecollections of irregular meals, accidents and police-car chasesand reveals her complex feelings of shame, guilt, pity and pridetoward her parents.
This book is both a revelatory biography and an accessiblestudy of Leonardo's life and multi-faceted work as a scientist andengineer. It covers all aspects of the man's life but is also are-interpretation of the voluminous evidence to paint an originalpicture of Leonardo da Vinci not only as the archetypal polymath,but as the first true scientist. Topics include: * A detailedinvestigation of how Leonardo's manu*s and notebooks were lostto the world and kept secret during his own lifetime and how thisaltered the progress of science. * A thorough analysis of his workas a scientist and how he predated many of the great figures of the16th and 17th centuries, including Galileo, Kepler, William Harvey,Francis Bacon and Isaac Newton. * Leonardo's legacy -- what didLeonardo leave in his notebooks and how may they be viewed in thelight of modern scientific understanding? What did he achieve inscience?
"Moonwalk" is the only book about his life that Michael Jackson ever wrote. It chronicles his humble beginnings in the Midwest, his early days with the Jackson 5, and his unprecedented solo success. Giving absolutely unrivalled insight into the King of Pop's life, it details his songwriting process for hits like "Beat It, Rock With You", "Billie Jean", and "We Are the World"; and describes how he developed his signature dance style, including the "Moon Walk". It also opens the door to his very private personal relationships with his family, including sister Janet, and stars like Diana Ross, Berry Gordy, Marlon Brando, Quincy Jones, Paul McCartney, and Brooke Shields. At the time of its original publication in 1988, "Moonwalk" broke the fiercely guarded barrier of silence that surrounded Michael Jackson. Candidly and courageously, Jackson talks openly about his wholly exceptional career and the crushing isolation of his fame, as well as the unfair rumors that have surrounded it. "Moonwalk" is illustrated with
Born into a theatrical family, Chaplin's father died of drinkwhile his mother, unable to bear the poverty, suffered from boutsof insanity, Chaplin embarked on a film-making career which won himimmeasurable success, as well as intense controversy. Hisextraordinary autobiography was first published in 1964 and waswritten almost entirely without reference to documentation - simplyas an astonishing feat of memory by a 75 year old man. It is anincomparably vivid reconstruction of a poor London childhood, themusic hall and then his prodigious life in the movies.
