Marsgal Royal was a core member of the Count Basei Orchestra for twenty years during its resurgence in the 1950s and 1960s. Before that, he was a pioneer of jazz on the West Coast, playing with many bands in and around Los Angeles. A child prodigy of both the violin and saxophone, Royal was literally born on the road as his musician parents made their way West. Royal shares his experiences with Les Hite's band at Sebastian's New Cotton Club, where 's Orchestra after a wartime career in U.S. Navy bands. After leaving Hampton, Royal made countless recordings as a freelancer before joining Basie, where he was responsible for rehearsing the Orchestra. Later, he became internationally known as a soloist while continuing his prolific recording career. His brother, Ernie, who was a star trumpeter in the bands of Woody Herman and Stan Kenton, is also profiled. Claire P. Gordon is the editor of Rex Stewart's memoir, Boy Meets Horn, and of Stewart's other collections of writings. She lives on the West Coast and has a long-term interest in the oral history of jazz.
From the creators of the official WWE Encyclopedia, WWE 50 gives you the behind-the-scenes knowledge to become the ultimate WWE fan! Learn the Real Story Behind Key Events in WWE History: The split from the National Wrestling Alliance. Controversial figures and events from all eras. National expansion and the perilous risk involved. The legal and financial strife that nearly devastated WWE. Triumph in the Monday Night Wars. Innovations of WrestleMania, Raw, SmackDown, Survivor Series, and more! With Stunning Visuals and Insider Commentary.
In this riveting and extensively researched account, Peter Conradi - the celebrated author of The King's Speech - offers an uncompromising portrayal of Europe's royals and reveals the scandals, excesses, conflicts and interests hidden behind the pomp of ceremonial garb and the grandeur of official functions. At a time when Western society appears to be demanding more equality and democracy, people's fascination with monarchies shows no signs of waning.Taking the reader on a journey between past and present, into a world populated by great celebrities such as Wallis Simpson, Grace Kelly and Princess Diana, as well as lesser-known and slightly murkier aristocratic figures, The Great Survivors analyses the reasons behind this apparent paradox by looking at the history of the main European dynasties - including the Windsors and their predecessors - and providing a glimpse into their world, their lives and their secrets.
This ebook edition does not include illustrations. An awe-inspiring journey through the eons and across the globe, in search of visible traces of evolution in the living creatures which have survived from earlier times and whose stories speak to us of seminal events in the history of life.
In 1917, Bolshevik revolutionaries stormed the Russian palace of the Romanovs and killed the entire familyor maybe. There is much conjecture over the remains of the spirited youngest daughter, Anastasia. Many believe she survived and lived a full life in secret. Could it be true? Could the little girl have survived the massacre? Challenging Destiny is a fictional account of lone royal survivor, Anastasia. The story spans three continents and a century of death, destruction, and despairbut also reveals the strength it takes to overcome obstacles in life. Anastasia finds love and romance, even as she seeks to escape the memory of her familys horrific assassination and humankinds yearning for power. The far-reaching influence of Queen Victoria comes into question as part of the Anastasia mystery. Across the world, no one is what he or she seems. The story of the Romanov grand duchess is filled with intrigue and danger, yet love and the human spirit can be victorious over the most horrendous memories.
The data for this book was mainly gathered in the 1977 to 1982 and I would like to thank my then wife Wendy for her patience during that time. When I started to compile this book I joined four libraries, all in Gauteng, South Africa, they were the municipal libraries of: Kempton Park; Benoni and Boksburg, the fourth was the company library of the Atlas Aircraft Corporation, for whom I worked. The company library was able to find books for me from all over Southern Africa through the inter-library service. The company library was also able to locate books, which could not be loaned out, so I travelled to Johannesburg library on a few occasions to gather information, which I had deemed necessary. It did not end there; every time I was introduced to an elderly person I made it a point to request an audience with them for some time in the near future, the information locked up in people’s heads is unbelievable and would have died with them, had I not requested their help in answering my many questions. The data then lay dormant until 2009 when something prompted me to complete the book. The collating of the data collected in the 1977 to 1982 into the chapters now found in this book, and finding the missing data (that not found in the 1977 to 1982) was very time consuming therefore I would like to thank my current wife Palesa for her patience, as I spent many hours on the internet between 2009 and 2010 when the text of the book was completed All the sketches in the book were hand drawn by Martyn John West unless otherwise stated, getting them onto my computer gave me problems I had not anticipated, 90+% of the drawings, were drawn between 1977 and 1982, the white paper was no longer white. To scan them onto the computer and lose the cream background meant sacrificing the quality of the lines on the drawings. With the low quality drawings on the computer I set about going over the lines of each drawing using my mouse, to get around my now old shaky hand, I zoomed to 5 times the size on the computer screen, doing this part time took three more years, the completed book being finally finished in January 2014. To all the elderly people I interviewed between 1977 to 1982 and to the various friends and colleges have encouraged the completion of this book I thank you, they are not acknowledge individually as there are literally hundreds of them never-the-less, thank you. This book is intended to be a survivor’s reference book, but could also be used by someone with a particular hobby or interest.
Despite its failure to unseat King James II, the Monmouth Rebellion had a profound influence upon English politics. In particular, it reignited the debate about whether the country should rely on a professional army under direct royal control or local country militias made up of part-time soldiers. King James favoured the former, and used criticism of the militia’s performance during the rebellion to support his argument. Contemporary commentators and historians alike all certainly seemed to agree that the king’s victory was won in spite of - not because of - the militia. But is this a fair judgement? Drawing upon a wealth of information gathered from personal accounts, private papers, letters, financial records, diaries and memoirs, this book revisits the events of 1685 to assess the militia’s performance in helping to defeat the so-called ’pitchfork rebellion’. Through an extensive investigation into the militia itself, its social composition, role, training, armament and leadership the study sets a benchmark for what could have been realistically expected of these part-time soldiers, and then sets this against the actual tasks that were asked of it in 1685. The results that emerge from this exercise paint a very different picture of the militia’s role in the rebellion than has hitherto been accepted by historians. Judged by these criteria, a convincing case is made that the militia was in fact an efficient military organisation according to contemporary expectations and demands made of it. Criticisms of it, it is argued, stem more from political expediency than impartial judgment. As well as being of interest to military and social historians, this book demonstrates the dangers to all historians of taking at face value contemporary comments. It shows how subtle and interlocking forces, that may at first glance appear unrelated, can work together to colour opinions of events and organisations.
Traces the stories of five pivotal figures in the rebuilding of London in the years after the English Civil War, the 1665 plague, and the Great Fire of 1666, in an account that offers insight into the contributions of philosopher John Locke, chronicler John Evelyn, architect Robert Hooke, developer Nicholas Barbon, and architect Christopher Wren. 30,000 first printing.
This sweeping narrative takes the reader from palaces and battlefields through exile, bitterness, triumph and deceit. Charles is revealed as a fascinating, brave and dangerous man - a gambler, a fixer, a survivor. The twists and turns of Restoration life are linked to major events of the day.
