West Point’s Class of 1915 is the academy’s most important in history.
The cadets of the United States Military Academy, West Point, are intimately twined with the country’s history. The graduating class of 1915, the class the stars fell on, was particularly noteworthy. Of the 164 graduates that year, 59 (36%) attained the rank of general, the most of any class in. Although Dwight Eisenhower and Omar Bradley, both five-star generals, are the most recognizable, other class members contributed significantly to the Allied victory in World War I, World War II and played key roles either in the post-war U.S. military establishment or in business and industry after World War II, especially in the Korean War and the formation of NATO. For more than half a century, these men exerted tremendous influence on the shaping of modern America, which remains substantial to this day. Individually, the stories of these military and political leaders are noteworthy. Collectively, they are astonishing. West Point, 1915 explores the achievements of this remarkable group.
The book is an adventure story filled with action, romance, humor, comradeship, tragedy, and triumph, that chronicles the early life of my father, his days as a juvenile delinquent, his military service as a decorated fighter pilot in World War I, (in the famous Lafayette Flying Corps), and his trials and tribulations in the Hollywood jungles on the way to directing “WINGS”, the first film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture, and the “Star Wars” of its generation. The book boasts 66 photographs — many never before seen– and Wellman’s heart-wrenching, history-packed letters he wrote from France during World War I.
Wellman went on to direct the films “Public Enemy”, “Call of the Wild”, “Beau Geste”, “Nothing Sacred”, and the original “A Star Is Born”, “The Ox-Bow Incident”, “Battleground”, and “The High and the Mighty”, among many others.
The foreword for the book was contributed by Robert Redford, who writes, “Maverick is a worn term that has been batted around and has described many people over time. For me, William Welllman most authentically fits this description. Feisty, independent, self-taught, and self-made, he earned his stripes as a seeker and adventurer, sure of his passions and his own mind, and not to be trifled with by the authorities who were inherited or never saw the realities of hand-to-hand conflict or earned their way through the experience of real living.”
They say nobody walks in LA, but with LA Scavenger in hand you’ll ditch the car and discover Los Angeles’s hidden treasures that you’d otherwise zip past. This fun and interactive scavenger hunt will help you see the city in a completely new way as you walk or roll to locate under-the-radar and iconic landmarks. Set off on an exciting journey to uncover over 300 locations in neighborhoods all over LA and neighboring cities. You’ll use photos and rhyming clues to find eclectic public art, unique architecture, iconic restaurants, and other often-overlooked sights. Explore secret gardens, hidden staircases, and historic cemeteries where LA’s famous and forgotten names are buried. Find a charming shop that’s been making mochi for over 100 years and a Jewish deli full of rock history and pastrami. You’ll also visit a storied hotel that hosted the first Academy Awards ceremony, a Victorian mansion that became a clubhouse for magicians, and an Art Deco sculpture that guards a lake. Even if you’re familiar with some of the locations, the poetic clues will reveal fascinating trivia and give you a fresh perspective on the neighborhood. Food and travel writer Danny Jensen brings his love for Los Angeles and enthusiasm for exploring hidden histories and secret places to this unique guidebook. With this one-of-a-kind scavenger hunt, you can team up with your family, challenge your friends, or solve the clues on your own to test your knowledge of the city. Perfect for both visitors and longtime Angelenos, LA Scavenger will help you explore new neighborhoods, look at familiar locations in new ways, and train your eye to find the tiny details that tell a larger story. Enjoy the adventure!
Stock-car racing star, country singer, and sports broadcaster Kyle Petty shares his familial legacy, intertwined with NASCAR’s founding and history, in Swerve or Die―written with Pulitzer Prize-winner Ellis Henican, the New York Times bestselling coauthor of In the Blink of an Eye.
“Born into racing royalty. The only son of NASCAR’s winningest driver ever. The grandson of one of the sport’s true pioneers. The nephew of our very first Hall of Fame engine builder. It’s quite a family to represent, and through it all, I’ve somehow managed to keep being Kyle.”
Kyle Petty won his very first stock-car race, the Daytona ARCA 200, in 1979 when he was eighteen. Hailed as a third-generation professional NASCAR racer, he became an instant celebrity in circles he had been around all his young life. Despite being the grandson and son of racing champions Lee Petty and Richard Petty, Kyle didn’t inherit innate talent. Working in his family’s North Carolina race shop from an early age, he learned all about car mechanics and maintenance long before he got behind the wheel. And although Kyle continued the family business, driving “Petty blue” colored cars emblazoned with his grandfather’s #42―a number once used by Marty Robbins―his career took a different route than his forebears’.
In Swerve or Die: Life at My Speed in the First Family of NASCAR Racing, Kyle chronicles his life on and off the racetrack, presenting his insider’s perspective of growing up throughout the sport’s popular rise in American culture. In between driving and running Petty Enterprises for thirty years, Kyle took some detours into country music, voiced Cal Weathers in Pixar’s Cars 3, and started his annual motorcycle Kyle Petty Charity Ride Across America. And when his nineteen-year-old son Adam, a fourth-generation racing Petty, tragically lost his life on the track, Kyle founded Victory Junction, a camp for children with chronic and serious medical conditions in Adam’s name―with help from Academy Award-winning actor and motorsports enthusiast Paul Newman.
Filled with NASCAR history, stories of his family’s careers, and anecdotes about some of stock-car racing’s most famous drivers, Kyle’s memoir also tackles the sport’s evolution, discussing how welcoming diverse racers, improving car and track safety features, and integrating green technology will benefit NASCAR’s competitors and fans in the future.
On December 22, 1964, at a small, closely guarded airstrip in the desert town of Palmdale, California, Lockheed test pilot Bob Gilliland stepped into a strange-looking aircraft and roared into aviation history.
Developed at the super-secret Skunk Works, the SR-71 Blackbird was a technological marvel. In fact, more than a half century later, the Mach 3–plus titanium wonder, designed by Clarence L. “Kelly” Johnson, remains the world’s fastest jet.
It took a test pilot with the right combination of intelligence, skill, and nerve to make the first flight of the SR-71, and the thirty-eight-year-old Gilliland had spent much of his life pushing the edge.
In Speed one of America’s greatest test pilots collaborates with acclaimed journalist Keith Dunnavant to tell his remarkable story: How he was pushed to excel by his demanding father. How a lucky envelope at the U.S. Naval Academy altered the trajectory of his life. How he talked his way into U.S. Air Force fighters at the dawn of the jet age, despite being told he was too tall. How he made the conscious decision to trade the security of the business world for the dangerous life of an experimental test pilot, including time at the clandestine base Area 51, working on the Central Intelligence Agency’s Oxcart program.
The narrative focuses most intently on Gilliland’s years as the chief test pilot of the SR-71, as he played a leading role in the development of the entire fleet of spy planes while surviving several emergencies that very nearly ended in disaster.
Waging the Cold War at 85,000 feet, the SR-71 became an unrivaled intelligence-gathering asset for the U.S. Air Force, invulnerable to enemy defenses for a quarter century.
Gilliland’s work with the SR-71 defined him, especially after the Cold War, when many of the secrets began to be revealed and the plane emerged from the shadows—not just as a tangible museum artifact but as an icon that burrowed deep into the national consciousness.
Like the Blackbird itself, Speed is a story animated by the power of ambition and risk-taking during the heady days of the American Century.
Before he was thirty, the engineer Giampaolo Dallara designed the Lamborghini Miura, a supercar that came from another planet, and one that caused its entire global competition to age overnight. More recently, his cars have won nineteen editions of the Indianapolis 500, historically the most important race in the world. And then another surprise, the presentation of the Dallara Stradale, a fascinating 400 hp supercar produced in series in the multi-faceted factory of Varano de’ Melegari, in the province of Parma.
These three commitments alone would be sufficient for a vast book on the activity of Giampaolo Dallara, who however has never ceased to broaden his own interests, based on the passion for motor sport and the evolution of technology. In 320 pages we describe how this extraordinary character, of great technical ability and of equally remarkable human depth, has evolved from his first job in Ferrari’s racing department, to the growth that led him to become the most important manufacturer of racing cars in the world, starting from a small ‘factory’, which over the years has been transformed into a company with over 700 employees.
This miracle has come about due to the undoubted technical ability of the engineer from Varano, but also due to his personality, an exceptional mix of pragmatism and simplicity, which can be summed up in the motto of the company created in 1972: ‘The continuous search for excellence’.
A commitment that has allowed him to add to his ‘core’ business activity, the design of road and racing cars for some of the world’s top companies: Ferrari, Alfa Romeo, Bugatti, Maserati, Audi, Toyota, Honda and KTM.
But Dallara has never ceased to amaze: in the autumn of 2018 he inaugurated the ‘Dallara Academy’: a commitment desired and financed by the engineer himself, materialized in a new, modern structure that, together with the vast ‘museum’ with all the Dallara cars ever built, includes classrooms for educational purposes for middle and high school students, up to a Master’s degree in ‘Racing Car Design’.
A great engineer, a great Italian and a perfect Emilian!
- The most prestigious motor car in the world. The true definition of luxury
- A tour of the Rolls-Royce facility and a unique insight into the manufacturing process
- A stunning collection of cars from the earliest models to those of the modern day
- A compendium of historical Rolls-Royce pictures, many unseen
- A luxurious book, beautifully designed and impeccably produced to the highest standards
- The ultimate Rolls Royce volume
Step inside a world of engineering excellence with this collection, dedicated to Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. The authors were granted unique access by the Rolls-Royce company. Detailed descriptions of the manufacturing process are set against a backdrop of heritage and prestige, including an exclusive showcase of the company’s manufacturing facility and a splendid gallery of Rolls-Royce cars dating back to sketches of work from the 1930s. This collection includes numerous unseen photos of Sir Henry Royce driving early versions of his iconic cars.
A true behind-the-scenes experience, this book introduces the reader to the Rolls-Royce master craftsmen at work. High-quality images and detailed insights reveal the process by which each car is constructed, from the 2019 Ghost Zenith back in time to the 1904 Original. Rolls-Royce opens their archive to reveal a spectacular timeline of design, providing readers with an insight into the world of those who still uphold the words of Sir Henry Royce: “Strive for perfection in everything you do”.
The contents list guides the reader through the complete construction of a car: Design and Customization, Paint and Finish, Chassis Assembly, Woodwork, Leather, Testing, The Spirit of Ecstasy Hood Ornament, and more. With a glimpse at the Rolls- Royce Training Academy and a plethora of featured cars from last year to the start of the last century, this is the ultimate Rolls-Royce collectors’ volume. Featured cars include the new Ghost (2020), the Phantom Tranquility (2019), Phantom Aviator Coupe (2012), the Phantom II Continental (1934) the AX201 Silver Ghost (1907), and many more.
Simon Van Booy is a celebrated Anglo-American author, who has won the Frank O’Connor International Short Story Award. His essays have been published in The New York Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Guardian and more.
Harvey Briggs is the Editor/Publisher of Rides & Drives, a website dedicated to motoring journeys across the world.
Academy Award winner Jack Nicholson (Best Actor, One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, 1975) stars with Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper (who also directs) in this unconventional classic which Time Magazine hails as “one of the ten most important pictures of the decade.” Experience the real, uncensored 60s counterculture in this compelling mixture of drugs, sex and armchair politics. In the role that catapulted him to stardom, Jack Nicholson portrays an alcoholic attorney who hooks up with two part-time, drug-dealing motorcyclists (Fonda and Hopper) in search of their “American Dream.” Heading from California to New Orleans, they sample the highs and lows of America the beautiful in a stoned-out quest for life’s true meaning. Nominated for an Academy Award(r) (1969) for Best Screenplay (written by Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper and Terry Southern), Easy Rider continues to touch a chord with audiences of all ages.
The world knows Paul Newman as an Academy Award winning actor with a fifty-plus year career as one of the most prolific and revered actors in American Cinema. He was also well known for his philanthropy; Newman’s Own has given more than four hundred and thirty million dollars to charities around the world. Yet few know the gasoline-fueled passion that became so important in this complex, multifaceted man’s makeup. Newman’s deep seeded passion for racing was so intense it nearly sidelined his acting career. His racing career spanned thirty-five years; Newman won four national championships as a driver and eight championships as an owner. Not bad for a guy who didn’t even start racing until he was forty-seven years old.
Special Features: Adam Carolla interviews with Mario Andretti, Patrick Dempsey, Jay Leno, Graham Rahal, and Bob Sharp / Adam Carolla restores Paul Newman’s 1985 GT-1 Championship Car / Trailer
Formula I drivers compete to be the best in this slam-you-into-the-driver’s seat tale of speed, spectacle and intertwined personal lives. John Frankenheimer (who 32 years later would again stomp the pedal to the metal for the car chases of Ronin) directs this winner of 3 Academy Awards,* crafting split-screen images to capture the overlapping drama and orchestrating you-are-there POV camerawork to intensify the hard-driving thrills. Nearly 30 top drivers take part in the excitement. Buckle up to race with the best.
Academy Award winner Jack Nicholson (Best Actor, One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, 1975) stars with Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper (who also directs) in this unconventional classic which Time Magazine hails as “one of the ten most important pictures of the decade.” Experience the real, uncensored 60s counterculture in this compelling mixture of drugs, sex and armchair politics. In the role that catapulted him to stardom, Jack Nicholson portrays an alcoholic attorney who hooks up with two part-time, drug-dealing motorcyclists (Fonda and Hopper) in search of their “American Dream.” Heading from California to New Orleans, they sample the highs and lows of America the beautiful in a stoned-out quest for life’s true meaning. Nominated for an Academy Award(r) (1969) for Best Screenplay (written by Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper and Terry Southern), Easy Rider continues to touch a chord with audiences of all ages.
Nine races. One champion. James Garner, Yves Montand, Brian Bedford and Antonio Sabato portray Formula I drivers competing to be the best in this slam-you-into-the-driver’s seat tale of speed, spectacle and intertwined personal lives. Eva Marie Saint and Toshiro Mifune also star. John Frankenheimer (who 32 years later would again stomp the pedal to the metal for the car chases of Ronin) directs this winner of 3 Academy Awards?,* crafting split-screen images to capture the overlapping drama and orchestrating you-are-there POV camerawork to intensify the hard-driving thrills. Nearly 30 top drivers take part in the excitement, so buckle up, movie fans. Race with the best to the head of the pack.
A coin flip likely saved the life of Kenneth C. Ruiz. It was August 1942 and he was fresh out of the U.S. Naval Academy. He and a classmate flipped a coin to see who would stand watch on the bridge of their heavy cruiser, the Vincennes, off Savo Island as the Marines were landing on Guadalcanal. Ruiz was on the bridge when the ship took a direct hit and sank. He ended up in the pacific without a life jacket, but his classmate and the entire radio room crew perished in the attack. “The luck of the draw” is a recurring theme in this powerful memoir. Following the demise of the Vincennes, Ruiz volunteered to serve on submarines for the balance of the war and had numerous harrowing experiences. He spent most of his time on the USS Pollack, which was sub-standard in terms of technology, but was still deadly and made a significant impact on Japanese shipping in the far reaches of the Pacific.
Californians were panicked by the Pearl Harbor attack of December 7, 1941, and civilian flights within 200 miles of the coast were immediately terminated. Airfields were commandeered and new ones hastily built. One of these was the Lomita Flight Strip, known today as Zamperini Field, the Torrance Municipal Airport, or TOA. This 490-acre parcel sent four squadrons of P-38 fighter pilots off to war with one commanded by the judge of the Charles Manson trial, an ex-Flying Tiger. Six other pilots became generals, two became commandants of cadets at the Air Force Academy, and one became the only fighter pilot with combat victories in both World War II and the Vietnam War. Japanese Americans returning from World War II internment camps found temporary housing at the field, and the world’s largest manufacturer of civilian helicopters settled there in 1973. The first runway takeoff of a Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) aircraft was pioneered at TOA, and aerobatic champ Bob Herendeen trained at the site.
