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Mark Zuckerberg: La biografia
by Daniel IchbiahLa biografia di un genio visionario, inventore e imprenditore dotato, è diventato uno degli uomini più influenti del pianeta. E anche il più misterioso. È l'incarnazione del sogno americano. Creatore della sua prima rete di messaggistica a 12 anni, rifiuta sei anni più tardi un'offerta di Microsoft che avrebbe potuto renderlo milionario, preferendo costruire da solo il suo impero. Progetta Facebook, diventa miliardario a 24 anni, acquista Whatsapp, Instagram... servizi utilizzati da oltre 2 miliardi di persone! Un’escalation incredibile senza precedenti. Tuttavia, dietro le sue professioni di fede umanistica - «un mondo aperto e connesso» - e l'altruismo rivendicato dal suo AD, cosa nasconde veramente il progetto Facebook? Quale influenza diretta o indiretta ha giocato nella Brexit, l'elezione di Donald Trump nel 2016, l'esplosione delle fake news? Cosa succede realmente ai dati pubblicati dagli utenti? Zuckerberg si serve deliberatamente di Facebook come di un cavallo di Troia in piena democrazia, ammettendo senza troppi scrupoli di voler «dominare il mondo»? Come un Frankenstein del XXI secolo, è stato sopraffatto dalla sua creatura? Si parla di ciò che è noto. E di tutto quello che l'uomo ha protetto per anni. Daniel Ichbiah, grande esperto della Silicon Valley e delle nuove tecnologie, ha incrociato le testimonianze di parenti, trascritto i messaggi privati e le riunioni a porte chiuse, raccolto montagne di informazioni, per rilasciare l'unica biografia completa e aggiornata su un uomo diventato un mito vivente.
Mark and Livy: The Love Story of Mark Twain and the Woman Who Almost Tamed Him
by Resa WillisOlivia Langdon Clemens was not only the love of Mark Twain's life and the mother of his children, she was also his editor, muse, critic and trusted advisor. She read his letters and speeches. He relied on her judgment on his writing, and readily admitted that she not only edited his work, but also edited his public persona.Until now, little has been known about Livy's crucial place in Twain's life. In Resa Willis's affecting and fascinating biography, we meet a dignified, optimistic women who married young, raised three sons and a daughter, endured myriad health problems and money woes and who faithfully traipsed all over the world with Twain--Africa, Europe, Asia--while battling his moodiness and her frailty.Twain adored her. A hard-drinking dreamer with an insatiable wanderlust, he needed someone to tame him. It was Livy who encouraged him to finish his autobiography even through the last stages of her illness. When she died in 1904, Twain's zest for life and writing was gone. He died six years later.A triumph of the biographer's art, Mark and Livy presents the fullest picture yet of one of the most influential women in American letters.
Mark's Story: The Gospel According to Peter
by Tim Lahaye Jerry B. Jenkins"Mark's Story" is a thrilling account that vividly depicts the last day before Jesus crucifixion, and the danger that early believers faced as they boldly proclaimed Jesus as Christ the Lord.
Marked for Life: One Man's Fight for Justice from the Inside
by Isaac Wright Jr.An empowering memoir of courage and hope in the face of injustice—and the basis for the ABC television show, For Life—Marked for Life is the true story of Isaac Wright Jr.’s battle to win his freedom after being wrongfully imprisoned for crimes he didn’t commit, and a critical indictment of America’s judicial system.“If I waited around for someone to save me, I’d be waiting my whole life. Unless I took the reins of this thing myself, I was going to die in prison. If that was my destiny, then I was going to die fighting. The desperation of that equation kept me up most nights. I would never find a gladiator. So I had to become him.”In the summer of 1989, Isaac Wright Jr. was a 28-year-old independent music producer, who’d struck out on his own and became one of hip hop’s early success stories. With his dance crew Uptown Express, Wright won recognition on Star Search, toured with Run-DMC, and transitioned into management, co-founding his wife Sunshine’s music group, The Cover Girls. They’d settled in the New Jersey suburbs to raise their six-year-old daughter, never imagining that Wright would fall victim to gross police misconduct and a corrupt district attorney.Accused of being a drug “kingpin” and incarcerated in Somerset County while the prosecutor and police built their case of lies against him, Wright realized he would get no help from any defense attorneys—white men uninterested in uncovering the truth or in proving the innocence of a black man. Pressured to take a plea deal offer of 20 years behind bars, Wright chose to take the law into his own hands by educating himself in the legal system so he could represent himself in court.Studying statutes and cases in the jail’s law library, Wright became an adept legal mind. But despite acquiring knowledge that he put to use in defending his fellow inmates, he lost his trial and was sentenced to Trenton State Prison for life, plus 70 years in 1991. For the next five years, Wright would continue learning law, become a paralegal with the prison’s Inmate Legal Association, and appeal his case. Threatened by corrupt correction officers and convicts, his family falling apart, Wright fought for his life with every legal means at his disposal, eventually uncovering the smoking gun that unraveled the conspiracy perpetrated by law enforcement officials against him.Marked for Life is not just the story of how Isaac Wright Jr. won his freedom. It is the story of how he found his true calling as a gladiator fighting on behalf of the oppressed and marginalized communities victimized by an unjust system of law.
Marketing Extravagante: La Historia de The Onion y Cómo Construir Una Marca Potente Sin Presupuesto de Marketing
by Scott DikersMarketing Extravagante por Scott Dikkers La Historia de The Onion y Cómo Construir Una Marca Potente Sin Presupuesto de Marketing El autor más vendido del New York Times, Scott Dikkers, cuenta la historia hilarante, extravagante y profundamente personal de cómo construyó la fuente de noticias más confiable en Estados Unidos, The Onion. Por supuesto, todas las historias en The Onion son falsas, y cualquiera que las tome en serio es el verdadero blanco de la broma. Pero Marketing Extravagante cuenta la historia real y sin censura de The Onion. The Onion comenzó como un pequeño periódico de humor universitario en 1988. ¿Cómo fue que creció hasta convertirse en una marca de comedia mundial con millones de seguidores en las redes sociales y una horda de fanáticos en la actualidad? Las marcas de hoy tienden a seguir a la manada cuando se trata de marketing y marca, pero a menudo es ir en una dirección diferente a la de la manada lo que te hace sobresalir. The Onion hizo lo contrario de lo que se supone que deben hacer las marcas. The Onion no escuchaba a sus clientes. No les daba lo que querían. No se involucraba con ellos. Nunca era "auténtica". De hecho, todo lo que imprimía The Onion era fabricado, hablado a través de una fachada falsa. Esto no fue por accidente. Fue calculado y ejecutado con precisión. Qué hay adentro… • ¡Cómo cortejar y seducir a las personas para que se enamoren de tu marca! • ¡Cómo reclutar a las mejores y más brillantes mentes de su industria para que trabajen para usted! • ¡La mejor manera de gestionar personas creativas en su equipo y liberar TODO su potencial! • ¡El secreto para hacer que cada día de trabajo se sienta tan suave y agradable como el esquí alpino! • ¡Lo único en lo que DEBE enfocarse todo constructor de marcas (pista: no son las ganancias)! • ¿Cómo llegar a más personas y conseguir más fan
Markus "Notch" Persson: Minecraft Mogul (Gateway Biographies Ser.)
by Matt DoedenMinecraft creator Markus "Notch" Persson has always loved programming. Find out how he translated his childhood passion for writing code into a multi-million dollar career as the mind behind Minecraft!
Mark Zuckerberg: From Facebook to Famous (Extraordinary Success with a High School)
by Z. B. HillIn the last few decades, more and more people are going to college to further their education. It's hard to become a scientist, a professor, or a businessperson without getting some sort of college degree--but college isn't always necessary to achieve success. Some people are ready to enter the workforce right after high school. Mark Zuckerberg was one of those people. Although the Facebook founder went to Harvard, he dropped out to chase his dreams of changing the way people interact on the Internet. Today, Mark's company is one of the most successful of the Internet age, worth billions of dollars. Mark Zuckerberg changed the way we communicate forever. And what's most amazing about his story is that the Internet pioneer has done it all without a college degree!
Marlborough
by Angus Konstam Graham TurnerJohn Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, is one of the great commanders of history. Using his great charm and diplomatic skills he was able to bind troops from various European states into a cohesive army that won a string of victories over the French armies of King Louis XIV, the first of which was perhaps his most spectacular triumph - the battle of Blenheim. Other great victories followed, but political and social turmoil proved harder opponents to defeat. This book provides a detailed look at the many highs and lows in the career of the most successful British general of his era.From the Trade Paperback edition.
Marlborough's America
by Stephen Saunders WebbScholars of British America generally conclude that the early eighteenth-century Anglo-American empire was commercial in economics, liberal in politics, and parochial in policy, somnambulant in an era of “salutary neglect,” but Stephen Saunders Webb here demonstrates that the American provinces, under the spur of war, became capitalist, coercive, and aggressive, owing to the vigorous leadership of career army officers, trained and nominated to American government by the captain general of the allied armies, the first duke of Marlborough, and that his influence, and that of his legates, prevailed through the entire century in America. Webb’s work follows the duke, whom an eloquent enemy described as “the greatest statesman and the greatest general that this country or any other country has produced,” his staff and soldiers, through the ten campaigns, which, by defanging France, made the union with Scotland possible and made “Great Britain” preeminent in the Atlantic world. Then Webb demonstrates that the duke’s legates transformed American colonies into provinces of empire. Marlborough’s America, fifty years in the making, is the fourth volume ofThe Governors-General.
Marlborough's Shadow: The Life of the First Earl Cadogan
by J. N. WatsonSeveral writers have remarked that Marlborough could have never achieved his great military success during the War of the Spanish Succession without the support, industry and ingenuity of his Chief of Staff, Quartermaster General and Chief of Intelligence, General William Cadogan, who became the 1st Earl of Cadogan, and who, in 1722, succeeded Marlborough as Commander-in Chief of the British Army. Apart from the other considerations Marlborough, then in his 50's, was relatively frail and prone to fevers and headaches, whereas Cadogan, the better educated officer, was still in his early 30's and very fit. This, the story of a most able young general, is a must for all those interested in military history, particularly that relating to the early 18th century. However, Cadogan was a more complex -and more interesting -personality than his career as a soldier indicates. He possessed the charm, the wisdom, the powers of persuasion and the linguistic ability to make an outstanding diplomat. He proved, indeed, to be the brightest roving ambassador of the reign of George I. And yet, despite all his positive attributes he was not a man political or of financial integrity.
Marlborough's Wars: Eyewitness Accounts, 1702–1713
by James FalknerWith extensive firsthand accounts, this volume presents a vivid chronicle of the Duke&’s decisive campaigns in the War of Spanish Succession. Many books have been written about the 1st Duke of Marlborough&’s famous victories, but none of the previous studies has really concentrated on how the warfare was perceived by the men and women who took part - those who experienced the action at first hand. In this fascinating study, historian James Falkner has brought together a vivid selection of contemporary accounts of every aspect of the war to create a panoramic yet minutely detailed picture of those years of turmoil. The story is told through memoirs, letters, official documents, dispatches, newspaper reports and eyewitness testimony from the French and Allied sides of the conflict. His linking narrative provides a penetrating analysis of the strategy and tactics of warfare at the time.
Marlborough: His Life and Times (Marlborough: His Life and Times #1)
by Winston S. ChurchillThe prime minister and Nobel Prize–winning historian begins his four-volume biography of the British statesman John Churchill, first Duke of Marlborough. In the first volume of this ambitious and stunningly written biography, Sir Winston S. Churchill discusses the early career and stratospheric rise of his illustrious, seventeenth century ancestor. John Churchill, the Duke of Marlborough, may have been eclipsed in history by his more well-known descendant, but in his time, Marlborough was considered one of England&’s foremost military and political leaders. This first installment pays particular attention to personal details of Marlborough&’s life, and the important role several women played in his success—including his sister, his wife, the Duchess of Cleveland, and Queen Anne herself. Churchill breathes life into these personal connections in order to showcase Marlborough not only as a luminary figure in British history, but also to bring him to life once again in the mind of the reader. &“A sustained meditation on statecraft and war by the greatest war leader of our time.&” —Foreign Affairs &“The greatest historical work written in our century, an inexhaustible mine of political wisdom and understanding, which should be required reading for every student of political science.&” —Leo Strauss
Marlborough: His Life and Times (Marlborough: His Life and Times #2)
by Winston S. ChurchillThe second volume in the Nobel Prize winner&’s biography of John Churchill, first Duke of Marlborough: &“The greatest historical work written in our century&” (Leo Strauss). After the defeat of the Conservative government in the 1929 general election, Winston S. Churchill entered a period of political exile; a time he referred to as &“the wilderness years.&” It was during this time that Churchill began his work on Marlborough: His Life and Times, widely considered to be one of his most ambitious and masterful literary works. Although not as well remembered as his more famous descendant—Churchill himself—Marlborough was an influential soldier and statesman of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Great Britain, known in his day as a gifted military commander who never lost a battle. This second volume of Churchill&’s four-part biography brings Marlborough&’s military successes, political intrigues, and personal passions to life, while his descendant reflects &“on the perplexities of alliances, the paradoxes of strategy, and the stresses of combat&” (Foreign Affairs). &“An inexhaustible mine of political wisdom and understanding, which should be required reading for every student of political science.&” —Leo Strauss
Marlborough: His Life and Times (Marlborough: His Life and Times #3)
by Winston S. ChurchillThe third volume of the Nobel Prize winner&’s hailed biography of John Churchill covers his military leadership in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. John Churchill, first Duke of Marlborough, was an accomplished military leader who never lost a battle. This is the third volume in Winston S. Churchill&’s sweeping, four-part biography of his illustrious ancestor, in which he recounts Marlborough&’s military successes in thrilling detail—including his support of William of Orange in the Glorious Revolution, his crucial role in the suppression of the Duke of Monmouth&’s rebellion, and his success in negotiating England&’s diplomatic position in the War of the Spanish Succession. With characteristic flair, Winston S. Churchill brings his ancestor&’s campaigns, intrigues, and personal relationships to life—and restores him to a prominent place in English history. &“A sustained meditation on statecraft and war by the greatest war leader of our time.&” —Foreign Affairs &“The greatest historical work written in our century, an inexhaustible mine of political wisdom and understanding, which should be required reading for every student of political science.&” —Leo Strauss
Marlborough: His Life and Times (Marlborough: His Life and Times #4)
by Winston S. ChurchillThe moving conclusion to the acclaimed multivolume biography of one of Britain&’s greatest military leaders by his Nobel Prize–winning descendant. The final installment in Winston S. Churchill&’s four-volume biography of John Churchill, the Duke of Marlborough—a famed military leader known for never having lost a military campaign. Despite his successes, Marlborough&’s later years were full of struggle—including attacks from political and personal enemies. Winston S. Churchill vividly recounts the intrigues and challenges of his ancestor&’s extraordinarily eventful life. In this last volume, detailing the end of his career, Marlborough&’s story is told with sensitivity and nuance—giving the reader an intimate glimpse into his state of mind. It&’s a fascinating read for anyone interested in English history—and provides profound insights into leadership, loyalty, and personal conduct as valuable today as three centuries ago. &“A sustained meditation on statecraft and war by the greatest war leader of our time.&” —Foreign Affairs &“The greatest historical work written in our century, an inexhaustible mine of political wisdom and understanding, which should be required reading for every student of political science.&” —Leo Strauss
Marlborough: The Hero of Blenheim (GREAT COMMANDERS)
by John HusseyJohn Churchill was born in 1650, the son of a defeated Cavalier captain, in a household which had been ravaged and rendered almost destitute by the English Civil War. Yet by the time of his death in 1722 he was among the richest men in the country, with a dukedom, a palace and a principality to call his own.His rise to power came through a combination of good luck, astute political manoeuvring, and a brilliance on the battlefield that made him easily the most successful general of his time. In this concise biography of the man and his military genius, John Hussey describes in detail the campaigns that made Marlborough famous: the 1704 campaign to save the Austrian empire, which culminated in the great victory of Blenheim, and the audacious invasion across Louis XIV's Ne Plus Ultra lines in 1711. These campaigns are put in the context of the times, to create a portrait of a man who is still celebrated as one of the world's greatest ever military commanders.
Marlborough: The Hero of Blenheim (Great Commanders Ser.)
by John HusseyJohn Churchill was born in 1650, the son of a defeated Cavalier captain, in a household which had been ravaged and rendered almost destitute by the English Civil War. Yet by the time of his death in 1722 he was among the richest men in the country, with a dukedom, a palace and a principality to call his own. His rise to power came through a combination of good luck, astute political manoeuvring, and a brilliance on the battlefield that made him easily the most successful general of his time. In this concise biography of the man and his military genius, John Hussey describes in detail the campaigns that made Marlborough famous: the 1704 campaign to save the Austrian empire, which culminated in the great victory of Blenheim, and the audacious invasion across Louis XIV's Ne Plus Ultra lines in 1711. These campaigns are put in the context of the times, to create a portrait of a man who is still celebrated as one of the world's greatest ever military commanders.
Marlene
by Marlene DietrichA fascinating self-portrait of one of the greatest entertainers of Hollywood&’s golden age Film star. Cabaret sensation. Recording artist. Writer. Marlene Dietrich was nothing short of enchanting—and remains so as she chronicles her fabulous rise to stardom in Marlene. From her early career in Germany as a chorus girl to her breakout role as Lola in The Blue Angel to her courageous wartime tours, Dietrich recounts a life that captivates on the page just as she smoldered on the screen. She writes passionately of her friends—including Charlie Chaplin, Orson Welles, and Edith Piaf, among many others—and she shares memories of what she calls her greatest accomplishment: entertaining the Allied troops during World War II. A sustained expression of her bold, sophisticated style, Marlene reminds us why Dietrich remains an international icon and a true Hollywood legend.
Marlene Dietrich
by Maria RivaThe twenty-fifth anniversary edition of the landmark biography that tells the full-scale, riveting, and untold story of Marlene Dietrich.Wildly entertaining, Maria Riva reveals the rich life of her mother in vivid detail, evoking Dietrich the woman, her legendary career, and her world. Opening with Dietrich&’s childhood in Berlin, we meet an energetic, disciplined, and ambitious young actress, whose own mother equated the stage with a world of vagabonds and thieves. Dietrich would quickly rise to stardom on the Berlin stage in the 1920s with her sharp wit and bisexuality—wearing the top hat and tails that revolutionized our concept of beauty and femininity. She would play vulgarity but not become in; startle the world but still maintain the aloofness of an aristocrat. As Riva herself remembers, &“At age three, I knew quite definitely that I didn&’t have a mother, I belonged to a queen.&” Marlene Dietrich comes alive in these pages in all of her incarnations: as muse, artistic collaborator, bonafide movie star, box-office poison, lover, wife, and mother. Dietrich would stand up to the Nazis and galvanize American troops, eventually earning the Congressional Medal of Freedom. There were her rich artistic relationships with Josef von Sternberg (The Blue Angel, Morocco, Shanghai Express), Colette, Erich Maria Remarque, Noël Coward and Cole Porter, and her heady romances. In her final years, she would make herself visibly invisible, devoting herself to the immortality of her legend. Maria Riva&’s biography of her mother has the depth, range, and resonance of a novel and captures the conviction and passion of its remarkable subject.
Marlene Dietrich y la búsqueda del amor (Mujeres que nos inspiran #Volumen 3)
by C.W. GortnerLLEGA A ESPAÑA UNA COLECCIÓN BEST SELLER CON NOMBRE DE MUJER Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn y Marlene Dietrich dan salida a esta serie de biografías noveladas sobre grandes personajes de la cultura universal.Descubre las vidas de novela que han inspirado a millones de mujeres de la mano de Suma de Letras. Una novela biográfica sobre una de las leyendas más glamurosas y atrayentes de la época dorada de Hollywood: Marlene Dietrich. Maria Magdalena Dietrich vive para los escenarios. Con su belleza sensual, su voz profunda, sus vestidos de seda y sus trajes andróginos a medida, actúa en locales abarrotados y se enreda en apasionadas relaciones amorosas que desafían los límites de las convenciones sociales de la época. Cuando Hitler llega al poder, la joven parte a Estados Unidos y se convierte rápidamente en una de las favoritas de Hollywood. Hitler intenta traerla de vuelta con grandes promesas, pero Marlene pide la nacionalidad estadounidense y, cuando su nueva patria entra en la Segunda Guerra Mundial, acompaña a las tropas para actuar ante los aliados. Una historia cautivadora sobre una mujer decidida y ambiciosa que desafió las normas, sedujo al mundo entero y forjó su propio destino. «Me gustaría tener la oportunidad de vivir un poco antes de morir».MARLENE DIETRICH La crítica ha dicho:«Fascinante y cautivadora».USA Today «Esta reimaginación de la cautivadora actriz atraerá tanto a los fanáticos del cine como a los amantes de la ficción histórica».Booklist «Una novela bien detallada y realmente emocionante».Kirkus «Esta intrigante historia hará que los lectores corran a por las películas de Dietrich. El autor retrata el mundo de los cabarés alemanes y el brillo y glamour de la era dorada de Hollywood con aplomo».RT Book Reviews «Esta biografía novelada está repleta de apariciones de personas muy conocidas en la época, como Greta Garbo, el general George Patton o Ernest Hemingway; y revela mucha información sobre una estrella de cine única y enigmática».Library Journal «Marlene y la búsqueda del amor proporciona un retrato entretenido y muy acertado de una mujer compleja y cautivadora».The Washington Independent Review of Books
Marlene Dietrich's ABC's: Wit, Wisdom, And Recipes
by Marlene DietrichA collection of the icon&’s surprising and heartfelt thoughts on topics A-to-Z, plus recipes and photos—a wonderfully addictive scrapbook for fans. From the wonderfully varied and witty mind of Marlene Dietrich comes an alphabetized collection of her most zany, honest, and heartfelt thoughts. Offering her take on a range of ideas, people, and items, Marlene Dietrich&’s ABC is an unprecedented glimpse into one of history&’s brightest and most enigmatic stars. Nothing is too small or grand for Dietrich&’s unique eye. From her entry for hardware store—&“I&’d rather go to a hardware store than to the opera&”—to her entry for egocentric—&“If he is a creative artist, forgive him&”—she transforms both the mundane and the mysterious into snapshots of her own spirit. Complete with photos from her vast career, Marlene Dietrich&’s ABC is an unexpected and addicting treat.
Marlene Dietrich's ABC: Wit, Wisdom, & Recipes
by Marlene DietrichAn A-to-Z look into the mind of an entertainment legendFrom the wonderfully varied and witty mind of Marlene Dietrich comes an alphabetized collection of her most zany, honest, and heartfelt thoughts. Offering her take on a range of ideas, people, and items, Marlene Dietrich's ABC is an unprecedented glimpse into one of history's brightest and most enigmatic stars. Nothing is too small or grand for Dietrich's unique eye. From her entry for hardware store--"I'd rather go to a hardware store than to the opera"--to her entry for egocentric--"If he is a creative artist, forgive him"--she transforms both the mundane and the mysterious into snapshots of her own spirit. Complete with photos from her vast career, Marlene Dietrich's ABC is an unexpected and addicting treat.
Marlene Dietrich: Life and Legend
by Steven BachFrom the stages of Berlin to anti-Nazi efforts and silver-screen stardom, Steven Bach reveals the fascinating woman behind the myth surrounding Marlene Dietrich in a biography that will stand as the ultimate authority on a singular star. Based on six years of research and hundreds of interviews—including conversations with Dietrich—this is the life story of one of the century&’s greatest movie actresses and performers, an icon who embodied glamour and sophistication for audiences around the globe.
Marlene Dietrich: The Life (Tribuna Ser.)
by Maria RivaNew York Times Bestseller: A “greatly entertaining” biography of the glamorous, mysterious German-born actress, written by her daughter (The New York Times). With intimate detail, author Maria Riva reveals the rich life of her mother, Marlene Dietrich, the charismatic star of stage and screen whose career spanned much of the twentieth century. Opening with Dietrich’s childhood in Schöneberg, Riva’s biography introduces us to an energetic, disciplined, and ambitious young actress whose own mother equated show business with a world of vagabonds and thieves. Dietrich would quickly rise to stardom on the Berlin stage in the 1920s with her sharp wit and bisexual mystique, and wearing the top hat and tails that revolutionized our concept of beauty and femininity. She comes alive in these pages in all her incarnations: muse, collaborator, bona fide movie star, box-office poison, lover, wife, and mother. During World War II, Dietrich would stand up to the Nazis and galvanize American troops, eventually earning the Congressional Medal of Freedom. There were her artistic relationships with Josef von Sternberg (The Blue Angel, Morocco, Shanghai Express), Colette, Erich Maria Remarque, Noël Coward, and Cole Porter, as well as her heady romances. And in her final years, Dietrich would make herself visibly invisible, devoting herself to the immortality of her legend. Capturing this complex and astonishing woman, Maria Riva’s insightful profile of her mother has the depth, range, and resonance of a novel, and takes us on a journey through Europe and old Hollywood during an era that is gone but not forgotten.
Marlene: A Novel of Marlene Dietrich
by C. W. Gortner“Full of Weimar Berlin decadence and the scandal of Hollywood, this is a gloriously entertaining read. Marlene is utterly beguiling.” —Beatriz Williams, New York Times–bestselling authorRaised in genteel poverty after the First World War, Maria Magdalena Dietrich dreams of a life on the stage. When a budding career as a violinist is cut short, the willful teenager vows to become a singer, trading her family’s proper, middle-class society for the free-spirited, louche world of Weimar Berlin’s cabarets and drag balls. With her sultry beauty, smoky voice, seductive silk cocktail dresses, and androgynous tailored suits, Marlene performs to packed houses and becomes entangled in a series of stormy love affairs that push the boundaries of social convention.For the beautiful, desirous Marlene, neither fame nor marriage and motherhood can cure her wanderlust. As Hitler and the Nazis rise to power, she sets sail for America. Rivaling the success of another European import, Greta Garbo, Marlene quickly becomes one of Hollywood’s leading ladies, starring with legends such as Gary Cooper, John Wayne, and Cary Grant. Desperate for her return, Hitler tries to lure her with dazzling promises. Marlene instead chooses to become an American citizen, and after her new nation is forced into World War II, she tours with the USO, performing for thousands of Allied troops in Europe and Africa.An enthralling and insightful account of this extraordinary legend, Marlene reveals the inner life of a woman of grit, glamour, and ambition who defied convention, seduced the world, and forged her own path on her own terms.“Cinematic in both scope and story.” —Booklist (starred review)