Famous Jewelry Collectors

Book Description

An extraordinary treasure trove of fabulous necklaces, bracelets, rings, brooches, and earrings owned by the rich and famous.

For many centuries the collecting of precious gems and the jewelry fashioned from them was the exclusive prerogative of kings and queens, emperors, popes, and maharajahs. But in the last hundred years movie goddesses, opera singers, industrialists, real-estate investors, and rock stars have joined those with the means to deck themselves in glittering bracelets, rings, necklaces, and earrings.

Most of what we know about the jewelry collections of recent times has been revealed though the auctions that have taken place after the collectors' deaths. The famous sale of 1987 uncovered the full extent of the dazzling pieces that belonged to the Duchess of Windsor. By the same token, as this book so handsomely shows, the collections of society women such as Barbara Hutton can now be appreciated and described in detail. Among the royals and aristocrats are Umberto II of Italy, HRH the Princess Royal (Princess Mary) of Great Britain, and the noble German family of Thurn and Taxis; from the world of film and entertainment come the collections of stars like Merle Oberon, Joan Crawford, and Ava Gardner.

The two authors, both international jewelry experts, reveal the stories behind the jewels and their collectors. This is a book to be cherished by everyone with an interest in society, collecting, and the very best of jewelry art. 290 illustrations, 126 in color.

Customer Reviews:

ICE.......2006-11-06

I really enjoyed this book, the images are crisp and the text is fascinating. The people in this book live for their jewels and many of them, particularly the Duchess of Windsor, had impeccable taste. Some of the pieces are just stunning, and the background on the collectors is most interesting. I highly recommend this book to anyone with any interest in beautiful jewelry.

Diamonds Are A Girls Best Friend.......2001-10-01

This book is wonderfull, the jewelry is wonderfull. It renews my faith that at one time people with money DID have some taste. This book is well worth the money spent.

Entertaining book with gorgeous photos.......2000-12-31

An entertaining book with memorable personalities and their world famous baubles. The section on socialities and the nobility is fun to read; especially countess Mona von Bismarck. The incredible story of Poor Little Rich Girl, Barbara Hutton and socialite Daisy Fellowes (she must have been an incredible woman, reading her self-improvement on her nose!). Some of the gems are world famous, like the bejewelled menagerie of the Duchess of Windsor, her cats, her flamingo, her tiger lorgnette etc. All in all, a fun book to read, but not only for lovers of jewellery, but also for people who are interested in royalty, fashion and high society. In short, a nice coffeetable book!

Wonderful.......2000-01-21

This is a well written book with wonderful photography. The selection of jewellery owners for each of the categories specified was thoughtful with some less well know, but nevertheless interesting collectors, included. The only shortfall was the absence of collectors from the Orient and the East - this would have been unique and given the book an extra star.

The book is a good complement to John Traina's hard to get "Extraordinary Jewels".

Average customer rating:
FAMOUS JEWELRY COLLECTORS
Stefano Papi
Manufacturer: NY
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000N6QP8C

Average customer rating:
Famous Jewelry Collectors
Stefano; Rhodes, Alexandra Papi
Manufacturer: Harry N Abrams Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0500019606

Customer Reviews:

A Talented English Watercolorist.......2007-01-01

This is an excellent book which addresses Ms. Willis' English approach to painting many types of subjects. She
guides the reader through the logical steps to achieving the effects that her paintings illustrate. Using
a restricted palette and advocating simplicity, she shows the outcome of following a simplified yet thoughtful plan to bringing about the illusion of luminous lighting of a variety of scenes. Not a step by step book, but there are some demonstrations. My copy was published by Watson-Guptil in 1997.

Book Description

In Homeless in the Eighties, Claire Burch begins with tough-talking free-verse that tells the facts and feelings of the homeless experience in a blunt but evocative style. She takes the reader on a thorough tour of homeless life the shelters, the soup kitchens, the crash pads, and gives the non-homeless an intimate glimpse of the bonding and conflicts between the drifters. Alternating between the voice of the poet and the voice of the street, Burch describes the situation and doesn't hesitate to place the blame. The rest of the book is devoted to her photos of people on the street, expanding on her themes. Like the poetry, the pictures are often angry and accusatory, but again there is warmth and humanity as well. The images show a range and depth of emotion, intercut with surreal paintings and collages in revealing juxtapositions. It is a spirited book. Perhaps sentimental, certainly poignant, but not at all a tear-jerker aimed at the soft touch. It's simply very honest and direct a strong expression of a knowledgeable view on a very human predicament, as complex as human predicaments always must be.

Book Description

Happy Adventure was a schooner with one fatal flaw. It leaked like a sieve. So why would anyone repeatedly expose himself and his friends to the elements of the North Atlantic in a treacherous, stubborn, uncomfortable, unfloatable boat which at last count, has sunk eight times? Any explanation of this appalling narative seems outrageously unlikely. But the story is true. All too true. And it's decidedly the funniest story yet from Farley Mowat, whose books have sold over a million and a half copies in this country alone.

Customer Reviews:

A Fun Maritime Romp.......2006-09-05

This story of Farley Mowat should be read just for the fun of it. It tells the story of his experience in buying a fixer-upper schooner with a friend with the idea of bringing it back from Newfoundland to Ontario. It becomes an effort that takes years and he never does quite make it to his goal.

Anybody who has ever owned a boat that seems to have a perverse streak of obstinacy will relate to this story even if it were to be stripped of the distinctive writing style. The style of the author, though, just makes it that much more delicious. He envisions his boat as a real being that has actively set out to thwart his desires. Even so, he comes to love the cantankerous old bucket. The reader will as well. It's a fun romp.

performance review of an Amazon on-line purchase.......2006-07-17

I am very pleased with the overall professionalism of the Amazon website and the client that provided the book. The book was in excellant condition when it arrived, ahead of the scheduled date. The Amazon web site was very user friendly and did not take long to see how it operates. I felt that the payment system (credit card) was secure. I have suggested to several of my friends to use Amazon as I will in the future. Try it, you will like it!!

Sail Away.......2006-07-05

Find a friend with a sailboat. Get him to take you sailing. Come back and buy Mowat's book about his seemingly incredible experience and once you read it (and it reads very quickly) you will remember many similar experiences of the art of sailing. You'll laugh at certain points and say "That's what happened to us!" as if Mowat was silently behind you on the first time you took the helm and ran aground on a sandbar. If you come away with the feeling that you too must buy a boat and sail the seas, then you have been bitten twice.
Good sailing, and good reading. (And good luck)

An amusing adventure story.......2004-11-30

Maybe you've heard someone say, "We've fixed the leak and now it works fine." And you just roll your eyes. Anyway, if you've ever been on a boat, this is a story for you.

And if you've ever heard of St. Pierre and Miquelon, you may wonder just what those islands are good for. In this book we find out. You use them to smuggle alcohol! When you get caught, you just throw the stuff overboard, weighed down by bags of salt. The salt takes half a day to a day to dissolve, and then the loot surfaces and can be picked up. But by whom? By you or by the authorities? We find that out as well!

This sure was fun to read.

A Tale of Perserverance and Folly.......2004-07-18

Farley Mowat is nothing if not persistent. After purchasing the Newfoundland schooner from Hell, badly misnamed as Happy Adventure, he finds he has a boat that leaks constantly, has a compass that doesn't know where magnetic north is, hates to head West, has an engine that works when it feels like it and that is just for starters. Much of the time sailing is in the fog, both real and self imposed. Most sane men would have turned this boat into kindling, but Mowat sailors on, one harrowing experience after another with an assortment of mates and in the process tells us a funny and true story of his adventures as only he can. Written over thirty years ago, the story has lost none of its charm and interest.

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The Boat Who Wouldn't Float
Farley Mowat
Manufacturer: McClelland & Stewart
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0771065876

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The Boat Who Wouldn't Float
Farley Mowat
Manufacturer: Little Brown & Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NPYM1A

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The Boat Who Wouldn't Float
Farley Mowat
Manufacturer: McClelland & Stewart
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000NV4OLW

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The Boat Who Wouldn't Float
Farley Mowat
Manufacturer: Atlantic Little Brown
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NQC5QS

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Boat Who Wouldn't Float
Farley Mowat
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0770416519

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The Boat Who Wouldn't Float
Farley Mowat
Manufacturer: Atlantic Little Brown
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000OFH70W

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The Boat Who Wouldn't Float
Farley Mowat
Manufacturer: McLelland & Stewart
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 0771065698

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The Boat Who Wouldn't Float
Farley Mowat
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000QXTCT6

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The Boat Who Wouldn't Float
Farley Mowat
Manufacturer: Atlantic Monthly Press Book / Boston / Little, Brown and Co.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NVBFVE

Customer Reviews:

If you want to write an interesting biography write it about an interesting person .......2006-05-24

In the opening chapter of this book the authors describe the home from which Levant came, and his Pittsburg childhood. On his mother's side they were both a very musical family, and one which had 'sarcasm and humor ' as an unending part of their talking with each other. The roots of Levant's later work are clearly in this childhood, and his specially close connection with his mother's family. Also the lively Pittsburgh world of the time, including the Colwell Street brothel and the teeming immigrant-filled streets were an essential part of the education of this very street- wise classical musician.
Levant's life involved a number of very great successes. He was a composer of more than talent, and of course arguably the best interpreter of his friend Gershwin's music.
He could be quite nasty , and a louse but it seems that many were willing to forgive him , perhaps because they appreciated his great difficulties in life. One of his famous sayings is something like, " They threw me out of the insane asylum because I was making everyone there depressed"
Levant had a career not only as classical pianist and composer, but also as TV talk- show host, and much later towards the end ' guest' on the Jack Paar show. He worked with the great musicians of his time. After a short first marriage he had a thirty - five year marriage to the singer June Gale. The couple had three children.
What is to say finally about a man who had so much talent, did so many things, but also suffered so much and was not particularly loveable many times?
Who else but him could have given us,
"Roses are red
Violets are blue
I am a schizophrenic
and so am I "

Fans of Oscar should look into this book.......2004-12-06

If one is a fan of Oscar Levant, I highly recommend looking into this book. The authors of this book had the amazing ability to work with Levant's wife, June, before she passed away helping to add any information that Oscar left out of his three autobioghraphies.

A fascinating figure of the twentieth century, the book highlights Levant's many talents as well as his many flaws and dark moments. The end of the book will surely touch your heart as well as break it as one dives into the complex life of this amazing, tortured, genius.

Only qualm would be the lack of explaination with certain phrases or words that then requires extra research (example, the word Pirandelloish, which in actuallity is not a word, but one Oscar made up).

Hie thee hence........2002-12-13

If nine tenths of this has been culled from its subject's three memoirs, what makes up the remaining tenth? Essentially the authors's subjective interpretation of the nine tenths. If they had actually known Oscar Levant, their opinions might have some relevance. They didn't know him. If they were authorities on music, or movies, or talk shows, or Broadway musicals -- SOMETHING --, their opinions might have some relevance. They aren't. (In fact, according to the blurb above, they are "poets" who teach writing. At least, then, the thing ought to be reasonably well written. It isn't.)

Zero stars........2002-12-03

About nine-tenths of this comes directly from Oscar Levant's three memoirs. That doesn't make it plagiarism, I suppose, since the "derivation", to put it charitably, is more or less (less, actually) acknowledged. It does make it copying someone else's biographies. (An AUTObiography is, after all, a biography.) It also makes reading this a chore for anyone interested enough in the subject to want to get the story from the horse's mouth. (And if you aren't that interested even, WHY are you bothering with THIS?) I deduct three stars.

I deduct a fourth star for this book's abuse of the English language with solecisms such as "germophobe" and "homophobe". (If "homophobe" were a word it would mean "clinical fear of sameness". The author wants it to mean misohomosexualism, hatred of homosexuals, -- someone I know maintains that "homophobe" is no worse than "chocoholic", which is rather like saying that Attila the Hun was no worse than Adolf Hitler.)

I deduct a fifth star for its politically correct pseudo-psychological speculation. It proffers the theory that Oscar Levant remarked upon the libretto of covertly homosexual minor composer Marc Blitzstein's heavy-handed socialist opera "The Cradle Will Rock"'s "pseudo virility" (Levant's phrase) in order to mask Levant's supposed homosexual attraction to George Gershwin. Au contraire, mon frere: 1) Marc Blitzstein did not even WRITE this opera's libretto; he only wrote its music, and Levant PRAISED its music. 2) Levant's assessment of this opera happens to adhere closely to the critical consensus. 3) There is no evidence whatsoever that Levant had any homosexual tendencies, and it is absurd and perverse to suggest that Levant's obvious, though severely qualified, admiration for Gershwin the man, in contradistinction to his even more obvious, and much less qualified, admiration for Gershwin the musician, constitutes evidence.

On the other hand, "A Talent for Genius" is an intriguing title. Too bad the authors never explain what they mean by it.

In any case, don't even consider this until you're read "A Smattering of Ignorance", "Memoirs of an Amnesiac", and "The Unimportance of Being Oscar", and then just skim it to try to find its scant new material -- or pass it by completely. Good luck.

The mind can be a terrible place to be confined.......2002-08-01

Oscar Levant was by far one of the most prominent pianists of the early 20th century. His fame was by no account singularly attributed to his musical success- his neuroses were were part of his biting, acerbic charm. His tale is from a golden age, littered with greats like Gershwin, Chaplin, Astaire, Garland, The Marx's, and the like.

This book is a detailed account of Oscar's life, and goes into greater detail of his apprehensions and taboo subjects than previously published in "A Smatttering of Ignorance", or "Memoirs of an Amnesiac".

Average customer rating:
A Talent for Genius the Life and Times of Oscar Levant
Sam & Schoenberger, Nancy Kashner
Manufacturer: Villard Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000O563LG

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A Talent for Genius: The Life and Times of Oscar Levant (ISBN: 0679404899)
Sam and Nancy Schoenberger Kashner
Manufacturer: Villard Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000LCBYZW

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A Talent for Genius: The Life and Times of Oscar Levant.: An article from: Notes
Joseph M. Boonin
Manufacturer: Music Library Association, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

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ASIN: B00093QSCM
Release Date: 2005-07-28

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Notes, published by Music Library Association, Inc. on September 1, 1995. The length of the article is 556 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: A Talent for Genius: The Life and Times of Oscar Levant.
Author: Joseph M. Boonin
Publication: Notes (Refereed)
Date: September 1, 1995
Publisher: Music Library Association, Inc.
Volume: v52 Issue: n1 Page: p110(2)

Article Type: Book Review

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A Talent for Genius: The Life and Times of Oscar Levant

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A Talent for Genius: The Life and Times of Oscar Levant
Sam and Nancy Schoenberger Kashner
Manufacturer: Villard Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000KV8LJ6

Book Description

One of the most important and influential composers of the twentieth century, Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953) was also a prolific and gifted writer. Besides producing diaries, short stories, dramas, reviews, and the libretti for his own operas, Prokofiev conducted lively and frequent correspondence with family friends, classmates, and notable cultural figures in the Soviet Union and abroad.

This engaging volume collects for the first time in English the most representative and enlightening of Prokofiev's letters, including some previously suppressed missives that have never before been published. Expertly translated and annotated by Harlow Robinson, the correspondence presented here covers Prokofiev's earliest years at St. Petersburg Conservatory, his extensive worldwide travels, and his return to Moscow. Among the correspondents are childhood friend Vera Alpers, harpist Eleonora Damskaya, ballet impresario Sergei Diaghilev, theatrical director Vsevolod Meyerhold, Soviet critic Boris Asafiev, composers Vernon Duke and Nikolai Miaskovsky, soprano Nina Koshetz, musicologist Nicolas Slonimsky, violinist Jascha Heifetz, conductor Serge Koussevitsky, and film director Sergei Eisenstein.

Prokofiev vividly describes, often with dramatic flair and a quirky sense of humor, concerts, performances, his compositions, political events, and meetings with other musicians and composers. His observations are peppered with musical gossip as well as eccentric, original, and disarmingly apolitical insights. Like his music, the writing style is laconic, brisk and tart, full of energy.

Taken together, the letters provide a cultural and musical history unequaled in the correspondence of any other modern composer. This indispensable edition will shed new light on Prokofiev's misunderstood life and career, illuminate his creative processes and aesthetic principles, and introduce his exceptional literary talents to those already captivated by his musical genius.

Customer Reviews:

Commande.......2000-02-01

Je veux acheter ce livre. Comment je peux le commander depuis la France

Selected Letters of Sergei Prokofiev.(Review): An article from: Notes

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Selected Letters of Sergei Prokofiev.(Review): An article from: Notes
Simon Morrison
Manufacturer: Music Library Association, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

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Book Description

This digital document is an article from Notes, published by Music Library Association, Inc. on March 1, 1999. The length of the article is 1861 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Selected Letters of Sergei Prokofiev.(Review)
Author: Simon Morrison
Publication: Notes (Refereed)
Date: March 1, 1999
Publisher: Music Library Association, Inc.
Volume: 55 Issue: 3 Page: 670(3)

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Book Description

An expert at designing and making the wind-powered toys known as whirligigs shows how to create more than two dozen traditional and original models. Patterns include animals with spinning wings, people with waving arms, and more. Easy-to-follow instructions, detailed illustrations.

Customer Reviews:

Tells you how to make them!.......2006-06-28

I haven't actually made a whirligig yet, but I plan on it. Since I read this book I really believe I can. What I wanted to know, it told me, mainly things you can use to make the mechanical components of a whirligig. I've done woodworking and that part I knew I could do but putting it all together was another matter. This book definitely helped me see how it can be done.

making animated whirligigs.......2005-08-31

its a good book on the subject will help start my ideas on the subject

..........2002-06-04

This is the best of Lunde's series. He is the man who resurrected the whirligig from the ashheap of historical American culture. In the 1970's, Lunde first investigated old whirligigs in New England, researched in the Library of Congress, and just plain hit the woodworking bench to figure out what makes a good whirligig work. Others have tried to copy him, but his whirligigs spin and turn and twist with a freedom and naturalness few can match. His political whirligig creations are snapped up immediately these days, because at 86 years old, there is no telling when he will stop. Simple, straightforward, and detailed, these designs and instructions will put you in the drivers seat for making any design you desire. He is a specialist in devising creative designs, not of the art crowd kind that look great but don't work, but the kind that really move in ways pleasing to all. He is the master of this genre.

Very good.......2000-11-23

I speak spanish, it is my native language, but this book is easy, I can understand it very good because it has many picture, in my country the Whirligigs are unknown and get hardware for them is very difficult, but thanks to the Anders' book I can build my own devices. This books is very good

Worth more than the price.......2000-04-21

I purchased this book because I was looking for some new whirligig plans. I was pleasantly surprised to see that it was that and more. The author shows you some good plans, but also gives you enough information to come up with your own designs. If you enjoy making whirligigs and how they work, this book is a good buy

More Whirligigs: Large-Scale and Animated Figures

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More Whirligigs: Large-Scale and Animated Figures
Anders Lunde
Manufacturer: Chilton Book Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Action Whirligigs: 25 Easy-to-Do Projects (Woodworking Whirligigs)

ASIN: 080197710X

More whirligigs: Large - scale & animated figures

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More whirligigs: Large - scale & animated figures
Anders S Lunde
Manufacturer: Mother Earth News
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0938432087

Book Description

This book examines the transformation of broadcasting in South Asia brought on by the arrival of new satellite channels during the 1990s.

Satellites Over South Asia: Broadcasting Culture and the Public Interest.(Book Review): An article from: Journal of Contemporary Asia

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Satellites Over South Asia: Broadcasting Culture and the Public Interest.(Book Review): An article from: Journal of Contemporary Asia
Yasser Mattar
Manufacturer: Journal of Contemporary Asia Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
ASIN: B0008FST9G
Release Date: 2005-07-30

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Journal of Contemporary Asia, published by Journal of Contemporary Asia Publishers on October 1, 2002. The length of the article is 1222 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Satellites Over South Asia: Broadcasting Culture and the Public Interest.(Book Review)
Author: Yasser Mattar
Publication: Journal of Contemporary Asia (Refereed)
Date: October 1, 2002
Publisher: Journal of Contemporary Asia Publishers
Volume: 32 Issue: 4 Page: 572(3)

Article Type: Book Review

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