Book Description
"J. Peterman" is a name known to over 40 million consumers and business people, thanks to a unique mail-order catalog hailed as "witty, entertaining....the stuff of literature" (New York Times Magazine) and regular appearances of a "J. Peterman" character on the popular Seinfeld TV show.
Now the real John Peterman steps from behind his persona in a candid memoir that interweaves the rise and fall of the J. Peterman Company with a recounting of the unusual life experiences that shaped the man himself.
Starting with a $500 investment and one product-an ankle-length, cowboy-style duster coat bought on impulse in Jackson Hole, Wyoming-Peterman built a $75 million company. His unconventional "Owner's Manual" catalog used long, literate copy and artful watercolors instead of photos to surround his wares-whether a Navy watch cap or a deck bench from the Titanic-with an aura of adventure and romance. Then came a cash-flow crisis, Chapter 11...and a harrowing personal and professional reassessment.
Through autobiographical anecdotes (including his early years with the Pittsburgh Pirates), Peterman explains how to turn dreams into action, find courage to go beyond the conventional, and be part of a team without sacrificing individuality. He shows how true passion and drive are not defeated by failure, but used as a stepping stone for the next venture.
For anyone starting, growing, or running a business, Peterman Rides Again offers hard-won lessons in entrepreneurship and the painful (but essential) art of learning from mistakes. For consumers, it's a chance to finally meet up close the bon vivant and raconteur they knew from the pages of the catalog.
Customer Reviews:
Peterman Rides Again.......2007-07-06
The Great Cham had James Boswell to capture his life in words.
Al Stump ghostwrote Ty Cobb's My Life in Baseball.
Then, there's Plutarch who managed to scribe twenty-three dyads of Greco-Roman biographies.
John Peterman, however, decided to tell his own story. Most people know J. Peterman as the fictional character on Seinfeld, Elaine Benes's eccentric employer who globe-trots for garments. There is an element of truth to the John O'Hurley's caricature; however, as is always the case, fact is overwhelmingly more interesting than fiction.
The real Peterman turned a mail-order duster company into a thriving multi-million dollar operation through the use of a unique business style and a catalog that made use of whimsical vignettes rather than typical ad copy and Bill Hagel watercolors rather than photos.
Peterman's story takes his reader from the batter's box to the boardroom and from The Chiang Mai river market to Chapter 11. It is one-part travelogue, one-part biography, one-part business guide, one-part rags-to-riches-to-rags, and seven-parts adventure story. Even the business parts of this story are as exciting as watching a barnstormer perform an Immelmann turn
Peterman Rides Again: Adventures Continue with the Real "J. Peterman" through Life & The Catalog Business (No. 0-7352-0199-4), by John Peterman. 225 pages of text and photos follow the career of the Merchant-Poet himself; cover photo by Stephen Kennedy shows him in The J. Peterman Coat (No. 1001).
Price: $25.00
The Triumphs & Failures of the Iconic J. Peterman Company........2004-06-02
If you're among the 40 million Americans who discovered an oddly shaped "Owner's Manual" in your mailbox between 1988 and 1999, you'll recognize John Peterman as the man behind the J. Peterman Company, whose often-imitated mail order catalog changed direct marketing forever. If you're not, John Peterman built a mail order apparel business on an archaically styled cowboy duster coat and a catalog that featured drawings, not photographs, of the items for sale, one item to a page, accompanied by long, poetic descriptions, that marketed mood more than specifics. "Peterman Rides Again" is John Peterman's story of the J. Peterman Company, the culture it created for its customers, and the life it created for himself. His account traces the company from its infancy selling dusters in magazine ads, through the beginnings of the mail order catalog that millions of Americans would read like a novel, to the J. Peterman Company's eventual decline in the mid-nineties and it's bankruptcy in 1999. John Peterman's prose is only moderately eloquent, but it's very readable. I found his discussion of various things the J. Peterman Company did right and the marketing, financial, and organizational decisions that were definitely wrong to be the most interesting aspect of the book. That and the details of upstarting a mail order business might interest any budding entrepreneur. For those of us who miss the early years of the J. Peterman "Owner's Manual", Peterman's account shows us the circumstances behind the bad decisions that I think most customers recognized and lamented at the time. "Peterman Rides Again" is an enlightening read for Mr. Peterman's former customers and anyone in the direct marketing business.
how to succeed and fail and get up again.......2003-07-12
solid business story with the details of the failures and successes. a good american business read about a product everyone who lived thru the 90's in the US remembers
Peterman vs Seinfeld re defamation of character.......2003-05-06
An inspiring account of an entrepreneur living the
American dream. I am suprised that John did not recognize the damage that Seinfeld's characterization of him as a pompus, self centered fool and jackass did not ring alarm bells and cause a suit against the continuation of his character assassination. Perhaps the fact that the actor portraying him was tall and handsome obscured the fact that John was portrayed as a sexist, racist, colonialist fool. The real John was a hard working innnovative businessman dedicated to selling unusual, sometimes rare items of clothing and accessories that represented value for a price. John is an innovative merchant who I believe will be successful again. This book is a must for any budding entrepreneur to read and heed, both the right and wrong way to start and manage an enterprise.
Not just for old times's sake.......2003-04-08
You remember Peterman, don't you?
The "Owner's Manual" that read like literature? Open it, and you found yourself sipping martinis on the veranda at Raffles (you know, don't you, that gin was invented so the British could choke down their quinine tablets). Or sharing a tent with the Tuareg under the endless stars. Or watching an entrancing -- and very well dressed -- young woman glide through the Gare de l'Est, the crowds parting effortlessly before her.
How many catalogs made you want to run a bath and settle in to read about luggage and clothes?
This book is like that. But different.
Different?
Different.
It has some of that same flair. Some of the same locales. Even some of the same copy, printed in excerpts (and a name to go with it, copywriter Don Staley, my new hero).
But it's not escapist. It's valuable, real-world information ... like what to do when you find yourself stranded up the Yangtze River with nothing but a toothbrush and silver cuff links, the kind an archduke would have worn to a Vienna ball.
Okay, not that.
But it does take an honest look at the rise and fall of a company that many people loved. A catalog that countless people waited anxiously -- really! -- to receive. So many people wanted it to work. "Clearly, people want things that make their lives the way they wish they were."
In some ways, it was a classic tale. Entrepreneur with a vision, a passion, a soul, creates a company with a soul too. The business catches fire. It gets huge. Too huge. Too much time crunching numbers. Soul gets crowded out.
"Classic cases" become classic because people keep making the same mistakes.
For years, the business looked like nothing could stop it.
But then the bottom fell out.
Peterman knows why. And he tells you why. Some of it was his fault, and he doesn't pull punches, even when they're directed at himself.
I like that in a man.
I like that in a book, too.
Average customer rating:
- Didn't care for the book
- An Outstanding Biography
- Mining the Minors
- Good, but not as Great as the Player
- Al Lopez
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Al Lopez: The Life of Baseball's El Senor
Wes Singletary
Manufacturer: McFarland & Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0786406569 |
Book Description
Alfonso Ramon Lopez spent 36 years in the big leagues as a catcher and manager. He had a .261 lifetime batting average, compiled 1,547 hits and caught a then-record 1,918 games in a 19-year playing career. The teams he managed-the Cleveland Indians and the Chicago White Sox-won two pennants and finished runner-up 10 times in 17 seasons. He was the only manager to interrupt the Yankees' 15 year pennant dynasty from 1949, piloting the Indians in 1954 with an A.L. record 111 wins and guiding the White Sox in 1959. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1977. Al Lopez of Tampa opened up baseball to individuals of Spanish, Cuban and Italian ancestry at a time when social barriers had just begun to recede. He symbolized for many Latins the path to success. This book is his first-ever biography. It is based, first, on the recollections of the man himself, and former players, family, and fans, and also on newspaper and periodical accounts, and archival resources.
Customer Reviews:
Didn't care for the book.......2007-04-20
Al Lopez was my favorite MLB manager when I was a kid. I used to listen to the Sox games every chance I got in 1960-1964 on WCFL ("The Voice of Labor") with Milo Hamilton & Bob Elson, that is right after I finished listening to the Cincinnati Reds.
That said, I didn't care for the book. For me it concentrated too much on his earlier life and not enough on his big league managerial career. Most people living now will not be remember for his playing career. The book itself summarized the scoring of selected games through Al's seasons in the minors and big leagues as a player & manager. It didn't have enough interviews with former players. I was so bored with the book I finished it one evening.
An Outstanding Biography.......2006-06-15
Al Lopez died last fall, four days after the Chicago White Sox clinched the 2005 World Series, their first series appearance since Lopez himself piloted them there in 1959. These southsiders were led by another Hispanic, the fiery competitor Ozzie Guillan. How different Guillan was from the calm, serene Lopez, I thought. That proved cause enough for me to give another read to Wes Singletary's popular biography, Al Lopez: The Life of Baseball's El Senor. As baseball books go, this is a strong one written in a scholarly fashion and it should appeal to anyone seeking to know about the man and his times. While others have suggested that the author stayed too long with material that they percieved as having little consequence - issues of race, coming of age - Singletary correctly chose to address these issues and did so in a well planned and reasonable fashion. His frank discussion/analysis of Larry Doby's accusations of racisim and prejudice on the part of Lopez was alone worth the price of the book. Singletary's recap of Lopez's years as a child in Ybor City, emerging though the minor leagues, becoming one of the best and durable receivers of his day, and then his evolution into a manager par excellence, first at Indianapolis and then in the bigs with Cleveland and Chicago was well researched and conveyed. And I came away with the realization that El Senor was anything but serene. In fact, he was a fierce competitor who took losing every bit at badly as the loquacious Guillan, but possibly did a better job of concealing it. Lopez is one of the great, hall-of-fame managers; he was a great guy, and this book reminds us how he got there.
This is the first and only biography of Al Lopez to date and as such it was sorely needed. In a time when our heros must come from history, particulary in baseball, Al Lopez provides the ideal. As Jerry Holtzman asserts in the forward, "he is among baseball's nobleman, perhaps the noblest of all." This book does him justice.
Mining the Minors.......2002-02-06
Al Lopez was one of baseball's greatest managers, capable of building contenders out of teams that had pitching and power (1954 Indians) or fielding and speed (1959 White Sox). The problem with this account is the focus on Lopez's minor league career, first as a player, then after a highly successful ML catching career, as a manager gaining experience. Lopez's seasons managing Indianapolis are described in detail that is excruciating unless the American Association is your interest. If Mr. Singletary had devoted as much relative space to Lopez's great years managing the Indians and Sox, the book would be invaluable. Instead, whole seasons when his team was a contender, such as the 1952 Indians that finished 2 games behind the Yankees, are disposed of in less than a sentence. Game-by-game accounts of the 1954 and 59 World Series make up the majority of the chapters on Lopez's ML managing career. These can be found elsewhere (e.g., "59: Summer of the Sox"). The author was apparently inspired to write the book as a booster of Lopez's hometown, Tampa. This may account for the greater detail given to Lopez's early Florida minor league career.
Singletary does better than most baseball biographers in getting facts about old-time players right, though his real understanding has gaps (Del Ennis was a power hitter, while Dave Philley was a center fielder par excellence in his heyday-they were not the same type of player. GM Hank Greenberg famously disliked Lou Boudreau, a fact that had great bearing on Lopez's career, but which the author fails to note.) The author had conversations with "el senor" - would he had gathered and printed more baseball anecdotes. Good- but if only Jerry Holtzman had written the book instead of the foreward.
Good, but not as Great as the Player.......2001-03-25
Play by play type of book, rather than life anecdotes. You have to enjoy the history of baseball to enjoy this book. But if you do, then it will be very good reading. If you wish to understand the persona, read a short quip on the web about his great accomplishments.
Al Lopez.......2001-03-02
I found this book to be wonderful. While it is a biography, Singletary addresses the subject like a historian. This book examines both the positive aspects and the negative aspects of Al Lopez's life and the time period when he managed. This is not some simple hagiography extolling him. The research is thorough, yet presented in an extremely palatable manner. What sets this book apart though is the straightforward manner in which the author has written it. It is very easily read and not filled with arcane or difficult tidbits.
Customer Reviews:
Hi Ho Silver..........2006-03-02
This is more like it.. I was a little disappointed that the 'More Cowboy Movie Posters' in the same series did not feature full page copies of posters. This book has full page posters. There are some fine reproductions in the book and it is a testament to some of the great cinema westerns.
Book Description
Within a generation San Francisco grew from an isolated Mexican trading post with more hills than people into America's major Pacific Coast city. Shaped by entrepreneurs, eccentrics, and visionaries, it became renowned for accommodating those who dared to be different.
THE CITY OF LANDMARKS: the Golden Gate Bridge; the Transamerica Pyramid; the Ferry Building; Mission Dolores; City Hall; Coit Tower; Alcatraz Island; Yerba Buena Gardens.
THE CITY OF PSYCHEDELIA: Ken Kesey and the Acid Tests; the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane; the Trips Festival and the Human Be-In; underground culture and festivals.
THE CITY OF WRITERS: Ina Donna Coolbrith, Mark Twain, Bret Harte, George Sterling; Dashiel Hammett; Kenneth Rexroth; Allen Ginsberg; Herb Caen; Armistead Maupin.
Customer Reviews:
More a comment than a review.......2007-06-08
I'm a student of San Francisco history. At first this book seemed like a good general introduction to The City. Then I noticed a complete absence of any mention of Labor history. San Francisco was possibly the strongest union town in America. There were huge and successful general strikes in the thirties in SF and the forties in Oakland. Pitched battles were fought between trade unionists and soldiers. Labor controlled The City from the thirties until the seventies. The fall of labor was not accidental. Politicians built their careers on attacking labor in the seventies and eighties. The result is the current mix of low wages and high costs along with the dot com scam of the nineties. I can't recommend a history of San Francisco that leaves all of this out.
an excellent book.......2006-01-18
I bought this book in preparation for a trip to San Francisco and it really helped me understand so much about the city, from the Gold Rush right up to the dotcom boom and crash. I especially liked the use of quotes from old sources that illustrate not just the past but the present as well. Overall, the book is very engaging and well written, I'd certainly recommend it for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of San Francisco than mainstream guide books provide.
Not up to par........2006-01-09
I am teaching a class on San Francisco at SF State University in the Spring and really was interested in using this book as my course textbook. I'm really impressed with the content, but, unfortunately, I cannot use it as a text book because 1.) despite extensive factual claims and quotes, the author fails to give citations (there are absolutely no footnotes or endnotes), and 2.) there are a number of grammatical errors, in particular inconsistent punctuation. I can hardly expect my students to write essays using standard citation and correct punctuation if their textbook fails to provide it. Too bad. I would have ordered 65 copies of the book. However, I recommend the book to casual readers, interested in San Francisco history.
Average customer rating:
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San Francisco: A Cultural and Literary History (Cities of the Imagination)
Mick Sinclair
Manufacturer: Signal Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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California
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ASIN: 1902669649 |
Customer Reviews:
Excellent resource, useful in ANY game system or setting.......2006-03-26
Sure, it's written specificly from the AD&D2E perspective, and it still manages to have a wealth of material that is appropriate to ANY system or setting. Don't waste your money on the shiny new Campaign Helper books of any system. This is the only one you will EVER need.
Rather than the modern view of just two styles of play, it outlines 10, with the 10th being any combination of the first 9. It also deals with types of players and the kinds of problems they may cause at the table, and how to deal with them.
Overall, an excellent resource.
A must-have book for any DM.......2002-07-15
This book gives you the basics of creating a campaign for your adventurers - how to create worlds, continents, kingdoms, dungeons, etc. But, more importantly, it gives you lots of things to look out for during the game - how to keep players interested, how to prevent squabbling between players, how to not have a nervous breakdown while you're creating your universe, etc.
The book is well written with lots of humor thrown in to keep you interested and with numerous examples to use as starting points for your setting. My DM had it years ago while we played and it was the 1st book I bought when I started my own campaign.
Required reading for top-notch Dungeon Masters!.......2000-05-02
One of my favorite RPG accessories of all time - the only thing that will save a DM more hair and sanity than this is the DMG or the Book of Lairs. The ultimate crisis resource - there are no rules here, just over a hundred pages of outstanding sage advice from veteran TSR DM Paul Jaquays on roleplaying, descriptions, creating a campaign, running an adventure, and dealing with problems of every imaginable kind. Priceless!
Bristling with ideas.......2000-01-23
This book (in my opinion) is one of the most helpful and informative books for the AD&D game. As a starting DM or long-time DM, there are things in here for you. From how to prepare for the gaming session, to mood music for the background, to sample catacombs and ruins to plan adventures around, this book is great. A must get.
Book Description
Come behind closed doors and see real trades made by real traders.
Dr. Alexander Elder leads you into 16 trading rooms where you meet traders who open up their diaries and show you their trades. Some of them manage money, others trade for themselves; some trade for a living, others are on the semi-professional level. All are totally serious and honest in sharing their trades with those who would like to learn. You will meet American and international traders who trade stocks, futures, and options using a variety of methods. All are normally very private, but now, thanks to their relationships with Dr. Elder, you can see exactly how these traders decide to enter and exit trades. Each chapter illustrates an entry and an exit for two trades, with comments by Dr. Elder. With this book as your guide, you can get closer to mastering the key themes of trading—psychology, tactics, risk control, record keeping, and the decision-making process.
The companion Study Guide is filled with striking insights and practical advice allowing you to test your knowledge and reinforce the principles outlined in
Entries & Exits.
Customer Reviews:
Very Enjoyable Read.......2007-09-30
A good follow-on read to his Come Into my Trading Room.
It's interesting to hear about the various everyday people who manage to trade for a living. Good detailed trade examples which give up more on re-reading.
Disappointing.......2007-07-01
I have read Elder's other books and was looking forward to reading this one. Unfortunately, Entries and Exits, does not rise to the standards Elder set with his other books. I can honestly say, "read his first two books,but,skip this one" Sorry Dr. Elder.
an Unbelievably great book!.......2007-05-21
Received great education from Dr. Elder again! Unlike many other books on trading which are repetitive, every word of Dr. Elder's every book is valuable, not a single wasted or repetitive. They're all worth their every page, every paragraph and every word.
Highly recommended for those who are looking for trading methods.
Great insight!.......2007-05-19
Dr. Elder-
This morning I finished my second reading of Entries and Exits, and just wanted to thank you for your continued insight. I have been a long time follower of yours since 1994 when I came across Trading For A Living at the local Barnes and Noble. I was also one of the first to buy Come Into My Trading Room, as you wrote when you signed it. We also talked on the phone a couple times back in '94 when I was struggling getting started . My trading life has had ups and downs as I have traded successfully for 1-3 years at a time, and then had to return to the corporate world. I took the whole year of 2006 off from trading, but have returned this year with renewed determination.
My biggest revelation was the fact that when I started trading for a living in 1993, I started with the most difficult trading instruments, options. When that failed, I moved onto futures. This year for the first time, I decided just to see if could trade the least leveraged instruments, stocks. I have had a good run this year with stocks as it is easier to take losses where you should when they aren't $1500-$2500 as they were when I was trading the small NASDAQ.
Anyway, keep up the good writing, and I hope there is a sequel to Entries and Exits.
Excellent insight into a variety of trading styles........2007-05-12
Trading books tend to get boring at some point: psychology, technical analysis, money management, or methods. I had no problem reading this one through cover to cover. Anyone who has ever traded with their own money soon comes to realize the importance of these two points in any trade: when you pull the trigger to enter and when you pull the rip-cord to exit.
"Entries & Exits" will not give the details that new traders crave to develope their virtual-cash-cow trading machine, but it is the next best thing to a $6,000 to $20,000 mentorship available on the market today. The reader gets to look over the shoulder of 16 very different traders and not only see some of their "three Ms" (Mind. Money, Methods) but also get to see just whom they are competing against in the markets. Some of these traders you will probably not like because they seem to live in a different world than you. Others you will think could be your next best friend. All of them, however, could well be on the other side of the next trade you make. It's a good principle to know your competition.
This book could be your next best investment especially if you harbor any secret desires to trade fulltime.
Book Description
Come behind closed doors and see real trades made by real traders.
Dr. Alexander Elder leads you into 16 trading rooms where you meet traders who open up their diaries and show you their trades. Some of them manage money, others trade for themselves; some trade for a living, others are on the semi-professional level. All are totally serious and honest in sharing their trades with those who would like to learn. You will meet American and international traders who trade stocks, futures, and options using a variety of methods. All are normally very private, but now, thanks to their relationships with Dr. Elder, you can see exactly how these traders decide to enter and exit trades. Each chapter illustrates an entry and an exit for two trades, with comments by Dr. Elder. With this book as your guide, you can get closer to mastering the key themes of trading—psychology, tactics, risk control, record keeping, and the decision-making process.
The companion Study Guide is filled with striking insights and practical advice allowing you to test your knowledge and reinforce the principles outlined in
Entries & Exits.
Customer Reviews:
Test your self after reading Dr. Elder's books.......2007-02-20
It is essential that you use the study guides to Dr. Elder's books after you have read them. I thought I had a great grasp on the principles he taught until I started on the study guides. I did excellent on the money management and record keeping but fell short in reading chart indicators. This study built up my confidence in several areas but sent me back to the original books to reread, study and ensure I got the lesson. The areas you will be tested on is organization, psychology, markets, trading tactics, money management & record keeping, case studies, and traders speak. Do yourself a favor and learn some lessons here, it will save you money in the markets.
Far better than I expected.......2006-11-05
I actually believe I got more out of the study guide than the accompanying book. Very very valuable and worth more than twice the price... I'd recommend it to everyone but especially to those new or having repeat issues of the same trading pitfalls.
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