Ninety-Six and Too Busy to Die: A Life Beyond the Age of Dying

Book Description

Living through the act of dying is indeed life's ultimate adventure although there is no timetable. I get up every morning and look forward to my days because I am busy, busy, busy. Smiling has become second nature. Although I am really too busy to die, so was Manya Starr, so was Al Hirschfeld, so was Irene Diamond, so was Bob Batscha. When it is my time I'll be in good company.

This timely book is must reading for anyone who wants to enjoy a life and here is evidence that there can be a good life, long past the age of dying. In fact, as Levitt got older and older and older, his life got better and better and better. President Kennedy created a new era of physical fitness for Americans coast-to-coast and Mortimer Levitt was one of the many who benefited from that new energizing lifestyle. Even though Mortimer was a high school flunk out (not drop out, but flunk out), he became another legendary rags-to-riches story. He was founder and sole owner of the Custom Shops Shirtmakers, eight-two stores coast-to-coast, no franchise, no partners, no bankers, and no debt.

Now comes the twist, and what a twist - Levitt did NOT want to be a businessman and told his first employee, George Zimmerman, that he (Levitt) would retire in five years and Zimmerman would run the company. If Zimmerman couldn't then the next guy would, and if he couldn't, the guy after that would. And that's exactly what happened except that Levitt walked out in four years. Glenn Bernbaum was Levitt's most successful (twenty years) COO. Bernbaum, with Levitt's permission, opened Mortimer's Restaurant at the corner of Lexington Avenue and 75th Street. Mortimer's Restaurant became one of society's melting pots. Bernbaum and his celebrity customers were in the columns almost daily.

Levitt was an avid skier, avid tennis player, and an avid sailor. He retired from the day-to-day management of his business on June 30, 1941, three years and ten months after the opening. This is Levitt's fifth book, all written without a collaborator, without a ghostwriter . Living past the age of dying is Levitt's forte and this book, God willing will open a different door. Levitt will be ninety-seven in February and already has sixty percent of a sixth book completed, a primer that will pave the way for college freshmen to enjoy a more successful life.

Levitt founded the Levitt Pavilion for the Performing Arts in 1972 in Westport, Connecticut and currently is paying for the construction of new Levitt Pavilions coast to coast, offering the magic of music under stars, entertainment for summer nights, and there is never an admission charge. Two Levitt Pavilions opened this past summer, Pasadena, California, and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Six more cities are standing in the wings for summer 2004.

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Ninety-Six and Too Busy to Die: Life Beyond the Age of Dying
Mortimer Levitt
Manufacturer: Aspatore Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Business | Professionals & Academics | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1587623455

Amazon.com

An odd hybrid of a book, Big Girl in the Middle is part model/volleyball player Gabrielle Reece's autobiography and part third-person chronicle of the misadventures of Team Nike across the 1996 professional beach volleyball circuit, for which Reece captained and played middle blocker. At 6'3" and 170 pounds, Reece cuts an imposing figure, as commanding on a magazine or book cover as she is on the court. She has a unique perspective on both of the public arenas in which she's played: as a top-flight athlete and accepted beauty, she smashes several stereotypes; how she's coped with those stereotypes, successfully spiking most of them, makes Reece an admirable role model. Her observations in this area serve up Big Girl's best attributes.

Book Description

The new superstars in sports are women, and pro beach volleyball player Gabrielle Reece is the hottest of them all. At six-foot-three, 170 pounds, Gabby Reece is at once beautiful and brutish, feminine and rowdy, accessible and intimidating--a woman who is exploding female stereotypes and redefining our image of the female athlete.

"A young girl doesn't get many chances to exercise the character muscle via sports, whereas for young boys, it's part of their everyday lives. For girls, it's especially good for them to be forced to work as a team with other girls, to work together under every possible condition--winning, losing, tired, grumpy, happy. It forces them to deal with unpleasant, ungracious emotions and get over it. It forces girls to rely on each other. It gives them confidence in other girls, which ultimately gives them confidence in themselves."

"Everything a woman does has an emotional component. Paying attention to my emotional side without surrendering to it is one of the toughest parts of playing professional sports."

"I don't like this 'Fear of Being Big' thing because it feeds into the general female thing of wanting to be less--less powerful, less assertive, less demanding, less opinionated, less present, less big."

Customer Reviews:

big girls rule..........2005-12-08

when you first look at ms. reece, you wonder how a woman like her has problems. she's tall, she's pretty; not only has she excelled at sports and modelling, but she has also made movies...but like anybody else, she has her "down days" and her book " big girl in the middle" points them out as well as her good ones.

The book, co-written with Karen Karbo, points out Ms. Reece's career as a professional volleyball player, and as a professional model. it also talks about her childhood in the carribean (trinidad) new york, and florida.

just her childhood would be enough for a book. part trinidadian, reece moved around alot,growing up with other relatives and sometimes her mom.later she would discover sports and learned that she was good at it, getting a scholarship to play volleyball in college. she would go on to play professional volleyball for team nike,(she had a shoe named after her) which is the subject of this book. ms. reece also talks alot about being a big girl and how being a big girl gives her power, which she stresses strongly that she uses in a good way.

personally,ms. reece could've written this book herself. not to take anything away from ms. karbo ( she's a good writer ) but ms. reece seems like she's smart enough to sit down and put her own story together. i thought it was cool that she played down her "glamazon" image. i think the main reason she played sports was because she didn't want people to think that she was a prissy barbie-doll type,which ms. reece shows is far from what she is.ms. reece claims to have a strong belief in god, which is refreshing;she never proselytizes her belief on anyone. she comes off as confident, not arrogant. her views on men and sex were bold. i won't repeat them here, you just have to read for yourself. she was featured in a usa today article a few years ago, which she was at the time giving advice to people. ms. reece has lived an interesting life. and it's worth reading about.

Big girl.......2005-12-03

How would you feel if you were torn between two careers; modeling, and volleyball? That's what Gabrielle Reece encountered in her journey through life. This book, written by Gabrielle herself, was to tell the story of an extremely tall girl growing up mocked and taunted. I believe that this book is important for all vertically enhanced women.
"Big Girl in the Middle" is basically about a girl named Gabrielle that grows up not knowing she is any different than anyone else, and is hit in the face with the fact of her abnormal height at the age of fourteen when she realized she was 5' 11". She does a few modeling contracts but likes playing volleyball for a living a little more enjoyable. She is on Team Nike and throughout her careers does horrible, many times not even winning one game out of tournament. This book is non-relational for many people of average height, and can be difficult to understand the stress she endured her entire life.
I thought the book had its good moments but overall lacked the excitement that I feel it needed. I did like the moments in which the volleyball game was actually occurring and thought it was very descriptive and easy to visualize. The majority of the book was about her everyday life on the off seasons and her booming modeling career that she didn't want to pursue. If I could change this book I would change the random descriptions of her everyday life style. Overall, this book was a little boring and it annoyed me that she didn't take up modeling.

Big Girl - Little Book.......2003-03-21

I thought Big Girl in the Middle would be a wonderful book to read. It's about a girl who is a professional volleyball player, and I really love volleyball. But when I began to read it, "Boy was I wrong!" I hate books that try to make you feel sorry for people and it seemed like that's all this book was doing. It was quite depressing, and I dreaded the thought of having to pick it up again each day to read another chapter. I like to read about some obstacles people have to overcome to achieve their goals, but this was a little extreme. It seems as though nothing good ever happened to Gabrielle Reece in her life, and when something finally did, it was taken away from her. Life is not easy (we all know that), so why make it worse for other people by writing about it?
I also thought the book was difficult to follow. One minute they'd be taken talking about her childhood and the next thing you know they were in the middle of one of her games. She didn't always give her ages; she would just say that she did things after this and this. I also never really knew when or where they were talking. For example, I never knew if the conversations happened at her home, on the phone, on at the beach. It was just really tough to follow.
The only good thing about the book is Gabrielle Reece. She is what every girl, at some point in her life, wants to be! She's been a model as well as a professional athlete. Most girls want to be idolized for their looks and /or praised for their athletic ability. Gabrielle Reece is both. She is a role model for many women around the globe.
I would not recommend this book for those who are looking for a laugh, or an exciting or interesting story. I don't think it's a really good book at all. There was absolutely no humor in it. It was depressing and hard to follow. I wouldn't want to read it again!

Gabby Reece's book Rocks!.......1999-12-01

I loved reading BIg Girl in the Middle! I was amazed to find that Gabrielle Reece was more fascinating than I thought she'd be. The girl is witty, beautiful, and she has some pretty deep thoughts on a lot of things-and a great deal of insight to back it all up! I think she should seriously be considered as a good example of a role model for girls, and some people out there would probably be better off if they acted more like her!

This book is inspirational to the average athlete.......1998-08-09

When I bought this book I was looking for inspiration in my everyday training/fitness. I found it, I think Gabby Reece is someone who has a lot of confidence and while reading her book I developed a likeness toward her and I enjoyed her openess and spunk.

Average customer rating:

A pretty good book, but with some flaws

The Virgin Encyclopedia of 50's Music

Manufacturer: Virgin Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Similar Items:

The Virgin Encyclopedia of 60's Music (The Virgin Encyclopedia)

The Virgin Encyclopedia of 70s Music

ASIN: 1852279370

Book Description

Published for the first time in hard cover this is the essential guide to the decade that spawned rock'n'roll and saw popular music set out on its path to becoming one of the dominant forces of post-war culture. It includes every artist who was quintessential to the decade -- both those who had a significant impact on the development of popular music and those who flourished briefly. 1000 entries distilled from the Encyclopedia of Popular Music, universally acclaimed as the world's leading source of reference on rock and pop history Covers the essential elements -- dates, career facts, discography, album ratings plus a sense of context for each artist.

Customer Reviews:

A pretty good book, but with some flaws.......2007-05-27

This book is a good source of information about 1950s music, but I would hesitate to call it "excellent." One of the problems is that in the preface the author admits that (in order to track down possible plagiarists) he has deliberately incorporated errors in the book; I do not know whether the errors I have spotted so far are this sort of deliberate error or are simply the sort of errors that often creep into this kind of book. For example, twice in the book, in an article on Billy Vaughn and in one on the Hilltoppers, Vaughn's year of birth is mis-stated as 1931 (the correct year is 1919), and an article on the Dream Weavers gives Gene Adkinson's name as "Atkinson." This does give me the feeling that I'd never use this book to settle a bet.

It sometimes seems puzzling what criteria determine an artist's worthiness for inclusion in this book. For example (just sticking to artists I _like_, so that my own personal preferences do not color my opinions!) Gale Storm is hardly more important than Joni James among female singers in the 1950s, and the Dream Weavers certainly did not have the importance of the Gaylords among vocal groups, but in each case, the first of the pair has an article and the second does not.

One thing I _do_ like is that British stars as well as American are covered; this gives me a lot of information about British vocalists I have only recently discovered as well as about Americans I grew up listening to.

In short, the book is recommended, but with some serious caveats.

Book Description

From the Gibson Girl to the flapper, from the vamp to the New Woman, Carolyn Kitch traces mass media images of women to their historical roots on magazine covers, unveiling the origins of gender stereotypes in early-twentieth-century American culture.

Kitch examines the years from 1895 to 1930 as a time when the first wave of feminism intersected with the rise of new technologies and media for the reproduction and dissemination of visual images. Access to suffrage, higher education, the professions, and contraception broadened women's opportunities, but the images found on magazine covers emphasized the role of women as consumers: suffrage was reduced to spending, sexuality to sexiness, and a collective women's movement to individual choices of personal style. In the 1920s, Kitch argues, the political prominence of the New Woman dissipated, but her visual image pervaded print media.

With seventy-five photographs of cover art by the era's most popular illustrators, The Girl on the Magazine Cover shows how these images created a visual vocabulary for understanding femininity and masculinity, as well as class status. Through this iconic process, magazines helped set cultural norms for women, for men, and for what it meant to be an American, Kitch contends.

Customer Reviews:

Women in the Media: A Brief Account.......2005-04-08

America is more than familiar with the stereotypical blonde bombshells that grace the covers of magazines, television programs, movies, and advertisements. In Carolyn Kitch's book she is able to outline the origins of how stereotypical images came about. Her extensive background in the media along with the use of actual magazine illustrations allows her to present her arguments in a way that anyone with an interest in women's history in the media can understand.

Kitch's book maintains the reader's interest by citing specific examples, providing information about the time period, and providing illustrations. Keeping a loosely chronological form allows the book to flow, but the ideas of the time period are more important to Kitch than keeping a pattern. She breaks at appropriate points to discuss alternate visions that challenged and reinforced stereotypes in the media.

While Kitch's book is effective, it is not extensive. Its sheer size just doesn't allow Kitch to get as in depth as she could. She promises so much in the introduction, but isn't able to deliver all that she promises.

The books briefness keeps it from being extensive, but it is still able to provide me with a more organized knowledge of how stereotypes of women in the media such as the ever-popular blonde bombshell came about.

Great reading and great images.......2005-03-25

I found this book to contain great ideas and images about the changes in masculinity and femininity as portrayed in the American media. My students enjoyed the ideas in class discussions as well.

Tracing women's lives & representations: a fascinating read!.......2002-04-13

As the saying goes, "Beauty is not skin deep." Of course, that doesn't matter to the American media; it would seem that in their opinion, there's no place in our society for anyone whose beauty is not evident on the surface. Moreover, the standards of beauty on television and in the print media set the bar quite high. A pretty face won't do; to be a superstar, you need to bare lots of skin, like Britney.

Thinking back to Victorian-era prudishness, when a girl's *ankles* couldn't be exposed and when a woman's place was in the home, it's hard to imagine how our culture got to this point. How did we women get to where we are today? And what relationships, if any, are there between the way we live life and the media images surrounding us?

To learn the answers to these questions and more, read "The Girl on the Magazine Cover." Kitch, a journalist and historian, presents a compelling case for women's journey from "matronly" to "dangerous but beautiful" to "cute, skinny, and sexually free." Her focus is on 1895 through 1930, a period of some of the most rapid changes in our history, when technology, early feminism, and higher education intersected. Kitch argues that one result of their intersection was the "new woman," whose liberation was quickly co-opted by the forces of capitalism and consumerism into little more than a marketing tool. (Progress, indeed!)

Note that Kitch's focus is broader than the title would imply: She devotes one chapter to depictions of African-American women, another to the crisis of masculinity faced by men in this era of change, and still another to families. Her epilogue is quite strong, drawing connections between the depictions of women in early magazines to the depictions of women on television today.

In sum, "The Girl on the Magazine Cover" is an evocative, compelling contribution to the fields of mass communication and women's studies. Kitch's arguments are sound, backed with extensive research and illustrated by well-chosen reproductions of period magazine artwork. If the media, women's rights, and/or stereotyping are of interest, then this is the book for you!

Womens images on magazine covers - more than surface meaning.......2002-02-20

After obtaining some old women's magazines from the 1900's, I wanted to learn more about drawings of women which graced these magazine covers. I also wanted to understand why illustrations were used far more often than photos, even after photos were used for the ads within the magazines themselves.
This book was just what I needed to understand not only what the illustrators were trying to say about women's roles at the time but about how so many of these images and stereotypes of the "ideal" woman still permeate our magazines (and culture) today. If you've ever doubted that "what goes around comes around again" when it comes to women's stereotypes and ideals, reading this book may change your mind.
For those familiar with such icons of The Golden Age of Illustration as C. Coles Phillips's Fadeaway Girls or the rather sophisticated women of J. C. Leyendecker or any other artists of the time, this book will be a delight, revealing new insights about the artists visions. For those interested in social history, the book is equally engaging, showing how artist who drew cover girls for popular magazines such as Life, Saturday Evening Post and Good Housekeeping also worked for major businesses and even the government, helping to perpetuate the popular images of women throughout the culture.

The Girl on the Magazine Cover: the Origins of Visual Stereotypes in American Mass Media.(Book Review): An article from: Women's Studies in Communication

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The Girl on the Magazine Cover: the Origins of Visual Stereotypes in American Mass Media.(Book Review): An article from: Women's Studies in Communication
Erika Grodzki
Manufacturer: Organization for Research on Women and Communication
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Women's Studies in Communication, published by Organization for Research on Women and Communication on March 22, 2003. The length of the article is 851 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: The Girl on the Magazine Cover: the Origins of Visual Stereotypes in American Mass Media.(Book Review)
Author: Erika Grodzki
Publication: Women's Studies in Communication (Refereed)
Date: March 22, 2003
Publisher: Organization for Research on Women and Communication
Volume: 26 Issue: 1 Page: 135(3)

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

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Winning Chess Traps - 300 Ways to Win in the Opening
Irving Chernev
Manufacturer: David McKay Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000RRYQ2Y

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Winning chess traps;: 300 ways to win in the opening,
Irving Chernev
Manufacturer: distributed by D. McKay
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Chess | Board Games | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: B0007DMS6O

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WINNING CHESS TRAPS 300 WAYS TO WIN IN THE OPENING

Manufacturer: Chess Review
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000H2OV1K

Average customer rating:
Winning Chess Traps : 300 Ways to Win in the Opening
Irving Chernev
Manufacturer: Chess Review / David McKay
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000GLWLCI

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A must-have

Earth Shattering - Revolutionary Fundraising

Fundraising psychology

MAJOR GIFTS come ONLY from this VIEWPOINT

The Best Fundraising Book Yet!

RelationShift: Revolutionary Fundraising
Michael Bassoff , and Steve Chandler
Manufacturer: Robert D. Reed Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Corporate Finance | Finance | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
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50 Ways to Create Great Relationships

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The Story of You: And How to Create a New One

ASIN: 1885003935

Book Description

Best-selling author Steve Chandler and Michael Bassoff, America's most innovative and successful fundraiser, have co-authored this unique book to teach you their easy-to-follow system for creating new relationships that can lead to raising millions of dollars.

One of the biggest myths in fundraising is that it is hard to raise money in a down economy. Not true! The authors believe a down economy is frequently used as an excuse to suspend relationship building, which is the true source of all major funding gifts. RelationShift shows you how to reverse this myth and grow your organization during a time when other organizations are demoralized and wringing their hands. America's recent war against terrorism will not harm non-profit fundraisers as much as it will help. Americans are now looking, more than ever, at how they can make a difference and how they can create positive change in the world. Frivolous spending is down, but meaningful contributions are up. When you employ the revolutionary methods outlined in RelationShift, you will give people a way to make a difference. What's more you will do so in ways that won't cost your organization one penny.

Customer Reviews:

A must-have.......2007-03-23

Reviewed by William E. Cooper for Reader Views (2/07)

Have you been involved in a campaign or a cause, and have stalled while trying to raise money, or have failed to raise what it will take to succeed? Have you and your team struggled for ideas on how to get the capital necessary to move forward? Have you made more phone calls and knocked on more doors than you care to remember, and still didn't meet your goal? If that's the case, then add this book to your repertoire of strategies and plans. It is a must-have. When you've read the book, you'll know what to do and how to do it. You'll know where to go and when to go there. You'll know who to talk to and what to say.

Michael Bassoff and Steve Chandler individually have outstanding experience, education, and abilities in terms of establishing relationships and fundraising. Combined, they are an unbeatable team. They are a first actually - they joined forces to create a strategy that really works. Their approach has people asking you how much money you need rather than you asking them. It significantly reduces those "out of your comfort zone" problems you encounter when asking for donations.

I have an entire career in public service, having served nearly 30 years in law enforcement, and retired as a Chief of Police. As an administrator it was my responsibility to prepare the department's annual budget request - essentially ask for new dollars every year. Having read this book, I wish I'd had it as I stood before the City Council every year. Now, however, I am in the initial stages of campaigning for elected office in the county where I live. Now, I do have their book, and I do have a new strategy for raising the necessary dollars to succeed. I want to say thank you to these fine authors for "RelationShift: Revolutionary Fundraising." They've written a clear and easy to understand book, one that every person involved in any cause needs to get and read. I hope these fine men collaborate on other works. If they do, I'll be reading them. Well done.

Earth Shattering - Revolutionary Fundraising.......2006-08-02

Bassoff and Chandler outline twenty dangerous myths that make up the belief systems of most fundraisers today. The book calls for a shift to a relationship building focus to replace the "scientific" approaches featured in the old fund raising books.

For over thirty years I have been associated with non-profit organizations, church and para church ministries in professional and lay capacities. I have read books, and articles, and spent hours in board and committee meetings. After reading "Relation Shift" I am taking a new look at giving and receiving and am ready to make the relation shift in fund raising.

The book is refreshing, enlightening, and highly motivating. Each chapter is filled with stories, examples, and illustrations for building relationships with your donors. The authors provide twenty positive reality shift statements and seven steps on the rope ladder to success to help you make the change, to break free of the twenty traditional, self defeating myths of fund raising.

I was especially challenged by the reality shift suggested in lieu of myth number ten.

Myth: "You don't have enough staff to raise the money your organization needs."

Reality Shift: "The number of people you have is not as big a priority as the depth of the relationships you yourself create."

Steve Chandler known for his books and seminars on relationship selling is one of America's most resourceful and successful fundraisers. Co-author, Michael Bassoff, nationally known in the field of health science development, as president of the TGen Foundation has been responsible for raising millions of dollars in gifts for research. These men are well qualified to write this revolutionary fundraising paradigm shift.

This book should be required reading for every non-profit officer, director, and staff member. "Relation Shift" is a proven approach for building new relationships that lead to having all the money you will need for your cause.

Fundraising psychology.......2004-12-30

Many fundraising books overlook the psychological aspects of "giving" and "receiving." Bassoff's work helpfully reinforces the conviction that a nonprofit must itself "give" and contribute in order to receive "gifts" and contributions. The writing style was enjoyable, with content to match.

MAJOR GIFTS come ONLY from this VIEWPOINT.......2003-09-03

This wonderful book was underlined and highlighted so many times I couldn't read it anymore.....I had to start fresh and buy a new one. Of all the books on fund raising I've ever read, including MegaGifts, this book is the one that really shows you how to do it, and how to change yourself and your whole approach so that you can attract major gifts. When I gave this book out at a staff retreat, my people had read it by the second day and wanted to devote the third and final day to just this book. Our major gifts now account for more than 2/3 of our revenue, and our days are spent building relationships instead of fund raising. Our annual goal was passed in six months after that retreat! This book returns the joy to fund raising because it teaches you how to communicate with donors and donor prospects in a way that both parties enjoy and look forward to.

The Best Fundraising Book Yet!.......2002-11-18

It's got to be the best book yet written on fundraising. The SHIFT they're talking about is the SHIFT that changes a life of scraping and struggling into a virtual heaven of support. Beneath the simplicity and drama of this book is the most sophisticated relationship science I've ever seen outlined, with plenty of specific examples to back it up. A true precision structure for the ultimate networking skill.

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