The Gun

The Gun
Author: C. J. Chivers
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 496
Release: 2011-09-06
Genre: History
ISBN: 0743271734

The author, a New York Times reporter, traces the invention and mass distribution of the AK-47 assault rifle, and its effects on war. He traces the invention of the assault rifle, following the miniaturization of rapid-fire arms from the American Civil War, through World War I and Vietnam, to present-day Afghanistan, where Kalashnikovs and their knockoffs number as many as 100 million, one for every seventy persons on earth. It is the weapon of state repression, as well as revolution, civil war, genocide, drug wars, and religious wars; and it is the arms of terrorists, guerrillas, boy soldiers, and thugs. From its inception to its use by more than fifty national armies around the world, to its role in modern-day Afghanistan, he discusses how the deadly weapon has helped alter world history.

The Gun That Made the 20's Roar

The Gun That Made the 20's Roar
Author: William J. Helmer
Publisher: Chipotle Publishing
Total Pages:
Release: 2016-09-28
Genre:
ISBN: 9780996521826

"The thesis evolved into the first "biographical-history" of General Thompson and the submachine gun that was published by the Macmillan Company as The Gun That Made The Twenties Roar. It received favorable reviews in Newsweek, The Washington Post's book section, and more than a dozen newspapers that had book columns at the time. (A few years later a photocopied edition of the original book was printed by Gun Room Press to accompany a longer-barreled semi-automatic version Thompson then being marketed by Numrich Arms, and it included an additional chapter on the Numrich gun by George Nonte that is not included in this second edition.)Since then any number of books and articles have retold the Thompson story, but the only one that greatly expands on this edition, especially in manufacturing details, is The Ultimate Thompson Book, published in 2009 by Tracie Hill, founder of The American Thompson Association. I want to thank Tracie for most of the additional photos that appear in this edition. I also want to thank David Albert, former president of TATA, for putting me in touch with Chipotle Publishing Company which presents this second edition, one hundred years after the founding of the Auto-Ordnance Corporation. It is expanded with "boxes" and an additional chapter that updates the original book that was published in 1969."

Handgun Crime Control, 1975-1976

Handgun Crime Control, 1975-1976
Author: United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on the Judiciary. Subcommittee to Investigate Juvenile Delinquency
Publisher:
Total Pages: 1322
Release: 1976
Genre: Crime prevention
ISBN:

Texas Ranger

Texas Ranger
Author: John Boessenecker
Publisher: Macmillan
Total Pages: 525
Release: 2016-04-26
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 125006998X

The first full-length biography of Frank Hamer whose extraordinary career as a Texas Ranger made him one of the West's most legendary lawmen.

American Murder

American Murder
Author: Mike Mayo
Publisher: Visible Ink Press
Total Pages: 451
Release: 2008-02-01
Genre: True Crime
ISBN: 1578592569

How would you treat a murderer? If you’re from Hollywood and he’s notorious, you might turn him into a folk hero. Separate the facts from the many legends and revisions that have blossomed around these killers in this frightening look at the bloody real lives of movie’s infamous antiheroes. You’ll find a blood-curdling assortment of the “criminal elite” in American Murder: Criminals, Crime and the Media, a rogue’s gallery of our most famous killings, killers and other scoundrels (and some that ought to be more famous than they are). A collection of high-profile murderers, gangsters, assassins, psychopaths, such as O.J., Amy Fisher, Robert Blake, Susan Smith, Claus Von Bulow, the Menendez brothers, Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy, Richard Speck, Al Capone, Pretty Boy Floyd, Bugsy Siegel, Jesse James, John Dillinger, Charles Manson, Albert Fish, T. Cullen Davis, Ronald DeFeo, Jr., Edmund Kemper, Beulah Annan, Bonnie and Clyde, Billy the Kid, Charlie Starkweather, as well as an assortment of lesser known killers with some incredible tales! With numerous photos and illustrations, this tome is richly illustrated, and its helpful bibliography and extensive index add to its usefulness. American Murderexplores the legends as depicted in movies, stories, and songs. You’d not want to meet any of them in person – either the real or Hollywood versions!

Supreme City

Supreme City
Author: Donald L. Miller
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 784
Release: 2015-05-19
Genre: History
ISBN: 1416550208

An award-winning historian surveys the astonishing cast of characters who helped turn Manhattan into the world capital of commerce, communication and entertainment --

Deadly Valentines

Deadly Valentines
Author: Jeffrey Gusfield
Publisher: Chicago Review Press
Total Pages: 370
Release: 2012
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1613740921

Capturing one of the most outrageous stories of the Capone era, this is the twin biography of a couple who defined the extremes and excesses of the Prohibition Era in America. ";Machine Gun"; Jack McGurn, a babyfaced Sicilian immigrant and Al Capone's chief assassin, and Louise May Rolfe, a beautiful blonde dancer and libertine, paired to represent the epitome of fashion, rebellion, and wild abandon in a decade that shocked and roared. Detailing McGurn's suspected role in the St. Valentine's Day Massacre and his sensational alibi, this biography shows how the couple captured the headlines in every newspaper in the country, had their hipster speech copied by Hollywood, and were the spellbinding poster children of the new jazz subculture. More than a look at the joie de vivre of two lovers caught in history's spotlight, this work examines the continuing allure of the Roaring Twenties and the characters who inspired America's love affair with gangster literature and crime cinema.

Tracking the Texas Rangers

Tracking the Texas Rangers
Author: Bruce A Glasrud
Publisher: University of North Texas Press
Total Pages: 321
Release: 2013-09-15
Genre: History
ISBN: 1574415263

Tracking the Texas Rangers: The Twentieth Century is an anthology of fifteen previously published articles and chapter excerpts covering key topics of the Texas Rangers during the twentieth century. The task of determining the role of the Rangers as the state evolved and what they actually accomplished for the benefit of the state is a difficult challenge. The actions of the Rangers fit no easy description. There is a dark side to the story of the Rangers; during the Mexican Revolution, for example, some murdered with impunity. Others sought to restore order in the border communities as well as in the remainder of Texas. It is not lack of interest that complicates the unveiling of the mythical force. With the possible exception of the Alamo, probably more has been written about the Texas Rangers than any other aspect of Texas history. Tracking the Texas Rangers covers leaders such as Captains Bill McDonald, “Lone Wolf” Gonzaullas, and Barry Caver, accomplished Rangers like Joaquin Jackson and Arthur Hill, and the use of Rangers in the Mexican Revolution. Chapters discuss their role in the oil fields, in riots, and in capturing outlaws. Most important, the Rangers of the twentieth century experienced changes in investigative techniques, strategy, and intelligence gathering. Tracking looks at the use of Rangers in labor disputes, in race issues, and in the Tejano civil rights movement. The selections cover critical aspects of those experiences—organization, leadership, cultural implications, rural and urban life, and violence. In their introduction, editors Bruce A. Glasrud and Harold J. Weiss, Jr., discuss various themes and controversies surrounding the twentieth-century Rangers and their treatment by historians over the years. They also have added annotations to the essays to explain where new research has shed additional light on an event to update or correct the original article text.