Bøger af Margaret Leslie Davis

The never-before-told story of one extremely rare copy of the Gutenberg Bible, and its impact on the lives of the fanatical few who were lucky enough to own it.

The rise and fall of William Mulholland, and the story of L.A.'s disastrous dam collapse: ';A dramatic saga of ambition, politics, money and betrayal' (Los Angeles Daily News). Rivers in the Desert follows the remarkable career of William Mulholland, the visionary who engineered the rise of Los Angeles as the greatest American city west of the Mississippi. He sought to transform the sparse and barren desert into an inhabitable environment by designing the longest aqueduct in the Western Hemisphere, bringing water from the mountains to support a large city. This ';fascinating history' chronicles Mulholland's dramatic ascension to wealth and famefollowed by his tragic downfall after the sudden collapse of the dam he had constructed to safeguard the water supply (Newsweek). The disaster, which killed at least five hundred people, caused his repudiation by allies, friends, and a previously adoring community. Epic in scope,Rivers in the Desertchronicles the history of Los Angeles and examines the tragic fate of the man who rescued it. ';An arresting biography of William Mulholland, the visionary Los Angeles Water Department engineer ... [his] personal and public dramas make for gripping reading.' Publishers Weekly ';A fascinating look at the political maneuvering and engineering marvels that moved the City of Angels into the first rank of American cities.' Booklist

A biography that follows Edward L Doheny's story from his days as an itinerant prospector in the dangerous jungles of Mexico, where he built the $100-million oil empire that ushered in the new era of petroleum. But it was a tale that ended in tragedy, when Doheny was embroiled in the notorious Teapot Dome scandal.

Franklin Murphy? It's not a name that is widely known; even during his lifetime the public knew little of him. But for nearly thirty years, Murphy was the dominant figure in the cultural development of Los Angeles. Behind the scenes, Murphy used his role as confidant, family friend, and advisor to the founders and scions of some of America's greatest fortunes-Ahmanson, Rockefeller, Ford, Mellon, and Annenberg-to direct the largesse of the wealthy into cultural institutions of his choosing. In this first full biography of Franklin D. Murphy (1916-994), Margaret Leslie Davis delivers the compelling story of how Murphy, as chancellor of UCLA and later as chief executive of the Times Mirror media empire, was able to influence academia, the media, and cultural foundations to reshape a fundamentally provincial city. The Culture Broker brings to light the influence of L.A.'s powerful families and chronicles the mixed motives behind large public endeavors. Channeling more than one billion dollars into the city's arts and educational infrastructure, Franklin Murphy elevated Los Angeles to a vibrant world-class city positioned for its role in the new era of global trade and cross-cultural arts.