Firmly established in the world of entertainment, The Cat's route to fame has been through corporate and sporting dinners. He grew up loving sport and perservered despite having only one eye and an almost total absence of natural ability. His reputation as a figure of fun and his readiness to laugh at his own failures have reaped rich rewards. How many of us have played football with Bobby Moore and George Best at Wembley, or played at Lord's, or written a poem teasing the Duke of Edinburgh for never recognising us? In Nearly Famous, The Cat writes hilariously of the many famous people he has worked with - everyone from Colin Cowdrey, Bobby Robson and Terry Venables to Eric Clapton, Rod Stewart, Billy Connolly, Eric Morcambe and Brian Johnston - and the highs and lows of that most serious of businesses: making people laugh.

She packed her dreams of stardom away at 17 when she walked down the matrimonial aisle, never imagining that 30 years later she would have the chance to make them come true...and at what cost. Nearly Famous, Tales From The Hollywood Trenches is the captivating and incredibly honest story of a woman's journey from a 50's era good girl who married the man of her mother's dreams only to end up divorced, destitute and responsible for 2 little girls. The experience started a fire that fueled her determination to never be reliant on anyone else again. The result was an amazing career, sitting opposite the biggest stars in Hollywood, telling their story...but at what cost. In this very revealing memoir Reba Merrill takes the reader on an insider's look at the true cost of fame.

Now a Netflix Limited Series "...A compulsively readable tour de force." —The Wall Street Journal New York Times Book Review recommends M.T. Edvardsson’s A Nearly Normal Family and lauds it as a “page-turner” that forces the reader to confront “the compromises we make with ourselves to be the people we believe our beloveds expect.” (NYTimes Book Review Summer Reading Issue) M.T. Edvardsson’s A Nearly Normal Family is a gripping legal thriller that forces the reader to consider: How far would you go to protect the ones you love? In this twisted narrative of love and murder, a horrific crime makes a seemingly normal family question everything they thought they knew about their life—and one another. Eighteen-year-old Stella Sandell stands accused of the brutal murder of a man almost fifteen years her senior. She is an ordinary teenager from an upstanding local family. What reason could she have to know a shady businessman, let alone to kill him? Stella’s father, a pastor, and mother, a criminal defense attorney, find their moral compasses tested as they defend their daughter, while struggling to understand why she is a suspect. Told in an unusual three-part structure, A Nearly Normal Family asks the questions: How well do you know your own children? How far would you go to protect them?

Nearly every story in this collection is based on a woman who attained some celebrity, from Lord Byron's illegitimate daughter, Allegra, to Oscar Wilde's troubled niece, Dolly.

Bernard Madoff’s financial fraud was global, an enormous amount of money was involved, and thousands of people and hundreds of institutions were swindled. Madoff’s con game was a Ponzi scheme—an investment that pays returns to early investors from money acquired from subsequent investors. This case study of the Madoff scheme looks at the effects of his crimes on the victims. Elements from a theoretical framework put forward by Erving Goffman provide a perspective for understanding the development and the aftermath of Madoff’s con. For example, as Goffman would have put it, Madoff’s “marks were not cooled out.” Many did not accept the fact that they were victims of a con game and publicly clamored for sympathy, restitution, and for public officials to share their perspective. Inside men, ropers, outside men, and victims are at the core of con games. Lionel S. Lewis emphasizes that it is important to understand a con game’s characteristics so as to grasp how it operates. The Madoff fraud includes elements of a variety of con games. For a comprehensive study of this economic crime, the “case study” must be seen as part of the broader social system. Considerably more is known about the dynamics of con games than about Ponzi schemes, and this fact frames this book’s approach. To better understand what Madoff did, who was central in keeping his scheme alive, whom he defrauded, and how they reacted, this work is as invaluable as it is illuminating.

Publisher Description

"A brilliant distillation of the best thinking from one of the great minds in our field. This funny, uplifting page-turner inspires profound ′aha′ moments necessary for being a ′hope-pusher′ internally while effectively advocating for children in the larger community." —Alan M. Blankstein, President HOPE Foundation "Paul Houston thinks like a man of action and acts like a man of thought. His writings are packed with the wisdom, grace, and innovation that have made him one of the true leaders in American public education today." —Daniel H. Pink, Author A Whole New Mind "This book translates the real issues in public education into sublime teachings for life." —Anne L. Bryant, Executive Director National School Boards Association "Paul Houston is a crusader for American public education. His fresh ideas provide answers to some of the toughest challenges our schools and school leaders face today." —Richard Riley, Former U.S. Secretary of Education "In these timeless essays, Houston opens our minds with his powerful thoughts, touches our hearts with his understanding and passion, and invites us to see public schools and the children we serve in a new light." —Gail Connelly, Executive Director National Association of Elementary School Principals "Paul Houston′s extensive knowledge of the issues facing today′s busy school administrators is unparalleled. This collection is indeed a testament to Houston′s legacy and his deep love for and commitment to public education." —Gerald N. Tirozzi, Executive Director National Association of Secondary School Principals A collection of influential, insightful, and inspiring articles from an educational leadership expert! In this resource, retiring executive director of the American Association of School Administrators, former superintendent, and best-selling author Paul D. Houston examines the growing complexity of the educational process and the challenge of transforming learning into an engaging, meaningful—and even joyful—experience. Houston offers enlightening perspectives on global competition, the widening economic gulf between social classes, the explosion of information, and a landscape of competing expectations. This provocative book views education as "soul work" touching the deepest part of the human spirit and covers: What it means to be a leader The challenges of transforming public education How leaders can champion learning and education Lessons from the field