The emergence of the double-bill in the 1930s created a divide between A-pictures and B-pictures as theaters typically screened packages featuring one of each. With the former considered more prestigious because of their larger budgets and more popular actors, the lower-budgeted Bs served largely as a support mechanism to A-films of the major studios—most of which also owned the theater chains in which movies were shown. When a 1948 U.S. Supreme Court antitrust ruling severed ownership of theaters from the studios, the B-movie soon became a different entity in the wake of profound changes to the corporate organization and production methods of the major Hollywood studios. In The Battle for the Bs, Blair Davis analyzes how B-films were produced, distributed, and exhibited in the 1950s and demonstrates the possibilities that existed for low-budget filmmaking at a time when many in Hollywood had abandoned the Bs. Made by newly formed independent companies, 1950s B-movies took advantage of changing demographic patterns to fashion innovative marketing approaches. They established such genre cycles as science fiction and teen-oriented films (think Destination Moon and I Was a Teenage Werewolf) well before the major studios and also contributed to the emergence of the movement now known as underground cinema. Although frequently proving to be multimillion-dollar box-office draws by the end of the decade, the Bs existed in opposition to the cinematic mainstream in the 1950s and created a legacy that was passed on to independent filmmakers in the decades to come.

In this insightfully honest and moving memoir about the realities of teaching in an inner-city school, Ed Boland "smashes the dangerous myth of the hero-teacher [and] shows us how high the stakes are for our most vulnerable students" (Piper Kerman, author of Orange is the New Black). In a fit of idealism, Ed Boland left a twenty-year career as a non-profit executive to teach in a tough New York City public high school. But his hopes quickly collided headlong with the appalling reality of his students' lives and a hobbled education system unable to help them. Freddy runs a drug ring for his incarcerated brother; Nee-cole is homeschooled on the subway by her brilliant homeless mother; Byron's Ivy League dream is dashed because he is undocumented. In the end, Boland isn't hoisted on his students' shoulders and no one passes AP anything. This is no urban fairy tale of at-risk kids saved by a Hollywood hero, but a searing indictment of schools that claim to be progressive but still fail their students. Told with compassion, humor, and a keen eye, Boland's story is sure to ignite debate about the future of American education and attempts to reform it.

From a British Royal Navy officer, a detailed history of World War I’s principal battles at sea. With the call to action stations in August 1914, the Royal Navy faced its greatest test since the time of Nelson . . . This classic history of the Great War at sea combines graphic and stirring accounts of all the principal naval engagements—battles overseas, in home waters and, for the first time, under the sea—with analysis of the strategy and tactics of both sides. Geoffrey Bennett brings these sea battles dramatically to life, and confirms the Allied navies’ vital contribution to victory. Praise for Naval Battles of the First World War “Strongly recommended.” —RUSI Journal “Excellent balanced accounts and judgements.” —Richard Hough, historian and author “Extensive photographs, include key aspects such as the German battle cruiser Blucher at the Dogger Bank battle, the destruction of the British battle cruiser Queen Mary, as well as the German dreadnaught Bayern sinking after being scuttled at Scapa Flow. A fascinating diagram shows Battleship Turrets, which provides insight into the process of action, such as the shell room, cordage charge, magazine, to the cordite hoist and gun.” —Jon Sandison, historian

"This book provides a vivid and powerful narrative of three connected battles in dense Georgia woods in the last week of May 1864. Neither side derived any tactical advantage from the fighting in this 'hell hole, ' as the soldiers described it, yet the final result was another Confederate retreat toward Atlanta in Sherman's seemingly inexorable advance toward that city." -James M. McPherson, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Battle Cry of Freedom When Union general William T. Sherman marched toward Atlanta in 1864, he found himself face to face with Joseph E. Johnston's Army of Tennessee, entangled in an untamed wilderness that came to be known as the Hell Hole. During the week-long ordeal of virtually continuous fighting at New Hope Church and nearby Pickett's Mill and Dallas, a new era of trench warfare was introduced and Sherman's and Johnston's strategies for the remainder of the Atlanta Campaign were forged. In this examination of a series of actions in Paulding County, Georgia, maps pinpoint battle locations while photographs capture the sites of conflict and portray the brave men who served on both sides of the War Between the States.

/Robert Underwood Johnson Opens with the siege and capture of Fort Pulaski, the capture of New Orleans, and a summary of operations in the far southwest. Chronicled are Lee's campaign against the second Battle of Bull Run, Antietam, and finally the battles at Luka and Cori

An epic battle is taking place right before our very eyes, noses, ears and mouths! And help is on the way from an unlikely but lovable source. What is this source? Meet Toto, your average boy who takes an extraordinary journey to unpack the fascinating world of viruses, parasites, bacteria and mold! Become a germs expert and triumph!Series features: