Kirjahaku

“The Duke is a harrowing tragedy of Shakespearean proportions, and a gripping read. Don’t miss it.”—T. J. English, New York Times bestselling author of Havana NocturneAn American Gothic… In the early 1990s, Tommy Morrison, a young roughneck from Jay, Oklahoma, burst onto the boxing scene to become one of the most controversial fighters of his era. Handsome, eloquent, and dynamic, Morrison parlayed destructive knockout power and a homespun personality into celebrity status throughout middle America, where boxing rarely prospered. But it was his starring role in Rocky V alongside Sylvester Stallone that propelled him to stardom–and ultimately led to his tragic downfall. His brush with Hollywood fame triggered a limitless appetite for parties, liquor, and sex. When Morrison was shockingly diagnosed with HIV in 1996, his life imploded, and his subsequent descent into drugs, prison, bigamy, and conspiracy theories made Morrison notorious long after his glory days had ended.In The Duke, Carlos Acevedo chronicles Morrison’s tumultuous life from his days as a teenaged Toughman contestant, to his victory over George Foreman, to his struggles with HIV and depression, to his death at forty-four, when his delusions finally overtook him.Morrison himself was a divisive figure but critics and readers are unanimous about Acevedo’s The Duke.“This is a big American saga writ large, just the sort of tortured tale Carlos Acevedo tells so well.”—Don Stradley, author of The War: Hagler–Hearns and Three Rounds for the Ages“I love how Carlos Acevedo writes. He's detached and immersive, observant and detailed, unsparing and fair. He brings to life what I love—and what I don't love—about boxing. That's clear in The Duke, which examines not just Tommy Morrison, but Morrison's place in boxing, celebrity culture, and the greater sports consciousness. It's the perfect marriage of writer and subject, written sharply, broadly and expertly—and hard to put down.”—Greg Bishop senior writer, Sports Illustrated

Cannibalism. Ritual murders. Cults. Blood rites. Possessions. Human trafficking. At a time when Ronald Reagan promised optimism, America found itself gripped by a widespread mania: the fear that devil worshippers were rising from a demonic underground to commit unspeakable acts of violence and mayhem. For more than a decade—from the early 1980s to the mid-1990s—America suffered through what is now infamously known as the “Satanic Panic.” Primed by the Occult-tinged ’60s, when Anton LaVey founded the Church of Satan, Roman Polanski shocked the public with Rosemary's Baby, and the Manson Family became shorthand for evil, the Satanic Panic eventually grew into a national obsession. Across the country, crimes both real and imagined, ranging from human sacrifices, multiple murders, and Satanic Ritual Abuse dominated mass media coverage. Serial killers such as David Berkowitz, “The Son of Sam,” who terrorized New York City in the late 1970s, the “Chicago Ripper” crew, allegedly run by a flesh-eating devil worshiper and “The Night Stalker,” Richard Ramirez, whose bloodlust seemed unquenchable, fueled fears of a war for the soul of America against the forces of darkness. In American Hellfire, Carlos Acevedo traces the roots of Satanic Panic from its beginnings as a pop-culture phenomenon to the sociological factors that reached critical mass in the 1980s. Along the way, the notorious crimes attributed to Satanism—including the daycare hysteria that saw dozens of innocent people indicted for atrocities they never committed—are revisited, as well as the hoaxes, tragedies, and conspiracy theories of an era whose nightmarish anxieties never truly went away.

“At a time when critics are expected to be publicists, and anything famous is ‘classic’ or ‘iconic,’ Carlos Acevedo has managed to hold the line. The Devil Inside is a sharp, hard-nosed aesthetic and cultural investigation into what everybody was throwing up about fifty years ago. It succeeds as criticism, history, and social analysis.”—Charles Taylor, film critic at Esquire, and author of Opening Wednesday at a Theater or Drive-In Near You: The Shadow Cinema of the American ’70sIn 1973, The Exorcist left moviegoers gripping their rosary beads, vomiting in their popcorn buckets, and fainting in the sticky aisles. Cynically marketed as a cursed production based on a “true story,” The Exorcist quickly became one of the most controversial films ever released. With its groundbreaking special effects, relentless pace, and terrifying finale, the film revolutionized the horror genre and paved the way for future blockbusters.In The Devil Inside, Carlos Acevedo goes beyond the myths to examine the national uproar The Exorcist caused, as well as the dark, real-world effects it had on a jittery audience. Until now, books about The Exorcist have largely perpetuated its legends while overlooking its cultural background. The Devil Inside places the film in its cinematic and social context—as a product of the New Hollywood, when maverick directors hijacked the film industry, and as part of the supernatural trends of the times, when the occult permeated music, books, and movies. From the original possession case that inspired the novel to the troubled production to the conflicts on the set to the uptick in demands for actual exorcisms, The Devil Inside sheds new light on a shocking phenomenon that has remained a pop-culture touchstone for fifty years.

Sporting Blood is the highly-anticipated debut from multiple-award-winning boxing journalist, Carlos Acevedo.

“In yet another skillful excavation of a dazzling Latino champion, Christian Giudice...follows Hector ‘Macho’ Camacho from his embattled childhood in Spanish Harlem, to the heights of his electrifying yet too-brief stardom and onto his abject end by hail of gunfire in a carful of cocaine. It is a compelling journey.”—Mark Kram Jr., author of Smokin’ Joe: The Life of Joe Frazier Hector Camacho lived fast, and his fists flew even faster in the ring. Handsome, flamboyant, and outspoken, Camacho electrified the boxing scene of the 1980s and, shouting his mantra “Macho Time”, he beat some of the greatest fighters of his generation. But his high-speed life caught up with him eventually-and tragically-when he was shot dead outside a nightclub in Puerto Rico at the age of fifty. Macho Time is written by Christian Giudice, author of Hands of Stone, the definitive biography of Roberto Duran, which was made into the motion picture of the same name starring Robert De Niro. Macho Time is the first biography of Hector Camacho Sr. Camacho's son, Hector Camacho Jr., also a professional boxer, worked closely with author Christian Giudice to give him unprecedented access and insight into this complex man. I thought I was cocky. Camacho surpasses me by three or four levels. But when Camacho brags, he’s not trying to convince you of anything; he’s just telling you what’s going to happen.”—Sugar Ray Leonard, from the pages of Macho Time “He would give me a hug and a kiss, then he would sit on the couch and make everyone laugh so hard. He had such good energy and spirit. He brought such joy to people whenever he entered a room. It was a gift.”—Hector Camacho Jr., from Afterword of Macho Time

“Smart, engaging...”—PopMatters“Fascinating, informative, extraordinary, and essential reading for the legions of Jim Morrison fans.”—Midwest Book ReviewShrouded in mystery and the swirling psychedelic sounds of the Sixties, the Doors have captivated listeners across seven decades. Jim Morrison—haunted, beautiful, and ultimately doomed—transformed from rock god to American icon. With each successive generation of fans, the Doors become more popular and transcendent. Yet the band’s full significance is buried beneath layers of mythology and folklore.In Roadhouse Blues, Bob Batchelor presents an epic tale of one of rock’s (and America’s) most significant periods, as the Age of Aquarius gave way to a new age of mayhem, presidential misdeeds, and murder. Batchelor combines cultural history, musical and lyrical analysis, and a broad stroke of pop-culture mythos to give fresh perspective on a pivotal time.Candid, authoritative, and utterly absorbing, Roadhouse Blues is a biography of a man, a band, and an era that set the tone for the contemporary world. Beyond the mythology, the hype, and the mystique around Morrison’s untimely death, this book takes readers on a roller-coaster ride, examining the impact the band had on America as the nation veered from decadence to debauchery.“We’re gonna have a real good time!”