Frank Hoffmann

Who is the Bill Bailey whose exploits were chronicled in song? How many popular songs have titles containing the words “moon,” “heart,” or “baby”? Where is the road to Mandalay? How many female names can you think of that have been mentioned in song titles? Discover this fascinating information and more about some of America's most known and loved popular songs in this delightful sampler. The Popular Song Reader contains over 200 short essays on the backgrounds of a wide variety of twentieth-century American popular songs. The witty and knowledgeable essays touch upon several hundred traditional-style pop songs as well as early rock compositions. The essays are filled with anecdotes, humor, irony, and even poetry that reflect the author's offbeat and somewhat irreverent manner, while also presenting a broad spectrum of American popular songs in their historical and cultural contexts. In addition to information about each song and its composer, the author also discusses how the song reflected society at the time and also how the song itself has influenced popular culture. Pop music fans will find this a highly entertaining and readable guide to the best American popular music of the twentieth century. Divided into five sections, the book covers popular songs from the Tin Pan Alley era (By the Light of the Silvery Moon, California, Here I Come, Let Me Call You Sweetheart, She'll Be Comin’Round the Mountain, and When Irish Eyes are Smiling), the swing/big band era (Don't Get Around Much Anymore, Heart and Soul, In the Mood, Stardust, and Stormy Weather), and the rock era (Chances Are, Good Vibrations, Love Me Tender, Misty, Rock Around the Clock, Stop! In the Name of Love, and The Twist). The Popular Song Reader provides new insights on all-time favorites from Broadway musicals, movies, and television including Ain't Misbehavin', Give My Regards to Broadway, My Funny Valentine, Aquarius, Cabaret, Luck Be a Lady, Mack the Knife, Don't Fence Me In, Over the Rainbow, Singin’in the Rain, and the theme songs from Star Wars , All in the Family, Cheers, and M*A*S*H.

Fads by nature and by definition are hard to capture, yet Hoffmann and Bailey have captured over one hundred of the passing fashion fancies and merchandising miracles during America’s short history in their latest collection of fads, Fashion & Merchandising Fads.Life devoid of fads is impossible to imagine, and the fads that do enter our lives become vehicles for amusement upon retrospection. How long any fad stays in vogue is anybody’s guess, but Hoffmann and Bailey have again found those fads that somehow took root and flourished, if only for a short period of time, in America. Concise entries describe each fad from its beginning to its demise and its devout followers. Readers are sure to recognize many of the trends and fads collected in Fashion & Merchandising Fads. A browse through the contents will have readers smiling as they remember Alex, Stroh’s Beer-Drinking Dog and “Baby On Board” Stickers Barbie Dolls and Celebrity Perfumes Convertibles, Digital Watches, and Drive-In Banking Garfield, G. I. Joe, and Handbags for Men Knickers and Matchbox Cars The Model T and the Mustang Paper Dolls and Rubik’s Cube Silly Putty, the Slinky, and Synthetics in Clothes Top Hats, the Trilby, and Twiggy VCRs, Yuppies, and ZubazEach fad featured in Fashion & Merchandising Fads is examined thoroughly and concisely by the authors. They look at the historical setting, how the trend became popular, and the people most fascinated and involved with the trend. References follow each entry to make further reading on each fad a relatively easy task for those intrigued by fads. As fads enter and encompass society for a period of time, this collection of fads, arranged alphabetically, is sure to captivate readers from beginning to end, or, in a world of fads, from the A-2 Flight Jacket to the Zipper.

Entries on fads in the fields of fashion and merchandising include the history of the fad, an analysis of its popularity, and its impact on American culture

Who is the Bill Bailey whose exploits were chronicled in song? How many popular songs have titles containing the words “moon,” “heart,” or “baby”? Where is the road to Mandalay? How many female names can you think of that have been mentioned in song titles? Discover this fascinating information and more about some of America's most known and loved popular songs in this delightful sampler. The Popular Song Reader contains over 200 short essays on the backgrounds of a wide variety of twentieth-century American popular songs. The witty and knowledgeable essays touch upon several hundred traditional-style pop songs as well as early rock compositions. The essays are filled with anecdotes, humor, irony, and even poetry that reflect the author's offbeat and somewhat irreverent manner, while also presenting a broad spectrum of American popular songs in their historical and cultural contexts. In addition to information about each song and its composer, the author also discusses how the song reflected society at the time and also how the song itself has influenced popular culture. Pop music fans will find this a highly entertaining and readable guide to the best American popular music of the twentieth century. Divided into five sections, the book covers popular songs from the Tin Pan Alley era (By the Light of the Silvery Moon, California, Here I Come, Let Me Call You Sweetheart, She'll Be Comin’Round the Mountain, and When Irish Eyes are Smiling), the swing/big band era (Don't Get Around Much Anymore, Heart and Soul, In the Mood, Stardust, and Stormy Weather), and the rock era (Chances Are, Good Vibrations, Love Me Tender, Misty, Rock Around the Clock, Stop! In the Name of Love, and The Twist). The Popular Song Reader provides new insights on all-time favorites from Broadway musicals, movies, and television including Ain't Misbehavin', Give My Regards to Broadway, My Funny Valentine, Aquarius, Cabaret, Luck Be a Lady, Mack the Knife, Don't Fence Me In, Over the Rainbow, Singin’in the Rain, and the theme songs from Star Wars , All in the Family, Cheers, and M*A*S*H.

Chocolate Fads, Folklore & Fantasies is the low-cal answer to satisfying chocolate cravings. Documenting the chocolate phenomenon by means of 1,000+ chocolate chunks of information, this tempting book discusses: Chocolate Fads: chocolate books, chocolate goodies (cakes, candy, cookies, ice cream), chocolate clubs, chocolate festivals, chocolate fund-raising, chocolate marketing, chocolate media, and chocolate novelties Chocolate Folklore: chocolate companies, chocolate history, chocolate nutrition, chocolate moguls, chocolate quotes, chocolate tips, chocolate trivia, and chocolate types Chocolate Fantasies: chocoholism, chocolate feasts, chocolate love, chocolate parties, chocolate promotions, and chocolate psychology. At the end of the book is a 200-item Chocoquiz, in the style of Trivial Pursuit, so that readers can use the book as a reference source to know everything there is to know about chocolate.Reference sections include acknowledgments to chocolate manufacturers, chocolate-related companies, a listing of chocolate publications (media articles, children's books, chocolate guides, cookbooks, chocolate humor, and chocolate specialities), and an impressive list of addresses and telephone numbers for more than 100 chocolate and chocolate-related companies. All chocoholics, out of the closet or not, will want to read this book. Chocolate Fads, Folklore & Fantasies promises to be the last word in chocolate, no fudging!

Chocolate Fads, Folklore & Fantasies is the low-cal answer to satisfying chocolate cravings. Documenting the chocolate phenomenon by means of 1,000+ chocolate chunks of information, this tempting book discusses: Chocolate Fads: chocolate books, chocolate goodies (cakes, candy, cookies, ice cream), chocolate clubs, chocolate festivals, chocolate fund-raising, chocolate marketing, chocolate media, and chocolate novelties Chocolate Folklore: chocolate companies, chocolate history, chocolate nutrition, chocolate moguls, chocolate quotes, chocolate tips, chocolate trivia, and chocolate types Chocolate Fantasies: chocoholism, chocolate feasts, chocolate love, chocolate parties, chocolate promotions, and chocolate psychology. At the end of the book is a 200-item Chocoquiz, in the style of Trivial Pursuit, so that readers can use the book as a reference source to know everything there is to know about chocolate.Reference sections include acknowledgments to chocolate manufacturers, chocolate-related companies, a listing of chocolate publications (media articles, children's books, chocolate guides, cookbooks, chocolate humor, and chocolate specialities), and an impressive list of addresses and telephone numbers for more than 100 chocolate and chocolate-related companies. All chocoholics, out of the closet or not, will want to read this book. Chocolate Fads, Folklore & Fantasies promises to be the last word in chocolate, no fudging!

True to the spirit of the all-American athlete and our society's seemingly endless pursuit of and passion for leisure activities is Sports & Recreation Fads. This readable and fascinating reference book highlights some of the most notable as well as some long-forgotten pastimes and personalities. Sporting and recreation events have thrived in the United States for more than two centuries. Just about every sport and recreation embraced from Colonial America to the present has had its faddish aspects. The fascinating introduction provides a basic understanding of the importance of fads in the development of sports and recreation. No book on sports fads would be complete without several chapters on baseball, and this exciting volume is no different--Hank Aaron's 715th home run, baseball card collecting, Mark “the Bird” Fidrych's shining season with the Detroit Tigers, Bo Jackson's double career, Jackie Robinson's success in breaking the color barrier, and Pete Rose's gambling troubles--a true slice of Americana, the best and the worst of our favorite pastime!From the controversial people and events in professional athletics--Mohammed Ali, Joe Namath, Mike Tyson, the “battle of the sexes” between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs, the “Black Sox Scandal,” and the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders, to the heroes--Charles Atlas, Joe Louis, and Babe Ruth, Hoffmann and Bailey illustrate the often fickle and sometimes enduring interest that Americans have for sports figures and their games. This informative and entertaining book also examines our personal quest for fitness, our devotion to automobiling, and our love of games, including bridge, charades, crossword puzzles, Monopoly, Dungeons & Dragons, Scrabble, and Trivial Pursuit. Sports &Recreation Fads is a handy guide to our favorite leisure activities of the last 200 years.