FC: Books: Charles Platt's "Enrob," E. Schwartz's "Last Lone Inventor"

From: Declan McCullagh (declanat_private)
Date: Tue May 07 2002 - 10:18:14 PDT

  • Next message: Declan McCullagh: "FC: Feds take matters firmly in hand: Hearing on "Chat Room Dangers""

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    Date: Tue, 7 May 2002 02:40:32 -0400 (EDT)
    From: Charles Platt <cpat_private>
    To: Declan McCullagh <declanat_private>
    Cc: cpat_private
    Subject: Enron
    
    Declan, I wish to draw your readers' attention to an item that should be
    of fantastic importance to anyone who has expressed even marginal interest
    in that amazing saga of greed and politics, the Enron scandal.
    
    As Arthur Andersen Inc musters its few remaining resources to explain its
    shredding orgy in federal court, my much more interesting explanation is
    already being distributed to (at least a few) bookstores throughout the
    land.
    
    I refer of course to the vital document euphemistically titled "Enrob
    [sic] Annual Report 2001," which coincidentally emerges from the womb of
    its publisher, ReganBooks, a division of HarperCollins, today, May 7th.
    
    Those who want to look at this epochal study of greed-crazed malfeasance
    without having to buy it can click on the inevitable URL:
    
    www.enrobreport.com
    
    --Charles Platt
    
    (Former tech journalist, Wired writer, author of "Anarchy Online," "How to
    Be a Happy Cat," and other titles too embarrassing to mention.)
    
    ---
    
    From: "johnmac" <johnmacat_private>
    To: <johnmacsgroupat_private>
    Cc: <eisat_private>, <declanat_private>, <farberat_private>
    Subject: Books: THE LAST LONE INVENTOR (and book promotions)
    Date: Tue, 7 May 2002 12:12:17 -0400
    
    The following is a promo piece that I just received from Evan Schwartz 
    about his new book, "THE LAST LONE INVENTOR: A Tale of Genius, Deceit, and 
    the Birth of Television". I've known Evan, via e-mail and a few phone 
    calls, for a number of years back to the days when he was with Byte 
    Magazine and read his E-Commerce Book. I have always enjoyed his writing 
    and found it worthwhile.
    
    His choice of promoting it via mailing list is also interesting. Much of 
    book success seems to be found in just "getting out there". Around 1990, I 
    read two books in draft and galleys and friends, "Panama -- The Whole 
    Story" by Kevin Buckley, a tale of Noreiga's rule, replete with interviews 
    of Noreiga and others, that read like a mystery novel, and "CyberPunk" by 
    Katie Hafner and John Markoff, the story of three unrelated hackers, Kevin 
    Mitnik; Robert Morris, Jr., and the German hacker who was the villian in 
    Cliff Stoll's "The Cuckoo's Egg" -- "Cyberpunk" was equally 
    fascinating  and I had expectations that both books, coincidentally both 
    published by Simon and Schuster, would do very well.
    
    This expectation was bolstered when both received good reviews in the 
    Sunday Times (the review of the Panama book was as postitive as I have ever 
    seen). Katie told me at the time of the launch that friends had recommended 
    that they not depend on S&S to promote the book but rather to hire their 
    own publicist and that they had done so. I mentioned this to Kevin and he 
    said that he had considered it and had not done so. -- and what a 
    difference. John and Katie were all over the dial being interviewed -- "The 
    Today Show" etc. while I never heard Kevin in the New York area. He was on 
    with Jim Bonhannon on a Saturday night radio show where the closest feed to 
    NYC was Albany and I heard him on an FM station in Washington one night 
    when I was there. The number of books in the stores were a reflection of 
    the publicity, it seemed also. I could always find copies of "Cyberpunk" 
    but not always "Panama" -- and it was a real shame because I thought then 
    (and still think) that it was a book well worth reading (buy it and read it 
    now!)
    
    So I hope that Evan's promos get his book into the public eye so that it 
    gets a fair shot.
    
    ----- Original Message -----
    From: "Evan I. Schwartz" <<mailto:eisat_private>eisat_private>
    To: <<mailto:announceat_private>announceat_private>
    Sent: Tuesday, May 07, 2002 11:09 AM
    Subject: Announcing THE LAST LONE INVENTOR, my new book
    
    I'm pleased to announce the brand new publication of . . . .
    THE LAST LONE INVENTOR: A Tale of Genius, Deceit, and the Birth of
    Television.
    
    The book is released this week by HarperCollins, and I'd like to tell
    you a little about it. This is the true story of one of the greatest
    technology and business conflicts of all time: THE LAST LONE INVENTOR
    tells the tale of Philo T. Farnsworth, the farm boy who invented
    television. We follow Farnsworth as he finds himself engaged in an epic
    battle with RCA tycoon and NBC founder David Sarnoff, and we see how the
    clash between these two passionate adversaries symbolizes a turning
    point in the culture of creativity. All that in only 300 pages.
    
    Oddly enough, my interest in Philo T. Farnsworth and his struggle to
    bring his television into the world grew out of my work writing a pair
    of books about the World Wide Web. While the story is a historical
    account, you'll recognize the many parallels to today that drew me to
    the tale in the first place. My research led me to a remarkable person.
    When I had heard that Farnsworth's widow was still alive, I was
    apprehensive about contacting her and asking her to revisit painful
    memories, but when I tracked down her telephone number and called, I was
    glad I did, and she seemed glad too. Elma G. 'Pem' Farnsworth was about
    to turn 92 when I first met her in December, 1999. This book wouldn't be
    the same if it weren't for her ability to recall events of long ago in
    vivid detail.
    
    I hope you find this story as inspiring as I do. Above all, this is a
    tale of what human ingenuity can accomplish against great odds. That's
    why I begin the story with this quote from Farnsworth's hero, Albert
    Einstein: 'Anything that is truly great or inspiring is created in the
    mind of one individual laboring in freedom.'
    
    
    ***** EARLY BLURBS & REVIEWS
    "Farnsworth is probably the most influential unknown person in the past
    century. Evan Schwartz tells the fascinating inside story of how this
    eccentric loner invented television and fought corporate America."
    -- Walter Isaacson, chairman, CNN
    
    "THE LAST LONE INVENTOR is the fascinating true story of the epic tussle
    between the Lone Inventor and the Mega-Mogul over the most influential
    invention of all time. This is a riveting American classic of
    independent brilliance versus corporate arrogance. I found it more fun
    than fiction."
    -- James Bradley, author of Flags of Our Fathers
    
    "For pop history chroniclers, the story of Philo T. Farnsworth is almost
    too good to be true . . . Schwartz's cogent and elegant book
    persuasively argues Farnsworth's case and describes the heartbreak that
    defined his life."
    -- PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
    
    "The author's decision to focus on the battles between Farnsworth and
    Sarnoff not only makes for compelling biography, but also vividly
    captures America's 20th-century transformation from an independent
    frontier culture to a modern, media-driven society. . . Schwartz's
    strong, dramatic prose ensures that a general audience will appreciate
    it."
    -- KIRKUS REVIEWS
    
    
    ***** Buy the Book at a Store Near You, or Order at Amazon.com or BN.com
    
    Please support your local bookseller, as these stores build community
    and enable diversity.
    
    If you cannot make it to a store - to order from Amazon.com:
    <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0066210690/webonombyevaniscA/>http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0066210690/webonombyevaniscA/
    
    To order from Barnes&Noble.com:
    <http://bn.bfast.com/booklink/click?sourceid=1683622&isbn=0066210690>http://bn.bfast.com/booklink/click?sourceid=1683622&isbn=0066210690
    
    
    ***** VISIT THE OFFICIAL WEBSITE
    
    HarperCollins did a fantastic job designing not only the cover but also
    the book's official website . . .
    <http://www.lastloneinventor.com>http://www.lastloneinventor.com
    
    . . . which includes a special section of historic photos and video
    clips, including Farnsworth's only national television appearance, on a
    1957 quiz show.
    <http://www.harpercollins.com/hc/features/special/inventor>http://www.harpercollins.com/hc/features/special/inventor
    
    
    ***** TOUR SCHEDULE & MEDIA APPEARANCES
    
    Please come out and see me on the book tour, which begins in Washington
    D.C. on May 28, continues to New York on May 29, Boston on May 30, Los
    Angeles on June 5 and San Francisco on June 6. Events and media
    appearances include:
    
    Thursday, May 09, 2002 12:00 PM - 12:30 PM, live author interview on
    CNNfn - "The Biz"
    
    Sunday, May 12, 2002 03:00 PM - 04:00 PM, hour-long interview on
    WRKO-680 AM, Boston - "Tech Beat"
    
    Tuesday, May 28, 2002 - Washington, D.C. media day
    
    Wednesday, May 29, 2002 07:00 PM - 08:00 PM, discussion, reading and
    signing at BARNES & NOBLE/Lincoln Center, 1972 Broadway, New York
    
    Thursday, May 30, 2002 07:00 PM - 08:30 PM, discussion, reading and
    signing at  BROOKLINE BOOKSMITH, 279 Harvard Street, Brookline, Mass.
    
    Wednesday, June 05, 2002 06:30 PM, discussion, reading, and signing,
    AGOURA HILLS LIBRARY, 29901 Ladyface Court, Agoura Hills, Calif.
    
    Thursday, June 06, 2002 05:00 PM, a special event at PHILO TELEVISION -
    a reading, discussion and signing in the laboratory location where
    Farnsworth invented electronic television in 1927 -- 200 Green Street,
    San Francisco.
    
    Check <http://www.lastloneinventor.com>www.lastloneinventor.com for the 
    latest NEWS, SURPRISE MEDIA
    APPEARANCES, and SCHEDULE ADDITIONS, or
    <mailto:jennifer.swihartat_private>mailto:jennifer.swihartat_private 
    for additional media and book
    tour info.
    
    
    ***** About THE LAST LONE INVENTOR - from the inside of the book jacket:
    
    In a story that is both of its time and timeless, Evan I. Schwartz tells
    a tale of genius and greed, innocence and deceit, and corporate
    arrogance versus independent brilliance. In other words, the very
    qualities that have made this country -- for better or for worse -- what
    it is.
    
    Many men have laid claim to the title "The Father of Television" but
    Philo T. Farnsworth is the true genius behind what may be the most
    influential invention of our time. Farnsworth may have ended up a
    footnote in history, yet he was the first to demonstrate an electronic
    process for scanning, transmitting and receiving moving images, a
    discovery that changed the way we live.
    
    Growing up on a small farm in Idaho, Farnsworth was fascinated by
    anything scientific, especially the newest thing on the market -- radio.
    Wouldn't it be even more miraculous to project images along with the
    sound? Driven by his obsession, Farnsworth found a local philanthropist
    willing to fund his dream. By the age of twenty, in 1926, Farnsworth was
    operating his own laboratory above a garage in San Francisco and filing
    his first patent applications.
    
    The resulting publicity brought him to the attention of David Sarnoff,
    the celebrated founder of the NBC radio network, whose own RCA
    laboratories soon began investigating -- without much success -- a way
    to transmit a moving image. Determined to control television the way he
    monopolized radio -- by owning all the royalty producing
    patents--Sarnoff, from the lofty heights of his office in a New York
    skyscraper, devised a plan to steal credit for Farnsworth's designs.
    
    Vividly written, and based on original research, including interviews
    with surviving members of the Farnsworth family, The Last Lone Inventor
    is the story of the epic struggle between two equally passionate
    adversaries and how their clash symbolized a turning point in the
    culture of creativity.
    
    
    ***** Read the Excerpt in WIRED
    
    Check out 'Televisionary,' a feature article adapted from THE LAST LONE
    INVENTOR, as published in WIRED magazine.
    
    <http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/10.04/farnsworth.html>http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/10.04/farnsworth.html
    
    
    
    
    
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