California Biographies

Listen as five criminals tell their stories. Jay Jay found trouble young, very young. Serving time at age 12 is not the beginning of Jay Jay’s descent into criminality. Cjay has been in nearly as many prisons as she has fingers, yet nothing in her upbringing predestined her for crime. Lawrence, a child raised in American ghetto circumstances, became the epitome of extreme violence while at the same time holding tight an inner secret of female identity. Brian was a young man with a twinkle in his eye and a propensity for getting caught.

At the ripe old age of thirteen, Larry W. Gamble’s curiosity made a decided right-hand turn from dating lovely teenage girls and enjoying the transitional years of youth, to making terrible decisions creating constant turmoil in his young life. Jumping off the Roof takes the reader on a trip through the teen years as Larry tries in vain to develop character and integrity. Unfortunately, his psychological development is a challenge and always a work-in-progress.

In this first biography of Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. in more than 30 years, Chuck McFadden explores the unique persona of one of the most idiosyncratic politicians in California history. The son of California political royalty who forged his own political style against the tumultuous backdrop of a huge, balkanized state - and shoved to and fro by complex currents - Jerry Brown pursued visionary impulses as well as his grandiose ambitions.

This new biography—featuring over 150 archival images and full-color photographs printed throughout—introduces Julia Morgan as both a pioneering architect and a captivating individual. Julia Morgan was a lifelong trailblazer. She was the first woman admitted to study architecture at the...

Upton Sinclair, the greatest of the muckraking journalists, author of "The Jungle" and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist, decided to run for Governor of California in 1934. It was the depths of the Great Depression in America and around the world. He changed his party registration to Democratic, ran for, and won the nomination. In this book, Sinclair lays out step by step what he proposes to do to lift the working men and women of California out of the poverty and unemployment which had gripped the state, the nation, and the world.

I'm often asked why I still do criminal defense. My response is because the stories are the best. Richard Stanley has proven adage to be true ten times over. This is a fascinating story told in masterful fashion that is riveting and entertaining.

Fred Korematsu liked listening to music on the radio, playing tennis, and hanging around with his friends - just like lots of other Americans. But everything changed when the United States went to war with Japan in 1941 and the government forced all people of Japanese ancestry to leave their homes on the West Coast and move to distant prison camps. This included Fred, whose parents had immigrated to the United States from Japan many years before. But Fred refused to go.

Charles Manson è l'uomo che ha annegato in un mare di sangue il sogno del flower power: insieme alla sua "Family" è stato il protagonista di alcuni dei crimini più efferati della storia americana, come il massacro di Cielo Drive, in cui l'attrice Sharon Tate (all'epoca incinta) venne trucidata con più di 160 coltellate, o gli omicidi LaBianca.

Nel 1936, nel pieno della Grande depressione, il San Francisco News commissiona a John Steinbeck una serie di articoli sulla condizione dei braccianti agricoli immigrati in California. Sono americani del Midwest, colpiti dalla crisi e costretti a fuggire dalle tempeste di sabbia della Dust Bowl. Reduce dal grande successo di "Pian della Tortilla", Steinbeck sale su un furgone da panettiere e inizia il suo viaggio fra le vallate della California.

A boyhood memoir of two summers in Armenian Fresno and it's relation to the rise of the California super state and it's relationship with New York. "49 million Californians can't be wrong." (Randy Stickrod)

Young, beautiful, popular, intelligent: You can have all these things going for you and still find yourself in situations you cannot get out of. In Gone Too Soon, author Don Lasseter explores three cases of young lives cut short.

In this group of stories from the Notorious USA archives, we find three ladies who will do anything, just about anything, for money. This journey has no limit to the amount of twists and turns it will take, and things are not always how they appear. Miki McDermott, June Gravlee, and Olga Thomas all had selfish desires to take what did not belong to them. Enlisting friends and family in their devious plots could be a stroke of genius or just may be their undoing.

Delve into the hidden underbelly of crime as we unveil the secrets of the Los Angeles Mafia Crime Family. From its elusive origins to its far-reaching influence, prepare to uncover the tangled web of power, intrigue, and betrayal that defined this criminal empire.

Do you have to be lucky to win a lottery jackpot prize? My biggest win was just under thirty thousand dollars! My following two jackpots hit for a combined total of over twenty-four thousand dollars! I hit the 8 Spot with the bulls-eye on California’s Hot Spot Lottery game. It’s the Golden State's version of Keno! Now that I’ve found my rhythm, I’m staying on beat. Let’s take a trip down memory lane as I share my tips and tricks on this complex, exciting, eclectic game of numbers, odds, and strategic moves where timing is everything!

"The employee is regarded by the employer merely in the light of his value as an operative. His productive capacity alone is taken into account." (Stanford) Leland Stanford: The Life and Legacy of the Railroad Executive Who Became California’s Governor and the West’s Most Famous Robber Baron chronicles the remarkable life of Stanford.

You're about to discover the incredibly inspirational story of boxing superstar Timothy Bradley. If you're reading this, then you must be a fan of Timothy Bradley, like so many others. As a fan, you must wonder how this man is so talented and want to know more about him. Timothy is considered as one of the greatest boxers of our time, and it's been an honor to be able to watch him fight throughout his career.

You're about to discover the incredibly inspirational story of UFC superstar Ronda Rousey. If you're reading this then, you must be a fan of Ronda, like so many others. As a fan, you must wonder how this woman is so talented and want to know more about her. Ronda is considered one of the greatest MMA fighters in the world and it's been an honor to be able to watch her compete throughout her young career.