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SUPERSCOUT

Name: SUPERSCOUT
Author: Jim Russo
ISBN: 0-929387-69-4

THIRTY-FIVE YEARS OF MAJOR LEAGUE SCOUTING WITH THE BALTIMORE ORIOLES

by Jim Russo with Bob Hammel ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1992

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As a scout for the Baltimore Orioles (originally the St. Louis Browns) from 1952-87, Russo participated in one of baseball's most prestigious and successful franchises. Here, in a loosely structured series of anecdotes, he offers an enjoyable look at those years. Hired in 1952 as a ``commission scout'' for the floundering Browns (paid $100 for each step a player made up the baseball ladder, a scout earned $1,000 if his discovery made the major leagues), Russo had the task of signing quality players for little or no bonus money and not much more than promises. By 1958, he was in charge of 26 states and 14 scouts. The club was in Baltimore by then, and their perennial goal was to knock off the hated New York Yankees. The Orioles finally did that in 1966 and, as Russo proudly points out, with the exceptions of Frank Robinson and Luis Aparicio, they beat the Yanks with home-grown talent. Over the next 20 years, there would be more division and league championships and a few World Series rings. Russo recounts that period with fond, sharp remembrance, profiling the players, managers, and owners he worked with: Earl Weaver, the Robinsons Frank and Brooks, Bill Veeck, Boog Powell, Jim Palmer, and numerous others. Of particular interest are his behind-the-scenes accounts of the scouting and signing of players like Palmer, Dave McNally, Wally Bunker, Davey Johnson, and others. As a judge of talent, a front office confidant, and a pioneer in scouting the other league prior to a World Series, Russo ``saw them all'' and does not hesitate to offer his frank evaluations. Despite a lack of personal data and a confusing chronological sequence: a dandy, feisty take on the grand old game.

Pub Date: April 1, 1992

ISBN: 0-929387-69-4

Page Count: 230

Publisher: N/A

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 1992

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.