Bøger af Bruce Wexler

Explores real-life historical settings, weapons, equipment, and characters that John Wayne brought to life on the screen.

The Hatfields & the McCoys explores, with vibrant illustration, the historic feud between two iconic American families that ran for nearly three decades between 1863 and 1891. On the heels of the popular History Channel miniseries starring Kevin Costner, Bruce Wexler brings this chapter of American history to life for a new generation of readers. Here is an intimate look at the feud, the era, and an iconic cast of characters, including the two family patriarchs that started it all, William Anderson “Devil Anse” Hatfield and Randolph “Ole Ran’l” McCoy. The two led their families into a war marked by bloodshed and loss on both sides of the Tug Fork River that flows along the border of West Virginia and Kentucky. Part American folklore, part cautionary tale, The Hatfields & the McCoys separates the fact from the fiction and stands as a testimony to how this terrible episode became symbolic for pointless and bitter animosity. Wexler presents the reader with all of the crime, romance, betrayal, and violence that makes this America’s most infamous family feud. Through impressive storytelling and rare images, this book portrays the dramatic life and times of two extraordinary families unique to American history—from the developing hostilities towards the end of the Civil War to the New Year’s Night massacre of 1988 and the ensuing trials, imprisonments, and hangings that signaled the end of the feud.

A fascinating collection of classic country toys. In Classic Country Toys, Bruce Wexler takes us all on a trip down memory lane, and beyond, by providing an illustrated history of playthings with a country theme from 1880 to the present day. Here in clear, detailed color photographs are over 150 important landmark toys of all kinds—from Marx farm trucks, Buddy-L fire trucks, Tonka pickups, Howdy Doody dolls, Cabbage Patch Kids, Red Ryder BB guns, Fanner cap pistols, Tootsietoy cars, and Woodhaven and Ertl farm machinery through to modern classics like Dukes of Hazzard action figures and Woody from Toy Story.  Through professional photography, each toy is featured in close-up detail to highlight its most special qualities, including the inventive ways the toys' young owners used them. All toys, from the collection of the World's Largest Toy Museum in Branson, Missouri, are guaranteed to help us recapture a cherished piece of childhood. At once a tribute to America's rural roots and a joyful reminder of how much one doll or toy can matter, this fascinating illustrated history will warm the hearts of toy-lovers young and old.

Buckle Up and Get Your Kicks on Route 66​! Originally paved in the 1920s, the 2,451 miles of Route 66 have been a staple of the American Road Trip and have become an iconic thread running through the life, history, and culture of America. Spanning a total of eight states and stretching from Chicago all the way to the Pacific Ocean, Route 66 was appropriately named the "Mother Road" by John Steinbeck. An icon of American Folklore, Route 66 details slew of old gas stations, restaurants, diners, rest stops, and other attractions. Each must-see vestige is peppered with the history of the area. Route 66: Ghost Towns and Roadside Relics takes the reader along the whole length pf the most iconic stretch of road in the world. The book brings the essence of the Mother Road to life as it swings by nostalgic towns, faded motels, vintage gas stations, dilapidated signs, and famous landmarks on the route.  So buckle up and Get Your Kicks on Route 66!