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The Secret Parts of Fortune: Three Decades of Intense Investigations and Edgy Enthusiasms Paperback – June 19, 2001

by Ron Rosenbaum (Author)
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 14 ratings
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One part intellectual and one part private eye, Ron Rosenbaum takes readers into "the secret parts" of the great mysteries, controversies, and enigmas of our time, including:

  • the occult rituals of Skull and Bones, the legendary Yale secret society that has produced spies and presidents, including George Bush and George W. Bush.

  • the Secrets of the Little Blue Box, the classic story of "Captain Crunch" and the birth of hacker culture.

  • the "unorthodox" cancer-cure clinics of Tijuana.

  • the Great Ivy League Nude Posture Photo Scandal.

  • the unsolved murder of JFK's mistress.

Also including sharp, funny cultural critiques that range from Elvis to Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, Bill Gates to Oliver Stone, and J.D. Salinger to the Zagat® guide, The Secret Parts of Fortune is a vital record of American culture.

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Previous page
  1. Print length
    848 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Harper Perennial
  4. Publication date
    June 19, 2001
  5. Dimensions
    5.31 x 1.36 x 8 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0060934468
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0060934460
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"A masterly concoction, a blend of boy reporter, Ancient Mariner, and lounge lizard." -- --New York Times Book Review

"Impassioned obsessive probings...as if he were inviting you to a secret treasure hunt." -- --Fred Kaplan, Boston Globe

About the Author

Ron Rosenbaum grew up on Long Island, New York. A graduate of Yale with a degree in English literature, he left Yale Graduate School to write full-time. His essays and journalism have appeared in Harper's, Esquire, The New Republic, Vanity Fair, and The New Yorker; he's done eight cover stories for the New York Times Magazine. He is the author of four previous books, including one novel and three collections of his essays and journalism, most recently Travels with Dr Death and Other Unusual Investigations.

The Pulitzer Prize-winning writer and historian Thomas Powers called him "one of the few distinctive voices of modern American literary journalism." His work has been characterized by the essayist Phillip Lopate as combining "the skills of a terrific investigative reporter and an accomplished literary stylist with an idiosyncratic streak all his own."

More than ten years ago, he began investigating certain unresolved controversies among Hitler biographers, and ultimately embarked on an odyssey that took him from Vienna and Munich to London, Paris, and Jerusalem. The book that emerged combines original research and dramatic face-to-face encounters with historians, philosophers, psychologists, and theologians as they attempt to account for the elusive figure of Adolf Hitler and the meanings projected upon him by his explainers.

Currently Ron Rosenbaum writes for the New York Times Magazine, and The New York Observer, and teaches a course on literary journalism at the Columbia Graduate School of journalism.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harper Perennial (June 19, 2001)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 848 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0060934468
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0060934460
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.4 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.31 x 1.36 x 8 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 14 ratings

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Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
14 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

R. W. Rasband
5.0 out of 5 stars Rosenbaum, The Gnostic Explorer
Reviewed in the United States on August 8, 2000
Ron Rosenbaum got a lot of attention a couple of years ago with his amazing book "Explaining Hitler", which was about all the different theories people have come up with to account for that figure's almost overwhelming evil. However, he has been writing journalism for thirty years that explores the hidden underside of contemporary culture--the "gnostic knowledge", if you will, of the modern world. This book is a thick, satisfying collection of much of that work. Some of the best stuff: an exploration of Kim Philby and the information about him that Graham Greene might have taken to his death. An amusing expose of the naked "posture photos" that used to be required of every freshman at Ivy League universities. His Hitler essay that first appeared in the "New Yorker" magazine. The inside poop on the secret society of "Skull and Bones." There is also a lot of terrific "literary journalism"--the best essay I've ever read on J.D. Salinger, which first appeared in "Esquire"; along with his famous take on the underappreciated Charles Portis, which got his books back into print. Also, perceptive stuff on Martin Amis and an explanation of how the lost art of the "close reading" of the old-fashioned "New Critics" is better than post-modernism at explaining the world. Rosenbaum is definitely *not* a conspiracy theorist; his real subject is how human beings respond to mystery. He contrasts his own shifting views on the JFK asassination ("Oswald's Ghost") with the fatal paranoia that eventually overcame the late Danny Casolaro. This is an endlessly fascinating book--highly recommended for mystery lovers, history buffs, and fans of the weird and unexplained.
32 people found this helpful
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Nancy
4.0 out of 5 stars Very Dense
Reviewed in the United States on January 12, 2001
Verified Purchase
I had never read Ron Rosenbaum before I purchased this book and while I don't love everything I've read so far, I do have a great deal of respect for Rosenbaum as a journalist. To put it simply: he's brilliant. It's so refreshing to read his work. He's one of the best journalists I've ever read and am so glad that amazon brought him to my attention.
My problem with the book was that many of his essays just didn't grab me. The synopsis described several topics which I was sure would interest me but when I actually read them I found the writing style a bit dense and bogged down. I don't ever expect to like everything I read in collections. I particularly liked "The Great Ivy League Nude Posture Photo Scandal," as well as "Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer Hoax." This is the kind of compilation which I would not recommend attempting to read in one sitting. Smaller portions worked best for me. This is a wonderful collection of Rosenbaum's work, and while I haven't read them all yet, so far, so good.
23 people found this helpful
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Susan Paxton
5.0 out of 5 stars America's best living essayist
Reviewed in the United States on September 5, 2000
I have to confess being unfamiliar with Ron Rosenbaum until reading his excellent, perceptive book "Explaining Hitler." What a pleasure, then, that he has followed that book up with this collection of his magazine work extending over the past three decades. The essays collected here are a mixed bag showing Rosenbaum's extensive range, from amusing short pieces to long works in depth. Some personal favorites include his early exploration of the world of phone phreaks (in which Rosenbaum predicted, correctly, that computer hacking was the wave of the future - this in 1971!), his exposure of the Henry Lee Lucas serial killer hoax, his slightly crazed looks at TV culture via the war over canned laughter and the eminence of Mr. Whipple in toilet paper advertising, a short but incredibly horrible glimpse of early 60s teen film star Troy Donahue debauched and decrepit in the early 70s, his explorations into the world of the Kennedy assassination mythos, a brief, horrified look at Bill Gates' house, and his wonderful exposure of Yale's weird Skull and Bones fraternity. Every piece is well worth your time and several are worthy of close rereading. Rosenbaum is a fine writer, improving continuously as this collection shows (and he started at a very high level), and I'll be looking for his magazine pieces from now on.
23 people found this helpful
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