Picture 1 of 1
The Devil's Tickets: A Night of Bridge, a Fatal Hand, and a New American Age
Condition:
Postage:
Located in: Sparks, Nevada, United States
Delivery:
Estimated between Mon, 6 May and Wed, 8 May to 43230
Returns:
Coverage:
Read item description or contact seller for details. See all detailsSee all details on coverage
(Not eligible for eBay purchase protection programmes)
Seller information
- 98.5% positive feedback
Registered as a Business Seller
Seller assumes all responsibility for this listing.
eBay item number:285318278254
Item specifics
- Condition
- Publication Date
- 2009-06-09
- Pages
- 300
- ISBN
- 9781400051625
- Book Title
- Devil's Tickets : a Night of Bridge, a Fatal Hand, and a New American Age
- Item Length
- 9.4in
- Publisher
- Crown Publishing Group, T.H.E.
- Publication Year
- 2009
- Format
- Hardcover
- Language
- English
- Item Height
- 1.1in
- Genre
- Family & Relationships, Biography & Autobiography, Travel, True Crime, Games & Activities, History, Social Science
- Topic
- Murder / General, General, Card Games / Bridge, Special Interest / Hikes & Walks, Customs & Traditions, United States / General
- Item Width
- 6.4in
- Item Weight
- 19.2 Oz
- Number of Pages
- 320 Pages
About this product
Product Information
Kansas City, 1929: Myrtle and Jack Bennett sit down with another couple for an evening of bridge. As the game intensifies, Myrtle complains that Jack is a "bum bridge player." For such insubordination, he slaps her hard in front of their stunned guests and announces he is leaving. Moments later, sobbing, with a Colt .32 pistol in hand, Myrtle fires four shots, killing her husband. The Roaring 1920s inspired nationwide fadsflagpole sitting, marathon dancing, swimming-pool endurance floating. But of all the mad games that cheered Americans between the wars, the least likely was contract bridge. As the Barnum of the bridge craze, Ely Culbertson, a tuxedoed boulevardier with a Russian accent, used mystique, brilliance, and a certain madness to transform bridge from a social pastime into a cultural movement that made him rich and famous. In writings, in lectures, and on the radio, he used the Bennett killing to dramatize bridge as the battle of the sexes. Indeed, Myrtle Bennett's murder trial became a sensation because it brought a beautiful housewifeand hints of her husband's infidelityfrom the bridge table into the national spotlight. James A. Reed, Myrtle's high-powered lawyer and onetime Democratic presidential candidate, delivered soaring, tear-filled courtroom orations. As Reed waxed on about the sanctity of womanhood, he was secretly conducting an extramarital romance with a feminist trailblazer who lived next door. To the public, bridge symbolized tossing aside the ideals of the Puritanswho referred derisively to playing cards as "the Devil's tickets"and embracing the modern age. Ina time when such fearless women as Amelia Earhart, Dorothy Parker, and Marlene Dietrich were exalted for their boldness, Culbertson positioned his game as a challenge to all housebound women. At the bridge table, he insisted, a woman could be her husband's equal, and more. In the gathering darkness of the Depression, Culbertson leveraged his own ballyhoo and naughty innuendo for all it was worth, maneuvering himself and his brilliant wife, Jo, his favorite bridge partner, into a media spectacle dubbed the Bridge Battle of the Century. Through these larger-than-life characters and the timeless partnership game they played, The Devil's Tickets captures a uniquely colorful age and a tension in marriage that is eternal. From the Hardcover edition.
Product Identifiers
Publisher
Crown Publishing Group, T.H.E.
ISBN-10
1400051622
ISBN-13
9781400051625
eBay Product ID (ePID)
70899744
Product Key Features
Book Title
Devil's Tickets : a Night of Bridge, a Fatal Hand, and a New American Age
Format
Hardcover
Language
English
Topic
Murder / General, General, Card Games / Bridge, Special Interest / Hikes & Walks, Customs & Traditions, United States / General
Publication Year
2009
Genre
Family & Relationships, Biography & Autobiography, Travel, True Crime, Games & Activities, History, Social Science
Number of Pages
320 Pages
Dimensions
Item Length
9.4in
Item Height
1.1in
Item Width
6.4in
Item Weight
19.2 Oz
Additional Product Features
Lc Classification Number
Hv6534.K2p66 2008
Reviews
"Bridge and murder, two of mankind's most engrossing pursuitsin The Devil's Tickets Gary Pomerantz intermingles both to create a crackling portrait of a vibrant past age and a singular moment when a bullet trumped all." Erik Larson, author of the New York Times bestseller The Devil in the White City "A great story, a real drama, a perfect window on American cultureand best of all, beautifully written with the lightest touch." Susan Orlean,author of the New York Times bestseller The Orchid Thief "Nowadays people tend to think of the game of bridge as old and somewhat fuddy-duddy, but once upon a time it was young and sexy. What a delight to read Gary M. Pomerantz's engaging account of how all this got started." Louis Sachar,author of the National Book Award winning Holes "This remarkably entertaining tale reveals important truths about bridge, such as that the best players must check their egos at the door and that mental endurance and intimidation can be pivotal. But it also reveals truths about life, such as that women need a venue where they can compete with men and that a rare confluence of social factors can create men like Ely Culberston, who was only too happy to be Johnny-on-the-spot when there was money to be made or fame to be won. Anyone who's played bridge, or ever been the least bit curious about the game's appeal, will love this book." Bob Hamman, eleven-time bridge world champion "Masterfully reported, beautifully written, and all but impossible to put down." Jonathan Eig, author of the New York Times bestseller Luckiest Man From the Hardcover edition., "Bridge and murder, two of mankind's most engrossing pursuitsinThe Devil's TicketsGary Pomerantz intermingles both to create a crackling portrait of a vibrant past age and a singular moment when a bullet trumped all." -Erik Larson, author of theNew York TimesbestsellerThe Devil in the White City "A great story, a real drama, a perfect window on American cultureand best of all, beautifully written with the lightest touch." -Susan Orlean,author of theNew York TimesbestsellerThe Orchid Thief "Nowadays people tend to think of the game of bridge as old and somewhat fuddy-duddy, but once upon a time it was young and sexy. What a delight to read Gary M. Pomerantz's engaging account of how all this got started." -Louis Sachar,author of the National Book Award winningHoles "This remarkably entertaining tale reveals important truths about bridge, such as that the best players must check their egos at the door and that mental endurance and intimidation can be pivotal. But it also reveals truths about life, such as that women need a venue where they can compete with men and that a rare confluence of social factors can create men like Ely Culberston, who was only too happy to be Johnny-on-the-spot when there was money to be made or fame to be won. Anyone who's played bridge, or ever been the least bit curious about the game's appeal, will love this book." Bob Hamman, eleven-time bridge world champion "Masterfully reported, beautifully written, and all but impossible to put down." -Jonathan Eig, author of theNew York TimesbestsellerLuckiest Man
Copyright Date
2008
Target Audience
Trade
Lccn
2008-051185
Dewey Decimal
364.152/3092
Dewey Edition
22
Illustrated
Yes
Item description from the seller
Seller assumes all responsibility for this listing.
eBay item number:285318278254
Postage and handling
Item location:
Sparks, Nevada, United States
Post to:
Albania, Andorra, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Aruba, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan Republic, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde Islands, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon Republic, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Croatia, Republic of the Congo, Romania, Rwanda, Saint Kitts-Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Turks and Caicos Islands, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Vatican City State, Vietnam, Wallis and Futuna, Western Samoa, Zambia, Zimbabwe
Excludes:
APO/FPO, Afghanistan, Alaska/Hawaii, Algeria, Barbados, Belarus, Brazil, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Guadeloupe, Guinea-Bissau, Iraq, Liberia, Libya, Martinique, New Caledonia, Nigeria, Reunion, Russian Federation, US Protectorates, Ukraine, Venezuela
| Postage and handling | To | Service | Delivery*See Delivery notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free postage | United States | Standard Shipping | Estimated between Mon, 6 May and Wed, 8 May to 43230 |
| US $5.50 (approx S$ 7.50) | United States | Expedited Shipping | Estimated between Sat, 4 May and Tue, 7 May to 43230 |
| Handling time |
|---|
| Will usually post within 2 business days of receiving cleared payment. |
| Taxes |
|---|
| Seller charges sales tax in |
Sales Tax for an item #285318278254
Sales Tax for an item #285318278254
Seller collects sales tax for items shipped to the following states:
| State | Sales Tax Rate |
|---|
Return policy
| After receiving the item, contact seller within | Refund will be given as |
|---|---|
| 30 days after the buyer receives it | Money Back |
The buyer is responsible for return postage costs.
Seller feedback (457,119)
1***s (844)- Feedback left by buyer.
Past month
Verified purchase
Item received as advertised.
i***m (4540)- Feedback left by buyer.
Past month
Verified purchase
ø¤•º°`°¯*)¸.•*¯°`°º•¤ø GREAT TRANSACTION!!! THANKS SO MUCH!!! ø¤•º°`°¯)¸.•´*¯`°
p***p (217)- Feedback left by buyer.
Past month
Verified purchase
Great book!!