One of the most talked-about events of the Cold War was the downing of the American U-2 spy plane piloted by Francis Gary Powers over the Soviet Union on May 1, 1960. The event was recently depicted in the Steven Spielberg movie Bridge of Spies. Powers was captured by the KGB, subjected to a televised show trial, and imprisoned, all of which created an international incident. Soviet authorities eventually released him in exchange for captured Soviet spy Rudolf Abel. On his return to the United States, Powers was exonerated of any wrongdoing while imprisoned in Russia, yet a cloud of controversy lingered until his untimely death in 1977. Now his son, Francis Gary Powers Jr., has written this new account of his father's life based on personal files that have never been previously available. Delving into old audio tapes, the transcript of his father's debriefing by the CIA, other recently declassified documents about the U-2 program, and interviews with his contemporaries, Powers sets the record straight. The result is a fascinating piece of Cold War history. Almost sixty years after the event, this will be the definitive account of a famous Cold War incident, one proving that Francis Gary Powers acted honorably through a trying ordeal in service to his country.
My father, Francis Gary Powers, was a CIA U-2 pilot who was shot down in the midst of the Cold War, on May 1, 1960, while flying in Soviet airspace. After his capture, he was tried for espionage and then served nearly two years in a Soviet prison until his eventual release in exchange for Soviet Colonel Rudolf Abel, a senior KGB spy who was caught in the United States in the late 1950s. The two operatives were brought to separate sides of the Glienicker Bridge in Potsdam, Germany, as depicted in Steven Spielberg's motion picture Bridge of Spies, where the exchange took place. While in prison my father kept a personal journal and was allowed to write and receive personal correspondence. In this book are the never-before published journal of my father's thoughts as a Prisoner of War, along with more than 150 personal letters written and received by my father during his captivity.
In this new edition of his classic 1970 memoir about the notorious U-2 incident, pilot Francis Gary Powers reveals the full story of what actually happened in the most sensational espionage case in Cold War history. After surviving the shoot-down of his reconnaissance plane and his capture on May 1, 1960, Powers endured sixty-one days of rigorous interrogation by the KGB, a public trial, a conviction for espionage, and the start of a ten-year sentence. After nearly two years, the U.S. government obtained his release from prison in a dramatic exchange for convicted Soviet spy Rudolph Abel. The narrative is a tremendously exciting suspense story about a man who was labeled a traitor by many of his countrymen but who emerged a Cold War hero.
The opening of space to exploration and use has had profound effects on society. Remote sensing by satellite has improved meteorology, land use and the monitoring of the environment. Satellite television immediately informs us visually of events in formerly remote locations, as well as providing many entertainment channels. World telecommunication facilities have been revolutionised. Global positioning has improved transport. This book examines the varied elements of public law that lie behind and regulate the use of space. It also makes suggestions for the development and improvement of the law, particularly as private enterprise plays an increasing role in space.
Undoubtedly timely and full of fascinating detail, Sword of Islam is a thorough, well-researched, and revealing account of global Islamic terrorism. A military historian, John F. Murphy Jr. traces the intricate interconnections among various terrorist cells, including Osama Bin Laden's Al-Qaeda and its relationship with the Taliban of Afghanistan, the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt, Islamic Moro extremists in the Philippines, obscure Algerian terrorist groups, and other sympathetic underworld organizations in Lebanon, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, Syria, Libya, Yemen, Pakistan, and even South America. He also puts recent terrorist attacks in historical context by discussing such key events as the rise of Arab nationalism following Israel's victory in the 1948 war, the Black September killings of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympics, the 1976 rescue at Entebbe by Israeli commandos of hostages abducted by German terrorists, the terrorist plots of the infamous "Carlos the Jackal," the bombing of the US Marine barracks in Beirut in 1983, and the impact of the 1979 Iranian Revolution and the Mujahideen resistance of the Russian invasion of Afghanistan in the same year. This book supplies the answer to the question that has been on the minds of all Americans since September 11: Why do they hate us? Murphy makes it clear that as the chief backer of Israel the United States is seen by extremists as the evil power behind the hated "Zionist enemy." But he also emphasizes that in the final analysis we are the only country with the power to bring these attacks to a halt.
An account of the heroism and idealism of the African-American pilots of the Army Air Corps during WWII and their impact on integration of the US military. Includes b&w photos and lists of officers and enlisted men, combat records, planes shot down, medals awarded, and men lost, plus a chronology. Originally published in 1955, this edition is expanded to include more names and stories of Tuskegeeans. c. Book News Inc.
Recognizing patterns of disease can be the first step to successful management of the child with a neurological problem; this is emphasized by the authors throughout the book. Their concise, precise account reflects the remarkable recent advances in pediatric neurology and related disciplines, while stressing the fundamentals of clinical examination and history taking in reaching an accurate diagnosis. The book begins with a detailed discussion of neurological examination techniques and the basic formulation of differential diagnoses and management, using neuroradiology, electrophysiology, cerebrospinal fluids, genetic and metabolic testing. The second section of the book follows a problem-based approach, just as diseases present in the real world. It employs practical, symptom- and sign-based strategies for virtually all conditions encountered by the practitioner. The final section on neurological emergencies recognizes that such conditions present first to someone other than a pediatric neurologist. This new color handbook is illustrated throughout by a wealth of top-quality clinical photos and imaging, and is of interest to pediatric neurologists, general pediatricians, primary care physicians and emergency physicians, in training and practice.
The American Revolution describes and explains the crucial events in the history of the United States between 1763 and 1815, when settlers in North America rebelled against British authority, won their independence in a long and bloddy stuggle and created an enduring republic. Placing the political revolution at the core of the story, this book considers: * the deterioration of the relationship between Britain and the American colonists * the Wars of Independence * the creation of the republican government and the ratification of the United States Constitution * the trials and tribulations of the first years of the new republic. The American Revolution also examines those who paradoxically were excluded from the political life of the new republic and the American claim to uphold the principle that all men are created equal. In particular this book describes the experiences of women who were often denied the rights of citizens, Native Americans and African Americans. The American Revolution is an important book for all students of the American past.
This book chronicles the American horror film genre in its development of remakes from the 1930s into the 21st century. Gus Van Sant's 1998 remake of Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho (1960) is investigated as the watershed moment when the genre opened its doors to the possibility that any horror movie--classic, modern, B-movie, and more--might be remade for contemporary audiences. Staple horror franchises--Halloween (1978), Friday the 13th (1980), and A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)--are highlighted along with their remake counterparts in order to illustrate how the genre has embraced a phenomenon of remake productions and what the future of horror holds for American cinema. More than 25 original films, their remakes, and the movies they influenced are presented in detailed discussions throughout the text.
Frank Thompson vividly recalls his experiences in gold-rush era Montana, where sought his fortune, served in the first territorial legislature, and met some of the territory's most notorious road agents.
As the major geopolitical power bloc, Asia - with 4 billion people, two-thirds of the world's population, a huge land-mass and the fastest-growing economies - has shifted the global political balance. "Empires at War" gives a dramatic narrative account of how 'Modern Asia' came into being. Ranging over the whole of Asia, from Japan to Pakistan, the modern history of this important region is placed in the context of the struggle between America and the Soviet Union. Francis Pike shows that America's domination of post-war Asia was a continuation of a 100-year competition for power in the region. He also argues cogently that, contrary to the largely 'Western-centric' viewpoint, Asian nations were not simply the passive and biddable entities of the superpowers, but had a political development which was both separate and unique, with a dynamic that was largely independent of the superpower conflict. And, in conclusion, the book traces the unwinding of American influence and the end of its Empire - a crucial development in international history which is already having repercussions throughout the world.
Francis-Fallon returns to the origins of the U.S. “Spanish-speaking vote” to understand the history and potential of this political bloc. He finds that individual voters affiliate more with their particular ethnic communities than with the pan-ethnic Latino identity created for them, complicating the notion of a broader Latino constituency.
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