Matthew Polly's Books

Bruce Lee

A Life

By: Matthew Polly

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The “definitive” (The New York Times) biography of film legend Bruce Lee, who made martial arts a global phenomenon, bridged the divide between eastern and western cultures, and smashed long-held stereotypes of Asians and Asian-Americans. Forty-five years after Bruce Lee’s sudden death at age thirty-two, journalist and bestselling author Matthew Polly has written the definitive account of Lee’s life. It’s also one of the only accounts; incredibly, there has never been an authoritative biography of Lee. Following a decade of research that included conducting more than one hundred interviews with Lee’s family, friends, business associates, and even the actress in whose bed Lee died, Polly has constructed a complex, humane portrait of the icon. Polly explores Lee’s early years as a child star in Hong Kong cinema; his actor father’s struggles with opium addiction and how that turned Bruce into a troublemaking teenager who was kicked out of high school and eventually sent to America to shape up; his beginnings as a martial arts teacher, eventually becoming personal instructor to movie stars like James Coburn and Steve McQueen; his struggles as an Asian-American actor in Hollywood and frustration seeing role after role he auditioned for go to a white actors in eye makeup; his eventual triumph as a leading man; his challenges juggling a sky-rocketing career with his duties as a father and husband; and his shocking end that to this day is still shrouded in mystery. Polly breaks down the myths surrounding Bruce Lee and argues that, contrary to popular belief, he was an ambitious actor who was obsessed with the martial arts—not a kung-fu guru who just so happened to make a couple of movies. This is an honest, revealing look at an impressive yet imperfect man whose personal story was even more entertaining and inspiring than any fictional role he played onscreen.

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Page Count

656

Publisher

Simon & Schuster

Published Date

ISBN 10

1501187635

ISBN 13

9781501187636

Tapped Out

Rear Naked Chokes, the Octagon, and the Last Emperor: An Odyssey in Mixed Martia L Arts

By: Matthew Polly

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Tapped Out

Rear Naked Chokes, the Octagon, and the Last Emperor: An Odyssey in Mixed Martia L Arts

By: Matthew Polly

An aging amateur takes his shot at glory in the world of mixed martial arts. As a younger man, Matthew Polly traveled to the Shaolin Temple in China and spent two years training with the monks who had invented the ancient art of kung fu. Fifteen years later, his weakness for Chinese takeout and Jack Daniel’s had taken its toll. Firmly into middle age and far removed from his past athletic triumphs, Polly decided to risk it all one last time. Out of shape and over the hill, he jumped headlong into the world of MMA. In Tapped Out, Polly chronicles his grueling yet redeeming two-year journey through an often misunderstood sport. From Thailand to Russia, Manhattan to Las Vegas, Polly studied with the best trainers, concluding with a six-month fight camp at Randy Couture’s legendary gym. He explores the history of fighting sports and joins a fascinating subculture of men who roll around on sweaty mats with one another in appreciation of the purity of contained combat. And in the end, Polly straps on the gloves, gets into the cage, and squares off with a fighter fifteen years younger. An honest and humorous look at a hard-core sport, Tapped Out is a fascinating look into the fastest growing sport in America and what it takes to be an MMA fighter.

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Page Count

303

Publisher

Avery

Published Date

ISBN 10

159240619X

ISBN 13

9781592406197

American Shaolin

Flying Kicks, Buddhist Monks, and the Legend of Iron Crotch : an Odyssey in the New China

By: Matthew Polly

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American Shaolin

Flying Kicks, Buddhist Monks, and the Legend of Iron Crotch : an Odyssey in the New China

By: Matthew Polly

Laced with humor and illuminated by cultural insight, this coming-of-age tale explores one young American's quest to become a kung fu master at China's legendary Shaolin Temple. 8-page photo insert.

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Page Count

404

Publisher

Penguin

Published Date

ISBN 10

1592402623

ISBN 13

9781592402625

The Perfect Comeback of Caroline Jacobs

A Novel

By: Matthew Dicks

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The Perfect Comeback of Caroline Jacobs

A Novel

By: Matthew Dicks

From the beloved author of Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend comes a wonderful new novel about a broken woman who faces her past and, armed with the perfect comeback, finds a way to set herself free

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Page Count

225

Publisher

Macmillan

Published Date

ISBN 10

1250006309

ISBN 13

9781250006301

The Annotated Marx Brothers

A Filmgoer's Guide to In-Jokes, Obscure References and Sly Details

By: Matthew Coniam

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The Annotated Marx Brothers

A Filmgoer's Guide to In-Jokes, Obscure References and Sly Details

By: Matthew Coniam

Have you ever watched a Marx Brothers film and wondered what "habeas Irish rose" is? What is the trial of Mary Dugan with sound? What is a college widow? When exactly did Don Ameche invent the telephone? Their films are full of such in-jokes and obscure theatrical, literary and topical references that can baffle modern audiences. In this viewer's guide to the Marx Brothers you will find the answer to such mysteries, along with an exhaustive compilation of background information, obscure trivia and even the occasional busted myth. Each of the Marx Brothers' 13 films is covered by a running commentary, with points in the film discussed as they appear. Each reference is listed by its running time, with time code given for both PAL and NTSC DVD. An introduction for neophytes and a resource for fanatics, this book is a travel guide to the rambling landscape of these remarkable comedies.

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Page Count

314

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

078649705X

ISBN 13

9780786497058

Marie Dressler

A Biography : with a Listing of Major Stage Performances, a Filmography, and a Discography

By: Matthew Kennedy

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Marie Dressler

A Biography : with a Listing of Major Stage Performances, a Filmography, and a Discography

By: Matthew Kennedy

Early in the century, Marie Dressler was hailed as one of America's finest comics, with a 20-year string of Broadway and vaudeville successes including The Lady Slavey, Miss Prinnt, Higgledy Piggledy, The Man in the Moon, and Tillie's Nightmare. She starred with Charlie Chaplin in the first ever feature-length comedy Tillie's Punctured Romance and later in Min and Bill for which she won an Academy Award. A brilliant comedienne in body, timing, inflection and reactions, her talents far exceeded the expectations of slapstick, and her movies earned sums far greater than those of Garbo, or Harlow, or even Gable. This work examines Dressler's life from vaudeville to talkies. Based on extensive research and interviews with Dressler's surviving friends, co-stars and colleagues, including Maureen O'Sullivan, Jackie Cooper and Anita Page, it details her public and personal successes and failures. A listing of her stage appearances, vocal recordings and films is included.

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Page Count

286

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

0786405201

ISBN 13

9780786405206

Yuck's Pet Worm

By: Matt and Dave,Matthew Morgan,David Sinden

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Yuck's Pet Worm

By: Matt and Dave,Matthew Morgan,David Sinden

Originally published in Great Britain in 2007 by Simon & Schuster UK Ltd"--Copyright page.

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Page Count

111

Publisher

Simon and Schuster

Published Date

ISBN 10

1442481498

ISBN 13

9781442481497

Yuck's Robotic Butt Blast

By: Matt and Dave,Matthew Morgan,David Sinden

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Yuck's Robotic Butt Blast

By: Matt and Dave,Matthew Morgan,David Sinden

Originally published in Great Britain in 2009 by Simon & Schuster UK Ltd"--Title page verso.

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Page Count

112

Publisher

Simon and Schuster

Published Date

ISBN 10

1442483091

ISBN 13

9781442483095

Pathways to Change, Second Edition

Brief Therapy with Difficult Adolescents

By: Matthew D. Selekman

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Pathways to Change, Second Edition

Brief Therapy with Difficult Adolescents

By: Matthew D. Selekman

This innovative, practical guide presents an effective brief therapy model for working with challenging adolescents and their families. It demonstrates powerful ways to help families gain new perspectives on longstanding problems and co-construct realistic, well-formulated goals, even when past treatment experiences have left them feeling demoralized. Solution-oriented techniques and strategies are augmented by ideas and findings from other therapeutic traditions, with a focus on engagement and relationship building. Illustrated with extensive clinical material, the book shows how to draw on each family's strengths to collaboratively bring about significant behavioral change.

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Page Count

306

Publisher

Guilford Publications

Published Date

ISBN 10

1462524249

ISBN 13

9781462524242

Yuck's Robotic Bottom

By: Matt and Dave,Matthew Morgan,David Sinden

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Yuck's Robotic Bottom

By: Matt and Dave,Matthew Morgan,David Sinden

YUCK'S ROBOTIC BOTTOM Can Yuck win first prize for the best invention in school? He's got gross gadgets galore and a revolting robot to help him. All he needs now is a stinky plan to blow away his rivals. YUCK'S WILD WEEKEND Yuck and his sister, Polly, are both going camping in the garden, but neither wants the other one there. With creepy crawlies, smelly snakes and a grizzly bear on the loose who will survive the longest in the wild?

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Page Count

114

Publisher

Simon and Schuster

Published Date

ISBN 10

1847382991

ISBN 13

9781847382993

A Portrait of the Artist as Australian

L’Oeuvre bizarre de Barry Humphries

By: Paul Matthew St Pierre

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A Portrait of the Artist as Australian

L’Oeuvre bizarre de Barry Humphries

By: Paul Matthew St Pierre

A Portrait of the Artist as Australian offers the first critical assessment of Barry Humphries' entire career - as a daring postmodern deconstructionist on stage, film, and television, with sixty-seven stage shows, twenty-four film and thirty-four video appearances, thirty-four television series and seventy-one television appearances, and seventy-two audio recordings, but especially what he calls his "second career" as author of twenty-nine books. With an oeuvre that includes novels, biographies, autobiographies, editions, compilations, comic books, poetry, dramatic monologues, sketches, film scripts, and several unclassified works, Humphries is a literary and dramatic artist of considerable significance. Arguing that Humphries is one of Australia's greatest writers, Paul Matthew St Pierre reveals a multi-faceted artist whose success is rooted in music halls, Dadaism, and his identity as an Australian.

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Page Count

368

Publisher

McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP

Published Date

ISBN 10

0773571620

ISBN 13

9780773571624

Disciplining Satire

The Censorship of Satiric Comedy on the Eighteenth-century London Stage

By: Matthew J. Kinservik

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Disciplining Satire

The Censorship of Satiric Comedy on the Eighteenth-century London Stage

By: Matthew J. Kinservik

Focusing on the playwriting careers of Henry Fielding, Samuel Foote, and Charles Macklin, the three most controversial and heavily censored satiric dramatists of the century, Disciplining Satire pays particular attention to what type of satiric expression the law encouraged, not just to what it prohibited."--BOOK JACKET.

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Page Count

316

Publisher

Bucknell University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0838755127

ISBN 13

9780838755129

Yuck's Amazing Underpants

By: Matthew Morgan,Matt and Dave,David Sinden

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Yuck's Amazing Underpants

By: Matthew Morgan,Matt and Dave,David Sinden

The gross-out antics of these two Yuck adventures take disgusting to a new level! Includes "Yuck's Amazing Underpants" and "Yuck's Scary Spider." Illustrations.

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Page Count

116

Publisher

Simon and Schuster

Published Date

ISBN 10

144245122X

ISBN 13

9781442451223

The Adolescent and Young Adult Self-harming Treatment Manual

A Collaborative Strengths-based Brief Therapy Approach

By: Matthew D. Selekman

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The Adolescent and Young Adult Self-harming Treatment Manual

A Collaborative Strengths-based Brief Therapy Approach

By: Matthew D. Selekman

A detailed treatment protocol for working with self-harming adolescents and young adults.

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Page Count

340

Publisher

W. W. Norton & Company

Published Date

ISBN 10

0393705676

ISBN 13

9780393705676

Yuck's Fart Club

By: Matthew Morgan,Matt and Dave,David Sinden

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Yuck's Fart Club

By: Matthew Morgan,Matt and Dave,David Sinden

Originally published in Great Britain in 2006 by Simon & Schuster UK Ltd"--Copyright page.

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111

Publisher

Simon and Schuster

Published Date

ISBN 10

1442481536

ISBN 13

9781442481534

Hanging Charley Flinn

The Short and Violent Life of the Boldest Criminal in Frontier California

By: Matthew S. Bernstein

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Hanging Charley Flinn

The Short and Violent Life of the Boldest Criminal in Frontier California

By: Matthew S. Bernstein

Charley Flinn, otherwise known as “Mortimer,” was the craftiest criminal in frontier California. Upon his release from San Quentin State Prison in 1863, Mortimer quickly made up for lost time. He formed a gang of robbers in Virginia City, led a prison break in Northern California, and became the most wanted man in the Bay Area. Boldly outwitting both the police and the press, including the young investigative reporter Mark Twain, Mortimer escalated to wilder and wilder heists. But when he fell for a devious femme fatale, Mortimer’s crimes took a darker turn. Matthew Bernstein paints the Old West in all its terrible glory, where desperadoes tangle with crooked detectives, bloodthirsty posses, and sultry seductresses. Throughout it all, Charley Flinn keeps up a breakneck speed, committing hundreds of crimes before his love for a treacherous woman and his own violent nature lead him to a fitting climax.

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Page Count

224

Publisher

University of New Mexico Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0826365051

ISBN 13

9780826365057

Eye of the Taika

New Zealand Comedy and the Films of Taika Waititi

By: Matthew Bannister

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Eye of the Taika

New Zealand Comedy and the Films of Taika Waititi

By: Matthew Bannister

Innovative study of Taika Waititi, whose Maori and Jewish roots influence his distinctive New Zealand comedic style. Eye of the Taika: New Zealand Comedy and the Films of Taika Waititi is the first book-length study of comic film director and media celebrity Taika Waititi. Author Matthew Bannister analyses Waititi's feature films and places his other works and performances—short films, TV series, advertisements, music videos, and media appearances—in the fabric of popular culture. The book's thesis is that Waititi's playful comic style draws on an ironic reading of NZ identity as Antipodean camp, a style which reflects NZ's historic status as colonial underdog. The first four chapters of Eye of the Taika explore Waititi's early life and career, the history of New Zealand and its film industry, the history of local comedy and its undervaluation in favor of more "serious" art, and ethnicity in New Zealand comedy. Bannister then focuses on Waititi's films, beginning with Eagle vs Shark (2007) and its place in "New Geek Cinema," despite being an outsider even in this realm. Bannister uses Boy (2010) to address the "comedian comedy," arguing that Waititi is a comedic entertainer before being a director. With What We Do in The Shadows(2014), Bannister explores Waititi's use of the vampire as the archetypal immigrant struggling to fit into mainstream society, under the guise of a mockumentary. Waititi's Hunt for the Wilderpeople(2016), Bannister argues, is a family-friendly, rural-based romp that plays on and ironizes aspects of Aotearoa/New Zealand identity. Thor: Ragnarok(2017) launched Waititi into the Hollywood realm, while introducing a Polynesian perspective on Western superhero ideology. Finally, Bannister addresses Jojo Rabbit (2019) as an "anti-hate satire" and questions its quality versus its topicality and timeliness in Hollywood. By viewing Waititi's career and filmography as a series of pranks, Bannister identifies Waititi's playful balance between dominant art worlds and emergent postcolonial innovations, New Zealand national identity and indigenous Aotearoan (and Jewish) roots, and masculinity and androgyny. Eye of the Taika is intended for film scholars and film lovers alike.

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Page Count

297

Publisher

Wayne State University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0814345344

ISBN 13

9780814345344

A Taste for Monsters

By: Matthew J. Kirby

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A Taste for Monsters

By: Matthew J. Kirby

A “lovely, suspenseful, lyrical” ghost story set in Jack the Ripper’s London from the Edgar and PEN Award-winning author of Icefall (Kirkus Reviews). London 1888, and Jack the Ripper is terrorizing the people of the city. Evelyn, a young woman disfigured by her dangerous work in a matchstick factory with nowhere to go, does not know what to make of her new position as a maid to the Elephant Man in London Hospital. Evelyn wanted to be locked away from the world, like he is, shut away from the filth and dangers of the streets. But in Joseph Merrick, the Elephant Man, she finds a gentle kindred, who does not recoil from her, and who understands her pain. When the murders begin, however, Joseph and Evelyn are haunted nightly by the ghosts of the Ripper’s dead, setting Evelyn on a path to facing her fears and uncovering humanity’s worst nightmares, in which the real monsters are men. “[A] grisly fantasy . . . Evelyn—all grit, anger, and distrust—is a complex and engaging character, the slums and slang of Victorian-era London are carefully delineated, and the eventual revelation of Leather Apron’s identity and fate will leave readers gasping.” —Publishers Weekly “This historical fiction blends horror with mystery and results in wonderfully crafted storytelling with strong, well-drawn characters . . . A great read for fans of history, true crime, or ghost stories.” —School Library Journal “Kirby’s character development, particularly his portrayal of the extraordinary Mr. Merrick, is consistently impressive. Austen devotees are sure to appreciate Kirby’s commitment to the gothic entanglements of Northanger Abbey.” —Booklist

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Page Count

335

Publisher

Scholastic Inc.

Published Date

ISBN 10

0545817943

ISBN 13

9780545817943

Baltimore

A Political History

By: Matthew A. Crenson

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Baltimore

A Political History

By: Matthew A. Crenson

Peering into the city's 300-odd neighborhoods, this fascinating account holds up a mirror to Baltimore, asking whites in particular to reexamine the past and accept due responsibility for future racial progress.

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Page Count

627

Publisher

Johns Hopkins University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1421436337

ISBN 13

9781421436333

Corporate Administrations and Rescue Procedures

By: Adam Goodison,Matthew Abraham,Andrew Shaw,Stefanie Wilkins

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Corporate Administrations and Rescue Procedures

By: Adam Goodison,Matthew Abraham,Andrew Shaw,Stefanie Wilkins

Written by authors from South Square, consistently ranked in legal directories as the top set for insolvency and restructuring in the UK this book deals specifically with corporate administration and Company Voluntary Arrangements (CVAs) in the context of business recovery and rescue. The fourth edition has been fully revised and updated to include coverage and analysis of all case law developments as well as: - a new chapter on the UK government's proposed new Corporate Restructuring Plan - the new UK statutory pre-insolvency moratorium - the cross-border context for corporate administrations and rescue procedures post-Brexit - increased coverage of public sector special administration regimes This title is included in Bloomsbury Professional's Insolvency Law online service.

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Page Count

609

Publisher

Bloomsbury Publishing

Published Date

ISBN 10

1526513277

ISBN 13

9781526513274

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