The New York Times Century of Business [Hardcover]

Christine Bockelmann (Author, Editor), Floyd Norris (Author, Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 23, 1999

In this fascinating retrospective. The New York Times opens its extensive archives and lets readers meet the most influential people and relive the events that have shaped the world of business. Through headlines, front-page stories, editorials, book reviews, obituaries, and unforgettable photos, readers get an unparalleled view of the pivotal business events of the century. All of this is combined with new commentary that puts the stories into context as only The New York Times' editors and journalists can do.

The New York Times Century of Business is a sweeping panoramic view of the twentieth century through the powerful lens of business. It shows that the story of our development in the 20th century is intertwined -- indelibly, undeniably -- with the story of business.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Anyone who likes to spend an occasional afternoon at the public library in front of a microfiche machine pouring over old newspapers and magazines will find The New York Times Century of Business a more convenient and pleasurable diversion. Beginning with J.P. Morgan and concluding with Bill Gates, Floyd Norris, the chief financial correspondent for The Times, and Christine Bockelmann, a former business editor at the paper, have collected and reprinted over 100 of the most important and intriguing business stories that have run in The Times over the last century. The real fun in viewing history this way--especially business history--is the immediacy that's often lost in other retellings. For example, when the markets crashed in 1929, the headline read, "Stocks Collapse in 16,410,030-Share Day," which is followed by the hopeful rejoinder "But Rally at Close Cheers Brokers." The story concludes, "Wall Street was a street of vanished hopes, of curiously silent apprehension and of a sort of paralyzed hypnosis yesterday." The other stories, such as "Dies in Vat of Hot Beer" and "Electronic Computer Flashes Answers, May Speed Engineering" help to make this book irresistible. And, who knows, it might even save you a trip to the library. --Harry C. Edwards

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Mcgraw-Hill (September 23, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071355898
• ISBN-13: 978-0071355896
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,173,976 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars excellant historical perspective and research, November 7, 1999

By 

Fred Albers ([e-mail]) (el paso, texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The New York Times Century of Business (Hardcover)

Norris and Bockelmann turn up a winner in this insightful look at business. I have read Norris financial column for years and was always impressed with his "wordsmith" readability. The editors do not get bogged down in technical language but instead have presented a very readable work. A nice Christmas Gift idea.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Leafing through snippets of 20th century business history, August 28, 2003

By 

Govindan Nair (Vienna, VA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The New York Times Century of Business (Hardcover)

Economic history or the history of business is often too abstract for the non-specialist reader to take any interest in the subject. This is quite different from the cases of military or art history, for example.

Which is why this book is helpful. No one can seriously consider the history of the twentieth century without looking at the vast transformation of businesses and the marketplace which have taken place in this period.

The 300-odd pages contain photographs and articles from the New York Times which sweep through major epsiodes of twentieth century business including trust busting, the Great Depression, the electronics revolution, and mega-mergers at the close of the century. The articles are accompanied by commentary from the married couple who are the authors, both of whom have been business writers for the New York Times.

Whether you are a student doing research for a high school paper, or a policy maker who wants a quick reminder of the events and forces which have shaped business in this century, you will find this book highly readable and informative. In the introductory words of former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker, "Rereading history may never subtitute fully for personal experience in shaping our behavior. But there is something to the admonition of one of the 20th century's leading philosphers, George Santayana, about the importance of understanding the past. And this book surely brings our economic history alive."