Radicals & Visionaries: Entrepreneurs Who Revolutionized the 20th Century [Paperback]

Thaddeus Wawro (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 15, 2000

A provocative collection of in-depth profiles that take you beyond the media hype and corporate PR to reveal the true-life stories of the men and women whose vision, drive, desire and passion shaped the last 100 years.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Entrepreneur magazine has been profiling successful businesspeople for more than 25 years, and its parent company started Entrepreneur Press in 1998 to publish books that "inspire and inform readers." Its latest offering is a celebration of entrepreneurship that tries to inspire by example. It is also a trove of information that will satisfy the curious. Wawro is an advertising copywriter; he briefly portrays some 90 "men and women who, through talent, drive, ingenuity and desire . . . shaped the past 100 years." It is a fascinating assortment offered in alphabetical order, though Wawro never explains how he selected his roster. Some of the names may not be readily familiar, but their companies and products are. Thus we have Enid Bissett (Maidenform bra), Jean Nidetch (Weight Watchers), and Charles Lazarus (Toys R Us) rubbing shoulders with Milton Hershey, Bill Gates, and Oprah Winfrey. Most entries also include a photograph, a factoid or two, and a quote from the subject. This book might also appeal to students looking for research topics, but Wawro never identifies or lists his sources. David Rouse
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Entrepreneur Press (May 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1891984136
• ISBN-13: 978-1891984136
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,366,252 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 70 Revolutionaries, May 11, 2000

By 

Robert Morris (Dallas, Texas) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Radicals & Visionaries: Entrepreneurs Who Revolutionized the 20th Century (Paperback)

This is an anthology of 70 micro-biographies, each of which includes some insightful comments and occasionally a little-known fact or two about the subject. Many of the selections are predictable: Michael Dell, Henry Ford, Bill Gates, William Hewlett & David Packard, Ray Kroc, Steve Jobs, Akio Morita, Ted Turner, Sam Walton, and Thomas Watson Jr. What surprised and pleased me is that Wawro also discusses several other "radicals & visionaries" which I did not expect to be included: Desi Arnaz & Lucille Ball, Clarence Birdseye, Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel, Berry Gordy, Hugh Hefner, Jim Henson, John Johnson, George Lucas, David Ogilvy, Ron Popeil, Martha Stewart, and Oprah Winfrey.

This book is great fun to read...as well as informative. Wawro does indeed cover a wide as well as diverse range of entrepreneurs who helped to revolutionize the 20th century. My only complaint is the Wawro, who obviously completed a great deal of research inorder to write this book, did not include an annotated bibliography for readers who wish to learn more about the 70 subjects discussed. Perhaps it was impractical to do so. This is nonetheless a commendable achievement which I recommend highly.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow!!, January 9, 2001

By 

Mohan Babu "Globalization and Me" (Global) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Radicals & Visionaries: Entrepreneurs Who Revolutionized the 20th Century (Paperback)

Moving, inspiring, stirring and exciting, the short biographies are readable, short and sweet. I picked up the book thinking that I'd read a few stories a night and was totally floored after reading the first few. The stories were ordered alphabetically which in itself brought a randomness to the sequence.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars BUSINESSES'S GREAT MAVERICKS, December 8, 2000

By 

Bonita L. Davis - See all my reviews

This review is from: Radicals & Visionaries: Entrepreneurs Who Revolutionized the 20th Century (Paperback)

What do a bunch of computer geeks, housewives, washer woman, book retailer and others have in common? They and the rest of the group profiled in this anthology are the movers and shakers who changed how we do business and developed new industries that will shape the future.

Radicals & Visionairies gives you a brief look into the lives of seventy entreprenuers who changed the face of American business. Some of them have become house hold names (Walt Disney,Clarence Birdseye, Henry Ford) while others may not be as well known but their achievements live on. The individuals examined represent a diverse group of people coming from every social, economic and ethnic class. A few could be called egocentric, free wheeling and downright crazy. All of them were able to overcome obstacles in their lives and bring to America a new and diverse economy.

Unlike other profiles which go from "rags to riches", Thaddeus Wawro focuses on what innovation or new invention that the person developed which had a great impact on business. You see that these mavericks refused to follow the conventional business pack and moved out on their own.

This book also deals with what makes success. Each person doesn't have a "set formula" which says this will lead you to success. All of those profiled came to success in a different way. Their stories are enjoyable, informative and inspirational. These radicals should jump start you in thinking about entering the entrepreneur path.