Sam Dreben

Sam Dreben came to the United States penniless, with very few skills. Shortly after he arrived, he enlisted in the United States Army, soon seeing action in the Philippines. He excelled as a machine gunner, with claims he could shoot the left eye of a sparrow at a great distance. He settled in El Paso Texas, and from there reenlisted several times, and with each military action, his fame and courtly manner won him acclaim and prowess. During World War One, he saw action in Europe, first in France and later in Germany. The citation for his bravery for saving the French line from a flanking maneuver reflects incredible bravery under fire. A grateful France awarded him the Medaille Militaire, its highest honor for bravery in battle, and similar awards from Belgium and Italy. He also received the United States Distinguished Service Cross, a medal of which he was rightly proud. Following the Great War, General John Pershing chose him as one of the four Honor Guards for the dedication of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, in November 1921, in Washington, D.C. At his untimely death, the Texas Legislature flew the State Flag at half-mast in honor of the loss of a Son of Texas. He also received the highest honors from statesmen, generals and fellow soldiers. This is only part of the story of my great-great uncle, a hero, trailblazer and fighter. Famed journalist, Damon Runyon, gave him the title, ‘Fighting Jew,’ a title that Sam carried with great pride and honor. In his lifetime he was a walking legend and after his passing, his bravery and military skill reached mythic heights. He was admired and loved, and it is an honor to write of his life. If there was a person of the past with whom I would have wanted to speak, I would choose Sam, warrior, tactician and unfailing comrade in arms.

Ambitious entrepreneurs, isthmian politicians, and mercenaries who dramatically altered Central America's political culture, economies, and even its traditional social values populate this lively story of a generation of North and Central Americans and their roles in the transformation of Central America from the late nineteenth century until the onset of the Depression. The Banana Men is a study of modernization, its benefits, and its often frightful costs. The colorful characters in this study are fascinating, if not always admirable. Sam "the Banana Man" Zemurray, a Bessarabian Jewish immigrant, made a fortune in Honduran bananas after he got into the business of "revolutin," and his exploits are now legendary. His hired mercenary Lee Christmas, a bellicose Mississippian, made a reputation in Honduras as a man who could use a weapon. The supporting cast includes Minor Keith, a railroad builder and banana baron; Manuel Bonilla, the Honduran mulatto whose cause Zemurray subsidized; and Jose Santos Zelaya, who ruled Nicaragua from 1893 to 1910. The political and social turmoil of the modern Central America cannot be understood without reference to the fifty-year epoch in which the United States imposed its political and economic influence on vulnerable Central American societies. The predicament of Central Americans today, as isthmian peoples know, is rooted in their past, and North Americans have had a great deal to do with the shaping of their history, for better or worse.

Which astronaut repaired the Hubble telescope during a walk in space? Who was the model for the movie "The Man Who Never Was?" What officer was responsible for the eradication of flogging in the U.S. Navy? Who is the most decorated living U.S. Army veteran? That the uncle of a world-famous entertainer won the Distinguished Service Cross in Korea? What officer led the mission to rescue General Patton's son-in-law? Who was the commanding officer of the famed WW II B-17 Rosie's Riveters? Who commanded both the Atlantic and Pacific Fleets of the U.S. submarine forces? What soldier, born in Lithuania, was the Commanding General of the U.S. Special Forces? Who commanded the battleship Utah at Pearl Harbor and received the Navy Cross? What French general was commended by Napoleon as "...one of the greatest of the great?" What general commanded the Australian forces in France in World War I? Who was and remains the only dentist in the Army to win the Congressional Medal of Honor? Who won both the Navy Cross and the Distinguished Service Cross in World War I? Who won the Navy Cross during World War I and another during World War II? What Navy surgeon received the Silver Star in Vietnam and is being considered for the Medal of Honor? Who was one of the first nurses to die in Europe in WW II and is buried in a military cemetery in France? What famous Los Angeles police officer and attorney won two Bronze Stars in Vietnam as a paratrooper? Who was the Jewish chaplain who gave his life aboard the SS Dorchester to save American soldiers? What Israeli astronaut was the youngest participant in the 1981 raid on the Osirak nuclear plant in Iraq?

Documents with 150 stories and illustrations how Jews have made heroic contributions in every facet of American industry and culture.

Index. "The chronicles collected in this book originally appeared in the weekly Jewish Post & Opinion from 1970 to 1984" - Pref.

Named a Best Book of the Year by the San Francisco Chronicle and The Times-Picayune The fascinating untold tale of Samuel Zemurray, the self-made banana mogul who went from penniless roadside banana peddler to kingmaker and capitalist revolutionary When Samuel Zemurray arrived in America in 1891, he was tall, gangly, and penniless. When he died in the grandest house in New Orleans sixty-nine years later, he was among the richest, most powerful men in the world. Working his way up from a roadside fruit peddler to conquering the United Fruit Company, Zemurray became a symbol of the best and worst of the United States: proof that America is the land of opportunity, but also a classic example of the corporate pirate who treats foreign nations as the backdrop for his adventures. Zemurray lived one of the great untold stories of the last hundred years. Starting with nothing but a cart of freckled bananas, he built a sprawling empire of banana cowboys, mercenary soldiers, Honduran peasants, CIA agents, and American statesmen. From hustling on the docks of New Orleans to overthrowing Central American governments and precipitating the bloody thirty-six-year Guatemalan civil war, the Banana Man lived a monumental and sometimes dastardly life. Rich Cohen's brilliant historical profile The Fish That Ate the Whale unveils Zemurray as a hidden power broker, driven by an indomitable will to succeed.

Soldier of Fortune traces the bold and adventurous career of Emil Holmdahl, one of that swashbuckling breed of mercenaries growing out of the United States' imperialistic years during the early twentieth century. Following Holmdahl from the Philippine Insurrection, through the "banana wars" in Central America, onto the bloody stage of the Mexican Revolution and World War I, Douglas Meed captures the drama and adventure not only of Holmdahl, but of the United States' quest to become a major world power. Holmdahl's adventures in Mexico shed new light on revolutionary activities and the struggle for power, including the death of revolutionary leader Francisco "Pancho" Villa. Meed suggests that Holmdahl may have been the man who opened Villa's grave, cut off his head, and sold it to a Mexican general. The author captures the excitement and spirit of adventure in those bloody years, while Holmdahl's life mirrors the end of one era and the beginning of another -- from the twilight of the era of horse-driven armies to the age of industrial warfare. Soldier of Fortune is a fascinating account of a bygone age, and forms a distinctive addition to the annals of the American Southwest. Book jacket.