Secret Dallas A Guide To The Weird Wonderful And Obscure

Take an excursion through the weird, the wry, and the wonderful idiosyncrasies that comprise the Big D. From the Playboy Marfa bunny-with-a-muscle-car sculpture, to the ceaseless failed attempts to navigate the Trinity River, to the invention of the computer chip and German chocolate cake, Dallas is the birthplace of the whimsical, the wistful, and the profound. Secret Dallas answers questions about Big D you never knew you had, catapulting you through a portfolio of little-known but fascinating people, places, episodes, and artifacts. Think of it as a scavenger hunt travelogue, providing insights into hidden rhinestones and diamonds in the caliche. Secret Dallas is a riveting excursion into the city's odds and ends, where the rare and the phenomenal express the big, the bold, and the brash in everyone.

Did you know ...that a hidden room exists behind Abraham Lincoln s head on Mt. Rushmore? ...that North Carolina was almost accidentally destroyed in a nuclear holocaust? ...that the Mason-Dixon Line had nothing to do with dividing north from south? ...that Major League Baseball once hosted a single game between three different teams? ...that there is a designated state highway in Michigan where cars are not allowed? ...that 21 people were once killed by a 15-foot wave of molasses that devasted a Boston neighborhood? ...that the National Security Agency has a gift shop with logoed merchandise? Whether you want to visit the New York grave where Uncle Sam is buried, stop by the future hometown of Star Trek's Captain Kirk in Iowa or see the room in California where the Internet was created, Secret America: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful and Obscure is your ticket to some of the nation's least-known but most interesting spots. It is here where you can explore a historical marker dedicated to Barack and Michelle Obama's first kiss, find out how to acquire logoed merchandise at the National Security Agency's gift shop or examine why Case Western Reserve University has such an unusual name. Secret America is a look at the United States as you've never seen it before a tourist guide that gives you answers to the questions no tourist ever never knew they were supposed to ask. If you are tired of trying to enliven dull family roadtrips searching backroads for the World's Largest Ball of Twine, this is a handbook for truly interesting sites that can transform any cross-country adventure into a tour of the unique spots that make America the odd but fascinating nation that it is.

Where can you find a chunk of the Matterhorn enshrined at a Utah ski resort? What is the origin of Josepa, the Hawaiian ghost town in the desert? And why is Utah called the Beehive State? You hold in your hands the answers to these questions and more in this guide to the oddities, wonders, myths, and legends of Utah’s capital city. Secret Salt Lake City opens a window into the weird, the bizarre, and the obscure secrets of the city, some of which are hiding in plain sight. Founded by religious pioneers from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in 1847, its one-of-a-kind origin story makes Salt Lake City a rich backdrop for frontier grit, culture, and curious relics. Did you know that there is an alphabet hidden in your computer that was invented in Salt Lake City? What is the significance of the religious symbols on the Salt Lake Temple? And how did Sherlock Holmes solve a fictional mystery in London that originated in Utah? Lifetime resident and author Jeremy Pugh and Mary Brown Malouf unlock these mysteries and more to pull back the curtain on the secrets of Salt Lake City. This isn’t your traditional guidebook, and it will enrich your visit to the Crossroads of the West.

From prehistoric sabretooth fangs, across remnants of Civil War battlefields hidden in plain sight, around the hillside tombs of past presidents, past street corners where chart-toppers have had inspiration for #1s, to the cold stone heart of Music Row, Nashville is full of rich history…but it also has its share of hidden secrets that keep even the locals guessing. Secret Nashville is an enigmatic tour through the eclectic locations and one-of-a-kind objects scattered across the city and beyond. For the casual visitor to Music City, it offers a much deeper dive into the sightseeing waters…and for the natives, it is the perfect complement to remember the legacies and legends of the area. From the mysteries of the broad skyline silhouette down to the fine white strands of Andrew Jacksons hair, this book explores Nashville in a brand new light, with over 90 unique and compelling obscurities casting the honky tonk neon into the shadows to find the forgotten and unknown lore behind Tennessee’s iconic capital city. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 20.0px; font: 14.7px Arial; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 20.0px; font: 14.7px Arial; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000; min-height: 16.0px} span.s1 {font-kerning: none}

Where in St. Louis can you… …picnic at a radioactive waste dump? …learn what West County Center’s famous dove really represents? …visit the grave of the man who burned Atlanta? …join a nudist resort? …view a cube comprised of a million dollar bills? …see a piece from New York’s Twin Towers? …find out exactly what a Billiken is? Whether you are piloting a simulated barge on the Mississippi River, exploring the hidden history of Abraham Lincoln’s bizarre swordfight in St. Charles County or eating a ten-pound apple-pie in Kimmswick inspired by the Great Flood of 1993, it is hard to get bored with a copy of Secret St. Louis: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure. By turns wistful and whimsical, this is a book which answers the questions you never knew you had about St. Louis while taking readers on a whirlwind tour through 97 unique but often little-known spaces and places that can’t be found anywhere else. A tourist handbook for people who thought they never needed one, “Secret St. Louis” provides a scavenger hunt of hidden gems traversing the somber, strange, surprising and silly locales which define the culture and history that make St. Louis such a diverse and amazing place to call home. From Weldon Spring to Wildwood, from Overland to O’Fallon, from Bellefontaine to Bridgeton, this is an exploration of St. Louis’s odds and ends like no other.

The most compelling, insightful, and white-knuckled journey behind the restaurant curtain since Anthony Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential. Mark H. Brezinski is a forty-five-year veteran of the dynamic restaurant industry. A graduate of the famed School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University, Mark went on to create or co-create multiple nationally acclaimed restaurant companies. His experiences span the globe in search of culinary discoveries and inspirations with industry icons like the late Norman Brinker, Paul Fleming, Phil Romano, and chefs Michael Mina and Mark Miller. Mark’s restaurants have featured an international buffet of foods that include Indian, Italian, French, and Vietnamese. His travels have taken him from Tokyo to Tuscany, from San Francisco to Shanghai, from Mumbai to Maui. This book takes you to all of these places and more, while telling behind-the-scenes stories—sometimes funny, often heartbreaking, and never without lessons learned. The journey is a remarkable tag-along to the highs and lows of being an entrepreneur and the self-discovery that comes with each stop. Mark resides in Dallas and, never one to leave a stone unturned, is currently founder of his latest concept, Bizzy, which features his vision of better fast food.

Jim Morris is no stranger to big dreams. Since he was five years old, he passionately yearned to play baseball in the major leagues. However, despite all his hard work and determination, a series of unfortunate events and injuries scuttled his career before he was twenty-five. Doctors told him he would never play again. Then at age thirty-five—after a string of highly implausible events and at an age when most players are retiring—Morris found himself on the mound as a relief pitcher for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. His return to the game was so incredible that Disney made his story into a heartwarming film—The Rookie—with a stellar performance by Dennis Quaid. It was released to popular acclaim and was a huge box office success. It won the ESPY for Best Sports Movie in 2002 and the CAMIE award for Character and Morality in Entertainment. Dream Makers picks up where The Rookie left off. This compelling memoir explores the untapped territory of Morris’s life, including his contentious relationship with his father, his incessant and grueling struggle with pain and addiction, the mentorship with his wise and loving grandfather who kept him grounded, and the resolve and faith that drove him to overcome every tribulation. Dream Makers explores the transformative power of surrounding yourself with the best, most accomplished people possible—inspiring you to overcome life’s obstacles and achieve your dreams. Life can come at you fast, but with God, all things are possible. “It’s not about me. It’s what God can do through me.”

History and hermits. Museums and murals. Graveyards and churches and plenty of cheesesteak. These are the secrets of Philadelphia. They reveal a city of curious contradiction, one with a rich history dating back to 1682 but also with an eye on the future. Come for the Liberty Bell­, but stay for the secrets uncovered in Secret Philadelphia: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful and Obscure. Journey to the places you've never heard of and back to those old haunts you thought you knew, but never like this. Discover where you can . . . Enter through a gate full of artistic hands, Peruse art between arrivals and departures, Throw a penny on a Founding Father's grave (and learn why you should), Sample a sandwich on both sides of the street, Learn how 19th-century surgeries were performed, Explore the cell where Al Capone paid his debt to society, Discover the cave of the first doomsday cult, Come face to face with the bird that inspired two famous authors, Follow the footsteps of famous boxers both real and fictional, Encounter the real heroes of the Revolution, Greet neighbors in the oldest neighborhood in the country, Roam through dinosaurs and walk away with a butterfly, See slides of Einstein's brain... From the festive fantasy of the Mummers to the disturbing reality of the Mütter, Philadelphia is a city with stories to tell. Uncover your own favorites in the pages of Secret Philadelphia.