The Club King

"In this frank and gritty memoir, Peter Gatien charts the seismic changes in his personal and professional life and the targeted destruction of his nightclub empire. From Peter's childhood in a Canadian mill town to the freedom of the 1970s, through the excesses of the 1980s and the ensuing crackdown in the 1990s, The Club King chronicles the birth and death of a cultural movement--and the life of the man who was in control of every beat."--

"In this frank and gritty memoir, Peter Gatien charts the seismic changes in his personal and professional life and the targeted destruction of his nightclub empire. From Peter's childhood in a Canadian mill town to the freedom of the 1970s, through the excesses of the 1980s and the ensuing crackdown in the 1990s, The Club King chronicles the birth and death of a cultural movement--and the life of the man who was in control of every beat."--

Rags-to-riches stories abound in American lore, but even Horatio Alger would have been hard-pressed to write one as powerful as Richard Grasso's: the son of a working-class family whose childhood dream was to become a cop. He grew up in New York City's outer boroughs, far removed from the marble halls, expensive suits, and imported cigars of the New York Stock Exchange. Here is the riveting story of how he rose to become the most influential CEO in the Exchange's history. Minus the tony upbringing, affluent prep schools, or inside connections that were de rigueur for top Wall Street players, Grasso would master the subtle deal-making and politics necessary to succeed in the most competitive business on Earth. But despite his successes, Grasso would soon sow the seeds of his own downfall, an event that would change the Exchange forever. The King of the Club paperback edition, featuring a full update on the story, chronicles the amazing rise, fall, and possible rise again of Richard Grasso, and also tells the modern history of the all-powerful institution that he came to symbolize: The New York Stock Exchange.

Outrageous parties. Brazen drug use. Fantastical costumes. Celebrities. Wannabes. Gender-bending club kids. Pulse-pounding beats. Sinful orgies. Botched police raids. Depraved criminals. Murder. Welcome to the decadent nineties club scene. In 1995, journalist Frank Owen began researching a story on Special K, a designer drug that fueled the after-midnight club scene. He went to buy and sample the drug at the internationally notorious Limelight, a crumbling church converted into a Manhattan disco, where mesmerizing music, ecstatic dancers, and uninhibited sideshows attracted long lines of hopeful onlookers. Owen discovered a world where reckless hedonism was elevated to an art form, and where the ever-accelerating party finally spun out of control in the hands of notorious club owner Peter Gatien and his minions. In Clubland, Owen reveals how a lethal drug ring operated in a lawless, black-lit realm of fantasy, and how, when the lights came up, their excesses left countless victims in their wake. Praised for his risk-taking and exhilarating writing style, Frank Owen has spawned a hybrid of literary nonfiction and true crime, capturing the zeitgeist of a world that emerged in the spirit of “peace, love, unity and respect,” and ended in tragedy.

Mark Jones is a henchman for hire. He guards bunkers, patrols perimeters and stands around in a boiler suit waiting to get knocked out by Ninjas. This is his job. He has worked for some of the most notorious super villains the world has ever known - Doctor Thalassocrat, Victor Soliman, Polonius Crump; Mark was with each of them when they met their makers at the hands of British Secret Service super-spy, Jack Tempest, and lived to tell the tale - if not pay the bills. Still for every hour under gunfire there are weeks and months of sitting around on monorails so Jones starts a book club with his fellow henchmen. It was only meant to pass the time. It was never meant to save the world. From the bestselling author of The Burglar Diaries and the movie Wild Bill.

An epic new fantasy romance from New York Times and USA Today bestselling author C. L. Wilson After three long years of war, starkly handsome Wynter Atrialan will have his vengeance on Summerlea's king by taking one of the man's beautiful, beloved daughters as his bride. But though peace is finally at hand, Wynter's battle with the Ice Heart, the dread power he embraced to avenge his brother's death, rages on. Khamsin Coruscate, Princess of Summerlea and summoner of Storms, has spent her life exiled to the shadows of her father's palace. Reviled by her father, marriage to Wintercraig's icy king was supposed to be a terrible punishment, but instead offers Kham her first taste of freedom—and her first taste of overwhelming passion. As fierce, indomitable Wynter weathers even Khamsin's wildest storms, surprising her with a tenderness she never expected, Kham wants more than Wynter's passion—she yearns for his love. But the power of the Ice Heart is growing, dangerous forces are gathering, and a devastating betrayal puts Khamsin and Wynter to the ultimate test.

Dive into the 1990s New York club scene with never-before-seen photos by its most prolific photographer, Steve Eichner. Eichner was a fixture of 1990s New York City nightlife and served as both its official and unofficial photographer in an era before cellphones and selfies. In this book, readers go beyond the velvet ropes and into the spaces that witnessed some of the decade's most incredible and sought-after parties. Previously unpublished, these intoxicating full-color photographs capture the over-thetop costumes, non-stop dancing, glitter, confetti, sex, drugs, and music that made 90s New York unlike any other place. Celebrities abound, from Leonardo DiCaprio, Dennis Hopper, and Tupac to Joan Rivers, Michael Musto, and Donald Trump. Eichner takes you to many of the city's hot spots, including the Limelight, the Tunnel, Webster Hall, Club Expo, and Club USA. Texts by famous club owner Peter Gatien and BuzzFeed photo essay editor Gabriel H. Sanchez offer a historic and cultural perspective on an era when New York City was more affordable and every night saw artists, bankers, drag queens, musicians, and poets reveling together.

Birmingham would definitely not be the place that it is today, without Eddie Fewtrell. Born one of ten children in the 1930s, in the backstreets of Aston, much of Eddie's childhood was spent keeping house and caring for his younger brothers. By the 1970s he became the most powerful man in Birmingham's Clubland.