David Bruce: 180 books

This book contains 250 anecdotes, including these: 1) In 2008, comedian Margaret Cho debuted a new show: "Beautiful." The genesis of the show came when a radio host asked Ms. Cho, “What would you do if you woke up tomorrow and you were beautiful?” She was shocked by the question because,...

This book contains 250 music anecdotes, including these: 1) Hardcore group Black Flag sometimes played shows for very few people. In 1982, Black Flag played a show in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for two, or at most five people, who sat far away, in the back. Henry Rollins, lead singer, was mad,...

Some samples: • In September 2008, James Meeks, a Baptist minister and state senator, organized an impressive act of activism. He led a boycott of Chicago Public Schools by nearly 1,000 students and instead bused them to two affluent North Shore schools. His purpose was to show the differences in...

This book contains 250 stories about good deeds, including these: 1) On 5 September 2012, rapper Game helped a bicyclist who had crashed his bike and was lying in a Los Angeles, California, street with his bike on top of him. Game pulled his car over, and after finding that the bicyclist was unresponsive,...

This book contains 250 stories about good deeds, including these: 1) In 2012, David “Deacon” Jones lost his heavy gold National Football League Hall of Fame ring. He and his wife, Elizabeth, ransacked their house but they could not find it. In June 2013, he died without ever finding the ring....

Some samples: 1) Blues singer Muddy Waters first heard his voice on a recording in the early 1940s. His impression of his voice was positive; afterward, he said, “I thought, man, this boy can sing the blues. And I was surprised because I didn’t know I sang like that.” 2)At age 13, William F....

Some samples: 1) Dee Dee Ramone could be pretty crazy. When the Ramones first played in London, their record company gave them unlimited room service, and Dee Dee acted the way that he thought a rock star should act and ordered so many bottles of Scotch that in two days his room service bill was $700....

Some samples: 1) Rock goddesses have kids, too. Pat Benatar was a major 1980s rock star and continues to play today. Her songs such as “Heartbreaker” are on Guitar Hero, and lots of children—and adults—rock out to them, including her two daughters, Haley and Hana. Of course, kids can ask embarrassing...

This book contains 250 anecdotes about the theater, including these: 1) British actor Pete Postlethwaite has a rugged face. When he was studying at the Bristol Old Vic, he ran out of money to pay for the completion of his course of study. However, the head of the school knew that the young man had...

Some sample anecdotes: 1) Simon and Schuster once published a children’s book titled Dr. Dan the Bandage Man. As a publicity gimmick, they decided to include a half-dozen band-aids in each book, so publisher Richard Simon sent this telegram to a friend at Johnson and Johnson: “PLEASE SHIP TWO...

Some sample anecdotes: 1) Fan fiction—fiction written by fans using the characters they are fans of—has been around for longer than you may think. When Ray Bradbury was 12 years old in the early 1930s, he was a big fan of Edgar Rice Burroughs, author of books starring such characters as Tarzan...

An excerpt: When most people speculate about the happiest time of Nadia’s life, they probably think of her performance at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal. In fact, on the last day of competition at the Montreal Olympics, after she had won five medals, Nadia said, “Today is the happiest day...

This book contains 250 anecdotes, including these: 1) On a very hot day in New York, the Pirates were playing the Giants. Frank Frisch, manager of the Pirates, lived in nearby New Rochelle. Neither the Pirates nor the Giants were very good that season, the game was meaningless, and one team got a...

Some samples: 1) Notre Dame football player George Gipp was athletically gifted in more than one sport. In a baseball game, he was ordered to bunt, but instead he hit a home run. Why? He explained that he didn’t want to spend much time standing on the bases because it was too hot. When he was a...