Learn About "Failures Of The Presidents'

“Failures of the Presidents” by Thomas J. Craughwell with M. William Phelps, 2008, Fair Winds Press/Quayside Publishing, $19.95/$21.95 Canada, 320 pages: Why is it that you only spill, fall, splat or otherwise make a fool of yourself when everyone in the world is looking?
When things are perfect, of course, nobody’s ever around to notice. But capture the eyes of just one person (particularly one with a big mouth) and you fumble, flounder, flub and fail for all to see.
With that in mind, it’s no surprise that the guy who lives in the big White House on Pennsylvania Avenue is under a microscope, and his gaffes are there for everyone to point at. In the new book “Failures of the Presidents” by Thomas J. Craughwell with M. William Phelps, you’ll read about many a prez faux pas.
From the Bay of Pigs to lipstick on a pig, our presidents (and presidential candidates) have surely presented their share of political bloopers.
Take, for instance, the father of our country. As if being the first president wasn’t pressure enough, George Washington agreed to a tax on whiskey which led to unrest in the backwoods of the newborn United States. Citizens were literally up in arms over a fee on their booze, and they rebelled. Though the wildly unpopular law was on the books until Thomas Jefferson’s presidency, it was common knowledge that anyone who tried to collect the tax would meet with violence. Men, in fact, who attempted collection found themselves covered in tar and feathers. Understandably, nobody wanted to venture forth with his hand open.
Oopsie on Mr. Washington.
In the early years of the Depression, when homeless, unemployed families pitched tents on the grass in Washington D.C., President Herbert Hoover authorized Maj. Gen. Douglas MacArthur to clear out the squatters. Almost immediately after the orders were sent, Hoover had second thoughts and tried to pull MacArthur back.
Whoops. It didn’t work. Tear gas flew, tents burned and in the end, Hoover was blamed for the melee.
George Santayana said that those who can’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it, so future presidents should observe Lyndon Johnson’s lesson: never lie. Johnson and Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara fabricated a story they knew would escalate conflict in Vietnam. You know what happened next, but you might not know that it changed the way a president can wage war.
Judging from the funny, irreverent cover here, you’d perhaps expect a light-hearted book filled with plenty of laughs, right?
Nope.
“Failures of the Presidents” is much deeper and drier than you’d anticipate by just picking this book up. Authors Craughwell and Phelps include many very serious presidential losses and lack of successes that altered history, changed laws, and redirected the way Americans perceived the office and the men in it. Although I would have appreciated a smidge more humor here, this isn’t a bad book. It’s just more somber and serious than not.
Still, if you’re fascinated with politics in this historically political year, “Failures of the Presidents” is a definite must-have for your bookshelf. For you, missing this book is a big boo-boo.

'SAMMY’ REVIEW
“Deconstructing Sammy” by Matt Birkbeck, 2008, Harper Collins Amistad, $25.95/$27.95 Canada, 280 pages: Do you remember Matthew Beard? How about Louise Beavers? Leo Gorcey? What about Ann Blythe, Michael Callan or Pete Duel?
Those people were once big Hollywood names, but unless you’re of a certain age or are a student of stardom, you probably don’t recognize them. In the 1950s and ’60s, singer/dancer/actor Sammy Davis Jr. was one of America’s best-loved performers, but you rarely hear much about him these days. In the new book “Deconstructing Sammy” by Matt Birkbeck, you’ll see why.
Three years after Sammy Davis Jr. was born, his parents divorced and his father took Sammy on the road. Though he would forever lack a formal education, it was quickly apparent that the child was talented. He was able to mimic almost every performer he saw.
Because he and his father had performed as the opening act for many big names, Sammy’s star rose quickly. He became friends with Frank Sinatra, and later, with other major stars of the era.
For two decades, Sammy Davis Jr. was one of America’s top entertainers. In the 1970s, though, his audience-drawing ability began to wane. He got involved in some iffy business deals and made several bad financial decisions. When he died in 1990, Sammy Davis Jr.’s estate was a mess, and his entertainment legacy all but gone.
Four years after Davis’ death, Sonny Murray, a Pennsylvania lawyer, told a friend of his father’s that he would take the case of Altovise Davis, wife of the late star. Mrs. Sammy Davis Jr. had a noticeable problem with alcohol, and she was in ill health. Worse, she was in deep debt and in trouble with the IRS.
For years, Sonny worked on behalf of Altovise Davis, trying to clear up her debts. He became obsessed with re-establishing Sammy Davis Jr.’s amazing legacy, and he worked with little or no pay to do it, often, according to Birkbeck, with little or no help from Altovise. In the end, the life and death of a singer consumed the life of the attorney.
While “Deconstructing Sammy” surely kept me up a few nights past my bedtime, it could have easily been called “Deconstructing Altovise” or “Deconstructing Sonny” because the latter two people were easily two-thirds of the book.
With a journalist’s eye toward a great story, author Birkbeck leads readers through a decades-long financial mess including cover-ups, deals that obviously took advantage of Sammy, mob connections, political friendships and snubbings, and contractual issues that affected the singer’s life and estate, including some with several players who appeared to have been playing the famous performer.
While Davis’ life-story is un-put-down-able, though, Birkbeck’s portrayal of Sonny Murray is absolutely stunning. It’s a tale of obsession, legal wrangling and wanting to do the right thing despite the roadblocks erected by the very people who would have benefited most from Murray’s work.
If you love a good scandal, a good story, or a great bio, you’re going to want to read “Deconstructing Sammy” soon. Remember this one on your next trip to the library or bookstore.