The fish that ate the whale
the amazing life and momentous times of America's banana king
by Rich Cohen
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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. In between, he worked as a fruit peddler, banana hauler, dockside hustler, and plantation owner. He battled and conquered the United Fruit Company, becoming a symbol of the best and worst of the United States: proof 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. 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. -- Publisher description.
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Subjects
Jewish businesspeople, Banana trade, United Fruit Company, Biography, History, politics, foreign policy, Fruit trade, Businesspeople, biography, New orleans (la.), biography, New orleans (la.), historyPeople
Samuel Zemurray (1877-1961)Places
Central America, Guatemala, Honduras, New Orleans, LouisianaTimes
1890-1950| Edition | Availability |
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1
The fish that ate the whale: the amazing life and momentous times of America's banana king
2012, Farrar, Straus and Giroux
hardcover
in English
- 1st ed.
0374299277 9780374299279
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Book Details
First Sentence
"Sam Zemurray spoke with no accent, except when he swore, which was all the time."
Table of Contents
Edition Notes
Includes bibliographical references (p. [259]-270).
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History
- Created October 23, 2011
- 15 revisions
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| August 7, 2024 | Edited by MARC Bot | import existing book |
| April 17, 2024 | Edited by ImportBot | import existing book |
| January 8, 2023 | Edited by frstndlstlns | added first sentence |
| December 13, 2022 | Edited by MARC Bot | import existing book |
| October 23, 2011 | Created by LC Bot | Imported from Library of Congress MARC record |