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
1890-1950Showing 1 featured edition. View all 1 editions?
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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
Published in
New York
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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| April 17, 2024 | Edited by ImportBot | import existing book |
| January 8, 2023 | Edited by frstndlstlns | added dates |
| February 13, 2020 | Edited by MARC Bot | remove fake subjects |
| July 17, 2019 | Edited by MARC Bot | import existing book |
| October 23, 2011 | Created by LC Bot | import new book |