Hedy's Folly

The Life and Breakthrough Inventions of Hedy Lamarr, the Most Beautiful Woman inthe World

De: Richard Rhodes

Narrado por: Bernadette Dunne

What do Hedy Lamarr, avant-garde composer George Antheil, and your cell phone have in common? The answer is spread-spectrum radio: a revolutionary inven­tion based on the rapid switching of communications sig­nals among a spread of different frequencies. Without this technology, we would not have the digital comforts that we take for granted today.

Only a writer of Richard Rhodes’s caliber could do justice to this remarkable story. Unhappily married to a Nazi arms dealer, Lamarr fled to America at the start of World War II; she brought with her not only her theatrical talent but also a gift for technical innovation. An introduction to Antheil at a Hollywood dinner table culminated in a U.S. patent for a jam- proof radio guidance system for torpedoes—the unlikely duo’s gift to the U.S. war effort.

What other book brings together 1920s Paris, player pianos, Nazi weaponry, and digital wireless into one satisfying whole? In its juxtaposition of Hollywood glamour with the reality of a brutal war, Hedy’s Folly is a riveting book about unlikely amateur inventors collaborating to change the world.

Interesting story but, got too technically dry

Hedy Lamar has an interesting life- in Hollywood and on the scientific scene. But, this rendition did get much more into the detailed descriptions of her inventions than I found of interest.

An unexpected treat

Any additional comments?

A fascinating glimpse of a brilliant and beautiful woman and the time she lived in. I recommend this whole-heatedly.

An unexpected treat

Any additional comments?

A fascinating glimpse of a brilliant and beautiful woman and the time she lived in. I recommend this whole-heatedly.

Interesting perspective into a Hollywood legend

A most enjoyable perspective of Hedy Lamar's brilliant mind, and the journey to explore and express it.

Pretty good

There is a lot of time spent on the biography of her co-inventor Henteil, to the point that I actually checked to make sure I had downloaded the correct biography. Otherwise it's a good book, especially well-performed.