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The Astronaut Wives Club
- A True Story
- Narrated by: Orlagh Cassidy
- Length: 7 hrs and 46 mins
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Publisher's Summary
As America's Mercury Seven astronauts were launched on death-defying missions, television cameras focused on the brave smiles of their young wives. Overnight, these women were transformed from military spouses into American royalty. They had tea with Jackie Kennedy, appeared on the cover of Life magazine, and quickly grew into fashion icons.
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What listeners say about The Astronaut Wives Club
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Cynthia
- 06-15-13
Sea of Tranquility Ocean of Storms
I am a huge fan of Sheryl Sandberg's "Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead" (2013). I thought Lily Koppel's "The Astronaut Wives Club" (2013) would be the antithesis of "Lean In", but I was intrigued by a great review on NPR's Morning Edition. One of my earliest memories is of the January 27, 1967 fire that killed three astronauts on the launch pad, and I suddenly wondered how those wives had handled that.
Curious, and bolstered by Audible's no questions asked return policy in case I didn't like the AWC (as the members of "The Astronaut Wives Club" refer to the group) I decided to listen.
The AWC is a fascinating study of a place (Texas) and time (late 1950's and the 1960's) where NASA created what appeared to be the perfect community to nurture astronauts into space and eventually to the moon. The wives, followed by Life magazine and hoards of hungry press, presented a convincing facade of suburban living , cooking streak-and-eggs breakfasts, wearing exquisite dresses, with carefully coifed hair. The wives were expected to be rocks of support, not letting their own families or the rest of the world know how frightening what their husbands were doing was.
The facade was just that - a mask, and the members of the AWC joined together to support each other and mortar the cracks that inevitably formed. While their husbands competed on making history in space (and sometimes on the ground with the number of 'Cape Cookies' they could bag), the AWC supported each other with ham loaf, tuna casseroles, jello molds, and chats over plenty of coffee and cigarettes.
Most of the AWC didn't work outside the home, but most middle and upper class women didn't at the time. Being an astronaut's wife was like being an unwilling star of an unrelenting reality show.
I had initially held the members of the AWC in disdain because they seemed to derive their identities from their husbands, but like other women of that era, they did not have the options we do half a century later.
The AWC was and is a space pioneer "Lean In" group.
The narration was a bit off - not everyone could have had a Texas accent - but the pace was good.
Audible, you're safe. I won't be returning this one.
[if you found this review helpful please let me know by pressing the helpful button. Thanks!]
32 people found this helpful
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- Steve
- 07-08-13
So-So Story, Painful Performance
What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?
Far less individual perspective than I expected. Several flat out errors of fact which made me very suspicious of the material I was less familiar with. Valentina Tereshkova was not pregnant at the time of her flight. Don Eisle was not fired from NASA. Items such as these made me question the research that went into this book.
How could the performance have been better?
The performance was truly painful. I cringed each time the reader mispronounced Gus Grissom's name. It is NOT pronounced GriSHam. Gus gave his life in the service of his country. At least give him the respect of pronouncing his name correctly.
The male accents were similarly painful to listen to. If the reader had simply used her own voice for all the characters it would have been far less annoying than making them all sound like characters out of Tobacco Road.
What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?
Great ideal for a book but failed to live up to its promise. The wives certainly had a unique perspective but this book provides very little new information.
20 people found this helpful
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- Dirk Turgid
- 08-18-13
I Can Hear My Wife Shouting In The Other Room.....
Any additional comments?
I've been fascinated with the early space program, followed the Mercury, Geminii, and Apollo flights with great interest, and have read and collected books about them ever since.
Ms. Koppel's book is a wonderful adjunct to the more technical tomes and 'lives of the astronauts' works. Who says that the pressure cooker environment that the men went through was any more difficult that that of the women? With the men, they had NASA's resources for assistance, but the women only had each other. Perhaps that I'm married to a woman tougher and more capable and competant to most men that I know makes me appreciate a little more the strength of these remarkable women. In some cases, it's entirely possible that Gordo Cooper's spouse, Trudy, would have done a better job in space than he did.
My greatest respect is for Betty Grissom. Here is a woman who handled the most trying circumstances possible with iron resolve and great grace. And the Grissoms bring me to my major objection with the audiobook; the reader, throughout the book, mispronounces the name as "Grisham", like the author of the legal thrillers. And it isn't because of a confusing spelling, either; where is she (AND the director/producer who allowed this) getting the 'sh' in the middle of the name?
Because of the stature of the Grissom's service to America, this mispronunciation isn't just irritating, but demeaning, sloppy, and lazy. I found myself driving while listening to the book, and screaming, "Grissom! GriSSOM! GRISSOM!!'
I gave the book to my wife, who started it this morning, and........yes, she's gotten to the first one. I can hear her thundering in the other room, "Grissom, damn it! GriSSOM! GRISSOM!!"
17 people found this helpful
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- Donna
- 06-19-13
Reads like a gossip column
I love memoirs, but this was a huge disappointment. I wanted to know what the wives were thinking, how they felt. Instead I got superficial clothing descriptions and name dropping. I don't care that the someone's son had shimmering, snow white blond locks or what color the swirls were on her paisley dress.
The key pioints in NASA history were glossed over so we could hear about the clothes, the furniture, the mundane stuff. In fact, the Apollo 13 crises was covered in about 3 minutes.
These women came across as mindless, Stepford wives, which I am sure is not true. Even in that time period I'm sure they had thoughts, opinions and feelings. None of that came out. Don't waste your credit.
13 people found this helpful
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- Bragg
- 08-30-13
The Narration Nearly Ruins the Book/Story
Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?
I would, though I'd be less inclined to recommend the audio version of the book as the narration was absolutely atrocious. Additionally, I think that having a preexisting interest in and cursory familiarity with the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo programs (along with the individuals comprising them) would be important in being able to enjoy this book.
What did you like best about this story?
There were some revelations I'd never been aware of, and I've been reading about the beginnings of the space program and the Mercury Astronauts since I was a child. It was humorous at times, sad at others, but overall generally interesting.
Would you be willing to try another one of Orlagh Cassidy’s performances?
Absolutely not. Without question, this was the worst narration of a book I've ever heard. Orlagh Cassidy's attempts to mimic/impersonate certain people, accents, genders, etc. was just so awful. It was condescending, distracting, and terrible. If she was going to affect Southern accents or Kennedy-esque Boston accents, she at least could have been good at them! She should have simply read the quotations from the characters in her normal voice (which is fine in and of itself). If she'd done that, it would have made for a much more satisfactory listening experience.
Was The Astronaut Wives Club worth the listening time?
Overall, yes.
Any additional comments?
WORST NARRATION EVER. HORRIBLE ATTEMPTS AT VARIOUS ACCENTS AND IMPERSONATIONS.
12 people found this helpful
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- Cheryl
- 07-01-13
Great Book, Terrible Narrator.
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
Since I grew up around Clear Lake & Houston, this book is near to my heart. Koppel has received mixed reviews for this book but I thought she delved into what the women really went thru while their husbands were in space. I loved the descriptions of the houses in El Lago because I just did a 5k race thru that neighborhood with signs that marked each astronauts house. Great read and I will probably listen to it again.
What didn’t you like about Orlagh Cassidy’s performance?
Her voice was very robotic and reminded me of Siri from Apple Iphone. The only reason I finished it was that I grew up in Houston and loved the NASA history. I WILL NOT listen to another book done by Orlagh Cassidy.
If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?
The housewives El Lago
11 people found this helpful
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- Born organized
- 06-24-13
Horrible--don't waste your time
What would have made The Astronaut Wives Club better?
More depth and detail, less pop culture. The narrator was terrible.
Would you ever listen to anything by Lily Koppel again?
No
Would you be willing to try another one of Orlagh Cassidy’s performances?
Absolutely not
What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?
What a waste of my time and credit
7 people found this helpful
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- S. Newell
- 11-02-15
Didn't live up to my expectations
Would you recommend The Astronaut Wives Club to your friends? Why or why not?
Probably not. While the glimpses into the lives of the astronaut's wives were interesting, I felt that the author tried too hard to draw parallels between cultural shifts of the 1960s and early 1970s and the changes in the wives' lives and self-perceptions.
How did the narrator detract from the book?
I would guess that many people who would be interested in this book are folks like me who are consider themselves, to some degree, NASA/space program junkies. I'm pretty familiar with the astronauts' stories. It offended me that the narrator couldn't pronounce Gus Grissom's last name correctly. Even the slightest bit of research would have revealed the correct pronunciation. This man gave his life for the space program. The least the narrator could do is pronounce his name correctly.
Moreover, her attempts to imitate the vocal styles of Presidents Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon was pretty awful. It would have been better for her to just continue narrating these parts in her own voice.
3 people found this helpful
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- Diana Lynn
- 07-20-20
Never got off the ground
I'm the widow of a pilot who was killed in action (air tanker flyer and Navy pilot), and I'm a non-fiction writer - this book did not have to be superficial. Consider it a rehash of Wolfe's Right Stuff with luncheon menus and fashion details. I kept listening - waiting, waiting, waiting - but finally gave up when I'd 'listened' for at least fifteen minutes without paying any attention. Background sound. White noise. The narrator doesn't help when she whines to add feeling. I suggest listening to Right Stuff instead. Very disappointing.
2 people found this helpful
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- eleigh
- 12-04-15
Great read
This book offers a great untold intimate perspective of the space age as well as the change of culture throughout the late 50s and 60s.
2 people found this helpful
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Performance
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Story
Â
Stacey Morgan kissed her husband goodbye before he donned his space suit on July 20, 2019, and headed to his waiting Soyuz rocket. With an overwhelming mix of pride, excitement, and terror, she and her children held hands and watched the rocket ignite and lift off for a nine-month mission aboard the International Space Station.
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Great!
- By LifeDevoted on 05-03-23
By: Stacey Morgan
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The Red Leather Diary: Reclaiming a Life Through the Pages of a Lost Journal
- By: Lily Koppel
- Narrated by: Johanna Parker
- Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
For more than half a century, the red leather diary languished inside a steamer trunk. Rescued from a Dumpster on Manhattan's Upper West Side, it found its way to Lily Koppel, a young writer, who opened its tarnished brass lock and journeyed into an enthralling past. The diary painted a breathtaking portrait of a bygone New York' "of glamorous nights at El Morocco and elegant teas at Schrafft's during the 1920s and '30s'' - and of the headstrong, endearing teenager who filled its pages with her hopes, heartaches, and vivid recollections.
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A great story from a great find in a steamer trunk!
- By Teresa on 07-09-17
By: Lily Koppel
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A Man on the Moon: The Voyages of the Apollo Astronauts
- By: Andrew Chaikin
- Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
- Length: 23 hrs
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Audie Award, History/Biography, 2016. On the night of July 20, 1969, our world changed forever when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon. Based on in-depth interviews with 23 of the 24 moon voyagers, as well as those who struggled to get the program moving, A Man on the Moon conveys every aspect of the Apollo missions with breathtaking immediacy and stunning detail.
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Long, comforting book on moon exploration
- By Mark on 06-17-16
By: Andrew Chaikin
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Apollo
- By: Charles Murray, Catherine Bly Cox
- Narrated by: Bob Souer
- Length: 18 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Apollo is the behind-the-scenes story of an epic achievement. Based on exhaustive research that included many exclusive interviews, Apollo tells how America went from a standing start to a landing on the moon at a speed that now seems impossible. It describes the unprecedented engineering challenges that had to be overcome to create the mammoth Saturn V and the facilities to launch it. It takes you into the tragedy of the fire on Apollo 1, the first descent to the lunar surface, and the rescue of Apollo 13.
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Best book ever for space, ops, and engineering fans
- By JDM on 10-29-19
By: Charles Murray, and others
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Rocket Men
- The Daring Odyssey of Apollo 8 and the Astronauts Who Made Man's First Journey to the Moon
- By: Robert Kurson
- Narrated by: Ray Porter, Robert Kurson
- Length: 12 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
-
Story
By August 1968, the American space program was in danger of failing in its two most important objectives: to land a man on the moon by President Kennedy's end-of-decade deadline and to triumph over the Soviets in space. With its back against the wall, NASA made an almost unimaginable leap: It would scrap its usual methodical approach and risk everything on a sudden launch, sending the first men in history to the moon - in just four months.Â
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The Men Who Saved 1968
- By Gillian on 04-04-18
By: Robert Kurson
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The Bees
- A Novel
- By: Laline Paull
- Narrated by: Orlagh Cassidy
- Length: 10 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
-
Story
Flora 717 is a sanitation worker, a member of the lowest caste in her orchard hive, where work and sacrifice are the highest virtues and worship of the beloved Queen the only religion. But Flora is not like other bees. With circumstances threatening the hive's survival, her curiosity is regarded as a dangerous flaw, but her courage and strength are assets. She is allowed to feed the newborns in the royal nursery and then to become a forager, flying alone and free to collect nectar and pollen.
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My Favorite Book of 2014
- By Em on 12-07-14
By: Laline Paull
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The Astronaut's Wife
- How Launching My Husband into Outer Space Changed the Way I Live on Earth
- By: Stacey Morgan
- Narrated by: Stacey Morgan
- Length: 6 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
-
Story
Â
Stacey Morgan kissed her husband goodbye before he donned his space suit on July 20, 2019, and headed to his waiting Soyuz rocket. With an overwhelming mix of pride, excitement, and terror, she and her children held hands and watched the rocket ignite and lift off for a nine-month mission aboard the International Space Station.
-
-
Great!
- By LifeDevoted on 05-03-23
By: Stacey Morgan
-
The Red Leather Diary: Reclaiming a Life Through the Pages of a Lost Journal
- By: Lily Koppel
- Narrated by: Johanna Parker
- Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For more than half a century, the red leather diary languished inside a steamer trunk. Rescued from a Dumpster on Manhattan's Upper West Side, it found its way to Lily Koppel, a young writer, who opened its tarnished brass lock and journeyed into an enthralling past. The diary painted a breathtaking portrait of a bygone New York' "of glamorous nights at El Morocco and elegant teas at Schrafft's during the 1920s and '30s'' - and of the headstrong, endearing teenager who filled its pages with her hopes, heartaches, and vivid recollections.
-
-
A great story from a great find in a steamer trunk!
- By Teresa on 07-09-17
By: Lily Koppel
-
A Man on the Moon: The Voyages of the Apollo Astronauts
- By: Andrew Chaikin
- Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
- Length: 23 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Audie Award, History/Biography, 2016. On the night of July 20, 1969, our world changed forever when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon. Based on in-depth interviews with 23 of the 24 moon voyagers, as well as those who struggled to get the program moving, A Man on the Moon conveys every aspect of the Apollo missions with breathtaking immediacy and stunning detail.
-
-
Long, comforting book on moon exploration
- By Mark on 06-17-16
By: Andrew Chaikin
-
Apollo
- By: Charles Murray, Catherine Bly Cox
- Narrated by: Bob Souer
- Length: 18 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Apollo is the behind-the-scenes story of an epic achievement. Based on exhaustive research that included many exclusive interviews, Apollo tells how America went from a standing start to a landing on the moon at a speed that now seems impossible. It describes the unprecedented engineering challenges that had to be overcome to create the mammoth Saturn V and the facilities to launch it. It takes you into the tragedy of the fire on Apollo 1, the first descent to the lunar surface, and the rescue of Apollo 13.
-
-
Best book ever for space, ops, and engineering fans
- By JDM on 10-29-19
By: Charles Murray, and others
-
Rocket Men
- The Daring Odyssey of Apollo 8 and the Astronauts Who Made Man's First Journey to the Moon
- By: Robert Kurson
- Narrated by: Ray Porter, Robert Kurson
- Length: 12 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
By August 1968, the American space program was in danger of failing in its two most important objectives: to land a man on the moon by President Kennedy's end-of-decade deadline and to triumph over the Soviets in space. With its back against the wall, NASA made an almost unimaginable leap: It would scrap its usual methodical approach and risk everything on a sudden launch, sending the first men in history to the moon - in just four months.Â
-
-
The Men Who Saved 1968
- By Gillian on 04-04-18
By: Robert Kurson
-
The Bees
- A Novel
- By: Laline Paull
- Narrated by: Orlagh Cassidy
- Length: 10 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Flora 717 is a sanitation worker, a member of the lowest caste in her orchard hive, where work and sacrifice are the highest virtues and worship of the beloved Queen the only religion. But Flora is not like other bees. With circumstances threatening the hive's survival, her curiosity is regarded as a dangerous flaw, but her courage and strength are assets. She is allowed to feed the newborns in the royal nursery and then to become a forager, flying alone and free to collect nectar and pollen.
-
-
My Favorite Book of 2014
- By Em on 12-07-14
By: Laline Paull
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A Fine Romance
- By: Candice Bergen
- Narrated by: Candice Bergen
- Length: 14 hrs and 2 mins
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A Fine Romance begins with Bergen's charming first husband, French director Louis Malle, whose huge appetite for life broadened her horizons and whose occasional darkness never diminished their love for each other. But her real romance begins when she discovers overpowering love for her daughter after years of ambivalence about motherhood.
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up the speed to 1.5 and Candace sounds way better
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Candid, insightful, and powerful, Daring: My Passages is the story of the unconventional life of a writer who dared - to walk New York City streets with hookers and pimps to expose violent prostitution; to march with civil rights protesters in Northern Ireland as British paratroopers opened fire; to seek out Egypt's president Anwar Sadat when he was targeted for death after making peace with Israel.
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ok if new york publishing world interests you
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Lady Blue Eyes
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Thirty years after she first heard his voice singing on the jukebox at her local drive-in, Barbara Ann Blakely heard Frank Sinatra take the wedding vows that began his fourth, final, and most enduring marriage. In Lady Blue Eyes, Barbara Sinatra's first public love letter to the husband she adored, she celebrates the sensational singer, possessive mate, sexy heartthrob, and devoted friend that she found in Frank.
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Raising Trump
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In Raising Trump, Ivana Trump reflects on her extraordinary life and the raising of her three children - Donald Jr., Eric, and Ivanka - and recounts the lessons she taught her children as they were growing up. As her former husband takes his place as the 45th president of the United States, his children have also been thrust into the media spotlight - but it is Ivana who raised them and proudly instilled in them what she believes to be the most important life lessons: loyalty, honesty, integrity, and drive.
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Raising Trump
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In 1915, when a kitchen stove fire singed his sister Mabel's lashes and brows, Tom Lyle Williams watched in fascination as she performed what she called "a secret of the harem" - mixing petroleum jelly with coal dust and ash from a burnt cork and applying it to her lashes and brows. Mabel's simple beauty trick ignited Tom Lyle's imagination, and he started what would become a billion-dollar business, one that remains a viable American icon after nearly a century. He named it Maybelline in her honor.
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The Williams Family Saga and the Rise of Mabelline
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Betty Ford: First Lady, Women’s Advocate, Survivor, Trailblazer is the inspiring story of an ordinary Midwestern girl thrust onto the world stage and into the White House under extraordinary circumstances. Setting a precedent as first lady, Betty Ford refused to be silenced by her critics as she publicly championed equal rights for women and spoke out about issues that had previously been taboo - breast cancer, depression, abortion, and sexuality.
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Wonderful back story!
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