Bob Gordon – författare

Bob Gordon gives a fascinating survey of the different kinds of toy steam engines of the stationary type, and especially those produced during the heyday of steam toys between 1900 and 1930. Dealing mainly with the German manufacturers who pioneered the mass-production of steam toys, it explains how the engines work, gives advice about operating and maintaining them, and contains useful information about identifying and dating vintage models. The manufacturers and retailers who played a leading part in the production and distribution of steam toys are described, and brief references are made to manufacturers who are still making toy steam engines. This will be an excellent reference book for steam enthusiasts of all ages.

Model engineering was popularised by pioneering steam enthusiasts, and rapidly grew into an exciting world-wide hobby for amateur engineers. This book describes how model steam engines work, outlines the development of the machine tools used to build the models, and investigates the seven different categories of model engines, which include models built to support patent applications, and those built purely for pleasure. The author, himself a model steam locomotive driver, also delves into the possible pitfalls and practicalities of scale model engineering. Generously illustrated, this is guaranteed to interest any aspiring engineer, as well as collectors of steam engines.

In these pages, several legendary Eagles players share their fondest memories as each one recalls the game that sticks out the most from his Eagles career. The games they choose may very well be the one with which you most associate them—a championship game, a playoff game, or a heralded comeback. But a fair number of choices may surprise you, as some Eagles cite encounters that time and history have buried deep within history’s vault. No matter which game each player chooses as his most memorable, each one tells a story. Each fills in a bit more of the complex legacy that defines the Philadelphia Eagles. More importantly, and certainly more poignantly, each story humanizes the larger-than-life warriors who strapped on their winged helmet each Sunday and played for the glory of the city of Philadelphia.Some of the former Eagles players profiled in this book are:• Chuck Bednarik• Brian Dawkins• Tommy McDonald• Bill Bergey• Seth Joyner• Keith Jackson• Mike Quick• Vai Sikahema• Garry Cobb• William Thomas• Brian Baldinger• Claude Humphrey• Bill Bradley• Lito Sheppard• Vince PapaleThe new edition includes a fresh introduction, which explores the vicissitudes of the Andy Reid era, recounts the emergence of 21st-century stars like DeSean Jackson and Brian Westbrook, and dives into much, much more Eagle lore.

Stubble scruffed up their chins. Tobacco wads ballooned their cheeks. The 1993 Philadelphia Phillies had the look of a slow-pitch softball team itching to kick some serious butt. They did kick butt, too, on and off the field. “They lived the life of professional baseball players as fully as it can be done,” manager Jim Fregosi said. Though they weren’t a photogenic bunch, their mugs were everywhere, on Baseball Today, on David Letterman, and on Saturday Night Live. Even President Clinton quipped about them. The newly revised edition of Robert Gordon’s and Tom Burgoyne’s More Than Beards, Bellies, and Biceps: The Story of the 1993 Phillies tells the complete story of this gang of baseball throwbacks that quickly seduced the hometown fans. By season’s end they had won over the rest of the country, too. America’s Most Wanted Team became America’s Team in a heart-thumping World Series against Toronto. The ’93 Phils drew more spectators than any other Philadelphia franchise in the city’s century-and-a-quarter of professional sports. More Than Beards, Bellies, and Biceps offers the story of a team that burned the candle at both ends and lit up a city like a firecracker.

The newly reissued Legends of the Philadelphia Phillies, originally published in 2005, takes an in-depth look at the legends that have shaped the Phillies’ identity over the last seventy years. Each chapter profiles a different beloved Phillies personality that colored the latter half of the twentieth century. Most were cheered; some were booed. Philadelphia is a city that loves you back, just sometimes in strange ways.With quotes and interviews from former and current Phils, Legends of the Philadelphia Phillies profiles Mitch Williams, Darren Daulton, Dave Hollins, Jim Eisenreich, Pete Incaviglia, and Milt Thompson from 1993’s “Beards, Bellies, and Biceps” National League championship team, as well as Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton, and Tug McGraw from the 1980 World Series championship team. Author Robert Gordon also includes their notable predecessors, from Hall of Famers Robin Roberts and Richie Ashburn to former All-Stars like Johnny Callison and Del Ennis. No Phillies book would be complete without the off-the-field names who have defined the Phillies, such as team president Bill Giles, announcer Harry Kalas, and Dave Raymond, the original Phillie Phanatic. Each of these legends played a unique role in shaping one of sports’ greatest franchises, and Legends of the Philadelphia Phillies brings them to life once again.Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Sports Publishing imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in sports—books about baseball, pro football, college football, pro and college basketball, hockey, or soccer, we have a book about your sport or your team.Whether you are a New York Yankees fan or hail from Red Sox nation; whether you are a die-hard Green Bay Packers or Dallas Cowboys fan; whether you root for the Kentucky Wildcats, Louisville Cardinals, UCLA Bruins, or Kansas Jayhawks; whether you route for the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, or Los Angeles Kings; we have a book for you. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to publishing books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked by other publishers and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.