Vanishing Point: The Disappearance of Judge Crater, and the New York He Left Behind

Tofel, Richard J.

ISBN 10: 1566636051 / ISBN 13: 9781566636056

Published by Ivan R. Dee Publisher, 2004

Missing dust jacket; May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Seller Inventory # G1566636051I4N01

Synopsis:

The sudden disappearance of Judge Joseph Crater nearly 75 years ago led to perhaps the most famous missing persons case of the twentieth century. Crater, a justice of New Yorks state Supreme Court, vanished amid political scandal. Within days, questions arose about Judge Craters finances and his liaisons with numerous women. A public frenzy about what happened to Crater provided impetus for scrutiny of New Yorks Tammany Hall political machine—and ultimately for the vanishing of Tammany Hall as well. The cast of characters in this book—the first-ever serious look at the Crater case—includes Franklin D. Roosevelt, the governor who named Crater to the bench; Senator Robert Wagner, Craters mentor, but also the leader with the most to lose from having Crater found; Al Smith, Tammanys ebbing leader and failed presidential candidate; Jimmy Walker, the rogue Mayor of New York City and the darling of Tammany Hall; and Fiorello La Guardia, the crusading reformer who finally came to power on the back of the scandals. Richard J. Tofels Vanishing Point is a revealing look at New York as the Jazz Age gave way to the Depression, and at one of the most intriguing stories in the annals of urban America.

About the Author: Richard J. Tofel is president and chief operating officer of the new International Freedom Center, a museum of freedom and a cultural center to be built at the site of the World Trade Center. Formerly assistant publisher of the Wall Street Journal, Mr. Tofel is a graduate of Harvard College, the Harvard Law School, and the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard. Before the publication of Vanishing Point, Tofel wrote A Legend in the Making, a book about the 1939 Yankees. He recently published Sounding the Trumpet, a fascinating look into the making of Kennedy's inaugural address, also published by Ivan R. Dee. He lives with his family in Riverdale, New York.

Bibliographic Details

Title: Vanishing Point: The Disappearance of Judge ...
Publisher: Ivan R. Dee Publisher
Publication Date: 2004
Binding: Hardcover
Condition: Very Good
Dust Jacket Condition: No Jacket