Synopses & Reviews
Makes a reader feel like a time traveler plopped down among men who were by turns vicious and visionary.”The Christian Science MonitorThe modern American economy was the creation of four men: Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, Jay Gould, and J. P. Morgan. They were the giants of the Gilded Age, a moment of riotous growth that established America as the richest, most inventive, and most productive country on the planet.
Acclaimed author Charles R. Morris vividly brings the men and their times to life. The ruthlessly competitive Carnegie, the imperial Rockefeller, and the provocateur Gould were obsessed with progress, experiment, and speed. They were balanced by Morgan, the gentleman businessman, who fought, instead, for a global trust in American business. Through their antagonism and their verve, they built an industrial behemothand a country of middle-class consumers. The Tycoons tells the incredible story of how these four determined men wrenched the economy into the modern age, inventing a nation of full economic participation that could not have been imagined only a few decades earlier. Charles R. Morris is the author of eight books, including American Catholic and Money, Greed, and Risk. A regular contributor to the Los Angeles Times, he has also written for The Wall Street Journal, The New Republic, and The Atlantic Monthly. He is a lawyer and former banker, and was most recently president of a financial services software company. He lives in New York City. What we think of as the modern American economy was the creation of four men: Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, Jay Gould, and J. P. Morgan. They were the giants of the Gilded Age, and lived at a moment of riotous growthand real violencethat established America as the richest, most inventive, and most productive country on the planet. They are, quite literally, the founding fathers of our economyand, thus, of modern America.
Acclaimed author and journalist Charles R. Morris vividly brings these four men to life. On one side are Carnegie, the ruthless competitor; Gould, the provocateur in the shadows; and Rockefeller, the visionary who understood how to manage sprawling empires. These three were obsessed with progress, experiment, and speed. In steel, railroads, oil, and money markets, they rallied behind a single-minded code: bigger, cheaper, faster. And then there was Morgan, the gentleman businessman, who fought, instead, for a global trust in American business. Through their competition over the last decades of the nineteenth century, they built a powerful nation populated with consumers as well as producers, fostering the growth of the middle class. The Tycoons tells the incredible story of how four determined men wrenched the economy into the modern age, inventing a nation of full economic participation that could not have been imagined only a few decades earlier. "In an engaging synthesis, Morris persuasively describes Carnegie, Rockefeller, Gould, and Morgan as vital forces of creative destruction who undermined the localized, genteel, monopoly-ridden economy of the mid-nineteenth century. The tycoons had what today's managers often lack, says Morris: the imagination and drive to overthrow conventional limitations on growth."Harvard Business Review "Morris skillfully assembles a great deal of academic and anecdotal research . . . Impressive."The New York Times Book Review "In an engaging synthesis, Morris persuasively describes Carnegie, Rockefeller, Gould, and Morgan as vital forces of creative destruction who undermined the localized, genteel, monopoly-ridden economy of the mid-nineteenth century. The tycoons had what today's managers often lack, says Morris: the imagination and drive to overthrow conventional limitations on growth."Harvard Business Review "Morris displays a cultural diarist's careful attention to detail that makes a reader feel like a time traveler plopped down among men who were by turns vicious and visionary."The Christian Science Monitor "Superb . . . Gracefully and eloquently clarifies these men's frequently misunderstood roles in the shaping of modern U.S. commerce."The Providence Journal "A lively, incisive account of a tumultuous, often misunderstood era in American economic history. A good read with a solid message."H.W. Brands, author of The Age of Gold and Lone Star Nation "Morris has a striking command of his material and his analysis is highlighted time and again by vivid sketches and thought-provoking comparisons with contemporary circumstances. Altogether, The Tycoons is a valuable contribution to the presentation and interpretation of one of the most vital yet all-too-often romanticized periods of American economic growth."Kenneth Warren, author of Big Steel and Triumphant Capitalism
Review
"Morris does an impressive job reporting on the complicated machinations of the railroad and steel industries during this time of upheaval." New York Times Book Review
Review
"Morris shows how the inventiveness and spirit of the American worker in the later 1800s led to a surge of growth that had the U.S. roaring past Great Britain to become the world's top producer." Booklist
Review
"Thorough and highly readable, Morris' exemplary volume does a superb job of portraying the late-19th-century moguls." Providence Journal
Synopsis
An original and compelling portrait of how four determined men ascended to unrivaled wealth, productivity, and world dominance after the Civil War.
What we think of as the modern American economy was the creation of four men: Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, Jay Gould, and J. P. Morgan. They were the giants of the Gilded Age, and lived at a moment of riotous growth — and real violence — that established America as the richest, most inventive, and most productive country on the planet. They are, quite literally, the founding fathers of our economy — and, thus, of modern America.
Acclaimed author and journalist Charles R. Morris vividly brings these four men to life. On one side are Carnegie, the ruthless competitor; Gould, the provocateur in the shadows; and Rockefeller, the visionary who understood how to manage sprawling empires. These three were obsessed with progress, experiment, and speed. In steel, railroads, oil, and money markets, they rallied behind a single-minded code: bigger, cheaper, faster. And then there was Morgan, the gentleman businessman, who fought, instead, for a global trust in American business. Through their competition over the last decades of the nineteenth century, they built a powerful nation populated with consumers as well as producers, fostering the growth of the middle class. The Tycoons tells the incredible story of how four determined men wrenched the economy into the modern age, inventing a nation of full economic participation that could not have been imagined only a few decades earlier.
Synopsis
"Makes a reader feel like a time traveler plopped down among men who were by turns vicious and visionary."--The Christian Science Monitor
The modern American economy was the creation of four men: Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, Jay Gould, and J. P. Morgan. They were the giants of the Gilded Age, a moment of riotous growth that established America as the richest, most inventive, and most productive country on the planet.
Acclaimed author Charles R. Morris vividly brings the men and their times to life. The ruthlessly competitive Carnegie, the imperial Rockefeller, and the provocateur Gould were obsessed with progress, experiment, and speed. They were balanced by Morgan, the gentleman businessman, who fought, instead, for a global trust in American business. Through their antagonism and their verve, they built an industrial behemoth--and a country of middle-class consumers. The Tycoons tells the incredible story of how these four determined men wrenched the economy into the modern age, inventing a nation of full economic participation that could not have been imagined only a few decades earlier.
Synopsis
“Makes a reader feel like a time traveler plopped down among men who were by turns vicious and visionary.”—The Christian Science MonitorThe modern American economy was the creation of four men: Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, Jay Gould, and J. P. Morgan. They were the giants of the Gilded Age, a moment of riotous growth that established America as the richest, most inventive, and most productive country on the planet.
Acclaimed author Charles R. Morris vividly brings the men and their times to life. The ruthlessly competitive Carnegie, the imperial Rockefeller, and the provocateur Gould were obsessed with progress, experiment, and speed. They were balanced by Morgan, the gentleman businessman, who fought, instead, for a global trust in American business. Through their antagonism and their verve, they built an industrial behemoth—and a country of middle-class consumers. The Tycoons tells the incredible story of how these four determined men wrenched the economy into the modern age, inventing a nation of full economic participation that could not have been imagined only a few decades earlier.
About the Author
Charles R. Morris is the author of eight previous books, including American Catholic and Money, Greed, and Risk. He is a lawyer and former banker, and was most recently president of a financial services software company. A regular contributor to the Los Angeles Times, he has also written for The Wall Street Journal and The Atlantic Monthly. He lives in New York City.