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There’s much more to southern New Jersey than the Pine Barrens and the Jersey Devil, and this collection by journalists Jim Waltzer and Tom Wilk tells readers all about it. Oceanside and bayside towns offer a box seat from which to observe the region’s rich history and the summery lore of the wonders of nature. Landlocked towns boast their own homespun and hell-raising traditions and idiosyncrasies.
Waltzer and Wilk have compiled almost fifty stories about the state’s southernmost counties. Although the focus is on Atlantic City and its remarkable people, outsize structures, and quirky events, the storytelling ranges across the wider region to provide an insider’s look at history as it was being made. You’ll encounter gangsters and gamblers, baseball hitters and hurricanes, famous piers and hotels, landmark theaters and eateries, splashy events and unheralded oddities ¾ in sum, a cross-section of the region’s character and characters.
The authors divide their book into six sections: entertainment, famous and infamous events, innovations and innovators, leisure and recreation, room and board, and sports legends. Within each section are the rich and varied stories Waltzer and Wilk have collected for New Jerseyans’ reading pleasure.
A delightful read
A night passage about the Broadway Theatre is featured. Originally opened on May 18 1926, it still runs strong! There is also a story about the Apollo Theatre and Club Harlem too. A bit about Dean Martin, Jonathan Pitney and Sara Spencer Washington.
