Havana Before Castro: When Cuba Was a Tropical Playground
Take a trip to the golden age of Havana in this gorgeously illustrated volume of vintage photographs, postcards, brochures, and other ephemera.
 
Featuring hundreds of historic images and cultural artifacts, Havana Before Castro documents how the Cuban capital evolved from a Prohibition Era getaway destination to a heady blend of glittering nightclubs, outrageous cabarets, all-night bars, and backstreet brothels. Here, captured in one amazing book, is the drama, passion, intrigue, and opulence of a legendary city during its heyday—before the Castro regime took over and Americans were banned from travel to this tropical paradise.
 
In chapters covering such topics as Cuban rum and cigars, the world-famous Tropicana Club, and Havana’s association with the mob, author Peter Moruzzi provides essential historical context for the many fascinating and evocative images.
1101663012
Havana Before Castro: When Cuba Was a Tropical Playground
Take a trip to the golden age of Havana in this gorgeously illustrated volume of vintage photographs, postcards, brochures, and other ephemera.
 
Featuring hundreds of historic images and cultural artifacts, Havana Before Castro documents how the Cuban capital evolved from a Prohibition Era getaway destination to a heady blend of glittering nightclubs, outrageous cabarets, all-night bars, and backstreet brothels. Here, captured in one amazing book, is the drama, passion, intrigue, and opulence of a legendary city during its heyday—before the Castro regime took over and Americans were banned from travel to this tropical paradise.
 
In chapters covering such topics as Cuban rum and cigars, the world-famous Tropicana Club, and Havana’s association with the mob, author Peter Moruzzi provides essential historical context for the many fascinating and evocative images.
2.99 In Stock
Havana Before Castro: When Cuba Was a Tropical Playground

Havana Before Castro: When Cuba Was a Tropical Playground

by Peter Moruzzi
Havana Before Castro: When Cuba Was a Tropical Playground

Havana Before Castro: When Cuba Was a Tropical Playground

by Peter Moruzzi

eBook

$2.99  $17.99 Save 83% Current price is $2.99, Original price is $17.99. You Save 83%.

Available on Compatible NOOK devices, the free NOOK App and in My Digital Library.
WANT A NOOK?  Explore Now

Related collections and offers

LEND ME® See Details

Overview

Take a trip to the golden age of Havana in this gorgeously illustrated volume of vintage photographs, postcards, brochures, and other ephemera.
 
Featuring hundreds of historic images and cultural artifacts, Havana Before Castro documents how the Cuban capital evolved from a Prohibition Era getaway destination to a heady blend of glittering nightclubs, outrageous cabarets, all-night bars, and backstreet brothels. Here, captured in one amazing book, is the drama, passion, intrigue, and opulence of a legendary city during its heyday—before the Castro regime took over and Americans were banned from travel to this tropical paradise.
 
In chapters covering such topics as Cuban rum and cigars, the world-famous Tropicana Club, and Havana’s association with the mob, author Peter Moruzzi provides essential historical context for the many fascinating and evocative images.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781423609933
Publisher: Smith, Gibbs Publisher
Publication date: 05/29/2020
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 256
File size: 24 MB
Note: This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

An architectural historian by profession, Peter Moruzzi is an acknowledged expert on midcentury Modern architecture and design. He is the founder of the Palm Springs Modern Committee, an internationally recognized historic preservation organization, and the writer/director of Desert Holiday, a documentary film chronicling the history of Palm Springs as seen through vintage postcards. He resides in the Silver Lake district of Los Angeles and in Palm Springs.

Read an Excerpt

The discovery of Havana in the 1920s by America's wealthy led to it becoming their winter playground with the establishment of country clubs and racetracks, a national casino, yacht clubs, golf courses, and suburban mansions. At the same time, other Americans arrived in Havana simply to escape Prohibition and enjoy a cocktail at Sloppy Joe's Bar with impunity and, at the same time, experience the city's romantic foreignness or, perhaps, its notorious reputation as a "goddess of delights."

Table of Contents

Preface 6

Acknowledgments 8

Prologue 9

Introduction 10

From Spanish Colony to Cuban Republic 12

Sugar, Rum, and Cigars 24

Havana between the World Wars 34

The Tragedy of Cuban Politics 54

Cuba's Postwar Tourist Explosion 64

Drinking, Dining, and Dancing 78

Tropicana 106

Havana at Night 124

Life as a Habanero 140

Cuba's Incredible Music Scene 158

Havana and the Mob 170

Havana Riviera 182

Habana Hilton 202

Havana's Other Fabulous Hotels 220

Havana Modern 234

New Year's 1958 and Beyond 244

Bibliography 252

Index 254

Photo Credits 256

From the B&N Reads Blog

Customer Reviews