Wealth, power and notoriety are all fleeting.
At the height of his success, Powel Crosley owned multiple mansions, the Cincinnati Reds and a business empire. He was featured in news reports and radio broadcasts around the country.
Roughly 40 years after Powel’s death, few people recognize his name.
I wrote Crosley in part to try and change that.
From the time Powel began to garner the attention of the media, he worked to craft the public persona of a powerful businessman. Crosley isn’t the story Powel would have told. The book contains many of the failures and flaws he omitted.
The success of Crosley surprised me, but I think it would have surprised Powel Crosley even more. The same stories he tried so hard to hide, are now the very thing keeping his legacy alive.