In the late 1970s and early '80s, a cadre of freewheeling, Southern pot smugglers lived at the crossroads of "Miami Vice" and a Jimmy Buffett song. These irrepressible adventurers unloaded nearly a billion dollars worth of marijuana and hashish through the eastern seaboard's marshes. Then came their undoing: Operation Jackpot, one of the largest drug investigations ever and an opening volley in Ronald Reagan's War on Drugs. In "Jackpot," author Jason Ryan takes us back to the heady days before drug smuggling was synonymous with deadly gunplay. During this golden age of marijuana trafficking, the country's most prominent kingpins were a group of wayward and fun-loving Southern gentlemen who forsook college educations to sail drug-laden luxury sailboats across the Mediterranean, the Atlantic, and the Caribbean. Les Riley, Barry Foy, and their comrades eschewed violence as much as they loved pleasure, and it was greed, lust, and disaster at sea that ultimately caught up with them, along with the law. In a cat-and-mouse game played out in exotic locations across the globe, the smugglers sailed through hurricanes, broke out of jail and survived encounters with armed militants in Colombia, Grenada and Lebanon. Based on years of research and interviews with imprisoned and recently released smugglers and the law enforcement agents who tracked them down, "Jackpot" is sure to become a classic story from America's controversial Drug Wars. "The adventures, the long-gone economy, and the sting that ultimately brought them down and changed US drug policy are meticulously documented and lucidly spun.... Part "New Yorker" feature-part Jimmy Buffet song. . . . The result is adventuresome, lavish, informative fun." --"GQ" " A] rollicking story, Ryan manages to pack in one amusing tale after another.... "Jackpot" is a rip-roaring good read." --"Charleston"" City"" Paper" "High times on the high seas: Investigative reporter Ryan recounts the glory days of dope smuggling and their terrible denouement.... A well-told tale of true crime that provides a few good arguments for why it should not be a crime at all."" --Kirkus Reviews """ "Reads like an international thriller. . . . chock-a-block with hilarious and hair-raising anecdotes of fast times." --"New York"" Journal of Books" " A] thoroughly researched account of Operation Jackpot, the drug investigation that ended the reign of South Carolina's 'gentlemen smugglers, '.... Ryan recreates the era with a vivid, sun-drenched intensity." --"Publishers Weekly" ""

In the late 1870's a group of forward-thinking St. Louisans began gathering to discuss the idea of constructing a building and apparatus to perform Cremations in their city. These friends of Cremation organized into what would become the Missouri Crematory Association, which was incorporated in 1885. The Missouri Crematory was completed in 1888 and was the tenth modern Crematory in the United States. The beautiful Romanesque structure still stands today with its imposing presence. Its rich history, unique architecture and unmistakable place in the history of the city of St. Louis have made this enigmatic structure a monument to those who have been entrusted to its care, and to the Cremation movement in the Midwest.

Nico
Nico Toscani is a martial arts detective who discovers that a group of drug barons are about to bring chaos to the streets of Chicago. With the help of his partner he soon discovers that the drugs cartel is run by Zagon, a CIA official with whom Nico had worked with during the Vietnam war.

Out For Justice
Set in Brooklyn, New York. Steven Seagal plays a martial arts expert cop Gino Felino, who vows to kill the man who murdered his best friend and colleague. In his investigation, Gino encounters numerous factions of small-time hoodlums, kicking his way through the lot of them.

Under Siege
A battleship is captured by a disgruntled CIA man and his small private army, who pose as a rock band. The only man who can save the vessel, which has nuclear capability, is Casey Ryback, the ship's cook and former Navy SEAL.

Under Siege 2
A passenger train has been hijacked by an electronics expert and turned into an untracable command centre for a weapons satellite. He has planned to blow up Washington DC - for one billion dollars - and only one man can stop him, former Navy SEAL Casey Ryback who just so happens to be on the train.

The Glimmer Man
Detective Jack Cole is on the trail of a psychopathic serial killer in Los Angeles. When he is teamed with homicide detective Jim Campbell, the 2 partners butt heads as they stumble upon a conspiracy that leads back to Cole's past - as a top secret government agent known as the 'Glimmer Man'.

Executive Decision
A 747 travelling from Athens to Washington DC is hijacked by a group ofterrorists. They claim it's to force the government to release their leader, but covert intelligence man David Grant doesn't believe it. He tries to persuade the authorities to keep the plane out of US airspace while a rescue mission is put together.

Fire Down Below
The hills of Jackson, Kentucky, have been poisoned with dumped toxins for too long. EPA Marshal Jack Taggert, out to avenge the murder of a colleague, is appointed to discover who exactly is destroying the environment, but this proves to be no mean feat. Most of the locals have been bought off or intimidated into silence, so Taggert goes undercover and finds that local tycoon Orin Hanner is far from above suspicion.

Exit Wounds
When 50 kilos of heroin is stolen from the property vaults of a top security prison in Detroit, the evidence points to the officers in charge. But no one will admit anything as the heroin is worth $5m to them. Gangster Latrell Walker is determined to find the thieves as he was due to get some big money out of the deal. But he has to deal with cop Orin Boyd, who is also on the trail of the thieves. The two decide to join forces and try and find those responsible for this conspiracy.

It's time to cash your reality check and re-create your life on your own terms.

In your twenties you expect to finally live life on your own terms. But it can seem like the world won't cooperate. Roommates drive you crazy (but you can't afford to lose them), entry-level jobs frustrate you ("Four hundred double-sided copies before lunch,"), and even a dream job can take over your nights and weekends, leaving you feeling like you are running hard but going nowhere.
Jason Ryan Dorsey helps you turn this coming-of-age crisis into opportunity. He shows you the big secret of the real world--that you don't realize how much control you have over your life until you use it. In "My Reality Check Bounced!" Jason shows you how to:
Find the courage to climb out of your real-world rut
Create a Future Picture that gets you off your "buts"
Uncover opportunity and build a tag team to make the most of it
Live like you mean it, and finally cash your reality check.