Skunk Works: A Personal Memoir of My Years of Lockheed

Customer Reviews:

Excellent read.......2007-05-15

Excellent book, one you have to keep reading till finished. Never cease to be amazed by the SR71 Blackbird. Tragic end to the worlds most magnificent aircraft even today. But I cant help but wonder if all the bullions put into the military wouldnt make the world a better place if spent on peaceful humane achievements.

Not too bad of a fast read.......2007-05-08

This is a fast read with a limited NY Times-level vocabulary. It has several interesting details that allow readers familiar with the procurement of stealth technology by the US government to fill in blanks as to why certain events took place the way they did. It also describes the developing trends that killed the traditional skunk works. I ended up marking none of the pages, which tells me that there aren't any unexpected statements lurking in the book. I'm certainly appreciative of having read it once.

Great Book!.......2007-05-07

While I was working in the plant in Burbank in the late '60's, my Dad was living this book. He was a 44 year member of Lockheed's workforce and spent most of that time behind the big dark curtian over at building 310. I sent him a copy of this book and inspite his age of 89, he was glued to it and can't stop talking about it.

If you want to know what went on, in some of those early years and how really difficult dealing with the government can be, read this book.

What a blast!

The Skunk Works After Kelly - .......2007-04-22

Pondering his retirement, Kelly Johnson, legendary head of Lockheed's Skunk Works selected Ben Rich to take over. Rich lacked Kelly's high profile and bombastic leadership, but not his vision and leadership. For 16 of his 40 years at Lockheed Rich lead the famed group. For the prior 24 years he learned the art and craft of building far beyond the state of the art vehicles in impossibly short time.

Kelly's retirement was at the height of the public acclaim for the magnificent SR-71, the U-2 and countless others achievements. Rich had the vision and courage to lock onto stealth technology in its infancy, recognizing that the survival rate for manned bombers over the then primary threat, the USSR, was going to be low. The Russians had made an incredible investment in their strategic defenses.

The US depended on the manned bomber as the third leg of the strategic triad - submarine launched missiles, land based missiles and strategic bombers. Rich believed the alternative was stealth. Much of the later portion of the book talks of the development of stealth technology, selling it to the Air Force and then building the airplane under the heavy hand of the Air Force.

The early part of the book is a great "other look" at the Skunk Works under Johnson. Ben Rich was there, playing a major role in the design of many of the aircraft. He captures the challenges, the victories and the defeats.

He also brings to life the almost comical cover for the U-2 program as parts and supplies were delivered to a fictional company far from Lockheed and paid for with funds that flowed directly from the CIA to Kelly Johnson. Far from reckless, the U-2 investment was probably the wisest federal purchase since Alaska. Its success was a direct reflection of the lack of direct involvement by the government in the design and the lack of government supervision of the development and construction.

Wrapped up in this book and Johnson's bio are priceless bits of wisdom regarding leadership in the technical and business world. The book is a good read for someone with no interest in airplanes but an interest in corporate or government leadership.

Rich also talks of the sad decline of Kelly Johnson in the later years after his struggles with the health problems and untimely deaths of his wives.

One of the interesting stories is Rich's discussion of the design of the drone designed to be carried by the SR-71. The idea was to fly to the edge of the unfriendly territory , launch the disposable drone and recover the film it was to drop over waiting ships. The drones looked like miniature SR-71s in their stealth like shape and black paint. Unfortunately one of the SR-71s and the pilot were lost in an early attempt to launch the drone off the California coast and the program shifted the mothership role to the B-52.

Co-author Loe Janos understands aviation and his talents are obvious. Somehow they managed to get the book together in the sadly short interval between Rich's 1991 retirement from Lockheed and his death in 1995. The book is an outstanding tribute to a little known (outside of the industry and military) leader who ably filled impossibly large boots. A great read.

Great Read.......2007-01-12

This is the perfect book for any engineer, aviation fan, or history buff. Ben Rich tells it like it was. He recounts an era when honesty, hard work, and patriotic determination drove American industry to the pinnacle of creativity and achievement.

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Lockheed Skunk Works
Steve Pace
Manufacturer: Motorbooks Intl
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0879386320

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Skunks (Kids Can Press Wildlife Series)
Adrienne Mason
Manufacturer: Kids Can Press, Ltd.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1553377346

Book Description

The stinky way skunks defend themselves is just one of fourteen topics in this clearly written book about skunks. Kids find out why skunks are black and white, where they live, how they raise their young, how they hunt and much more. Easy-to-read text and accurate, detailed illustrations provide a perfect learning resource for young children and satisfy their curiosity about these often misunderstood animals. Did you know? *As a final warning, a spotted skunk will stand on its front paws before spraying. *Some skunks will eat snakes -- even poisonous ones! *Newborn skunks, or kits, are so small that you could fit two in the palm of your hand. *Skunks help people by eating animals that can be pests, such as rats and mice.

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I use this in my classroom to teach my students to rhyme
For the younger reader

Dunk Skunk

Manufacturer: Putnam Juvenile
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0399242813

Book Description

Animals are amazing athletes, and, wouldn't you know it, their names hint at the sports they love to play. Kids will cheer along with Quarterback Yak and Receiver Beaver, Bat Cat and Glove Dove, and Kick Chick and Goal Mole.
This companion book to the hit ,I>Truck Duck is full of energetic animals and sly details that are sure to entertain sports fans of all ages. Praise for Truck Duck:

Customer Reviews:

I use this in my classroom to teach my students to rhyme.......2006-11-07

I'm a teacher of pre-k children in a public school. Rhyming is one skill the children are required to know before entering kindergarten. Not only do the children love this book, but they also feel like they are "reading" because they memorize it after a dozen readings. I read it every day for about a month (we have school 3 days a week) and every child has learned to rhyme and I really do credit this book as the foundation of how I teach rhyme. (Of course, I use rhyme in other ways. However this book is a large part) Excellent book!

For the younger reader.......2005-10-26

This is a cute, colorful story but is definitely intended for a young audience. It was a little more simplistic than I had anticipated so I would recommend it for children under the age of 5 or for the emerging reader, since it has simple, rhyming text.

Welcome to the World of Skunks (Welcome to the World Series)

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Welcome to the World of Skunks (Welcome to the World Series)
Diane Swanson
Manufacturer: Walrus Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1551108550

Book Description

Skunks are known to make a big stink and they can spray a long way -- up to 5 metres (16 feet)! But most skunks just want to live quiet lives and avoid trouble. They hunt mainly at night and love to eat insects, including beetles, crickets and even wasps.

About the series: Each book in the Welcome to the World of Series introduces children to wildlife through color photographs, lively description and amazing facts.

Animal Life Cycles (Science Picture Cards)

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My kids loved this and I loved their learning!

Animal Life Cycles (Science Picture Cards)
Jo Ellen Moore
Manufacturer: Evan-Moor Educational Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1557996954

Product Description

If a picture's worth a thousand words, these 24 science picture cards on Animal Life Cycles are invaluable teaching tools.

Customer Reviews:

My kids loved this and I loved their learning!.......2004-12-30

As a teacher and home schooling mom, I've used this both with a class and with my own kids. The cards are great for language development as well as natural history, science. Since they're in card rather than book format, it's easy to use them for all kinds of games: putting the cards ofr each animal in order, finding the baby, adult or picture of feeding and explaining the differences between how each animal does this...

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Super Fun
Love it!! Great for toddlers.
Great fun!!
They've Got Rhythm
so much fun!

Tanka Tanka Skunk!
Steve Webb
Manufacturer: Orchard
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0439578442

Book Description

"Skunka TankaSkunka Tanka Tanka Tanka Skunk! They've got the beat, and so do their friends.""Meet Tanka and his friend, Skunk. When you say their names together, they sound like drums!" Steve Webb's innovative and visually stunning picture book introduces young readers to simple rhythms with this riot of shout-out-loud words and cavorting animals. TANKA TANKA SKUNK! makes reading tons of fun as the text and the illustrations leap and dance across the pages.

Customer Reviews:

Super Fun.......2007-08-02

My son "reads" this book cover to cover. Chants the rhythms without the book around and plays his dad's drums to the beat when I read it! I can't say enough about how fun this book is. To the author, Steve - keep up the great work!!!

Love it!! Great for toddlers........2006-01-06

My 2 and 3 year old love this book. They both pound out the rhythm as we read it and they get very excited about reading it faster and faster and trying to keep up with the rhythm. Not a great bed time story since it tends to get them riled up instead of calmed down. It's one of the few books in their collecton that I don't get bored reading over and over again. Like another reviewer I kept checking this out at the library and finally decided to buy it. The illustrations are large and easy to see and have helped my kids learn the names of different animals.

Great fun!!.......2005-09-04

My three year old and I love to sing the book as a song. He remembers the pictures and the rhythms.

They've Got Rhythm.......2005-04-29

I read to first graders every week. The other day I brought in Tanka Tanka Skunk and it was an immediate hit. The children loved the rhythm and quickly got into the story. They loved it so much I read it again the next time that I saw them and now plan to use it as a "happening" to share with other classes.

so much fun!.......2005-03-27

This is a terrific book! I've read it aloud to several groups of Norwegian second-graders who are just beginning to learn English. They started saying it together with me already on the second reading. They like it so much that they ask for it by chanting "Tanka skunk" until I capitulate and read it again. The illustrations are colorful and fun, and can be seen from a distance. Just remember to chant it as you read, and you'll be all set!

Average customer rating:

I love sharing this book with young and adult friends!
Heartwarming Story

Kildee House (The Newbery Honor Roll)
Rutherford G. Montgomery
Manufacturer: Walker Books for Young Readers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0802773885

Book Description

Newbery Honor Book, 1950

An early naturalist and philosopher escapes civilization by building his house among the giant redwoods.

Customer Reviews:

I love sharing this book with young and adult friends!.......2000-04-16

Jerome Kildee is a shy stonecutter who retires to the redwood forest to be alone. He finds, instead, friendship for the first time in his life. Delightfully simple, soothing, and serene, this little book takes the reader into the heart of an unassuming man who finds joy in the animals and children he learns to know; the reader has the sublime opportunity of gaining the friendships Jerome finds in spite of his self-imposed isolation. His quiet ways allow for the local animals and children to invade his space, and that is when the fun begins. Jerome learns to relate to a variety of personalities and resolve the issues in an unusual community of innocence. The descriptions of his little home will charm you enough to want to retreat there. For anyone who enjoys nature and self discovery, Kildee house is a book to savor. I have read Jerome's story about 30 times. I love sharing it with the people I care about because it has never failed to delight and satisfy its new friends.

Heartwarming Story.......1999-12-29

This is a heartwarming story, very well written, about a man who builds a home on the side of a giant redwood tree. A family of skunks claim the house as their own, and the man is kind to them. Other forest animals visit, as well. The man doesn't have the heart to turn the animals away, nor can he turn away children from two fueding families. My eight year old son loved this book at bedtime. It's a gentle story written decades ago, in a gentler time. Highly recommended.

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Skunks (What's Awake)
Patricia Whitehouse
Manufacturer: Heinemann
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1403406308

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The Skunk Lover's Special
Stinker from space and Return of Stinker
X files in a furry black and white coat!

Stinker from Space
Pamela F. Service
Manufacturer: Fawcett
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0449703304
Release Date: 1989-03-28

Book Description

In the middle of an outerspace battle, space warrior Tsynq Yr is forced to land on earth and switch into the body of a skunk. But earth is no place for him. Thank goodness Karen stops by. With her computer-whiz friend Jonathan, the three of them hatch a hair-raising scheme involving all the local skunks and even the space shuttle to get their new friend back into orbit!

Customer Reviews:

The Skunk Lover's Special.......2002-01-07

If you like skunks, you will love Stinker from Space. The characters were very daring and interesting. At first, it was hard for me to believe that an alien skunk could have so many adventures, but once I was finished reading the book, it seemed like there was nothing unusual at all about it. I liked the suspense and excitement throughout the whole book, because I like books that always have something happening in them. This book was well-written, and also original, because it's not every day that you read a book about a skunk from outer space and its life on Earth. It is a wonderful book and great reading experience.

Stinker from space and Return of Stinker.......2000-09-03

My son and I just finished both of the Stinker books and enjoyed them both very much. They are a fast read so if you have a child who is a reluctant reader he may like these books. There are several funny parts. We only wish there was a third so we could find out what happens to the kids when they meet the "High Gyrn of Twak".

X files in a furry black and white coat!.......1999-01-27

The space shuttle is an everyday event here in florida but for Karen and Jonathan in the midwest it is a real event. Tsynk-Yr, a alien who unfortunately crashes in their town and the first being he finds to transport into is a skunk causes real problems for them- helping him get back. This is a fun story for the elementary age and the sequel is just as good.

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