Chuck Taylor, All Star: The True Story of the Man behind the Most Famous Athletic Shoe in History

by Abraham Aamidor

In 1921, Converse hired 20-year-old Chuck Taylor as a salesman, sparking a nearly 50-year career that defined the Converse All Star basketball shoe. Although his name is on the label of the legendary All Stars, which have been worn by hundreds of millions, little is known about the man behind the name. For this biography, Abe Aamidor went on a three-year quest to learn the true story of Chuck Taylor. The search took him across the country, tracking down leads, separating fact from fiction, and discovering that the truth--warts and all--was much more interesting than the myth. Chuck Taylor was a basketball player who also served as a wartime coach with the US Army Air Forces and organized thousands of high school and college basketball clinics. He was a true "ambassador of basketball" in Europe and South America as well as all over the United States. And he was, to be sure, a consummate marketing genius who was inducted into the Sporting Goods Hall of Fame and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Chuck Taylor, All Star is the true story of a man, a company, a sport, and a nation.

Genres: Sports, Biography, History

202 pages, Paperback

First published March 9, 2006

Reviews

[Bonnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

an interesting look at a man who loved basketball more than anything else, and was most famous not as a player, but as the man who created the shoes most worn by players until late into the 20th century. I remember being quite upset at Converse's bankruptcy, and am still not thrilled that my shoes are now made overseas by Nike, but I am glad I can still get them. Nothing else fits the same!

[Jonathan Bechtel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book in one of those share stations. This one was at the YMCA.;

[Rushay Booysen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A interesting look at the man whose name is behind those famous chucks.The book largely follows the undocumented history of Chuck Taylor,it seems he was not really a influential ball player but ardent follower of the game that had some mini games on hand.Was a interesting fact finding mission

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and sad and enlightening -and maddening because Converse is owned by Nike. Boo.