Just in time for the one-hundredth anniversary of Miami Beach, It
Happened in Miami, the Magic City: An Oral History features nearly
seventy fabulous voices including more than fifteen mini-memorists,
telling stories, offering perceptions on subject matter as far back as
memory allows up to the exciting headlines of today. Sun and fun, yes,
but the story is much more than that. We are there through the dramatic
days of World War II, the segregated south that Miami was, Meyer Lansky
and cops and robbers, the Cocaine Cowboys, the post-war glamour of the
flashy hotels and famed architect Morris Lapidius, the Fountainbleau and
Eden Roc, the Jewish presence and contributions, the swinging Rat Pack
of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr. We are witness to
Muhammad Ali and the iconic Fifth Street Gym, the preserving of art
deco, the days of the Mariel and Pedro Pan and the Cuban impact. We are
brought inside modern day Miami--an international city, a place of
culture and dreamers, a city of tomorrow.