Mary K.Coffey, Associate Professor of Art History
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Great Fortune is a deeply researched, but breezy narrative of the conception, planning, and building of Rockefeller Center during the depths of the Depression. Okrent has written a biography of this massive act of real estate speculation, filled with memorable characters and insight into the circles of money, power, and culture that brought about the creation of a mass-media empire in midtown Manhattan during the 1930s. If you have ever wondered about the censorship of Diego Rivera’s “Rockefeller mural,” Okrent provides a compelling argument for who made the decision and why the mural was destroyed.