The Most Glorious Crown: The Story of America's Triple Crown Thoroughbreds from Sir Barton to Affirmed

By Marvin Drager

Book Overview

The definitive work on this rare coronation, this book delves into the history, personalities, and subplots of each of the 11 Triple Crown champions. From Sir Barton in 1919 through Affirmed in 1978, each Triple Crown winner has exhibited a true personality and charisma befitting of super stardom and renowned author Marvin Drager's prose brings to life these 11 remarkable stories. The Most Glorious Crown is a unique and fascinating inspection of each champion, their jockeys, owners, and trainers, as well as a riveting account of each race and the events leading up to each historic event. This magnificent oversized book includes more than 150 archival, authentic black-and-white photographs of each thoroughbred throughout different stages of its career. It also includes actual racing forms from each race for the Triple Crown.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1572437243
• ISBN13: 9781572437241
• Release Date: April 2005
• Publisher: Triumph Books
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 3.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 10.0" x 1.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Nice

The DVD was great, the book goes into more detail, but overall a great package.

Mr. Long-tail and Mr. Banana-nose

I read "The Most Glorious Crown" after Barbaro won the Kentucky Derby, then didn't have the heart to write a review until after he was back on his feet, cleaning up his hay rack, nickering at nearby mares, and scratching at his ear with his leg cast. I'm just a fan. I have no right to my affection for him, being neither owner, nor trainer, nor even hotwalker. However, it's terribly saddening to see one of these beautiful, spirited creatures break down, especially one who had a chance to win the most glorious crown. The eleven horses that did win the Crown exemplified the highest qualities of speed, stamina, and heart, but each of them had his own character and peculiarities. The author shares rare photographs and anecdotes with a lavish hand, bringing each of these special Thoroughbreds to life along with the people surrounding him. I was especially taken by the story of Whirlaway, Calumet's first Triple Crown winner (who also figures prominently in the accompanying DVD). 'Mr. Longtail' was quite a character: "Dumb, half-witted, willful, knuckleheaded, stubborn, unmanageable--these and similar adjectives were sprinkled in the reams of copy written about him." If it weren't for the combined efforts of Ben Jones, his trainer, and Eddie Arcaro, his jockey, Whirlaway might never have won a race, much less the Derby, Preakness, and Belmont. Martin Drager also includes a chapter of near misses, ending with Birdstone's defeat of Smarty Jones in the 2004 Belmont. In his epilogue, "They Were Only Human" he includes the usual statistics on the triple crown winners and also (just to prove that there is no such thing as the 'perfect' horse) mentions that four of the glorious eleven were challenged to match races...and lost (Sir Barton to Man O'War, War Admiral to Sea Biscuit, Whirlaway to Alsab, and Assault to Armed.) The History Channel DVD "Win Place or Show" that accompanies this book is a miscellany of American Thoroughbred racing, including some rare footage of Man O'War's races, plus clips of many of our Triple Crown winners. Calumet Farm is featured, as well as Hall of Fame trainer Woody Stephens, best remembered for his 5 consecutive Belmont wins in the 1980s. The commentary by various owners and trainers, including Jimmy Jones is priceless. The DVD alone is worth the price of this book. Be certain to buy the updated, 2005 reissue of this book in order to get the History Channel DVD.

A must for Triple Crown Fanatics

If you adore the yearly triple crown thoroughbred races, you gotta get this book. I was born in a triple crown year,1948, and of course learned much more about the wonderful colt, Citation, in 1973, when the media kept saying about Secretariat, "the first triple crown winner since Citation 25 years ago".Since I was so wowwed by that gorgeous creature Secretariat, I wanted to learn more about the great Citation. What a gem he was! Eddie Arcaro said "he was a doll to ride," meaning he did exactly what the jockey wanted and more. Then I wanted to learn about ALL the T.C. winners, since there are only 11 of them! This isn't a book you read like a novel, though you can; it's more like a reference book that a fanatic has to have; plus it may be the only such book in print, if I recall. There's even a DVD by the History Channel on the inside front cover. Need any more encouragement? If ya love or own horses, or just yearn to watch them on TV, like me, you will adore this book. The photos are wonderful - all B & W, but that doesn't bother me one bit. I find that most color photos of horses markedly distort their color: dark browns look black, blacks may have a reddish cast, etc. Ya gotta go to the track to see the REAL color of the horse, I guess. I digress. The statistics presented are so interesting, like triple crown "near misses". I'm so glad this book was published for the likes of me. It's a beaut!

Must have for casual and hard-core fans alike

When this book was first released in 1975, I read it cover-to-cover so many times it finally fell apart. It's a great way for casual fans to learn about America's Triple Crown winners;even the most hard-core of fans will enjoy all the pictures of these spectacular thoroughbred stars. The 2005 edition is updated to include Seattle Slew and Affirmed. If you already have the book without these additions, don't bother spending the money unless you want the DVD. You can get better information on Affirmed and Slew in the Thoroughbred Legends series. But if you don't have this book and you love horse-racing, I highly recommend it. The DVD is nice, too. I enjoyed seeing Man o'War, Whirlaway and of course, Slew.

Remebering the Legends

I bought this book several years ago at my bookseller for five dollars and have never put it down since! For any person wanting to know of the Triple Crown Champions, and for those just wanting to remember, this book is for you.The photos in the book are incrediable and Marvin Drager explains every detail possible in a way that is impossible to stop reading.I would recommend this book to anyone, whether you know of horse racing or just finding out, this book belongs in your collection! Thanks for a great book, Mr.Drager!