Making It in America: The Life and Times of Rocky Aoki, Benihana's Pioneer

by Jack McCallum

Profiles the prodigiously successful businessman and expert sportsman who founded the multimillion-dollar restaurant chain Benihana and whose sports pursuits include wrestling at world-class level, power-boat racing, ballooning, and undersea exploration

165 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1985

Reviews

[Christopher · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am blown away that there aren't any reviews on this book. Anyway, as a millennial in his early 3o's, I had not known anything about Rocky Aoki until he was mentioned in his famous DJ son Steve Aoki's documentary, 'I'll Sleep When I'm Dead.' Rocky himself was a contrarian — neither fully Japanese nor American, instead he was a fusion of the best of both worlds — just like his Benihana restaurants. He shares many similarities with Richard Branson as a showman / businessman, although it wouldn't be quite fair to say Rocky was the Japanese version of Sir Richard. Instead, he was a unique anomaly of a successful man all his own.

This book combines four of my favorite topics:
-Japanese Culture
-Experience Design & Innovation
-Business & Entrepreneurship
-Outdoor / 'Adrenaline' sports

If you're into any one of these topics, you'll love this book (It's currently out of print, but can be found easily online).

Christopher Armstrong
Author,
The Maker's Field Guide