{"podcast":{"title":"New Books in Women's History","slug":"new-books-in-women-s-history-4096544","podcast_index_feed_id":4096544,"rss_url":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/NBN5185885598","website_url":"https://newbooksnetwork.com","image_url":"https://megaphone.imgix.net/podcasts/8c1cce70-e7c0-11eb-b746-c7e42408e0c6/image/408fcda0603b5d9e2b5decf747722d4d.png?ixlib=rails-4.3.1&max-w=3000&max-h=3000&fit=crop&auto=format,compress","author":"New Books Network","episode_count":1866,"summary":"This podcast is a channel on the New Books Network. The New Books Network is an academic audio library dedicated to public education. In each episode you will hear scholars discuss their recently published research with another expert in their field. Discover our 150+ channels and browse our 28,000+ episodes on our website: ⁠newbooksnetwork.com⁠ Subscribe to our free weekly Substack newsletter to get informative, engaging content straight to your inbox: ⁠https://newbooksnetwork.substack.com/⁠ Follow us on Instagram and Bluesky to learn about more our latest interviews: @newbooksnetwork","last_synced_at":"2026-07-20T16:17:46.820872+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-women-s-history-4096544"},"episode":{"title":"Mary Lisa Gavenas, \"Selling Opportunity: The Story of Mary Kay\" (Penguin, 2026)","slug":"mary-lisa-gavenas-selling-opportunity-the-story-of-mary-kay-penguin-2026","published_at":"2026-04-28T08:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-women-s-history-4096544/mary-lisa-gavenas-selling-opportunity-the-story-of-mary-kay-penguin-2026","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-women-s-history-4096544","url":"https://traffic.megaphone.fm/NBNK3862135909.mp3?updated=1777345736","audio_url":"https://traffic.megaphone.fm/NBNK3862135909.mp3?updated=1777345736","summary":"As detailed in Selling Opportunity: The Story of Mary Kay (Penguin, 2026) by Mary Lisa Gavenas, as the only woman in Forbes’ Greatest Business Stories of All Time and the first woman to chair a company on the New York Stock Exchange, Mary Kay Ash has a life story that reads like a Barbara Taylor Bradford novel. Growing up in Depression-era Texas, Mary Kathlyn Wagner is a dutiful daughter and diligent student with ambition aplenty and no place to use it. Married at sixteen, she is a grandmother at thirty-four. When she is not cooking or cleaning or taking care of the kids, she peddles cleaning products to other housewives. The work has no salary and no security but she sticks with it, sure that direct selling will make her dreams come true. In 1963, after she has been divorced three times and widowed twice, she sets up her own company, selling second chance and self-invention for the price of a skin care showcase. Soon millions know her as the little lady in the big wig who gives away pink Cadillacs. From its unpromising start in a 500-square-foot Dallas storefront, Mary Kay Inc. grows into a global phenomenon with 3.5 million reps in over 35 countries. She becomes the most famous saleswoman in the world. Maybe the most famous ever. Based on fifteen years of research, Selling Opportunity gives us a page-turning rags-to-riches story set against the background of direct selling in all its overstated, over-the-top glory. Here, for the first time, is the definitive history of a peculiarly American industry and a mid-century mindset that ennobled extreme self-reliance, sticking to your guns, and blind faith in the American dream. This interview was conducted by Dr. Miranda Melcher whose book focuses on post-conflict military integration, understanding treaty negotiation and…","meta_description":"As detailed in Selling Opportunity: The Story of Mary Kay (Penguin, 2026) by Mary Lisa Gavenas, as the only woman in Forbes’ Greatest Business Stories of…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3863,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/new-books-in-women-s-history-4096544/episodes/mary-lisa-gavenas-selling-opportunity-the-story-of-mary-kay-penguin-2026/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-women-s-history-4096544/mary-lisa-gavenas-selling-opportunity-the-story-of-mary-kay-penguin-2026.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}