Vote for Kevin Sorbo and Soul Surfer in the People’s Choice Awards 2012

Kevin’s movie, Soul Surfer, is up for one of the People’s Choice Awards 2012 in the category, “Favorite Book Adaptation.” The American award, held annually since 1975, bases its winners on votes by the general public and recognizes various popular culture genres, such as Movies, TV, and Music.

This year’s voting ends at 11:59 pm, ET, on December 6.

The People’s Choice Awards 2012 television program will then air live on Wednesday, January 11, at 9/8c on CBS.

To vote:

Go to the website at http://www.peopleschoice.com/pca/vote/votenow.jsp

Look for “Movies” on the page’s left side. Scroll down and click on the category, “Favorite Book Adaptation” at the bottom. A series of images appear at the middle of the page.

Click on the Soul Surfer image.

That’s all you need to do. See? Easy… AND you can vote as often as you wish! Tell your friends, family, coworkers, Facebook and Twitter pals, anyone you can think of… even your dog! (Mine is still voting… good boy!)

Now, start voting! Let’s help Kevin win another fantastic award!

(Photo courtesy of Kevin Sorbo)

November Thanksgiving for Kevin Sorbo calendars by Loli, Sanne & Mara

A Veteran’s Day tribute: Steve Azar’s Soldier Song

Please remember not just today on Veteran’s Day, but always, our military personnel who serve and have served the United States valiantly with strength and honor. Here’s singer-songwriter Steve Azar’s story about his inspiration for writing his poignant “Soldier Song.” A portion of its sales proceeds support Jared Allen’s Homes 4 Wounded Warriors.

I didn’t think anybody would hear the “Soldier Song.” I did that for an auction item at a charity event. Somebody wanted me to write something about the troops, and I had about a year to do it.

I was out on the road with (Bob) Seger for seven months and I couldn’t come home much because each tour is a day on and a day off. (Seger) would jet in and out and I was on the bus, so when you were on the bus you had to stay there.

It was my first time to be not in control of my tour schedule – and I love my family. I love being with them. I have a great wife; we’ve been buddies for a lot of years, and our kids are growing up. I just need a little dose of them at a time to make sure, and after being gone for weeks and weeks at a time and not getting to have the means to get home real quick because I couldn’t do it because I had no time in most cases.

Then I started seeing a lot about our soldiers in the news and how long they’re gone. There was a guard that was gone for the first time for a year, and I was goin’, “Oh, my God, I’ve been gone three weeks and I got to at least see (my family) for 15 hours. These guys are gone for a year? And I’m not being shot at.”

The worry is nothing. My version of being gone is wimpy. Theirs truly had great merit and is heroic. To me, the heroes are not only our servicemen and women over there, it’s the families that have to truly move and get along without them and with that stress and worry.

And then I went back and visited Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and I saw these kids; I call them kids because they’re kids, with arms (and) legs gone. This sort of reminded me of St. Jude’s, how they still had this smile, and it was amazing, but it was so moving and touching. That’s what sort of got me to write “Soldier Song.” I just left there and it sort of wrote itself, to be honest with you.

Here are the “Soldier Song” touching lyrics:

Your soldier’s finally comin’ home

To you and the kids the life I’ve missed

To no more nights alone… no more

To my little boy’s last baseball game

To my baby girl’s first school day

I swear I’ll never miss church as long as I live

Baby, I know it’s late, please pick up the phone

Your soldier’s finally comin’ home

I hope and pray when you got lonely

You thought of me and you got proud

I can’t believe a year’s gone by and all I’ve done is fight

Oh, I can’t wait to come back home and put away my gun, do nothin’ but love

Start again, if we can, where it was…

Your soldier’s finally comin’ home

To you and the kids the life I missed

To no more nights alone

(no more nights alone)

To my little boy’s wearin’ daddy pants

My first father-daughter dance

I’m tired and I did here all that I can do

Baby, I know it’s late, please pick up the phone

Your soldier’s finally comin’ home

I’ve seen tears I wish I never saw

Held myself together at times by string and a straw

Howd’ya make it with so much to do with us so far apart

And could you feel my heart break every night without you in my arms… I don’t want that no more… no more… no more… baby

Your soldier’s finally comin’ home

To you and the kids the life I missed

To no more nights alone

To wrestlin’ round with my little boy

Singin’ a lullaby with my baby girl

I’m all packed up and I pray you still need me

Baby, I know it’s late, please pick up the phone

Your soldier’s finally comin’ home

Here’s Steve’s excellent video:

Buy Steve Azar’s new CD, Delta Soul – Volume One, just released TODAY!

Wow! Exciting news, everyone!

Steve Azar, an amazing singer/songwriter/musician, just released his newest CD TODAY!

Entitled, “Steve Azar – Delta Soul Volume One,” the nine-track album features blues, rock, and soul from Azar’s Mississippi Delta roots.

Watch this blog in the next day or so for an interview with the talented Steve Azar!

Here’s more about “Delta Soul Volume One” from his website at www.steveazar.com

“It’s a style of music born in the people that come from the Mississippi Delta. It tells the stories of a hard life, the mixing of cultures and race, poverty and pride. It’s about earning a meager living from the cotton crop, or the long hours on the Mississippi river. The music of the Delta has influenced some of the greatest rock and blues music of all time. Eric Clapton, The Stones, Paul Simon, Led Zeppelin, ZZ Top and so many others have been inspired by the sounds that resonate deep in its very soil.

“‘Delta Soul’ is the music from a man born and raised in the heart of it all. It’s a mix of the sounds and musical lessons he learned growing up in Greenville, MS. It’s honest and pure, the lyrics are a journey through the places he’s been and the people he’s known. It’s the stories shared by family, friends and blues legends.

“Steve Azar mixes his Delta roots with blues, rock and soul, and a little touch of twang to create his sound, ‘Delta Soul.’ It’s a collection songs that take you along on Steve’s musical journey through his life in the Mississippi Delta.”

“Delta Soul – Volume One”

Released November 8, 2011

1. Highway 61 (Delta Mix) 3:35

2. Flatlands (Delta Mix) 4:59

3. Mississippi Minute (Delta Mix) 3:10

4. Gonna Be Good Lovin’ U (Delta Mix) 3:40

5. Bluestune (Delta Mix) 4:09

6. Indianola (Delta Mix) 4:24

7. Doin’It Right (Delta Mix) 2:49

8. Goin’ To Beat The Devil (Delta Mix) 4:19

9. The River’s Workin’ (Delta Mix) 6:01

Here’s a very cool video of “Highway 61,” the first track from “Delta Soul Volume One”

This deep male voice came on the phone and said, “It’s Kevin Sorbo here.”

Here’s the second part to Gina’s previous story about seeing Kevin at the Twin Cities Book Festival in Minneapolis, Minnesota: Ali’s phone conversation with Kevin…

For any of my friends that have not been on Twitter recently, I have a little story to tell…

Gina went to Kevin’s (Twin Cities) book signing and had advised me to have my phone ready. I thought she might try to get Kevin to talk to me via the phone, but I didn’t think he would have the time since we all know how busy the man is. So, Gina was tweeting away and told us to hush tweeting her ‘cause it was her turn with Kevin.

We stopped tweeting, and time went by and the phone never rang, so I had given up on it happening and thought, “Who knows, maybe Gina will pick me up a signed book ‘cause she knows there is no way I could afford one with me not having a job at this time.”

Then the phone rang and it was Gina. She talked for a bit and then started fumbling with the phone and told me to hang on. I heard her talking in the background and I figured she was asking her hubby, Chris, to hold the phone. Then this deep male voice came on the phone and said, “Hi, Ali.” I figured it was Chris pretending for a joke, so I said, “Hello.” And the voice came back and said, “It’s Kevin Sorbo here.”

“No, really?” I said. “I had to hear you speak again just to make sure it was your voice.”

“Yep, it’s my voice. I haven’t sold it yet,” he chuckled. At this point I was stunned. I knew he mentioned he was at the book signing and he asked me if I was freezing up in Canada yet. I replied with, and I believe I was squeaking by this time, that I wasn’t freezing yet, but would be getting winter soon, and that he must sell his voice because we all love it. (I know, stupid thing to say.) He asked how my family and I were doing and I answered with I don’t know what. I believe I was in the Sorbo Haze by that time. He said he just wanted to say, “Hi,” and an early Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, and to take care of myself. I think I said “Thank you,” but I can’t be sure.

After I got off the phone with Kevin I couldn’t type or speak at this point. So, using an old tried-and-try method I took my stick and pounded on the floor three times. (It’s a code between my husband Gerry and I that I need him.)

Gerry had been doing well that that day and was quite aware of what was going on around him. This meant he was able to come up the stairs without much difficulty. He entered the room to find me with my hands clasped over my face and my eyes wide. He looked at me and said with a smile on his face, “You talked to Kevin, didn’t you??”

All I could do was nod my head.

“You don’t need to talk,” he said. He came around the side of the bed, sat down, and gave me a big hug. “I know how important this is to you.”

He patted me on the back and held me for a while.

Once I was coherent again, he knew it was safe to leave me.

I then went on Twitter to let the Sorbo Sisters know what had happened. My first tweet was, “Guess who I just talked to? WOW! WOW! WOW!”

Nobody answered me fast enough. So, I tweeted again to get their attention.

“I just got off the phone with… KEVIN SORBO”

Still, no answer, so, I tweeted one more time.

“Someone talk to me and tell me I ain’t dreaming, for godsake!”

Twitter exploded.

I had questions thrown at me left, right, and center. People just kept coming on and throwing questions at me and asking me what was going on (and) what did he say. Finally, I decided to write it on Facebook so everybody could see it.

I added the link on Twitter and everybody just kept talking about it. Seemed like hours. I sent a special Tweet: “Just wanted to say thank you to @GinaNyxx and @ksorbs for making a dream come true. I spoke to Kevin Sorbo on the phone, WoW! WOW! WOW!”

So, for any of you out there that have doubted if Kevin can really be that nice, I am here to say that he can and is. Three cheers to an actor who can be that nice to a lifelong fan. I hope you all get the chance that I have had. I hope to get out of the Sorbo Haze in the next year, lol.

Picture reads:  TO ALISON!   HEY YOU!   LOVE & HUGS   TO ALLEYCAT!   XXX     KEVIN SORBO

Book reads:    TO ALISON  I WILL SHOW YOU TRUE STRENGTH    XX

(Photos by Ali)

Kevin Sorbo’s True Stength discusses a life he thought he would never see

Kevin Sorbo’s True Strength: My Journey from Hercules to Mere Mortal–and How Nearly Dying Saved My Life is really making waves. It’s a fantastic book that recounts the three strokes and an aneurysm that nearly killed him during the fifth season of Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, the number one syndicated television show that brought him fame and fortune, and his journey to recovery. In it he outlines how his frustration with traditional medicine led him to try homeopathy, yoga, and ancient Eastern medicinal practices, among other things, in his quest to be “normal” again.

I highly recommend this book whether you are a Kevin fan, someone who has experienced physical and emotional disabilities, or just simply love a good story. It’s a memoir written from several points of view, including his lovely wife, Sam, and close friends Michael Hurst, Bruce Campbell, and Eric Gruendemann, as well as a love story.

Sorbo traces his life and career history pre-Hercules. He finishes with his life today as a doting father of three young children, devoted husband, and busy working actor/director/producer, a life that on that fateful day in 1997 he thought he would never see.

Sorbo’s compelling writing style draws readers into his plight. He enables them to feel his pain of going from an extremely fit, determined 38-year-old Adonis with the world at his feet to an enfeebled, dependent, and suddenly unconfident, uncharacteristically paranoid individual.

This book deserves the world’s attention as a Number One Best Seller. How can we as Sorbo’s fans help?

I recently asked Sorbo that question for another publication. Here is his excerpted reply:

SW: So, how can we get the word out about your book?

KS: The only way to get the word out is if we can get all 10 or all 100 or all 200,000 (fans) to just constantly post the book on their own Facebook and Twitter (pages). That certainly would make a difference. It comes down to getting some good publicity out there by word-of-mouth. Whatever we can do to get this thing out to as many people as possible, and have those people email, tweet, and Facebook everybody they know.

Very cool! Check out, follow, and post these new links for the latest in True Strength news:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/True-Strength-Book/203864923020362

http://twitter.com/#%21/truestrengthbk

And don’t forget to tell everyone you know about his True Strength: My Journey from Hercules to Mere Mortal–and How Nearly Dying Saved My Life!

There you have it, my friends. Happy posting!

(Photo right courtesy of Wyatt Counts/AP; Kevin/Sam photo left courtesy of Neurology Now)

Kevin Sorbo at the Twin Cities Book Festival: You’re already stealing a hug!

Gina from Wisconsin was lucky enough to attend the Twin Cities Book Festival on October 15. Here’s her great story about her adventure, links to her vid and photos, and a cool surprise for another loyal Kevin fan!

When I learned Kevin was going to be at the Twin Cities Book Fair in Minneapolis, Minnesota, I wanted to go so badly. It’s only an eight hour drive round trip.

As always – when at all possible – my wonderful husband, Chris, finds a way to make my dreams of seeing Kevin Sorbo in person a reality. This would be the third time – Marcon 2007, ShoreLeave 2010, and now the Twin Cities Book Fair 2011.

For both conventions my husband worked tons of overtime to pay for the trips. I still need to write a blog post for each con. (I know… way past late on them…  Long story.)

Anyway… My wonderful husband made the trip possible. We left the house at 8:40 a.m. Saturday, October 15, grabbed some breakfast on the way, and put a full tank of gas in our minivan. Chris figured we’d get to Minneapolis from where we live then we’d have to fill up again on the way back about half-way home.

Well…  We made it all the way back to the gas station about 15 blocks from our house – 400 miles on one tank of gas in a minivan on a very windy day, plus, there was road construction just as we came in to Minneapolis. We were sure all that would use more gas. Oh, and once we got to the college, it took going around several blocks, trying to find a parking space, until we found a parking garage and got inside. Then we had to find out where Kevin would be speaking, and he would be speaking in 30 minutes.

We found the right floor then a nice lady told us where the room was that Kevin would be speaking in. Once a line started to form, we got in line. The doors opened seven minutes later and we all poured in.

My hubby put my wheelchair right at the end of the center aisle so I could videotape the whole 53 minutes of Kevin talking. The isle for walking was like an upside-down “T,” so, unfortunately, people walked in front of me several times and the lighting was dim as well, but the sound came out great.

After listening to Kevin talk for 53 minutes – he mostly did a Q&A and read the first chapter of his book at the end – everyone filed out of the room and some had already bought a book and formed a line. My husband went and bought the two books we needed. I already had mine from Amazon.com. My mom sent money for one, and we bought Alison (Aliykat) one.

We sat at the table and I watched Kevin interact with people. We wanted to wait to the end of the line. One time we got in line and got pretty close to him then there was a sudden surge of people behind us. We would let as many as we could go before us, some didn’t want to, we’d say I needed him to sign three books and a photo.

Well…  I had to go to the bathroom really bad, so we got out of line and went to a nearby bathroom. We got back to that same table and waited again for the line to shrink. This time when we got in line we did get to see Kevin. When I was about five people away, Kevin glanced out of the corner of his eyes, smiled, and waved to me, and I smiled and waved back. It’s nice when he remembers us, isn’t it ladies?

The guy in front of us wanted a photo with Kevin. Kevin stood up and walked around me. I was wheeled up to the side of the table next to him. While he was still sitting and talking to the man, his friend John called and he gave the phone to the nice lady who was assisting him to give his friend directions on how to get to the college. She handed Kevin his phone back and his friend had hung up. He asked, “Did he say he was coming here?” She answered, “I think he is.”

So, Kevin apologized to the guy and me saying, “I don’t want to miss him, so I need to know if he’s coming here or not.” He called his friend back and got an answer, and he stood up and walked around me. He was putting his phone in his (pants) jeans pocket, which drew my attention to his butt… LOL! He had on those snug black jeans we all love. Once the man (in line) left, Kevin turned to look at me, and I asked, “Can I have a hug please?” He bent down, hugged me and asked, “How ‘ya doing?”

I answered, “Better now,” which made him smile. He sat back down and I put my three books out in front of him then said, “One for me, one for my mom and this one’s for Ali. She just sent me a tweet saying, ‘write something naughty.’ I can show you the tweet if you want.”

Kevin laughed and signed Ali’s book, asking me how she wanted it signed, meaning Ali, Alison or Aliykat. I told him to sign it Alison, which he did. He asked me where Ali lives and we told him. He also asked where I live, and when I told him he said he thought he remembered I was from Wisconsin. He signed all three books and a photo for my niece. As he was signing he asked me, “So how are you doing?”

“Not so good,” I sighed.

He stopped writing, looked up at me and asked, “So what can we do about that?”

I told him the things my doctors have said and that losing the weight is key, but I can’t exercise because they don’t want me to move the hip. Like everyone always asks, Kevin also asked, “How are you supposed to lose weight, if you aren’t allowed to exercise?”

“They want me to get a weight reduction surgery,” I replied. “I want the lap band surgery, but my insurance says, ‘no;’ (that) it’s a cosmetic surgery and they won’t pay for it.”

Boy, that set Kevin off on a rant. He had a great deal to say about how wrong that is.

After he signed everything, I asked, “Can I get a picture with you and I’ll stand as usual? You know how I hate this chair.” He smiled and we both stood up. I put my arm around his back and my hubby was getting the camera ready, which ended up the batteries died on him. The sweet lady helping Kevin loaned us her spare batteries to take the photo. While they figured that out, I told Kevin, “I want a hug this time.”

“You want a hug this time,” Kevin laughed.

I laughed and nodded, “Yes…  All my other pictures with you are always so rushed. I never got a chance to ask you for a hug.”

Then I hugged him, and he joked, “He’s not even ready yet and you’re already stealing a hug.”

“Of course,” I laughed. “I’ll steal as many hugs as I can, Kevin.” (Which is when I stole three more: to hug him for Miffy, Simone, and Ali.) Kevin just laughed and hugged me back.

Once my hubby was ready, he and Kevin decided where it was best for us all to stand. We got the picture and told Kevin, “Thanks” and “Goodbye,” and we left.

We went and got bottled water, and I tweeted, “Oh those black jeans…  Sigh.” I love Kevin in those jeans, as I’m sure we all do. Twitter blew up my phone and I was getting a ton of tweets. I decided to try and accomplish my plan, if Kevin wasn’t too busy.

I went back over to his table. There was one lady there, and his friend John had arrived. Once the lady left, I wheeled back over to the side of the table where I had sat before. The lady that was helping him had asked him if he would sign a few books. When he had a free moment, I asked him, “Would you mind doing me a favor and say ‘Hi’ to Ali on the phone?”

He smiled up at me and said, “Sure, no problem once and done with these,” pointing to the books.

“That’s no problem,” I said. “I have to jump through hoops just to call Canada with my cell phone, so it will take me a few minutes to get through to her anyway.”

Kevin nodded, and I went about trying to call Ali. As I assumed it (would), it took three tries or four tries even. Once I got her on the phone, we each said, “Hello,” and then I told her, ”Hold on a minute I can’t hear you very well.”

I held the phone out and waited for Kevin to have a free moment. When he was ready, he took the phone and said, “Hello.” I’ll let Ali tell her part later on this blog.

See my video of Kevin’s 53-minute talk here:  http://nyxxkevinheaven.blogspot.com/2011/10/kevin-sorbo-at-twins-cities-book-fair_22.html

Here are a few photos I was able to take before the camera died: http://nyxxkevinheaven.blogspot.com/2011/10/kevin-sorbo-at-twins-cities-book-fair.html

(Photos by Gina)