Upcoming Events this Summer and Fall 2017

Saturday, June 10th, 2017 | Speaking, Wrestling | No Comments

June 10 – Friends of Wayne Baughman are honoring the legendary wrestler, coach and Air Force officer with a celebration on Saturday, June 10, and Mike will be one of the featured speakers. Wayne won 16 national titles during his amazing career and was a member of three Olympic and eight World teams. Wayne is featured in two of Mike’s book – “Toughest Men in Sports” and “Legends of the Mat”. The event is being held on the Air Force Academy grounds and is closed to the public.

June 15 – Mike will be at a book signing in the popular restaurant bar named Illegal Pete’s from 5 to 7 p.m., in Fort Collins, Colorado. The resultant, located at 320 Walnut Street, is managed by Jacquie Chapman, daughter of Mike and Bev. Mike will be signing copies of his latest book “A Journey: Reflections on 50 Years of Writing, Wrestling, Weightlifting and Heroes”. Mike was sports editor of The Coloradoan newspaper in the 1970s and the book has many stories about his time in Fort Collins. Appearing with Mike will be two men featured in the book – Kim Jones and Bill Larson, who both played football at Colorado State University and then went on to long careers in the NFL. The event is open to the public.

July 15 – For the second straight year, Humboldt, Iowa, will be the site of the Frank Gotch World Catch Tournament, to be held at Humboldt High School. The event, sanctioned and put on by the Catch Wrestling Alliance of Los Angeles, begins at 10 am at the high school, 1500 Wildcat Road. Mike will be there at 9 am with a table of Frank Gotch items on display, and for sale. Mike was a co-founder of the tournament last year, and this year’s sponsors are the Humboldt & Dakota City chamber, Ultima Replenisher Electrolyte Drink and Spout Living.

July 30 – Legendary wrestler Farmer Burns will be the main subject of conversation at the meeting of the Cedar County Historical Society, where Mike and Wesley Fox will give speeches.  Martin “Farmer” Burns was born in Cedar County near Big Rock in 1861 and became one of the most respected athletic figures of the early 20th century. He was recognized as a world wrestling champion for several years and then became a top coach and trainer, as well. Mike and Wesley have done extensive research on the career of Farmer Burns. The event will be held at the Cedar County Museum, located at 1094 Hwy. 38 in Tipton. It starts at 1:30 p.m. and the public is invited.

August 3-5 – Mike will be one of the special guests at the 2017 Dum Dum held at the Quality Inn and Suites in Coldwater, Michigan. The annual event is the largest gathering of fans in the world to celebrate the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs, the author who created Tarzan of the Apes and other characters such as John Carter of Mars.  Other special guests are Jim Sullos, president of ERB., Inc.; Martin Powell, writer for ERB., Inc.; Bo Hampton, artist for Dark Horse Comics; Bob Zueschner, author of “Edgar Rice Burroughs: The Biography,” and Cathy and Tyler Wilbanks, of Team ERB. The host for the event is Michael Hatt, author of the book “Tarzan Slept Here”, which details the times Burroughs stayed in Coldwater.
   
Mike has written two books about actors who played Tarzan in the movies and his latest memoirs has a lot of Tarzan stories in it. He will have all three books for sale, along with other Tarzan memorabilia.
   
The dum dum is a gathering of apes that Tarzan called by beating on jungle drums. Mike hosted Dum Dum events in 1997 (Newton, Iowa), 2004 (Fort Collins,Colorado) and 2008 (Waterloo, Iowa) and is a recipient of the Golden Lion Award, given out by the Burroughs Bibliophiles to persons who have to perpetuate the memory of ERB and his works.

August 29 – Mike will be the featured guest speaker at the Winterset Public Library, speaking about the many great Iowans he has written abut, both in books and in magazines. The event starts at 6:30 p.m.and is open to the public. Mike will have copies of his many books for display and for sale.

September 10 – The Johnston Public Library is hosting Mike for a speech about famous Iowans, based on his many books and years of research.  The event starts at 3 p.m. and is open to the public. The library is located at 6700 Merle Hay Road in Johnston.

September 16 – Mike will be a guest at the Author’s Fair at the Waverly Public Library, from 1:30 to 4 p.m. There will be a number of authors present and the public is invited to attend, at no charge.

October 5 – Wrestling will be the topic of his speech when Mike is a guest at the Monticello Public Library in Monticello, Iowa, beginning at 6 pm. He will talk about the grand history of the sport, going back 5000 years to ancient Sumer (now called Iraq) and will also discuss Iowa’s tremendous heritage in the sport. Mike will have copies of his many books for display and for sale. The public is invited to attend.

October 17 – Mike will give a speech at the Clear Lake Library about famous Iowa football players discussed in his popular book, “Triumph and Tragedy”. The four legendary players are Fred Becker, the University of Iowa’s first All-American who died in 1918 while fighting in France during World War I; Jack Trice, whose very limited play at Iowa State in 1923 inspired the school to name its football stadium for him; Nile Kinnick, who in 1939 won the Heisman Trophy as a Hawkeye then lost his life in a plane crash during World War II, and Drake’s Johnny Bright, who was the nation’s top player in the early 1950s. The event starts at 6:30 p.m. and is open to the public.

October 28 – The Kothe Memorial Library in Parkersburg will host Mike for a speech on the grand historic past and legacy of wrestling, beginning at 11 a.m. Mike will have several unique wrestling items on display as well as many of his books on wrestling and famous Iowans. The event is open to the public.

Tags: 2017 Dum Dum, Farmer Burns, Frank Gotch World Catch Tournament, Fred Becker, JackTrice, Johnny Bright, Nile Kinnick, Tarzan, Wayne Baughman

Upcoming Events for April and August 2017

Tuesday, April 4th, 2017 | Book Signing, Books, Speaking | No Comments

April 13 – Governor Terry Branstad will appear at the Newton YMCA for a special book signing on Thursday, April 13, from noon until 1:30 p.m., and Mike will be with him. Mike was the author of the book “Iowa’s Record-Setting Governor: The Terry Branstad Story,” which came out in December of 2015. The book is 234 pages long with over 50 photos, covering the governor’s life from growing up on a farm in tiny Leland, to attending high school in Forest City and then the University of Iowa and Drake law school. The book details his career as a politician, up through 2015 when he became the longest serving governor in American history.
 
Also, Mike will debut his latest book called “A Journey: Reflections on 50 Years on Writing, Wrestling, Weightlifting and Heroes. “ it is a 286 page book with nearly 200 photos, including stories on some of the best-known figures in U.S. history – from  Ronald Reagan, Muhammad Ali, Robert Redford, and Lou “The Incredible Hulk” Ferrigno to Iowa icons like Dan Gable, Hayden Fry, Dan McCarney and, of course, Terry Branstad. it is Mike’s 29th published book.
 
August 3-5 – Mike will be one of the special guests at the 2017 Dum Dum held at the Quality Inn and Suites in Coldwater, Michigan. The annual event is the largest gathering of fans in the world to celebrate the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs, the author who created Tarzan of the Apes and other characters such as John Carter of Mars.  Other special guests are Jim Sullos, president of ERB., Inc.; Martin Powell, writer for ERB., Inc.; Bo Hampton, artist for Dark Horse Comics; Bob Zueschner, author of “Edgar Rice Burroughs: The Biography,” and Cathy and Tyler Wilbanks, of Team ERB. The host for the event is Michael Hatt, author of the book “Tarzan Slept Here”, which details the times Burroughs stayed in Coldwater.
   
Mike has written two books about actors who played Tarzan in the movies and his latest memoirs has a lot of Tarzan stories in it. He will have all three books for sale, along with other Tarzan memorabilia.
   
The dum dum is a gathering of apes that Tarzan called by beating on jungle drums. Mike hosted Dum Dum events in 1997 (Newton, Iowa), 2004 (Fort Collins,Colorado) and 2008 (Waterloo, Iowa) and is a recipient of the Golden Lion Award, given out by the Burroughs Bibliophiles to persons who have to perpetuate the memory of ERB and his works.

Tags: Edgar Rice Burroughs, Tarzan, Terry Branstad

New book “A JOURNEY” offers absorbing look at life in the 1950s and heroes of movies and sports

Tuesday, March 21st, 2017 | Books | No Comments

Mike’s newest book has just been published, and is entitled “A Journey: Reflections on 50 Years of Writing, Wrestling, Weightlifting, and Heroes.” The book is 286 pages long with over 130 photos, most of them involving famous figures.

In the book, the author talks about a wide range of celebrities he has met over his long journalism career – including Ronald Reagan, Muhammad Ali, Robert Redford, Lou Ferrigno Ed Asner, and various Olympic champions and many other stars of sports, entertainment and politics.

Growing up in Waterloo, Iowa, Mike describes what life was like in the 1950s, and explains how his love of comic book heroes shaped his attitude towards life. He also talks about his three years in the U.S. Navy, where he was involved in several nerve-wracking events, including time spent working on “ghost ships” from World War II.

Considered the nation’s leading historian on the sport of wrestling, he includes numerous behind-the-scenes stories of pro ring legends like Lou Thesz and Verne Gagne, and amateur stars like Dan Gable and Dan Hodge. Mike has attended 45 NCAA wrestling championships and has known many of the biggest names in wrestling, including a dozen Olympians and several of the top stars of mixed martial arts, like Dan Severn and Randy Couture.

During his 35-year newspaper career, Mike won numerous awards for his work and is a member of nine halls of fame. He is an acknowledged authority on such diverse topics as Achilles and Tarzan of the Apes. In the book, he tells about his incredible trip to the ancient battlefield of Troy in 2006, when he attempted to spend a night on the Plain of Troy, and of becoming friends with four movie Tarzans.

He also discusses his attempts to break into Hollywood with movie projects, three of which are still very much alive.

“A Journey: Reflections on 50 Years of Writing, Wrestling, Weightlifting and Heroes” is published by Culture House of Newton, Iowa. It is $19.95 plus $5 for S&H. Persons wishing to order the book can send a check for $24.95 to Culture House, 3830 Harbor Avenue, Newton, IA 50208, or call Culture House at 641-791-3072.

UNI’s only Olympic champion Bill Smith is the subject of a new documentary

Tuesday, March 21st, 2017 | Wrestling | No Comments

A new documentary, entitled Bill Smith: A Wrestling Legend, tells the story of the life and career of the oldest living Olympic wrestling champion. Mike is the producer of the documentary, which was filmed by Mike Reese of Atlas Media.

Bill Smith grew up in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and became a wrestling star at Iowa State Teachers College, now the University of Northern Iowa. He was NCAA champion in both 1949 and 1950, and closed out his college career undefeated, missing his senior year of competition due to a fluke in the eligibility system.

Bill also won three AAU national freestyle titles, but the crowning moment came when he captured a gold medal in the 160.5-pound class at the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki, Finland.

As a coach, Bill led the San Francisco Olympic Club to seven national team titles and also coached high schools in two separate states (California and Illinois) to team titles, one of just three coaches to ever do that.

Click here for ordering details…

Tags: bill smith, UNI