One of TheDJservice.com’s disc jockeys, DJ Kenny Casanova, has his roots in entertainment as he is a former rign announcer and also a former wrestling personality. In early 2014, Kenny decided to try his hand at writing as well, setting out to write a book as a fundraiser for a retired WWE wrestler he had worked with who had lost both legs to diabetes.
Kamala (James Harris) Lost Both legs to diabetes.
In the past, Kenny Casanova portrayed a wrestling manager named “Kim Chee” on a number of occasions in the Northeast, for a huge monsterous wrestler named “Kamala.” Some 15 years later, Kenny heard about Kamala’s plight and figured his story in a book form could be one answer to Kamala’s lost earnings. So Kenny interviewed WWE Legend Kamala, as well as a number of other famous names in wrestling, in hopes to create Kamala’s autobiography to help him offset the double-amputee’s medical costs.
From these interviews, Kenny put book together and put it up on the social media platform, KICKSTARTER! where everybody chips in to help make something happen. Using the Kickstarter funds as a means to collect pre-sales, along with some really great reward incentives including the book itself, fans rallied behind Kenny’s idea.
Kenny went into a full-fledged self-publishing mode, creating a press called WOHW.com. He got all kinds of press for the book, additional content by famous wrestlers and arranged for countless interviews to plug the book.
DJ Kenny Casanova, ghostwriter of “Kamala Speaks”
With the Kickstarter money, Kenny hired an editor, a book layout guy and also had enough funds to actually print the book.
It is our pleasure to report that Kenny raised $17,500, which was $5,500 over goal! After the Kickstarter campaign, remaining book sales surpassed $10,000. An finally, an additional $35,000 was also raised in cash by fans wanting to help when the Kickstarter had ended on a Gofundme collection.
It has guest passages by Jim Ross, Mick Foley, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, Koko B Ware, Insane Clown Posse’s Violent J, Jerry Jarrett, Cowboy Bill Watts, Kevin Sullivan, “Brother Love” Bruce Prichard, Barry Darsow (aka Repo Man / Smash of Demolition), “The Mountie” Jacques Rougeau, Nikolai Volkoff, “The Genius” Lanny Poffo, Jesse Barr (Jimmy Jack Funk), Boris Zhukov, Ivan Koloff, Bill Anderson, Marty Jannetty, Bobby Fulton, Tom Brandi, Jimmy Hart, Ken Resnick, Bill Apter, Insane Chavo Guerrero Sr, Adrian Street, and Hacksaw Jim Duggan.
BOOK PROMOTION INTERVIEWS –
STEVE AUSTIN – After Kenny finished the first draft, he called another “wrestling bad-ass.” It turned out Stone Cold was one of “the biggest Kamala fans ever as a kid.” Therefore, Steve Austin brought in Kamala as a guest on his Aug 19, 2014 podcast, launching the Kickstarter campaign first on, “THE STEVE AUSTIN SHOW.”
ROWDY RODDY PIPER – After the dust settled from Austin’s interview, Kenny called The Hot Rod and arranged to have him chat with Kamala for the September 8th, 2014 airing of his talk show. The two of them worked together in the early 80s and certainly had a lot to talk about. James said this was his favorite interview ever, and Piper said, “I really learned a life lesson about the positive attitude that James Harris has about life.” You can listen to it and download it at “PIPER’S PIT”
