TRUBO, Richard 1946-

PERSONAL: Born April 2, 1946, in Los Angeles, CA; son of William and Ida (Singer) Trubo; married Donna Grodin (a teacher), June 24, 1973; children: Melissa Suzanne. Education: University of California, Los Angeles, B.A., 1967, M.A., 1968.

ADDRESSES: Home—Irvine, CA. Agent—c/o Author Mail, 1332 North Halsted St., Chicago, IL 60622-2694.

CAREER: KOST Radio, Los Angeles, CA, producerwriter, 1968-71; free-lance writer, 1971—.

MEMBER: American Society of Journalists and Authors, Authors Guild.

WRITINGS:

An Act of Mercy, Nash Publishing (Los Angeles, CA), 1973.

(With Richard Guarino) The Great American Insurance Hoax, Nash Publishing (Los Angeles, CA), 1974.

(With Guarino) Your Insurance Handbook, Doubleday (New York, NY), 1975.

How to Get a Good Night's Sleep, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 1978.

The Consumer's Book of Hints and Tips, Jonathan David (New York, NY), 1978.

(With David E. Bresler) Free Yourself from Pain, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 1979.

(With Barry Behrstock) The Parents' When-Not-to-Worry Book: Straight Talk about All Those Myths You've Learned from Your Parents, Friends—and Even Doctors, Harper (New York, NY), 1981.

(With Harold H. Benjamin) From Victim to Victor: The Wellness Community Guide to Fighting for Recovery for Cancer Patients and Their Families, Jeremy P. Tarcher (Los Angeles, CA), 1987.

(With Michael Yessis) Secrets of Soviet Sports Fitness and Training, Arbor House (New York, NY), 1987.

(With Sam Arkoff) Flying through Hollywood by the Seat of My Pants: From the Man Who Brought You "I Was a Teenage Werewolf" and "Muscle Beach Party," Carol Publishing (Secaucus, NJ), 1992.

(With Richard Cole) Stairway to Heaven: Led Zeppelin Uncensored, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 1992.

(With D. Ariel Kerman) The H.A.R.T. Program: Lower Your Blood Pressure without Drugs, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 1992.

(With the editors of Prevention magazine) Cholesterol Cures: From Almonds and Antioxidants to Garlic, Golf, Wine, and Yogurt—Three Hundred Twentyfive Quick and Easy Ways to Lower Cholesterol and Live Longer, Rodale Press (Emmaus, PA), 1996.

(With Jim Walsh) Everything You Need to Know about College Sports Recruiting: A Guide for Players and Parents, foreword by Thomas Beckett, Andrews & McMeel (Kansas City, MO), 1997.

The Natural Way to Beat the Common Cold and Flu: A Holistic Approach for Prevention and Relief, Berkley (New York, NY), 1998.

(With Kenneth Baum) The Mental Edge: Maximize Your Sports Potential with the Mind-Body Connection, foreword by Karch Kiraly, Berkley (New York, NY), 1999.

(With Kenneth Baum) Metabolize: The Personalized Program for Weight Loss, Putnam (New York, NY), 2000.

(With Roger J. Callahan) Tapping the Healer Within: Using Thought Field Therapy to Instantly Conquer Your Fears, Anxieties, and Emotional Distress, foreword by Earl Mindell, Contemporary Books (Lincolnwood, IL), 2001.

Courage: The Story of the Mighty Effort to End the Devastating Effects of Multiple Sclerosis, Ivan R. Dee (Chicago, IL), 2001.

Contributor to popular magazines, including Holiday, True, Coronet, TV Guide, Parade, and Family Weekly; contributor to newspapers, including Detroit News, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago Tribune, and Los Angeles Times.

SIDELIGHTS: Richard Trubo's biography Courage: The Story of the Mighty Effort to End the Devastating Effects of Multiple Sclerosis tells the life story of Sylvia Lawry, the founder of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

Lawry first became involved in finding a cure for multiple sclerosis (MS) when her brother Bernard was diagnosed with the disease in 1937. Doctors explained to the family that MS is incurable, but Lawry tried to contact other patients who perhaps had recovered from the disease. Her efforts led to contact with a core group of some forty-five people, all of whom had MS and were not recovering from it. In 1947 Lawry established the National Multiple Sclerosis Society as a group to support research into a cure as well as to provide support for patients and their families. While there is still no cure for MS as of the early 2000s, Lawry's organization has spearheaded the development of drugs to alleviate the disease's symptoms. Whitney Scott in Booklist called Trubo's Courage "a valuable resource for medical and social activists," and Mary J. Nickum in Library Journal found Trubo's book to be "a fascinating account of the power of one woman to affect the lives of millions."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, October 15, 2001, Whitney Scott, review of Courage: The Story of the Mighty Effort to End the Devastating Effects of Multiple Sclerosis, p. 366.

InsideMS, fall, 2001, review of Courage.

Library Journal, October 15, 2001, Mary J. Nickum, review of Courage, p. 101.

Publishers Weekly, March 11, 1996, review of Cholesterol Cures: From Almonds and Antioxidants to Garlic, Golf, Wine, and Yogurt Three Hundred Twenty-five Quick and Easy Ways to Lower Cholesterol and Live Longer, p. 61; September 24, 2001, review of Courage, p. 87.*