2019 Rocket Boys Festival will be a finale, of sorts, for Homer Hickam – MetroNews

/in AMS Intel Page /by Allen Media Strategies

2019 Rocket Boys Festival will be a finale, of sorts, for Homer Hickam

By Pete Davis in News | September 26, 2019 at 11:57AM

BECKLEY, W.Va. — An annual southern West Virginia tradition will come to an end with the close of this year’s Rocket Boys Festival in Raleigh County.

Homer Hickam, a former NASA engineer whose memoir “Rocket Boys” provided the basis for the movie “October Sky,” previously announced the 2019 edition of the festival will be his final regular appearance at the event, which started in McDowell County in 1999 and moved to Beckley in 2012.

Local organizers said it’s likely some incarnation of the festival will take place periodically, and that Hickam has left open the possibility of participating in future celebrations connected to the story of several high school friends in rural West Virginia who became amateur rocket builders in the 1950’s, eventually qualifying for the 1960 National Science Fair, at which their rocket designs won two medals in the category of propulsion.

Hickam, who went on to a career in aeronautics before becoming a best-selling author, will be at the Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine Saturday morning to meet with students from local high schools, and will take part in a “Storyteller’s Workshop” at Tamarack during the afternoon. Friday evening, he’ll appear in a production of Theatre West Virginia’s mini-musical “Homer, Elsie and Sonny” at Tamarack’s H.C. Theatre.

The fourth annual Rocket Launch Contest will take place Saturday at Exhibition Coal Mine, as part of a day-long series of activities.

This year’s festival will be dedicated to the memory of Quentin Wilson, one of the original Rocket Boys, who died in August.

Read the article online http://wvmetronews.com/2019/09/26/2019-rocket-boys-festival-will-be-a-finale-of-sorts-for-homer-hickam/

Rocket Boys Festival off to a Great Start with Special Guest Morgan Spurlock – WSAZ

/in AMS Intel Page /by Allen Media Strategies

Rocket Boys Festival (Sept 26- Sept 28) kicked off in Beckley, West Virginia yesterday with special guest #MorganSpurlock and screening of #SuperSizeMe2. Thank you WSAZ NewsChannel 3 for having him on your show https://youtu.be/a1nlCvfq6bE This festival is the last to feature in person appearances by the original Rocket Boys Homer Hickam and #RoyLeeCooke. Head down to #Tamarack and #BeckleyExhibitionCoalMine to be a part of the fun and learning!

Watch WSAZ coverage here https://youtu.be/a1nlCvfq6bE

Morgan Spurlock blasts off as this years special guest at Rocket Boys Festival

/in AMS Intel Page /by Allen Media Strategies

Spurlock movie screening to be part of Rocket Boys Festival

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Matt Baron/BEI/BEI/Shutterstock – Morgan Spurlock 87th Academy Awards, Oscars, Vanity Fair After Party, Los Angeles, America – 22 Feb 2015

On his returns to his native West Virginia, Morgan Spurlock gets to “see those mountains” and spend quality time with his mother, Phyllis, and others.

A brief trip back to the Mountain State Thursday will allow Spurlock to accomplish a couple other goals.

For one, the filmmaker who directed the Academy Award-nominated “Super Size Me” in 2004 will screen his newest project, “Super Size Me 2: Holy Chicken!” Thursday at 7 p.m. at the Hulett C. Smith Theater at Tamarack in Beckley. He will host a question-and-answer session and fan meet-and-greet following the screening.

In making the appearance at Tamarack, Spurlock will be the celebrity special guest of the 20th annual Rocket Boys Festival, which is set for Sept. 26-28 in Beckley. And that will give him what he says will be a special treat, meeting Homer Hickam. Hickam is the New York Times No. 1 best-selling author of “Rocket Boys,” and was portrayed by Jake Gyllenhaal in the popular film adaptation “October Sky.” The face of the Rocket Boys, Hickam went on to serve in Vietnam and was a NASA engineer and astronaut trainer prior to his successful writing career.

Officials note that 2019 is scheduled to be the final Rocket Boys/October Sky Festival in Beckley. Rocket Boy Quentin Wilson passed away on Aug. 30 at his home in Texas, and this year’s festival is dedicated to his memory.

Hickam and fellow Rocket Boy, Roy Lee Cooke, are slated to participate in festivities this weekend, according to the festival website, http://rocketboysfestival.com/.

“As a kid growing up in West Virginia, Homer Hickam is legendary,” Spurlock said by phone from New York Tuesday. Spurlock has never met Hickam and is “over the moon” that he will have that opportunity this week. He praised what Hickam and the other Rocket Boys, as well as festival organizers, have done in the past two decades — first in Coalwood and more recently in Beckley — to keep alive the spirit and dreams of the Rocket Boys.

It’s crucial, Spurlock said, to “do anything (we) can do to inspire the young people of West Virginia to dream big.”

In “Super Size Me,” Spurlock went 30 days eating nothing but McDonald’s food and revealed how that diet affected his body. In the sequel, Spurlock opted to see what it was like to be behind the counter as he opened a pop-up chicken restaurant business and attempted to show what goes on behind the scenes in the chicken sandwich business.

As he prepared for the planned distribution of “Super Size Me 2: Holy Chicken” in 2017, Spurlock experienced a huge detour. As the #MeToo movement began to take hold in the latter stages of 2017, he penned a post on his Twitter account in December of that year. Labeled “I am Part of the Problem,” it was accompanied by a letter in which he acknowledged sexual misconduct on his part in the past. According to various published reports, that caused Spurlock projects to be shelved or halted entirely, and, more importantly, forced him to re-evaluate his life.

Now more than 600 days into sobriety from alcohol abuse, Spurlock says, “It was important for me to own up to mistakes” and “accept responsibility for my words and actions.” He said this week he’s still involved in the “personal process” of “making amends” to those he wronged.

According to IMDB.com, “Super Size Me 2: Holy Chicken!” is distributed by Samuel Goldwyn Films. It premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on Sept. 8, 2017. It had a limited release date of Sept. 6, 2019 in the United States, and it became available on various online streaming platforms on Sept. 13 of this year.

“When I got the idea, (the plan was) to dive back into the fast food world by opening up my own fast food restaurant,” Spurlock said. The end product is eye-opening, he said. “To see it all play out in the movie is fascinating.”

Those watching will have some moments where they “might get a little angry and upset,” Spurlock said, but the movie is entertaining, too. “The movie’s really fun. I really believe that making someone laugh makes someone listen.”

While addressing some of the shortcomings he documents of his “corporate friends” in the poultry industry, Spurlock says, “These chicken farmers (families who are featured in the movie) are the real heroes.” He said he “didn’t grow up raising thousands of chickens” in West Virginia, but farmers such as Jonathan Buttram helped him better understand the industry. “I don’t think people understand what goes into raising chickens.” Farmers are basically forced into “indentured servitude,” Spurlock says, and “so taken advantage of” by the big companies.

Spurlock, who was born in Parkersburg, graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in 1989. For more about him, visit http://morganspurlock.com/about/.

On Friday, Sept. 27, Hickam will spend the morning speaking to students at the Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine Amphitheater. Those talks are free and open to students and schools and can be scheduled by contacting festival director Scott Hill at www.rocketboysfestival.com. That afternoon, Hickam will host a “Storyteller’s Workshop” at Tamarack.

On Friday evening, Rocket Boys fans can experience the one-time-only event “Homer Hickam-Stories and Songs” at Tamarack.

The central location for Saturday, Sept. 28 Rocket Boys/October Sky Festival events is Beckley’s New River Park, which boasts an authentic exhibition working coal mine that will be open for discounted tours. A “Rocket Run” 5K and 10K race, “Aim High” essay contest, food vendors and more will also be a part of this year’s festival. Opening ceremonies begin at 9 a.m. and the festival will run until 5 p.m.

One of the highlights occurs when students join Hickam to launch rockets at Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine.

For more on activities and ticket purchases for the Rocket Boys Festival, visit http://rocketboysfestival.com/

Read the article online – https://www.register-herald.com/news/spurlock-movie-screening-to-be-part-of-rocket-boys-festival/article_899fad6f-d3ce-5aa9-9c0d-b34b4fde30a7.html

AMS client and author Kevin Miller on WJER Radio

/in AMS Intel Page /by Allen Media Strategies

THIS AIR FORCE VET FOUND OUT HIS NAME HAD BEEN CHANGED AFTER STUMBLING ACROSS AN OLD NEWSPAPER ARTICLE; WHAT HE FOUND OUT CHANGED KEVIN MILLER’S LIFE FOREVER

~Kevin Miller’s “Heart of Steel” uncovers a gripping incredible true story of murder, escape, perseverance, redemption and love ~

Author Kevin Miller with Bill Morgan, host of Morgan-in-the-Morning show on WJER Radio

How would you feel if you woke up one morning to learn the name you’ve used all your life is NOT your real name? And, when you find out why, it leads to you uncovering your direct connection to an infamous murder mystery in a small midwestern town in the 1920’s, the results of which are still reverberating today.

Heart of Steel is an incredible true story that begins when Air Force veteran Kevin Miller accidentally discovers in an old yellowed newspaper clipping that his real last name isn’t the All American Miller, but the very Polish Puchalski. Kevin soon learns that his grandfather Stanley “Miller” Puchalkski was a man with many secrets, and they were all buried with him.

This sent Kevin on a dogged search back through time for clues from decades-old newspaper clippings that were his only hope to find out what happened. What he discovered shook him to his core. Kevin’s grandfather was involved in a murder-mystery, an indescribable tragedy, a major midwestern scandal and a daring escape, pushing him beyond impossible odds towards healing, redemption and finally true love and real forgiveness.

Born in Ohio and now settled with his family in Southern California, author Kevin D. Miller was in Ohio to conduct more research and document his grandfather’s amazing story as well as collect video footage and photographs of the locales featured in his best selling book “Heart of Steel”.

About the book: “Heart of Steel’ is a true story based on real-life: real- life drama, real life hardships, real love and family. Set in the rural Midwest of 1920’s small-town America, the story begins September 13, 1920, when a tragic murder takes place at the Puchalski farmhouse in Southington, Ohio. Twelve-year-old Stanley (author Kevin Miller’s grandfather) desperately runs along a dusty country road sent by his frantic mother to fetch the county Sheriff. An infamous scandal unfolds over the next several weeks, taking Stanley and his siblings on a harrowing journey through a notorious orphanage and an incredible attempt to escape. Readers will be touched by how a young man’s devotion to his family pushes him beyond impossible odds and testifies to the perseverance of the human spirit. “Heart of Steel” is available on Amazon.com and bookstores everywhere. Get your copy at www.heartofsteelbook.com

About the Author: Kevin D. Miller was born in Canton, OH, moved to Arizona and grew up in Tempe before settling with his family in Southern California. An engineer by profession, Kevin served in the USAF and has tried his hand at acting and web designing. His love for true stories based on real-life inspired him to become a writer and pen ‘Heart of Steel.’

Kevin says that “when I came face to face with the true identity of my family, the tormented past my grandfather never spoke about and wanted to keep hidden, and his sacrifices so his future generations survived and were happy, it was a story that had to be written and shared.”

Morgan Spurlock Blasts Off At 2019 Rocket Boys Festival in Beckley WV

/in AMS Intel Page /by Allen Media Strategies

20th annual Rocket Boys/October Sky Festival September 26th- 28th in Beckley WV will be the last to feature appearances by Rocket Boys Homer Hickam and Roy Lee Cooke-this year’s festival dedicated to the memory of Rocket Boy Quentin Wilson

Rocket Boys Festival opens Thursday night September 26th with an appearance by Beckley WV native and award-winning filmmaker Morgan Spurlock and a screening of his new film “Supersize Me 2-Holy Chicken!”

All good things must come to an end, and much like the farewell tours currently underway by music superstars Elton John, Lynryd Skynryd, KISS and others, this year’s Rocket Boys/October Sky Festival September 26th- 28th in Beckley West Virginia is expected to be the last to feature in-person appearances by Homer Hickam and his childhood friends the Rocket Boys.

That’s according to festival director Scott Hill, who noted that a confluence of anniversaries and events make this the right time for the Rocket Boys themselves to bow out. 2019 marks the 20th anniversary of Homer Hickam’s classic “Rocket Boys” becoming a New York Times #1 bestseller. 2019 is also the 20th anniversary of the release of the movie “October Sky” based on Hickam’s celebrated coming of age memoir, as well as the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 astronauts moon landing.

L-R- Homer, Quentin Wilson, Roy Lee Cooke, O’Dell Carroll with Auk Rocket Mockup

2019 also marks the passing of a key member of the Rocket Boys legacy. This year’s festival is dedicated to the memory of Quentin Wilson, the “prodigious scientific brain” of the Rocket Boys, who died August 30th at his home in Texas.

Added Hill, “Homer and many of the other Rocket Boys have been traveling back every year to support the festival and meet fans of their story, and that travel is getting tougher each year. People come to West Virginia literally from all over the world to meet and spend time with the Rocket Boys. If you’ve been touched by their story, this will be your final opportunity to meet the Rocket Boys here in person”Quentin was featured prominently in Hickam’s best selling books “Rocket Boys” and “The Coalwood Way” and portrayed by actor Chris Owen in the film “October Sky”. Homer said of his Big Creek High School friend “I was devastated to learn Quentin Wilson, the brains behind our success during high school and one of my best friends ever, has passed on to that great launchpad in the sky. He taught me the word “Prodigious” and indeed lived a prodigious life. My condolences to his wife Janice and his family. My only consolation is that Mom up in heaven will be happy to see him. She loved Quentin so much and now he’s with her. “

Festival Special Features
The Rocket Boys Festival kicks off Thursday evening September 26th with an appearance by another West Virginian who is well known on the movie screen. Filmmaker and Beckley WV native Morgan Spurlock, perhaps best known for his Academy Award-nominated documentary “Super Size Me” will host a screening of the long-awaited sequel “Super Size Me 2-Holy Chicken!” at the H.C. Smith Theatre at Tamarack in Beckley at 7pm on Thursday the 26th. He’ll take questions and meet moviegoers in person after the screening. Friday, September 27th, Hickam will spend the morning speaking to hundreds of students who will come to the Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine Amphitheater from all over the region. Those talks are free and open to students and schools, and can be scheduled by contacting festival director Scott Hill at http://www.rocketboysfestival.com. Friday afternoon, Homer will host a “Storyteller’s Workshop” at Tamarack. Along with Homer, theatrical storyteller Rhayne Thomas, musical storyteller Jon Wikstrom and broadcaster, public speaker and Rocket Boys Festival director Scott Hill and others will add their thoughts on the art of telling a great story.

On Friday evening, Rocket Boys fans can experience the one-time-only event “Homer Hickam-Stories and Songs” at Historic Black Knight Municipal Park. Hickam will share behind the scenes stories and readings from “Rocket Boys”, interwoven with key songs from “Rocket Boys the Musical”, performed by Las Vegas entertainer and show cast member Rhayne Thomas (Elsie) alongside Broadway veteran and “Rocket Boys The Musical” co-creator Carl Anthony Tramon (Sonny). As a special bonus, singer/songwriter Jon Wikstrom will debut a new musical tribute to Homer’s latest international bestseller CARRYING ALBERT HOME, which has been translated into over two dozen languages.

Advance tickets for the “Super Size Me 2-Holy Chicken!” screening, the “Storytellers Workshop” and “Homer Hickam-Songs and Stories” are limited and can be purchased in advance at http://www.rocketboysfestival.com.

Saturday, September 28th’s Rocket Boys/October Sky Festival central location is Beckley’s New River Park, which boasts an authentic exhibition working coal mine that will be open for discounted tours, taking riders on a motorized tour 1,500 feet underground. The park also features an award-winning youth museum and planetarium, great Appalachian food, a complete full-size replica of a 1950’s mining town like Hickam’s Coalwood, a miner’s museum and more. A “Rocket Run” 5K and 10K race, “Aim High” essay contest, food vendors and more will also be a part of this year’s festival. Opening ceremonies begin at 9 am and the festival will run till 5 pm Saturday.

One of the Rocket Boys/October Sky Festival highlights is the dozens of students from schools all over America who join Hickam to launch rockets at New River Park’s hilltop “Cape Coalwood” launchpad. Rocket kits and launch supplies will be available at the festival; parents are encouraged to bring their kids to launch rockets, even if they’re not affiliated with a particular group. Construction and launch is easy – even for first-timers.

About Homer Hickam:
Homer Hickam has authored 19 best-selling books including Rocket Boys, several set in his native West Virginia. After graduating from Big Creek High School, Homer served his country in the Vietnam War and eventually achieved his dream of working for NASA as an engineer and astronaut trainer both in the U.S. and abroad. This year, Hickam served as the board chairman at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville Alabama for the 50th-anniversary festivities of the Apollo 11 moon landing. He also is a member of the United States Space Council and testified before Congress advocating for a return to the moon.

Each year, Hickam has happily signed hundreds of copies of his books at the festival while chatting with fans from all over the world, some of whom have traveled thousands of miles to meet him and see the West Virginia hills where he grew up. Hickam says this year’s Rocket Boys Festival will be bittersweet.

“It has been my honor to attend and support the Rocket Boys Festival for over twenty years, first in Coalwood and now Beckley. I will always be grateful to the people of Beckley for their willingness to do the hard work necessary to keep alive the Rocket Boys’ story of inspiration and hope.”

Hickam’s longtime publicist Burke Allen says that previous year’s Rocket Boys Festivals have featured special guests including several Hollywood stars from the cast of the “October Sky” movie, NASA shuttle astronauts Thomas Jones and Bill Readdy, and famous musicians including the event appropriate “Bill Haley’s Comets” and America’s Got Talent winner Landau Eugene Murphy Jr, and they’re proud to welcome Morgan Spurlock to the list of special guest attendees.

He added that “many people don’t know this, but “Rocket Boys” has for years now been the most read book in U.S. public schools and many other countries around the world, and the movie “October Sky” has been shown pretty much non-stop in schools and on TV since its release twenty years ago.”

More information on the Rocket Boys/October Sky Festival, including links to the ticketed events, a complete festival schedule of events and more is available at www.rocketboysfestival.com. Beckley WV is located on Interstate 64 in southern West Virginia and is also accessible via Beckley/Raleigh County Airport with daily non-stop flights to Charlotte-Douglas International Airport as well as Amtrak service on the New York to Chicago Cardinal line.