The Big Fat Truth: The Behind-the-scenes Secret to Weight Loss (35 page)

Daryn Eller, you are a fantastic collaborator. You always made me feel like my voice mattered, helped give me a POV, and beyond being a terrific listener, you are a good soul. As you know that means more to me then any resume or college attended. I felt that the minute I met you. Thank you for helping me make this dream a reality, and helping me to find a voice to convey such an important message in this book. I hope this experience was as rewarding for you as it was for me.

Hanzy baby, my oldest friend, college roommate, agent, confidant, and lover of all things that drive, your support to help make my dreams come true since I met you in 1986, as a teenager at USC, on my first day of college has been one of the luckiest things that has ever happened to me. We had no cell phones, computers, or apps for finding the perfect college roommate, we just got lucky. You were with me, before I was me. You were there when I got my big break as host of Fox’s
Fun House,
and when it hit as the #1 kids’ show in America. My life changed forever. From a college campus sophomore, to the cover of
Teen Beat
, through it, our friendship only grew closer. You were right there at the start of my company, which went from Todd and me on my front porch to one of the largest independent production companies in the world, and even helped me set meetings for this silly idea I had to write a book. At every major point in my life, you have been there to support me, make me laugh, and break bread. I hope I have been able to reciprocate in some way for how you have made me feel over the years. In life, they say we are lucky to maybe have one lifelong friend. Between you and Todd, I am blessed to have at least two.

Kurty B, my other brother I never had, I learned more from you about how to conduct myself in the television business then anyone else I have ever known. Your brilliance is obvious even though you are the only man I know who can turn 5 hours of work into a 12-hour day. To your defense, it is the greatest entertainment a day could be filled with, ever. And to your best friend growing up, Scott Edel, who has been my lawyer and integrity compass for the past 25 years, I thank you for always being there to support and guide me, and to remind me that good guys can finish first. Mark White, or Whitey, as I have been calling you for the last 25 years as my loyal friend and advisor. You have always been genuinely happy when something good happens to me, and I will always consider your family my family. Mama D, my #1 fan, I will never stop appreciating the love you always show me for everything I try to accomplish.

My editor, Andrea Au Levitt, I can still hear the excitement in your voice the first time we spoke on the phone, which fed my enthusiasm to try to deliver the best book I had in me. Thank you for always being open to listen, decisive in your opinion, and willing to try all. It’s rare for someone in your position to give a first-time writer so much room to either fail or succeed and continue to lead them toward success.

To all the people that agreed to bare their souls on one of our transformative TV shows, and in this book. You are brave men and women, who looked fear in the face and ran toward action to change! You were willing to expose your lives, warts and all, share your innermost personal stories with courage and compassion, which is rare to find these days. Those stories continue to inspire me, and millions of viewers all over the world, as an example of someone who demands more out of their lives. To live longer, with more quality, and to love yourself unconditionally. We are all human, so there will be mistakes made, cookies eaten, and weight gained and lost, but ultimately it is not the falling down that now defines you. . . . It’s getting back up time and time again, to take back control, and kick shame’s ass! I have hugged all of you at one point when I could not get my arms around you, and then again at the end when my arms wrapped all the way around until they were touching on the other side. You have loved me, hated me (sometimes both in the same day), but ultimately we have respect for each other. I thank you for helping people overcome issues in their lives, because they saw that you did it in yours.

A READER’S DIGEST BOOK

Reader’s Digest is a registered trademark of Trusted Media Brands, Inc.

All images in this book are reprinted courtesy of 3Ball Entertainment, LLC, with the exception of the images on the following pages: 9 Pete Thomas; 17 Stacey Lewis; 19 and 146 Georgeanna Johnson; 23 and 233 Rod Durham; 39 and 182 Elaine Covington; 63 Robert and Raymond Delgado; 70 Jose Flores, Jr.; 87 Mitzi White; 190 Jennifer Callahan; 192 Vanessa Bryan; 208 Joshua Steele

ISBN 978-1-62145-289-8

eISBN 978-1-62145-290-4

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

Names: Roth, JD, (Television producer) author.

Title: The big fat truth : behind-the-scenes secrets to losing weight and gaining the inner strength to transform your life / by JD Roth.

Description: New York, NY : Trusted Media Brands, Inc., [2016] | Includes index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2015037050| ISBN 9781621452898 (hardback) | ISBN 9781621452904 (epub)

Classification: LCC RM222.2 .R6675 2016 | DDC 613.2--dc23

LC record available at
http://lccn.loc.gov/2015037050

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