Area book signings
March 24: Joseph-Beth in Rookwood, Cincinnati; 11 a.m.
March 26: Books & Co. at The Greene Town Center in Beavercreek; 7 p.m.
Laura Vikmanis’ journey has been big, tragic, tender, saucy and inspirational.
The Springboro woman’s autobiography, which hits bookstores Tuesday, has already been optioned by New Line Cinema as a feature film.
Co-written with New York Times best-selling novelist Amy Sohn, “It’s Not About the Pom-Poms: How a 40-Year-old Mom Became the NFL’s Oldest Cheerleader,” blends honesty (Vikmanis details a demoralizing divorce), humor, intelligence and wit.
Although the movie version, currently in the hands of the writers of the 2007 “Ratatouille” and 2011 “Gnomeo & Juliet,” will most likely skim over the darkest moments of her life, Vikmanis is refreshingly honest in describing her childhood and marriage.
Born Sept. 10, 1968, in Kettering, the registered dietitian and personal trainer, who works full time in Bellbrook, says her parents divorced and her mother, Linda Horn, raised her and sister Lisa, now 45. (Both women live in the area.)
Linda and Lisa have been cheering on Vikmanis throughout her life: From when the family of three financially struggled after Linda’s split and received the loving support of her grandparents in Oakwood, to when Vikmanis studied at California State University in Long Beach and then entered a rocky marriage at 22.
“I was too young to get married,” Vikmanis says. “And I lost myself.”
The blessing, however, has been her daughters, now 13 and 15.
Following her divorce, Vikmanis admits her self-confidence took a huge hit. “I am living with myself 24/7,” she recalls. She then decided to take charge of her life.
To counter the personal devastation, Vikmanis rediscovered her passion for dancing, lost 25 pounds, got breast implants and essentially did her best to regain her life while juggling parenting and work.
Therefore it was big news in May 2009 when at the age of 40, Vikmanis made history by becoming the oldest cheerleader in the NFL when she landed a stint as a Cincinnati Ben-Gal.
Her story went viral in January 2011 when Yahoo featured Vikmanis in “Second Act.”
The video scored more than 4.5 million hits. Sohn, with a laugh, recalls seeing Jimmy Fallon chatting about “the granny cheerleader” on his NBC show.
Being a professional cheerleader is not as easy at it appears, admits Vikmanis. The yearly auditions are grueling; the workouts intense; the pay is lousy; and the women have twice-weekly weigh-ins.
After the Yahoo story posted, the calls from movie producers began.
Yet Vikmanis says those plans were put on hold in order to work on the book.
Six degrees of separation seems to be a theme now in the 5-foot-4-inch, 123-pound blonde’s life.
Twin brothers Steve and Jeff Nagel, for example, who live in the Dayton area and are huge Bengal fans, contributed the photo of Vikmanis as cheerleader on the book’s back jacket, while Linda supplied the shot of Vikmanis from before her weight loss.
Adds Sohn: “It’s such a small-world story ... . We met through her New York City agent, and we hit it off instantly. My mouth was hanging open the whole time she was telling me her story. I couldn’t believe how much she had been through.
“The book proposal came crazy fast,” Sohn recalls.
A three-page query emerged, and the women began shopping for publishers. (Ballantine Books is the publishing house.)
Sohn, who is based in Brooklyn, says she visited Vikmanis three or four times in Ohio, and they worked together for about a year on the book.
As Vikmanis’ second life chapter blossoms, it’s hard not to wonder what the third act will hold.
Contact this reporter at ( 937) 255-0671 or rmcmacken@DaytonDailyNews.com.
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