Award-winning author Barry Kienzle has just completed co-authoring the first-ever autobiography of Harlem Globetrotters basketball legend Nate Branch, due for release in the Summer of 2022 from Headline Books. 

Nate Branch spent fifteen years with the Globetrotters during their peak ‘Golden Era’ of biggest fame, playing alongside basketball legends including Curly Neal, Geese Ausby, Sweet Lou Dunbar and his best friend and tour roommate, the late “Crown Prince of Basketball” Meadowlark Lemon.

Kienzle was granted unlimited access to Nate, who shares never-before-heard stories about his close friendship with basketball great Wilt Chamberlain, his legendary college playing career in Nebraska, and his long and storied heyday with the Globetrotters. During Nate’s time with the team, they appeared in movies, as guests on dozens of television shows and ABC “Wide World Of Sports” episodes, and toured the world several times over bringing their unique brand of sports entertainment to millions of fans worldwide.

Readers will go behind-the-scenes with first person accounts from Nate about his time on and off the court with the basketball greats, and will learn about the famous Grammy winning music group that tried to recruit Nate to join them as their lead singer, the time Nate found himself playing basketball with the castaways of Gilligan’s Island, the ripped-from-the-headlines scandal that led to Nate’s abrupt and unceremonious departure from the team, his healing after the Globetrotters, his deep faith, love of music and much more.

Nate’s co-author Barry Kienzle is perhaps best known in the sports literature world for his award-winning memoir, 'Heart of a Lion- Our Journey of Faith and Courage,’ the inspiring account of Willie Burton, the high school wrestler born with a drug addiction and severe cerebral palsy who was profiled by ESPN. “It’s similar in some ways to Nate’s story; both Nate and Willie’s lives motivate others to overcome their own obstacles and inspires kids that they can do anything,” said Kienzle.

'Heart of a Lion' won the Gold Award at the Mom's Choice Awards and Silver International Reader’s Favorite Book Award and an Honorable Mention in the Best Memoir category at the Los Angeles Book Festival in 2021. The book was a finalist at the Next Generation Indie Book Awards 2020.

Kienzle's other books include 'Willie: A Super Friend!' a special needs illustrated children’s book featuring Willie Burton as a wheelchair bound superhero, 'The Crossings,’ the true story of his dad's adventures as he jumped onto a freight train at the age of twelve and traveled from Northern Kentucky to New Orleans to see Mardi Gras and 'The Indian,’ the sequel to The Crossings, the story of his dad and his buddy Schmitty, who enlist in the Navy in the wake of World War II.

About The Author:

Barry Kienzle was born, raised, and educated in northern Kentucky and is, in every sense, a Kentucky boy, proud of his heritage. He is very familiar with its history and culture. Barry studied Accounting at Northern Kentucky University, became a CPA, and worked primarily in the accounting and finance areas in construction and real estate development companies as a CFO prior to his career as a writer.

Barry's devotion to his community has led him to serve on many boards over time, including Habitat for Humanity, senior citizens groups, school and other capital raising campaigns, and other not-for-profit organizations. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Northern Kentucky University Foundation and the Bank of Kentucky. You can visit him online at Barry Kienzle - Kentucky Author - www.barrykbooks.com. 

For media requests and review copies of Barry's books, please contact Allen Media Strategies Shaili Priya at (703) 589-8960 or email  shaili@allenmediastrategies.com