Dr. Rico Austin PhD - Mi Vida Loca (Biography)
Born and raised in Southwestern Idaho, Rico is the oldest of five boys, growing up in a area that was ripe for several adventures for him, his four younger brothers and numerous cousins.
Rico grew up near farmland that produced potatoes, hay, hops, grain and corn. There were several fruit orchards and vineyards in the Snake River Valley as well, due to the extraordinary fertile soil. A couple of years out of high school he moved to Boise and enrolled at Boise State University as a student and walk on football player. However, he could not escape the allure of traveling the world and began writing and storing his experiences in hopes of someday becoming a novelist. He began by reading every chance he had. From contemporary novels to classical literature, Rico's love of storytelling was uncontrollable. He appeared occasionally at Boise's former Comedy Club as a "Stand Up Comedian" retelling his stories of growing up in a comedic fashion. Rico earned an Associate Degree in Marketing and Sales from BSU. After a few years of low level management positions Rico moved to Hawaii for a short time surfing the waters of Kauai and enjoying the outdoors. He then moved to Southern California for less than a year before heading back to Idaho. In 1991 Rico moved to the Scottsdale area and continued his education receiving a BBA in International Business at Grand Canyon University and received "Outstanding International Business Graduate of 1995." That same year he was also selected as "Mr. Future Business Executive" at the State Leadership Conference which included all universities in the State of Arizona.
The summer before graduating Rico went to Vilnius, Lithuania and taught English (ESL). During fall semester of his senior year at GCU Rico attended Staffordshire University in England where he also started on the American Football Team for the Staffordshire Stallions. Rico finished his Masters, an MBA in International Management at Thunderbird School of Global Management with a focus on the Latin American Region and the Spanish language. He did
this while working full time as a feature writer and free lance journalist at the T-Bird school paper "DAS TOR." A few of his articles at "DAS TOR" were written in Spanish by Rico specially for the foreign students of Latin America.
Former Vice President Dan Quayle served as an "Invited Interim Professor by the Thunderbird School President for two semesters" and Rico was fortunate enough to be one of 16 students selected to attend his class.
*Special note, Rico received an "A" from the VP for the 2 credit elective class. Was it because of Rico's performance on studies or VP Quayle was afraid of what Mr. Austin might write in the paper?
Hollywood has even had an encounter with Rico. For those of you who watched Baywatch with the beautiful Pamela Anderson, Carmen Electra and David Hasselhoff, Mr. Rico Austin did a cameo appearance in the episode "Night of the Dolphin" in 1997 where he played the role of a drug lord on a huge yacht with sexy chicks. He and his graduate class mates watched the episode when it aired in the "old clock tower hanger" together in the TV lounge. He was invited back for another episode by Producer and Casting Director Susie Glickman, but had to decline due to a conflict with finals at Thunderbird. Rico chose education over stardom, when questioned why, he responded, "No one can ever take your education away, everything else can come and go and, most likely will." Rico also acted in a commercial for the local market in Boise, ID as a construction worker in "That old House" sponsored by BMC West.
Rico is an avid fisherman and has traveled far and wide to cast his line into many waters; including streams, lakes, ponds, rivers, seas and oceans. He has worked for a few international companies as both a sales manager and a marketing manager. In his spare time he has worked as a Land Developer and is a Licensed Realtor in Arizona. Should you decide to make your home in Arizona or would like to purchase property to build your dream home in the future, Rico would be more than happy to show you around his Great State of Arizona. Rico now is happily married to a graphic artist from Minnesota with a prominent company. They make their home in the "Land of the Sun" Scottsdale, Arizona. He and his wife Connie enjoy snorkeling, hiking, hanging by their swimming pool and traveling to the beaches of Mexico while sipping on a cold cerveza or margarita blended with Rico's favorite TEQUILA.
Rico Austin first began writing seriously as a seventh grader at age 13. He was elected as reporter for the "Eager Beaver 4-H Club" in Marsing, Idaho and started submitting weekly articles to the local newspaper. Rico then was elected reporter for the local FFA chapter his freshman and sophomore year continuing to expand his writing ability. As a freshman Rico took 3rd place in the Marsing High essay contest titled "American Beef Farmers." He later would write a few short stories for Reader's Digest and become a professional freelance and feature writer for DAS TOR newspaper at Thunderbird, The American Graduate School of Global Management from 1996 - 1998. Rico also won the first and only writing essay at DAS TOR in March 1997. The essay asked contestants to propose ways for Thunderbird to be improved. Rico used his humor, knowledge of several countries that he had traveled to and innovation to secure the winning essay. One of his most serious assignments and pieces of journalism was reporting on the Winterim class 97 "US Foreign Economic Policy" in Washington DC including the opening of the 105th Congress and the Inauguration of the President of the United States - Mr. Bill Clinton. Rico was also selected among several hundred writers and bloggers to help compile a booklet with 13 other prominent authors. "How to Create Credibility as a Freelancer - 70 Tips from a Collection of Experts" was published in 12/2009.
Rico earned his doctorates degree in Tequila of which less than 180 people in the world have this unique title. Dr. Rico Austin PhD now has his own Tequila brand - BAJARRIBA TEQUILA available where fine spirits are sold!
Website: www.ricoaustin.com www.bajarriba.com
Favorite movie "Gone With the Wind"
& the new movie "Hangover" for a comedy.
His favorite books are:
John Steinbeck's "East of Eden"
Ernest Hemingway's "The Old Man and the Sea"
J.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit"
Rico's first novel, "MY BAD TEQUILA" was published in September of 2010, earning his first Award of Excellence in May 2011.
On the 26th day of May, 2011, the Office of Key West Honorary Mayor Gonzo Mays was proud to present 'MY BAD TEQUILA' with the Honorary Mayor's 5 Parrots In A Palm Tree Award of Excellence for superb island reading. Congratulations to author Rico Austin and forever peace, parrots and palm trees to you!
The Hit Single Song "My Bad Tequila" co-written by Rico and Elly Garrison, who also sings and performs the song with her band QuarterDeck can be found on iTunes, Yahoo Music and Amazon Music. www.QuarterDeckCountry.com
"This Book is going to Change the World, Guaranteed to Knock You off your Axis!" - Woody Nelson, Program Director / CEO, Cowboy Bills Radio www.CowboyBillsRadio.com
"MY BAD TEQUILA" did NOT disappoint, I LOVED the story!
It was very well paced ....dropping little hints as to what might happen.... leading us along, but never giving the story away. I liked how the novel subtly drifted back to Rhet's childhood and prior experiences, giving valuable insight into his character.
It came to a point in the story, where the situation begins to really heat up.... many things go awry. It was impossible for me to stop reading, until I found out what happens to everyone. There is a very clever twist, followed by a big shock that you don't see coming.
The ending was terrific!! Mr. Austin has his own unique version of Hemingway's style of storytelling. Straight-forward, describing the adventure in detail...I learned a few things I hadn't known about fish!
"My Bad Tequila" is 80% true and 20% fiction. Much of the truth is easy to figure out, but there's enough question...'mystery' that leaves you thinking,... long after finishing the novel.
If Mr. Austin continues to write stories like this, he might just become 'A Legend'....like Papa Hemingway!
"My Bad Tequila is an excellent book!! - Jeanne Sampson
"The Novel 'My Bad Tequila' is so smooth, no Salt and Lime needed!"
- Jay Nance, Social Media Director of Politichatter.com
"Rico's love of storytelling is infectious", said one loyal reader at a recent party.
"Once you read one, you have to read all of his short stories."
Steven Boyce - Hollywood Actor, Harley Rider
Bonnie Lee's review on Virtual Scribe at www.TheVirtualScribe.net/
Rico Austin is the first author to have Sponsors advertise on a novel.
Azuñia Tequila of Jalisco Mexico, featuring Platinum Blanco, Reposado and Anejo Tequila!
BloodyFine of Boise, ID with Bloody Mary Mixes, Buffalo Shake Spices, Season Salts and Fry Mix. www.BloodyFine.com
AWARDS Won by MY BAD TEQUILA & Author Dr. Rico Austin
Hollywood Book Festival - Honorable Mention (Wild Card genre 2011)
Readers Favorite Book Awards - Silver (Fiction - Mystery - General genre 2011)
Amazon eKindle - #1 Top Rated Kindle eBooks (Mexico Travel genre 2011)
"Five Parrots in a Palm Tree" - Superb Island Reading award 2011
#1 Book to Read, June 2011 - NY Professional Reviewer, Fran Lewis
Readers Favorite Book Awards - Finalist (Fiction - General genre 2011)
Arizona Authors Association - 3rd Place (Fiction Book of the Year 2011 - 2012)
London Book Festival - Honorable Mention (Wild Card genre 2012)
Los Angeles Book Festival - Honorable Mention (Wild Card genre 2011-2012)
New York Beach Book Festival - Honorable Mention (General Non-Fiction 2012)
Bibliocracy.com - Author of the Month (June 2012)
Suspense Magazine Review - (July 2012)
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