Unlike the majority of celebrities who "write" autobiographies using co-writers or ghost writers, every word of his new book "Born to Run" is his own. I, like other Springsteen fans, am waiting with baited breath to get a copy of it. Until then, I'll settle for the recent Vanity Fair article, which is pretty eye-opening on its own.

Spoiler alert: There are some facts you may not have known about Bruce.

  • He was completely and utterly terrified before he played the halftime show at Super Bowl XLIII.
  • He had disc surgery in recent years that tied off his vocal cords and rendered him unable to sing for three months.
  • His older sister became pregnant at 17 as a senior in high school and is still happily married to the father of that child, 47 years later.
  • He suffers intermittently from depression and has been in therapy and on antidepressants on and off for it since the '80s.
  • He had a very difficult relationship with his father.
  • He pedals a recumbent bike for 5 minutes before his shows.
  • His son Evan is in our business. Works for Sirius XM Radio.
  • He adored cheesy "B" movies in his youth.
  • He was a terrible driver. Couldn't manage to get his license till he was in his 20s.
  • His pumped-up "Born in the USA" cover bod happened through six months of lifting weights.
  • Like a lot of older folks HE'S A BIG FAN OF CAPS LOCK AND USES IT FOR EMPHASIS!
  • His book started as a diary entry/blog post on his website in 2008. It felt good so he expanded it.
  • Unlike many rock stars have of their signature songs, has never tired of playing "Born to Run"
  • His maternal grandfather, Anthony Zerilli, spent three years in Sing Sing prison for embezzlement.
  • He's never had another job.

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