Ellis Amburn has spent his career working with celebrities: He published Jack Kerouac, ghost wrote for Priscilla Presley and authored a biography on Jack Nicholson.
Now the 74-year-old is adding a local celebrity to his A-List career.
Amburn is writing a biography on former Gators quarterback Tim Tebow. He hasn’t written anything in six years, but he was inspired to write about Tebow because of the football star’s spiritual commitment.
“At the Gator games, I started seeing God’s will in action,” he said.
Amburn wasn’t spiritual until 2002, when he was diagnosed with third-stage cancer in his neck and head.
He received radiation therapy at Shands at UF, and dedicated his last biography, “Jack: The Great Seducer,” to Dr. William M. Mendenhall, whom he credits with saving his life.
But with his health back, Amburn wasn’t sure if he still wanted to write.
“I didn’t know if I’d ever write again,” he said. “I didn’t need to do anything but get to know Ellis in Act 3 of my life.”
Amburn had been writing since he worked for his college paper at Texas Christian University. In 1954, at age 20, he moved to New York to work for Newsweek.
Six years later, he entered the publishing industry, where after scoring a bestseller, he worked with famous beat author Jack Kerouac.
“I was a young editor on my way up, and he was a great author on his way down,” Amburn said.
He encouraged Kerouac to write a book about murder, war and football, and when “Vanity of Duluoz” was published, the author dedicated it to him.
But since recovering from cancer, Amburn has come to appreciate his newfound spirituality.
He doesn’t subscribe to any specific religion; instead, he believes he can best connect to his creator by helping others.
He volunteers and is a mentor to UF and Santa Fe College students.
As he writes about Tebow, Amburn will still focus on spirituality.
For research, Amburn needs help from students who have stories about Tebow.
Those who shared a class or were friends with Tebow while he attended UF are encouraged to e-mail Amburn at ellis.amburn@gmail.com.
