True North - The Shocking Truth About "Yours, Mine and Ours"

True story of a life of domestic violence and child abuse in a family made famous by the hit movie, "Yours, Mine and Ours", starring Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda. As the author of True North – The Shocking Truth about “Yours, Mine and Ours”, Tom writes about his experience as the 11th of the 20 Beardsley children, made famous in the 1968 film “Yours, Mine and Ours.” With Lucille Ball playing the role of the mother and Henry Fonda as the father, the film was a critical and box-office success. However, the loving family portrayed in the film differed dramatically from the actual Beardsley family. Tom shares what it was like to grow up in that family, taking the road less traveled through child abuse, violence and despair, to hope, and eventually to self-discovery and a fulfilling life.

Tom North is one of the eight North children, who together with the ten Beardsley children, became the family which was featured in the 1968 film, “Yours, Mine and Ours” starring Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda, and again in the 2005 version starring Rene Russo and Dennis Quaid. The book begins in the 1950s on Whidbey Island, Washington, where Tom’s mother, Helen North, became a widow when she was just 30 years old and pregnant with her eighth child. Tom was six years old, the fourth child in the North family. Not long after, Helen North met and married Frank Beardsley, a man with ten children, and she moved her family to his house in Carmel, California. The North children were adopted and their names were changed to Beardsley. But, it wasn’t one big happy family as the movie depicted. The stepfather’s violence and abuse created a life of intimidation, confusion, turmoil, fear and depression for the North children. All hope seemed lost as Tom realized that he was caught in a prison and there was no way out. When he finally left home, he traveled on a journey of survival, self-discovery, and healing. Years later, Tom miraculously led his family to counseling sessions where shocking truths were revealed. He then came full circle as he reclaimed his father’s name and was finally, True North. Tom explains: “My mission is to reach out to people who feel isolated, or misunderstood in the world and help them understand that they are not alone, and that their feelings may well be related to experiences they had in their early lives where they felt victimized by those who had greater power than they did. Those experiences may have caused great pain. I want people to understand they are not alone and that most everyone feels the same way. The more they experience their own divinity and essential nature, the more they will actually relate to humanity and see the beauty in the world, and not the pain.” TOM NORTH IS A FEATURED GUEST ON RADIO AND TELEVISION PROGRAMS, AND A KEYNOTE SPEAKER AT COLLEGES, UNIVERSITIES, PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS AND ORGANIZATIONS, AND BOOK SIGNING EVENTS. Sometimes entertaining and funny, sometimes serious, but always moving and inspiring, Tom North brings a fresh approach to a very serious problem. Your audience will gain: • a better understanding of their own behavior patterns that have resulted from their trauma. • a new feeling of hope. • a realization that they are not alone and that many people feel the same way. • a new inspiration to discover their own divinity, their true essential nature, and their connectedness to humanity and all life. • an understanding of how and why their connection to humanity is a necessary key to their happiness and fulfillment.

Tom North is a writer, poet, and adventurer. As the 11th of the 20 Beardsley children made famous in the film “Yours, Mine and Ours”, Tom had firsthand experience of what it was really like to grow up in the famous family in Carmel, California. Having spent his formative years in the forests of the Pacific Northwest, Tom was always guided to seek solace and sanity in nature and later, Eastern Meditation. He is a successful financial advisor, writer, poet, and motivational speaker. Tom has written extensively about scuba diving, jade hunting in the wilds of Big Sur, and spiritual topics as well. He is working on his second book, The Economics of Spiritual Transformation