Speaker, Filmmaker, Author Joe Camp, at 80, says the Secret of Living is Not Retiring to the Golf Course, But Rather Continuing to Make a Difference
Joe Camp is from the wrong place, with the wrong education, the wrong philosophy, and the wrong product. He was rejected by every studio in Hollywood, more than once, and without any help from those studios, he turned a lovable, floppy-eared notion of a dog into a worldwide phenomenon that is known and loved all around the globe. And today, the message he’s spreading to people all across the country is that if this improperly educated, small-time advertising guy from the sticks can do it with his dream, anyone can do it.
And, at an energetic 80, he is neck deep in a new passion. For decades, Joe tried to lure you into the heart and soul of a dog. Now, with his best selling book The Soul of a Horse, he wants to lure you into the heart and soul of a horse. After reading the book, Shaye Areheart, publisher of the Harmony Books imprint at Random House, the nation’s largest publisher, said, “I will never look at horses the same way again. It’s a wonderfully personal and emotional book. We’re very excited to have the worldwide rights.”
Monty Roberts, author of the New York Times Bestseller The Man Who Listens to Horses, said, “Imagine how inadequate it makes me feel to realize how recently Joe came into horses. The man is a natural when it comes to understanding how animals tick and a genius at telling us their story. The Soul of a Horse is a must read for those who love animals of any species.”
The Soul of a Horse is in its seventeenth printing and is setting traditional thinking about horses on its ear.
Joe is living his life with purpose, on purpose, and that’s the message he has for those his age and older. “We geezers are in the prime of our productive lives,” says Camp, “but all too many folks walk away from their jobs and dissolve their entire lives into a golf course somewhere. Now is the time to use all that knowledge, experience, and wisdom gained over years and years of work and effort to help less experienced folks focus on how they can reach further, do better, and, at the same time, make positive differences in the world. To help them see that life is not all about getting rich, it’s about helping others.
“Nothing lifts the human spirit like sharing, caring, relating, and fulfilling,” says Camp. “Many people don’t get the opportunity I have been blessed with. They die young, before they think they have any time to devote to real meaning. The way you get real meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, to creating something that gives your life purpose.
“And to do so guarantees you better health as well. Nothing soothes the psyche like knowing you’ve made a positive difference in another being’s life. It lowers cholesterol, blood pressure and heart rate. Having purpose is having health in all meanings of the word.”
Joe speaks to families, churches, college students, corporations, civic and philanthropic organizations, pet adoption organizations, and equine groups, inspiring everyone within earshot to reach beyond any conceived perception of his or her limitations, and he spells out the choices that will create success. His talks are an elixir for the human spirit, proof that the unknown, the uncelebrated can still mount a white horse, charge off into the distance and accomplish things worthwhile, against the odds, and leave the world a better place for the effort.
Joe has written, produced and directed seven theatrical motion pictures (including all of the Benji movies except the 2018 one which was written and directed by his youngest son Brandon) cumulatively grossing well over the equivalent of $600 million in today’s dollars, making him one of the most successful independent filmmakers of all time. In addition to The Soul of a Horse, he has written three novels, twelve additional books about horses, several children’s books and the non-fiction inspirational book God Only Knows .
