09/03/2026
TONIGHT! Join us for Rick Campanelli's hometown launch of Tempted hosted by Dr. Disc's Mark Furukawa! Tickets will be available at the door.
🎟️ https://rickataquarius.eventbrite.ca
gritLIT: Hamilton’s Readers and Writers Festival, Theatre Aquarius, and HarperCollins Canada are pleased to welcome Rick Campanelli, in celebration of Tempted, his nostalgic and fast-paced memoir that takes readers on a ride through the world of music and entertainment.
Epic Books will be onsite to sell copies of Tempted. Those who purchase a copy can join the meet-and-greet line-up to get your book signed.
Recounting Rick "The Temp" Campanelli's journey from idyllic childhood in Hamilton to a complicated life in front of the camera during the peak years of MuchMusic and ET Canada, it will both delight and shock readers as Campanelli for the first time, reveals secrets that he faced behind-the-scenes that nearly destroyed his life.
Rick will be interviewed by Mark Furukawa who, along with his record store Dr. Disc, have become synonymous with the Hamilton music scene since he founded the downtown business in 1991 after having arrived in the city via Barrie where he grew up, and London where he attended the University of Western Ontario.
About Rick Campanelli
Rick Campanelli has been one of the most recognizable fixtures in Canadian broadcasting for three decades, most notably for MuchMusic and ET Canada, and has appeared on The Traitors Canada. Currently he hosts the radio show Rewind with Rick Campanelli on CHFI and can be seen on Breakfast Television. Born in Hamilton, Ontario, he now lives close to home with his wife and two sons.
About Tempted: My Story
This bombshell memoir by media personality Rick Campanelli tells the story of his public life in front of the camera and his secret life behind the scenes. “Though nothing came my way without a great deal of hard work, I’ve been incredibly fortunate in my life. Being a mostly open book in the public eye for over thirty years, people think they know me pretty well, but it’s time for me to shed light on a few deep dark secrets that will shock many.
Tempted is a story of accomplishments and living life to the fullest but not without mistakes along the way. A cautionary tale of what can happen when you lose control. This is my full story, flaws and all.” Rick Campanelli’s journey of winning a nationwide contest to become a MuchMusic VJ on the iconic Canadian music station launched him quickly from an unknown Hamilton kid to an on-air national superstar known as “Rick the Temp,” as his warm, affable personality won over millions of Canadians from coast to coast. But while in front of the camera his star was rising, behind the scenes all was not as it seemed. Revealed for the first time ever in Tempted, Campanelli shares the story of the secret demons he battled that nearly destroyed his life.
