Excerpt: 'Real Men Don't Apologize'

ByABC News via logo
May 15, 2006, 8:15 AM

— -- Comedian Jim Belushi has starred in numerous movies as well as the current hit ABC TV show, "According to Jim."

In his book "Real Men Don't Apologize," Belushi gives advice on dating, marriage, sex, and what it takes to be a man. He talks about losing his comedian brother, John Belushi, and trying to pursue his own career while living in his brother's shadow.

He also talks about how men can continue to be "real men" while still making things work with women. Read an excerpt of this book below:

INTRODUCTION: BE ALL THAT DITKA SAYS YOU CAN BE

Before you scoff and say to yourself, "What advice can Jim Belushi, beloved international superstar of stage and screen, give to me, Joe Everyman?" the answer is simple: hope.

I want to let you in on a little secret: I wasn't always the man you see today. There was a time in my life, believe it or not, when I was at rock-bottom. I was a loser. And it's because of those experiences that I'm able to relate to you guys out there looking for a little guidance, a little help. So, newsflash, kids: I am Joe Everyman. And to illustrate my point, I'm gonna tell you a story about a gourmet dinner I had with Mike Ditka.

Let me set the stage. The year was 1987, and I was working on a little film called Red Heat. You don't remember? Maybe this will refresh your memory: "Moscow's toughest detective. Chicago's craziest cop. There's only one thing worse than making them mad. Making them partners." Ahhh, now you remember. Back then I was a major film star slumming with a little-known Austrian bodybuilder who needed a break.

Not a year earlier, my beloved Chicago Bears had danced the triumphant Super Bowl Shuffle, but they failed to repeat -- losing to a New York Giants squad that we would later learn was all hopped up on coke. The loss saddened me greatly and the film's director, Walter Hill, visited me in my trailer to cheer me up.

Walter told me he'd just had a dream about a movie for me to make. In this movie I play myself. The film begins at my breakfast table. My wife is serving me six eggs over easy and three Polish sausages, but I cannot eat because I am too distraught over the apparent end of the Bears dynasty. Finally, she drops the frying pan and says, "Just do it. Just go join the Bears."