RONNIE JAMES DIO's Autobiography Is 'Finally Finished' And Tentatively Due In July

In a brand new interview with RockSverige, Wendy Dio, widow and longtime manager of Ronnie James Dio, offered an update on the long-awaited autobiography of the heavy metal master, which was partially written before the singer's death and which was originally scheduled to be published several years ago via MTV Books.

She said: "I have the book, Ronnie's autobiography, finally finished with [rock journalist] Mick Wall, and I think it's coming out on Ronnie's birthday July 10th. Ronnie had written half of it, and Mick Wall and I got together and found lots of interviews, so I wanted it to still be in Ronnie's voice. I'm very pleased with that."

Wendy also talked about the upcoming career-spanning documentary on the life and times of the legendary rock icon. It is the first documentary about Dio to be fully authorized by the artist's estate. BMG is both financier and executive producer of the film.

"It's probably coming out next year," she said. "We've been working on that, and then it had to stop for a little bit because of them having to go to Europe to interview more people, and because of the travel bans [due to the coronavirus pandemic], they haven't been able to do that. Hopefully it will come out in 2022."

According to Wendy, the documentary will cover "everything" from his childhood and early days with ELF to his final project, HEAVEN & HELL.

"We've been working on this for a couple of years," she said. "I'm not supposed to talk about it because they said they don't want me to blow everything now and then there won't be anything to talk about when it comes out. [Laughs]"

Ronnie James Dio passed away of stomach cancer on May 16, 2010 at the age of 67. A few months after his death, MTV Books announced plans to release his memoir, which at the time was going to be called "Rainbow In The Dark: The Autobiography Of Ronnie James Dio".

"Everything Ronnie did, lyrics or anything, was always handwritten," Wendy told VH1 Classic Rock Nights back in 2010. "He didn't do anything on the computer. So he would handwrite it and then he'd give it to me and then I'd give it to my assistant, she'd type it up. So that's how it went and, of course, I'd read it along the way and it's very, very interesting. It's just interesting the way his stories are; he was a storyteller. Ronnie was always a storyteller and it's just great stories."

Dio was renowned throughout the world as one of the greatest and most influential vocalists in heavy metal history. The singer, who was recording and touring with BLACK SABBATH offshoot HEAVEN & HELL prior to his illness, was diagnosed with stomach cancer in late 2009. He underwent chemotherapy and made what is now his final public appearance in April 2010 at the Revolver Golden Gods Awards in Los Angeles.