By partnering with Joe “Joey Pants” Pantoliano and his No Kidding, Me Too! organization, Matt Conable and William Henry Knives continue a noble trend in the knife industry to support the less fortunate in all walks of life.

Last year, Benchmade, Buck, select members of the custom knife forum on BladeForums.com and others donated proceeds from knife raffles or knife sales to breast cancer research. Others (including the CKCA; see page 38) in the knife industry also have participated or are participating in projects that support those in need.

In case you don’t know, Pantoliano won an Emmy Award for his part of Ralph Cifaretto in the long-running hit television drama The Sopranos, and also acted in a long list of films such as The Matrix, Bad Boys, Bad Boys II and others.

In cooperation with Pantoliano, WHK is donating half of the proceeds from a limited edition of 100 models based on this issue’s cover knife (see page 7) to No Kidding, Me Too! (NKMT), a non-profit organization dedicated to removing the stigma attached to brain disease through education and the breaking down of societal barriers.

What exactly is a “brain disease”? According to the website www.nokiddingmetoo.org, it includes: anxiety disorder; post-traumatic stress disorder; obsessive-compulsive disorder; panic disorder; social anxiety disorder; specific phobias; depression; bipolar disorder; schizophrenia; anorexia nervosa; bulimia nervosa; binge eating; pyromania; kleptomania; compulsive gambling; addictions; paranoia; multiple personality disorder; gender identity disorder; Down’s syndrome; psychosomatic disorder; tic disorders; and others.

According to the site, at least one in five adults suffers from a brain disease. In turn, the consequences of the sufferer’s disease affect at least 11 of the sufferer’s loved ones/acquaintances, so the impact is far reaching.

As for the story behind the organization’s name, according to Pantoliano it allows “people to have a conversation that includes, ‘… and I’m bipolar.’ No kidding, me too!”

According to the site, NKMT’s plan to accomplish its mission consists of creating strategic partnerships with members of industry, academia, organizations and government to ensure a broad-based spectrum of support and input; organizing the talents of entertainment industry professionals who are NKMT members—which includes some of the industry’s biggest stars—to generate their message for various media and use the members’ celebrity status to ensure the message is heard, a message that includes topics as basic as providing job opportunities to those with brain disease; and coordinate, participate in and generate interest for national and regional educational events consistent with NKMT’s goals.

NKMT takes its message to an international audience May 29-31 at the BLADE Show in Atlanta (see page 12). There, Pantoliano will join William Henry Knives and the BLADE Show to provide a private screening of the documentary, No Kidding, Me Too!, the Friday night of the show at 7 p.m. in Room 103. BLADE Show attendees are invited to attend free of charge. And, at the private screening, Serial No. 1 of the Joey Pants knife will be silent auctioned, with all proceeds going toward NKMT. Meanwhile, throughout the show, WHK will have between 10 and 20 of the Joey Pants knives for sale at the WHK booth.

It’s all for a worthy cause, which the knife industry, to its credit, has been doing more and more of lately. And that can only be a good thing.

For more information contact William Henry Studio, attn: R. Thronburg, Dept. BL7, 3200 NE Rivergate St., McMinnville, OR 97128 503.434.9700 www.williamhenrystudio.com.