When people discuss wrestling, one thing that always seems to come up is whether or not it's real. I remember when the WWF (now the WWE) became incredibly popular in the 1980s, with its breakout stars seemingly everywhere. The kids at my school who were really into it were always teased about it being fake. Whether or not you believe wrestling is staged, there is no denying that it is incredibly physical, challenging entertainment. Pro wrestling draws millions of fans to the stands every year, and the wrestlers themselves are in amazing physical shape, performing wild stunts and risking injury night after night.
Many of pro wrestling’s wrestlers achieve great celebrity. Some even go on to do television and movies, with Dwayne The Rock Johnson being a notable example. It makes sense, since these athletes have not only been trained to do amazing physical stunts and acrobatics, but also given lessons in acting to be able to convincingly sell their story lines. There are even special schools for people interested in getting into televised wrestling, where the top prospects make it to the big screen.
As many pro wrestlers turn to professional acting, even more of them write memoirs or are the subjects of pro wrestling biographies. There are so many fascinating things to learn about the sport, and about the men and women who don the spandex and spangles in the ring. Did you know that André the Giant used to get rides to school from Samuel Beckett? Or that a wrestler who intentionally loses a match to build up their opponent’s reputation is called a jobber? Or that the term pencil-neck geek was coined by a WWF manager?
If you’re a fan of pro wrestling, or just like to learn, here are five great listens about the sport and its athletes to help you learn more fascinating stuff!
DDP started out his career as a wrestling manager before switching to competing in 1991. He won many championships and titles, and even wrestled against Hulk Hogan with—wait for it—Jay Leno, before injuries old and new had him hanging up his spandex. (He was hit by a car as a kid, an injury that kept him from being able to train for wrestling until he was in his 30s.) He used his determination to create the Yoga for Regular Guys Workout. In this listen, he discusses how to make the most of what you have.
A former football star with a political science degree, Junkyard Dog was known for entering the ring in his trademark dog collar and chain to Queen’s Another One Bites the Dust. Narrator J.D. Jackson tells the tale of how he became the first black wrestler in the World Wrestling Federation, rising up from the racial injustice of the South to become one of wrestling’s biggest stars.
Apter is one of the most famous photographers in wrestling, having turned a childhood love of the sport into a full-time career that allowed him to rub shoulders with many of the greats. Narrating his own story, Apter has plenty of wild tales to tell about the sport and its stars, including which wrestler threatened him, which dead wrestler was really alive, and how his friendship with Andy Kaufman led to the comic’s notorious feud with Jerry The King Lawler.
Recently retired WWE superstar AJ Mendez Brooks opens up about her life before joining the WWE in this brave memoir. She discusses her family’s history of drug use, poverty, and mental illness, and how her need to escape as a young girl led her to worship the tough, unconventional women characters in comics and video games, and how she discovered she could be one of those characters as a pro wrestler.
Jericho has been named one of the top 10 wrestlers by the WWE. In this memoir, Roger Wayne narrates the wild recent highlights of Jericho’s career, including how the film No Country for Old Men rekindled his love for the sport, his feuds with Vince McMahon, and the time he almost fought Mickey Rourke.
