English Wrestling

Kayfabe: A Mostly True History of Professional Wrestling is the story of how professional wrestling evolved from humble roots as a folk sport into an intricate and unique performance art, and a global billion dollar industry. It’s a history that takes in America’s Wild West, the Music Halls of Victorian London, the circuses of P.T. Barnum, the golden age of television, the genesis of Mixed Martial Arts, all the way to the dizzying heights of WWE's Wrestlemania and AEW's All-In. As befitting a story with roots in Vaudeville Theatre, it’s full of twists, turns, surprises, myth-making ...

There has been much said about Dusty Rhodes, the 'American Dream', over the years by both his fans and peers. Aside from the frequent fictional prose penned by wrestling magazine journalists and internet smart marks that run rumor-mill websites, however, there has not been much written about him. Until now. With the exception of a select few, there has been no bigger name or personality in the annals of pro wrestling history than Dusty Rhodes.

A breakthroughexamination of professional wrestling - its history, its fans, and its widercultural impact - that does for the sport what Chuck Klosterman did for heavymetal

The Squared Circle grows out of David Shoemaker'swriting for both Deadspin, where hestarted the column "Dead Wrestler of the Week" - a feature on the many wrestlingsuperstars who died too young because of the abuse they subjected their bodiesto - and Grantland,where he covers the pro-wrestling world and its place in the pop culturemainstream. Shoemaker's sports writing has since struck a nerve withgenerations of wrestling fans who, like him, grew up worshiping a sport oftenderided as "fake" in the wider culture. To them, these professional wrestlingsuperstars are not just heroes but an emotional outlet and the lens throughwhich they learned to see the world.

Starting in the early 1900s and exploring the path of prowrestling in America through the present day, The Squared Circle is thefirst book to acknowledge both the sport's broader significance and wrestlingfans' keen intellect and sense of irony. Divided into eras, each section offersa snapshot of the wrestling world, profiles some of the period's preeminentwrestlers, and examines the sport's influence on our broader culture. Throughthe brawling, bombast, and bloodletting, Shoemaker argues that pro wrestlingcan teach us about the nature of performance, audience, and, yes, art.

Full of unknown history, humor, and self-deprecatingreminiscence - but also offering a compelling look at the sport's rightful placein pop culture - The Squared Circle is the book that legions of wrestlingfans have been waiting for. In it, Shoemaker teaches us to look past thespandex and body slams to see an art form that can explain the world.

By creating WrestleMania, jumping into the pay-per-view field, and expanding across North America, Vince McMahon changed professional wrestling forever.

In 2017, after being told that no independent wrestling group could draw a crowd of more than 10,000, a group of wrestlers took up the challenge. For several years, these gladiators had been performing in front of rabid crowds and understood the hunger for wrestling that was different from the TV-slick product. In September 2018, they had the numbers to prove it: 11,263 fans filled the Sears Center Arena for the All In pay-per-view event, ushering in a new era. A year later, WWE had its first major head-to-head competitor in nearly two decades when All Elite Wrestling debuted on TNT.

Get a rare glimpse into the mind of Karrion Kross, the 6'4", 265-pound powerhouse known for his ferocity in the ring but admired for his thoughtful perseverance outside of it. This book is packed with heartache, humor, and invaluable lessons, revealing the real man behind the menacing exterior and his relentless journey to the top of sports entertainment.

Flowers for Adrian is a detailed and engaging look at the life, death and legacy of professional wrestler Keith Franke, who competed as “Gorgeous” Keith Franks and “Adorable” Adrian Adonis during the 1970s and 1980s before his untimely death in 1988. This biography, the first of its kind, takes the reader through Franke’s start in life as an orphan, through to achieving his childhood dream of becoming a pro wrestler. The tale plays out across the colourful background of wrestling’s territories era, where Franke learned his trade the 'old-fashioned' way in Vancouver, the ...

ECW was one extreme contradiction piled on top of another. It was an incredibly influential company in the world of professional wrestling during the 1990s, yet it was never profitable. It portrayed itself as the ultimate in anti-authority rebellion, but its leadership was, at various points, working covertly with the two wrestling giants, the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling. Most of all, it blurred the line between real life and the fantasy world of professional wrestling like no other company before it.

The Matches Which Built and Crippled an Industry Frank Gotch turned pro wrestling from a fringe spectacle to one of the most popular spectator sports. Still, it took Gotch three years to lure undefeated World Champion George Hackenschmidt to the United States for a title defense. The result was two controversial but legitimate wrestling matches, whose effects were felt for the next two decades. Read the true story of this series of matches.

What if the Montreal Screwjob hadn’t happened? What if the WCW Invasion would have worked? What if John Cena had turned heel? In Wrestling Rewritten, award-winning sports writer and lifelong pro wrestling fan BJ Pickard tackles some of professional wrestling's most often discussed and debated instances of what might have been. Through both historical and counterfactual examinations of the industry’s seminal angles and events over the last quarter-century, Wrestling Rewritten is an entertaining and informative read for fantasy bookers and casual fans alike.

Why is there so much suffering today, even for Christians? In Divine Dilemma, Ken Ham confronts this topic head-on, using personal accounts of illness and loss from within his own family.

Bobby Blaze Smedley's forthright autobiography, Pin Me, Pay Me, Have Boots Will Travel, is a powerful and insightful look at the inner workings of the world of professional wrestling, written in an introspective story-telling style that puts you in the ring with him. Overcoming illness and adversity to rise to the heights of his chosen profession, Bobby takes you on the road and around the world as he realizes his lifelong dream, to be one of the rare individuals who earns his living as a professional wrestler.

He’s been a fixture in professional wrestling for five decades. He helped introduce a hardcore wrestling style that you see in the WWE and Japan today. He’s made his mark in Hollywood. He’s Terry Funk, and this is his story. In this captivating look at the life of a living legend, Funk opens up about growing up in a wrestling family, working with various entertainment companies (including the ECW, WWE, and WWF), and so much more.

After a lifetime of putting his body on the line to entertain his dozens (and dozens!) of fans, the Hardcore Legend is paying the price - physically and emotionally. When the final bell on Mick's career tolls, not in the ring, but in a neurologist's office, his future seems far from merry and bright. Until Mick is given the chance to become Santa Claus - not dress up, not pretend, but become Santa - allowing him to rediscover the joy of performing. Fully committing to his new mission, Mick details the drastic measures he takes to keep the Christmas magic alive.

Is there a way to find truth in the stuff of legend? You may think you know Andre the Giant - but who was Andre Roussimoff? This comprehensive biography addresses the burning questions, outrageous stories, and common misconceptions about his height, his weight, his drawing power as a superstar, and his seemingly unparalleled capacity for food and alcohol. But more importantly, The Eighth Wonder of the World transports listeners beyond the smoke and mirrors of professional wrestling into the life of a real man.

In 1996, professional wrestling was one of the most watched sports on cable television, with more than 5 million people tuning in every week. And in the late 1990s, pro-wrestling was the hottest thing in American pop culture, with companies making millions in action figures, video games, and simple black t-shirts emblazoned with three little letters: NWO. The NWO, or New World Order, became a business like no other, and was responsible for the explosive ratings and rabid fanbase.

The year 2001 began with a wrestling landscape rich with competition, featuring three national companies locked in a weekly ratings battle for a massive and devoted fanbase. By the time the calendar turned, only one promotion remained standing, fan interest had plummeted, and a steady decline began that continues to this day. This book chronicles how an entire industry, a true pop culture phenomenon, seemingly collapsed overnight. Follow the final, dying breaths of both Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling, from their last pay-per-view events to the day the lights...

Featuring an entirely new chapter for US readers, the story of his induction into the UFC Hall of Fame, fresh insights about his fighting career, never-before-told stories about his film and TV career, and a harrowing account of his fighting off attempted kidnappers while filming in South Africa, Quitters Never Win tells the incredible story of how he went from rough and humble beginnings and then on to a legendary mixed martial arts career capped by winning the Middleweight Championship in one of the greatest upsets in UFC history.

There are few people who have been in the wrestling business longer than Jim Ross. Slobberknocker is the story of how an Oklahoman farm kid with a vivid imagination and seemingly unattainable dreams became "The Voice of Wrestling" to record TV audiences and millions of fans around the world. Jim opens up about his life as an only child on a working farm, who became obsessed with professional wrestling having first seen it on his grandparents' TV.

Saraya-Jade Bevis, formerly WWE’s Paige, is one of the biggest names in the wrestling world. She is the youngest two-time WWE Divas Champion and was inaugural NXT’s Women Champion. She ranked first in Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s Female 50 and was named Diva of the Year by Rolling Stone in 2014. She was also the subject of the critically and commercially successful 2019 film Fighting with My Family, produced by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and starring Florence Pugh. But before ascending to wrestling superstardom, she was just Saraya. Hell in Boots is Saraya’s real, uncensored, story.