Ian Douglass, who worked with Buggsy McGraw on his autobiography, is using Kickstarter to publish The Incredible Brute, a new book inspired by McGraw’s career: This literary project is intended to create an appreciation for the early stages of the professional wrestling career of Michael Davis. Years before he entertained thousands of fans as Buggsy McGraw, Davis made his debut under a mask in Detroit as The Big O. From there, Davis would remove the mask and wrestle as Beautiful Brutus before enjoying the most productive years of his career as The Brute and Buggsy McGraw! Set primarily in the Detroit wrestling territory of the late 1960s, “The Incredible Brute” is a comic-style coloring book that transforms the early career of Davis into a superhero’s origin story. This fantastical professional wrestling parody will be a great collector’s item for fans of Detroit’s Big Time Wrestling era, and also for fans of any of Mike Davis’ colorful wrestling personas. This book is written by Ian Douglass, illustrated by M.W. Leitzel, published by Darkstream Press, and is included in the ongoing Bledtime Stories line of collectible pro wrestling coloring books
While it’s only fair to review a book after reading it in full, first impressions are also important. With that in mind, here are some initial thoughts on many recent releases. They are based on the free sample on Kindle, which usually includes somewhere up to the first 10% of the total book. Kicking Down Doors… by LJ Tracosasis an authorized WWE book covering the history of female wrestling. Written in full kayfabe mode, it looks like it falls into the obvious trap of having to simultaneously push the idea that the promotion revolutionized womens wrestling in 2015 while avoiding any suggestion it treated female performers unfairly at any time before that. This includes the particularly baffling comment that after losing the womens title to the Fabulous Moolah/Spider Lady (with no acknowledgement of the double-cross by the promotion), a devastated Wendi Richter “walked out of the arena and out of WWE for good, but with the satisfaction of knowing that she had changed WWE – and the way the world saw its female Superstars – forever.” Donald Trump and the Kayfabe Presidency: Professional Wrestling Rhetoric in the White House (Rhetoric, Politics and Society) by Shannon Bow O’Brien appears to be…
Steven Bell has a new title due for release on 5 October, The Man Of All Talents. It covers Douglas Clark, a key figure in the UK’s pro wrestling revival in the 1930s. A Man of All Talents is the remarkable story of rugby and wrestling legend Douglas ‘Duggy’ Clark. Born in 1891 in the sleepy Cumbrian village of Maryport, at 14 he left school to work for his father’s coal merchant business. Duggy grew into an exceptionally strong but quiet and reserved young man. His two great passions were rugby and Cumberland and Westmorland-style wrestling, and he excelled at both. By 24 he was already a rugby league great and a key member of Huddersfield’s ‘Team of All Talents’, winning every honour the sport could offer. He represented Britain in the infamous 1914 ‘Rorke’s Drift’ tour of Australia before being called up to serve in the Great War. He was awarded the Military Medal for bravery, but his war injuries were so severe he was discharged with a 20% disability certificate. Doctors gave Duggy an ultimatum: either he could stay home and live a long but sedate and ordinary life or risk his health by returning to sport. He…
Author Abraham Riesman has announced he is writing a biography of Vince McMahon to be published by Atria Books (part of Simon & Shchuster) with the blurb: …a biography of Vince McMahon, who went from a dyslexic boy growing up in a trailer park to the iconoclastic Chairman and CEO of the multi-billion dollar WWE empire, with new reporting and exclusive interviews from those witnessed, aided and suffered from his ascent. Riesman previously wrote a biography of Marvel Comics writer Stan Lee. This will be the first full-blown bio of McMahon, though Shaun Assael’s Sex, Lies and Headlocks was loosely organised around his life and career. Hold your excitement however, as the new book has no scheduled release date and Riesman is aiming for late 2022.
The Internet Archive has added a large selection of books for free loan during the COVID-19 Pandemic. You’ll need to sign up for a free account and the books are then virtually “checked out” while you read them. The copyright issues are a little questionable, with the site’s logic being that this replaces physical libraries that are temporarily shut. It doesn’t appear to be paying any royalties so if you read a book this way and enjoy it, you should try to buy a copy (print or eBook) if possible so the author gets compensated. You’ll find just under 600 wrestling-related titles, though most are on amateur wrestling and many of the pro wrestling titles are from the budget end of the market. (The collection is generally 20th century titles without an eBook edition.) A few of note that I’ve reviewed on here include: A Lion’s Tale: Around the World in Spandex by Chris Jericho Are We There Yet by Robert Caprio At Issue: Professional Wrestling Can You Take The Heat? The WWF Is Cooking: By Jim Ross Countdown to Lockdown by Mick Foley Demolition Dad by Phil Earle Drawing Heat by Jim Freedman Foley Is Good by Mick…
A new book on philosophy in wrestling is due for release in June. Philosophy Smackdown by Douglas Edwards has the following advance notice: From its carnival origins to its current status as a global phenomenon, pro wrestling has a unique presence in popular culture. Part sport and part theatre, the impressive antics of its larger-than-life characters have captured the imaginations of generations of fans, and prompted endless speculation about behind-the-scenes machinations. Philosophy Smackdown is a study of pro wrestling as distinctive as pro wrestling itself: it is the first philosophical look at this major cultural spectacle. Philosopher and fan Douglas Edwards takes both philosophy and pro wrestling to parts unknown. With liveliness, humor and insight, he shows that pro wrestling is fertile ground for reflection on fundamental human issues, such as reality, freedom, identity, morality, justice, and meaning. He explores these through pivotal events in pro wrestling, from the eighties heyday of Hulkamania to the recent emergence of AEW. Philosophy Smackdown is a read that will delight philosophers and pro wrestling fans alike. It’s time to ask yourself: Whatcha gonna do when Philosophy Smackdown runs wild on you? I’ll have a full review in due course.
I’ve now completed the reconstruction of the site and am pleased to say I’ve cobbled together every review that was on the original version (which covered every book I owned in print.) Throw in the ones that I’ve added in the meantime and the site now has 195 reviews. I’ll still be updating the site with new reviews but the pace will obviously slow significantly as I read through new books (of which I have a healthy backlog.) I will still be adding the weekly release schedule updates and the occasional round-up of books that were released without advance notice. Thanks for all your support and for spreading the word. If you’ve enjoyed the blog, please do check out my own books.
Dick Bourne, author of several books on major wrestling championships, has a new title due out this fall: The Canadian Heavyweight Title – The Complete History 1978-1984 In 1978 as the Toronto territory was taking off with the young stars of Mid-Atlantic wrestling, promoter Frank Tunney introduced a local championship. That title, the first true local title in many years, was called the Canadian Heavyweight Title to be defended by the top star in Maple Leaf Wrestling. The title drew from the earlier days of wrestling when the top Canadian wrestler would defend his laurels across the country and occasionally -the world. From 1978 to 1984 the Canadian title would be defended in Toronto and the circuit towns– and around North America on occasion. During those years locally known as ‘the Mid-Atlantic era’, the area was one of the most exciting and important territories in the wrestling world. Frank was a long-time member of the NWA and was close to many of the major promoters including Vince McMahon Sr. (WWWF/WWF), Verne Gagne (AWA) and Jim Crockett Jr. (JCP) Those relationships would ensure a steady diet of World champions and champions of different territories defending their titles in Toronto. Our Canadian…
The front cover for The Eighth Wonder of the World: The True Story of André the Giant is now available: It’s written by Pat Laprade and Bertrand Herbert, who’ve previously worked on a Mad Dog Vachon biography and a history of Montreal wrestling. Laprade was an adviser on the acclaimed HBO documentary on Andre, so this should be a highly reliable account of Andre’s life and times. Full blurb is as follows: Is there a way to find truth in the stuff of legend? You may think you know André the Giant — but who was André 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: The True Story of André the Giant transports readers beyond the smoke and mirrors of professional wrestling into the life of a real man. Born in France, André worked on his family’s farm until he was 18, when he moved to Paris to pursue professional wrestling. A truly extraordinary figure, André went on to become an international icon and world traveler, all while…
One of the gems of wrestling Twitter is working on a book. Wrestling Arcade’s Twitter feed features 32-bit pixellated animations of classic wrestling moments from Shockmaster to Barber Shop. It’s the same creative force that produced the opening titles for the Being The Elite YouTube series. The animations are now coming out as a stills book titled Pro Wrestling’s Greatest Moments – A Pixelated Guide. It won’t be out for some time but pre-orders will start on July 1st. You can sign up for a mailing list at https://www.wrestlingarcade.com/.