Shining a Spotlight 10.16.08: Wrestling Books That Should Be

Last week’s column on the Bret Hart book got me to thinking. I’ve been up front for a while over how much I love good wrestling books and we’ve seen quite a few come out in the last couple of years, many courtesy of the excellent ECW Press. It’s a good thing as it reminds outsiders that yes, wrestling fans can indeed read. WWE of course has been putting out their books, many naturally homogenized a bit but still intriguing bios and such while other books give great looks at the history of the business for younger fans.

But there are still so many, many facets of wrestling that deserve attention. There are so many past major players who can share their stories and lots of stories never fully told that should be. Tim Hornbaker’s National Wrestling Alliance book was quite excellent in detailing the history of that organization and ditto for Heath McCoy’s book on Stampede. So I thought I’d share my ideas on books that would be great for the wrestling fan.

Autobiographies

Paul Heyman: If there’s a man who should be screaming to write out his history in wrestling, it would have to be Heyman. His life is simply amazing: Breaking into the business as only a teenager, an ultra-hot manager at the age of 19, big-time in WCW in his twenties and then reinventing wrestling forever with ECW. Heyman has already enjoyed a great rush of frankness in WWE with the ECW DVDs and books and even various promos. I still remember the great one he did right in Vince’s face in 2001, blasting him on “sports entertainment” and such. Now that he’s been freed from WWE, Heyman can really let loose with an in-depth examination of his career and the backstage insanity of ECW, WWE, OVW and WCW. You can just imagine how Heyman can name names and slam those he feels like with a no-holds-barred look at wrestling from a man who changed things so dramatically, an inside look that can really burn.

Warrior: Okay, given his love of speechifying, this thing might end up being as long as War and Peace. But given the fact that the former Jim Helliwig is a certifiable lunatic, this would be an incredibly fascinating read. The mind boggles at the comments he can make on McMahon, Hogan, Bret Hart, Bobby Heenan and the rest and his take on the business today. I’d like to see him mentioning personal stuff but he’d probably spend more time discussing his…unique outlook on life and philosophy. WWE got in their shots with the DVD (which was actually kinder to him than what most of the IWC has ever written) so maybe it’s time Warrior struck back. Sure, it’ll probably prove him an even bigger egotistical idiot but would be hard to put down.

Vince Russo vol 2: Russo had written a book a couple of years back, Forgiven, which detailed his life and rising in WWF in the late-90’s. It was actually open about how he hurt so many people and ended with him accepting the contract to WCW in ’99. It’s long past time Russo wrote the follow-up as it’d be intriguing seeing his personal take on dealing with the final years of WCW and then moving onto TNA. I admit I’m intrigued to see how Russo spins his tenure in WCW and TNA, probably claiming to have done all he could despite evidence to the contrary of how he hurt both companies with his crazy booking. If nothing else, it’s a chance for a guy so maligned by so many to fire back at his critics.

Randy Savage: Like Warrior, this would be a volume of rambling for the most part and no doubt some wild name-calling. But like Warrior, Savage’s mind makes for a fascinating read and his career is much longer and filled with better matches. The personal stuff of Elizabeth would undoubtedly be powerful to read about and you can imagine his feelings on Vince and Hogan. Seeing as how a WWE-sponsored DVD doesn’t seem to be in the cards, this could be Savage’s best shot of reminding a generation of new fans how huge a star he once was.

Jeff Jarrett: I’ve been down on Jarrett a lot, feeling that he has used his position as founder and part owner of TNA to keep himself in the spotlight way too much. But I have to acknowledge how his life makes for a great story. From rising and helping his dad with the USWA to his time in WWF, WCW and then founding TNA, Jarrett’s got a lot of stories to tell, most from outside WWE and thus fresher for fans. There’s also the personal aspect of his relationship to his wife and struggling with her death which can make him more relatable. Like it or not, the man does have a legacy as a champion and founder of one of the few major promotions still standing, which deserves to be told.

HHH: I’m pretty surprised WWE hasn’t gotten around to doing this one already. The guy is not only one of the biggest stars of the company but also in the higher elchons of power thanks to his relationship with Stephanie. It’d be interesting hearing his take on rising, how he emulated Flair and hooked up with Shawn Michaels and the Clique. Also, it might be good for Hunter to get out his story on marrying Stephanie and defending his time as champion. I’ve always felt the man deserves more respect than he’s given and this could be a great way for other fans to get some insight into him and see it for themselves.

Wrestling Histories

Women in wrestling: The story of women in this business is one that more than deserves to be told. It’d be beneficial to mark how they shifted about, from the early 1950’s to the “Divas” of today. It should be talked about how they had to deal with struggles of sexism and unfair working conditions before they could prove themselves. It can mention the way women wrestling fell in popularity from time to time and that while the “Divas” may be more famous for bodies than abilities, they’re really just carrying on a tradition of the past. There are plenty of books on the male wrestling histories, it’s about time for the ladies to get their due.

Japan: The Japanese pro wrestling scene has been an influential one on the rest of the industry for years. It’s known for its incredibly strict standards, amazing action and huge fanbase and yet most American fans know nothing about it. The closes was Matthew Randazzo’s Ring of Hell which paints the entire thing as being run by the Mafia and close to insane in its control. It might be better for a fairer viewpoint to come out to show how the business is run in such a successful way, from interpromotional battles to running huge shows and give American fans a taste of how the business is seen and managed in other cultures.

Ring of Honor: Going into their seventh year of business and having forged a path as the most successful indy about, it might be time for ROH to put out the story of their struggle. It nothing else, it can serve as a great showcase of how a smaller promotion can still survive in these times. Throw in looks at their best feuds (like the CZW feud) and how they created stars like CM Punk and Samoa Joe and it can give ROH more limelight with mainstream fans and let them know what they’re missing. Hey, Ari, if you’ve got extra time on your hands, few people know this company more than you do…

Florida: I don’t know what it is but Florida just has a passion for wrestling. The fans react to it so well and so many promotions have used that. A look at how wrestling works in the Sunshine State can be interesting. You get the classic Florida scene run by Mike Graham that gave us Gordon Solie, Dusty Rhodes and so many more huge stars. It could then delve into the fallout of Graham’s death, the rise of Lex Luger and the sell to Crockett. Then you get Dusty’s attempt with the PWF and eventually TNA in Orlando. That’s not to mention all the various shows run by WWF and WCW that had major crowds and good times. With WWE starting up their own shows there, it’d be interesting to focus on how a single state has helped wrestling be so popular.

I know, many more stories that can be told (so many smaller promotions like Portland that might get looks) but these were a few that hit me as catching more readers’ attentions. I know some might suggest an autobiography of Vince McMahon but Vince has no time to write it and probably thinks his TV legacy stands as his life story. Plus, as Kurt Angle once said “no one will ever chronicle the real story of Vince McMahon because he’ll never let the real Vince out.” But there are plenty of stories that can be told and more than enough readers to read them. One can hope some writer out there is willing to tell them.

Also around 411mania:

Whacky Wrestling Theory asks if Women Wrestling is needed

The Fink imagines Elimination Chamber matches

Chin talks the Importance of HHH

Evolution Schematic continues its history of SHIMMER

The Bard continues to imagine AJ vs HBK

The Shimmy keeps up with the Hardy Report Card

Cook talks TNA

Tim does his own Take on TNA

Piledriver Report continues its look at HBK

Don’t forget Column of Honor, Triple Threat, 3 R’s, Fact or Fiction, Ask 411 and the rest.

For this week, the spotlight is off.