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| FEATURES: RECOMMENDATIONS |
| WRESTLING BABYLON: Piledriving Tales of Drugs, Sex, Death, and Scandal Release Date: April 2007 / Author: Irvin Muchnick / Publisher: ECW Press DESCRIPTION Irvin Muchnick — a widely published writer and nephew of the late, legendary St. Louis wrestling promoter Sam Muchnick — has produced a book unlike any other on the astonishing growth of professional wrestling and its profound impact on mainstream sports and society. In Wrestling Babylon, he traces the demise of wrestling’s old Mafia-like territories and the rise of a national marketing base thanks to cable television, deregulation and a culture-wide nervous breakdown. Naturally, the figure of WWE’s Vince McMahon lurks throughout, but equally evident is the public’s late-empire lust for bread, circuses, and blood. As this book demonstrates, the more cartoonishly unreal wrestling got, the more chillingly real it became. What truly distinguishes Wrestling Babylon, however, is Muchnick’s ability to show how professional wrestling has become the ur-carnival for a culture that feeds on escapist displays of humiliation, revenge, fantasy characters, and sex. His People magazine article on Hulk Hogan blew the lid off the drug abuse of the sport’s signature superstar. His award-winning Penthouse profile of the ill-starred Von Erich clan was the first to connect the dots between wrestling, televangelism, and MTV-style production values. His never-before-published investigation of the death of Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka’s girlfriend suggests the cover-up of a murder. The book’s appendix — a comprehensive listing of the dozens of wrestlers who died prematurely over the last generation, with little or no attention — is both a valuable resource for wrestling historians and a shocking document of the ruthless way sports entertainment eats its own. REVIEW Rich Tate: This book captures the more seedy aspects of the business, featuring collections of various pieces author Irv Muchnick has written throughout the last two decades, including the 1990s steroid scandal, the death of Jimmy Snuka’s companion, the Von Erich saga, and more apt to the times of the day, the deaths of wrestlers. Perhaps the most eerie of statements is a quote from Vince McMahon: “Look, I’m in the garbage business. If you think I’m going to be hurt by the revelation that one of my wrestlers is a violent individual, you’re mistaken.” Highly recommended. Order from Amazon |
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