Ground fighting is taking the martial arts world by storm, but how do you get to the ground safely and end in a prone position? What are the dangers of throwing and taking an opponent over? In this book on throwing and take-down techniques of Sambo, the author teaches how to control vertical grappling and destroy an assailant with a demolishing throw. Including the original "blow before throw" techniques banned from sport grappling at the beginning of the century.

From the cable television ratings to the bestseller lists, professional wrestling is red-hot. How it got that way is not a pretty picture, but it’s one that is painted in more detail than ever before in Sex, Lies, and Headlocks, the first in-depth, journalistic look at the world of wrestling.

At the heart of the story is Vince McMahon, the mercurial owner of the World Wrestling Federation. The authors trace his beginnings as the forgotten son of a second-generation wrestling czar who left rural North Carolina to stake his own claim to the family business. They detail his early, ruthless genius in declaring war on the old territory czars who had grown fat and lazy. And they show how his first brush with fame in the 1980s with Hulk Hogan and Cyndi Lauper sowed the seeds for the drug and sex scandals that nearly toppled his empire in the 1990s. They also tell us the inside story of McMahon’s blood feud with Ted Turner, adding some surprising details about the two men’s quests to ruin each other.

Throughout the book, the authors examine the appeal of the industry’s biggest stars—including Ed “Strangler” Lewis, Gorgeous George, Bruno Sammartino, Ric Flair, and, most recently, Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock. In doing so, they show us that while WWF stock is traded to the public on Wall Street, wrestling remains a shadowy world guided by a century-old code that stresses secrecy and loyalty.

Sex, Lies, and Headlocks is the ultimate behind-the-scenes look at the history, personalities, back-stabbing, scandals, and high-stakes gambles that have made Vince McMahon the king of the ring and wrestling an enduring television phenomenon.


From the Hardcover edition.

Why was Minnesota, a land known for its stoic farmers, reasonable politics, and comfortable casseroles, a hotbed of the wacky and wild world of professional wrestling? And how did that old-school wrestling become the Saturday night program of choice for thousands of midwestern families in the last half of the twentieth century? Professional wrestling historian and insider George Schire is here not only to set the record straight but to entice you into a world gone by, a world that comes alive through his colorful and perceptive reporting.
As a kid, Schire found a way to escape the troubles of his life by becoming a wrestling fan, glued to the TV set and then later traveling to see every live "card" in the Twin Cities and many more throughout the region. Over the years he has been involved in all aspects of the sport, and he now offers detailed, behind-the-scenes accounts of important matches from 1954 to 1990 and stories of wrestler personalities, both in and out of the ring. He shares his own extensive collection of wrestling memorabilia-- photographs, program covers, newspaper clippings, and other ephemera--to honor the hardworking characters who forged serial storylines onstage week after week and who thrilled fans by carrying out their plots in the ring, with blood, sweat, tears, and high-flying body slams for all.
An avid historian, George Schire has been a writer and columnist for national wrestling publications and a ring announcer. He currently cohosts a popular Internet wrestling show, "Old School/New School." He lives in Oakdale, Minnesota.

"I thought I knew the sport of professional wrestling. Then I met George Schire No one is more knowledgeable about the events and personalities that made professional wrestling what it is today."
--Greg Gagne, former professional wrestler and titleholder

Bruce Hart is the son of legendary wrestler and promotor Stu Hart and a member of what may be wrestling's true first family. Here, he reveals what it was like growing up in a house where men like Andre the Giant and Killer Kowalski might be sat at the breakfast table. He also reveal what it was like to be trained by his father.

Delving into the organized insanity of Incredibly Strange Wrestling (ISW), this memoir takes a look at the bastard offspring of post-punk garage rock and masked Mexican wrestling. Fielding a cast of crazed characters with names like El Homo Loco, Macho Sasquatcho, and El Pollo Diablo, the show lived up to its name. And if that wasn't enough, cult bands such as NOFX, The Dickies, and The Donnas provided the raucous rock and roll in between the highflying mayhem. ISW emerged from the back alleys and seedy clubs of San Francisco's South of Market scene to headline the historic Fillmore and barnstorm North America on the Van's Warped Tour. At the height of its popularity, Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong and Metallica's James Hetfield could be seen tossing tortillas (which the promoters supplied) at ringside with the rest of the hell heads, boozehounds, and tattooed party girls.

?In the latest offering from the best-selling author of World Wrestling Insanity, James Guttman tells the real story behind contacting, cajoling, convincing, interviewing, and learning from more than 100 of professional wrestling's most beloved stars. From former World Champions to Playboy models, from grizzled veterans to slick promoters, Radio Free Insanity, Guttman's popular and groundbreaking weekly web broadcast has featured an environment that fosters discussion and leads to countless memorable tales. In Shoot First... Ask Questions Later you'll journey with Guttman through the business of sports entertainment, making startling discoveries about the way the industry truly works. For the first time ever, Guttman offers keen insight into the true personalities of wrestling's stars. Who's the nicest guest off-air? And who was the most abrasive? Who was the funniest? And who was the worst interview in the history of interviews? What's the bizarre story behind speaking with Scott Steiner, and why was Guttman worried? Why was Corporal Kirschner answering JG's phone? What's the inside scoop on the now infamous Ole Anderson shoot? What were crazy pre-interview conversations with people like Jerry Lawler, Diamond Dallas Page, Juvi "The Juice" Guerrera, and others really like? Discover all this and more from James Guttman's two years behind the curtain and inside the work/shoot world of professional wrestling. Shoot First ... Ask Questions Later, with over 100 names you've come to know and love and sometimes hate, comes from the outsider who makes it his mission to find out what makes them tick.