"He's called the human highlight reel of professional wrestling. His high-flying acrobatics have thrilled fans on every continent. He's been crowned champion of the world's greatest wrestling promotions, from Mexico to the U.S. But he's never revealed the inside story of who he is."
"Until now. "
"Wrestling fans know him as Rey Mysterio, an American luchador of unparalleled talent, the ultimate proof that good things come in small packages. Now for the first time, Rey adds the personal side to the story: "
"- How he had to fight to get a tryout in the ring"
"- Who he was before Rey Misterio Jr.--and even before Colibri, usually noted as his first identity"
"- What it was like to wrestle in Mexico--from the bullrings to the riots"
"- How he fought plans for his unmasking in WCW--and why he wishes he hadn't succeeded"
"- The inside story of the 619, the West Coast Pop, and his other signature moves"
"- The impact of Eddie Guerrero on his career in WWE"
"- The personal struggle that cost him ring time in 2008, but ultimately made him a stronger man"
"- His real passion in life as husband and father "
"In Rey Mysterio: Behind the Mask, Rey talks candidly about his twenty-plus-year career, from the days of sneaking into bars as a fourteen-year-old to his most recent showdowns in WWE. He speaks of the emotional moments in the ring with his uncle Rey Misterio, and the dark days when he went under the knife to repair his damaged knee. Along the way, Mysterio introduces American audiences to the mysteries of lucha libre, the high-flying, anything-goes Mexican wrestling style that he has done so much to popularize in the U.S. He also talks about the debts he owes to wrestlers such as Konnan, known as the Mexican Hulk Hogan, and dishes some behind- the-scenes dirt on the collapse of WCW at the height of the Monday Night Wars. Mysterio talks tenderly--but realistically--of his friend Eddie Guerrero, providing a well-rounded picture of one of the most beloved wrestling figures of recent history. He also details his march toward the Heavyweight Championship, and his mastery of the WWE Triple Crown--a feat that placed him in an elite group for all time. "
"Behind the Mask is the intimate portrait of one of wrestling's all-time greats, a story wrestling fans of all ages won't want to miss."

"The World of Lucha Libre" is an insider's account of "lucha libre," the popular Mexican form of professional wrestling. Heather Levi spent more than a year immersed in the world of wrestling in Mexico City. Not only did she observe live events and interview wrestlers, referees, officials, promoters, and reporters; she also apprenticed with a retired "luchador" (wrestler). Drawing on her insider's perspective, she explores lucha libre as a cultural performance, an occupational subculture, and a set of symbols that circulate through Mexican culture and politics. Levi argues that the broad appeal of lucha libre lies in its capacity to stage contradictions at the heart of Mexican national identity: between the rural and the urban, tradition and modernity, ritual and parody, machismo and feminism, politics and spectacle.

Levi considers lucha libre in light of scholarship about sport, modernization, and the formation of the Mexican nation-state, and in connection to professional wrestling in the United States. She examines the role of secrecy in wrestling, the relationship between wrestlers and the characters they embody, and the meanings of the masks worn by luchadors. She discusses male wrestlers who perform masculine roles, those who cross-dress and perform feminine roles, and female wrestlers who wrestle each other. Investigating the relationship between lucha libre and the mass media, she highlights the history of the sport's engagement with television: it was televised briefly in the early 1950s, but not again until 1991. Finally, Levi traces the circulation of lucha libre symbols in avant-garde artistic movements and its appropriation in left-wing political discourse. "The World of Lucha Libre" shows how a sport imported from the United States in the 1930s came to be an iconic symbol of Mexican cultural authenticity.

"Adam Copeland on Edge" is what the author describes as "a mental picture." It's also a dream -- "one of many" -- that he decided to realize while at home convalescing from potential career-ending neck surgery. And it's a journey that explores not only his life but also his innermost thoughts.
In the small town of Orangeville, Ontario, Copeland was raised by a loving mother who, while working multiple jobs just to pay the rent, nurtured her son's passion for Spider-Man comics and KISS albums. When a family tragedy created a void in Copeland's life, that void was soon filled by the wrestling legend Hulk Hogan, who "made me feel like I could accomplish anything."
For Copeland, "anything" meant becoming a wrestler, an ambition shared by his friend Jason Reso, who would eventually form the indie tag team Suicide Blondes with Copeland, then join him in WWE as Edge's "brother," Christian. Winning a newspaper essay contest earned Copeland free wrestling training from independent veterans Sweet Daddy Siki and Ron Hutchinson. The author shares his vivid, often outrageous memories of wrestling throughout Canada and the midwestern United States and befriending future WWE Superstars like Terry Richards (Rhyno), Sean Morley (Val Venis), and Chris Jericho. Hard work and persistence brought Copeland to World Wrestling Entertainment. But his "inauspicious" "Raw" debut -- during which he accidentally knocked out his opponent -- supports his claim that "I had no idea" how to make the transformation to Edge.
Copeland retraces the steps he took to "Edgeucate" himself, from his goth days with the Brood's Christian and Gangrel to ushering in the "E&C Dynasty," which in turn revitalized WWE's Tag Team division (with the aid of the Hardy Boyz, the Dudley Boyz, and countless tables, ladders, and chairs).
With vivid detail and sincerity, Copeland offers his thoughts about not only fulfilling his goals but also building upon them. He shares his actual surprise over winning the Intercontinental title for the first time; the anxiety he felt while splitting up with Christian; his eventual determination "to grab the damn ball out of someone's hands and take off"; the distress of almost losing his long blond hair to Kurt Angle; his wonder over enjoying a brief Tag Team title reign with the icon who first inspired him; the simultaneous pain of a broken marriage and two ruptured discs in his neck; and the nervous energy of returning to Raw in March 2004 and setting his sights on the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
You think you know Edge? Then read on....

The antagonists-oiled, shaved, pierced, and tattooed; the glaring lights; the pounding music; the shouting crowd: professional wrestling is at once spectacle, sport, and business. Steel Chair to the Head provides a multifaceted look at the popular phenomenon of pro wrestling. The contributors combine critical rigor with a deep appreciation of wrestling as a unique cultural form, the latest in a long line of popular performance genres. They examine wrestling as it happens in the ring, is experienced in the stands, is portrayed on television, and is discussed in online chat rooms. In the process, they reveal wrestling as an expression of the contradictions and struggles that shape American culture.The essayists include scholars in anthropology, psychology, film studies, communication studies, and sociology, one of whom used to wrestle professionally. Classic studies of wrestling by Roland Barthes, Carlos Monsivais, Sharon Mazer, and Henry Jenkins appear alongside original essays. Whether exploring how pro wrestling inflects race, masculinity, and ideas of reality and authenticity; how female fans express their enthusiasm for male wrestlers; or how lucha libre provides insights into Mexican social and political life, Steel Chair to the Head gives due respect to pro wrestling by treating it with the same thorough attention usually reserved for more conventional forms of cultural expression. Contributors. Roland Barthes, Douglas L. Battema, Susan Clerc, Laurence de Garis, Henry Jenkins III, Henry Jenkins IV, Heather Levi, Sharon Mazer, Carlos Monsivais, Lucia Rahilly, Catherine Salmon, Nicholas Sammond, Phillip Serrat, Philip Sewell

A truestory style anthology, these "insider" tales will show the lengths that wrestlers went to uphold "kayfabe" (the old carny term for the presentation of legitimate conflict) as well as the noteworthy cultural, racial, and economic effect these events and characters had on society. This is the graphic novel that old school wrestling fans have been waiting their entire lives for: a noholdsbarred graphic representation of the moments that wrestling insiders couldn't talk about for years. Featuring appearances by Ric Flair, Jerry Lawler, Andy Kaufman, Sputnik Monroe, The Sheik, Junkyard Dog, the Fabulous Freebirds, the Midnight Express, Bret Hart, and Shawn Michaels. Behind the Curtain Real Pro Wrestling Stories present three chapters of tales, personally curated by Cornette and adapted by Brandon Easton (M.A.S.K.: Mobile Armored Strike Kommand) and Denis Medri (Red Hood/Arsenal), the awardwinning team behind Andre the Giant: Closer to Heaven.

A breakthrough examination of the professional wrestling, its history, its fans, and its wider cultural impact
"The Squared Circle" grows out of David Shoemaker's writing for Deadspin, where he started the column "Dead Wrestler of the Week" (which boasts more than 1 million page views)--a feature on the many wrestling superstars who died too young because of the abuse they subject their bodies to--and his writing for Grantland, where he covers the pro wrestling world, and its place in the pop culture mainstream. Shoemaker's sportswriting has since struck a nerve with generations of wrestling fans who--like him--grew up worshipping a sport often derided as "fake" in the wider culture. To them, these professional wrestling superstars are not just heroes but an emotional outlet and the lens through which they learned to see the world.
Starting in the early 1900s and exploring the path of pro wrestling in America through the present day, "The Squared Circle "is the first book to acknowledge both the sport's broader significance and wrestling fans' keen intellect and sense of irony. Divided into eras, each section offers a snapshot of the wrestling world, profiles some of the period's preeminent wrestlers, and the sport's influence on our broader culture. Through the brawling, bombast, and bloodletting, Shoemaker argues that pro wrestling can teach us about the nature of performance, audience, and, yes, art.
Full of unknown history, humor, and self-deprecating reminiscence--but also offering a compelling look at the sport's rightful place in pop culture--"The Squared Circle "is the book that legions of wrestling fans have been waiting for. In it, Shoemaker teaches us to look past the spandex and body slams to see an art form that can explain the world.

At the age of eighteen, Chad Rowan left his home in rural Hawaii for Tokyo with visions of becoming a star athlete in Japan's national sport, sumo. Five years later, against the backdrop of rising U.S.-Japan economic tension, Rowan became the first gaijin (non-Japanese) to advance to sumo's top rank, yokozuna. His historic promotion was more a cultural accomplishment than an athletic one, since yokozuna are expected to embody highly prized Japanese values such as hard work, patience, strength, and hinkaku, a special kind of dignity thought to be available only to Japanese. Perhaps the defining moment of the gaijin's unique success occurred at the 1998 Nagano Olympics, when Rowan, chosen to personify ""Japanese"" to one of the largest television audiences in history, performed a sacred sumo ritual at the opening ceremony. ""Gaijin Yokozuna"" chronicles the events leading to that improbable scene at Nagano and beyond, tracing Rowan's life from his Hawaii upbringing to his 2001 retirement ceremony. Along the way it briefly examines the careers of two Hawaii-born sumotori who paved the way for Rowan, Jesse Kuhaulua (Takamiyama) and Salevaa Atisanoe (Konishiki). The author shares stories from family members, coaches, friends, fellow sumo competitors, and of course Rowan himself, whom he accompanied on three Japan-wide exhibition tours. The work is further informed by volumes of secondary source material on sumo, Japanese culture, and local Hawaii culture.

"Classy" Freddie Blassie was universally acknowledged as one of the most hated heels in wrestling history. Freddie really knew how to antagonize the fans -- how to "get heat." Death threats were frequent, enraged fans stabbed him twenty-one times, and he was even doused with acid. Undeterred, Blassie just took the action up a level. He reveled in being the heel. It was commonplace to see him biting his opponents and then spitting out their blood. Blassie would routinely "file" his teeth during interviews. His matches in Los Angeles' Olympic Stadium brought him to the attention of Hollywood. Freddie's style and unpredictability made him a natural for the medium, and he became one of the biggest draws in the wrestling business. In the early '60s, he was invited to wrestle in Japan. Blassie both horrified and mesmerized sedate Japanese society.

At seventeen, Freddie made his wrestling debut in a carnival. Unhappy with his choice of occupation, his family persuaded him to get a "real" job, and for a while he worked as a meatcutter. But after serving in the Navy in World War II, Freddie returned to wrestling. Here he picked up his catch phrase: "pencil neck geek."

Early in his career, Blassie wrestled for Jess McMahon, and would later work for both his son, Vincent James McMahon, and his grandson, Vincent Kennedy McMahon, the current owner of World Wrestling Entertainment. (TM) When his days in the ring ended, "Classy" Freddie Blassie became the manager of heels, transferring to a whole new generation of wrestlers the style, moves, and ring knowledge that had made him a legend of wrestling.

Released just prior to his death, "Legends of Wrestling: "Classy" Freddie Blassie" containsvibrant tales of his days in wrestling with the likes of Hulk Hogan, Killer Kowalski, and the Iron Sheik. He frankly chronicles his dealings with the wrestling fraternity and the promoters, even recounting the infamous "boxer vs. wrestler" match with Muhammad Ali, who was managed by Blassie.

His out-of-the-ring stories are equally compelling. Freddie details his countless sexual exploits, and his three marriages. He reflects on the cult status that he gained after his song "Pencil Neck Geek" rocketed to the top of the Dr. Demento Show play list. He recounts his touching relationship with comedian Andy Kaufman, who cast him in "Breakfast with Blassie" -- an underground classic in which Blassie uttered: "What the hell ever happened to the human race?"

Added to this edition is an epilogue, recounting Freddie's last days and his unforgettable funeral.

Cross Rhodes is the story of one of the most famous families in the history of the WWE, as told by Dustin Rhodes, first son of the legendary Dusty Rhodes, and older brother of emerging star, Cody Rhodes. As a young boy, Dustin tried to find himself while growing up in his father's shadow. Dusty wanted his son to play football, mostly to avoid the brutal business that was making him famous. But Dustin wanted nothing more than to follow his father into the world of professional wrestling. It wasn't until the middle of a painful five-year estrangement between father and son that Dustin finally stepped out of his father's boots - literally - and made a name for himself as Goldust. But for Dustin, the dark edges of the controversial character became a matter of art imitating life, and despite an emotional reunion with his father, redemption and rehabilitation were still well down the line...