Search query: wcw wrestling

Product: The History Of Professional Wrestling Vol. 2: WWF 1990-1999
Description: Since 2002, The History of WWE.com has served as the premiere online resource for the in- and out-of-the-ring histories of multiple wrestling companies. Now, for the first time in print, you have access to the thousands of dates, cities and ring results that comprise pro wrestling's past. You can now find the hidden gems, the main events that drew thousands and the ones that only drew flies. This second volume in "The History of Professional Wrestling" series contains EVERY known result from the World Wrestling Federation from 1990 through the height of the attitude era in 1999.
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Product: The Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame: The Storytellers (From the Terrible Turk to Twitter)
Description: The legendary storytellers worthy of a spot in the pro wrestling hall of fame

You can’t escape pro wrestling today, even if you want to. Its stars are ubiquitous in movies, TV shows, product endorsements, swag, and social media to the point that they are as much celebrities as they are athletes. Pro wrestling has morphed from the fringes of acceptability to a global $1 billion industry that plays an everyday role in 21st-century pop culture.

In this latest addition to the Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame series, Greg Oliver and Steven Johnson explain how the sport’s unique take on storytelling has fueled its remarkable expansion. Hundreds of interviews and original accounts inform this exploration of the imaginative ways in which wrestlers and promoters have used everything from monkeys to murderers to put butts in seats and eyes on screens. From the New York City Bowery in the 1890s to a North Carolina backyard in 2017, readers will encounter all manner of scoundrels, do-gooders, scribes, and alligators in this highly readable, heavily researched book that inspires a new appreciation for the fine (and sometimes not-so-fine) art of storytelling.
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Product: NITRO: The Incredible Rise and Inevitable Collapse of Ted Turner's WCW
Description: Reviews

"The most definitive, well written and thoroughly researched book on the rise and fall of WCW."
--Eric Bischoff, former WCW President

"This is - without question - the very best book ever written on professional wrestling."
--Conrad Thompson

"Well written and captivating...a fresh take on [the] time period."
--Chris Harrington, AEW VP of Business Strategy

"...may be the best overall pro wrestling book to date."
--David Bixenspan, Deadspin

Synopsis

In April 1999, Entertainment Weekly asked its readers what many were surely wondering to themselves: how did wrestling get so big?

As a consequence of the heated ratings competition between World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), the spectacle had taken over Monday nights on prime-time cable television. But in a departure from the family-friendly programming produced by the last industry boom - the 1980s wave, which made household names of Hulk Hogan, 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper and Andre the Giant - the new era of wrestling combined stunning athleticism with a raunchy sex appeal, engrossing story lines and novel production techniques that reflected a changing society and its shifting values.

Once again, wrestling was a ubiquitous phenomenon - only this time, it seemed as though the fad would never end. With both WCW and WWF expanding into other forms of entertainment - movies, video games, music and the like - the potential for growth appeared to be limitless.

But with uncertainty surrounding its corporate future, and increasingly uninspired programming eroding its audience, WCW stood on the verge of collapse. Three years into a five-year plan devised by its charismatic leader - a former Blue Ribbon Foods salesman named Eric Bischoff - the company whose unexpected ascension initiated the entire boom was operating on borrowed time.

For by the end of the five-year plan, WCW ceased to exist.

But NITRO is a story about much more than WCW and the Monday Night Wars. It is a story of an era, a time in which the media and cultural landscape precipitated - and later supported - pro wrestling's mainstream popularity. It is a story of how a company made in the image of an intuitively brilliant risk-taker betrayed its original promise. It is a story of how a handful of men, each struggling with their own limitations, facilitated a public obsession that changed television forever.

And so, with the inside knowledge of a journalist, the perspective of a historian, and the passion of a fan, author Guy Evans provides a fresh look at an unfortunate inevitability - the downfall of World Championship Wrestling. Bolstered by exclusive interviews with over 120 former TBS and WCW employees, NITRO is the definitive picture of the last wrestling boom.

Featuring exclusive interviews and comments from:

Eric Bischoff, fmr. President of World Championship Wrestling;Harvey Schiller, fmr. President of Turner Sports;Jamie Kellner, fmr. CEO of Turner Broadcasting System;Bill Burke, fmr. President of TBS network;Joe Uva, fmr. President of Turner Entertainment Sales and Marketing; Scot Safon, fmr. SVP of Marketing for TNT network;Kevin Nash, WWE Hall of Famer and 5-time WCW world champion; Diamond Dallas Page, WWE Hall of Famer and 3-time WCW world champion;Vince Russo, fmr. WCW writer;Marcus 'Buff' Bagwell, fmr. WCW superstar and 5-time world tag team champion;Kevin Sullivan, fmr. WCW superstar and head booker;Hugh Morrus, fmr. WCW superstar;Neal Pruitt, fmr. WCW Feature Producer and voice of the nWo;David Crockett, fmr. WCW Vice President of Production;Dick Cheatham, fmr. Group Controller for TBS;Alan Sharp, fmr. WCW Director of Public Relations;Mike Weber, fmr. WCW Director of Marketing;Rob Garner, fmr.
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Product: 1993: The Year in Pro Wrestling: All the WWF and WCW supershows plus historic shows from Smoky Mountain and UFC
Description: 1992: The Year in Pro Wrestling now available for pre-order

From the author of The Year in Pro Wrestling series, "Really well written and very engaging from cover to cover" - Amazon review of 1993

We all know 1993 sucked, right? Shock Master falling on his face on live TV? Paul Roma as a Horseman? Hulk Hogan having the laziest world title reign in history? That’s why every review of a 1993 show on the internet starts with “1993 was a terrible year…” or a less family friendly variation.

But is that fair? Vader has one of the great WCW title reigns in 1993. Ric Flair returned home. Jim Cornette worked for every promotion on the planet. And not all of WCW’s new talents were horrible.

Of course I’ll cover the Shock Master’s debut (along with Giant Gonzalez lumbering to the ring in his yeti pyjamas, Paul Roma playing the part of Tully Blanchard to a less than appreciative audience and Lex Luger sporting some natty knitwear to promote Survivor Series) but I’ll also highlight some of the good things that happened. Like the only decent strap match I’ve ever seen, the greatness of the Hollywood Blonds, the classic feud between Bret Hart and Jerry Lawler, as well as the best Frankensteiner in WWF history. Not to mention the launch of Monday Night Raw in January. Oh, and the debut of a little thing called the Ultimate Fighting Championship which launched on pay per view with a belch.

I'm going to tell the story of the year through every PPV and Clash of the Champions broadcast (as well as a few side steps and archive rarities). The matches, the angles, the interviews and the talent - it's all here along with a healthy dose of humour.

Forget star ratings - this is a lapsed fan enjoying some frequently awful pro wrestling and gaining a new understanding of a year that had its terrible moments but wasn’t as bad as people think.
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Product: 1994: The Year in Pro Wrestling: All the WWF and WCW supershows plus historic shows from ECW, AAA and UWF
Description: 1992: The Year in Pro Wrestling now available for pre-order

From the author of The Year in Pro Wrestling series, "Really well written and very engaging from cover to cover" - Amazon review of 1993

1994 – the year the WWF embraced the New Generation and WCW sold their soul to previous one. The year Hulk Hogan would sell more for a woman than he would for Ric Flair, while Bret Hart injured his knee on every pay per view.

In WCW, the first half of 1994 sees Ric Flair working through his bucket list and having one more main event with the likes of Steamboat, Windham and Sting. The second half of 1994 sees Flair unable to beat Hulk Hogan despite the use of weapons, assassins and legal advice.

In the WWF, the Kliq begins to get a strangle hold on the company, the Hart family airs its dirty laundry in public and the Undertaker faces his gravest challenge – his noticeably shorter twin brother.

When people look back at 1994 they ridicule the New WWF Generation slogan for being hypocritical and spiteful but was it? Or had the company genuinely changed in many (but, sadly, not all) ways?

They also look at WCW and dismiss everything that happened once Hogan arrived as worthless, ego-driven garbage. Was the divide so clear and so sharp? Was the second half the year completely awful?

In this book I'm going to tell the story of the year through every PPV and Clash of the Champions broadcast (as well as a few side steps and archive rarities). The matches, the angles, the interviews and the talent - it's all here along with a healthy dose of humour.

Forget star ratings - this is a lapsed fan enjoying some frequently awful pro wrestling and gaining a new understanding of a year where both companies changed philosophy but only one embraced the change whole-heartedly. Not necessarily for the better.

From the author of 1988 and 1991: The Year in Pro Wrestling comes the obvious sequel – 1994.

Extract (from King of the Ring 1994)

Art Donovan has no idea who the guy with the beard is but he wants to know how much he weighs. Maybe Donovan had a form of autism which meant he couldn’t recognise human faces but he could identify people by weight. He might be introduced to Hulk Hogan and shrug his shoulders. Then someone whispers “three hundred and two pounds” and he exclaims “Mr Hogan – nice to see you again. How are Brooke and little Nicky?”
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Product: The Death of WCW
Description: What went wrong with WCW?

In 1997, World Championship Wrestling was on top. It was the number-one pro wrestling company in the world, and the highest-rated show on cable television. Each week, fans tuned in to Monday Nitro, flocked to sold-out arenas, and carried home truckloads of WCW merchandise. Sting, Bill Goldberg, and the New World Order were household names. Superstars like Dennis Rodman and KISS jumped on the WCW bandwagon. It seemed the company could do no wrong.

But by 2001, however, everything had bottomed out. The company - having lost a whopping 95% of its audience - was sold for next to nothing to Vince McMahon and World Wrestling Entertainment. WCW was laid to rest.

How could the company lose its audience so quickly? Who was responsible for shows so horrible that fans fled in horror? What the hell happened to cause the death of one of the largest wrestling companies in the world? The Death of World Championship Wrestling is the first book to take listeners through a detailed dissection of WCW's downfall.
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Product: 15 WWE WCW WRESTLING VHS THAT YOU CAN SELL ON EBAY FOR $$$
Description: Old Wrestling VHS tapes! You've seen them in every yard sale pile and just quickly overlooked them because its the day of the dvd and who really wants vhs. Did you know however that some of these vhs are worth hundreds of dollars even in used condition? We've provided a quick visual Guide of 15 wrestling VHS tapes that are well worth your time to sell on ebay.
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Product: Pro Wrestling Illustrated January 1996 Its Full Scale War! Wwf Vs. Wcw Which Is Better (Pro Wrestling Illustrated)
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Product: Vader Time
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Product: The Wrestler : I Quit! One War Ends, Two More Begin (March 1990)
Description: This is a March 1990 Edition of The Wrestler Magazine. This is a full magazine and is great for any collector or fan! Can send more pictures on request
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Product: Self Help: Life Lessons from the Bizarre Wrestling Career of Al Snow
Brand: ECW Press
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Product: Wow: Best of Wwf, Wcw, Ecw: World Wrestling Fedreration
Brand: Brand: Triumph Books
Used Book in Good Condition
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Product: The History of Professional Wrestling: Jim Crockett Promotions & the NWA World Title 1983-1988
Brand: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
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Product: The History Of Professional Wrestling Vol. 1: WWF 1963-1989
Brand: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
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Product: WCW World Championship Wrestling: The Ultimate Guide
Brand: Brand: Dorling Kindersley
Used Book in Good Condition
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Product: The Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame: The Heels (Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame series)
Description: As the first comprehensive look at the ruffians, rascals, and rule breakers in the wrestling business, this history explains the rise of the wrestling villain, the reasons for his (or her) success, and the impact these sordid characters have had on the sport. Based on first-hand interviews with hundreds of wrestlers, managers, promoters, and historians, these entertaining profiles document wrestling’s top rotten apples from the 1920s to today, providing plenty of support for the book's claim that fans love to hate the bad guys as much as they love to love the heroes. With remarkable candor, wrestling’s troublemakers explain why they became villains and how they perceived and honed their roles; the sport is richer for the presence of the nefarious onesand they know it. With more than 150 never-before-seen photos, this book will satisfy devoted fans and inspire everyone else to take a look at the exciting and often bizarre world of professional wrestling.
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