Customer Reviews

The Legends of Wrestling: "Classy" Freddie Blassie

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I am one of those lucky Southern California wrestling fans who was raised on Hollywood, beaches, and the famous Blassie vs Tolos feud. I became a bonafide pro wrestling fanatic, but even fellow SoCalifornians from my generation who had little interest in the rasslin' biz remember the Freddie Blassie vs John Tolos era. When I heard about WWE's release of Blassie autobiography, I wondered whether it would be a quality work or a mildly entertaining work of semi-fiction.

In the tradition of recent pro wrestling releases, this book delivers a colorful yet insightful look into Blassie's life and career. Just like Dynamite Kid's autobiography, a nod should be given to ghostwriter Keith Greenberg for capturing Blassie's unique diction in print. This did not work with Hulk Hogan's recent book, as the repeated Hogan catch phrases just came off as comical. With Blassie, you could swear you could hear his gruff ---sometimes crass--- voice narrating his life, without diverting attention to the story. You will read an honest account from a man who is proud of his acheivements, but not too proud to admit to his shortcomings. He is macho, yet not ashamed to talk about moments that moved him to tears. His devotion to his wife Miyako moved me above all.

Freddie Blassie makes no bones about who he loves and hates. His fond recollections of Nikolai Volkoff, Stepfather Eli, Stepsister Antoinette, and Andy Kaufman are very moving (even to the most cynical wrestling fan!). He does not mince words when ranting on the displeasures of working with Mike LaBell, Johnny Valentine and Antonio Inoki. Reading these in Blassie's voice makes the read a fun ride.

Being such a huge Freddie Blassie and L.A. Wrestling fan, it's hard for me to step back and judge whether this book will be as entertaining to a casual fan who knows little about "The King of Men." Mick Foley's "Have a Nice Day" still reigns (in my opinion) as the best overall look at one man's rise from the small time to stardom. While Blassie's book is more of a personal narrative, there is still enough basic information to supply the casual wrestling fan with an overview of pro wrestling lingo, background and inner workings. My hunch is that a reader who never heard of Freddie Blassie will feel great affection for him by the final page of the book.

Other unique and hep features include firsthand narratives about Blassie by folks like Volkoff, John Tolos, Johnny Legend, George Steele, and son Ron Blassie.

Personally, I was really jazzed to hear him praise the late Ray Mendoza as both an athlete and a human being. Mendoza, while a legend in Mexico, is too often overlooked in other countries. Mr. Blassie, I salute you!

Since I first heard that "The King Of Men", Freddie Blassie, was penning his autobiography, I've been looking forward to reading this book. I admittedly approached it with a bit of skepticism, since it has the WWE tag on it - and, frankly, most WWE-sponsored
bios/autobiographies have been puff pieces, seemingly written and published primarily to sing the praises of that company and its head, Vincent K. McMahon (AKA The Anti-Christ of Pro Wrestling to most older fans). (NOTE: Mick Foley's books are the exception to this rule - although Mick went very easy on the McMahon family, in my opinion, in his two books.) As any old-timer can tell you, Classy Fred B. spent very little time as a active wrestler in the WWWF/WWF/WWE, although he was a very successful manager for the company, primarily in the 80's.

I'm happy to report that Freddie was allowed to tell his story unfettered by the responsibility to continually sing the praises of McMahon & co. And it's a fascinating, very lively read, spanning his entire career and life. Unlike many wrestling biographies (Arn Anderson, Bruno Sammartino, The Fabulous Moolah), Freddie lets us in early and often on the fact that pro wrestling is a pre-determined work, where the main objective is to put butts in the seats and make money by entertaining. Also, he makes no bones about whom he liked and disliked, whom he enjoyed working with in the ring, etc. Special kudos to the writer for capturing FB's manner of speaking perfectly on paper. The book reads like I would imagine a taped interview with Mr. Blassie comes off. There's even a mention about the classic "documentary" film by Jeff Krulik, "Mister Blassie Goes To Washington", an all-time favotite of mine.

All in all, I'd rate it up with Mick Foley's 2 books, Lou Thesz'
"Hooker", and the Dynamite Kid's book as one of the all-time best rasslin' bios.

Not only did MTV destroy rock and roll and everything it ever stood for, they were also present at the beginning of professional wrestling's long, painful disintegration from a closed-society fan base/cult into mindless pap for the masses. Cyndi Lauper as manager or "Hulk Hogan's Rock & Wrestling" anyone? Once televised matches graduated from small, intimate studio settings to arenas and stadiums with full-blown pyrotechnics, concert lighting and sound, and wrestlers who looked as though they ate a bowl of steroids for breakfast masquerading as rock stars, it was all over but the shouting. Letting the public in on the "secret" that matches were pre-scripted was merely the last nail in the coffin.

Freddie Blassie, the self-proclaimed "Hollywood Fashion Plate" is probably best known to the music video generation as manager of such no-neck wonders as the Iron Sheik, furry-backed George "The Animal" Steele, and leather-jacketed, Hell's Kitchen thug Adrian Adonis, whose later transformation into "Adorable" prompted one fan to fashion a homemade sign proclaiming him an "AIDS victim." By that point, the sandpaper larynxed Blassie had been in the biz nearly 50 years, making his wrestling debut in 1935 at the tender age of 17, a time when men were men and what went on backstage stayed backstage.

Blassie soon rose, or sank to become probably the most hated heel in wrestling, showing a geniune gift for raising the collective blood pressure of a crowd, selling an opponent and/or match, and having a helluva great time doing it. Spinning tales of life on the road, in the locker room, and in the squared circle, nothing is sacred and his prose style is as salty as anyone could ever hope for. Along the way, Blassie worked for three generations of McMahons, terrorized Japan and still managed to find the love of his life Miyako there, lost enough blood to deplete the Red Cross, found a true friend in the late Andy Kaufman, and birthed the Dr. Demento cult classic "Pencil Neck Geek." What else is there, except for maybe a really good record collection?

If you love wrestling or maybe just a story with a happy ending, Blassie's tome is for you, although co-author Keith Elliot Greenberg's epilogue made me cry like a baby. What the hell ever happened to the human race, Freddie? R.I.P. - you left us too soon.

Probably no more than once or twice in every generation does an individual transcend his particular vocation. Freddie Blassie was without question one of those extraordinary larger than life characters. Blessed with unparalleled charisma and "star quality", combined with genuine mat wrestling skills and a kinetic brawling style, "Fearless Fred" was one of the dominant players of the mat wars for decades, actually peaking in popularity while in his fifties. Having interviewed the man, I know how colorful his anecdotes are, and this book does him full justice. His inimitable speaking style is much in evidence here, and there isn't a dull spot in the whole book. If you love the "Classy One", this book is for you. If you don't know who he is, then read this book and you will become a fan. Filled with information that's interesting and humorous, we learn how this amusingly grouchy man thinks. And he pulls no punches in discussing personalities in the game, From Buddy Rogers to Hogan. Freddie is a man that went from top Wrestler to top Manager to cult star to legend, and this book does him proud. It's a book to read and re-read. And treasure.

I enjoyed this book more than Mick Foley's. It is by far the best of the "wrestling" books of recent years. Though frequently profane, Blassie shows respect for his business and his peers. He writes (what sounds like) honestly, from his in-ring persona to his less successful family life.

The "old days" stories are consistently hilarious, from the opening page recounting of a match with Bruno in Jersey to his being cursed out by an older woman in California.

Fred also shows a lot of loyalty to the people he's worked with and for throughout the years.

As the WWE published books tend to be, it's written in a first person style in a speaking voice that evokes the author. Again, I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

"Legends Of Wrestling; Classy Freddie Blassie...Listen You Pencil Necked Geeks" is by far the most entertaining book I have read in the last decade. Told candidly and 'shooting straight from the hip', Blassie takes you on a rarely seen insiders' tour of the Professional Wrestling Industry from its low-rent humble 'carny' origins to the big production TV network attraction it has become in the past ten years.
Blassie's hot-headed diatribes, and profanity-laced bromides at friend and foe alike will keep you laughing all the way through! Personally, I could NOT put this book down for the three straight days it took to read it...I have never laughed so hard from anything I have ever read...his anecdote about having to wrestle a terminally sick Bear in a carnival, alone is worth the price of this book!
There are some tender moments to his life as well; particularly the story of how he meets his young Japanese wife in a train station, became separated from her, and tried to find her again in Japan...only knowing her first name, and in spite of her not knowing any English.
Blassie 'roasts' everyone from Antonino Rocca, Bruno Sammartino, Haystacks Calhoun, Bobo Brazil, Lou Albano, Buddy Rogers, Vince McMahon and so many other living room TV Heroes...the results are hilarity beyond belief!
Another most interesting facet of Blassie's story is his revealing, intimate look behind the scenes of the WWF Corporate boardroom...how decisions are reached to decide who gets to rise to 'World Champion' status, and who must relinquish the title in return.
Make no mistake about it, this book is not a 'scholarly work' on the history of Pro Wrestling...but a walk THROUGH its history by a larger than life PIECE of that history. I doubt that anyone can tell it better and more candidly than the "Hollywood Fashion Plate" himself: Classy Freddie Blassie.
There isn't a single 'boring' page in this entire book...it's a 'keeper!'

When Freddie Blassie was on the TV screen you couldn't take your eyes off him.I know it's a cliche,but oh-so-true.Freddie was a master show-man whether it was wrestling or as a manager.He brought "heat" like precious few ever did.When he managed "The Iron Shiek" that to me was the high-water mark of professional wrestling.One thing I enjoy about this book is Freddie doesn't whine and long for the "good ol days".The business changed and he was happy to change along with it.Not only did he survive ,he thrived.And we're richer for it.All the stories are here and he is candid in talking about his marital affairs and his failure as a father. RIP Freddie.You are missed.

This is the most unpolitical honest wrestling autobiography out there today. Fred Blassie doesn't sugarcoat in this book; he speaks his mind freely. You really get inside the head of one of the original innovating heels. The book works almost as a playbook for how to be a great heel and how to work the character to perfection.

Plus the book features many different summaries from other wrestlers and personalities from Blassie's life. These entries add to the book a level of credibility unlike the horrible summaries from Jim Ross in Steve Austin's mediocre book.

This may be the best autobiography ever written and I recommend it to all wrestling fans, because you will learn so much from it. There is so much to learn from Fred Blassie and he is an open book in his book. So buy and enjoy!

I've read most of the recent books written by or about wrestlers, professional wrestling, etc. Compared to books about Stone Cold Steve Austin, Mick Foley, Kurt Angle, even the late great Lou Thesz, Freddie Blassie's book is absolutely the BEST of the bunch!

A lot of fans only remember Blassie as a wheel chair bound old man in recent years on WWE TV. Some fans remember him as a bad guy manager of the likes of the Iron Sheik, but the story of Freddie Blassie goes WAY WAY WAY further back than that. In fact, the man had a very SOLID wrestling career with many ups and downs for several, several decades before he became a great manager that many of us remember him being. I really couldn't say enough about this book. I loved every chapter in it from beginning to end.

Another thing, Freddie Blassie passed away shortly after this book was released, so his book is without a doubt the MOST COMPLETE LOOK at a wrestlers life... EVER! Do yourself a favor, BUY THIS BOOK AND READ IT WELL!

In mid 60's, a Japanese elderly lady was shocked to death when she watched TV where Freddie was bititng Rikidozen on his head. This was a real story. He was a real villan in Japan. But we knew that his wife was a Japanese, he likes Japan. We like him very much. "Vampire Blassie" forever. Review from Tokyo.