Mankind: Have a Nice Day - A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks [Hardcover]

Mick Foley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 20, 1999

This Book is Not for the Squeamish

No. This is the autobiography of the Hardcore Legend, Mick Foley. Some wrestling fans claim that "Foley is God." You're about to find out why.

Mick Foley is a nice man. A family man. He loves his son, Dewey, his daughter, Noelle, and his beautiful wife, Colette. He loves amusement parks, eating ice cream in bed, and watching Nickelodeon.

So, how to explain his participation in Japanese Death Matches, which replace the ring ropes with barbed wire, cover the mats with glittering gold thumbtacks, and feature C4 explosives scattered throughout the ring? How to explain the barbed--wire scars that zigzag across his body, the second-degree burn tissue that is a memento of an exploding C4, and the missing ear that was ripped clean off his head during a bout? And how to explain how, after losing his ear, he then continued his match?

Here is an intimate glimpse into Mick Foley's mind, his history, his passions, and what some might call his pathology. No ghostwriter. Not "as told to." Straight from the twisted genius behind Cactus Jack, Dude Love, and Mankind---deciphered from 760 pages of maniacally handwritten notebook paper--comes a tale of blood, sweat, tears, and still more blood.

You'll chuckle at Mick's early back-yard wrestling antics and homemade wrestling movies. You'll be amazed by the inside scoop on legends in the business like Terry Funk, Harley Race, Abdullah the Butcher, and Ric Flair. You'll squirm as Mick describes his incredible risks in the ring and his grisly, mind--numbing injuries. Finally, you will cheer with true admiration as arguably the hardest-working, most dedicated, and most heroic man in sports-entertainment beats all the odds and takes home the prize he had been told all along he would never, ever get: the World Wrestling Federation Championship belt.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Frankly, this literary critic didn't expect Mick Foley's memoir of his life as Mankind (and his other wrestling personas, Cactus Jack and Dude Love) to hit No. 1 on Amazon.com's hardcover nonfiction bestseller list in its first literary bout. The cover is cluttered and confusing, and do we really need 500-plus pages of Foley's boasts? Yes. Foley gives his all for his calling, and he burns to tell his adventures. Take the famous tale of how he lost most of his ear (the bloody result is depicted in the 16-page color-photo section). It was in his 1994 bouts with Vader (Leon White): after getting a broken nose, a dislocated jaw, and 21 stitches in the first match, Foley did his "hangman" routine, wherein he catches his neck between the second and third ropes and spins them into a twist. "The end result is the illusion of a man being hanged by his neck while his body kicks and writhes in an attempt to get out... the man actually is hanging by his neck and the body really does kick and writhe in an attempt to get out." Unfortunately, in the prior match, Too Cold Scorpio had had the officials tighten the ropes, so Foley tore off his ear to avoid death by strangulation, like "a fox that chews off its paw to escape a trap." Foley also wrestles on 10,000-thumbtack mats with barbwire ropes and C-4 explosives, and earns the ultimate compliment: "The fans really like the way you bleed." Many fans also like the way his gory story reads. --Tim Appelo

Review

"Captivating . . . Much more than a story about aprofessional wrestler . . . Honest, often hilarious andsometimes moving." -- -- Richmond Times-Dispatch

"Engaging . . . Grabs the reader by the throat." -- -- Syracuse Post-Standard

"Foley's hardcore account . . . Isn't for the faint of heart." -- -- Entertainment Weekly

"Foley's humor alone makes 'Have A Nice Day!' a must read." -- -- Daytona Beach News

"Funny, touching and occasionally wince-inducing..." -- Jane Magazine

"Mick Foley is a funny, intelligent, interesting man with a fascinating story totell." -- -- LA Times

"THE BEST INSIDER LOOK AT PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING EVER WRITTEN." -- -- Trenton NJ Times

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 544 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1st edition (October 20, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060392991
• ISBN-13: 978-0060392994
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (694 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #780,925 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Mick Foley grew up on Long Island, New York. He is the author of the genre-defining #1 New York Times bestsellers: Foley Is Good: And the Real World Is Faker Than Wrestling and Have a Nice Day!: A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks. Foley has wrestled professionally for over fifteen years and was the three-time World Wrestling Entertainment Champion. He currently wrestles on TNA. Foley lives with his wife and four children on Long Island.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

53 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Have a Nice Day: A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks, December 2, 1999

By 

Shane P Carr - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mankind: Have a Nice Day - A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks (Hardcover)

Pro Wrestler Mick Foley has giving us a very heartfelt, entertaining story. One that told of a young teen who followed his dream to become thw WWF World Heavy Weight Champion. Please readers...do not let Mick Foley's on screen persona dissuade you from reading this insightful autobiography but a new and strong author. You will be entertained by his heartfelt rise to the top. Marvel at his entertaining literary writing. Some may percieve wrestlers as musclebound, unintelligent jocks but in reality Mr. Foley is an intelligent and likable person. He offers a look behind the scenes of professional wrestling from his bloody hardcore matches in Japan to the battle in which he lost his ear and on to the now famous WWF 'Hell in the Cell' match and the championship belt. You will here about encounters with famous wrestlers such as Ric Flair, Vader, and the Undertaker. You will read about Mick's admiration for the Legendary Jimmy 'Superfly' Snuka. Yet that is not all. Readers also get to know Mick Foley the family man and the boy who followed his dream at all costs. Anyone interested in Autobiographies in general should read this book. I found it not only interesting to fans of Pro-wrestling but of interest to anyone who likes an inspiring autobiography.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Foley is amazing, December 8, 1999

By 

V. Cardenas (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mankind: Have a Nice Day - A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks (Hardcover)

I've been watching wrestling for seventeen years. People who don't watch wrestling have always had this skewed view of the wrestlers, and their fans. For those people, I think this book would be wonderful. This book shows that wrestlers aren't the steroid-popping, braindead, non-athletes that the world has come to see them as. Mick Foley is an intelligent, funny, charming family man who happens to love the world of professional wrestling. Because of that love, he has given wrestling fans some of the most memorable, and sometimes frightening, matches. And, of course, for the wrestling fan, it offers an inside view of the wrestling world, and some wonderful stories that you might not expect from some of the most loved, and hated personalities.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mick Spoke For Us All, December 8, 1999

By 

Edward Giovannetti (Donald, Oregon. USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mankind: Have a Nice Day - A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks (Hardcover)

This book is truly a literary work of art. For those of us in this business, it describes exactly how complicated, and mostly misunderstood our closed industry is. For those outside our industry, this book reveals how much love, sacrifice, and dedication is required to succeed in a world where frustration and failure sit on an extremely thin line with fame and fortune. This book is a must read for both believers and doubters regarding the unique world of professional wrestling.