Customer Reviews

Sex, Lies, and Headlocks: The Real Story of Vince McMahon and the World Wrestling Federation

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

I found the book "Sex, Lies, and Headlocks" to be interesting, though some of the stories to be quite depressing. It is just amazing some of the stuff that goes behind the scenes in the wrestling business. For one, I was shocked what Vader said after learning of the death of Brian Pillman.

The timeline of the book goes from the start of the NWA in 1948 to when the McMahon's moved their WWF company from USA over to Viacom.

I'd recommend the book for all wrestling fans thought acknowleging that it is not perfect. There are some inaccuracies with dates and other information. The authors flip back and forth between topics. This can lead to some incohesivenss and rather pointless info that may be just included for pure shock factor.

At the end of the book their is a final chapter that is very rushed. It includes the XFL, demise of ECW, and the sale of WCW to Vince McMahon. I felt that the sale should have had alot more detail since it was one of the biggest news stories in wrestling history. It would have been nice if the authors would have gone into more detail covering it.

The book was a bit short (258 Pages, not the 288 Amazon.com lists) and can be read at a fast pace. The language in the book is not the greatest. I can understand when the authors quote someone but I was suprised to see some of the words they used themselves. It did not bother me but it might not be a great choice to read for someone who is of a younger age.

Would have been nice to see the book a bit longer and covering more topics but this is probably the best book on wrestling that has been released lately. Despite the cons, It was still very enjoyable.

The major concern I have is whether or not some rarely known facts were thoroughly researched. My concern comes from the fact that there were many inaccuracies in the book that I knew for a fact were wrong. For instance, the Rick Steamboat-Randy Savage WMIII match that Assael claims went nearly an hour, was actually a fifteen minute affair. Assael also writes that Lex Luger slammed Yokozuna on "July 4, 1995" just prior to his shocking appearance on Nitro. Problem was, the bodyslam actually took place July 4, 1993 - big difference. If he can't get this stuff right - which is can be found very easily in any old PWI Almanac - how can we trust him to know what was going on in meetings with Vince McMahon and Ted Turner held behind closed doors?

Sex, Lies, and Headlocks is perhaps one of the most revealing narratives ever composed on the subject of professional wrestling. The authors have laid bare much material about the business that was once considered inside information and not for public consumption.

In effect, the reader is treated to a fascinating back-stage look into how Sports Entertainment emerged from humble beginnings into a corporate and television empire.

Centering around the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) dynasty is Vince McMahon, the company owner, with him being an essential focal point in the book. Virtually no stone is left unturned in the revelations of how be bought the company from his father and used, sometimes ruthlessly, whatever business tactics he needed to buy out his competition and solidify his domination in the wrestling market.

Not without its myriad problems during its rise to greatness, the WWF would absorb many situations that pushed it close to failure on several occasions. Among some incidents would be rampant steroid use by wrestlers and revealing sex scandals in the 1980s. Rebounding from this and moving into the 1990s, Vince McMahon would eventually go head to head with media mogul Ted Turner regarding their many ugly battles to ruin each other and gain domination in the cable television market.

Shifting into the late 1990s and approaching the new millennium, the WWF would finally begin its eventual rise to the top through perseverance and shrewd business dealings that have made it the sole professional wrestling powerhouse they are today.

Sex, Lies, and Headlocks is a very well written and researched book and is probably the closest look you will ever get to truly knowing and understanding the WWF's history and its secrets. For all fans of Sports Entertainment, this book is a real treat and comes highly recommended.

Before starting Shaun Assael's Sex, Lies, and Headlocks, I was fearful that it would be a totally one sided bashing of Vince McMahon and the wrestling empire that he has built. And while the book is critical of many of the means that Vince used to get where he is, it is also a very nice historical perspecive of the history of the business itself. I didn't expect it to go into as much detail as it did on the rise and fall of some of the other organizations, especially WCW and it's Monday Night Wars with the WWF. Having been a long time fan, much of what I read I had known of before, but there was information that I hadn't heard as well. This is a great read if you are interested in the business and the behind the scenes dealings of it. If you are a die hard Vince McMahon fan, you may not like or believe all of what you read. But, I can't imagine anyone with an interest in wrestling not gaining some knowledge of the business that they didn't have before.

This book is well written, but not a lot of research was done. It's written like fiction. Andre the Giant did not retire in 1987, as this book states. He won the world title in 88, and the tag titles in 1990.

Sloppy facts and enough made up info and verbiage make this book a no go.

I wrote this review for my July 12 syndicated pro wrestling column on the Scripps-Howard News Service. I strongly recommend this book to both the casual fan who wants to learn more about the business or the hardcore follower who might not know the background behind the people and decisions that shaped the industry. Here's the review:

Sex, Lies, and Headlocks are no longer exclusive to World Wrestling Entertainment programming.

The phrase serves as the title for an excellent new book chronicling the modern history of professional wrestling and the behind-the-scenes happenings that led to WWE owner Vince McMahon becoming the unquestioned king of the ring.

Authors Shaun Assael and Mike Mooneyham cover every major event of the past 20 years. That includes the accidental death of Owen Hart in a 1999 ring entrance mishap, the demise of World Championship Wrestling and the anabolic steroid scandal that almost landed McMahon in prison.

"This book is about how wrestling evolved, especially in respect to the last 10 or 15 years and more so specifically the Monday night wars," said Mooneyham, referring to the competition between WWE's Monday Night Raw and WCW's Monday Nitro from 1995 to 2001.

"I don't think you have to be a wrestling fan to enjoy it. And for casual fans, it may be looking at the business in a way they haven't before."

Sex, Lies, and Headlocks tells many of the sordid stories known only by wrestling insiders and hardcore newsletter readers will become public. There are allegations of cocaine use and infidelity by McMahon as well as a detailed account of the sex scandal that rocked WWE in the early 1990s (WWE spokesman Jayson Bernstein said the company had no comment on Sex, Lies, and Headlocks, claiming, "It's not even on our radar.").

McMahon is the book's main figure and a compelling one at that, being raised in a mobile home in rural North Carolina before clawing his way to become head of a major entertainment conglomerate. Although McMahon refused interview requests for Sex, Lies, and Headlocks, Assael and Mooneyham spoke with more than 200 people connected with the wrestling business (including Kevin Nash and ex-WCW president Eric Bischoff) in their research.

Assael began writing Sex, Lies, and Headlocks several years ago shortly after writing a critically acclaimed book on NASCAR. Admittedly not a wrestling fan growing up, Assael enlisted Mooneyham to provide background information and insure than an accurate and unbiased picture of a complex industry would be presented.

Sex, Lies, and Headlocks deserves high praise on that account, especially considering how frequently wrestling news is distorted by mainstream media outlets that don't understand the subject or get conned by those in a business based on deception.

"I knew nothing going in other than it was a hell of a story," said Assael, whose interest in writing a wrestling book was piqued by McMahon's 1994 steroid trial. "It's like anything else I do. I trust the fact I've been a reporter for more than 20 years and I trust my instincts on how to do this work."

Of course, fitting two decades of wrestling into 264 pages meant that some (but not many) notable historic facts were omitted. Details about the wrestlers themselves - especially "Stone Cold" Steve Austin - also received short shrift compared to the attention given to network executives.

Mooneyham said he and Assael compiled enough material to write another four books.

"I think this book has got an engine to it," said Assael, who writes for ESPN the Magazine. "As much as people who love wrestling think we may have left stuff out, it was a more important victory to have a good, fast read."

-30-

As a long time fan of wrestling, I've always been fascinated by the rise and fall and eventual rise again of Vince McMahon's WWF/E. If you're interested in an unbiased review of the history of wrestling, this is the book to buy. I'd recommend this book over just about any autobiography because it is written by outsiders, not former wrestlers who will put their own self-serving spin on things. This book does an excellent job of not only chronicling McMahon's rise to wrestling glory, but other promotors as well, namely, his longime archrival, Ted Turner. I was also pleasantly surprised to see an extensive review of the wrestling industry's beginnings all the way back to the formation of the NWA. Even if you're a hardcore fan this book will give you some little nuggets of information that you probably didn't know. The only complaint I have about this book is that the authors didn't go into much detail about the Stone Cold Steve Austin character. In my opinion, his character was the most important vehicle that allowed McMahon to rise from near bankruptcy and lead the WWF into it's most successful era of the late ninties. Having said that, however, I really do recommend this book. It's a good read and a quick page turner.

The title of this book makes it sound like it's brimming with scandalous information, but there's not much in here a long-time wrestling fan wouldn't already know. It really just sort of skims the surface on several issues I really wanted to read more in-depth stuff on, like the Monday night wars and the sale of WCW. Not a bad read, but not as exciting as the title would have you believe, either.

If you are hungry for a steamy, selacious tale of the wrestling industry with all its scandals, written with a locker room mentality, you will need to dine elsewhere. If you are looking for an excellent account of the modern evolution of wrestling business and the phenominal growth and genius of the McMahon empire your search can end here.

Worthy of any business shelf in any library as well as the sports and entertainment sections, Sex, Lies, and Headlocks gives a fact filled, well researched and written account of how Vince Mcmahon and his World Wrestling Entertainment Corporation became a major forse in the entertainment industry. If Harvard Business School invited Vince McMahon to adress its students, the world of business, spots, and entertainment would do well to sit up and take notice.

Assel and Mooneyham have brought forth a facinating story to light. From the inception of the modern NWA in 1948 to the collapse of Mcmahon's chief rival, WCW, this book chronicles McMahon's gutsy and innovative business acumen through various tribulations and triumphs.

Unlike so many other books written on wrestling as of late, Sex, Lies, and Headlocks does not nor does it need to delve into the gossip of the various athletes just to satisfy a curious audience.

What it does do, however, is offer a facinating story of the World Wrestling Entertainment Corporation, an organization that has captured the imagination of millions of viewers and observers worldwide.

Without a doubt, this is one of the most well written, honest, and intelligent book written on wrestling in some time. A professional job from start to finish.

It would be hard to believe, that anyone with an interest in business, sports, entertainment, or wrestling, after reading this book once, would not be compeled to pick up this book again and again.

Having read several books on professional wrestling, I've seen many different stories and perspectives of the business (and of the WWF, in particular). Most of the books I've read have been personal biographies and focused mostly on the situations regarding that particular wrestler (be it Mick Foley, Hulk Hogan, or Bobby Heenan). These books have not dealt with WWF Corporate or with Vince McMahon (except as he related to the performer). Sex, Lies, and Headlocks focuses directly on WWF Corporate and Vince McMahon himself.

The book begins by tracing the origins of the WWF. Even before Vince McMahon, Jr was born, we see his father starting his own federation and competing directly against the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). No mention is made, however, of the fact that Vincent McMahon, Sr, was on the board of the NWA and helped decide on who the NWA Champion would be. We do see McMahon, Sr, build up the WWWF (World Wide Wrestling Federation) and have it be a successful federation on the east coast. McMahon, Sr. wanted his son to have nothing to do with the business but Vince was persistent and eventually became a ring announcer for his father. As time went on, Vince was given his own federation to own (a smaller regional federation). By the time his father was ready to retire, Vince was prepared to buy the WWWF. He did so and renamed it the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). He was able to put together a company that while it was not losing money, it was not making very much, either. It wasn't until he decided to take a huge risk in putting together a huge event on closed circuit television that Vince was able to make his company a success. That even was Wrestlemania.

If this book was only about the rise of the WWF, it would still be an interesting book....but it wouldn't be as good. This book also chronicles the rise of Ted Turner's WCW and how Vince McMahon ended up purchasing his long time rival's company. We are also introduced to the amount of steroid use that was rampant in the WWF in the 1980's (and may very well still be). I learned more about Vince's failed business ventures than I previously knew of (a professional bodybuilding federation?) and a bit more into the XFL.

This was a very interesting book and it paints Vince McMahon in a very negative light. Since this gives a very one sided look at McMahon, it should also be read in conjunction with other wrestling books to give a more rounded perspective on McMahon and the company.