Steve Williams: How Dr. Death Became Dr. Life [ILLUSTRATED] (Hardcover)

by Steve Williams Gol (Author), Barry Switzer (Foreword), Jim Ross (Foreword), Tom Caiazzo (Contributor)
Key Phrases: wrestling business, wrestling promotion, wrestling career, Bill Watts, Coach Switzer, University of Oklahoma (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
"Dr. Death" Steve Williams was given a second chance. In the prime of his life, Steve was diagnosed with T-4 throat cancer. With God by his side, Steve overcame all odds and survived this deadly disease. Now, Steve is committed to giving his testimony to the people from the wrestling ring.

As an athlete, Steve has "done it all." In 1978, he graduated from Lakewood High in Colorado. Recruited heavily by many major colleges, the star athlete eventually accepted an athletic scholarship to the University of Oklahoma. Steve is one of very few legitimate wrestlers to make the transition from the amateur ranks to the professional wrestling ring. While at the University of Oklahoma, he was a two-time Big Eight free-style wrestling champion. As a collegiate football player, he was also a two-time Big Eight champion. Under legendary coach Barry Switzer, Steve went to three major Orange Bowls, the Sun Bowl, and the Fiesta Bowl. He also played professional football as a defensive nose guard for the New Jersey Generals in the United States Football League (USFL). Because of his amateur wrestling background, Steve was generally regarded as one of the most dangerous "shooters" in the business. This tough reputation earned him the nickname "Dr. Death." For the past 20-plus years, he has worked for all major wrestling promotions throughout the world, including World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). Steve has held numerous titles and received a plethora of accolades during his career. In 1985, he was named Most Improved Wrestler and First Runner-Up, Tag Team of the Year (with Ted DiBiase). One year later, he defeated the One Man Gang at the 21:43 mark in Houston, Texas, to become the winner of the $50,000 Pro Wrestling Illustrated/UWF Challenge Cup Tournament. In 1991, Steve and his partner, Terry Gordy, became the first American tag team to win All Japan's annual tag-team tournament in consecutive years. Most recently, in 2003, Steve won the NWA Heavyweight title from Terry Taylor in China. Steve is also an Asian wrestling icon, for he is the only American who has ever worked for two major companies at the same time in Japan--New Japan and All Japan.

With Steve's faith in God, he continues to be a "champion" in all aspects of his life. How Dr. Death Became Dr. Life is an emotional, inspirational read for any football or wrestling fan, Christian, or cancer survivor.

About the Author
Steve Williams was an All-American in both wrestling and football at the University of Oklahoma. After a short stint playing professional football in the USFL, "Dr. Death" went on to become one of the most successful professional wrestlers in the USA, working for Mid-South, UWF, ECW, NWA, WCW, and the WWE. He is also an icon in Japan, where he worked for both All Japan and New Japan. Though his unparalleled battle with throat cancer temporarily affected his wrestling career and life, by the grace of God and through his Savior Jesus Christ, "Dr. Life" Steve Williams is alive and well. He is now committed to bringing his testimony to people from the wrestling ring. He and his family reside in Shreveport, Louisiana.

Dr. Tom Caiazzo is a Professor of Political Science at East Georgia College. He is an avid sports fan and good friend of Steve Williams. He has also served as a wrestling promoter, booker, talent, and script writer for several independent promotions. Dr. Caiazzo is published in his discipline and this is his first biography. He and his family reside in Statesboro, Georgia.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 226 pages
• Publisher: Sports Publishing LLC (March 15, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596701803
• ISBN-13: 978-1596701809
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #224,413 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #56 in

  Books > Sports > Individual Sports > Wrestling

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Ok but nothing more, April 28, 2007

By	Peter (Melbourne Australia) - See all my reviews

I am a big fan of Dr Death Steve Williams. He is a true wrestler in my eyes, big and tough with excellent wrestling skills. I was really looking forward to reading this book but I found it so-so.

It is nto a bad read but nothing more than an ok read. I thought Steve could have commented a bit more about some of the wrestlers that he had met over the years and perhaps have been less flattering about some of them as he seemed to have gotten on with most of the wrestlers.

The book is good for Dr Death's fans, but there are better wrestling books out there.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Should have been so much more, September 29, 2008

By	J. Hicks "James S. Hicks (AKA Karl Stern)" (Alabama, USA) - See all my reviews

During the 1980's and 1990's Steve Williams was one of my favorite wrestlers. Steve Williams was a legit tough guy and a tremendous collegiate wrestler and football player. In the pro wrestling ring he brought believability and intensity to his matches and was one of the top stars in Japan.

I doubt you'd know most any of that from reading this book.

Steve Williams glosses over so much of his career. The book was written with the emphasis on his amazing battle against cancer which he even came back from. That's a good story but wrestling fans buy wrestling books for wrestling stories and sadly this book was light on them.

Likewise, Steve Williams greatest success came in Japan yet his Japanese years are glossed over as well. There are probably many great stories that could have been told about Terry Gordy, Stan Hansen, Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, and the many others he teamed with and wrestled in All-Japan.

I was really hoping to learn something from this book but sadly I didn't.

I recommend this book only if you don't know anything about Dr. Death and want to but if you're a hard core wrestling fan I believe you'll be disappointed.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A heartwarming story of an imperfect man, highly recommended to wrestling fans and wrestling historians alike., June 8, 2007

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

Japanese & Mid South Wrestling Legend "Dr. Death" Steve Williams brings an inspirational story of his life, career, and battle with throat cancer. He tells of his college football career and how he failed to make the jump to the now-defunct USFL. He vowed to a pro wrestling trainer to never play football professionally again, and he emerged on the Mid-South Wrestling circuit, the UWF - two of them no less, and WCW. He regales the reader with his run in Japan, where he gained most of his fame, and why he preferred promotions there over American promotions. And then he speaks of how all his sports achievements ultimately meant nothing, when he was diagnosed with throat cancer and found hope in religion. A heartwarming story of an imperfect man, highly recommended to wrestling fans and wrestling historians alike.