{"product_id":"wrestling-babylon-piledriving-tales-of-drugs-sex-death-and-scandal-9781550227611","title":"Wrestling Babylon: Piledriving Tales of Drugs, Sex, Death, and Scandal","description":"Irvin Muchnick -- a widely published writer and nephew of the late, legendary St. Louis wrestling promoter Sam Muchnick -- has produced a book unlike any other on the astonishing growth of professional wrestling and its profound impact on mainstream sports and society. In \u003ci\u003eWrestling Babylon\u003c\/i\u003e, he traces the demise of wrestling's old Mafia-like territories and the rise of a national marketing base thanks to cable television, deregulation and a culture-wide nervous breakdown. Naturally, the figure of WWE's Vince McMahon lurks throughout, but equally evident is the public's late-empire lust for bread, circuses, and blood. As this book demonstrates, the more cartoonishly unreal wrestling got, the more chillingly real it became. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWhat truly distinguishes \u003ci\u003eWrestling Babylon\u003c\/i\u003e, however, is Muchnick's ability to show how professional wrestling has become the ur-carnival for a culture that feeds on escapist displays of humiliation, revenge, fantasy characters, and sex. His \u003ci\u003ePeople\u003c\/i\u003e magazine article on Hulk Hogan blew the lid off the drug abuse of the sport's signature superstar. His award-winning \u003ci\u003ePenthouse\u003c\/i\u003e profile of the ill-starred Von Erich clan was the first to connect the dots between wrestling, televangelism, and MTV-style production values. His never-before-published investigation of the death of Jimmy \"Superfly\" Snuka's girlfriend suggests the cover-up of a murder. The book's appendix -- a comprehensive listing of the dozens of wrestlers who died prematurely over the last generation, with little or no attention -- is both a valuable resource for wrestling historians and a shocking document of the ruthless way sports entertainment eats its own.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eIrvin Muchnick\u003c\/b\u003e has written about media, business, higher education, and sports for many major magazines and newspapers, including \u003ci\u003eThe Village Voice\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e. A native of St. Louis, he lives in California with his wife and four children.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"ECW Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50505145680146,"sku":"9781550227611","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_6dac5e31-4e5e-41d4-ba17-17b14517b553.jpg?v=1730834646","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/wrestling-babylon-piledriving-tales-of-drugs-sex-death-and-scandal-9781550227611","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}