Professional Wrestling Studies Association
Studying the Past, Present, and Future of Professional Wrestling
With SummerSlam in the rear view, we are effectively entering the end of the year, folks. The last quarter of the year is usually when the wheels start to fall off for WWE, but with competition on the horizon in the form of All Elite Wrestling’s weekly TV beginning in October, we may see the … Read more Nylons and Midriffs: (Almost) Having It All (August 26, 2019)
For the last couple decades, wrestling fans have been used to a wrestling universe divided into two categories of promotions: (1) the so-called “indies” (or “independent wrestling” or the “indie circuit”); and (2) the nameless other category, which is not really a category at all since it only includes a single promotion, the WWE. So … Read more The Problem with “Indie Wrestling” (hint: it’s not the wrestling)
Below, some notes about gender in wrestling, from “Wrestling with Masculinity: Messages about Manhood in the WWE” by Danielle M. Soulliere Message 3: A man confronts his adversaries and problems A further message revealed through the programs was that men are confrontational. To express this less violent form of aggression, male performers confronted each other and … Read more Excerpt from “Wrestling with Masculinity” Message 3: A man confronts his adversaries and problems
I’m speechless. I don’t know what to do with this, except I think be glad that I didn’t order the book?
The Minnesota Historical Society (MNHS) has a limited collection of issues of Wrestling Facts. Wrestling Facts was available at the Friday night fights, in the case of this issue, at the National Guard Armory on 6th and Exchange. Today, I want to finish looking at an issue of Wrestling Facts by asking: what are the … Read more Wrestling Facts [3 of 3] excerpts from the Minnesota Historical Society
School is back in session, good wrestling fans! Well, for me, at least. After taking a must-needed break from WWE over the last several weeks, I am back to my old tricks — giving you the good, bad, and thorny from Sunday’s SummerSlam pay-per-view. For the most part, I’ve not sat and watched weekly WWE … Read more Nylons and Midriffs: Back to School (SummerSlam Review, August 13, 2019)
Nothing scholarly here, just a reference to “That Time That the Incredible Hulk Beat Up Hulk Hogan” by Brian Cronin – on Comic Book Resources, Aug 12, 2019. Cronin references a licensing fee paid by the WWE/WWF for use of the Hulk name, a fact I do not have independent verification for and never heard … Read more Of Note: The Incredible Hulk and Hulk Hogan
The Minnesota Historical Society (MNHS) has a limited collection of issues of Wrestling Facts. Wrestling Facts was available at the Friday night fights, in the case of this issue, at the National Guard Armory on 6th and Exchange. Today, I want to look at the “card” function of Wrestling Facts — the portion of the … Read more Wrestling Facts [2 of 3] excerpts from the Minnesota Historical Society
Below, some notes about gender in wrestling, from “Wrestling with Masculinity: Messages about Manhood in the WWE” by Danielle M. Soulliere Message 2: Men settle things physically Not only are men aggressive and violent, but their response tends to be primarily physical. Men settle debates, differences, con- frontations, and personal affronts through physical means. For example, … Read more Excerpt from “Wrestling with Masculinity” Message 2: Men settle things physically