Corrigan’s Corner: Pro Wrestling FAQ—A Tome Of Wrasslin’ Knowledge

After carrying my team to 48 points and ending as runner-up in wrestling Quizzo, I’ve always considered myself a historian of the genre.

That was until I cracked open Brian Solomon’s Pro Wrestling FAQ—the newest tome of suplexes and steel cages to hit book stands.

Solomon has answers to questions I’ve never thought of.

When did pro wrestling leave the carnivals?
Why do most matches start with the collar-and-elbow lockup?
Who first exposed the business to the mainstream press?

I’ve been a fan of Solomon since his days as editor of WWE Magazine and actually, most of those Quizzo points stemmed from studying his WWE Legends book, as well as the Ultimate WWE Trivia Book, another of his contributions to wrasslin’ literature.

His writing inspired me to pursue a career in journalism and constantly fed my appetite for information on the squared circle. And after devouring Pro Wrestling FAQ in a day and half, I declare this not only Solomon’s greatest contribution to the genre but also the definitive guide to everything one must know about the history, athletes, and appeal of professional wrestling.

There’s plenty of analysis on the Rock N’ Wrestling Connection and Monday Night War, but those topics have been discussed ad nauseum over the years–only young fans will take away anything substantial.

It’s the late 19th-early 20th century coverage that delivers on the $29.99 price tag. Solomon digs back to the sport’s original stars, educating readers on William Muldoon and Farmer Burns and Evan “The Strangler” Lewis, names that deserve the same reverence and common acknowledgement as James Naismith receives for inventing basketball.

Perhaps my favorite section of Pro Wrestling FAQ, the chapter detailing the rivalry between Frank Gotch and George Hackenschmidt would make for a fascinating documentary ala ESPN’s 30 for 30 or even a full-length feature film.

Page by page you witness the evolution of pro wrestling from carnie attraction to wartime pastime to the pomp and circumstance of television to modern day sports-entertainment.

Solomon traces the major stars of each era with mini bios and quotes from Bill Apter, Dave Meltzer, Scott Teal and more renowned journalists interwoven throughout the book. Every territory is broken down by region, promoter, and style with chapters on promotional battles, infamous scandals, and even history lessons on lucha libre and puroresu.

There are also fun lists such as 15 visionaries who changed the course of wrestling history, essential luchadore B-movies, and 25 matches that defined the business. Plus, Solomon provides the names of notable referees, commentators, and ring announcers from different eras and time zones.

Divas, Wrestlecrap, Kevin Dunn…no stone unturned, no topic ignored.

As the front cover claims, it truly is all that’s left to know about the world’s most entertaining spectacle—written in most entertaining fashion.

If you’re a fan of pro wrestling, you should read this book.
But if you want to be a student of the game, you NEED to read this book.

To order Pro Wrestling FAQ, check out or hit up Brian Solomon on .

Wrestledelphia.com editor John Corrigan can be reached at . Follow him on Twitter at .