My book comes out next week! It was a long time of researching and writing and editing to get to this point, but I learned so much about the bizarre and wondrous world of pro wrestling along the way!

Here are just a few things I learned (or learned more about):

1. the long trick of working the media and putting your own spin on history is a well-worn trick that dates back to the early days of the business. the earliest major exposes of kayfabe from the 1920s and 1930s were, themselves, entirely colored by specific promoters!

2. ever since vince mcmahon took control of his father's company, there has been a twin attack of him admitting wrestling is fake and fans decrying his company is killing the industry. it's not new! it's been there since day one!

3. the wendi richter story is more impactful and intricate than most fans realize

4. ditto the Dr. D/Stossel stuff. even if you've watched the Dr. D "Dark Side of the Ring" episode, you'd be surprised at how far and wide that incident resonated

5. the experiment of passing the torch from Hulk Hogan to the Ultimate Warrior may have been doomed the entire time, and it's interesting to think about what might have happened if they weren't the TWO BIGGEST EGOS IN HISTORY

6. mick foley may have lowkey been the single most important person in turning around the WWF during the monday night wars. beyond "putting butts in seats," he was a focal point at nearly every turn. yeah, steve austin and the rock were the big players, but don't discount mick

7. the "2020 WWE is worse than 2000-2001 WCW" drum gets beaten a lot these days, but it's hard to really overstate how stupidly and purposefully that company was driven into the ground

8. daniel bryan and cm punk changed the industry forever. like, seriously. Ring of Honor put a wedge in the business, opening it up enough for the indies to explode. then Bryan and Punk made it mainstream, popular, and acceptable within the larger machine. desirable, even!

9. the dominick on a pole match was a beloved centerpiece of the ruthless aggression era for a lot of reasons, and now here we are with dominick as a centerpiece of television once again!

10. the wwe women's division has always, ALWAYS been absolutely bizarre, baffling, and occasionally groundbreaking. but it's finally a bright shining star for the company

11. writing a book is a LOT. it's a lot. there's so much i wasn't even able to put in, like the full tom magee story. but i'm still very proud of the book, and i hope you will enjoy it too! https://www.harpercollins.com/products/we-promised-you-a-great-main-event-bill-hanstock

12. oh yeah, and it has all-new illustrations by the one and only @laurenmoran that will absolutely knock your socks off!