A fresh, analytical, and entertaining take on hockey’s tough guysIn professional hockey, enforcers are often as popular with fans as the stars who cash the big paycheques. Called upon to duke it out with a fellow troublemaker, or to shadow (and bruise) an opponent’s top scorer, these men get the crowds out of their seats, the sports-radio shows buzzing, and the TV audience spilling their beers in excitement. Don’t Call Me Goon gives the mayhem-makers their...

One of hockey’s most colourful characters, from hockey’s most colourful era, tells allGilles Gratton was not a typical pro hockey player. He refused to don his equipment and man his net if the planets were not properly aligned. He skated naked at practice. He created one of hockey’s most famous goalie masks based on his astrological sign. He fought with coaches and management, speaking his mind to his detriment. Sex, drugs, and rock ’n’ roll ruled his life, not sto...

A pioneering and beloved Canadian legend comes to lifeFather David Bauer changed lives — at the rink, in the classroom, and at the pulpit. Bauer’s dream created the first truly national Canadian hockey team. In 1963, that unique group represented Canada abroad and were committed to both country and to Father Bauer. Whether shepherding the hockey program at St. Michael’s College in Toronto or the men’s national team out of the University of British Columbia...

When you put four pro wrestlers in a ring, you double the athleticism, mischief, and entertainment. That’s the equation behind The Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame: The Tag Teams, the first comprehensive and historical look at wrestling’s tag team phenomenon.It contains hundreds of extensive interviews with well-known wrestlers, promoters, and managers — a who’s who of wrestling since the 1950s — to reveal tales of pain, measly payoffs, and a trade that was practised as much for love as ...

Through four decades of entertaining, in the wrestling ring and on the monster truck circuit, Debrah “Madusa” Miceli never could sit still. But her desire to learn, grow, and inspire legions of followers masked deep secrets … Her upbringing was a lie from the start, and the dark truths of her childhood, revealed here for the first time, are the earliest examples of Debrah’s determination to persevere.Professional wrestling may have been an odd choice for a nursing student, but Madu...

Who knew that paperwork could be so fascinating? In Written in Blue and White, author Greg Oliver explores the fascinating archives of Allan Stitt, one of hockey’s leading collectors, unearthing gem after gem that details the history of the Toronto Maple Leafs through the past century. Explore early contracts with players, and how the clauses evolved; read personal correspondence from Leaf players and management; find out what was behind Wally Stanowski’s 1945 fine for $100; see receipts f...

In hockey, goalies have always been a contradiction — solitary men in a team game, the last line of defence and the stalwarts expected to save the day after any and every miscue and collapse from his teammates. It’s no wonder that anyone who played the position has had his sanity questioned; yet some of the biggest innovations in the game have come from its puckstoppers. In The Goaltenders’ Union, Greg Oliver and Richard Kamchen talk to more than 60 keepers of yesterday and today, finding ...

A man with three different names ties together the stars of professional wrestling, country music, and the New York Mets.John Arezzi was a lifelong Mets fan who dreamed of a job in baseball. In 1981, he took a job with the Mets Class A team in North Carolina. But Arezzi had another love: professional wrestling. He ran a fan club for the villainous “Classy” Freddie Blassie as a teenager, then progressed to wrestling photographer, and finally even stepped into the ri...

The legendary storytellers worthy of a spot in the pro wrestling hall of fameYou can’t escape pro wrestling today, even if you want to. Its stars are ubiquitous in movies, TV shows, product endorsements, swag, and social media to the point that they are as much celebrities as they are athletes. Pro wrestling has morphed from the fringes of acceptability to a global $1 billion industry that plays an everyday role in 21st-century pop culture.In this latest ad...

Hockey’s rich history explored through some of its most fascinating documentsEvery great career in hockey starts with a pen and a piece of paper. In Blue Lines, Goal Lines & Bottom Lines, author Greg Oliver takes a peek into historical documents of the stars, from Wayne Gretzky’s first contract to a scouting report on Mario Lemieux; from Bobby Hull promoting a hair restoration product to Glenn Anderson fighting for his playoff bonuses. And what’s ...

The legendary good guys worthy of a spot in the pro wrestling hall of fameAt its core, professional wrestling has always been about the forces of evil trying to undermine everything good — and a red hot heel needs a valiant hero to battle against, someone fans can root for, identify with, and look up to.Wrestling heroes like Hulk Hogan, Dusty Rhodes, The Rock, and Andre the Giant are celebrated worldwide. In Heroes & Icons, Oliver and Johnson inclu...

From the critically acclaimed authors of The Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame: The Tag Teams comes the most comprehensive look ever at the colourful villains, heels, bad guys and rule breakers who give professional wrestling so much of its character. In The Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame: The Heels , Greg Oliver and Steven Johnson take readers on an informative and entertaining ride through mat mayhem. With their signature mix of original research, interviews, and anecdotes, they describe the rise a...