The required texts for this course are the following:
Assael, Shaun, and Mike Mooneyham. Sex, Lies, and Headlocks. New York, NY: Crown, 2002. ISBN: 9780609606902.
Foley, Mick. Foley is Good and the Real World is Faker than Wrestling. New York: Reagan Books, 2001. ISBN: 9780061032417.
Sammond, Nicholas, ed. Steel Chair to the Head. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2005. ISBN: 9780822334385.
Molinaro, John. The Top 100 Pro Wrestlers of All Time. Toronto, Canada: Winding Stair Press, 2002. ISBN: 9781553663058.
Anderson, Ole. Inside Out: How Corporate America Destroyed Professional Wrestling. Hendersonville, TN: Crowbar Press, 2003. ISBN: 9780974554501.
| SES # | TOPICS | READINGS |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Introduction to course | |
| 2 | Pre-television wrestling |
Morton, Gerald W., and George M. O'Brien. "Demise and Rebirth: The Cyclic History of Wrestling." In Wrestling to Rasslin': Ancient Sport to American Spectacle. Bowling Green, Ohio: Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 1985, pp. 3-45. ISBN: 9780879723231. Molinaro, John. "George Hackenschmidt" p. 114, "Frank Gotch" pp. 62-63, and "Ed 'Strangler' Lewis" pp. 66-67. Kerrick, George E. "Miscellany: The Jargon of Professional Wrestling." American Speech 55, no. 2 (Summer 1980): 142-145. |
| 3 | 1950s television |
Griffin, Marcus. Fall Guys: The Barnums of Bounce. Chicago, IL: Reilly and Lee, 1937, pp. 39-58. Molinaro, John. "Jim Londos" pp. 64-65, "Gorgeous George" pp. 74-75, and "Antonino Rocca" p. 153. Boeck, Brian J. "Book Reviews: Hooker." Journal of American Culture 21, no. 4 (Winter 1998): 89. Meltzer, Dave. Tributes II: Remembering More of the World's Greatest Professional Wrestlers. Champaign, IL: Sports Publishing, 2004. "Lou Thesz" pp. 220-239 and "Andre the Giant" pp. 66-81. ISBN: 9781582618173. ———. "Buddy Rogers." In Tributes: Remembering Some of the World's Greatest Wrestlers. Toronto, Canada: Winding Star Press, 2001, pp. 114-119. ISBN: 9781553660859. Thesz, Lou, and Kit Bauman. Hooker: An Authentic Wrestler's Adventures Inside the Bizarre World of Professional Wrestling. 2nd ed. Norfolk, VA: Lou Thesz, 1995, pp. 87-99 and 112-124. Jares, Joe. "Whatever Happened to Gorgeous George?" In Whatever Happened to Gorgeous George? Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1974, pp. 11-23. ISBN: 9780139518300. |
| 4 | Women in wrestling |
Beverly, Forest Steven. "A History of Professional Wrestling as Television Programming." Master's Thesis. Auburn, AL: Auburn University, 1989, pp. 24-30, 33-37, 54-56, and 66-86. Dell, Chad. "Wrestling with the Mainstream Press." In The Revenge of Hatpin Mary: Women, Professional Wrestling and Fan Culture in the 1950s. New York, NY: Peter Lang Publishing, 2006, pp. 31-46. ISBN: 9780820472706. |
| 5 | Introduction to the territories: The NWA |
Molinaro, John. "Terry Funk" pp. 86-87, "Dory Funk Jr" p. 96, "Dusty Rhodes" pp. 106-107, "Jack Brisco" pp. 122-123, and "Harley Race" pp. 124-125. Anderson, Ole. "The Psychology of Booking." pp. 171-180. ———. "Be-eee There!" pp. 210-214. Matysik, Larry. "Sam and Me, Part II." In Wrestling at the Chase. Toronto, Canada: ECW Press, 2005, pp. 53-69. ISBN: 9781550226843. ———. "Ring the Bell For Jack Brisco vs. Dory Funk, Jr." In Wrestling at the Chase. Toronto, Canada: ECW Press, 2005, pp. 92-94. ISBN: 9781550226843. Martin, William C. "Friday Night at the Coliseum." Atlantic Monthly 229 (March 1972): 83-87. |
| 6 | The AWA, part I |
Barthes, Roland. "The World of Wrestling." In Steel Chair to the Head. Translated by Annette Lavers. pp. 23-32. Molinaro, John. "Verne Gagne" pp. 82-83, and "Nick Bockwinkel" pp. 104-105. Stone, Gregory P., and Ramon A. Oldenburg. "Wrestling." In Motivations in Play, Games and Sports. Edited by Ralph Slovenko and James A. Knight. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas, 1967, pp. 503-532. ISBN: 9780398017774. |
| 7 | The AWA, part II |
Freedman, Jim. "Will the Sheik Use His Blinding Fireball? The Ideology of Professional Wrestling." In The Celebration of Society: Perspectives on Contemporary Cultural Performance. Edited by Frank E. Manning. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 1983, pp. 67-79. ISBN: 9780879722463. Gutowski, John A. "The Art of Professional Wrestling: Folk Expression in Mass Culture." Keystone Folklore Quarterly 7, no. 2 (Summer 1972): 41-50. Workman, Mark. E. "The Differential Perception of Popular Dramatic Events." Keystone Folklore Quarterly 23 (Summer 1979): 1-10. |
| 8 | World class championship wrestling |
Freedman, Jim. Drawing Heat. Windsor, Canada: Black Moss Press, 1988, pp. 7-80 and pictures. ISBN: 9780887531699. Meltzer, Dave. "Fritz Von Erich." In Tributes: Remembering Some of the World's Greatest Wrestlers. Toronto, Canada: Winding Star Press, 2001, pp. 62-69. ISBN: 9781553660859. |
| 9 | World wide wrestling federation |
Freedman, Jim. Drawing Heat. Windsor, Canada: Black Moss Press, 1988, pp. 94-149. ISBN: 9780887531699. Molinaro, John. "Bruno Sammartino" pp. 70-71. |
| 10 | Detroit wrestling / Discussion of Drawing Heat |
Freedman, Jim. Drawing Heat. Windsor, Canada: Black Moss Press, 1988, pp. 150-190. ISBN: 9780887531699. Meltzer, Dave. "The Sheik." In Tributes II: Remembering More of the World's Greatest Professional Wrestlers. Champaign, IL: Sports Publishing, 2004, pp. 82-93. ISBN: 9781582618173. |
| 11 | Memphis wrestling / Andy Kaufman |
Craven, Gerald, and Richard Moseley. "Actors on a Canvas Stage: The Dramatic Conventions of Professional Wrestling." Journal of Popular Culture 6, no. 2 (Fall 1972): 326-336. Mazer, Sharon. "Watching Wrestling/Writing Performance." In Hop on Pop: The Politics and Pleasures of Popular Culture. Edited by Henry Jenkins, Tara McPherson, and Jane Shattuc. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2002, pp. 270-286. ISBN: 9780822327370. Williams, Randall. "Tonight the Hulk vs. Ox Baker." Southern Exposure 7, no. 3 (1979): 30-35. Meltzer, Dave. "Freddie Blassie." In Tributes II: Remembering More of the World's Greatest Professional Wrestlers. Champaign, IL: Sports Publishing, 2004, pp. 14-27. ISBN: 9781582618173. Molinaro, John. "Jerry Lawler" p. 161. |
| 12 | WWE in the 1980s |
Ford, Sam. "Role-Playing in the Stands: A Symbolic Interactionist Ethnography of Professional Wrestling Fans." (PDF) Benaka, Lee. Interviews with Lou Thesz, Bruno Sammartino, Dave Meltzer. Molinaro, John. "Hulk Hogan" pp. 26-32, "Randy Savage" pp. 144-145, and "Roddy Piper" pp. 162-163. |
| 13 | WWE in the late 1980s through mid-1990s |
Campbell, John W. "Professional Wrestling: Why the Bad Guy Wins." Journal of American Culture 19, no. 2 (Summer 1996): 127-132. Grubisic, Brett Josef. "Testing Mettle: Goldust and the Spectacle of Masculinity in the World of Wrestling." Popular Culture Review 10, no. 1 (1999): 139-156. Molinaro, John. "Bret Hart" pp. 90-91, "The Undertaker" p. 157, "Shawn Michaels" pp. 138-139, "Mick Foley" pp. 147-148, "Steve Austin" pp. 50-55, "Rock" pp. 72-73, "Kurt Angle" and "Chris Benoit" pp. 202-204, "Triple H" pp. 204-205, and "Chris Jericho" p. 205. |
| 14 | NWA/WCW in the 1980s and early 1990s |
Molinaro, John. "Ric Flair" pp. 1-7. Anderson, Ole. "Skyrocketing Expenses." pp. 265-269. ———. "Corporate Duh-Merica." In Inside Out. pp. 279-293. Matysik, Larry. "The War." In Wrestling at the Chase. Toronto, Canada: ECW Press, 2005, pp. 175-193. ISBN: 9781550226843. Trujillo, Nick, et al. "A Night with the Narcissist and The Nasty Boys: Interpreting the World Wrestling Federation." Qualitative Inquiry 6, no. 4 (December 2000): 526-545. |
| 15 | The Monday Night War, part I |
Anderson, Ole. "Spending Ted's Money." pp. 315-323. Bischoff, Eric with Jeremy Roberts. "Running the Show." In Controversy Creates Cash. New York, NY: Pocket Books, 2006, pp. 81-113. Bischoff, Eric. Excerpt from "Prime Time." In Controversy Creates Cash. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, 2006. pp. 145-166. ISBN: 9781416527299. |
| 16 | The Monday Night War, part II | Reynolds, R. D., and Bryan Alvarez. "1998: Momentum is Money." In The Death of WCW. Toronto, Canada: ECW Press, 2004, pp. 117-165. ISBN: 9781550226614. |
| 17 | Masculine melodrama and getting' screwed |
Jenkins, Henry III. "Never Trust a Snake: WWF Wrestling as Masculine Melodrama." In Steel Chair to the Head. pp. 33-66. Ford, Sam. "Excellence of Execution: Vince McMahon's Incorporation of Expose into Fiction." (PDF) Plagens, Peter. "Pinning Reality to the Mat." Chronicle of Higher Education 24 September, 1999, B9. |
| 18 | Good Ol' J. R., part I | Assael, Shaun, and Mike Mooneyham. Sex, Lies, and Headlocks. Chapters 1-5. |
| 19 | Good Ol' J. R., part II | Assael, Shaun, and Mike Mooneyham. Sex, Lies, and Headlocks. Chapters 6-9. |
| 20 | McMahon, part I |
Assael, Shaun, and Mike Mooneyham. Sex, Lies, and Headlocks. Chapters 10-17, and "Our Story Since Then." Anderson, Ole. "Mis-Management." pp. 360-370. ———. "Nothing New Under the Sun." pp. 371-378. McNeil, Bryce. Foot on the Rope: Corporate Apologia and the Discourse of Vince McMahon. Masters thesis, University of Maine, 2002, pp. 61-104. |
| 21 | McMahon, part II | Foley, Mick. Introduction and chapters 1-8. |
| 22 | WWE attitude era | Foley, Mick. Chapters 9-17. |
| 23 | ECW | Foley, Mick. Chapters 18-34. |
| 24 | Mick Foley, part I |
Foley, Mick. Epilogue. Gantz, Walter. "WWF RAW Study." Indiana University and Inside Edition. |
| 25 | Mick Foley, part II | Ford, Sam. "Mick Foley: Pro Wrestling and the Contradictions of the Contemporary American Hero." (PDF) |
| 26 | WWE as transmedia empire | Ford, Sam. "The McMahons: Creating a Synergistic Pro Wrestling Media Empire." (PDF) |
| 27 | The death of Owen Hart |
Meltzer, Dave. "Owen Hart." In Tributes II: Remembering More of the World's Greatest Professional Wrestlers. Champaign, IL: Sports Publishing, 2004, pp. 2-13. ISBN: 9781582618173. Wright, Benjamin P. Wrestling with Reality: Hyperreality Examined in the World Wrestling Federation. Masters Thesis, Wake Forest University, 2001, pp. 48-73. |
| 28 | Ethnographies of pro wrestlers' lives, part I | Mazer, Sharon. "Real Life." In Steel Chair to the Head. pp. 91-112. |
| 29 | Ethnographies of pro wrestlers' lives, part II | De Garis, Lawrence. "The Logic of Professional Wrestling." In Steel Chair to the Head. pp. 219-243. |
| 30 | Contemporary pro wrestling | Battema, Douglas, and Philip Sewell. "Trading in Masculinity: Muscles, Money, and Market Discourse in the WWF." In Steel Chair to the Head. pp. 260-294. |
| 31 | Wrestling and masculinity |
Katz, Jackson, and Sut Jhally. "Manhood on the Mat." The Boston Globe 13 February, 2000: E1. Jenkins, Henry, III. "Wrestling with Theory, Grappling with Politics" In Steel Chair to the Head. pp. 295-316. Jenkins, Henry, IV. "Growing Up and Growing More Risque." In Steel Chair to the Head. pp. 317-342. |
| 32 | Wrestling as performance | |
| 33 | Contemporary WWE, part I | Lowney, Kathleen S. "Wrestling with Criticism: The World Wrestling Federation's Ironic Campaign Against the Parents Television Council." Symbolic Interaction 26, no. 3 (2003): 427-446. |
| 34 | Contemporary WWE, part II |
Serrato, Phillip. "Not Quite Heroes: Race, Masculinity, and Latino Professional Wrestlers." In Steel Chair to the Head. pp. 232-259. Seiter, Ellen. "Wrestling with the Web: Latino Fans and Symbolic Violence." The Internet Playground. New York, NY: Peter Lang Publishing, 2005. pp. 63-82. |
| 35 | Contemporary WWE, part III | Ford, Sam. "World Wrestling Entertainment in Japanese Culture in the 21st Century." (PDF) |
| 36 | Female wrestling fandom | Salmon, Catherine, and Susan Clerc. "Ladies Love Wrestling, Too: Female Wrestling Fans Online." In Steel Chair to the Head. pp. 167-191. |
| 37 | The independents |
Sammond, Nicholas. "Squaring the Family Circle: WWF Smackdown Assaults the Social Body." In Steel Chair to the Head. pp. 155-188. Rahilly, Lucia. "Is RAW War? Professional Wrestling as Popular S/M Narrative." In Steel Chair to the Head. pp. 213-231. |
| 38 | Wrapping up | |
| 39 | Wrapping up (cont.) |