Pipers Book

[littleguns]

Anyone read this?? not a bad read...

Something I found interesting is something he calls "The Sickness"

All true wrestlers have it; but not alot of people realize they do

Few Points:

* Going on the road and coming back with less money BUT still wrestling

* Putting your life in danger for the fans - used the match between Goldust and Piper in the backlot brawl. For those who have seen it, Goldust hits Piper with his car....Piper was told to jump out of the way but Roddy felt he could take the hit
* Brody's death over the finish of a match
* Foley and the hell in a cell.

Said alot is attributed to the Promoter, more he puts the wrestlers thru the more they get the sickness

[Montague]

Yes, I’ve gone through Piper’s book several times.
In more than a few ways, he reminds me of Bret.
You may have surmised - as I did - that Piper can be/is a tad delusional at times. I suspect that many parts of this book were written during his “dark time.” If you remember when Piper appeared on Gumble’s HBO show, Vince actually fired him over comments he made. All Piper dwelled on was the negative aspect of the business.

Hey, if you don’t like it, then get a different job. And, if the only other thing you can do is move refrigerators and you don’t want to do that, then STFU! It’s a choice.

The biggest annoyance I have with Piper’s book is that he writes so much of it in character, and I’ve mentioned this before. Heenan wrote about “working” with grizzly bears in the ring, and how the wrestlers would give the bear cues that would lead it to perform certain spots. Piper, on the other hand, writes his account as though the bear was trying to kill him.
IMO, this defeats/kills the purpose of writing a behind-the-scenes book.

Of all the wrestling autobiographies I’ve read, I may have enjoyed Piper’s the least.

[littleguns]

Monty - always love reading your feedback, not that I am defending Piper but he probably had a different type of sickness...

He dropped out of school at what 14?? So he leaves wrestling making well into the 6 figures and what can he really do? Flip burgers for $7.00 per hour......Wrestling is the only thing He could do.....

So what are some of your favorite books?

I just saw that Nikita is coming out with one but my gut is will be more Spiritual...speaking of, dawned on me, besides Sting he may be the only other one never to wrestle in WWE.....One could say Magnum TA but his career was too short

Look at me hijacking my own thread.

[Montague]

Monty - always love reading your feedback, not that I am defending Piper but he probably had a different type of sickness...

He dropped out of school at what 14?? So he leaves wrestling making well into the 6 figures and what can he really do? Flip burgers for $7.00 per hour......Wrestling is the only thing He could do.....

He didn't have to do anything.
Piper dropped out of school at 14, but he’d made enough money by his mid-20’s that he could have stopped wrestling for a while and gone back to school, start a business, explore other career paths (which he did in movies), etc.
By his mid-30’s, he’d made enough to retire, which he did following WM III.
It didn’t matter if his other business ventures didn’t prosper; he didn’t need the money at that point. Yet, he CHOSE to return to the “evil” world of pro-wrestling in 1989...and he KEPT working semi-regularly throughout the 90’s.

Bret claims that Roddy mentioned to him that he went back on the road because it drove him crazy to stay at home all the time. Hell, he could have taken up fly fishing to get out of the house more!
Roddy knew and recognized how bad the business is, but made a conscious decision to return when he didn’t have to do anything. He'd escaped the grasp of wrestling. He went back because he wanted to.
Just as Mike Benoit wants to blame Vince & CTE for his son’s actions in 2007, Piper wants to lay blame for his selfish ego and addiction to wrestling on someone and something else rather than his own stupidity.

Think about it like this: someone pays you $20,000 every time you bang your head against a brick wall. It hurts and damages your body, but you’re making good money doing it. Suddenly, you win $50 million in the Powerball. You never need to do anything for money again, but you decide to return to your head/brick wall gig because you’re bored being at home all the time and miss people watching you abuse your body.
Now, of the audience, the guy who pays you to hit your head, and YOU…who’s the biggest idiot?

So what are some of your favorite books?

Heenan's are undoubtedly my favorites.

[The Showstoppa]

Heenan's are undoubtedly my favorites.

Having met him and being overwhelmingly unimpressed, I couldn't stomach reading it.

As for Piper, his book was written way too "in character" for me too.  And honestly, by the standard on this board he would be considered a "mid-carder" as he never held one of the big 3 world titles, right?  I didn't bother looking it up, just basing on memory.

As for "the sickness" it's no different than a washed-up rock star who is still chasing glory and thinking the next big hit is around the corner.  Its simply called delusional and many people suffer from it and it has zero to do with being caused by wrestling, but rather its the type of people who get into the business in the first place are often delusional. 

[Montague]

Having met him and being overwhelmingly unimpressed, I couldn't stomach reading it.

LOL...
I know you & BIG ran into him once, and the encounter really turned you both off.
What exactly happened?

You're certainly justified in having an opinion.
I'm just curious about it, as I've never heard anything negative about "The Brain," except from Tully Blanchard, and that was over the most ridiculous reason I'd ever heard.
I wonder if Bobby was just having a bad day the time you met him; not that that's an excuse by any means.

[The Showstoppa]

LOL...
I know you & BIG ran into him once, and the encounter really turned you both off.
What exactly happened?

You're certainly justified in having an opinion.
I'm just curious about it, as I've never heard anything negative about "The Brain," except from Tully Blanchard, and that was the most ridiculous reason I'd ever heard.
I wonder if Bobby was just having a bad day the time you met him; not that that's an excuse by any means.

Big has met him a couple of times.  My only encounter he came across as really arrogant.  It was at a bar and we were talking to a bunch of the wrestlers who were there.  He just acted too good to speak to anybody.  If that is the case, fine, but why show up at the bar and come across that way?  Sullivan was the same way.  And he's a midget height wise.

Mean Gene was also a jackass.

[Montague]

Big has met him a couple of times.  My only encounter he came across as really arrogant.  It was at a bar and we were talking to a bunch of the wrestlers who were there.  He just acted too good to speak to anybody.  If that is the case, fine, but why show up at the bar and come across that way?  Sullivan was the same way.  And he's a midget height wise.

Mean Gene was also a jackass.

I think a lot of those guys become jaded from fan encounters in public. Foley once had a guy stand outside of a urinal waiting for him to come out to ask for an autograph, which infuriated him. It’s not proper to do things like that, but nor is it right to cluster all fans into the same category.

I know that Bobby used to belong to many airline VIP lounges just for the privacy aspect. He said Andre could easily have done the same, but he listened to what Vince McMahon Sr. had told him years ago about the importance of being seen and establishing his image as “the largest athlete in the world.” Andre ended up HATING people in general.

My motto is: if it bothers you that much, then you should be a lot more selective about where you go for a night out. The boys had “safe” places in many towns in which they knew venue proprietors/GM’s that could hook them up with a private room or at least some kind of accommodations.
Yeah, it’s a pain in the ass, but it’s one of the sacrifices you make to do what you do and make the living you make. 
And, you guys know my other motto: if you don’t like it, Whirlpool and Maytag are always hiring delivery guys.

[Montague]

I never liked his character no matter what angle he was playing it. Especially when he was an announcer. He is my former Executive Consultant Teds all time favorite. He dressed as Piper like ten times for Halloween. I'll disagree with him about Piper greatness until the day I die. The guy to me was nothing but a big mouth and to me should no way be considered one of the greats. Hulkamania was going over no matter what. They could have done that Andre heel turn joining Heenan anywhere. So what if it was on Pipers pit. That does not make one bit of difference. I would never waste my time reading Pipers book but I'd bet he credits part of Hulksters success to himself. Timmy never watched WCW but I'm sure Piper went nowhere over there as well. He's another guy that's on my Jericho and Nash list.

Ha-ha-ha...That's right!!
I totally forgot about that part of his book, where he makes it sound like he & "The Pit" were what sold the Hogan/Andre angle.

Guess what; that stage could have been set on "The Snake Pit," "The Brother Love Show," "The Heartbreak Hotel," or "The Funeral Parlour" (had they been around at the time).
Personally, I always liked Roddy's character and show, but in this instance, "The Pit" was almost a non-factor! In the overall scheme of things, Piper was about a quarter of a notch above background scenery in setting up Hulk & Andre's feud.

[OLE BIG]

Yes, I’ve gone through Piper’s book several times.
In more than a few ways, he reminds me of Bret.
You may have surmised - as I did - that Piper can be/is a tad delusional at times. I suspect that many parts of this book were written during his “dark time.” If you remember when Piper appeared on Gumble’s HBO show, Vince actually fired him over comments he made. All Piper dwelled on was the negative aspect of the business.

Hey, if you don’t like it, then get a different job. And, if the only other thing you can do is move refrigerators and you don’t want to do that, then STFU! It’s a choice.

The biggest annoyance I have with Piper’s book is that he writes so much of it in character, and I’ve mentioned this before. Heenan wrote about “working” with grizzly bears in the ring, and how the wrestlers would give the bear cues that would lead it to perform certain spots. Piper, on the other hand, writes his account as though the bear was trying to kill him.
IMO, this defeats/kills the purpose of writing a behind-the-scenes book.

Of all the wrestling autobiographies I’ve read, I may have enjoyed Piper’s the least.

I take it you didn't care for Arn's book much either?

[OLE BIG]

Having met him and being overwhelmingly unimpressed, I couldn't stomach reading it.

As for Piper, his book was written way too "in character" for me too.  And honestly, by the standard on this board he would be considered a "mid-carder" as he never held one of the big 3 world titles, right?  I didn't bother looking it up, just basing on memory.

As for "the sickness" it's no different than a washed-up rock star who is still chasing glory and thinking the next big hit is around the corner.  Its simply called delusional and many people suffer from it and it has zero to do with being caused by wrestling, but rather its the type of people who get into the business in the first place are often delusional. 

Nice post and analogies.

I had never thought about Piper being a mid-carder, but you have some points.  Maybe we should mention that to Toddy sometime?

[OLE BIG]

LOL...
I know you & BIG ran into him once, and the encounter really turned you both off.
What exactly happened?

You're certainly justified in having an opinion.
I'm just curious about it, as I've never heard anything negative about "The Brain," except from Tully Blanchard, and that was over the most ridiculous reason I'd ever heard.
I wonder if Bobby was just having a bad day the time you met him; not that that's an excuse by any means.

He was really rude the time stoppa is talking about.  Not only to us, but everyone I saw him come into contact with.  Like he said, if you don't want to be bothered, why go to the bar?  And more importantly, why sit with the wrestlers that had no problem talking with anyone that came up.  I saw him at least three times and the experience was the same.

Another friend of ours and myself saw him another time.  He was sitting with Juvi, if I recall correctly.  We had been hanging out and talking to most of the wrestlers all night.  We went to talk to Juvi again while he was sitting with Heenan and he told my friend to get out of there right now, or he was going to call the cops.  Because of past experiences, we didn't even talk to him.  Our friend told him as much and he wouldn't shut up.  You could tell Juvi wasn't impressed with his actions either.

Aother time, I was talking to your boy (Hennig) and golf came up.  He found out where I worked and was dying to play there.  He also wanted Okerlund and Heenan to come.  I told him what I thought of them.  He said he wanted me to talk to them.  I told him I might consider Gene, but no way was Heenan coming.  He agreed, introduced me to Mean Gene, and he couldn't have been nicer.  Since Hennig was so persistent, I agreed that Gene could come, although I wasn't too keen on the idea.  I was also going to take Randy Anderson, one of the nicest guys you will ever meet, period. 

I might have told you this before, but it is worth telling again.  Understand that the golf club I am talking about is very exclusive in the same manner as Augusta National and the likes.  I told Hennig that if he came he would have to put all that hair under a hat.  He said "Son, I will cut my hair if that is what it takes. It will grow back!"  CLASSIC!!

I also asked him what he would do if he ever missed slapping his gum when he spit it in the air.  He looked at me very seriously and said "I don't miss."

Late that night, another friend bought Hennig a couple of beers, and Hennig was going to repay the favor.  He never did, and whenever our stories come up, he always say he guesses he will never get that beer from Hennig.

[Montague]

I take it you didn't care for Arn's book much either?

I haven't gotten to Arn's yet.
I probably won't even bother, now.
Thanks for saving my time and a couple of bucks.

[Montague]

He was really rude the time stoppa is talking about.  Not only to us, but everyone I saw him come into contact with.  Like he said, if you don't want to be bothered, why go to the bar?  And more importantly, why sit with the wrestlers that had no problem talking with anyone that came up.  I saw him at least three times and the experience was the same.

Another friend of ours and myself saw him another time.  He was sitting with Juvi, if I recall correctly.  We had been hanging out and talking to most of the wrestlers all night.  We went to talk to Juvi again while he was sitting with Heenan and he told my friend to get out of there right now, or he was going to call the cops.  Because of past experiences, we didn't even talk to him.  Our friend told him as much and he wouldn't shut up.  You could tell Juvi wasn't impressed with his actions either.

Aother time, I was talking to your boy (Hennig) and golf came up.  He found out where I worked and was dying to play there.  He also wanted Okerlund and Heenan to come.  I told him what I thought of them.  He said he wanted me to talk to them.  I told him I might consider Gene, but no way was Heenan coming.  He agreed, introduced me to Mean Gene, and he couldn't have been nicer.  Since Hennig was so persistent, I agreed that Gene could come, although I wasn't too keen on the idea.  I was also going to take Randy Anderson, one of the nicest guys you will ever meet, period. 

I might have told you this before, but it is worth telling again.  Understand that the golf club I am talking about is very exclusive in the same manner as Augusta National and the likes.  I told Hennig that if he came he would have to put all that hair under a hat.  He said "Son, I will cut my hair if that is what it takes. It will grow back!"  CLASSIC!!

I also asked him what he would do if he ever missed slapping his gum when he spit it in the air.  He looked at me very seriously and said "I don't miss."

Late that night, another friend bought Hennig a couple of beers, and Hennig was going to repay the favor.  He never did, and whenever our stories come up, he always say he guesses he will never get that beer from Hennig.

Ha-ha-ha…
That story is GOLD!
You’ve mentioned parts of it here before, but the Hennig stuff is classic.
“I don’t miss.”


I’ve gotten the impression that Gene could go either way - very hit or miss with fans. I know that Heenan was absolutely miserable in WCW, which may have carried over into his attitude outside the arenas. As I said, though, that’s not a free pass to act shitty to the people paying your salary.

[littleguns]

Watch this and you may have a different outlook of Heenan

[vascsurgeon]

Yes, I’ve gone through Piper’s book several times.
In more than a few ways, he reminds me of Bret.
You may have surmised - as I did - that Piper can be/is a tad delusional at times. I suspect that many parts of this book were written during his “dark time.” If you remember when Piper appeared on Gumble’s HBO show, Vince actually fired him over comments he made. All Piper dwelled on was the negative aspect of the business.

Hey, if you don’t like it, then get a different job. And, if the only other thing you can do is move refrigerators and you don’t want to do that, then STFU! It’s a choice.

The biggest annoyance I have with Piper’s book is that he writes so much of it in character, and I’ve mentioned this before. Heenan wrote about “working” with grizzly bears in the ring, and how the wrestlers would give the bear cues that would lead it to perform certain spots. Piper, on the other hand, writes his account as though the bear was trying to kill him.
IMO, this defeats/kills the purpose of writing a behind-the-scenes book.

Of all the wrestling autobiographies I’ve read, I may have enjoyed Piper’s the least.

Worse than Bruno's???

[Montague]

Worse than Bruno's???

You know, I can’t bring myself to even try reading Bruno’s book. He’s a very nice man; very good especially with the fans. However, he’s extremely bitter about the business, and I’ve never once heard him break character.
Virtually the entire industry and everyone in it has pulled back the proverbial curtain, and Bruno seems to be the only one still pushing kayfabe.

I knew one of Bruno’s cousins (second-cousin, I think). She made it sound like he kayfabes his family even to this day.
In fact, I used to joke that David - Bruno’s son - would have done better in wrestling had Bruno smartened him up first.

Vasc,
I’m curious…
Are you a hockey fan, at all?

[The Showstoppa]

You know, I can’t bring myself to even try reading Bruno’s book. He’s a very nice man; very good especially with the fans. However, he’s extremely bitter about the business, and I’ve never once heard him break character.
Virtually the entire industry and everyone in it has pulled back the proverbial curtain, and Bruno seems to be the only one still pushing kayfabe.

I knew one of Bruno’s cousins (second-cousin, I think). She made it sound like he kayfabes his family even to this day.
In fact, I used to joke that David - Bruno’s son - would have done better in wrestling had Bruno smartened him up first.

Vasc,
I’m curious…
Are you a hockey fan, at all?

I have no interest in reading Bruno's book, but I respect the hell out of him for keeping kayfabe after all these years.  Too bad he's the only one.

[Montague]

I have no interest in reading Bruno's book, but I respect the hell out of him for keeping kayfabe after all these years.  Too bad he's the only one.

I find it odd that Bruno keeps at it. I'm sure his heart is in the right place, but...
Considering he's almost literally the only one, I think he looks a bit foolish to be honest.

[vascsurgeon]

You know, I can’t bring myself to even try reading Bruno’s book. He’s a very nice man; very good especially with the fans. However, he’s extremely bitter about the business, and I’ve never once heard him break character.
Virtually the entire industry and everyone in it has pulled back the proverbial curtain, and Bruno seems to be the only one still pushing kayfabe.

I knew one of Bruno’s cousins (second-cousin, I think). She made it sound like he kayfabes his family even to this day.
In fact, I used to joke that David - Bruno’s son - would have done better in wrestling had Bruno smartened him up first.

Vasc,
I’m curious…
Are you a hockey fan, at all?

I was disappointed in Bruno's book because he kayfabes all the time. I was hoping for some fun/interesting stories about the early 70's and all the stars of the time. Bruno, in my opinion, was one of the biggest stars, with an incredible cross over appeal and to read about matches like they where "battles" etc.. was a bummer.
I understand why and where he is coming from, but, anyone who was 10-15 years old then and now is 50ish doesn't need the kayfabe nonsense anymore.
I bought the book knowing that might be an issue,but, I have to support my Bruno till the end
BTW, yes I am a hockey fan, but still would rather watch the Blackjacks vs Dean Ho and Tony Garea than Wayne Gretsky and Mark Messier, call ma crazy, but, next to Bugsy McGraw I seem normal

[littleguns]

Talking about Books, I would love to sit down with wrestlers and talk about Ribs that they played or were played......it would be a fun read and different than the typical "biography"

[Montague]

Talking about Books, I would love to sit down with wrestlers and talk about Ribs that they played or were played......it would be a fun read and different than the typical "biography"

I think Road Warrior Animal was talking about the possibility of putting together a "book of ribs."

But, that may have been before he wrote his autobio, which I understand contains quite a few rib tales.

[Montague]

I was disappointed in Bruno's book because he kayfabes all the time. I was hoping for some fun/interesting stories about the early 70's and all the stars of the time. Bruno, in my opinion, was one of the biggest stars, with an incredible cross over appeal and to read about matches like they where "battles" etc.. was a bummer.
I understand why and where he is coming from, but, anyone who was 10-15 years old then and now is 50ish doesn't need the kayfabe nonsense anymore.
I bought the book knowing that might be an issue,but, I have to support my Bruno till the end
BTW, yes I am a hockey fan, but still would rather watch the Blackjacks vs Dean Ho and Tony Garea than Wayne Gretsky and Mark Messier, call ma crazy, but, next to Bugsy McGraw I seem normal

Again, I like Bruno. Everything I’ve heard indicates that he’s a real nice man - even now.
It’s just that the act of kayfabing in this day and age comes across as SOOOOO condescending, that I think most fans feel insulted by it.


And, I had a feeling you were a hockey guy.
Have you, by chance, ever had the fortune to pose for a picture while holding the actual Stanley Cup; some time around "The Lemieux Era?"

[OLE BIG]

Ha-ha-ha…
That story is GOLD!
You’ve mentioned parts of it here before, but the Hennig stuff is classic.
“I don’t miss.”


I’ve gotten the impression that Gene could go either way - very hit or miss with fans. I know that Heenan was absolutely miserable in WCW, which may have carried over into his attitude outside the arenas. As I said, though, that’s not a free pass to act shitty to the people paying your salary.

I figured you might like those.  I especially like the one about playing golf.  Once he found out I was a golf professional, he was "all over my nuts" as Stoppa would say.  But I also have to say he was very friendly when he just thought I was a mark wanting to hang out around the wrestlers (I was).

The way he acted that night made me and Stoppa forgive him for turning on the Horsemen.  We were very pissed at him, and that shows just how cool he was that we actually forgave him.   

[OLE BIG]

I have no interest in reading Bruno's book, but I respect the hell out of him for keeping kayfabe after all these years.  Too bad he's the only one.

I would like to read his book, although I am sure I might be disappointed.  Maybe we should want to read it for that very reason.

Bruno was a man's man, and kept a lot of interest around here because of that.  Even the tough old marks around here always respected him.