Genesis 32:24 - Louis Theroux TV - Timeshift TV - Dwayne Johnson - Hulk Hogan - Misha Glenny - Hitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows 1998 - Team Foxcatcher 2016 - Simon Reeve TV - Glow: The Story of the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling 2012 - Monster Factory 2017 - Fight Like a Girl TV - Andre the Giant TV - Trailer Park Boys 2001-2018 - Fightworld 2018 -
And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. Genesis 32:24
I was travelling through the American south on a mission to find out about the most popular sport in America – which isn’t really a sport: professional wrestling. Louis Theroux’s Weird Weekends: Wrestling, BBC 1999
The athletic prowess of the wrestlers was undeniable. ibid.
There was so much blood around I couldn’t help wondering if one of the fighters was really hurt. ibid.
Louis: What you been up to?
Independent wrestler: Barbed-wire death-match. ibid.
WCW Power Plant: Where the Big Boys train. ibid.
Britain was once a place where villains wore silver capes, the good guys were faking it, and the most masculine man in the country was called Shirley. At 4 p.m. every Saturday the UK was enthralled to the wrestling. Timeshift: When Wrestling Was Golden: Grapples, Grunts and Grannies, BBC 2012
But by the ’80s wrestling seemed out of step with popular culture: the bubble burst. ibid.
1967: Pallo v McManus: their dislike of each other was notorious. ibid.
Wrestling’s origins are appropriately in the music hall. ibid.
The first official world heavyweight was George Hackenschmidt, the Russian Lion. ibid.
Weapons were part of the spectacles. ibid.
Joint Promotions were in total control. ibid.
Wrestling was accessible and cheap entertainment in their back yard. ibid.
When ITV launched World of Sport in 1965, Wrestling became a weekly prime-time fixture: ‘Welcome, grapple fans’. ibid.
Klondyke Kate: Hell in Boots. ibid.
The exotic Adrian Street. ibid.
Joint Promotions knew TV was a cash cow. ibid.
The most notorious masked wrestler of them all: Kendo Nagasaki. ibid.
Big Daddy would change the face of wrestling ... the first of the super-heavyweights. ibid.
Big Daddy v Giant Haystacks at Wembley Arena in 1981 was the biggest wrestling even of the ’80s. But the cracks were beginning to show. ibid.
Wrestling was like stand-up comedy for me. Every night I had a live audience of 25,000 people to win over. My goal was never to be the loudest or the craziest. It was to be the most entertaining. Dwayne Johnson
You have to be consistent, work main events every night and have matches that people really believe in and want to see. Hulk Hogan
In Bulgaria, the greatest heroes were not soccer or tennis players, but muscle-men ... the successful wrestler could expect public acclamation (and fringe benefits such as casual sex on tap), money, an apartment and a car (the last two being out of reach of all but the most feted youngsters). Pavlov would have anticipated this when he was picked out to attend the Institute for Physical Culture in Sofia), Bulgaria’s elite breeding ground for future Olympians. Misha Glenny, McMafia
I loved being a hero to people around the world. Hitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows, 1998
I’ve been a professional wrestler for the last twenty years. Most of that time I’ve worked for Vincent McMahon and the World Wrestling Federation. ibid.
The one thing I won’t do is lie to my fans. ibid.
It takes a lot of skill and a lot of talent to make it all look real. ibid.
The key to being a great good guy is being able to work with a great bad guy. ibid.
We have to discuss that a man was shot, was killed on your property yesterday. Team Foxcatcher, rozzer, 2016
Team Foxcatcher was the brainchild of John Du Pont approximately thirty years ago … and paid them [wrestlers] a salary to be on his team. ibid. commentary
He was so needy. ibid. wrestler
Fuck the world. Kill them all! ibid. John
He said that black was the colour of death. ibid. wrestler
There were a growing number of incidents. ibid.
Charged with killing Dave Schultz. ibid. news
Uzbekistan produces many champions of Greco-Roman wrestling. Simon Reeve: Holidays in the Danger Zone: Meet the Stans: Uzbekistan & Tajikistan, BBC 2003
Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling premiered in 1986 as the first all-female wrestling show on television. The women of Glow wrestled in over 500 matches and were watched by millions of viewers worldwide. At the height of its popularity Glow was abruptly cancelled in 1990. Glow: The Story of the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling, 2012
I thought it was very empowering. ibid. Glow wrestler
First let’s make ’em good looking, then let’s see if they can wrestle. ibid.
Glow was a character-driven show. ibid.
We set stuff on fire and cut stuff up – who gets to do that? ibid.
We were constantly in character. ibid.
I didn’t realise the impact it would have on my spine. ibid.
It hurt. It was painful. It was emotionally draining. ibid.
One of the most exciting times of my life. ibid.
If Shakespeare were alive today, he’d be writing wrestling shows. Monster Factory, Chris Jericho, short 16.51, 2017
Despite all that, I know I’m gonna be a star in this business, all right. ibid. hopeful
It’s a cool fucking thing and the payoff is unbelievable. ibid. trainer
26-year-old Kimberley Benson is Viper, Scotland’s hottest female wrestler. Fight Like a Girl, BBC 2018
Kim’s been beaten and it’s been bruising but this is what she lives for. ibid.
‘Oh, Viper, we love you!’ ibid. crowd chant
After fifteen minutes of punishing competition Kim is world champion. ibid.
He was the living manifestation of our childhood dreams. Andre the Giant, commentator, Sky Atlantic 2018
… weighing 477 pounds, the Eighth Wonder of the World … ibid. announcer
He was a beautiful baby. He was normal. ibid. villager
Like going toe to toe with a god. ibid. commentator #2
He transcended wrestling. ibid. Hulk Hogan
He enjoyed the party afterwards. ibid. commentator #3
Holy fuck! A wrestling ring! This is awesome, Ricky … I’m gonna get my green bastard suit on. Trailer Park Boys s4e4: The Green Bastard, Bubbles
Senegal’s national sport – Laamb wrestling – is a sport of combat and violence in a welcoming and peaceful nation. Fightworld s1e4: Senegal: If I Should Fall from Grace with God, Netflix 2018
He is 260 lbs and moves like he’s 160 lbs. ibid.
For the most part Greco-Roman grappling in sand, no gloves, giant strong human beings, and they get to punch each other. ibid.
‘That’s the charm, the charm off the fight … there is dance, culture and other things.’ ibid. commentator