Death of WCW, The: 10th Anniversary Edition of the Bestselling Classic - Revised and Expanded

R.D. Reynolds · Bryan Alvarez

Oct 2014 · ECW Press

About this ebook

As history repeats itself, a wrestling classic becomes even more relevant.

In 1997, World Championship Wrestling was on top. It was the number-one pro wrestling company in the world, and the highest-rated show on cable television. Each week, fans tuned in to Monday Nitro, flocked to sold-out arenas, and carried home truckloads of WCW merchandise. It seemed the company could do no wrong. But by 2001, however, everything had bottomed out. The company - having lost a whopping 95% of its audience - was sold for next to nothing to Vince McMahon and World Wrestling Entertainment. WCW was laid to rest. What went wrong? 

This expanded and updated version of the bestselling Death of WCW takes readers through a detailed dissection of WCW's downfall, including even more commentary from the men who were there and serves as an object lesson - and dire warning - as WWE and TNA hurtle toward the 15th anniversary of WCW's demise.

Ratings and reviews

I found this book kind of repetitive. It focuses a lot of ratings and TV buy rates without ever really explaining what's good/bad/expected. Maybe US readers would be more familiar with this and won't find it annoying. The 2 forewords at the start are also a bit repetitive. I would've liked more opinions from people who were in WCW at the time. This very much reads like one guys opinion. Overall, while some of it is interesting it reads like an extended Internet rant rather than a book.

Much of the new "insight" is merely quotations from other books. The writing is still a bit repetitive. But for the most part the editing has improved, and there is enough new content to warrant a purchase. Happy anniversary.

If you were a wrestling fan in the '90s, no doubt you knew about World Championship Wrestling. It's meteoric rise and even more rapid fall are the stuff of legend, leaving many fans scratching their heads. How could a company that owned its industry in 1997 be out of business in 2001? The authors have put together a well-researched and unbiased answer to this question. Informative, hilarious, and tragic all at the same time, this book is a must read for any wrestling fan who has ever pondered these questions, as well as a case study in how a business that has everything going for it can have it all disappear in the blink of an eye.

About the author

R.D. Reynolds is the co-author of Wrestlecrap and the co-creator of WrestleCrap.com, one of the wrestling community's favourite websites. He lives in Indianapolis, Indiana. Bryan Alvarez is the editor and publisher of Figure Four Weekly. He lives in Woodinville, WA.