Literary Squared Circle #17 – TO BE THE MAN
30 years ago this week, on September 9, 1991, NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair jumped ship from World Championship Wrestling to its main competitor, the World Wrestling Federation. On WWF TV, Flair was referred to simply as “the real world champion”. It was jarring for fans to see the man who for so long was considered the face of WCW suddenly appearing on WWF programming… with the NWA/WCW championship belt! The Literary Squared Circle blog pays tribute to Flair by reviewing his 2004 book To Be The Man by Ric Flair with Keith Elliot Greenberg (World Wrestling Entertainment, 2004).
Ric Flair goes into great detail concerning his jump from WCW to WWF in To Be The Man. Flair was embroiled in a bitter contract dispute with WCW management, and it was taking a toll on him. He began doubting himself, his self-confidence was at an all-time low, and he was suffering from bouts of anxiety. Before he could drop the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, Flair was fired by Jim Herd. WCW wanted the belt back, but Flair was due a $25,000 deposit he had put down when he won it. WCW did not give him back his deposit in timely manner, so Flair signed a contract with the World Wrestling Federation and took the NWA Championship with him.
Bobby “The Brain” Heenan began teasing Flair’s arrival on WWF television immediately. Heenan would show the NWA Championship, but refer to it only as “the real championship belt”. After Flair debuted on WWF Prime Time Wrestling (the precursor to Monday Night Raw) in September 1991, it became obvious that Flair would eventually have to return the belt to WCW. He instead began carrying a WWF Tag Team Championship belt, which was then digitized to so viewers at home would think it was the NWA title. “The Real World Champion” Ric Flair immediately began feuding with WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan, in what was seen by fans as a dream match.
Aside from his shocking WWF debut, Flair’s life and career are covered extensively in To Be The Man. Flair’s life began as the son of a single mother. The hospital told her did her baby not survive. Then through the black market, he was adopted out to the parents who would raise him. His mother was a theater writer and his father a doctor. Flair grew up in Minnesota, and trained under Verne Gagne when he began his wrestling career.
Flair describes his early career in wrestling which has been well-documented elsewhere, and gives a vivid account of the October 1975 plane crash in which he broke his back. His incredible return to wrestling and his subsequent three decades in the ring are discussed, right up to his time with the Evolution faction (Flair, Triple H, Randy Orton, & Batista). The book concludes with Flair and Batista winning the first of their two the WWE World Tag Team Championships in 2003.
With his record 16 World Championship reigns, Ric Flair is considered by many to be the Greatest Of All Time. His book, To Be The Man, may not be THE greatest wrestling book, but it is a great book nonetheless. It is filled with fantastic photos from throughout Flair’s long and illustrious career. Comments by his contemporaries are interspersed amongst the narrative. Contributors include: Ken Patera, Harley Race, David Crockett, Ricky Steamboat, Arn Anderson, Jim Ross, Shawn Michaels, and others.
To Be The Man is also interesting in that Flair responds to things Mick Foley wrote in his first book, Have a Nice Day. Foley was critical of Flair’s time as booker in WCW, to which Flair offered his “receipt” calling Foley a “glorified stuntman.” Foley wrote his comments in 1999. Flair responded in 2004. Their real life feud continued for years, until as legend has it, they were seated next to each other on a plane ride and talked out their differences. Flair and Foley are now on friendly terms.
Overall, To Be The Man is a terrific read that has stood the test of time. Hearing what one of the greatest wrestlers of all time has to say about his long and eventful career is beyond fascinating. His family life is also discussed, but is explored more the follow-up memoir (Second Nature) that Flair co-authored with his daughter, Charlotte Flair, in 2017. That book is nowhere near as good as To Be The Man. I highly recommend reading this book before reading its sequel to get the complete story of “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair. Wooooooooo!!!
5 Stars out of 5
Ric Flair goes into great detail concerning his jump from WCW to WWF in To Be The Man. Flair was embroiled in a bitter contract dispute with WCW management, and it was taking a toll on him. He began doubting himself, his self-confidence was at an all-time low, and he was suffering from bouts of anxiety. Before he could drop the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, Flair was fired by Jim Herd. WCW wanted the belt back, but Flair was due a $25,000 deposit he had put down when he won it. WCW did not give him back his deposit in timely manner, so Flair signed a contract with the World Wrestling Federation and took the NWA Championship with him.
Bobby “The Brain” Heenan began teasing Flair’s arrival on WWF television immediately. Heenan would show the NWA Championship, but refer to it only as “the real championship belt”. After Flair debuted on WWF Prime Time Wrestling (the precursor to Monday Night Raw) in September 1991, it became obvious that Flair would eventually have to return the belt to WCW. He instead began carrying a WWF Tag Team Championship belt, which was then digitized to so viewers at home would think it was the NWA title. “The Real World Champion” Ric Flair immediately began feuding with WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan, in what was seen by fans as a dream match.
Aside from his shocking WWF debut, Flair’s life and career are covered extensively in To Be The Man. Flair’s life began as the son of a single mother. The hospital told her did her baby not survive. Then through the black market, he was adopted out to the parents who would raise him. His mother was a theater writer and his father a doctor. Flair grew up in Minnesota, and trained under Verne Gagne when he began his wrestling career.
Flair describes his early career in wrestling which has been well-documented elsewhere, and gives a vivid account of the October 1975 plane crash in which he broke his back. His incredible return to wrestling and his subsequent three decades in the ring are discussed, right up to his time with the Evolution faction (Flair, Triple H, Randy Orton, & Batista). The book concludes with Flair and Batista winning the first of their two the WWE World Tag Team Championships in 2003.
With his record 16 World Championship reigns, Ric Flair is considered by many to be the Greatest Of All Time. His book, To Be The Man, may not be THE greatest wrestling book, but it is a great book nonetheless. It is filled with fantastic photos from throughout Flair’s long and illustrious career. Comments by his contemporaries are interspersed amongst the narrative. Contributors include: Ken Patera, Harley Race, David Crockett, Ricky Steamboat, Arn Anderson, Jim Ross, Shawn Michaels, and others.
To Be The Man is also interesting in that Flair responds to things Mick Foley wrote in his first book, Have a Nice Day. Foley was critical of Flair’s time as booker in WCW, to which Flair offered his “receipt” calling Foley a “glorified stuntman.” Foley wrote his comments in 1999. Flair responded in 2004. Their real life feud continued for years, until as legend has it, they were seated next to each other on a plane ride and talked out their differences. Flair and Foley are now on friendly terms.
Overall, To Be The Man is a terrific read that has stood the test of time. Hearing what one of the greatest wrestlers of all time has to say about his long and eventful career is beyond fascinating. His family life is also discussed, but is explored more the follow-up memoir (Second Nature) that Flair co-authored with his daughter, Charlotte Flair, in 2017. That book is nowhere near as good as To Be The Man. I highly recommend reading this book before reading its sequel to get the complete story of “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair. Wooooooooo!!!
5 Stars out of 5
No comments have been added yet.
