By Bill Apter, Jerry Lawler (Foreword), Joey Styles (Afterword)
ECW Press, 2015
Paperback, Ebook, Audiobook
Bill Apter is at the top of the short list of well-known and well respected professional wrestling journalists. The long time editor of Pro Wrestling Illustrated and its sister magazines was such a guiding force in the publications that they are still, years after his departure, referred to as "The Apter Mags." Is Wrestling Fixed? is Apter's autobiographical look at his almost 50 years covering the professional wrestling industry.
While best remembered as a kayfabe guarding journalist - unlike Dave Meltzer, Wade Keller, etc - who was semi-complicit in the pro wrestling ruse of yesteryear, this book is not "a work." Apter's story is that of a young wrestling fan who gradually grows from "unofficial" freelance photographer to staff contributor for Stanley Weston's family of magazines to being one of the key players in the professional wrestling industry. While many of the variables pertaining to the professional wrestling industry and journalism as a whole have changed, Is Wrestling Fixed? is certainly a good read for those with an interest in covering the sport.
