Hardcore History
The Extremely Unauthorized Story of the ECW
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Hardcore History
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Narrated by:
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Karl Miller
About this listen
ECW was one extreme contradiction piled on top of another. It was an incredibly influential company in the world of professional wrestling during the 1990s, yet it was never profitable. It portrayed itself as the ultimate in anti-authority rebellion, but its leadership was, at various points, working covertly with the two wrestling giants, the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling. Most of all, it blurred the line between real life and the fantasy world of professional wrestling like no other company before it - many of those who thought they were conning others ended up being victims of the ultimate con.
Hardcore History: The Extremely Unauthorized Story of the ECW offers a frank and balanced look at the evolution of the company, starting even before its early days as a Philadelphia-area independent group called Eastern Championship Wrestling in 1992 and extending past the death of Extreme Championship Wrestling in 2001. Writer Scott E. Williams has pored through records and conducted dozens of interviews with fans, company officials, business partners, and the wrestlers themselves to bring listeners the most thorough account possible of this bizarre company.
The book sets out to answer several questions: Did World Championship Wrestling really try to destroy ECW by draining off its talent? Was Vince McMahon secretly as a friend to ECW, as he has claimed? What really caused the death of ECW? Who lied to whom? Hardcore History: The Extremely Unauthorized Story of the ECW will address all of those mysteries and many more in a story that is sure to be extremely controversial for fans and critics of both the ECW and professional wrestling.
©2006, 2007, 2011 Scott E. Williams. Foreword copyright © 2006, 2007, 2011 Shane Douglas (P)2012 Audible, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
Editor reviews
The ECW was always an underdog in the world of wrestling, smaller and scrappier than its bigger brothers, the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling. In journalist Scott E. Williams' Hardcore History: The Extremely Unauthorized Story of the ECW, Karl Miller intrepidly narrates the now defunct company's fascinating backstory, from its genesis in 1992 to its collapse in 2001. Miller's clear and sympathetic voice performance underlines the brutality of the sport, while critically unveiling the truth behind questions that still linger, including the ECW's relationship to Vince McMahon and the WCW, and the real reasons the ECW died.
What listeners say about Hardcore History
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Slug
- 18-11-20
ECW ECW ECW ECW ECW ECW
If you love wrestling history and ecw then listen to this audio book. ECW ECW ECW ECW ECW ECW
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Paul L.
- 25-05-18
Excellent Book
The rise and unfortunately the fall of ECW. Told truthfully instead of McMahon version of history by the WWE
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Dylan Keville
- 03-08-21
Awesome
Ok narrator but the story does more than make up for that the history of ECW is awesome
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Adam Brown
- 16-11-21
very good to hear
very good hear all about ecw from the highs and lows and best moments.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Andrew Hill
- 22-09-21
A short run through of ECW
Good over arching timeline of ECW, didn't really learn much new information than what I already knew from other documentaries, interviews and podcasts. This book would work as an introduction into the history of ECW rather than an incentive to go watch any of the matches or shows. Overall worth a listen for a wrestling fan but if you want insight into the industry then Death of WCW is a better choice.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Andrew White
- 03-08-21
Mispronunciation Central
It's really interesting but the wrestler name botches are really distracting and take you out of it
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- jam
- 20-03-17
spot on !
its addictive and extreamly satisfying (pun intended) am awating more like this on auidible they cant come fast enough.
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6 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 04-03-23
EC fn W
Apart from some very dubious pronunciations this is a very in depth and interesting bio for one of the most influential wrestling companies. Good listen.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Mr
- 15-05-18
Great book about a short lived star of the biz.
I'm a casual rather than dedicated wrestling fan, and wasn't around for the ECW when it was on air. But I still thoroughly enjoyed this. William's has an obvious passion for the subject, has done his research, and manages to articulately convey the promotions history, why it was popular, and its context in the broader industry and cultural landscape. I particularly enjoyed the chapters concerning ECWs weird afterlife as part of Vince McMahon's empire, and his complex relationship with founder Paul Heyman.
It's a well-written history of the company, and a warm tribute to those who made it happen. It really conveys just how dedicated wrestlers have to be, (especially the a"hardcore" variety), and how difficult it is to consistently make money in the wrestling business.
The narrator is good too.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Aaron
- 20-10-22
e...c....dub
very fascinating look at the history of ECW from the days of tri-state wrestling under Joel Goodhart, to the days of Eastern Championship Wrestling under Todd Gordon to the days of Extreme under Heyman and to ECWWE
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