Product Description

After proving his point, Ted DiBiase would laugh and fan out his large roll of hundreds, worsening the degradation of whoever had been foolish enough to accept his challenge or get in his way. Defeated opponents -- put to sleep with his Million Dollar Dream -- would have the added humiliation of awakening to discover that the Million Dollar Man had been stuffing bills down their throats. Winning match after match, yet no closer to the championship, DiBiase wanted the title, but he couldn't seem to win it. His solution: pay Andre the Giant to win the title, make sure the referee was also "taken care of," and then have Andre hand the championship title over to him.

True to his taunt, the Million Dollar Man had gotten his way, and Ted DiBiase became the most hated person in sports entertainment.

Making his way to the top of the profession that he had loved since he was a child, Ted DiBiase never did anything by half measures. He couldn't, because the men he respected and worked side by side with expected that "Iron" Mike's kid would give his all. And each day while on the road learning what it was to be a wrestler, Ted remembered how his father had taught him to give his all every time. It was how his father lived -- and how he lost his life, dying during a wrestling match while Ted was still a boy.

From the dusty roads of Texas to the bayous of Louisiana, Ted moved from one wrestling promotion to another -- sometimes a babyface, other times a heel. He learned how to tell a story and how to draw the fans in, both inside and outside the ring. In 1987, Vince McMahon had an idea for a new character, the Million Dollar Man, and one person came to mind: Ted DiBiase. For nearly a decade, fans waited to see just how Ted could prove his adage that "Everyone's got a price." When he was sidelined by a neck injury, DiBiase started a second wrestling career, as a manager. He managed some of the biggest stars: Bam Bam Bigelow, King Kong Bundy, and a very green wrestler, the Ringmaster (who would later be known as Stone Cold Steve Austin).

Ted DiBiase, the Million Dollar Man, is fondly remembered by wrestling fans for his style and his command of the ring. This is the inside glimpse of three decades inside and outside the squared circle.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #124206 in Books
• Published on: 2008-06-10
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781416558903
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

In 1993, my last wrestling match in the United States was at SummerSlam in Detroit against Razor Ramon. I could have stayed as long as I wanted in World Wrestling Federation; Vince McMahon and everyone in the company had treated me with the utmost respect. But the travel schedule was wearing on me and I wanted to spend more time at home with my family. I missed my wife and my three sons, Michael, Teddy Jr., and Brett. So I chose to leave to pursue other wrestling opportunities.

After taking a few weeks off to rejuvenate, I lined up some bookings with Sohei "Giant" Baba's All-Japan promotion. I first met Baba when I was playing college football at West Texas State; Terry Funk introduced me to him after a match in Amarillo. When I got into wrestling, Giant Baba invited me to work for a four-week tour, and I continued to work for him over the next two decades.

The schedule in Japan was lighter and I would be able to spend a lot more time with my family. Baba also gave me a great financial deal. Besides the money, I was issued round-trip first-class airfare and guaranteed all accommodations. The only thing I had to pay for was my food.

My first night back in Japan, I was immediately teamed up with my good friend and West Texas State alum Stan Hansen. Stan was the most popular American wrestler in all of Japan. Even though it was my first trip back since 1987, I was put right to work in the main events. My first match was in the Budokan in Tokyo; in front of thirty thousand fans, we captured the tagteam titles.

During the match, I took a basic bump. When I landed, a razor-sharp pain shot down both my arms. I got up and immediately tagged in Stan, and he could tell something was wrong. But somehow, through the pain, I managed to finish the match and we became the new champions.

The pain subsided and didn't return until after about three more matches. After I took a simple body slam, the sharp twinges once again pulsed down my arms, and the pain continued for the next few weeks. All I could think of was finishing out the tour, but the pain was getting worse. The bottom line was that I knew something wasn't right. So I finished the three-week tour and headed home.

A few days later, I went to see my local doctor. He referred me to the best neurosurgeon in the state of Mississippi, Dr. Glenn Warren. He ran some tests and scheduled me for an MRI. The results showed that I had two herniated cervical disks in the base of my neck, which was where I had landed when taking the bump. Dr. Warren said, "Ted, you have two choices. Undergo surgery, which would consist of some dissection of your muscle and tissue, and a bone graft procedure, or try a course of rehabilitation using a traction machine.

"Either way, I suggest you retire from professional wrestling." I was blown away. Sensing my disbelief, he added, "The pain is just going to get worse. You can try the traction, but inevitably you are going to need the surgery. And even after the surgery, if you get dropped on the area just right, you could be paralyzed for life or even killed." I was stunned. I understood what he was saying, but I couldn't believe it. At the time, I guess I just didn't want to go through what I thought was unneeded surgery.

I also was in denial. At this point, I needed to get my life back on track. For years, due to World Wrestling Federation's demanding road schedule, I'd conducted myself in a very immoral and unprincipled manner. Not only was I drinking and using drugs, I was unfaithful in my marriage. Although I'd been happily married to Melanie for more than a decade, my overinflated ego led me to womanizing.

In 1993, shortly before WrestleMania IX, Melanie found out about this behavior. I begged for her forgiveness; the thought of losing everything that I loved -- my wife and children -- scared me to death. Luckily for me, Melanie agreed to give me a second chance. In the interest of saving my marriage, I decided that wrestling in Japan was the best thing to do.

Needless to say, I was very concerned. Giant Baba had just given me a generous contract and I needed the money to support my family. Before I left the doctor's office, I explained my situation to him. I told him I had to go back and give it a try out of respect to both Baba and my career.

So, I chose the rehabilitation. The doctor gave me this traction device, which I was required to wear for about thirty minutes a day. A week or so later, I packed the device with my bags and headed back to Japan for another three-week tour.

After only three days in Japan, I was in so much pain that I couldn't wrestle. The next evening, I spoke to Giant Baba in the dressing room. I respectfully explained to him the entire situation and that I needed to go home to have the surgery. Baba knew exactly what I was talking about -- it turned out he had the same medical condition. He told me that he would meet me at my hotel in the morning to pay me for my three days of work.

That next morning, Baba told me that I was welcome back to All-Japan anytime. He then opened a briefcase full of cash. I was expecting him to pay me for only the three days, but Baba proceeded to count out all the money he had guaranteed me for the entire three-week tour. I was flabbergasted. Baba was all class, and the gesture showed me just how much he respected me. We shook hands and I left for the airport to catch my plane back home.

Although I put surgery off for a few more years, I took the doctor's advice and never wrestled anywhere again. When I went back to work for Vince as a commentator and manager, and even later as a producer, I never wrestled. I wasn't taking any bumps, so I didn't think I needed surgery. I kept holding off because I thought I could tolerate the pain, and also that the rehab would ease the pain. But nothing worked, and at times the pain was unbearable.

It wasn't until 1996 that I checked into the River Oaks Hospital in Jackson, Mississippi, for my herniated cervical disk surgery. After I was prepped and had my vitals checked, I was given anesthesia. The doctor proceeded to remove a portion of the herniated disk that was pushing on the nerve. He made an incision in the front of my neck in order to reach the spine, then removed disk material from the nerve and fused it with two bone plugs taken from my hip. Some four hours later, I woke up in the recovery room. I spent only one night in the hospital, but it took me about a week to recover. Although the surgery was a success, the scars on my hip and on my neck are a daily reminder of the incident that eventually forced me into retirement.Copyright © 2008 by World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Customer Reviews

Excellent Book!
This book is an excellent one which provides the reader with much insightful information about professional wrestling during the 1970s through 2006. Ted DiBiase was a very talented wrestler who performed as one of the greatest heel characters of all times - the totally despicable Million Dollar Man. It was also quite interesting to note that the heel persona which Ted DiBiase was able to so successfully present was clearly not the real Ted who is known to his friends, fellow wrestlers, family and others. This book presents solid information about how the Million Dollar Man was created by the WWE honcho Vince McMahon and capably carried out by DiBiase. The book also provides much insight into what it takes to become a wrestler and the sacrifices which must be accepted in order to receive any measure of success in the mat world. I know that true wrestling aficionados will find reading this book to be a real pleasure with much that can be learned about the profession of wrestling. After ending his wrestling career, Ted went into the Christian ministry to serve people in a very different capacity, and very successfully too. All aspects of Ted's life were covered in this book and provided in a way which demonstrates his self awareness and his honesty in revealing himself to the reader.

Decent, but with several JARRING errors
I'm a huge fan of Ted Dibiase - especially the Million Dollar Man character that he portrayed to expertly during his WWF/E run in the late 80s and early 90s. This autobiography is a serviceable look into the details of his wrestling career that were not provided during his first autobiography that had more of an evangelical bent to it.

With that said, the errors contained within this book are glaring, and they raise questions as to the author's recall of other statements of which people will have less obvious knowledge. For instance, in the opening chapter of the book, Dibiase mentions how he turned Macho Man Randy Savage face during their match at Wrestlemania IV. Fans with even the most basic knowledge of the 80s WWF know that Savage turned face during only a few months after Wrestlemania III and was firmly established as a face before his Wrestlemania IV match with the Million Dollar Man.

Dibiase gives details about the Andre the Giant-Hulk Hogan match on Saturday Night's Main Event that simply did NOT happen; the referee switch did NOT take place mid match, but before. This might be Dibiase's most noteworthy moment as a wrestler, seen by far more people than any other moment, but he can't get his facts straight.

Another error: He talks about how Virgil was forced to hurl an interfering fan from the exterior of the steel cage to the floor during a match with Randy Savage at Madison Square Garden. I've seen this match, as have MANY wrestling fans; security removed the fan from the cage, and Virgil feigned a kick at the fan only AFTER the fan was removed. Again, either Dibiase had his facts wrong, or he flat out lied and doesn't count on fans to have actually seen this footage.

In addition, there are editing mistakes that betray an inexcusable lack of review and editing on the part of the WWE. In one instance, Dibiase refers to the Royal Rumble as the King of the Ring tournament and goes on to mention how the WWE crowned TWO kings that night: Bret Hart and Lex Luger. He's obviously referring to the finish of the Royal Rumble where both men landed on the floor simultaneously. For a man who played such a prominent role in the first Royal Rumble pay-per-view event, and for a former King-of-the-Ring winner (before the event was televised), these types of mistakes REALLY should not be made.

Criticisms aside, I would highly recommend this autobiography simply because it is the best such work available on one of the best wrestlers of his era. However, learned wrestling fans should be advised that poor editing and weak recall of event knowledge will leave them shaking their heads several times during this book.

very basic
This is the basic story of ted dibiase. Where he grew up, hoe he got into and finally out of wrestling. Ted seemed to get along with everyone. No stories of hatred, real life feuds, etc. He mentions he tended to drink too much and briefly mentions an affair and he was a little egotistical at the peak of his million dollar man gimmick. That's about it. Pretty bland. the writing style is seems to be geared to very intermediate readers. Spend your $$ on the Bret Hart book, or even the flair book, way more engaging reads.