As seen on WWE Raw last night, the WWE has published a WWE Encyclopedia, which can be found at our online store. Here is a review of the book by Steven Wilson, of MainEventRadio.com:

The title of the book is a claim that is sure to leave many skeptical. In order to be the definitive guide to a company with 45+ years of history you need to work endlessly to make sure you don’t leave anything out. Vince McMahon’s forward to the book proclaims it to be the “first ever official documented history of the WWE”, Throughout the years we’ve all heard about superstars and events going down in the history books and now we have an officially recognized WWE history book, and quite frankly it’s an extremely impressive one.

Authored by former WWE employees Brian Sheilds and Kevin Sullivan (no not the taskmaster) and coming in at over 350 full colored pages, profiling nearly a 1000 superstars and utilizing over 1500 images from the WWE and PWI archives, the WWE encyclopedia is packed with more than enough information for you to become an expert on the who’s who and the what’s what of the WWE.

As with any encyclopedia, the book runs from A to Z. The majority of entries are the profiles of the superstars of the WWE. This includes the obvious big names such as Stone Cold, John Cena, Taker and Michaels, but also includes the names you possibly never heard of or tried to forget such as the Battle Kat, Mystery Man and Friar Furgeson, It even includes those you probably didn’t even expect to be in the book. I speak of course of the names WWE chooses to forget sometimes, the most obvious being Chris Benoit who is recognized with a half page bio with no mention of the 2007 tragedy. Those who have crossed Vince McMahon, those who have sued him and those that are currently working against him in TNA are all recognized as well, which to me was a sign that for once the WWE was not going to censor a product because of a grudge they have with someone, which scores it bonus points in heading towards the goal of being the definitive guide.

A title history for every single WWE title is featured in the book. From little known titles such as the Woman’s Tag Team Championship or the World Martial Arts Heavyweight Championship to the most obvious WWE Championship, every single champion is recognized. The one odd thing is that the WWE officially recognized the entire US title history while in WCW but did not recognize the World Heavyweight championships history prior to their adopting of it in 2002.

Pay Per Views and Television is also recognized. A complete history of Wrestlemania caps off the book, while other PPV’s include a recap of the main events of said shows. 30 years of WWE television is also documented with a short explanation of each show. Spotlghts on WWE merchandise, Video Games, Fan signs and superstars in themovies are also included.

The book has a suggested retail price of 45$ American but is available via Amazon for 30$, The book is hardcovered and sports large 12 by 9 pages. I was legitimately impressed with the presentation of the book and its wealth of information, For those wondering for the most part the book is kayfabed. No real names, identities of masked superstars or post WWE career information is included, but nonetheless this book is a must for any true WWE fan and can be a reference tool for those who write or speak about the company as you can certainly learn a lot about the company’s history. Is it the definitive guide to the history of the WWE? It’s pretty darn close, I would definitely consider this the definitive guide to the kayfabe side of the WWE, while the definitive guide to the business side of the company and how it evolved through the years could easily fill another book, and or has been covered in an array of other books over the years.

Thanks, Steven. The WWE Encyclopedia sounds like a gotta have item for any wrestling fan. I am going to be sure to get my own copy, especially since it is at a really good price. Be sure to pick up a copy at our online wrestling store. Or, for a direct link to the WWE Encyclopedia click here.

As what might not have come as a real surprise by some. fomer WWE Wrestler Andrew “Test” Martin was found dead in his Tampa, Fla., apartment Friday night. He was 33 years old. It was just days before his 34th birthday. The cause of death has not yet been released. Tampa police responded to a call from a concerned neighbor, who had requested a welfare check. The neighbor said she could see into his apartment at Post Harbor Apartments and noticed that Test appeared motionless for several hours. The police do not expect any foul play at this time. An autopsy will be performed.

The 6-foot-6, 280-pound Martin held numerous WWE titles but was best known for his storyline “romances” with Stephanie McMahon (the daughter of promotion owner Vince McMahon) and Stacy Keibler. Martin and Keibler, now an actress who appeared on Dancing With the Stars, had an off-screen relationship as well until splitting several years ago.

After a popular stint with the company in the 90’s, Martin’s second WWE stint was bumpy. As soon as he re-debuted with them, he looked much more muscular, which had fans claiming he was steroid or some sort of enhancement drug. He received a major push the WWE’s Extreme Championship Wrestling brand, bu failed a drug test and was suspended under the promotion’s wellness policy in February 2007. Shortly thereafter, Martin requested and received his WWE release.

Most recently, Martin worked for NWA-TNA Wrestling under the name “The Punisher” Andrew Martin. Since then, Test faded in and out of the wrestling business, recently completing an overseas tour. He was arrested on a DUI charge near his Tampa home in April 2008.

It is another sad ending to a young wrestler’s life.

On the heels of a very successful return to the big screen in “The Wrestler”, Mickey Rourke has been selected to play Whiplash in Iron Man 2.

Variety is reporting that the 56-year-old actor had reportedly been offered only $250,000 to play the role. On Feb. 18, New York magazine reported that the deal seemed to have fallen apart, although sources told EW the next day that it wasn’t necessarily dead yet. Rourke’s agents have since renegotiated his deal, Variety says, but there’s no word on exactly how much he’ll be paid. Rourke will play a Russian character called Whiplash, using elements from another comic book bad guy, Crimson Dynamo.

Rourke recently scored an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of professional wrestler Randy “The Ram” Robinson, in “The Wrestler”. That was a movie about a once headlining professional wrestler who, now at the end of his career, makes his way through the independent circuit, trying to get back in the game for one final showdown with his former rival.

This story doesn’t necessarily relate to wrestling, except for that fact that Rourke has been welcomed into the wrestling world with open arms for his dead-on portrayal of a has-been wrestler in “The Wrestler”, plus he is going to be in attendance in WrestleMania 25, and have some role in a match with Chris Jericho.

As seen on WWE Raw earlier tonight, Shawn Michaels won the right to wrestle The Undertaker at WrestleMania 25 by defeating Vladimir Kozlov. It was Kozlov’s first defeat in the WWE since he debuted a year ago.

As first rumored back in December here at The Wrestling Frenzy, it will be “Mr. WrestleMania” Shawn Michaels against “The Phenom” The Undertaker. This promisses to be a great battle, and could be the match of the night, which would be nothing new to Michaels. The Undertaker will put his streak of 16-0 on the line, at perhaps his last WrestleMania, against Shawn Michaels, who has had some of the greatest matches in the long history of WrestleMania. For more, check out my original post about Shawn Michaels facing The Undertaker at Wrestlemania 25.