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Review Of Andre The Giant Book

Posted: May 25th 2009 By: CMBurnham

The Lo-Down

Andre Roussemoff was one of the most beloved performers in the history of the wrestling business. Under the guise of Andre the Giant, he achieved international recognition, and in his prime, was legitimately an insanely popular draw. Touring the world, and becoming, at one point, supposedly the highest paid wrestler on the planet, he became one of the most recognizable faces in the industry. His match with Hulk Hogan, at WrestleMania III is one of the biggest, and most important Pro wrestling events in history, while he was a part of many memorable angles and TV segments. He also ventured into acting, most notably appearing as Fezzik, in Rob Reiner's 1987 movie, The Princess Bride.

Michael Krugman is the writer who worked alongside Lita and Eddie Guerrero, on their respective biographies.

What's in it?

Within about two minutes of holding this book in hands, I was met with colossal disappointment, and I imagine this same vibe will be felt amongst many folk who purchase this.

The legendary life of Andre is not a straightforward biography. Instead, it's a mixture of that- combined with narrative segments detailing some of his matches, and what transpired, in addition to transcriptions of promos along the way. As you could probably imagine, this combination isn't especially satisfying. It didn't work with The Rock's book, and it doesn't work here.

Throughout the main text, there's also an abundance of quotes (the best part of the entire book) from many figures who knew Andre. These include, though are not limited to, Jerry Lawler, Timmy White, Vince, Howard Finkel, Ted DiBiase, and Jack Brisco.

Legendary Life is so half-hearted; it doesn't even have a foreword! Yep, that's right; the courageous, lovable, tortured Giant, supposedly beloved by everyone and the retards in charge can't be arsed appointing someone suitable to kick the book off. Inexcusable.

Author Michael Krugman then, gives us his own intro, which is fine, but it would have been nice to have an additional piece by someone who worked with him back in the day (err, Timmy White?). This touch always helps add authenticity, and apart from anything else, is a nice fucking thing to do.

Anyways, the book kicks off with Andre's mother and father meeting, and within 7 pages, Andre's main eventing cards in Canada. What the hell?

By the second chapter, we've already arrived at the point where Vinnie Mac's dad was booking Andre, and he toured the globe, for a variety of promotions. However, the lightening fast pace does the tale a disservice, because by this point, Andre was already a massive name, and had accomplished much prior to meeting the senior McMahon. The book doesn't really convey that particularly well.

At least though, we're introduced to some of the more insightful commentators early. Tim White is almost this publication's sole saviour. His frequent comments and insights are absolutely wonderful, and entirely touching. This man loved Andre, and touring with him for years, he would have been uniquely positioned to provide the basis for a truly appropriate memoir. Maybe a series of interviews, or a fifty-fifty split between his comments and the author's. What we end up with instead is nowhere near as appealing.

What does come across well is the discussion about Arnold Skaaland, and how he came to be the Manager, and touring buddy of the Giant. He comes across as a momentous figure here.

In later chapters, the erm, insights of Hulk Hogan become more prominent. But hilariously, his views are at odds with those of Vinnie Mac. On the famous WrestleMania III epic between Hogan and Andre, Hogan states, "I told Andre I didn't want to just beat him. I wanted to give the people something they could tell their grandchildren. I wanted to body slam him."

Vince though, immediately contradicts this, with "He didn't have any ideas in that match and he wasn't supposed to. Andre told him what we were going to do. Andre called the slam." Ahh the joys of Hogan being on the outs.

Of course, the other aspect of the tale is that the book, dishonestly sticks to the claimed myth that the event drew over 93,000 fans to the Pontiac Silverdome. It drew much less. And largely, that's an issue. This is WWE fairytale land, where Vince rewrites history and then tells his fables to his children the world over. Entertaining? Sometimes -- extremely. But also to be taken with a pinch of salt.

The biggest insult is probably the ending of the book. Within about five pages, Andre makes his final WWE appearance, his final TV appearance (on WCW Clash of the Champions), does a last run in Japan, lives through his father's passing, then passes on himself. It should have been a really poignant ending, but it's brief and hurried, as if the author had suddenly had a word limit imposed on him. Most disappointing.

Add to basket?

Sigh... No. It's just not worth it. It's an unsatisfactory beast of a biography, completely inconsistent in tone. It's tricky to know where to place the blame however. Is Michael Krugman's prose not what it could be? Or is the issue more to do with the format? Was this perhaps imposed on the author?

I believe the concept is completely at fault, and it limits the biography to being an incomplete snapshot. Who the heck needs these wacky descriptions of matches, when most of us have either seen said bouts, or indeed have access to them? Hell, there's a more emotional nod to Andre in the extra features on The Princess Bride special edition!

If you want to read an affectionate and informative tribute to "The Giant", I'd advise you to save your money on this turkey, and plump for Dave Meltzer's excellent Tributes II. Then, take a peek at the excellent DVD release, The Best of Saturday Night's Main Event and you should have your fill.

Tags: Andre the Giant, Jerry Lawler, Ted DiBiase, Jack Brisco, WWE, WCW