The World Of Lucha Libre

The World of Lucha Libre is an insider’s account of lucha libre, the popular Mexican form of professional wrestling. Heather Levi spent more than a year immersed in the world of wrestling in Mexico City. Not only did she observe live events and interview wrestlers, referees, officials, promoters, and reporters; she also apprenticed with a retired luchador (wrestler). Drawing on her insider’s perspective, she explores lucha libre as a cultural performance, an occupational subculture, and a set of symbols that circulate through Mexican culture and politics. Levi argues that the broad appeal of lucha libre lies in its capacity to stage contradictions at the heart of Mexican national identity: between the rural and the urban, tradition and modernity, ritual and parody, machismo and feminism, politics and spectacle. Levi considers lucha libre in light of scholarship about sport, modernization, and the formation of the Mexican nation-state, and in connection to professional wrestling in the United States. She examines the role of secrecy in wrestling, the relationship between wrestlers and the characters they embody, and the meanings of the masks worn by luchadors. She discusses male wrestlers who perform masculine roles, those who cross-dress and perform feminine roles, and female wrestlers who wrestle each other. Investigating the relationship between lucha libre and the mass media, she highlights the history of the sport’s engagement with television: it was televised briefly in the early 1950s, but not again until 1991. Finally, Levi traces the circulation of lucha libre symbols in avant-garde artistic movements and its appropriation in left-wing political discourse. The World of Lucha Libre shows how a sport imported from the United States in the 1930s came to be an iconic symbol of Mexican cultural authenticity.

From the ring to the kitchen, celebrate lucha libre with popular Mexican dishes offering a modern twist from iconic athletes, legends, and superstars in this one-of-a-kind cookbook for wrestling fans and aspiring chefs alike. Lucha libre—or, professional Mexican wrestling—is the most popular sport in Mexico after soccer and has become an international pop culture phenomenon all over the world. This officially licensed cookbook with the Legends of Lucha Libre includes more than 50 favorite Mexican dishes with a modern-day twist from the sport's most celebrated luchadores and luchadoras including Solar, Super Astro, Penta Zero M, Lady Maravilla, and more. Also included are fun stories and facts on championship details and family legacies, dozens of photos of wrestlers in the ring and in the kitchen, and illustrations of delicious food. Written by Mexico's leading female lucha libre journalist, Mónica "Centellita" Ochoa has interviewed some of the most well-known wrestlers in lucha libre, costume designers, and restaurant owners from around the globe to compile this must-have collection of recipes fit for hungry luchadores and their families. Recipes include: Super Astro's six-pound Gladiator Torta Taya Valkyrie's sweet and savory Carne Asada Penta Zero M's zero fear Chicken Fajitas with Bell Peppers Tinieblas Jr.'s twist on Surf and Turf luchador-style WWE Hall of Famer Amy Dumas's vegan Tlacoyo de Nopal and more!

Señoras y Señores, put your hands together for the fantastic, spectacular, one of a kind . . . Niño! Fwap! Slish! Bloop! Krunch! He takes down his competition in a single move! No opponent is too big a challenge for the cunning skills of Niño—popsicle eater, toy lover, somersault expert, and world champion lucha libre competitor! A Neal Porter Book Latino Interest. In English with Spanish vocabulary.

Margarito acts like any other eleven-year-old aficionado of lucha libre. He worships all the players. But in the summer just before sixth grade, he tumbles over the railing at a match in San Antonio and makes a connection to the world of Mexican wrestling that will ultimately connect him—maybe by blood!—to the greatest hero of all time: the Guardian Angel. A 2012 Pura Belpré Author Honor Award winner! Xavier Garza was born in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. An enthusiastic author, artist, teacher, and storyteller, his work is a lively documentation of the dreams, superstitions, and heroes in the bigger-than-life world of south Texas.

Take one part Mexi-Monster cinema, one part Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, throw in a little Zoro, the WWF and the knit-costume-wearing performance art collective Forcefield, and you come up with the raw, vivid, and psychologically unhinged world of "Lucha Libre" the sports-entertainment phenomenon that first swept Mexico and now the world. Photographer Lourdes Grobet's penentrating study of Mexican professional wrestling culture features more than 500 photographs of "luchadores" like Blue Demon, Santo, The Witch, Adorable Rub', El Solitario and Hurricane Ramirez, as well as pictures of their families, friends and fans--onstage, backstage and even at home. "Lucha Libre" also includes photographs of stickers, flyers, postcards, stills from "Mexi-lucha-cinema," interviews with the wrestlers, essays and much, much more! In this comprehensive 20-year study, Grobet has put together "the" definitive look at Mexico's masked superstars.

From the host of the critically acclaimed pro wrestling podcast Straight Shoot, this graphic novel history of wrestling features the key grapplers, matches, and promotions that shaped this beloved sport and form of entertainment. As a pop culture phenomenon, professional wrestling--with its heroic babyfaces and villainous heels performing suplexes and powerbombs in pursuit of championship gold--has conquered audiences in the United States and around the world. Now, writer/podcaster Aubrey Sitterson and illustrator Chris Moreno form a graphic novel tag team to present wrestling's complete illustrated history. Featuring legendary wrestlers like Bruno Sammartino, Hulk Hogan, and The Rock, and modern-day favorites like John Cena, Kenny Omega, and Sasha Banks, the book covers wrestling's progress from the carnival days of the Gold Dust Trio to the dominance of the WWF/WWE to today's diverse independent wrestling scene, and it spotlights wrestling's reach into Mexico/Puerto Rico (lucha libre), the U.K. (all-in), and Japan (puroresu).

Jesse Baron, the son of the American Championship Wrestling star known as the Angel of Death, is about to graduate from high school. His parents expect him to attend the University of Texas and study mechanical engineering, something he’s not interested in. The young man knows he would be a natural at professional wrestling, and with his father’s help he might even reach the same level of fame and success. But the Angel of Death, retired from the ACW and running a wrestling promotion and school, refuses to train his son for fear he will choose sports entertainment over a college degree. Jesse decides that once he gets settled at UT, he's going to look for another place to wrestle. To keep his father from finding out, he’ll promote himself as a masked luchador from Oaxaca, Mexico, named Mascara de la Muerte. When no one will hire him, Jesse reluctantly considers joining a lucha libre organization, even though he doesn’t speak Spanish. Will the fans and his fellow wrestlers see him as a luchador—or just a gringo with a mask? In this stand-alone sequel to his acclaimed novels, My Father, the Angel of Death and Body Slammed!, Ray Villareal continues his exploration of a teenager growing into manhood against the backdrop of the wrestling world.

Lucha Libre wrestling is nothing short of a phenomenon. Its inescapable visuals have completely permeated the mainstream, and its popularity grows exponentially every year, expanding out from Latin America to hold the entire world in its vise–grip. Dan Madigan will provide the ultimate guide for Lucha fans, in an awesome four–color book that will be undoubtedly informative and incredibly entertaining. Posters, photos, wrestling cards, handbills, mementos will be featured throughout the book. Personal recollections, quotes, stories and memories of Luchador's lives and experiences will provide the backdrop for a completely unique experience in sports.