Wrestlers are like Seagulls

Wrestlers Are Like Seagulls: From McMahon to McMahon by Scott Teal


Wrestlers are like Seagulls is the biography of former wrestling personality J.J. Dillon.

Wrestlers are like Seagulls covers the career on J.J. Dillon. Unlike many similar books, Dillon knows wrestling is the star of the show and his wrestling career coverage starts at the 2% mark.

Dillon talks about working as a referee until getting his break as a wrestler working for The Sheik in Detroit. His career in Amarillo, the Canadian Maritimes, and working for Crockett promotions is covered, as well as his transition from wrestler to manager to behind the scenes booker.

Dillon's account of the behind the scenes part of the wrestling business is why I bought the book and it did not disappoint. He talks about which wrestlers were hard to deal with as well as the logistics involved with taping TV segments and running shows in adjacent towns. He talks about how cable TV and the internet changed the wrestling business forever.

Once his days as an on-air personality were over and he worked primarily backstage, things really got interesting. Dillon talks about how working for the WWF drove him into bankruptcy after Vince McMahon's steroid scandal, and what working for WCW in the declining years of the company was like.

Lastly, Dillon talks about where he ended up when the wrestling business shat him out, working as a thrice-divorced corrections officer in Delaware.

For a wrestling book, it's really well written and surprisingly free of venom. I felt like he might have been holding back a bit but I don't really have any complaints about this book. Four out of five stars.

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