Chapter Summaries

Mick Foley begins his book with the story of how he lost 2/3 of his right ear in Munich Germany, March 17, 1994. He was fighting Vader in what he thought would be a typical match. When Vader threw Foley into the ropes Mick twisted his head in-between the middle and top rope, while his body dangled outside the ring below. This was a move Mick had perfected in the past, and used on multiple occasions but tonight it would be different. The ropes were much tighter that what Mick could stand, and he quickly noticed himself getting lightheaded. He knew his only hope was to squeeze his head between the ropes, and escape, otherwise his head would be crushed between the ropes. He did escape, but unfortunately there wasn't enough slack in the ropes for his head and ears to fit through simultaneously.

The upper two-thirds of his ear was ripped off. He began bleeding profusely as the referee placed the ear in his pocket and the match was concluded. In the hospital, Mick was unable to have his ear re-attached, and because he didn't know the German word for “formaldehyde” the doctor threw the ear in the trash.

Fall 1983, Mick was a lifeguard at the Stony Brook Racquet Club. He couldn't be a lifeguard on the beach because of his physique, or lack there of, but he enjoyed lacrosse and so the job was a perfect fit. He enjoyed comedy and entered the talent show. He and his friends won the popular vote, but were disqualified by administrators for singing an inappropriate song. Later on, he got in a fight with his friend Dave and was “busted wide open”. While all the spectators screamed and ran away, horrified at the vision of blood, he looked in the mirror and “like what he saw”.

In order to gain practice for the upcoming Lacrosse season, he tried out for the track team. When the coach saw that Mick was not well endowed in the running department, he suggested that Mick take up wrestling. Mick took him up on the offer and found that he liked wrestling so much, he actually lost interest in playing lacrosse.

As Mick's love for wrestling grew, he became greatly interested in watching professional wrestling. One of his favorite wrestlers was `Superfly' Jimmy Snuka. When Mick heard that the Superfly would be wrestling Don Muraco in a steel cage at Madison Square Garden, Mick bought a ticket and hitchhiked for hours just to see the match. He doesn't remember much of the other matches on the card, but he got goosebumps when the technicians constructed the cage during intermission.

Mick never had much luck with women. His first really great date was with a girl named Kathy. Everything went perfect. At the end of the date he dropped Kathy off at her house and told her that he had a great time. She replied by saying, “I had a great time too Frank.” Mick went home after that date hurt, and his friends never let him live it down.

This experience inspired Mick to create a story, which he and his friends adapted into a home movie on a borrowed 8mm camera. The story was called, “The legend of Frank Foley” and was a fictional story about Mick, who attempted suicide after a girl called him Frank. His friends attempted to console him, but `Frank' Foley jumped out the window. When his friends rescued him, they brought him back in the house and recuperated him. The story is more comical than this synopsis might sound, and was so well received that Mick and his friends made a sequel a few months later.

The sequel “The Loved One” had a similar plot, with Mick Foley coming back from humiliation and turning into Dude Love. Dude Love was a chick magnet destined to win the World Heavyweight Title in the WWF. The battle between Mick and the “WWF Champion” was shot at a friend's house and contained a scene with Mick Foley jumping off of Danny Zucker's roof and landing on mattresses and boxes. This stunt was subject to much bootlegging and a copy somehow made its way into the hands of former wrestler Dominic Denucci. Denucci was so impressed with Mick's fortitude, that he invited him to join his wrestling school.

Mick helped set up rings for Dominic's independent shows and took classes on the side. Mick would drive 400 miles from home, to attend the wrestling school and then drive 400 miles back, every weekend.

The life of a professional wrestler on the independent circuit was hard and Mick felt that he wasn't any good at it and was beginning to hate it. One good lesson Mick learned from Denucci was that he needed to graduate from college, because as Dominic said, “Don't think you gonna make a living doing this bullshit.”

When it was time for Mick to be given his first match he decided on the name Cactus Jack. When considering a good origin for the character, a postal worker named Hank Hudson suggested a place known as Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. Mick loved the idea and agreed wholeheartedly.

After only one match, Mick was asked to join other local independent wrestlers in competing in the WWF for one match, at a local show. In these matches local talent would be asked to “JOB” to WWF Superstars. This means they would get their butts kicked by the WWF guys. Mick wasn't allowed to use his gimmick name (Cactus Jack), but instead was referred to as Mick Foley. He also wasn't allowed to mount an offence. Mick's opponents, in this tag team match, where the British Bulldogs, two built guys known for slamming their opponents. When asked what Mick was good at, he told them he could take a pretty good bump, meaning he could be thrown around and take a lot of punishment. That is exactly was Mick got. It was his first time on TV and was quite embarrassed at the painful lashing he received, but felt that he had accomplished something.

Mick continued wrestling on the independent circuit and occasionally appearing in the WWF when they were in town, for the next several months. Bill Watts invited Mick to wrestle for him in the Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF). Mick would be wrestling as Cactus Jack in front of 1,000 fans. Mick was excited and wrestled a man named Troy in his first match. Afterwards Mick was received with a lot of praise and hopes of making a name for himself.

In his second match, Mick made the blunder of going down to an elbow that missed by at least two feet. The fans laughed at Mick, as this was an obvious rookie mistake, and Mick would never forgive himself. He was then asked by Dominic Denucci to join him in a trip to West Africa. Mick agreed on the terms that he would be compensated $3,000 by African President Sankora. In the 60,000 seat stadium only 10,000 spectators showed, but Mick was still happy that he would make $3,000. After the tour, Mick returned to the United States to hear that President Sankora was assassinated and his government overthrown. Mick knew that he would never see the money. Two more trips to Africa later, Mick was $480 richer and running short on blood.

After graduating College, Mick worked 60 hours a week, making $400, between three different jobs and wrestled on the weekends. He received a couple offers with other wrestling promotions and took one with Championship Wrestling Association in Memphis Tennessee. There he was able to wrestle full time, and be part of a weekly TV that ran live in Memphis and was then syndicated in surrounding communities. For the first time he was able to make a decent living off of wrestling alone. He visited Japan for the first time and had a grueling match that resulted in substantial blood loss.

Mick then went to Texas, competing in World Class Championship Wrestling. There he lived in a trashy house with many other people. It wasn't the atmosphere that he liked and asked for a vacation. In order to get the vacation time, Mick had to fake an injury by taking the Nestea Plunge onto the concrete. This was a move he'd used sparingly in the past, but people in Texas had never seen it before and thought he was really hurt. The bump hurt, but wasn't as serious as fans thought. Afterward he was carried off in the stretcher and stayed in the arena for hours after the show was over, waiting for the parking lot to clear out, so nobody would see he wasn't really hurt.

When he returned to World Class, Mick was placed in a scaffolding match. This is one of the most dangerous matches of the day. In order to win, a wrestler had to knock his opponent off of the scaffolding, to the ring twenty feet below. Mick was going to lose the match and so was a little apprehensive about performing in the match. Mick did the match however, and unfortunately knocked himself silly during the fall and broke his wrist. Mick was required to wear a cast for the following three months, while he continued to wrestle. WCCW's popularity was on the decline and Mick Foley subsequently decided to leave in hopes of finding a better job.

In Alabama, at another local promotion, Mick made a whopping $220 in only three months, and shared an apartment with six other wrestlers (talk about cozy). Cactus Jack had a decent feud with a wrestler named “Starr” but the Alabama based promotion was floundering and announced they would be folding after Thanksgiving. Mick was out of a job and broke.

With an invite from an old friend, Shane Douglas (also a student of Dominic Denucci) Mick attended a television taping of WCW. World Championship Wrestling was becoming known as an up-and-coming national federation, and would soon be purchased by Ted Turner to rival Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation. Mick was offered a job at WCW, making $1,000 a week. In what he considered the biggest match of his career, to date, Cactus Jack took the Nestea Plunge in front of a National Cable Television audience in February at Clash of the Champions. Afterward, Mick was given a raise to $1,500 a week. Due to backstage problems with “Old School” booker (match-maker) Ole Anderson, Mick decided to leave WCW. His WCW stay spanned November 1989 - June 1990.

Mick went back to the independent circuit. To his surprise, he met a former model at a racetrack and the two began dating. Colette would later become Mrs. Mick Foley. Colette didn't care much for wrestling, but for some reason she fell for Mick. Cactus Jack returned to Japan in March 1991 and became known for using the Japanese crowd as a mosh pit. There he wrestled Terry Funk, a man who would become Mick's closest friend (besides Colette).

Cactus also wrestled in America for a promotion known as TWA. TWA was known for its bloody, hardcore matches and was actually the precursor to Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) and also known for having some of the biggest independent shows in the U.S. It was there that Cactus Jack competed in the first Barbed Wire match against Eddie Gilbert. This match was so barbaric for American fans to watch, that some spectators actually puked. This made Mick Foley very proud.

Cactus Jack was lured back to WCW to engage in a feud with Sting. Sting was one of WCW's premier talents, but was currently suffering a decline in popularity. WCW hoped to bring in some short-term wrestlers, whom Sting could conquest in hopes of regaining fan support. Mick proposed a plan to Sting, which would help get both wrestlers over (wrestling term meaning popular) simultaneously. This was foreign to Sting, but when the match started to gain fan interest Sting decided to go with it.

The office liked Cactus Jack so much, they offered him a contract for $78,000 for the first year, with the option to renew for a following year at $156,000. Mick requested 156 from the start, and surprisingly received it.

Mick could finally afford a nice home, a car, and a comfortable living for his wife Colette and his forthcoming son Dewey. Mick has some fond memories of these days with WCW, including funny stories on the road with guys like Diamond Dallas Page (DDP) and Steve Austin.

February 20, 1992, Dewey Francis Foley is born. Dewey became sick at two months, which worried Mick. The doctors couldn't diagnose what was wrong, and the illness spread to Cactus Jack, who began having trouble during matches because of coughing. The two were diagnosed with whooping cough and eventually healed.

Bill Watts took over the backstage affairs of WCW and began stirring things up. Watts began making pay cuts and became more strict on wrestlers. He discouraged any fraternizing with wrestlers in public, no family visits and required that nobody leave the arena until after the final bell of the final match was rung. Most wrestlers didn't like Bill, but the office admired his take-charge personality.

Cactus Jacks' most painful injury was inflicted in a match against WCW Heavyweight Champion Ron Simmons. When Cactus performed his patented flying elbow off the ring apron, he felt excruciating pain emanate from his hip. He then re-entered the ring, in order to conclude the match, and was given a spinebuster and powerslam before being pinned. Afterward, Mick was asked to return to ringside and provide commentary for the following match.

Mick was diagnosed with having a pulled abdominal muscle and required a wheel chair to get through the airport. Mick felt very foolish, that the source for his pain was a mere muscle pull.

Bill Watts was replaced in the office by commentator Eric Bischoff. Many wrestlers were relieved and hoped this would usher in a new era for WCW. Unfortunately, Cactus Jack was not able to cash in on this turn of events, and didn't appear to gain any substantial matches.

Mick worked out a deal with booker Dusty Rhodes, to have Cactus injured by Vader resulting in amnesia. Mick didn't like the idea because it sounded too much like a soap opera, but agreed to the idea only because it would grant Mick some much needed time off, with pay.

WCW scriptwriters gave Cactus Jack some cheesy vignettes to shoot during his amnesia hiatus. Writers told Mick the best way to work the angle was with the comedic route. As Mick predicted, the segments weren't widely accepted by fans and the storyline was dropped before Mick could see a return match with Vader.

Mick wasn't satisfied with his treatment in WCW, and knew he wouldn't be able to gain a pay raise. Mick would have left for the WWF, but was told Vince McMahon wasn't interested. Mick re-signed with WCW at $156,000.

After the loss of his ear in Germany, the WCW scriptwriters failed to capitalize on what could have been a compelling feud with Vader. Who wouldn't pay to see a man whose ear got ripped off, to take on the man responsible for it? Dusty Rhodes, was replaced by Ric Flair, as head booker and he, didn't feel Cactus Jack belonged in main event matches.

Foley didn't want to stick around, continuing to lose. He asked for permission to leave, for six months, to have reconstructive surgery on his ear. Before Mick could have the surgery he was called back to action by Flair who said he needed Cactus Jack. Mick never did get that reconstructive surgery.

To make Cactus Jack feel more content, he was eventually given a match with Vader, one year after the international ear incident. Mick felt it was a great match, complete with blood and carnage, but when the match had been edited for family viewing Foley was insulted. Mick still had high hopes that the commentators would capitalize on the situation and give the match worthy commentary. As Mick watched the match on television he soon realized that wasn't the case. There was no mention of the ear incident, and no exclamatory outbursts when Cactus Jack took a big bump. The lack of sufficient commentary for a hard fought match-up was a slap in the face to Mick Foley, and he promptly told WCW officials that he wanted out of WCW.

Even though Cactus Jack was currently the co-holder of the WCW Tag Team Titles with Kevin Sullivan, he decided to wrestle with ECW. In a special contest, Mick fought ECW wrestler Sabu. Mick was confident in the match's quality, but knew that it hadn't lived up to some fans high expectations. After the match Cactus Jack spit on the WCW Tag Team Belts. This action prompted a call from booker Ric Flair who seemed quite troubled that Mick would desecrate the belts in that manner.

Cactus Jack turned on his partners Kevin Sullivan and Dave Taylor in the WCW storyline. Mick was worried this would hurt his popularity with fans, but people actually cheered him.

Because of Cactus Jack's national exposure in WCW he was able to receive $500-$700 per night on the independent circuit. Unfortunately, fan support for Cactus was low.

Cactus Jack joins ECW. There he performed four shows a month and was reunited with friend Terry Funk. One aspect of ECW Mick particularly enjoyed, was the fan involvement. The shows were taped at a bingo hall in Philadelphia, which happened to be right next store to a small shop where fans could purchase inexpensive objects to be given to their favorite wrestlers as weapons. Cactus Jacks favorite object was a canoe, but also remembers using such strange objects, like a cast iron skillet and Leonard Cohen Album.

Mick attempted to hawk merchandise for extra money, but fans weren't interested, until the creation of the “Wanted Dead” T-Shirt. This shirt featured an old-west photo of Cactus Jack with a title that read “Wanted Dead”. This shirt was the most popular item sold in ECW.

Cactus Jack was scripted to win the ECW Tag Team Titles along with his idol and friend Terry Funk. But when Funk decided to take a break from wrestling, Foley brought in the unlikely partner of Mikey Whipwreck, a man known for his incredible losing streak. When the two men won the Tag Titles, the crowd went ballistic, and Cactus knew he had picked a great partner.

Cactus Jack returned to Japan once again because of his reputation of being one of the most hardcore competitors in America. In Japan, fans can't get enough of bloody wrestling wars. They don't care if the wrestlers are in shape as long as they can take and give out large quantities of punishment. It was in Japan that Cactus Jack took on Japanese icon Nakamaki. Cactus also created the flaming chair, using a lighter, a rag and a chair. Cactus would light the chair on fire and deliver punishing blows on Nakamaki. In Japan, Cactus Jack was a premier attraction.

Foley ends the chapter by taking a break from remembering the past and writing about something that happened while writing the book. That is the death of Owen Hart. Mick stresses that Owen was loved, not only by Foley, but also by everyone in the locker room. Owen Hart died during a pay per view event on May 29, 1999. Owen was to be lowered from the ceiling, but a problem with the harness cause him to be released prematurely and he fell 60 feet into the ring bellow. EMT's were unsuccessful in resuscitating Hart and he was pronounced dead shortly thereafter.

The Tokyo Skydome was the setting for the thirteen-promotion supercard, which grossed $6 Million and had 64,000 spectators in attendance. At this show, each of the thirteen offices submitted one match to represent them. Each office put their best foot forward, in the hopes that their match would be the most memorable.

Cactus Jack would compete as part of an 8-man Barbed Wire Board, Barbed Wire Bat Match. The match didn't receive the best response from the crowd, but was brutal nonetheless.

Colette got a second chance at modeling. After giving birth to Dewey, and their second child Noelle, Colette exercised her way back into modeling shape. To help her out, Mick decided to move the family to New York.

The longest day of Mick Foley's career. Cactus Jack was part of a one night, 8-man, King of the Death Match Tournament. In the opening round Cactus defeated Terry Gordy in a thumbtack match. Afterward, Mick realized that there where no beverages backstage and he would have to buy something to drink from the concession stand. Fortunately, there were plenty of fans willing to treat Cactus Jack to a drink.

In the final match of the tournament, Cactus Jack met Terry Funk in an all out war for the title of King of Hardcore. The match would contain everything from barbed wire, to ladders, chairs, and C-4 explosives. Mick and Terry went all out in this match-up, battering, bruising, burning and cutting their body in places they forgot even existed. In the end, Cactus Jack came out the winner and was crowned King of the Death Match.

Cactus Jack built up a reputation in ECW as being one of the best interviewers. Turning heal turned out to be something Mick was good at. He knew how to push the fans buttons, without causing the fans to sympathize with the character. Cactus Jack's tirades where directed toward ECW fan favorite Tommy Dreamer. In the interviews, Cactus would plead Dreamer to give up his dangerous, hardcore lifestyle in ECW and take a comfortable job wrestling for WCW and making a lot more money. Of course, Dreamer wouldn't take Cactus up on the offer, and the fans loved to see Cactus Jack on the receiving end of a Dreamer DDT.

Mick Foley was invited by Jim Ross to have an interview with Vince McMahon. In the interview Vince called Mick, “Mike” (which hurt his feelings) but offered him a job with the WWF. Vince wanted Mick to be known as Manson “the Mutilator” and wanted him to wear an iron mask. Mick didn't understand why Vince wouldn't want him to be Cactus Jack, and Vince explained that it would be better if the WWF could create it's own identity for the wrestlers and not rely on past experiences to get wrestlers over.

The iron mask idea didn't work, as it was an inconceivable design for something a person would wear while in the ring. Mick was uncomfortable using the name “Manson” and asked Vince if he could change it. Vince asked Mick if he had a better idea and Mick said, “Uh... Mankind?” Vince liked the idea of Mankind “the Mutilator” as it would pose a double meaning. The character was meant to be a deranged, deformed, individual bent on maiming his opponents. Mick came up with the idea of ending his matches with nice piano music. This was something that hadn't been done before, but could have the potential to make the Mankind character even more disturbing.

When looking for a new finishing maneuver for his new character, Jim Cornette suggested a move called the Mandible Claw. The move was originated by southern wrestler, the real, infamous Dr. Sam Sheppard. (Dr. Sheppard was a physician accused of killing his wife, the ruling was later overturned, and the television series “The Fugitive” was based off of him) He couldn't return to his regular job because of his reputation so he became a professional wrestler. Sheppard's knowledge of the human anatomy allowed him to create a move that required the middle finger and ring finger to be placed inside a person's mouth, underneath the tongue. There the pressure exerted by the fingers would pinch nerves in the person's mouth, which would render them numb. The thumb could provide added pressure from underneath the chin.

Cactus Jack finished his stay in ECW, continuing to enrage the crowds and being humiliated by the wrestlers. Cactus' own tag team partner Mikey Whipwreck turned on him, clocking Cactus with a steel chair.

Cactus' last match in ECW would be against Mikey Whipwreck. Cactus was the villain and Mikey was the face, and in the end Cactus came out victorious. Afterward, even Mick Foley was surprised with the response. The fans cheered for him. Mick said goodbye to the fans and thanked them for their acceptance of him over he past years.

The Mankind vignettes had already begun airing on WWF programming. Mick stepped into his first match in the WWF in a dark match (non-televised match) against Aldo Montoya. He was pleased when his character was announced as “Mankind”. Not only had Vince taken Mick's suggestion, he had dropped the “Mutilator” part from the name. After the match was over Mick was even more pleased to hear the eerie piano music playing over the arena.

Mankind debuted on national television on Monday Night Raw against Bob Holly. After making quick work of Holly, Mankind would return to the ring and attack WWF mainstay the Undertaker. This would catapult Mankind into a big place in the WWF.

After big pay per view matches, including fighting the Undertaker in the first ever Broiler Room Brawl at SummerSlam '96, a World Title Match with Shawn Michaels at Mind Games, and a Buried Alive Match against the Undertaker, Mick was unsure of what was next.

The office wanted to put Mankind in a feud with Marc Mero, but Mick didn't see a future in that storyline. Instead he suggested teaming with Vader, his old buddy from WCW. Vince agreed and together Mankind and Vader won their first Federation Tag Team Championships.

The doctors had some bad news for Foley. His back condition was getting serious and would require rehabilitation. Vince told Mick to take off whatever time he needed. The doctors wanted to operate with a 50% chance that Mick may not be able to wrestle again after the surgery. Mick chose another option; rehabilitate the injured spine the old fashioned way. Mick reduced the swelling with ice packs and heat pads. He exercised and massaged the area, using physical therapy to help the body to repair the damaged disks and return the spine to a healthy state.

Jim Ross (aka J.R.) had the idea to perform some in-depth interviews with Mankind. These interviews allowed Mick to use some instances from his past and exaggerate them into extraordinary stories that would captivate audiences around the world. Much like his interviews in ECW, Mick had a knack for moving people with his words. J.R. even delved into Mick's ambition of becoming a WWF Superstar and showed clips from his backyard wrestling days. Jim Ross talked about Mick's aspirations to become Dude Love, and his decade long struggle as Cactus Jack.

At the end of the interviews, Mankind becomes so enraged by the questions posed by J.R. that he attacks him, and applies the Mandible Claw. As technicians scream in horror off camera, and Jim Ross convulses and coughs up foam on the floor, WWF audiences couldn't help but sympathize for Mankind. These interviews, originally intended to bring out Mankind's troubled past and deranged tendencies actually aided in making Mankind more human.

The interviews also allowed Mick, to showcase his other personalities, including a once improbable stint as Dude Love and open the doorway for Cactus Jack to set foot in the WWF. All made for good television and emotional moments.

During this time, Vince asked all wrestlers to help usher in a new era in the WWF, the era of “Attitude”. This would be Vince's primary weapon, used in taking down the titanic WCW, his number one competitor.

Mick Foley gained the Tag Team Championship again, this time with Terry Funk. Terry wasn't going by his original gimmick, instead he would wear a pair of pantyhose over his face, carry a chainsaw, and be referred to as Chainsaw Charlie.

Mick turned heal, joining the evil Mr. McMahon character, to combat WWF Heavyweight Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin. Mick didn't win the belt, but was back in the World Title hunt.

What is arguably Mick Foley's most memorable match was the Hell in a Cell Match with the Undertaker. The two competitors set out to perform a match, the likes of which had never been seen before, and the fans received precisely that. Mick had never been battered more in any match in his career and appeared as if he were broken on more than one occasion. What Mick wasn't ready to deal with, was the reaction from Colette, Dewey and Noelle. This was when the family first understood the pain “daddy” is subjected to in “fake” wrestling. Mick vowed not to expose them to a similar display for quite some time.

Later in the year, Mick Foley realized his dream when he became World Wrestling Federation Champion. It was a journey he'd began 15 years prior, and finally culminated, just in time for the publication of his first book.

Since the writing of this book, Mick has also published another autobiography called, “Foley is Good” which picks up where this book ends, and has also written two children's books. All of Mick's writings have become New York Times Best Sellers, and Mick continues to write to this day.