PACHINKO
MAN

The Life and Meaning 

of Pro Wrestling Legend Rikidōzan

Reserve your autographed copy of the book as soon as it becomes available in the second half of 2026, by putting down a $20 deposit toward the purchase price. The funds can be sent to paypal@muchnick.net, and your order will be acknowledged and you will be billed for the balance. (The price is expected to be set at either $22.95 or $24.95, and will include free shipping to U.S. addresses.)

Coming in 2026 from ECW Press,

distributed by Simon & Schuster

Irvin Muchnick, the late sportswriting great Frank Deford said, “produces magnificent investigative journalism.”  Reporting for Underwater: The Greed-Soaked Tale of Sexual Abuse in USA Swimming and Around the Globe (2024) spurred government and sports governance investigations in five countries. He also took on the public health crisis in football with Concussion Inc. (2015) and Without Helmets or Shoulder Pads (2023). His classic books explaining the pro wrestling phenomenon in American society include Wrestling Babylon: Piledriving Tales of Drugs, Sex, Death, and Scandal (2007) and Chris & Nancy: The True Story of the Benoit Murder-Suicide and Pro Wrestling’s Cocktail of Death (now in its third “Ultimate Historical Edition”).

Muchnick was born in St. Louis and lives in California. A former assistant director of the National Writers Union, he was lead respondent of the 2010 U.S. Supreme Court decision affirming freelance writers’ copyrights and economic rights, Reed Elsevier v. Muchnick.

Blog

Concussion Inc.’s Fresh Look

With upcoming publication of my sixth book, PACHINKO MAN: The Life and Meaning of Pro Wrestling Legend Rikidōzan, the crack staff at ConcussionInc.net LLP has redesigned

Read More »

Books

UNDERWATER

The Greed-Soaked Tale of Sexual Abuse in USA Swimming and Around the Globe

 A deep dive into the unsafety of youth athletes — in the U.S. and abroad — under the commerce-driven Olympic system

$19.95

Also available from:

CHRIS & NANCY

The True Story of the Benoit Murder-Suicide and Pro Wrestling’s Cocktail of Death

  Third and “Ultimate Historical Edition.” Full account of the sensational 2007 episode that still shines light on the dark side of the wrestling industry and of American business, media, and politics.

$22.95

Also available from:

Investigative journalism isn’t ‘peer-reviewed literature.’ It’s a contact sport.

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Concussion Inc. - Author Irvin Muchnick