Ever since New York Times best selling author Mick Foley proved several years ago that some professional wrestlers can write and that many wrestling fans can actually read, we have gotten dozens of books written by wrestlers and even a few written by wrestling managers.
There were also a couple penned by or about announcers. So, it should come as no great surprise that we finally have a definitive treatise from a pro wrestling referee with former WWE arbiter Jimmy Korderas doing the honors with his recent publication from ECW Press entitled "The Three Count".
The third man in the ring has a rather unique perspective in a pro wrestling match. He also plays a critical role in what happens inside the squared circle during a bout. At his best, unless he is working a comedy bout with midgets (revealing my age a bit here), his work should lend itself to the realism and drama of the contest. The best referees usually tend to be able to blend in seamlessly with the action and avoid being noticed by the majority of the fans the majority of the time.
Unless, of course, as in other sports, they make a major mistake or, in the case of pro wrestling, are specifically used in a match to further a story line. Then, the ref finds himself in the spotlight with a higher profile than most guys sporting striped shirts prefer.
With Jimmy Korderas having worked for more than twenty years as a top WWF/WWE man in the middle, he has been in the ring with virtually all of the top stars working in the business from the 1980s thru the early 2000s.
That time period certainly covers a lot of territory and would seem to provide the opportunity for incredible first-person insights into so many of the fascinating personalities dotting the landscape of the era during which WrestleMania grew to become a global phenomenon, WWE took over the industry, withstood a substantial challenge from WCW and righted itself in time to regain a virtual stranglehold on the business in the United States.
Along with all of the hustle and bustle, travel and routine work load, road stories and escapades affiliated with the circus-like life of wrestling, Korderas was in the ring for one of the saddest events in modern pro wrestling history when Owen Hart fell to his death from the ceiling of Kemper Arena in Kansas City at a live pay per view event. In fact, Korderas narrowly escaped being a second victim of the tragedy.
Having refereed a couple of independent pro wrestling matches and having seen a couple of the author's interview transcripts, as well as a review of the Korderas book by Joe Babinsack, a well-respected wrestling journalist, I have to say I am looking forward to getting my hands on a copy of "Three Count." At the very least, it should make for some great summer beach reading.
(Shamokin's Bill Gilger "arranges" the interview each week with The Insider)