“In a class by itself. A serious history of one of this country’s goofiest pastimes.” —The Washington Post
The Queen of the Ring is the story of Mildred Burke, the longest reigning champion of female wrestling. In this in-depth account, Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Jeff Leen pulls back the curtain on a forgotten era when a petite midwesterner used her beauty and brawn to dominate America’s most masculine sport.
At only five feet two, Mildred Burke was an unlikely candidate for the ring. A waitress barely scraping by on Depression-era tips, she saw her way out when she attended her first wrestling match. When women were still struggling for equality with men, Burke regularly fought—and beat—male wrestlers. Rippling with muscle and dripping with diamonds, she walked the fine line between pin-up beauty and hardened brawler.
An unforgettable slice of Americana, The Queen of the Ring captures the golden age of wrestling, when one gritty, glamorous woman rose through the ranks to take her place in athletic history.
About the Author :
Jeffrey Leen is the assistant managing editor for the Washington Post’s investigations unit, where his work has helped win six Pulitzer Prizes. Also the author of KINGS OF COCAINE, the first book-length investigation of Columbia’s Medellin cartel, he lives in Maryland.
Review :
“A story as bizarre and titillating as wrestling’s own carnival roots. . . . Flavored with authentic speech and dedicated to accuracy, this biography is the tale of an underdog who triumphed.” —Publishers Weekly
“Leen can deliver gripping scenes . . . a rewarding read, an untold tale that completely deserves the telling.” —St. Petersburg Times
“In a class by itself. A serious history of one of this country’s goofiest pastimes . . . one senses that [Leen has] left no stone unturned in researching Burke’s story.” —The Washington Post
“You won’t be disappointed . . . Leen has [Burke’s] story pinned to the mat.” —USA Today
“This is a wild and fascinating peek into a lost era of when American wrestling was a spectacle of true athletics, not just preening and play-acting. Mildred Burke makes Hulk Hogan look like a wimp.” —Carl Hiaasen, author of Nature Girl and The Downhill Lie: A Hacker’s Return to a Ruinous Sport
“Jeff Leen has made a fabulous contribution to the sports-history canon. The Queen of the Ring is a marvelous evocation of an era, and a riveting portrait of a one-of-a-kind American moll.” —Sally Jenkins, author of The Real All-Americans
“A book as engrossing and entertaining as it is unlikely. Through meticulous research and fine storytelling, Jeff Leen gives us not only the biography of a remarkable female athlete, but the strange, compelling tale of a lost epoch.” —Rick Atkinson, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for An Army at Dawn: The War in North Africa, 1942-1943
“Everybody who cares about professional wrestling will want to read Jeff Leen’s biography of Mildred Burke. But I have never cared about professional wrestling, and I read every page avidly. Why? Because Leen is a great reporter and writer who has produced a superb book within the genre I hold dear: biography.” —Steve Weinberg, author of Taking on the Trust: The Epic Battle of Ida Tarbell and John D. Rockefeller
“This is a jaw-dropping book. Leen’s rediscovery of the life and times of Mildred Burke reads like Ring Lardner, seasoned by Raymond Chandler. The Queen of the Ring is tight, tough, and droll—and like its protagonist, an American original.” —Steve Coll, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 and author of The Bin Ladens: An Arabian Family in the American Century
“It’s not really about wrestling. It’s about greed, desire, treachery, and most of all guts. Millie Burke had ’em. And Jeff Leen has all the goods.” —Richard Ben Cramer, author of New York Times best-seller Joe DiMaggio: The Hero’s Life
“With sheer storytelling brio, Jeff Leen rescues the greatest female wrestler who ever lived from the obscurity she never deserved. Burke triumphed over grinding poverty, predatory managers, cheating , callow lovers, beatings in and out of the ring, and a motley cast of ravenous schemers and con men that would make Damon Runyon blush. Leen brings them all to life in this jaw-dropping saga of hard times, huge dreams, and one tiny woman’s indomitable will.” —Steve Friedman, author of The Agony of Victory
“Jeff Leen, a brilliant editor and investigative reporter, spins the inspiring tale of remarkable Millie Burke, the Cinderella Woman of the 1950s, the rhinestone Rocky of a vanished golden age. With brains, beauty, brawn, and indomitable will, Millie will have everyone cheering and women of all ages flashing their muscles.” —Michael Capuzzo, author of Close to Shore
