Female wrestling star and WWE Hall of Famer Debrah “Madusa” Miceli is teaming up with Greg Oliver and ECW Press for a memoir that will be released in 2023.
The publisher made the announcement on Wednesday in conjunction with the ongoing Cauliflower Alley Club reunion in Las Vegas where both Miceli and Oliver are being honored this week. Miceli was named this year’s recipient of the “Iron” Mike Mazurki Award while Oliver is being honored with the James C. Melby Award for his outstanding work in the field of journalism.
Miceli had a career that spanned over fifteen years concluding in 2000 while working with WCW, although she did return an entrant in the women’s battle royal at the WWE’s Evolution pay-per-view in October 2018.
During her career, she won championships in All Japan Women, the AWA, WWE, and WCW and would have tremendous success on the Monster Jam circuit after her wrestling career.
She was a three-time WWF women’s champion including a title defense at WrestleMania 10 in March 1994. The company notified her in the fall of 1995 that they were dropping the division and led to a famous scene during the early days of Monday Nitro where she appeared on the program with the WWF women’s championship.
In 2015, she was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame and a documentary was produced on her career for the WWE Network.
Oliver has written some of the top books on the history of the industry throughout his career including the Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame series. The series began in 2003 covering the top Canadian wrestlers and with co-author Steven Johnson they would document the greatest Tag Teams, Heels, Heroes and Icons, and The Storytellers. He has also written books covering the Chris Benoit murder/suicide, John Arezzi, and an upcoming biography on Canadian female star Genevieve “LuFisto” Goulet.
Oliver was part of the team that launched SLAM Wrestling that has been in existence for over two decades.
Below is the release from ECW Press:
September 15, 2021 — Through 40 years of entertaining fans, both in the wrestling ring and on the monster truck circuit, Debrah “Madusa” Miceli never could sit still. However, despite her constant desire to learn, to grow, and to inspire legions of followers, she also kept deep secrets.
Her upbringing was a lie from the start, and evolved into pain and torture. The forbidden truths of childhood, revealed for the first time in her untitled memoir coming this Spring 2023 from ECW Press, are the earliest examples of Miceli’s determination to overcome, listen to her voice, and never waver in her belief that things would get better.
Professional wrestling was an odd foray for a nursing student but she went all-in, setting high standards in the ring and for herself. The punishing style she learned and adopted in Japan suited someone who needed constant challenges. In WWE, she was known as Alundra Blayze and held the company’s Women’s title . . . until being fired out of the blue by a letter delivered via FedEx. The rival WCW hired her, and Madusa made waves by tossing the WWF’s Women’s title in a trash can on live TV.
It was not an easy ride in the misogynistic world of professional wrestling. The colorful villains on the screen were one thing, but the behind-the-scenes power brokers were even viler, harassing and abusing with impunity, deft in sowing distrust by pitting employees against each other, and lightning quick to cover up any scandalous behavior.
In 1999, Madusa joined the world of motorsports, thinking she was ready for the southern boys that make up the Monster truck motor sport world. The lessons learned in pro wrestling prepared her for another male-dominated profession, and this time she rolled over them — quite literally — ignoring their lack of respect for women. Instead of backing down, she began a whole new revolution for women in that revved up world.
Soon enough, she was a rarity: a driver who was more famous than the monster truck itself. At meet and greets, little girls in pink “Queen of Carnage” t-shirts would stand alongside ogling fanboys. The pinnacle for Miceli and her Madusa truck were Monster Jam world championships in 2004 and 2005.
Until now, the world of monster trucks — including her involvement in the start-up Major League of Monster Trucks as competitor to the established Monster Jam — has been a secret society, and Madusa’s memoir will be the first to explore the behind-the-scenes machinations of the high-octane, crash-banging motorsport.
Wrestling and monster trucks were hardly the only paths for the restless Miceli. At various points, she taught yoga, groomed dogs, designed custom motorcycles, was a personal trainer, practised Reiki healing, and studied natural health. Through it all, she was a public figure, trying to balance out the demands of speaking engagements and personal appearances with real life.
Yet for all her triumphs and championships, and a WWE Hall of Fame induction, one thing has eluded her: motherhood. While involved in two aggressive sports, Miceli experienced challenges with fertility and pregnancy loss. Even an adoption dramatically fell through at the last minute in a courtroom.
This is a tale you have never heard, and it will leave you wondering how one woman survived through so much chaos, heartbreak, bumps, and bruises. It is decidedly a tale about a woman wanting to be heard.
Madusa’s story is about turning tragedy into triumph, relying on hard work and determination, finding inspiration and motivation in the darkest times, and not letting your past define you.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Debrah “Madusa” Miceli is a force of nature. Originally a Minnesota home girl, she has lived around the world, but currently calls Florida home with her husband, Alan, and their dog, Daisy. Engaged and active on social media, her online home is www.madusa.com.
Greg Oliver is the author or co-author of 17 books, from entertainment to professional wrestling, from hockey to children’s books. He lives in Toronto with his wife, Meredith, and their son, Quinn. Visit www.OliverBooks.ca for all his books and projects.
Both Miceli and Oliver will be honored at the Cauliflower Alley Club reunion, on September 15, 2021, in Las Vegas. Oliver will be receiving the James C. Melby Historian Award and Miceli will receive the Iron Mike Mazurki Award, named after the CAC’s founder, Mike Mazurki, which is considered the top award in the pro wrestling industry.
