---
product_id: 141103792
title: "Under the Black Hat: My Life in the WWE and Beyond"
brand: "jim ross"
price: "$40.65"
currency: USD
in_stock: true
reviews_count: 11
url: https://www.desertcart.us/products/141103792-under-the-black-hat-my-life-in-the-wwe-beyond
store_origin: US
region: United States of America
---

# Under the Black Hat: My Life in the WWE and Beyond

**Brand:** jim ross
**Price:** $40.65
**Availability:** ✅ In Stock

## Quick Answers

- **What is this?** Under the Black Hat: My Life in the WWE and Beyond by jim ross
- **How much does it cost?** $40.65 with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship
- **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.us](https://www.desertcart.us/products/141103792-under-the-black-hat-my-life-in-the-wwe-beyond)

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- jim ross enthusiasts

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## Description

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## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    A Decent Read Marred by a Lazy Co-Author and Too Much Self Pitying Content
  

*by D***D on Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2020*

This book is a fairly quick, standard read. My three main criticisms:1) JR tries to paint minor inconveniences as huge dramatic trials and tribulations with insurmountable challenges that needed to be desperately overcome. In Bret Hart's book, such challenges involved divorce, the death of both his parents, the tragedy of his brother Owen's death, his own near death experience, having coming back from a stroke and paralysis after a horrific accident, the double loss of his career (WWE and then WCW) and many more serious problems.JR's challenges, however, involve him being moved from Raw to Smackdown, and having to participate in a dumb wrestling angle or two over the years. Hell, for the money and the lifestyle afforded to Ross by WWE, most of us would probably take a couple of snug punches from Triple H once every 2-3 years too. These whines don't do Ross any favors, as he doesn't come off so much as a victim worthy of empathy, but more of an entitled old man who takes himself a little too seriously and gets his panties in a twist at having to move from one highly paid prime time TV gig to another. Perhaps that's why McMahon liked messing with him so much in the first place.For a guy who repeatedly reminds us in the book that he's the "strong silent" type and a "gruff old man" worthy of John Wayne, he sure does roll around in a pool of self-pitying angst like a 12 year old school girl.Furthermore, the fact that these minor inconveniences always ended with some over-sentimental interaction with his wife Jan gets very tedious after the first 7-8 instances, which brings me to my next issue with this book:2) The formulaic writing. I'm about 2/3 of the way through the book right now and it is extremely repetitive:- Everything is going well for Ross.- WWE suddenly throws him a challenge - removing him from Talent Relations, moving him to another show, asking him to participate in angle.- Ross has an existential crisis in which he questions his self worth, his dignity, and his mental health before going through with it.- Ross comes back through the curtain and calls his wife Jan, who offers a few words of comfort to JR and makes everything right in the world again.- RINSE AND REPEAT for 10+ chapters.The writing is extremely lazy. Entire transcripts of Ross's calls on commentary are included verbatim. While they sound incredible when spoken live during an intense TV broadcast, reading said words on the page is a very different, and somewhat dull, experience. Entire sections of JR's old WWE.com blogs are also quoted, when really a sentence or two could've sufficed. It seems like very poor form by the co-author, Paul O'Brien, and a way to pad out the book.3) As the Head of Talent Relations for WWE, Jim Ross really should have far more fascinating stories than what is presented in this book. Nobody is saying there has to be dirty laundry and gossip, but some interesting insights sure would've been appreciated. For example, Ross was in the WWE during the time of Donald Trump's "Battle of the Billionaires" feud with Vince McMahon. You'd think that there would be tons of great backstage anecdotes about the current President of the United States stepping into the wild and crazy world of WWE, and yet other than a couple of paragraphs, there's nothing of any merit.And that's the problem - Ross worked alongside all the greats - Rock, Austin, Undertaker, Triple H, John Cena, etc. And yet we come away from this book learning absolutely nothing new about any of them. Not even a funny story or a memory about an interaction with any of these guys. Even when Ross does touch on certain things, such as Austin being hospitalized prior to Wrestlemania 19, things are very basic and empty - we learn nothing new and the details are thin.Again, I'm not asking for salacious details into people's private lives, but at the same time we're reading these books to learn about Jim Ross, his life in the world of the WWE, and his interactions with the people along the way. But the juicy details are few and far between.For me, the Holy Trinity of wrestling books remain the first books written by Bret Hart ("Hitman"), Chris Jericho ("A Lion's Tale") and Mick Foley ("Have A Nice Day"). This one sadly fell short of the mark for me, and I think a much more creative co-author could've gotten a much more entertaining story out of JR. Definitely not a slobberknocker.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    Humiliation and tragedy
  

*by M***T on Reviewed in the United States on April 5, 2020*

I loved the insight and behind the curtain stories. JR is an icon and, at the same , a tragic figure. As if it were possible, I have even less respect for the McMahon family after reading this book. I can remember watching much of this on TV and it made me uncomfortable as a viewer. You could tell the author, despite there being scripted activities being shown to viewers, truly humiliated JR. I believe Vince McMahon is a narcissistic weirdo, truly trailer-park trash. While I will root for JR's future peace and happiness, as he is portrayed here, Vince McMahon is deserving of "hard times" (Dusty Rhodes reference). He is despicable.I also found the heartfelt words written about Jan's support for the author uplifting, I couldn't help but be moved about the tragic death and the effect on JR. To read of someone's love and devotion for their spouse being snatched away, was moving.Anyone who finds love !like that in a lifetime is fortunate. The words were written from the heart. Any pain that came from this event was a joy to read due to it's inspiration to others aspiring to experience that degree of love.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    I'm going to make this simple for you.
  

*by V***E on Reviewed in the United States on June 25, 2020*

If you fit in one of these cateogries, think about it, if you fit in two of these categories I recommend it, if you fit in three or more categories ... i highly recommend ita) followed wwe for a period of time of more than a yearb) watched wrestling attitude era & Monday Night Warsc) enjoyed listening to JRd) followed the careers of Jericho, Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Stone Cold, Lesnare) think you know really know vince mcmahonf) probably know too much about wrestling then you want to admit - and if this made you smirk or nod just a little bit ... you should just buy it now

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*Product available on Desertcart United States of America*
*Store origin: US*
*Last updated: 2026-02-08*