MY FICTION…
Professional wrestling meets Empire in a trilogy that RollingStone.com called a “one-of a kind literary offering for die-hard wrestling fans.”
New York City, 1969. Danno Garland is a middling member of the National Wrestling Council, a secretive syndicate of pro-wrestling promoters. He’s kept his head down for fifteen years, but now he’s found a new heavyweight champion, Babu, and plans to use him to build a wrestling empire. Blocked, though, by the NWC, Danno makes a deal with Florida boss Proctor King to ensure Danno’s man will be the next title holder. In exchange, the belt will go to Proctor’s son, Gilbert, once he’s out of prison in a couple of years.
But things don’t go according to plan, and now Danno is standing in a sold-out Shea Stadium on the night of the biggest wrestling card of all time, and neither Babu nor Gilbert has shown up. Meanwhile, Lenny Long, Danno’s driver, is walking dazedly from the overturned van that was supposed to bring them to the venue, and the only sign of Gilbert is his foot.
Across the country, Proctor nervously watches the show on TV, wondering why his screw-up of a son doesn’t already have the championship belt in his hands. It’s taken four years of pay-offs, double dealing, and bone-breaking to arrange this match, and if all that’s gone to waste, he might just have to take a business trip to New York. The “fake” world of professional wrestling is going to get very real.
“O’Brien’s whip-smart prose brings the fascinating, often funny world of pro wrestling to glorious life and imbues its players with surprisingly delicate humanity”
MY NON-FICTION…
From legendary wrestling announcer Jim Ross comes two candid, colorful memoirs about the inner workings of the WWE and the personal crises he weathered at the height of his career.
Jim Ross has been the beloved voice of the WWE—and now All-Elite Wrestling—for decades, but there is so much more to the man than fans know. In his 2017 memoir Slobberknocker, Ross shares the story of his rise from a small regional company to the multi-billion-dollar behemoth in WWE.
In 2012, Under the Black Hat follows up with stories from the height of WWE madness, including Ross’s nurturing of global talents like Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Stone Cold Steve Austin, and John Cena. It traces the fracture of Ross’s relationship with Vince McMahon, his triumphant return to Wrestlemania 32, and the heartbreaking challenges he suffered behind the scenes, including multiple debilitating bouts of facial paralysis and the sudden, tragic death of his wife, Jan.
For all its larger-than life characters, Ross’ overall story in both books is endearingly human in scale, turning a gruff but gentle eye to themes of professional ennui, ageism, disability and grief.
Written with Paul O’Brien, these books are dripping with heart, humor, and unfailing honesty, Slobberknocker and Under the Black Hat are a gift not only for his many lifelong fans, but the new ones they’re sure to find.
And coming in 2024, Business is About to Pick Up, the third book from Jim Ross and Paul O’Brien which chronicles 50 unforgettable calls over 50 unforgettable years in Jim Ross’ career.
“Congrats on another great book, Paul, bud. Looking forward to working with you down the road”
MY MOVIE…
Staid is my micro-budget feature (€350 to shoot) that was Officially Selected for the Dublin International Film Festival, Los Angeles Independent Film Festival, The Galway Film Fleadh, The Sydney World Film Festival, The Miami Independent Film Festival and the Hong Kong Arthouse Film Festival.
It’s a quiet and gentle movie about four people connected by a small town and past regrets. They come together to fight, sing, smoke, drink and laugh while they realise that their lives are changing — whether they want them to or not.
It won the ‘Best Foreign Feature Film’ award at the Los Angeles Film Festival, and was Shortlisted for the ‘Best Feature Film’ at the Miami Independent Film Festival.
- Winner, Best Foreign Feature Film at Los Angeles Independent Film Festival -
“Really, really funny and extremely moving. We were knocked out.”
Watch the full movie above on Youtube, or…
MY BIO&CONTACT…
Paul O’Brien is an award-winning filmmaker and a best-selling author from Wexford, Ireland. His Blood Red Turns Dollar Green trilogy of novels have been #1 bestsellers in Canada, Australia, Italy, Germany, Mexico, Spain, U.K., Ireland and the U.S.
Paul's stage plays have been commissioned or produced by The National Theatre of Ireland, Red Kettle Theatre Company, The National Acting School of Ireland and Spare Key Productions in New York. His first professional production was financed by Oscar Winner, Martin McDonagh through Druid Theatre.
The Blood Red Turns Dollar Green novels were published by Skyhorse Publishing in 2017.
Staid, Paul’s first feature film—which he wrote, produced, directed and edited—premiered at the Audi Dublin Film Festival in 2016. It went on to be Officially Selected at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival, Miami Independent Film Festival, Sydney World Film Festival, The Hong Kong Arthouse Film Festival and The Galway Film Fleadh. Staid won the award for Best Foreign Feature Film at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival and was shortlisted for Best Feature Film at the Miami Independent Film Festival. It is currently available on Amazon Prime Video.
Paul co-wrote both of WWE Legend and Hall of Famer, Jim Ross’ internationally best-selling autobiographies, Slobberknocker: My Life in Wrestling and Under the Black Hat.
Paul’s latest work with Jim Ross, Business is About to Pick Up, will be available in 2024.