Greg Oliver

Greg Oliver
Born (1971-02-02) February 2, 1971[1]
Kitchener, Ontario
Occupation Writer, editor
Language English
Nationality Canadian
Education Bachelor of Applied Arts
Alma mater Ryerson Polytechnic University
Website
oliverbooks.ca

Greg Oliver (born Feb 2, 1971 in Kitchener, Ontario)[1] is a Canadian sports writer. He currently resides in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Early life and education

He earned a Bachelor of Applied Arts in journalism, newspaper major, in 1993 from Ryerson Polytechnic University.[1]

Writing

He is the author of six books on professional wrestling, and five books on hockey. He is also the co-founder and producer of the SLAM! Wrestling website, and has contributed to many other publications, including The Hockey News, Publishers Weekly, The Globe and Mail, The Toronto Sun, Kingston Whig-Standard, Kitchener-Waterloo Record, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Fighting Spirit Magazine. As a teenager, he published The Canadian Wrestling Report (1985-1990).[1]

Oliver's work has been reviewed by Booklist, Quill and Quire, Publishers Weekly, Winnipeg Free Press, London Free Press, Kitchener-Waterloo Record, New York Journal of Books, and one book, Don't Call Me Goon: Hockey's Greatest Enforcers, Gunslingers, and Bad Boys, made The Globe and Mail Top 10 for non-fiction in October 2013.[2]

Criticism

In July 2008, Bret Hart, an acclaimed professional wrestler, spoke at the George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame, during the induction banquet for his father, Stu Hart, about Oliver. Upset over his ranking in one of Oliver's books – #14 in the greatest Canadian performers, behind midget wrestler Sky Low Low – Hart called Oliver a "charlatan".[3] Sports journalist Heath McCoy also criticised Oliver for his placement of Hart and asked if Oliver was joking with that decision. McCoy also stated that he believed Oliver's book was highly biased towards Ontario wrestling.[4]

Works

  • The Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame: The Canadians (2002) ISBN 9781550225310
  • The Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame: The Tag Teams (with Steven Johnson) (2005) ISBN 9781550226836
  • The Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame: The Heels (with Steven Johnson) (2007) ISBN 9781550227598
  • Benoit: Wrestling with the Horror that Destroyed a Family and Crippled a Sport (with Steven Johnson, Irv Muchnick and Heath McCoy) (2007) ISBN 1550228129
  • The Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame: Heroes & Icons (with Steven Johnson) (2012) ISBN 9781770410374
  • SLAM! Wrestling: Shocking Stories from the Squared Circle (Editor, with Jon Waldman) (2012) ISBN 9781550228847
  • Written in Blue and White: The Toronto Maple Leafs Contracts and Historical Documents from the Collection of Allan Stitt (2014) ISBN 9781770412156
  • The Goaltenders' Union: Hockey's Greatest Puckstoppers, Acrobats, and Flakes (with Richard Kamchen) (2014) ISBN 9781770411494
  • Don't Call Me Goon: Hockey's Greatest Enforcers, Gunslingers, and Bad Boys (with Richard Kamchen) (2015) ISBN 9781770410381
  • Duck with the Puck (with Quinn Oliver) (2015) ISBN 1499156367
  • Blue Lines, Goal Lines & Bottom Lines: Hockey Contracts and Historical Documents from the Collection of Allan Stitt (2016) ISBN 9781770412514
  • Father Bauer and the Great Experiment: The Genesis of Canadian Olympic Hockey (2017) ISBN 9781770412491
  • Gratoony the Loony: The Wild, Unpredictable Life of Gilles Gratton (2017) ISBN 9781770413375

Awards

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "CANOE -- SLAM! Sports - Wrestling - SLAM! Wrestling Producer and author Greg Oliver". slam.canoe.com. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
  2. ↑ Written in Blue and White: The Toronto Maple Leafs Contracts and Historical Documents from the Collection of Allan Stitt
  3. ↑ Eck, Kevin (2008-07-03). "Transcript of Bret Hart's Hall of Fame speech - Baltimore Sun". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
  4. ↑ McCoy, Heath (2007). Pain and Passion: The History of Stampede Wrestling. ECW Press. p. 293. ISBN 978-1-55022-787-1.
  5. ↑ Eck, Kevin (2008-06-30). "More on Bret Hart Hall of Fame incident". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
  6. ↑ "Jim Melby Award | National Wrestling Hall of Fame". nwhof.org. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
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