Greatest Practitioner: Ed The Strangler Lewis Also Used By: Ted DiBiase, Dolph Ziggler, Randy Savage, Jack Brisco, Roddy Piper (and many, many, many more) In reality, the sleeper hold is yet another move that is legitimately dangerous. By cutting off the flow of blood to the carotid artery, it is possible to induce a loss of consciousness in an opponent. It is also possible to kill them outright if the hold is not broken in time. The sleeper hold is an effective submission move because it is legitimate, credible and easy to understand, even for those in the cheap seats at the back of the arena. It makes for great photography and is a move that can be placed on anyone, anywhere and at any time, regardless of the opponents size, weight or physical conditioning. It is also a favourite rest hold of many wrestlers, past and present. The greatest sleeper hold ever was performed by Ed The Strangler Lewis, who was obviously so linked to the hold that it was reflected in his name. Lewis would use the hold legitimately in shoot contests, or as needed to keep unruly opponents under control in what we can now effectively think of as the formative years of worked professional wrestling matches. When jazzed up with a cool name (such as The Million Dollar Dream) or some well-placed theatrics, the Sleeper Hold can still be a feared finisher, even today.
I am a professional author and lifelong comic books/pro wrestling fan. I also work as a journalist as well as writing comic books (I also draw), screenplays, stage plays, songs and prose fiction.
I don't generally read or reply to comments here on What Culture (too many trolls!), but if you follow my Twitter (@heyquicksilver), I'll talk to you all day long!
If you are interested in reading more of my stuff, you can find it on http://quicksilverstories.weebly.com/ (my personal site, which has other wrestling/comics/pop culture stuff on it).
I also write for FLiCK http://www.flickonline.co.uk/flicktion, which is the best place to read my fiction work.
Oh yeah - I'm about to become a Dad for the first time, so if my stuff seems more sentimental than usual - blame it on that!
Finally, I sincerely appreciate every single read I get. So if you're reading this, thank you, you've made me feel like Shakespeare for a day! (see what I mean?)
Latcho Drom,
- CQ
