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Dusty: Reflections of an American Dream
There has been much said about Dusty Rhodes, the "American Dream," over the years by both his fans and peers. Aside from the frequent fictional prose penned by wrestling magazine journalists and internet smart marks that run rumor-mill websites, however, there has not been much written about him. Until now. With the exception of a select few, there has been no bigger name or personality in the annals of pro wrestling history than Dusty Rhodes. Of those few, none of them can claim the compelling back story Rhodes shares in Reflections of an American Dream of an industry plagued with political loyalties and disloyalties, greedy promoters, manipulative bookers, destructive personalities, multi-millionaires, and great leaders. Behind the "million-dollar smile" and the milliondollar gate receipts is a man with a story to tell – not just of tall tales, yarns, and fabrications, but of a life filled with aspirations, dreams, disappointments, challenges, controversies, angst, conflict, success, and reflection. Reflections of an American Dream is the story of a transformation from mediocrity to superstardom. It is the story of how the boy Virgil Runnels Jr. became the man Dusty Rhodes and truly lived the "American Dream." This is his story.
248 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 2005
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193 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
January 30, 2021
I would like to start out with saying that I was/am a big fan of the American Dream. With that being said, I was not a big fan of his autobiography. I wanted to love it, I tried to love it, but alas I just could not.
I listened to it on Audible, but that was not one of the options available for a format at this time. This led to some problems for me. Firstly, the narrator did a poor job of his attempt to sound like Dusty and came off a fake and bothersome. He read names of many of the big names through the years poorly which made it come across as the author/narrator did not know what he was talking about. That was not the theme that should have come from the work of one of the major movers and shakers of the wrestling business through the 70's and 80's. The other problem I had was that too many times Dusty came across as bitter and even a little bit small in some of his observations about the business especially as it relates to Vince McMahon and the fall of the NWA and WCW. With a little different tone, this could have been an interesting and informative work about the time period. My third problem is that he just comes across as sad and defeated at times that the end of his journey is getting nearer everyday.
The things I did like were that he gives his readers looks into the lives and careers of some of the other big names from the time period and makes them seem more interesting in the process. I also liked to learn more about how things were planned in the backrooms of the old wrestling syndicate before everything changed. He knew this time and could have shared a lot more information which would have helped the work immensely.
I listened to it on Audible, but that was not one of the options available for a format at this time. This led to some problems for me. Firstly, the narrator did a poor job of his attempt to sound like Dusty and came off a fake and bothersome. He read names of many of the big names through the years poorly which made it come across as the author/narrator did not know what he was talking about. That was not the theme that should have come from the work of one of the major movers and shakers of the wrestling business through the 70's and 80's. The other problem I had was that too many times Dusty came across as bitter and even a little bit small in some of his observations about the business especially as it relates to Vince McMahon and the fall of the NWA and WCW. With a little different tone, this could have been an interesting and informative work about the time period. My third problem is that he just comes across as sad and defeated at times that the end of his journey is getting nearer everyday.
The things I did like were that he gives his readers looks into the lives and careers of some of the other big names from the time period and makes them seem more interesting in the process. I also liked to learn more about how things were planned in the backrooms of the old wrestling syndicate before everything changed. He knew this time and could have shared a lot more information which would have helped the work immensely.
May 10, 2024
Dusty Rhodes was an American wrestler that performed in several professional and amateur wrestling promotions. Rhodes was born in Austin, Texas in 1945. He began his wrestling career in 1967. He officially retired in 2010. Rhodes went by the ring name "The American Dream". Rhodes has two sons who also entered professional wrestling, Dustin "Goldust" Rhodes and Cody "The American Nightmare" Rhodes. This book is a collection of personal stories told from the perspective of Rhodes. I did not care for the writing style of this memoir, nor for the personality of the author. I had this book on Audible, as it was free to listen to on Audible Plus, and I was not a fan of the narration either. I listened to this in one shift at work, and it did the job. I did also learn more about the earlier days of professional wrestling.
July 21, 2021
One of the worst written and edited books I have ever read.
January 13, 2025
I read the Audible Studios Unabridged Audiobook well-narrated by Kerry Woodrow.
I enjoy periodically reading memoirs from the TV and arena wrestling era I followed. This one shows Dusty "The America Dream" Rhodes not only to be a high-profile crowd favorite and multiple champion, but a impresario and executive producer from the independents to the arenas in the PPV era. I didn't know of his leadership role. Rhodes overtly does not want to dish on others, but in some business dealings he can't hold back. Mostly he shares wild tales of pranks and antics on the road and comes across as one who loved life with gusto and went through the various associations, highs and lows as the Texas plumber's son yet unburdened with racism or homophobia which is always good to hear. In this entertaining and revealing career memoir, Rhodes recalls Terry Funk, Harley Race, Hulk Hogan ("yellow finger" icon as representative of the souvenir era), and many more. Also told here is the arc from a patchwork of regional wrestling control largely by various family's to the rise of the Vince McMahon organization and consolidation of power.
I enjoy periodically reading memoirs from the TV and arena wrestling era I followed. This one shows Dusty "The America Dream" Rhodes not only to be a high-profile crowd favorite and multiple champion, but a impresario and executive producer from the independents to the arenas in the PPV era. I didn't know of his leadership role. Rhodes overtly does not want to dish on others, but in some business dealings he can't hold back. Mostly he shares wild tales of pranks and antics on the road and comes across as one who loved life with gusto and went through the various associations, highs and lows as the Texas plumber's son yet unburdened with racism or homophobia which is always good to hear. In this entertaining and revealing career memoir, Rhodes recalls Terry Funk, Harley Race, Hulk Hogan ("yellow finger" icon as representative of the souvenir era), and many more. Also told here is the arc from a patchwork of regional wrestling control largely by various family's to the rise of the Vince McMahon organization and consolidation of power.
August 10, 2017
Not the worst Pro Wrestler Bio I've read, but near the bottom, due mostly to style.
Like a lot of other reviews, here & on other sites, this could have been a great book to read, because of Dusty's 30+ year career, including 15+ at the top of Pro Wrestling. Unfortunately, like another reviewer wrote, (hope i'm not "plagiarizing") it reads as though Dusty was interviewed, & in his style he kind of rambled a bit. For the most part, the book is chronological, but there is a bit of jumping around. Then someone helped him write it in "book form".
I have read many wrestlers bios, maybe 15+, & plan to continue reading more.
Like a lot of other reviews, here & on other sites, this could have been a great book to read, because of Dusty's 30+ year career, including 15+ at the top of Pro Wrestling. Unfortunately, like another reviewer wrote, (hope i'm not "plagiarizing") it reads as though Dusty was interviewed, & in his style he kind of rambled a bit. For the most part, the book is chronological, but there is a bit of jumping around. Then someone helped him write it in "book form".
I have read many wrestlers bios, maybe 15+, & plan to continue reading more.
December 15, 2023
F for Dusty Rhodes' use of ableist and explicitly racist language throughout.
Dusty Rhodes was one of the most popular wrestlers of the 1970s and '80s. Because Rhodes was overweight and bragged about being the son of a plumber, he was able to connect with everyday people, earning him the nickname "The American Dream." Although Rhodes may not have looked like "Superstar" Billy Graham, Hulk Hogan, or John Cena, he had charisma dripping from every pore. When Dusty spoke, you listened. And you believed every word he said.
In Dusty: Reflections of an American Dream, Rhodes looks back over his life and career. He covers his life warts and all. Co-author Howard Brody decided to present Rhodes' memoir as if the reader is conversing with Dusty. Although the book is not traditionally structured, Brody's riding-down-the-road-with-the-Dream structure works. One does feel as if they've just had a conversation with Dusty Rhodes.
My biggest complaint about the book is Rhodes' liberal use of the n-slur.
Rhodes brags about using n-slur in a promo about African American wrestler "Bearcat" Wright. He talks about going to a KKK rally with wrestler Dick Murdoch (Rhodes claims Murdoch tricked him into going to the rally, but the fact that he is friends with someone who knows how to attend a Klan rally is concerning. I have no idea how one would even be invited to a Klan rally). He also brags about known racist David Allen Coe being part of his "posse." That's three strikes.
In addition to the current of racism running through his memoir, Rhodes insists on using the m-slur when talking about little people.
I stopped reading Confessions of an American Dream for a couple of weeks and had no intention of finishing the book. I decided to finish it this week. If you can look past the blatant racism and ableism, Rhodes is a wealth of knowledge about pro wrestling. The parts of the book where he talks about the inner workings of the business are the most engaging.
I've always been a fan of Dusty Rhodes. His WWF theme song, "Common Man Boogie," is one of my favorite wrestling themes. Although I did learn by reading his book, I am disappointed by certain things. It pains me to say that I am less of a fan now.
Dusty Rhodes was one of the most popular wrestlers of the 1970s and '80s. Because Rhodes was overweight and bragged about being the son of a plumber, he was able to connect with everyday people, earning him the nickname "The American Dream." Although Rhodes may not have looked like "Superstar" Billy Graham, Hulk Hogan, or John Cena, he had charisma dripping from every pore. When Dusty spoke, you listened. And you believed every word he said.
In Dusty: Reflections of an American Dream, Rhodes looks back over his life and career. He covers his life warts and all. Co-author Howard Brody decided to present Rhodes' memoir as if the reader is conversing with Dusty. Although the book is not traditionally structured, Brody's riding-down-the-road-with-the-Dream structure works. One does feel as if they've just had a conversation with Dusty Rhodes.
My biggest complaint about the book is Rhodes' liberal use of the n-slur.
Rhodes brags about using n-slur in a promo about African American wrestler "Bearcat" Wright. He talks about going to a KKK rally with wrestler Dick Murdoch (Rhodes claims Murdoch tricked him into going to the rally, but the fact that he is friends with someone who knows how to attend a Klan rally is concerning. I have no idea how one would even be invited to a Klan rally). He also brags about known racist David Allen Coe being part of his "posse." That's three strikes.
In addition to the current of racism running through his memoir, Rhodes insists on using the m-slur when talking about little people.
I stopped reading Confessions of an American Dream for a couple of weeks and had no intention of finishing the book. I decided to finish it this week. If you can look past the blatant racism and ableism, Rhodes is a wealth of knowledge about pro wrestling. The parts of the book where he talks about the inner workings of the business are the most engaging.
I've always been a fan of Dusty Rhodes. His WWF theme song, "Common Man Boogie," is one of my favorite wrestling themes. Although I did learn by reading his book, I am disappointed by certain things. It pains me to say that I am less of a fan now.
July 31, 2025
It’s not winning any awards for eloquence or polished prose—but it more than makes up for that with pure, unfiltered honesty. Where many wrestling memoirs feel like they're written through a WWE-approved lens, Dusty is refreshingly off-leash. There’s a rawness to the storytelling that pulls you deeper than just one man’s journey—it becomes a time capsule of wrestling’s wildest and most transformative years.
This isn’t just a highlight reel of Dusty Rhodes’ greatest hits. It’s a deep dive into the gritty reality of the territory days, the evolution into sports entertainment, and his time spent bouncing between ECW, TNA, WCW, and beyond. Along the way, it maps the rise and fall of entire promotions and gives space to the stories of countless other stars. That broader scope makes this feel less like a personal memoir and more like a genuine historical document—one that captures a world of wrestling that’s mostly gone.
For fans who want more than just glamor shots and promo lines, this one delivers the grit, the politics, and the heart of an era. A must-read for anyone who values the history of professional wrestling just as much as the spectacle.
This isn’t just a highlight reel of Dusty Rhodes’ greatest hits. It’s a deep dive into the gritty reality of the territory days, the evolution into sports entertainment, and his time spent bouncing between ECW, TNA, WCW, and beyond. Along the way, it maps the rise and fall of entire promotions and gives space to the stories of countless other stars. That broader scope makes this feel less like a personal memoir and more like a genuine historical document—one that captures a world of wrestling that’s mostly gone.
For fans who want more than just glamor shots and promo lines, this one delivers the grit, the politics, and the heart of an era. A must-read for anyone who values the history of professional wrestling just as much as the spectacle.
March 2, 2022
I enjoyed this book quite a bit. Dusty was a larger than life figure. It was interesting to read about his upbringing and how he broke into the business and became a superstar. He waz very honest about how the business affected him and his family - especially his oldest son, Dustin a.k.a Goldust. I liked his Starcade Prime card and the booking of the card made sense. I wish he would have gone into detail about creating Starcade and the Great American Bash. I thought the chapter when he talked about how Vince McMahon began transforming the WWF. I thought it lacked detail. I would have liked to have seen more written about his programs with Ric Flair and the Four Horsemen. I thought it was funny how he talked about the Dusty Finish as something everyone else did.
November 9, 2021
It's not a great book. It's certainly not PC. But it is an interesting insight into such an iconic figure and his life outside the squared circle. I think I am a bit too young to catch all of references to wrestlers and storylines. And, I think this book was written a little too soon, since it didn't capture his son, Cody Rhodes, getting into the wrestling business. And, I still cringe when the audiobook narrator pronounces Verne Gagne and Jeff Jarrett wrong. But, overall it's a good read with fun road stories and revealing moments about the Rhodes family.
December 31, 2022
The final third of the book is filled with trash: Dusty superfans, famous people Dusty knows, the longest Acknolwedgment from a ghost writer of all-time. As other reviewers have said, this book was certainly dictated to the author like a shoot interview. The result is a messy recollection of events that ignores chronological significance for whatever "cowboy" story Dusty can remember at the time.
September 16, 2025
I love hearing about Dusty and even from interviews before I have always realized that even if explained out, there is just certain processes in his brain that people just cannot duplicate. He was one of a few that was just in tune with the sport of pro wrestling. his legacy will live on for decades and decades. I scored the book a little lower just because most of this was things that was already common knowledge. I would have liked to hear more of his younger days.
June 25, 2021
The book was not very detailed and quickly hit on a few big career moments. The ghost writer didn't seem that strong as the narrative was all over the place with Dusty making personal references or putting himself over. Not worth reading again unless I'm really really really in a Dusty mood, but even then watching the doc put out by WWE would be better.
June 29, 2022
The book itself was not bad. It was interesting to hear the stories and perspectives of Dusty. However, I listened to the audiobook and the narrator was terrible. He tried awful accents when using quotes from others regarding Dusty. You could also tell he knew nothing about what he was reading as he mispronounced many of the names of the old promoters and wrestlers.
April 19, 2024
This book read like a disjointed shoot interview; and while it was informative and entertaining it was also a jumbled mess. Kerry Woodrow did a mediocre job narrating for Audible, mispronouncing every name (he pronounced “Gagne” at least 8 different ways), and several times even called our subject Dusty ROSE. I love Big Dust but this was an audiobook fail.
January 19, 2019
Some highlights such as the road stories.
Some low points such as the hour long section regarding his 10 biggest fans.
The worst wrestling autobiography I have read so far sadly.
Still love the dream
Some low points such as the hour long section regarding his 10 biggest fans.
The worst wrestling autobiography I have read so far sadly.
Still love the dream
July 22, 2024
I loved dusty Rhodes but yikes that was bad
Glad I didn't pay for it, it was free on audible thankfully but I still feel like I overpaid
Poorly written bad narrator
I have nothing redeeming to really add just avoid!
Glad I didn't pay for it, it was free on audible thankfully but I still feel like I overpaid
Poorly written bad narrator
I have nothing redeeming to really add just avoid!
November 26, 2025
If you are fan of the American Dream .. then you will like the stories.. the narrator did a bunch of accents of the commenters and that was weird ….. and I think I wanted something more .. I would have loved it if he read it .. I miss the Dream
November 1, 2020
Some chapters just dragged on
September 14, 2021
Get the feeling the Dream was a nightmare to live with.
January 21, 2022
A little light on substance. Evidently Dick Murdoch was a klansman but still a great guy and not at all a shitty racist.
October 20, 2022
Audiobook Kerry Woodrow
January 17, 2024
WHEN YOU READ THIS BOOK WE ALL CAN TAKE ALESSON FROM IT THAT IS IF YOU PUT YOUR MIND TO SOMETHING DON'T HESITATE FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS WILL COME TRUE.
April 2, 2022
Pretty average and does not blow the reader away. At times it is difficult to follow and does not necessarily move in a chronological, linear fashion. Leaves some real gaps in his time running various companies. Usually writes more commentary rather than events, assuming the reader already has the requisite knowledge.
January 3, 2023
I just decided to read this again, and my thoughts then are the same as my thought now.
February 2017 — Do I like Dusty Rhodes? I named my son after him. I like what he represented - the common man, out to make the best he can of what he's got, and rising above where others might have fallen short, given up. Yes, he was a childhood hero; I like and respect the man - his ideals, his persona, his attitude.
Do I like this book? F-no. Want to f'ing know why? Because I get f'ing sick of f'ing having to f'ing read the f'ing word F all the f'ing time. And it is used rather indiscriminately here. So before I review the book proper, I am going to go on a bit of a diatribe about writers who use profane language without restraint: You insult your readership. You show no respect for people who want to share the words you have written, who paid money and gave their time to share your ideas/stories/etc. Anytime I read a book that just features cursing for the sake of cursing, I immediately think (a) this person has no respect for me and is driving me away from the book, and (b) this person is not intelligent enough to write a book using better words; should I be bothering with such an author?
I am actually going to excuse the co-author, who adds in an afterword that Dusty required him to write things down exactly the way he said them. And I am sure that Dusty said these things this way. And I don't expect every profanity to be excised - sometimes the word F is exactly what is needed. There was just too much needless profanity, and if that is what he thinks of me as a reader - that I want to see that sort of language - then maybe I really do need to rethink my status as a wrestling fan.
So why did I read the book, then? Because it's Dusty Rhodes, man. The Dream.
And that is als0 why the book gets three stars from me instead of two. Hearing the Dream talk about the world of wrestling, and reliving some 0f his memories with him, and looking into the man's mind as a promoter and booker and not simply as the man who came to the ring and delivered such incredible promos - that made the book worth reading. I disliked the format - with repeated interruptions from people involved in the stories Dream was telling - and I disliked the language, but the stories are great. What a character!
February 2017 — Do I like Dusty Rhodes? I named my son after him. I like what he represented - the common man, out to make the best he can of what he's got, and rising above where others might have fallen short, given up. Yes, he was a childhood hero; I like and respect the man - his ideals, his persona, his attitude.
Do I like this book? F-no. Want to f'ing know why? Because I get f'ing sick of f'ing having to f'ing read the f'ing word F all the f'ing time. And it is used rather indiscriminately here. So before I review the book proper, I am going to go on a bit of a diatribe about writers who use profane language without restraint: You insult your readership. You show no respect for people who want to share the words you have written, who paid money and gave their time to share your ideas/stories/etc. Anytime I read a book that just features cursing for the sake of cursing, I immediately think (a) this person has no respect for me and is driving me away from the book, and (b) this person is not intelligent enough to write a book using better words; should I be bothering with such an author?
I am actually going to excuse the co-author, who adds in an afterword that Dusty required him to write things down exactly the way he said them. And I am sure that Dusty said these things this way. And I don't expect every profanity to be excised - sometimes the word F is exactly what is needed. There was just too much needless profanity, and if that is what he thinks of me as a reader - that I want to see that sort of language - then maybe I really do need to rethink my status as a wrestling fan.
So why did I read the book, then? Because it's Dusty Rhodes, man. The Dream.
And that is als0 why the book gets three stars from me instead of two. Hearing the Dream talk about the world of wrestling, and reliving some 0f his memories with him, and looking into the man's mind as a promoter and booker and not simply as the man who came to the ring and delivered such incredible promos - that made the book worth reading. I disliked the format - with repeated interruptions from people involved in the stories Dream was telling - and I disliked the language, but the stories are great. What a character!
July 14, 2016
I decided to reread this book since this week (July 13, 2016) was the anniversary of the death of Dusty Rhodes. I owned this book at one time and got rid of it, so I borrowed the book from my local library.
Most people do not know how popular Dusty was as a wrestler in the late 1970s into the 1980s. Yes most remember him in the Jim Crockett NWA Days, especially in 1986- 1988 with his major feuds with The Four Horsemen, but Rhodes was red hot in Florida and even then the WWWF with Vince McMahon Sr. Today's fans probably only know him as Goldust and Cody Rhodes' father, or a guy that worked with NXT.
This book is filled with some good stories of Dusty going through different territories until he became the top star in the NWA. There are so funny stories in the book from his friendships and crazy road stories with Terry Funk, Dick Murdoch, Andre the Giant and others. In the book he claims that at one time he was the one that was to be the top WWF star over Hulk Hogan before the Rock and Wrestling boom. He also states that Dick Murdoch's attraction with the KKK was not as real as the stories go. There is a funny story about him and Terry Funk letting midgets drive their car (and getting pulled over by the police) and a funny story about Terry Funk shooting a gun right behind Nick Bockwinkel when Dusty and Nick tried to prank Terry at his own house.
There is not much dirt in the book, which is something he addresses saying he was not going to write that kind of book. There are a few things that I did not like about the book; the lack of dates listed in the book of events (the book seems to just go randomly in its timeline), there is not much about the bookings Dusty did in the NWA (he just states things like "I did this" and it worked-no in depth of where the ideas came from), and its full of colorful language, which may not be offensive, but the book is written like we are reading transcripts from the interviews, which the thoughts at times get to go off in a different direction during the sentence. Overall this is not one of the better wrestling books out there, but it is not the worst either. It's an average book but still has some good stories to read about.
Most people do not know how popular Dusty was as a wrestler in the late 1970s into the 1980s. Yes most remember him in the Jim Crockett NWA Days, especially in 1986- 1988 with his major feuds with The Four Horsemen, but Rhodes was red hot in Florida and even then the WWWF with Vince McMahon Sr. Today's fans probably only know him as Goldust and Cody Rhodes' father, or a guy that worked with NXT.
This book is filled with some good stories of Dusty going through different territories until he became the top star in the NWA. There are so funny stories in the book from his friendships and crazy road stories with Terry Funk, Dick Murdoch, Andre the Giant and others. In the book he claims that at one time he was the one that was to be the top WWF star over Hulk Hogan before the Rock and Wrestling boom. He also states that Dick Murdoch's attraction with the KKK was not as real as the stories go. There is a funny story about him and Terry Funk letting midgets drive their car (and getting pulled over by the police) and a funny story about Terry Funk shooting a gun right behind Nick Bockwinkel when Dusty and Nick tried to prank Terry at his own house.
There is not much dirt in the book, which is something he addresses saying he was not going to write that kind of book. There are a few things that I did not like about the book; the lack of dates listed in the book of events (the book seems to just go randomly in its timeline), there is not much about the bookings Dusty did in the NWA (he just states things like "I did this" and it worked-no in depth of where the ideas came from), and its full of colorful language, which may not be offensive, but the book is written like we are reading transcripts from the interviews, which the thoughts at times get to go off in a different direction during the sentence. Overall this is not one of the better wrestling books out there, but it is not the worst either. It's an average book but still has some good stories to read about.
June 19, 2013
This is an incredibly sloppily structured, endlessly repetitive, memoir by Dusty Rhodes. I enjoyed it immensely. It seems to just be Dusty talking, and it repeats the same points endlessly and skips seemingly randomly from topic to topic and era to era. But it's Dusty Rhodes! He's quite a talker, and he was involved in all of my childhood favorite southern wrestling. If you're not a Dusty fan and just curious about wrestling, read Mick Foley's books first. But if you want to hear Dusty Rhodes drop anecdotes about touring with Terry Funk in the 70s, this book has them.
July 3, 2014
Essentially a rambling shoot interview transcribed and molded into book form, but it does capture some aspects of what made Rhodes so great. The strangest part of Rhodes' story--and it's confirmed by Terry Funk and many others--is that he was an extremely competent athlete at one point, which makes more sense when watching his sons (or cheerleader daughter, I suppose) than the massive, booty-shaking Rhodes we all grew up with. He doesn't use the book to settle too many scores, and it's nice to see him put Superstar Graham over (as Ventura and many other imitators do, too).
June 20, 2013
This was one of the hardest books to read thst I've ever read, at least at first. Once you get it in your head that this is Dusty Rhodes writing like Dusty Rhodes talks, it becomes easier to follow. Its very repetitive at times. However, once you're done, you do feel like you've got the gist of what he was trying to say about his life. My only real complaint would be that he seems to come across, at times, as his own biggest fan. But any autobiography can have that effect.
August 28, 2016
Honestly, this book only deserves three stars, but the epilogue deserves 10 stars, because it is BY FAR the best part of the book. It's really the only part of the book you need to read. It involves the story of Dusty losing his virginity, kind of, and it's really great. Just pick it up in a bookstore and read that part. Trust me.
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