Ep. 34 - Wayne Catan on Hemingway, Wrestling, and Grace Under Pressure

Wayne Catan was a world class wrestler in his day. He was a three-time All-American and two-time NCAA finalist for the Syracuse University. After college, he wrestled internationally and even placed third at the legendary Tbilisi Tournament in Georgia. Nowadays, Wayne is an Ernest Hemingway scholar and English teacher at Brophy College Prep. He has published 37 articles about Hemingway. He's reviewed just about every Hemingway biography out there. He lives and breathes Hemingway. Wayne would read Hemingway's short stories on the bus when they were traveling to away meets for wrestling in college. Even though he rose to the top of the wrestling world, he got a bit of a slow start. He first trained in judo and when he transitioned to wrestling, he never even placed in New York states. But the summer after his senior year of high school, he wound up placing at nationals and getting recruited to wrestle in college. Wayne and I first met in the Blair Academy wrestling room many years ago. And we always loved talking about books. We kept in touch and always bonded over our love for Hemingway. So it was so much fun sitting down and talking. In this episode we discuss our favorite Hemingway works. We talk about how many times Hemingway rewrote the last paragraph of A Farewell to Arms. About how The Old Man and the Sea is a book without one misplaced word. About the Hemingway in the Spanish Civil War and Hemingway's experiences in Spain which led to For Whom the Bell Tolls. Did Hemingway really lead charges as a war journalist? Wayne suspects it might just be part of the Hemingway lore. The Iceberg Theory. The Sun Also Rises. The Nick Adams stories. And so much more. Read more here: https://rolliepeterkin.com/wayne-catan-hemingway-wrestling-grace-under-pressure/ ------ Please feel free to reach out to me on social media! Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin Website - http://www.rolliepeterkin.com/contact My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD