Circus Catch

Circus Catch

Even in a parallel universe, Cleveland is still the world capital of football futility. So, imagine the fumble-prone city’s surprise when their long-suffering RFC football team is on the receiving end of the ultimate Hail Mary reception. It’s pure pandemonium in Brunts Stadium with mere seconds to play, as the home team is on the brink of beating arch-nemesis Pittsburgh to reach the playoffs just a few days before Christmas. But that’s where CIRCUS CATCH takes the strangest bounce of all time. The outrageous, egomaniacal, yet Born Again wide receiver Brevard “B-Wack” Wackson is given credit for what many would call the catch of the century, but he claims it’s an incomplete pass, and his team shouldn’t get credit for the touchdown. This bombastic, media-addicted mercenary then impulsively takes matters into his own magnificent hands. In the process he turns the game, the city of Cleveland and certain sacrosanct pillars of The American Way of Life (Christmas, family, country, Reality TV & Fantasy Football) completely upside down. A fast-paced, scathing satire that’s been described as “Keith Olbermann meets Chuck Klosterman with 20 cc’s of Dave Eggers,” CIRCUS CATCH is a must-read for any sports fan with a sense of humor. Unless you’re from Cleveland. "This is a Dan Jenkins-esque idea... I love this-- 'The Catch' is the macguffin. I love that it trips off all these crazy things! The first 20 pages of the book are [a video] review- that's so hip, man, I love that!" - Dennis Miller (former SNL star, discussed on "The Dennis Miller Show") "It succeeds as a satire of football, but god, how did Michael X. Ferraro even construct this, given how satirical the regular football world already is?... Any reformations or reclamations worth a damn start with satire. In Circus Catch, the corrupt egomaniacal sports world finally has a satirical counterpart worthy of how hilarious, tragic, ugly and beautiful the SportsWorld can be."- Dave Zirin ("Edge of Sports" - Sirius XM; sports editor "The Nation") What happens when "the bad guy" does the right thing? This book examines what happens when an egomaniacal, larger-than-life sports superstar blows everyone's mind by GIVING BACK a game-winning touchdown catch, because he knows in his heart he truly didn't catch it.   CIRCUS CATCH is meant to be a fast, funny read, with an infuriating, but enjoyable character (who's dubbed himself "B-Wack") at the center of a media storm of his own creation. As a part-time sportswriter and full-time fan throughout my career, I wanted to explore the dichotomous nature of competition-- is it about learning sportsmanship, or is about winning? In America, we try, but often unsuccessfully, to impart higher, "noble" values to the games we play and adore. We say "may the best man (or woman) win," but all too often, what it takes to be "the best" requires lying, cheating and other clearly unsportsmanlike practices.So what would happen when someone blatantly challenges that philosophy, under a national spotlight? This novel aims to find out.  Even in a parallel universe, Cleveland is still the world capital of sporting misery.So, imagine the forlorn city's surprise when their long-suffering RFC football team is on the receiving end of the ultimate Hail Mary. It's pure pandemonium in Brunts Stadium with mere seconds to play, as the home team is on the brink of beating arch-nemesis Pittsburgh to reach the playoffs just a few days before Christmas. But that's where CIRCUS CATCH takes the strangest bounce of all time.The outrageous, egomaniacal, yet Born Again wide receiver Brevard "B-Wack" Wackson is given credit for what many would call the catch of the century, but he claims it's an incomplete pass, and his team shouldn't get credit for the touchdown. This bombastic, media-addicted mercenary then impulsively takes matters into his own magnificent hands. In the process he turns the game, the city of Cleveland and certain sacrosanct pillars of The American Way of Life (Christmas, family, country, Reality TV & Fantasy Football) completely upside down. A fast-paced, scathing satire that's been described as "Keith Olbermann meets Chuck Klosterman with 20 cc's of Dave Eggers," CIRCUS CATCH is a must-read for any sports fan with a sense of humor. Unless you're from Cleveland. Michael X. Ferraro has gotten paid to come up with nicknames for Shaquille O'Neal, write sports rants for Dennis Miller and collaborate on motivational speeches with Hall of Famer Michael Irvin, among many other, much crappier jobs. He is a TV writer, producer, sportswriter, columnist, baseball poet, @midnight #HashTagWars champion and lyricist. He's written and produced for all the major networks and top cable stations, working closely on sports and comedy-related shows with folks like Shaq, Irvin, Howie Mandel, Dennis Miller, Charissa Thompson, Scott Hamilton and Joe Rogan. CIRCUS CATCH is his third book and first novel. He is a lifelong Philadelphia Eagles fan and longtime LA Cli