By Chris Sabga
Upon first glance, no one in their right mind would think to compare gay boy band star Lance Bass with hulking WWE behemoth Batista. However, after reading their books (Out of Sync and Batista Unleashed, respectively), I realize that both men share many similarities - as hard as that may be to believe initially.
They both plunged into their chosen careers impulsively and became "overnight successes." Bass was a young teenager. Batista was an adult looking for direction. Yet, despite their differences in age, they were both rookies and outsiders in their newfound professions.
Bass, of course, became a musician with the boy band N'Sync. Batista, on the other hand, went on to win several WWE World Championships. They ascended to the pinnacle of their respective fields.
On the surface, both men couldn't be more different - but they're really two sides of the same coin.
The first time I saw Lance Bass wasn't at an N'Sync concert (come on!) - it was as Lucy's love-crazed fling on the TV show 7th Heaven. Bass's character spent the whole show feverishly kissing his new gal pal. Needless to say, he fooled me into thinking he wasn't gay. I was probably the only one surprised when he eventually did come out of the closet several years later.
Out of Sync never mentions that TV episode, but it does indirectly explain how Bass was able to get away with such a convincing performance. For years, he felt he had to hide his homosexuality. He decided coming out would ruin the band.
How does that little tidbit possibly relate to a 300-pound monster like Batista? Well, it's no secret that wrestlers are both athletes and actors. While Batista certainly won't ever be confused with Robert DeNiro (even though he did do a decent DeNiro impression before WrestleMania 21), the WWE superstar had to transform himself from a shy, soft-spoken man of few words into the loud, aggressive, ass-kicking "Animal" of the ring.
Bass and Batista struggled to gain acceptance from fans and their peers as they adjusted to the whirlwind demands of the spotlight. Wrestlers are often mocked by athletes in "real" sports despite the hard physical demands that come with being in the ring. Bass's involvement in a boy band likely led to similar derision from "legitimate" musicians, even though he worked just as hard to entertain his fans and further his craft.
Even though Bass's memoir clocks in at a thin 208 pages, it's an exhausting read that feverishly captures the never-ending "go, go, go" cycle of life on the road. Batista, perhaps because he is older and has more life experience (and was given a larger page count), takes more time to reflect on his accomplishments. He includes several amusing anecdotes from his short career. One section in particular - "Bubba Dudley is an asshole" - is especially humorous in its causticity.
If you're looking for dirt, Bass is a choir boy compared to Batista - but they're both honest about their fellow co-workers. In addition to the aforementioned Bubba Ray Dudley, Batista also reveals details about his affair with WWE diva Melina and sheds light on his real-life fistfight with fellow wrestler Booker T. Bass, meanwhile, talks about his problems with managers and fellow bandmate Justin Timberlake. Ultimately, both the wrestler and boy bander keep their stories reasonably tame despite being involved in "rock star" industries.
The two men also write about their family lives. Bass mentions how his parents and siblings reacted to the news that he was gay. Batista openly discusses his lesbian mother, troubles with his daughter, and becoming a grandfather at a very young age.
If a wrestler and a gay boy band member ran into each other at a bar, the uninformed stereotype would be for the brutish wrestler to beat up the homosexual musician. In this case, Batista would probably shake Lance Bass's hand and buy him a drink.
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