Your News, My Views 5.29.07
Posted by Larry Csonka on 05.29.2007
Broken necks, splattered patella’s, severed arteries; these are the things from which dreams are made... - Road Warrior Hawk
Introduction…and Things I want to talk about~!
Welcome to the weekly dose of news and views that you crave. I, as always am you host Larry Csonka. How are we all doing today children? I hope all is well.
WWE Hall of Fame and Shrek III Podcast~!
For the THIRD straight week we're back with more podcasting fun! Tonight the wife and I discuss the 2007 WWE Hall of Fame DVD, thoughts on the inductors, inductees, video packages and the rudeness of fans. Also we hit the topic of Shrek III, beer, my new toys and me sleeping with my college English teacher for an A! All of that and more on the latest edition of the Tremendous Tirades PodCast!
411 on MySpace? Yeah baby, the rumors are true! Go and check it out @ www.myspace.com/411mania
Tonight 411's Ryan Byers and Matt Adamson with be on Rumble Radio, a wrestling-themed show on WVAX 88.3 FM out of Chicago. They will be doing an "audio documentary" on SHIMMER: Women Athletes tonight from 7-9 PM central time. If anybody is interested in listening, I've been told that you can stream the show online at: http://webfiles.sxu.edu/org/wxav/
Support 411 people!
I will be on Buy or Sell this week!
As far as Randle goes, I just have to say. Man, this is getting a little freaky. Pretending to talk to me? Dude, get some therapy or use IM. I will make some time to actually talk to you. Lay off the cough syrup and step outside from time to time, I'm worried about you dude.
Also, a really slow news week. I'll do my best.
ON NOTICE~!
DANCING…
FUCKING…
BROCK…
RETURNS~!
And now back to Gene Krupa's syncopated style…
Today in Wrestling History:
2000 - Too Cool defeated Edge & Christian for the WWF Tag Team title
2000 - Kevin Nash awarded Ric Flair the WCW Heavyweight title
2000 - Jeff Jarrett defeated Ric Flair for the WCW Heavyweight title
Births and Deaths:
1973 - Born - Steve Corino
1978 - Born - Adam Jacobs
GREAT MOMENTS Wrestling History:
Shortly after losing his US Title to the MVP, Chris Benoit retreated back to the moose infested regions of Canada to drink his sorrows away and wish he had longer arms. While there, three young up and coming wrestlers decided that he needed cheering up. Obviously basketball and bowling were out, so they took Chris Moose riding in the Canadian outback, and as we all know nothing cheers up a Canadian like riding a moose. Chris seemed to get is drive back, we can only guess this as he took the moose down in a cross face and then proceeded to rip its jugular out.
Chris and these kids came back to his house, BBQ'd the moose with JR's BBQ sauce and celebrated. Chris then decided since he was getting on in age, and since the WWE was more concerned with the Boogeyman, he would take these kids and create the latest in a long line of Canadian stables. These brave young kids were Harry Smith, TJ Wilson and Nattie Neidhart; and along with Chris Benoit the formed the newest version of the Hart Foundation. This was truly a GREAT MOMENT in Wrestling History.
Unfortunately Teddy couldn't make the photo as he made a remark about Benoit's TREX-Type Arms and was eaten along side the moose.
TNA stories, scuttlebutt and rumors:
Your News: Jill Jarrett, the wife of Jeff Jarrett, passed away last night. Jill had been battling cancer on and off for a few years now and her health had gotten worse in the last two months. Jeff was going through great lengths to be with her virtually 24 hours a day, including when she was in the hospital. Even since returning to TV, he had been flying straight to the shows, then leaving right after, so he could go be with his wife.
My Views: First of all, all of the sympathies and prayers in the world to Jarrett and his family. I cannot fathom losing my wife, let alone being left to take care of my child without her. On top of that, Jarrett is still a giant part of the day-to-day operations of the company, and has more stress on him than most ever realized. Love him or hate him, and there is a lot of both, you truly have to feel for him. People questioned why after 6-months he would return. I am not JJ, but I can only speculate that dealing with the possibility of your wife passing, he just needed some normalcy to his life, to see some friends and to try and feel, for lack of a better word, normal for a few hours. From all accounts he did everything he could for her, and that is commendable. Last night's tapings will tell the tale of what he will do next. Wrestling and coming back may be therapy for him and that would be his choice, or maybe he will just stay home and deal with things that way. What ever he chooses, we should respect that choice and wish he and his family the best. Add on top of that the fact that on that same day, it was the anniversary of Owen's death, a very close friend of Jarrett, and that just had to be a horriffic day.
Your News: Christian Cage has signed a new deal with TNA, said to be either 2 or 3 years.
My Views: I think that this is very good news. First of all it shows that Cage is happy with the company. You have to believe that if he was unhappy he would he gone. He did so with "the biggest company in the world" so he would have no problem doing it for TNA. Secondly, it shows the he also has some faith in the company. Lots of people will see this and pull the usual "Will TNA even be around in 2-3 years" horseshit they have been since the company opened their doors, but the fact is that the Carter's are behind the company and they have been slowly doing better, thus getting more chances. Team 3D had already re-signed for more time, Angle just got here (as compared to them), and with the talent already there, I think these guys see something that could be big and also they are having fun. I just hope now that the company has locked up this talent that they can stop making the mistakes they have and start giving people a reason to care and spend money on them. Come on boys, we're about to hit five years, it's time to act grown up.
Not much else from TNA land. They taped three weeks of Impact last night leading to the 5th anniversary Slammiversary show. They have a lot of events scheduled on June, so maybe news will pick up soon.
WWE/ECW news, notes and happenings to the EXTREME:
Your News: Announced for the next SNME is: - WWE Champion John Cena(R) and the 7-foot, 3-inch 420-pound titan The Great Khali(TM) squaring off in a prelude to the highly anticipated rematch for the WWE Championship at the "One Night Stand(TM)" pay-per-view on Sunday, June 3rd.
- Batista(TM) and Chris Benoit(R) battle World Heavyweight Champion Edge(R) and United States Champion MVP(TM) in anticipation of title match showdowns at "One Night Stand."
- The WWE's strangest and smallest going head-to-head in a match that can only be seen to be believed.
My Views: The tag match looks cool, but I really have to wonder why in the world, one night before the PPV, why you would air one of your main event matches. Either they will make it all angle, OR they will actually pull a wacky title switch and then have Cena slay him at the PPV. I really question that move though, having the match that is. The last match mentioned has been confirmed as Boogey and Boogey-Cito vs. Finlay and Little Bastard. Yeah, I refuse to call him Hornswagle, he is Little Bastard!
Your News: WWE will be running a special three hour RAW on 6/11. WWE specifically asked USA Network for the extra hour. Every wrestler on every brand is scheduled to be at the show and is believed to be the draft special.
My Views: This will be the first WWE Draft since June of 2005. And really, while the brand split is basically dead, mixing up some talent may be a good idea due to all of the injuries right now. We'll have to see how it actually goes, and if it is actually worth it or not, but in THEORY it is a good plan. But then again so was the brand extension.
Your News: Dave Meltzer has reported that Rob Van Dam DOES indeed own the rights to his name, and when his contract ends he will be able to be "RVD" anywhere.
My Views: So that puts that to rest, and good for RVD.
Your News: Ole Anderson was offered $1500 to appear on the Horseman DVD. He asked if Vince would be signing the check, and when he was told yes he turned it down. Back in 1984 Vince told him he'd never work for the company again, and so Ole didn't want Vince to have to go back on his word and "be a liar."
My Views: I just think that this is a cool story. Although I really wish that he would have been on the DVD, just to have the Original Horsemen all on there and telling the story. Unfortunately we don't always get what we want.
Your News: JR said in a recent blog entry that there is a Ricky Steamboat DVD in the works.
My Views: Here is my $25. Thank you.
Independent News
Your News: Scotty Too Hotty wrote the following on his MySpace page regarding his release from WWE.
"First off let me say thank you to all of the fans out there who have supported me over the last 18 or so years. I have received a lot of phone call, emails, and text messages saying sorry about your release from WWE. Please don't be sorry for me because let me tell you that it was one hell of a ride. It was more than a kid from a small town in Maine could have ever dreamed of. I saw so many places, met so many people, and did so many things that most people only dream of. It was a disappointment when I got the call to be released, but I also think that deep down inside I was ready to move on. WWE had a business decision to make and they made it. I had a ten-year full time run with WWE. They're aren't a lot of people who can say that. I am so thankful for those ten years and I have nothing to complain about. I can't wait to get out and work some shows around the country and be able to meet new people and wrestle with guys that I have never worked with before. Love the "Scotty 2 Hotty" character or hate it, I have always given 100% and I will continue to do so. I tried to explain to my five-year-old daughter today that I wasn't going to be wrestling for WWE anymore. It didn't seem to bother her at all. So ya know what I guess everything will be just fine."
My Views: First of all it is great to hear Scotty's thoughts on the release. Second of all it is great to hear him not be bitter. He totally understood his role, played it to the best of him abilities, made good money, made people happy and in the end knew that there was really nothing much left for him to do there. He had a long career, and now can relax, be with his family and do Indy dates and make money and every thing will be fine. While I think that they could have used him well for either a new tag team with a developmental guy or a revamped cruiser division as a solid hand, everyone's time comes. I hope that they consider an agent or training job for him down the line, as he is the kind of guy who probably has a ton to give back to he business and the company that gave him a long run.
Your News: Deep South Wrestling sent out the following statement today.
To: All Deep South Wrestling Fans!
I want to take this opportunity to once again thank all the Deep South Wrestling Fans for their past support. We are in the process of re-organizing the Company, and we at Deep South are eagerly looking forward to seeing all the fans once again very soon. Please spread the word that Deep South will return soon at a location to be announced, watch the Deep South website for dates and times of the next Deep South Event. Thanks again!
Management: Deep South Wrestling LLC
My Views: This is good news for Indy wrestling. Hamilton knows how to run a company, run a show and while not blow away, DSW was booked well an as an independent could do really well. If they can keep the TV contracts they made, they will also not take a bath and actually make some coin. We'll have to see how this one plays out.
Your News: Charlotte, NC (May 21, 2007) – The National Wrestling Alliance® is pleased to announce the following participants and locations and the first round match ups for "Reclaiming the Glory: The NWA™ World Heavyweight Championship Tournament presented by Big Vision Entertainment." The tournament will take place at events across North America and begins Saturday June 2, 2007 from three (3) locations.
Saturday June 2, 2007
Cornelia, GA – www.nwa-wildside.com
CHAD PARHAM Vs. "MR. MID-ATLANTIC" DAMIEN WAYNE
Thayer, MO – www.cswwrestling.com
AARON AGUILERA Vs. "SCRAP IRON" ADAM PEARCE
Salyersville, KY – www.nwabluegrass.com
"SHOOTER" BRENT ALBRIGHT Vs. OSAMU NISHIMORA
Saturday June 9, 2007
Phoenix, AZ - www.risingphoenixwrestling.com
FRED SAMPSON Vs. GLAMOUR BOY SHANE
Saturday June 16, 2007
Vancouver B.C., Canada – www.eccw.com
"THE BOMBER" NELSON CREED Vs. "THE AMERICAN DRAGON" BRYAN DANIELSON
Danvers, MA – www.necwwrestling.com
PEPPER PARKS Vs. CLAUDIO CASTIGNOLI
Saturday June 30, 2007
Lebanon, TN – www.nwatop-ropewrestling.com
ROUGHNECK RYAN Vs. SICODELICO, JR.
Quincy, MA
MIKEY NICHOLLS Vs. FERGAL DEVITT
The NWA™ Board of Directors selected the participants and Executive Director Robert K. Trobich will supervise the tournament. For more information about these events and the NWA™ please visit nwawrestling.com.
My Views: They got the DVD deal with Big Vision, and with ROH on PPV and having contracts, this tournament also just got way more complicated. Word is that there could be some strife between ROH and the NWA over the man getting the title. ROH will treat the title well, they always have treated outside titles well, but the NWA thinks they are more important than they are and want exclusivity, which an ROH contracted guy like Danielson cannot provide. I figure Albright snags the title, and gets some ROH shine defending it, but not on PPV due to the new deals the NWA has. This should get pretty interesting actually.
Your News: Mistico already has returned to the ring this past weekend. No word if he got surgery or has opted to work through his shoulder injury.
Perro Aguayo Jr. is recovering nicely from his knee surgery and will be back in 608 weeks instead of months now.
My Views: This Mistico thing puzzles me. Either the injury was not that bad, or $3000 a shot working 8 or so times a week is just too much for him to turn down and figures he can work through the pain. We'll try to get more on this story as soon as possible.
EDIT: Speaking of more news, 411's Ryan Mancuso just sent me this little update on the situation! I saw Mistico's match from Friday at Arena Mexico. He was trying to gut it out, but it was clear his shoulder was messed up because he had a hard time using it. They did something at yesterday's Coliseo show where he took a bump on it (if it was planned then he is insane) and he was done for the match. I don't know if he is trying to work through the injury until the finals of Leyanda de Plata 2 weeks from now in which he is suppose to defend his trophy (especially with Perrito's injury screwing up the tournament), but the report I read said that Mistico is being told to get the surgery after yesterday's match. The feeling was that they did the go home sign early with Averno ripping off his mask for the DQ. He is scheduled to work at Puebla tonight, so we'll see what the situation is.
So there we have it, hoepfully we have more next week.
Also, great news on Perro as they need him back as soon as possible.
Reader Feedback and Rants!
From Kirk on Ariel being cut-
Just a quick note about Stephanie McMahon, Col. Mustard called and he wants her to get a clue. She fires Shelly "Ariel" Martinez yet keeps the Extreme Expose? WTF???? The suck & take up too damn much time on television. Hell two seconds is too much time. Shelly was different. No one remotely looked like her. Those extreme skanks have the same friggin gimmick. Who cares. I'd love to see one of them take a cane across the ass like Shelly did months back. Granted it was VERY nice to see her reaction to it but with them it would just be for subjecting us to crap. Then again this call was from the same skank that thought five male cheerleaders was a good idea. I wonder if she gets off watching the Boogymans gyrations. Not ripping on the talent of the Spirit Squad but the gimmick was at least better than Bastian Booger, Mantaur, and David Arquette world champ. It was at least nice that Styles and Taz mentioned her absence. The dark days of crappy gimmicks is now going to descend upon us.
From Clay on the same -
While I'm sure no one really cares about another Diva getting the axe, I'm gonna try and make someone care. Ariel was not just another Diva, she had a unique look & style and OMG actually had a character storyline to follow that wasn't who's dick am I sucking this week.
She's a true beauty and not a cookie cutter blonde bimbo, she helped make Thorn from a "cheesy" character to a kinda cool one. All Ariel's release means is that we'll be short a diva who coulda been something, and in a few months time we'll be given a new crop of bimbos from the latest Diva search. "jump and clap, honey and we'll give ya a contract and a Playboy cover"
I agree on this and said so last week. It is a shame that if you don't fit the cookie cutter that you get the ax.
From Jeff -
Seriously, TNA should have a secondary title. What they should consider is integrating the ECW Television title into a storyline:
Have Rhyno cut a promo saying how disgusted he is with the state of ECW and how he is especially pissed on how McMahon is the ECW Champion. He has already declared the ECW Title dead, but he would defend the TV title and preserve the lineage and honor brought to the belt by people like Eddie Guererro, Benoit, Malenko and others. He could also say that he is the rightful Champion because he was never beaten for the title.
They could do one of four things:
1. Use the angle that the WWE did and video-distort the belt (i.e. Ric Flairs" Real" World Title)
2. Take the old belt and cover up the ECW name (Taz taking the old TV title belt and making it the "FTW" Title.)
3. Make a belt that is similar in design to the old ECW belt...but with the TNA name on it.
4. Go the nWo route and spray-paint TNA on the belt.
To make it official, have Cornette come out and say that even though that is not an official TNA title, he should be allowed to defend it but only under TNA rules. This would also be a good way to introduce RVD and Sabu into TNA (if they decided to go there) by playing them as hired hitmen from the WWE and they have come to retrieve the belt. (which because it is an ECW title, Vince could lay claim to it as his property.)
Thanks for reading.
Wow…no offense, but that is possibly the worst idea I have ever heard. I don't know how many times I have to say this, but one of the biggest problems TNA has is always referencing WWE. I complained about that in the past, and again have to disagree with your idea here. I see what you are trying to do, but this in no way helps TNA build their own identity and as we have seen with other angles, they don't get any more buys or ratings either. .
From Lynx -
There has been something I have noticed in various columns on 411mania, and after reading Fact or Fiction 5.24.07, it is kinda something that should be brought up: what name RVD would be using when he leaves WWE. To me, the answer is simple: he will be using Rob Van Dam. Everywhere I have looked he has not used any other name, except for when he was Robbie V in WCW. Now my understanding here is that he would still be able to use the name after, much like Chris Jericho and Lance Storm, who used those names before entering any of the big promotions. My understanding of the Team 3D situation was that the gimmick was created in ECW, thus the intellectual property was ECW's, then WWE's possession. I can remember reading a Lance Storm column, linked from 411mania, on the issue around the time Team 3D had to change their name, explaining how he could still use the name Lance Storm because he had used it and was his intellectual property before joining any one of the major companies. To me, RVD fits into that category, having used the name previously, thrust the intellectual property being his. As for the initials, that is another mater that I would be unsure of, but would be easily contested I feel, based on the fact that they could be anyone's initials.
Well Dave Meltzer has confirmed that he owns all aspects of the name and will be able to use it. There was some question, but that has been put to rest..
Finally from Blake with a story of conversion -
Wanted to share with you the story of my wife's "conversion," as well as a little about my history as a fan and why TNA is the ONLY promotion for me. I have been a wrestling fan myself since the late 90's, and I managed to get in right at the end of the "Attitude Era" as well as the end of the NWO saga. Wrestling happened to come along write around the time when my mom had passed on, and any kind of distraction was a welcome one. From then on I was hooked, though my involvement changed from time to time. At some points I HAD to catch wrestling every Monday night, and then other times I would go months between viewings with my only connection to the world of wrestling being 411 and the handy recaps. Like many fans, WWE has left me disinclined on multiple occasions, and even when my interest in the product would peak, it still took quite a lot for me to part with my hard earned cash for the PPV. Five years ago I checked out TNA for the first time, and I was entertained... more so than in recent memory. I continued to follow casually from then on.
Skipping back to my wife, when we met in 2002 I was a closet-wrestling fan. Wrestling had always been a guilty pleasure and I did not think that any girl would comprehend. Time passed and I slowly let on about my little secret. Let me state for the record that my wife kicks all kinds of ass. She will go out of her way to take an interest in what is important to me, and wrestling is no exception. She even bought us both tickets to Survivor Series a few years back. When I would sit down and watch she would humor me... sitting next to me and doing her best to pretend to care, and while her efforts were appreciated, I could see through them.
Then one day the clouds opened from above and God spoke the words "Let there be DVR," and now I have the ability to never miss an episode of wrestling. I continued to follow both WWE and TNA, but as time went on I started to heavily favor TNA. I could not care any less about Vince McMahon and family than I already do. I watched him screw up damn near every story line that amused me. Way back during the Invasion angle I was at the summit of my love for wrestling. I was beyond ecstatic! He failed me then and most every time since then. TNA was different somehow... new. But I continued to watch programming from both.
About two months back it became a regular Thursday night thing for me to come home, grab dinner and watch the recorded iMPACT, and my wife joined in as always. After a week or two my wife started to cheer for wrestlers... not because I liked them, or because the story dictated them as the face, but because she was into it! In the weeks leading to Sacrifice she got very into all of it, and as we approached the PPV itself she turned to me at the end of iMPACT and said "Can we please order Sacrifice???" I almost pissed my pants, because since our marriage a little over a year ago I have not ordered any PPV since I could not justify it as money well spent for the family. Now it was my wife asking to watch!
We ordered the PPV and she ate it up. She loved the opening X Division match, she almost cried during the Texas Death Match, and she was pissed at the end... not because of the screwy finish, but because she felt that Sting was cheated! I did not know what to do with myself. In her words... "That was well worth the money."
So the following Thursday I was at work as always and I checked my cell phone to find that I had a text message. I open the phone the see my wife proclaim that the writers on TNA are brilliant. Apparently she could not wait for me to get home to watch so she watched it live and then again when I got home.. with her own running commentary.
TNA has found a lasting place in our home, and I believe it will stay that way for quite some time. It is refreshing to see wrestling through her eyes... as something new. She is a casual fan, and she doesn't care about politics or five star matches... she just watches to be entertained. Seeing it that way has made me fall in love with her and wrestling all over again. (And she is my wife and you can't have her.)
Thanks for dealing with my rambling, just thought you might like to know that there are other TNA fans out there now and again. Keep writing, I always enjoy your work.
