#Dan spivey. just Dan spivey

[lokifreign]

hearing aids and music. it took time, a month or so, to really bring the two together. for a while I'd take them out to listen to music; it just didn't gel, it didn't work. over time my brain adjusted and leaned toward wanting all those frequencies instead of trying to shut them out or disclaim them.

would have imagined I'd go to all the teenage albums, but instead I've been bingeing Cab Calloway, Steely Dan, and various operas lately, more or less nonstop. Also a lot of Halvorsen arrangements for folk instruments.

Last week it was 100% early 20th century blues, like coffee can recordings. Victoria Spivey, Dick Justice, Cleo Brown, Woody Guthrie, Hank Williams. Some warblers. A not-insignificant Harry Chapin blip for a minute, before that, I have no shame about it; I think Lisa Germano might have actually swerved me into the Chapin. Somehow.

younger me would be so confused

I still don't like stuff I didn't like before, but the need to variegate my audio environment has come on, strong. Seems loud, too, but according to the sliders I'm less than half. Huh.

have people been tolerating the loudness of my media all this time

[wrestlingwiththoughts]

The Skyscrapers vs. The Ding Dongs (NWA Pro, July 18, 1989)

The Skyscrapers vs. Avalanch & Mike Blackwell (NWA World Wide Wrestling, August 5, 1989)

“Psycho” Sid Vicious vs. Lee Scott (NWA Main Event, August 15, 1989)

My reflexive answer to the question “What is your favorite match of all time” is KENTA vs. Bryan Danielson for the ROH World Championship from ROH Glory By Honor V Night 2 because it was 1) an incredible match 2) featuring Bryan Danielson, my favorite wrestler of all time 3) that was lucky to have seen live. Competitive epic matches like KENTA vs. Danielson are ideal combinations of athleticism and emotion that use physicality to heighten the drama that is only possible in professional wrestling.

Sometimes, however, you just need to see glistening and statuesque giants destroy the mortal men who, out of a desperate need for a quick check or simple hubris, try to measure their arms vis a vis their ability to box with God.

On this occasion, we revisit these three remarkable jobber matches to memorialize Sid Eudy, aka Sycho Sid, Sid Justice, Sid Vicious, and simply Sid. RD Reynolds wrote about both these tag matches for WrestleCrap’s Squash of the Week column, and they summed it up nicely in the review of the Skyscrapers vs. the Ding Dongs: “The match consisted of a few forearms, a kick, and only two more moves. Unfortunately for Ding and Dong, they would be these two moves: [gifs of a rough Spivey falling powerbomb and an even rougher Sid powerbomb].”

Sid worked best in these quick squashes that accentuated how larger than life he was. I am not interested in seeing Sid play at showing vulnerability. His power and presence are intense, and prolonged exposure is not ideal for him or us. Sid had IT, that ineffable quality that made him remarkable.

Similar to how the Kelvin and Rankine temperature scales are defined by a particle’s motion relative to absolute zero, Sid’s mightiness can only be defined relative to the poor schlub who’s jobbing for him that night. So, kudos to Lee Scott, who made Sid look like an impossible challenge, the Ding Dongs, who made Sid and Dan Spivey look vicious and dangerous, and poor Mike Blackwell, who made Sid and Spivey look minacious and hazardous to their opponents’ health.

[razor-ramons-thighs]

We’re getting Waylon Mercy promos now, he’s almost here

[duggardata]

Who in the second generation is currently outpacing their parents?

Childbearing Race:  Who is Outpacing Their Parents?

Fun Ask!  I’m going to limit this to Predictor Couples.  (So, I’ll compare Alyssa + John, but not John’s Siblings, to the Websters.)  Let's take a look...

Josie (Bates) + Kelton are outpacing Michael + Kristy Balka, whose Procreative Pace (PP) was 1,258 Days.  Josie + Kelton’s PP is 588 Days.  

None of the Bates Couples are outpacing Gil + Kelly Jo’s PP of 439 Days.  (Tori + Bobby come the closest, with a PP of 473 Days.)

With the exception of Carson + Carolina (PP 774 Days), each of the Bontrager Couples is outpacing Marlin + Becky’s PP of 674 Days.  (It is too early to tell for Allison + Jeremiah, but their Firstborn is due to arrive before Marlin + Becky’s— so, we’ll count that.  Why not.)  For those with >1 Child, here are their PPs—

Chelsy + John   470 Days

Mitchell + Bryn   636 Days

Josh + Cassidy   646 Days

Carolina (+ Carson) and Cassidy (+ Joshua) are both outpacing their parents—Curtis + Lauren Bowers.  The Bowerses’ PP was ~779 Days.  Carson + Lina’s PP is 774 Days, while Josh + Cassidy’s is 646 Days.

With a PP 494 Days, Joe + Kendra are easily outpacing the Caldwell Parents (Paul + Christina), whose PP is 1,039 Days, and slightly erratic.

None of the Duggar Couples are keeping up with Jim Bob + Michelle’s super–impressive PP of 472 Days.  (Joe + Kendra come the closest, at 494 Days.)

All of the Quiverfull Kellers (with >1 Child) are outpacing Mike + Suzette Keller, who had a PP of 898 Days.  (Nathan + Nurie are technically behind, since their Firstborn is due to arrive later than Mike + Suzette’s did.  But, it is still early on in their childbearing career.  We’ll see.)  Here are their PPs—

Esther + John   569 Days

Priscilla + David   636 Days

Anna + Josh   730 Days

While quiverfull (QF), Steve + Teri Maxwell had a PP of 669 Days.  Two of their sons are outpacing them—Christopher (557 Days) and John (490 Days).  Chris is married to Anna Marie Hamilton.  John is married to Chelsy Bontrager.  

With a 552–Day PP, Erin + Chad Paine were handily outpacing Chad’s Parents (Charles + Tammy Paine).  The Paine Parents’ PP was ~731 Days.

Whitney Perkins is an Only Child, so we obviously can’t compare her PP to her parents’.  (Fun Fact, though:  I recently learned that Whitney’s Father, J.C., was 1 of 11 Siblings!)

Jessa + Ben are outpacing Michael + Guinnevere Seewald.  Ben’s Parents’ PP was 847 Days.  Jessa + Ben’s is 679 Days.

Tori + Bobby are very, very easily outpacing Rob + Sheri Smith (Bobby’s Folks).  Tori + Bobby’s PP is 473 Days.  Rob + Sheri’s was 1,635 Days.  (They also only had 3 Children.)

Priscilla + David are definitely outpacing Brian + Sue Waller (David’s Parents).  Their PP was 820 Days.  Priscilla + David’s is 652 Days.   

Alyssa + John was outpacing Daniel + Sandy Webster (John’s Parents); it’s not even close.  Alyssa + John’s PP is 537 Days.  Dan + Sandy’s was 1,342 Days.   

Finally, the following In–Laws have a calculable PP, but it’s too soon to compare their offspring’s to it, since their offspring has 0 or only 1 Child, thus far.  Here is the list anyway, just for fun...

John + Cheryl Burnett   817 Days  (Abbie’s Parents)

Michael + Carla Clark   690 Days  (Travis’s Parents)

Ron + Jill Keilen   845 Days  (Brandon’s Parents)   

Jill + David Rodrigues   528 Days  (Nurie’s Parents)

Rob + Hilary Spivey   1,119 Days  (Claire’s Parents)      

Paul + Denese Stewart   1,395 Days  (Evan’s Parents)

Dwain + Lana Swanson   ~832 Days  (Lauren’s Parents)

Due to data gaps, I can’t calculate a PP for—George + Lauren Craig (Anna P.’s Parents), Kevin + Lisa Helferich (Praise and Jeremiah’s Parents), and George + Lisa Keyes (Esther’s Parents).

Finally...  I have no real data on the families of the following Predictor People

Bryn (Leppert) Bontrager

Karissa (Goering) + Mandrae Collins

Sierra (Baird) + Mark Dominguez

Anna Marie (Hamilton) Maxwell

Elissa (Frost) Maxwell

Melanie (Maher) Maxwell

Courtney (Harkins) + Christopher Rogers

John Shrader

Very interesting Ask!  Thanks for sending it in!

[agl03]

ABC SDCC Press Release

Disney Television Studios Takes Over Comic-Con 2019 With 14 Panels DISNEY TELEVISION STUDIOS TAKES OVER COMIC-CON 2019  WITH 14 PANELS! ABC’S TWO HIGHLY ANTICIPATED FALL DRAMAS ‘STUMPTOWN’ AND ‘EMERGENCE’ MAKE COMIC-CON DEBUTS WORLD PREMIERE SCREENING OF FOX’S PULSING THRILLER ‘neXt’ FIRST LOOK AT TWO NEW ANIMATED SERIES:  ‘BLESS THE HARTS,’ FROM EMMY® AWARD WINNER EMILY SPIVEY;  AND ‘SOLAR OPPOSITES,’ FROM THE MINDS BEHIND ‘RICK AND MORTY’ EXCLUSIVE SNEAK PEEK OF ‘What Just Happened??! WITH FRED SAVAGE’  AND SEASON 2 OF KURT SUTTER’S ‘MAYANS M.C.’ ‘MARVEL’S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D.’ RETURNS FOR STAR-STUDDED HALL H PANEL SETH MACFARLANE AND ‘THE ORVILLE’ CAST AND CREATIVE TEAM TEASE  SEASON THREE AND NATHAN FILLION TALKS SEASON TWO OF ‘THE ROOKIE’ FAN-FAVORITE ANIMATED COMEDIES ‘THE SIMPSONS,’ ‘FAMILY GUY,’   ‘BOB’S BURGERS’ AND ‘AMERICAN DAD!,’  BACK FOR HILARIOUS PANELS AND AUTOGRAPH SIGNINGS Among Those Scheduled to Appear on Panels and at the 20th Century Fox Television and  ABC Booths in the San Diego Convention Center:  Ike Barinholtz, Jillian Bell, H. Jon Benjamin, Michael Ealy, Donald Faison, Nathan Fillion,  Clark Gregg, Scott Grimes, Jake Johnson, Seth MacFarlane, Camryn Manheim, Megan Mullally, Edward James Olmos, JD Pardo, Fred Savage, Kristen Schaal, Cobie Smulders, Allison Tolman, Ming-Na Wen  and Executive Producers Rich Appel, Loren Bouchard, Brannon Braga, David A. Goodman,  Matt Groening, Al Jean, Phil Lord, Chris Miller, Jason Richman, Justin Roiland, Alec Sulkin,  Emily Spivey, Kurt Sutter and Matt Weitzman Disney Television Studios including Twentieth Century Fox Television, ABC Studios and Fox 21 Television Studios takes over the San Diego Comic-Con convention with stars and creators of 14 of its fan-favorite shows descending on the world-famous gathering next month. In addition to exclusive sneak peeks of its programs and panel discussions with the casts and creators, the studio will rotate producers and stars through the ABC and 20th Century Fox Television booths on the convention center floor for autograph signings and activities, including distribution of exclusive 2019 poster tubes, collectible mini-posters, premium giveaways and DVD sales.  Descriptions of panel sessions and screenings follow:

THURSDAY, JULY 18  

3:00 – 4:00 p.m. EMERGENCE (Produced by ABC Studios) – Beyond explanation … beyond understanding … lies the truth. Join the cast and executive producers for a first look at the pilot episode of ABC’s new drama series “Emergence,” followed by an exciting panel discussion. This character-driven genre thriller follows a police chief who takes in a young child she finds near the site of a mysterious accident who has no memory of what has happened. The investigation draws her into a conspiracy larger than she ever imagined, and the child’s identity is at the center of it all. Executive producers Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters with cast members Allison Tolman, Donald Faison, Clancy Brown, Alexa Swinton, Owain Yeoman, Ashley  Aufderheide, Robert Bailey Jr. and Zabryna Guevara will all be in attendance. (Indigo Ballroom) 3:30 – 4:30 p.m. MARVEL’S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. (Produced by ABC Studios) –The cast and producers of “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” will return to San Diego Comic-Con in epic fashion as they take over Hall H for the first time ever! Be the first to hear the scoop about the show-stopping conclusion for season six and what awaits in season seven of Marvel’s flagship television show. With your favorite stars in attendance, including Clark Gregg, Ming-Na Wen, Chloe Bennet, Elizabeth Henstridge, Iain De Caestecker, Henry Simmons, Natalia Cordova-Buckley and Jeff Ward, along with executive producers Maurissa Tancharoen, Jed Whedon, Jeff Bell and Jeph Loeb, this is a must-see panel to celebrate seven seasons with the world’s greatest fans! This action-packed series from ABC Studios and Marvel Television airs Fridays at 8/7c on ABC.  (Hall H)  Please note: Talent is subject to change. 4:15 – 5:15 p.m. STUMPTOWN (Produced by ABC Studios) – Based on the “Stumptown” graphic novel, ABC’s new drama series “Stumptown” follows Dex Parios (Cobie Smulders) – a strong, assertive and sharp-witted army veteran with a complicated love life, gambling debt and a brother to take care of in Portland, Oregon. Her military intelligence skills make her a great PI, but her unapologetic style puts her in the firing line of hardcore criminals and not quite in alliance with the police. Panelists include cast members Cobie Smulders, Jake Johnson, Michael Ealy, Camryn Manheim, Tantoo Cardinal, Cole Sibus and Adrian Martinez, with executive producer Jason Richman and “Stumptown” graphic novel author Greg Rucka. (Indigo Ballroom)

FRIDAY, JULY 19  

11:00 – 11:45 a.m. BLESS THE HARTS(Produced by 20th Century Fox Television) – From the network that brought you the Simpsons, the Griffins and the Belchers now present the Harts!  FOX’s new half-hour comedy, “Bless The Harts,” features your new favorite, good ol’ Southern family.  Jenny Hart (Kristen Wiig) supports her lottery scratcher-obsessed mother, Betty (Maya Rudolph), and her witty, creative daughter, Violet (Jillian Bell). With the help of her eternally optimistic, dreamer boyfriend Wayne (Ike Barinholtz), they hope to one day achieve the American dream. While they are always struggling to make ends meet, they’re already rich in friends, family and laughter. Join us for an exclusive first look into your next animation obsession with executive producers, Emmy® Award winner Emily Spivey (“Wine Country,” “Parks and Recreation,” “Saturday Night Live”), and Academy Award® winners Phil Lord & Chris Miller (“Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse,” “The Lego Movie,” “21 Jump Street”), and the all-star cast behind the Harts! (Indigo Ballroom) 3:00 – 3:45 p.m. SOLAR OPPOSITES (Produced by 20th Century Fox Television) – From the minds behind “Rick and Morty” come “Solar Opposites,” a new animated series that follows a family of aliens “from a better world” who take refuge in middle America. Join Justin Roiland (“Rick and Morty”), Sean Giambrone (“The Goldbergs”) and Mary Mack (“Golan the Insatiable”), along with executive producers Mike McMahan (“Rick and Morty”) and Josh Bycel (“Happy Endings”), for an exclusive first look into the series premiering in 2020 on Hulu. (Indigo Ballroom) 4:00 – 4:50 p.m. BOB’S BURGERS (Produced by 20th Century Fox Television) – Always one of the most entertaining panels at Comic-Con, the Emmy Award-winning animated FOX series “Bob’s Burgers” returns to San Diego with a few surprises in store! Creator and executive producer Loren Bouchard and executive producer Nora Smith will break news about the upcoming season, and the always entertaining cast including H. Jon Benjamin, Dan Mintz, John Roberts, Kristen Schaal, Larry Murphy and Megan Mullally will have you howling with laughter with never-before-seen footage, followed by a lively panel discussion and audience Q&A. (Indigo Ballroom) 5:30 – 6:30 p.m. What Just Happened??! WITH FRED SAVAGE (Produced by 20th Century Fox Television) – Acclaimed director and television star Fred Savage cannot wait a second longer to share the world of “The Flare,” the most mind-bending, thrilling, edge-of-your-seat sci-fi show never created. “The Flare,” based on TJ Whitford’s classic series of sci-fi novels, “The Moon is the Sun at Night” not only sizzled its way into living rooms nationwide but also inspired Fox to create its first-ever after-show, “What Just Happened??! With Fred Savage.” Join Fred, alongside stars of “The Flare,” Shiri Appleby (“Roswell”), Kevin Zegers (“Fear the Walking Dead”), Tyler Ritter (“Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”), and co-creators Matt Silverstein and Dave Jeser and director Jon Cassar (“24”) to get a sneak-peek screening of the fourth episode of the after-show dedicated to exploring the fandom surrounding the “The Flare.” “What Just Happened??!,” Fred’s half-hour hybrid comedy/talk show, airs on FOX on Sunday nights. Screening to be followed by conversation moderated by Fred Savage and fan Q&A. (Room 6DE) 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. the rookie (Produced by Entertainment One and ABC Studios) – Join series star and executive producer, Nathan Fillion, as he discusses his latest role as John Nolan on ABC’s high-action drama “The Rookie,” as production begins on its second season. Joining Nathan for this intimate conversation will be longtime friend and “The Rookie” showrunner, Alexi Hawley. The two collaborators will also reflect on Nathan’s overarching career, spanning from “Firefly” to Shakespeare, and now, playing the oldest rookie in the LAPD. (Horton Grand Theatre) 6:45 – 7:45 p.m. neXt (Produced by 20th Century Fox Television) – Join us for the world premiere of “neXt,” a propulsive, fact-based thriller about the emergence of a deadly, rogue artificial intelligence that combines pulse-pounding action with an examination of how technology is invading our lives and transforming us in ways we don’t yet understand. Coming to FOX in 2020, “neXt” stars John Slattery (“Mad Men”) as a Silicon Valley pioneer, who teams with cybercrime agent Fernanda Andrade (“The First”), to fight a villain unlike anything we’ve ever seen. Panelists to include creator and executive producer Manny Coto (“24”), executive producers and directors John Requa and Glenn Ficarra (“This Is Us”), Fernanda Andrade, Michael Mosley (“Ozark”), Jason Butler Harner (“Ozark”) and Eve Harlow (“Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”) for a moderated conversation and fan Q&A. (Room 6DE)

SATURDAY, JULY 20  

12:00 – 12:45 p.m. THE SIMPSONS (Produced by 20th Century Fox Television) – Now 30 years old and part of the mighty Disney empire, get inside insights and secret tips on the upcoming, brand-new season from Matt Groening, Al Jean, Mike B Anderson, Stephanie Gillis and the voice of Lisa Simpson and panel moderator, Yeardley Smith. There WILL be freebies! (Ballroom 20) 1:00 – 2:15 p.m. AMERICAN DAD! and FAMILY GUY(Produced by 20th Century Fox Television) – It’s a Smith-family fun day with Hayley (Rachael MacFarlane), Steve (Scott Grimes), Klaus (Dee Bradley Baker) and Principal Lewis (Kevin Michael Richardson), plus executive producer and co-creator Matt Weitzman and producers Kara Vallow & Jeff Kauffmann who will treat “American Dad!” fans to a first look at scenes from all-new episodes coming soon to TBS … plus a few other surprises! THEN Join cast Seth MacFarlane, Alex Borstein, Mike Henry and executive producers Rich Appel, Alec Sulkin and Kara Vallow from FOX’s hit animated comedy “Family Guy” as we celebrate our 20th anniversary! We’ll take a look back at some of our favorite moments over the last 20 years, plus a special sneak peek at the hilarity and hi-jinx in the upcoming season!  (Ballroom 20) 2:30 – 3:15 p.m. THE ORVILLE (Produced by 20th Century Fox Television) – From Emmy Award-winning executive producer and creator Seth MacFarlane, “The Orville” is back for season three and stopping in San Diego! Join the full crew of the U.S.S. Orville: Seth MacFarlane, Adrianne Palicki, Penny Johnson Jerald, Scott Grimes, Peter Macon, Jessica Szohr, J Lee, Mark Jackson and Chad L. Coleman, and executive producers David A. Goodman, Jon Cassar and Brannon Braga to get an exclusive look back at some of our favorite, never-before-seen moments of season two and a special sneak peek at the new and exciting missions in the upcoming third season! (Ballroom 20)

SUNDAY, JULY 21  

1:00 – 2:00 p.m. MAYANS M.C. (Produced by Fox 21 Television Studios) – “Mayans M.C.” is the next chapter in Kurt Sutter’s award-winning “Sons of Anarchy” saga. Set in a post-Jax Teller world, Ezekiel “EZ” Reyes is fresh out of prison and a prospect in the Mayans M.C. charter on the Cali/Mexi border. Come for an exclusive sneak peek at a scene from the upcoming season and a not-to-be-missed conversation with co-creator/executive producer/writer Kurt Sutter, co-creator/executive producer/writer/director Elgin James and executive producer/director Kevin Dowling, plus stars JD Pardo, Clayton Cardenas, Edward James Olmos, Sarah Bolger, Michael Irby, Carla Baratta, Antonio Jaramillo, Raoul Max Trujillo, Richard Cabral, Danny Pino, Emilio Rivera, Frankie Loyal, Joseph Lucero and Vincent Rocco Vargas discussing what to look forward to from season two. Moderator: Lynette Rice, Entertainment Weekly. (Hall H) About Disney Television Studios  Disney Television Studios is a collection of studios comprised of 20th Century Fox Television, ABC Studios and Fox 21 Television Studios. DTS produces the most award-winning, culture-defining programming for all platforms including “This Is Us,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Homeland,” “Modern Family,” “black-ish,” “Fosse/Verdon,” “American Horror Story” and “Marvel’s Cloak & Dagger.” 

[rasslingrob]

xv) WCW Starrcade X: BattleBowl II: The Ultimate Challenge of Skill, Luck, and Survival December 28th, 1992 The Omni, Atlanta, Georgia 1. Van Hammer and Dan Spivey vs. Johnny B. Badd and Cactus Jack (BattleBowl Qualifier, 3/10) 2. Big Van Vader and Dustin Rhodes vs. Barbarian and Kensuke Sasaki (BattleBowl Qualifier, 5/10) 3. Barry Windham and Great Muta vs. Brian Pillman and 2 Cold Scorpio (BattleBowl Qualifier, 6/10) 4. Sting and Dr. Death Steve Williams vs. Erik Watts and Jushin “Thunder” Liger (BattleBowl Qualifier, 7/10) 5. Masahiro Chono vs. Great Muta (NWA World Championship, 7/10) 6. Ron Simmons vs. Dr. Death Steve Williams (WCW Championship, 7/10) 7. Ricky Steamboat and Shane Douglas vs. Barry Windham and Brian Pillman (WCW Tag Team Championship, 8/10) 8. Sting vs. Big Van Vader (King of Cable finals, 8.5/10) 9. BattleBowl II (Van Hammer vs. Dan Spivey vs. Big Van Vader vs. Dustin Rhodes vs. Great Muta vs. Barry Windham vs. Sting vs. Dr. Death Steve Williams) (6.5/10) I am a fan of the Starrcade event, but I have never liked the the BattleBowl concept. Starrcade was essentially WCW's WrestleMania. BattleBowl just seemed like like a way to load one event with unnecessary tag matches to fill a battle royal. The proper way to achieve this would over a couple weeks of TV tapings. The qualifiers were alright, but the Sting and Williams vs Watts and Liger one was the better of the four. Chono/Muta was good, but the crowd during the bout was very noticeably silent. The Simmons/Williams WCW Championship match was a lot better than I had anticipated, but the ending was pure bullocks. Just because it was a last minute change and Dr. Death Steve Williams hadn't lost a match in seven years, they were backed into a corner. The WCW Tag Championship bout was a solid match. Steamboat, Douglas, Pillman, and Windham gave it their all in that encounter... https://www.instagram.com/p/CMB_tYBMCAm/?igshid=1ad0t3ckczwqe

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

* * * *

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

September 12, 2020

Heather Cox Richardson

Last night, at about 10:30, reporter Dan Diamond posted another blockbuster story in Politico. Political appointees at the Department of Health and Human Services have been altering the weekly scientific reports issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) following the course of the coronavirus pandemic. They believe the reports are undermining Trump’s cheery pronouncements about the disease, and claim there is a “deep state” at the CDC determined to hurt the president.

Since 1981, career scientists have compiled weekly Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Reports to inform Americans about trends in disease. These records are not controversial. But in April, Trump passed over scientists to install one of his campaign advisers as assistant secretary of HHS for public affairs. Michael Caputo was a long-time Republican operative, an associate of Roger Stone who had worked for Russia’s Gasprom Media to improve the image of Vladimir Putin in the U.S.

Caputo promptly began trying to change the CDC reports on Covid. Although he has no background in medicine or science, he and his team claim that the scientists are exaggerating the dangers of Covid-19. An aide, Paul Alexander, wrote an email to CDC Director Robert Redfield calling for retroactive modifications to two reports, saying, “CDC to me appears to be writing hit pieces on the administration.” Alexander, recruited by Caputo from his position as an assistant professor of health research at Hamiliton’s McMaster University in Canada, has demanded that the CDC stop issuing reports until he is given the right to review them before publication and to make line edits.

“Our intention is to make sure that evidence, science-based data drives policy through this pandemic—not ulterior deep state motives in the bowels of CDC," Caputo said.

The attack on transparency at the CDC echoes Trump’s attempt to protect acting director of Homeland Security Chad Wolf from testifying before the House Intelligence Committee. On Wednesday, a whistleblower filed a complaint that Wolf and his deputy Ken Cuccinelli have been pressuring intelligence officials to change their reports to bolster Trump’s campaign speeches. Rather than releasing the actual findings of intelligence experts that America’s chief threats come from white supremacists and Russian attacks on the 2020 election, Trump’s men want the intelligence reports altered to suggest that left-wing violence is equal to that of the right-wing thugs, and that Iran and China are as guilty of election interference as the Russians.

Since June, the House Homeland Security Committee has tried to get Wolf to testify before it about worldwide threats to the United States, and it had appeared that he had finally agreed to come on September 17. After Wednesday’s publication of the whistleblower complaint though, the administration did something sneaky to try to keep the House from being able to make him testify.

Trump never officially nominated Wolf for the position he holds, both because keeping his officials “acting” means they are beholden to him, and because Wolf would have a hard time winning confirmation because he had no experience with either law enforcement or intelligence, which the law requires in a Director of Homeland Security. But, thanks to a quirk in the law, Wolf could move into an acting position so long as he had been confirmed by the Senate for a different position. The day the Senate confirmed him as a DHS undersecretary, the resigning acting DHS director switched the line of succession in the department to let Wolf move into the directorship. But, according to the Government Accountability Office, the man who switched the line of succession was himself appointed illegally, and so therefore had no authority to install either Wolf or his deputy, Ken Cuccinelli. So they are both serving illegally.

I know. Clear as mud, right?

But here’s why this matters for transparency: As soon as the whistleblower story broke, Trump unexpectedly nominated Wolf for the actual job he has held illegally for more than ten months. Immediately, DHS told the House that Wolf could not testify in front of the committee, because “it is standard practice for nominated officials not to testify in their acting roles in front of a congressional committee before they have been confirmed.”

Representative Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), Chair of the House Committee on Homeland Security, promptly subpoenaed Wolf, saying “From the coronavirus pandemic to the rise of right-wing extremism to ongoing election interference, there are urgent threats requiring our attention. Mr. Wolf’s refusal to testify – thereby evading congressional oversight at this critical time – is especially troubling given the serious matters facing the Department and the Nation.”

Assistant DHS Secretary Beth Spivey responded: “The arguments in your letter are without merit.” She said that from the moment Trump nominated Wolf, he “became unavailable to testify before Congress on matters unrelated to his nomination.” This will become a protracted fight. It is unlikely we will hear from the Director of Homeland Security about attempts to bend intelligence reports to support the president’s reelection until after the election, if then.

The Justice Department, too, is being shaped to support Trump’s narrative. Yesterday, Nora R. Dannehy, the top aide to John Durham, resigned from the department, apparently because of pressure from Attorney General William Barr to complete a report that could bolster the president’s claims that the Obama administration improperly began an FBI investigation of his campaign in 2016. Both the inspector general of the Department of Justice and the Senate Intelligence Committee have already concluded that the investigation was begun legitimately and conducted without political bias.

And today, as western states continue to suffer from runaway wildfires, the South and East face unusually bad hurricanes, and Iowa tries to rebuild from a derecho, we learned that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has hired a climate-change denier. David Legate has spent his career casting doubt on climate science: in 2014, he told the Senate that the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which identifies international consensus within the scientific community of 195 countries (no mean feat) is wrong. His work has been funded in part by grants from Koch Industries, ExxonMobil, and the American Petroleum Institute. Neither he nor NOAA would tell NPR why he was hired.

All of these stories dovetail neatly with the information shared this week from journalist Bob Woodward’s forthcoming book. Woodward reveals that Trump knew on January 28 just how bad the coronavirus was. He called Woodward on February 7 to tell him “this is deadly stuff,” and to detail for him that the virus was airborne and that it was five times more deadly than “even your strenuous flus.” But he continued to tell the American people that coronavirus was going to disappear, that they did not need to wear masks, and that those warning of its dangers were trying to advance a “hoax” to weaken his administration.

I write a lot about the philosophy of living in a fact-based reality, explaining the Enlightenment idea that we can move society forward only by evaluating fact-based arguments. Replacing facts with fiction means that as a society we cannot accurately evaluate new information, and then shape policy according to solid evidence. But the Trump administration’s attempt to hide reality under their own narrative reveals a more immediate injury. You cannot make good decisions about your life or your future if someone keeps you in the dark about what is really going on, any more than you can make good business decisions if your partner is secretly cooking the books.

Knowledge truly is power.

As of today, we have lost more than 192,000 American lives to Covid-19.

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

Heather Cox Richardson

[fromtheringapron]

WCW Halloween Havoc 1989

Date: October 28, 1989.

Location: Philadelphia Civic Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Attendance: 7,300. 

Commentary: Jim Ross and Bob Caudle. 

Results: 

1. Tom Zenk defeated Mike Rotunda. 

2. The Samoan SWAT Team (Fatu, Samu, and The Samoan Savage) (with Oliver Humperdink) defeated Steve Williams and The Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton & Stan Lane) (with Jim Cornette). 

3. Tommy Rich defeated The Cuban Assassin. 

4. NWA World Tag Team Championship: The Fabulous Freebirds (Jimmy Garvin & Michael Hayes) (champions) defeated The Dynamic Dudes (Shane Douglas & Johnny Ace) (with Jim Cornette).

5. Doom (Butch Reed & Ron Simmons) (with Woman) defeated The Steiner Brothers (Rick & Scott). 

6. NWA United States Championship: Lex Luger (champion) defeated Brian Pillman. 

7. The Road Warriors (Hawk & Animal) (with Paul Ellering) defeated The Skyscrapers (Sid Vicious & Dan Spivey) (with Teddy Long) via disqualification. 

8. Thunderdome Cage Match: Sting and Ric Flair (with Ole Anderson) defeated Terry Funk and The Great Muta (with Gary Hart). Bruno Sammartino was the special guest referee. 

My Review

Halloween Havoc was the one night of the year where WCW’s penchant for batshit gimmickry was free to roam and, as we all know, the results were pretty remarkable. However, the first iteration of the event is much more conservative than what it would become. It doesn’t have the awesome entrance set yet, not even the Party City gravestones. There’s also nothing like the Chamber of Horrors or the Monster Truck Sumo Match here. The only real inkling of Halloween we get is a paltry setup in the backstage interview area, which looks like the set of a middle school’s production of Sleepy Hollow. It’s a relatively modest show, especially for an event that’d see Abdullah the Butcher cooked in an electric chair just two years later.

Fortunately, we do get some Halloween hijinks in the form of the Thunderdome Cage match. Nothing about it makes sense so, needless to say, I love it. It’s a bit of a precursor to Hell in a Cell, except with cheap, tacked-on decorations and the inexplicable risk of electric shock. Seriously, what are the rules here, if any? It’s never made clear. If anything, its an excuse for Terry Funk to sell ever-loving shit out of it, which is as valid an excuse as any. We also get to see Sting and Ric Flair swing on a rope for reasons unbeknownst to me. The most hilarious part is that the referee is Bruno Sammartino, who famously left the WWF for this exact kind of bullshit. You have to wonder what he was thinking before he signed on to take part.

With such a wild main event, it’s too bad the rest of the card isn’t nearly as fun. Overlong matches are a reoccurring theme of the night. Do we really need to see a filler six-man tag match go on for over 18 minutes? Do we really need to see an aging Tommy Rich longer than 3 minutes? Do we need that, really? The bookers of this show apparently think so. A major part of WCW’s appeal in the late ‘80s was its ‘real sports” feel compared to the WWF, which had blossomed into a full-blown neon circus of death. For as much this approach would serve them well, it also just as often resulted in content I personally find a little too dry. You’re certainly welcome to disagree, but I do feel the show could use a bit more oomph to the proceedings.

Perhaps more striking than the card is the crowd in Philly. WCW crowds were smarkier than the WWF ones, and this show is a shining example. Perhaps the highlight of this is them completely taking the side of The Freedbirds in their match against the Dynamic Dudes (thought I can’t blame them; even in this era, the Dudes seems like total phonies). 15 years later and they would’ve been no different than a crowd in Toronto or Chicago, homes to other “backwards world” fans. The fans much more willing to accept anti-heroes, which would later parlay into them embracing the nWo.

WCW was still trying to shed its NWA skin at the time of Halloween Havoc 1989 and it shows.  They’d be tossed from one creative direction to another for the next few years, from Jim Herd to Bill Watts to eventually landing in the hands of Eric Bischoff. But in the case of their annual October pay-per-view, it wouldn’t take them long after this first try to finally spike the Halloween party punch and just go wild with it.

My Random Notes

We’re unfortunately stuck with Bob Caudle on commentary for this broadcast. He feels such a part of the Mid-Atlantic era that he seems really out of place here. I will concede that he absolutely does seem like the old, out-of-touch Republican that likely populated WCW offices, especially at this time.

Okay, The Great Muta putting out a fire with his green mist is definitely the most badass thing I’ve seen in awhile.

Doom and Woman also look pretty badass. It always feels weird discussing Woman now, and it really shouldn’t, as it’s not fair to her that her life was taken from us so harshly. She carved out a nice little career for herself in the wrestling business and carried herself with the kind of presence that made it seem like she belonged there.

Love, love, love the animated Halloween intro. Even in the first iteration of this event, it’s good to see WCW already starting to get into the holiday spirit.

Really caught off-guard by JR mentioning the Blade Runners, and throwing shade at The Ultimate Warrior on top of that. Didn’t think the Sting/Warrior partnership was referenced until well into the ‘90s.

Cocky U.S. champion is definitely the best version of Lex Luger. I’ve always thought his match with Pillman here is pretty underrated, and it shows how Luger always should’ve been⏤an absolute prick who is nonetheless totally competent.

Poor Tommy Rich, eh? Dude just gets absolutely trashed on by the fans. They don’t fuck with him or his attempted comeback at all.

I can only imagine what it must’ve been like for the WCW creative team trying to think of a gimmick for Tom Zenk. You’d have to wonder if they spent several hours in a boardroom before finally throwing their arms up and saying, “Fuck it, we’ll just call him the Z-Man.”

[corkcrab7-blog]

The Best New Shows and Movies on Netflix This Week -- The Society, Wine Country

Looking for something new to watch on Netflix? Here is a list of all the best new shows and movies released on Netflix the week of May 10-May 16.

This is a very well-rounded week on Netflix. We've got a star-studded comedy movie (Wine Country), a suspenseful teen thriller series (The Society), the final season of a well-liked anthology series (Easy), some anime, some kid stuff, some foreign cinema, and some documentaries, and not too much of any one thing. Sometimes it's like "why do we need three murder documentaries this week," you know? Nothing this week is going to be a big hit, except mayyybe The Society, but nothing is especially bad, which isn't always the case. Steady as she goes, Netflix!

If you're looking for even more hand-picked recommendations, click over to our Watch This Now! page.

(All titles are out Friday, May 10, unless otherwise specified.)

The Biggest Releases

The Society, Season 1 Netflix's latest TV-MA YA offering is its best one yet, an inspired Lord of the Flies riff about the teenagers of a wealthy New England town that gets mysteriously cut off from the world. "No parents, no school, no rules" sounds like fun, right? Think again! Things Chinua Achebe real fast — and that's the kind of reference these kids would make, because they're all hilariously well-read. This is a show where ominous graffiti in Romanized Hebrew appears on a wall and a jock is like, "Oh, that's from the Book of Daniel. It means you've been judged and found wanting." It's a lot of fun.

Wine Country Amy Poehler is making her directorial debut with this feel-good comedy about a group of longtime friends taking a trip to Napa to celebrate a 50th birthday. The cast includes Poehler's own longtime friends and fellow Saturday Night Live alumni Maya Rudolph, Rachel Dratch, Ana Gasteyer, Paula Pell, Emily Spivey, and Tina Fey. In addition to directing, Poehler also stars, executive-produces, and wrote the story with Spivey and Liz Cackowski (who used to write for, you guessed it, Saturday Night Live). (Trailer)

Everything Else

Easy, Season 3 Writer-director Joe Swanberg's low-key anthology series is back for a third and final season of charming little tales of the love, sex, and app lives of a gaggle of Chicagoans. Returning faves include Jake Johnson, Aya Cash, Dave Franco, Zazie Beetz, Marc Maron, and Elizabeth Reaser, along with new faces like Sophia Bush and John Gallagher Jr. Is this the final sigh of mumblecore? Maybe!

Dry Martina I feel like this came out already? Or maybe Netflix puts out so many similar movies that I can't keep track of them all. Anyway, this is a sexy Chilean dramedy about a former teen pop star rediscovering her libido and finding out about who she is in the process. Lots of talk about "concha" in the trailer. (Trailer)

Gente que viene y bah (In Family I Trust) This is a Spanish movie about an architect whose boyfriend cheats on her with a news anchor and everyone finds out so she returns to the small town where she's from and gets her groove back with the help of her family and the local hot dude. You've seen this one before. (Trailer)

Harvey Girls Forever!, Season 2 The animated series formerly known as Harvey Street Kids is back for another season of after-school adventures on the street where every day feels like Saturday. Fun fact: The voices of the boy band the girls adore belong to Joey McIntyre (New Kids on the Block), Nick Lachey (98 Degrees), Joey Fatone (*NSYNC), and Shawn Stockman (Boyz II Men). That's star power! (Trailer)

Jailbirds People sure do love jail documentaries. Here's another one, profiling the women incarcerated in the Sacramento County Jail. It's as close to a real-life Orange Is the New Black as Netflix has gotten. (Trailer)

ReMastered: The Lion's Share The eighth and final installment of this season of monthly music documentary series ReMastered follows South African journalist Rian Malan's quest to redistribute the wealth of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight," which has earned millions of dollars for American artists but nothing for the impoverished family of songwriter Solomon Linda, an injustice which Malan sets out to rectify as an act of personal contrition for his own family's role in apartheid. (Trailer)

Shéhérazade This gritty French indie is set in the slums of Marseille, where teenage petty crook Zach falls in love with streetwalker Shéhérazade, which leads to serious consequences. It won three César Awards (the French Oscars), for Best First Film for director Jean-Bernard Marlin and Best New Actor and Actress for its young stars Dylan Richard and Kenza Fortas. (Trailer)

Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj, Volume 3 Hasan Minhaj is back for another batch of informative John Oliver-style political comedy. Topics in this volume include censorship in China (which comes after Minhaj was banned in Saudi Arabia), politics in India, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development and its loony leader Ben Carson. (Trailer / Sunday, May 12)

Malibu Rescue The premise of this kids' movie is Baby Baywatch. Some kids including Breanna Yde and Ricardo Hurtado from Nick's School of Rock learn how to be junior lifeguards. If this were a theatrically released movie, it would be rated PG for "mild rude humor." (Trailer / Monday, May 13)

revisions, Season 1 This anime series has a pretty similar premise to The Society in some ways. It follows some teenagers from Shibuya who get time-warped into a future version of their city. But then there's big robots and stuff they have to fight, so it's actually pretty different than The Society. You should just watch The Society. (Trailer / Tuesday, May 14)

Still Laugh-In: The Stars Celebrate This special is a tribute to the classic Nixon-era sketch comedy show Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In. Dan Rowan and Dick Martin are both dead, so they won't be there to accept the praises. There doesn't seem to be much of a point to this besides the fact that it launched the career of Lily Tomlin, and Netflix loves Lily Tomlin. It also launched the career of Goldie Hawn, but she's not in this. But it does have Tiffany Haddish crip-walking, which is something we all know and love from the original Laugh-In! (Trailer)

Stop searching, start watching! TV Guide's Watch This Now! page has even more TV recommendations.

The 52 Netflix Originals You Should Be Watching

Tim Robinson, I Think You Should Leave with Tim RobinsonPhoto: Netflix

Source: https://www.tvguide.com/news/the-best-new-shows-and-movies-on-netflix-this-week-the-society-wine-country/?rss=breakingnews

[iamjamesmatthew]

5 THINGS THAT GOT ME THROUGH THE WEEK - PRO WRESTLING EDITION

1. NAOMI WINS THE SMACKDOWN WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP AT THE ELIMINATION CHAMBER

Much like Bray Wyatt's championship win, this something I have been wanting to see for a long time. Naomi, the former Funkadactyl dancer and survivor of the original NXT concept show defeated Alexa Bliss to become the new Smackdown Women’s Championship. Some people will criticise the title change for cutting short Alexa's reign as champion, however, I welcome it. It took eight years of setbacks, injuries, bad gimmicks, and overcoming the awful Divas era of wrestling before Naomi could hold the gold.  I feel the timing is right because this athlete deserved to hold the Women's Championship which in its sixth month of existence is more valuable than the Divas belt.

The story of her perseverance is something that adds to the importance of this story. In an era of "hotshot" championship reigns and rushed wins, Naomi is a reminder that talent and hard work do prevail.

2. BRAY WYATT WINS THE WWE CHAMPIONSHIP AT THE ELIMINATION CHAMBER

I have been waiting years for this to happen … Bray Wyatt is holding championship gold. Amen! The Eater of Worlds not only won the WWE Championship in the Elimination Chamber but he also pinned John Cena and AJ Styles in the same match. That's unfathomable. It's a legend-making moment similar to when Chris Jericho beat Steve Austin and The Rock in the same night to come WWE’s first Unified Champion in 2001. Despite all the hot and cold treatment Bray has been getting from the promoters, it does feel that the Era of Wyatt has jumped off to a great start.

Going into WrestleMania it looks like Randy Orton challenging Bray Wyatt for the WWE World Championship will be Smackdown Live's main event, and that has me pumped (for real). Bray Wyatt in the main event, going against Randy Orton (and possibly the newly revitalised Luke Harper) is all that's right in the WWE Universe. Names like Goldberg, Undertaker, and Brock Lesnar will get more press coverage yet we all know it's the men like Wyatt who will make the show memorable.  Let's see what happens.

3. SAMOA JOE ON MONDAY NIGHT RAW

The sit-down interview with Michael Cole was on-point and firmly established Samoa Joe as a threat to everyone on the WWE roster - both athlete and broadcaster. During the interview, it was obvious that his Sami Zayn reference would lead to some sort of confrontation between the two. I assumed a match would take place at a later date, but instead, we had Samoa Joe destroy (pun intended) Zayn in front of the live audience. In under 10 minutes of total airtime, Joe put the whole company on notice; assuring everybody that he is an equal opportunity threat. I also liked the fact that he let it be known that unlike Seth Rollins, Shawn Michaels, Randy Orton, and Batista that he is NOT a lackey; he doesn’t need HHH to make him a star in WWE reminding people that although he is aligned with HHH, he’s not a lackey.

4. KEVIN OWENS & CHRIS JERICHO’s FESTIVAL OF FRIENDSHIP GETS KO'd

All good things come to an end. and as sad as I am to see the end of Kevin Owens and Jericho, I am looking forward to seeing what happens next with Kevin Owens. This more aggressive, more vicious Kevin Owens, the man who run through NXT and later beat up John Cena during his first WWE RAW appearance is the version we need to see as Universal Championship rather than the guy who needs help to win matches. A bad ass KO > silly, comedic KO. It was apparent that Jericho and Ownes would split, but this attack was a complete surprise. I know the internet is speculating that Owens will lose the Universal Championship to Bill Goldberg at Fastlane thus making way for a US Championship match between Owens and Jericho, BUT I think a Jericho vs. Owens main event at WrestleMania would be a must-see, especially after this break-up. Question: Did HHH have something to do with Owens’ attack? Remember, he was seen talking to KO before the Festival of Friendship segment. Could the Cerebral Assassin be ready to explain his relationship with KO?

5. TEDDY LONG ANNOUNCED TO BE INDUCED INTO THE 2017 WWE HALL OF FAME

Of course his time as the Smackdown GM, hollering "playa", is what most people will remember his for but for me, my favorite Teddy Long career moment was during his time in WCW where he managed the likes of Doom (Ron Simmons & Butch Reed), the Original Skyscrapers (Sid Vicious and Dan Spivey), and of course Mean Mark (the future Undertaker) in the 90s. For me, there were very few Black characters on WCW TV, so seeing Teddy Long was a personal highlight for me. That little bit of diversity made WCW watchable, but beyond race I though his character was an attention getter. My favourite moment was his appearances on Terry Funk's Funk's Grill talk show, where the two would sing about "banging up on" the Road Warriors who were feuding with Doom. The idea of diminutive Teddy Long hurting the Road Warriors was over the top funny, for me. I'm glad WWE is honouring a man who for all intents and purposes comes across as being a well-liked and respected by all the people who have worked him. Well deserved. Well earned accomplishment, Mr Long.

HONORABLE MENTION:

BAYLEY DEFEATS CHARLOTTE FOR THE WWE RAW WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP

If anybody thought Bayley’s character was failing to get over with the crowds, they need to watch this match and listen to the reaction Bayley received following the pin. This match was Bayley's best to date on RAW and I am sure she and Charlotte will have a rematch to settle the score. Since the interference from Dana Brooke and Sahsa Banks resulted in the outcome, I am sure the next episode of RAW and the WWE Fastlane pay per view will be affected.

WRESTLERS FROM THE WWE UK TOURNAMENT APPREATING ON NXT

Just when it looked like NXT’s talent pool couldn't get any better, the powers that be decided to incorporate some of the UK tournament athletes (Tyler Bate, Trent Seven, and Pete Dunne) into their show. The addition of these men along with a soon to be returning Kassius Ohno makes NXT seem like the #1 brand in WWE. I envision matches like Nakamura against Pete Dunne or Bobby Roode v. Trent Seven or Tyler Bate v. Roderick Strong. The possibilities are endless.

[mengs-mullet]

Top five underrated hosses

Sylvester Terkay, One Man Gang (wrestlers give him props, fans don't really), Earthquake (ditto), Dan Spivey, and I'm gonna give the last spot to Jumbo cos I feel like people either forgot or just don't know how incredible he was. He gets looked over in favor of other guys from his time, like Brody & Hansen, and I get it cos I love them, but he was so fucking good and should definitely be talked about way way more.

[auburnfamilynews]

It was good weekend on the Plains as two official visitors left with the Tigers on top.

National Signing Day is quickly approaching and Auburn has plenty of spots still left to fill. This past weekend went a long way towards hopefully filling a few of those positions with some big time players.

Tigers Lead For Two Top Targets

Both 3* OG Kamaar Bell and 3* LB Octavius Brothers left the Plains last weekend with a clear #1 team in the Auburn Tigers.

Auburn is also now in the lead for 3-star LB and Brevard County, Fla. native Octavius Brothers after his official visit. That’s two players in two positions of need as the Tigers look to round out their 2019 class.

— Justin Ferguson (@JFergusonAU) January 13, 2019

Both are incredibly important targets for the Tigers. Auburn signed only two offensive lineman in December after only signing two offensive lineman in the 2018 class (though they did snag junior transfer Jack Driscoll). The Tigers also only signed one linebacker in the early period and are hoping for two more in this class. Both Bell and Brothers are at or near the top of the want list for both of those positions.

Now Auburn will have to hope no one else can top last weekend’s visits. Bell will be in Louisville this weekend before traveling to Tallahassee, FL at the end of January. That FSU visit is the one that looms large in my opinion. The Noles can sell immediate playing time and that will play a huge role in Bell’s final decision.

Had a great time @AuburnFootball . Thanks for making me feel at home #WDE pic.twitter.com/kDqE0i2jMS

— k ️〽️ ️ELL 4star ⭐️ (@BKamaar) January 14, 2019

As for Brothers, he is no longer expected to visit Ole Miss this weekend but instead travel to Atlanta and spend the weekend with the Yellow Jackets. Miami will then host him late in January and they are probably Auburn’s biggest threat at the moment. As of today though I think both end up Tigers.

Auburn Official Was Certified #WARDAMN @T_WILL4REAL @CoachGusMalzahn @CoachPrinceAU pic.twitter.com/Iv9OhYHtsz

— Oc Brothers II (@Blvd_4) January 14, 2019

Auburn Making Push For Robinson

It’s pretty clear Auburn would like to sign one more defensive back in the 2019 class. Back in December, Auburn hosted LSU commit 4* CB Maurice Hampton who is still mulling over his final decision. The Tigers sent the whole coaching staff sans Gus Malzahn to Hampton’s home over the weekend to let the young man know how badly Auburn wants him on the Plains.

Great in home visit with the WHOLE Auburn coaching staff. #WDE pic.twitter.com/1lfBJobh3o

— Ⓜ️ (@maurice_hampton) January 14, 2019

But Hampton isn’t the only DB target at the moment. 3* ATH Jammie Robinson is one of the most exciting players in this class. He played at Crisp County the last two seasons with SEC signees Big Kat Bryant and Quay Walker before transferring to Lee County in Leesburg, GA. People would go to see those two play and leave talking just as much about Robinson. He can play all over the field though most schools have him pegged as a defensive back, specifically at the nickel position. Heading into this past weekend, this race was thought to mainly be a Kentucky vs South Carolina contest. Not anymore.

Robinson brought his mom on campus for the first time and it appears the visit was a hit with her. Even more important, Kevin Steele took some time to break down how the Tigers plan to use Robinson’s unique skillset if he were to don the orange and blue next season. This will be a fight to the finish line and he still has one more official visit left with a trip to Knoxville this upcoming weekend. I think the Tigers have turned the heat up in this race and are very much a threat to land the talented athlete. But it could be hard to beat longtime favorite South Carolina. You also wonder if Auburn could take both Robinson and Hampton if they wanted on board. I imagine that’s a problem the Tigers would like to have come signing day.

Say Auburn What’s Popping #wareagle pic.twitter.com/vFXYYgIYzP

— Jammie Robinson (@Jammierobinson6) January 13, 2019

Griffin In Play?

One of the most interesting official visitors this past weekend in my opinion was NC State commit 4* RB Jamious Griffin. Auburn won a wild race for 3* DJ Williams in December and are considered the favorites for 4* Mark-Antony Richards. But Griffin landed an offer in December as well and has quickly become a name to watch in recent weeks for the Tigers. Might Auburn be making a strong late push for the talented back out of Georgia?

Maybe.

Griffin left the Plains saying that Auburn “stands up there with N.C. State” and that a final decision wouldn’t come until around Signing Day. He also stated that the news about Tim Horton no longer coaching running backs would not factor into his final decision. He’s expected to officially visit Georgia Tech (notice how their name is popping up more?) next weekend and Miami the last weekend in January.

I’m a big fan of Griffin but I’m not sure yet if Auburn would be willing to take both he and Richards if they wanted on board considering they signed Williams just a few weeks ago. I also think the Rambling Wreck are a team to watch in this race considering his older brother signed with them last year. The Wolfpack will fight hard to keep the Georgia native in the fold but this race is going to come down to the very end. My super early prediction is that he lands in the ACC with either NC State or Georgia Tech but he’s absolutely a name to track over these final weeks.

AUBURN IT’S BEEN REAL‼️✊ #WarEagle pic.twitter.com/2dEGdTUh7e

— ｣ᗑ⋔ｴꑙ꒤꒚ ﻯℜｴ￡￡ｴℕ✝ (@JamiousGriffin) January 13, 2019

Interesting Monday Visitor

It seems like every single transfer QB has been linked to Auburn so far. The Tigers tried to land Kelly Bryant last month but lost him to Missouri. I’ve seen Auburn’s name mentioned as a school of possible interest for former Ohio State QB Tate Martell though there’s been little actual intel on Auburn’s real interest. There continues to be buzz that the Tigers might be in play for Jalen Hurts as well but yesterday a new name went from speculation to possibly a legitimate transfer target.

Looks like Oklahoma transfer quarterback Austin Kendall is in Auburn, per his Instagram (@bmarcello saw it first). He would be immediately eligible as a graduate transfer. Was a four-star pro-style recruit in the 2015 class. Completed 28 of 39 passes in three years. pic.twitter.com/q64TLJxolO

— Josh Vitale (@JoshVitale) January 14, 2019

Austin Kendall was once the nation’s #9 ranked pro style quarterback in the 2016 class and someone the Tigers pursued hard that cycle. He landed with the Sooners and was thought to be the next man in line in Norman, OK. But surprisingly his name appeared in the transfer portal last week. Very quickly, Auburn’s new QB coach Kenny Dillingham and head coach Gus Malzahn were following Kendall on Twitter. But yesterday’s visit is real concrete evidence that the Tigers are pursuing the talented signal caller.

So what does this mean? Well it could mean Gus Malzahn is simply doing his due diligence. Auburn really liked Kendall when he came out of high school and there’s a relationship already there. But it could also mean that in a do or die year for Malzahn, he has no interest in turning this offense over to anyone on the roster or a true freshman QB.

Gus has never been shy about pursuing transfer QBs. The success he’s had with them makes it understandable. But this move would be more surprising to me than the pursuit of Kelly Bryant or Jalen Hurts. Kendall will be a redshirt junior next year meaning he will have two more years to play. That’s more than a stopgap solution. It would virtually eliminate any dream of Malik Willis being the guy and would mean Joey Gatewood and Cord Sandberg are redshirt juniors on the roster when Kendall leaves.

I don’t actually know how real or not real this recruitment might be but it’s definitely something to follow in the coming weeks. Kendall doesn’t appear to me to be the same type of sure thing Jarrett Stidham was a few years ago and does not bring any threat of mobility like Bryant or Hurts. But Gus can’t really afford to take any lumps next year with a young QB. If you don’t trust Willis to be the guy and aren’t ready for Gatewood/Sandberg/Nix to take over then maybe Kendall can be the answer. Fascinated to watch this recruitment unfold.

Charles Moore Has New Leader

Last week, one of Auburn’s top targets in 4* DL Charles Moore reopened his recruitment. He quickly tabbed the Tigers as his leader and it was hard not to get excited about the possibility of adding the talented defensive lineman in February. But it appears things might have changed following his official visit to Gainesville.

Defensive lineman Charles Moore named the Florida #Gators his leader on Sunday after visiting Gainesville. Moore says the #Gators impressed him with their presentations about life after football. Moore talks visit here https://t.co/4NGaPstyd6

— Andrew Spivey (@AndrewSpiveyGC) January 13, 2019

Dan Mullen was the head coach in Starkville when Moore originally committed to Mississippi State so this isn’t a complete shock. He already has a good relationship with that staff and the Gators undoubtedly rolled out the red carpet this past weekend. But I also don’t think it’s time to panic. Moore appears to be a kid prone to visit highs and I would not be surprised to see Tennessee become his top team after that official visit. In the end, Auburn has built some really strong relationships in this recruitment and I still think the Tigers are the team to beat. I would not be surprised at all if he took an unofficial visit to campus too before making his final decision. Either way, this is gonna be a hotly contested recruitment until signing day.

Offensive Line Thoughts

Finally, I wanted to touch on the subject that I know most Auburn fans are concerned about this cycle - offensive line recruiting. The Bell news was big this past weekend and I do think the Tigers are gonna be tough to beat in that recruitment. But even with Bell, Auburn needs at least one more offensive lineman in this class and he should probably be an offensive tackle prospect. The two names that have been most mentioned are JUCO prospect 4* Bamidele Olaseni and 3* Dawand Jones. Olaseni has already officially visited the Plains but still has more visits to go while the Tigers are fighting to get Jones on campus. I don’t feel great about Auburn landing either one at the moment.

More surprising has been the fact that Auburn hasn’t sent out any new offers on the offensive line in recent days. They might have and they just haven’t gone public but I’m gonna speculate they haven’t for another reason. With the adoption of the brand new Transfer Portal, recruiting has expanded even further from just high school/junior college prospects and graduate transfers to any player that wants out of their current situation. Given the limited talent pool now available due to the early signing period, I wouldn’t be shocked if Auburn is evaluating some transfer options that might have to sit out next season but would have at least two years of eligibility remaining starting in 2020.

The Tigers don’t have a clear successor at left tackle on the roster right now. I think Austin Troxell is going to be a very good right tackle for the Tigers next season but besides him, I’m not sure Auburn has ANY SEC calibre OTs available. There are a lot of questions around whether Calvin Ashley will even be with the team next season and even if he is I’m not sure if he will be ready to go in 2020. I would not be surprised if Prince Michael Sammons transfers at some point and I would be stunned if 2019 signee Justin Osborne is ready to start as a redshirt freshman. That’s a pretty bleak picture looking ahead...

So don’t be shocked if instead of landing a 3* backup plan, Auburn instead attempts to add a transfer from a Power 5 program with the hope that he will be ready to start in 2020. Who that might be, I have no idea but I at least wanted to throw out the possibility that Auburn could be looking at non high school and graduate transfer targets. This will continue to be one of the most important spots to fill in the 2020 class.

War Eagle!

from College and Magnolia - All Posts https://www.collegeandmagnolia.com/2019/1/15/18182793/2019-auburn-football-recruiting-kamaar-bell-octavius-brothers-name-auburn-leader

[duggardata]

Who, Exactly, Does Duggar Data Track?

Y’all may have noticed...  There have been a lot of changes around here, lately!  I’ve added so many new families to the Predictor that I’m thinking it might be a little difficult to keep track.  Just so we are all on the same page, here is the full list of Predictor Families / Couples—i.e., those whose information is fully–input into my spreadsheets, allowing for instant analysis via the Predictor.

(Note—Couples that overlap two Predictor Families are italicized.)

The Duggar Family

Jim Bob + Michelle (Ruark) Duggar’s 19 Children, including 9 Married Couples—

Josh + Anna (Keller) Duggar

John + Abbie (Burnett) Duggar

Jill (Duggar) + Derick Dillard

Jessa (Duggar) + Ben Seewald

Jinger (Duggar) + Jeremy Vuolo

Joe + Kendra (Caldwell) Duggar

Josiah + Lauren (Swanson) Duggar

Joy (Duggar) + Austin Forsyth

Justin + Claire (Spivey) Duggar

... and 10 Non–Partnered Children—Jana, Jedidiah, Jeremiah, Jason, James, Jackson, Johannah, Jennifer, Jordyn, and Josie).

The Bates Family

Gil + Kelly Jo’s 19 Children, including 7 Married Couples—

Zach + Whitney (Perkins) Bates

Michaela (Bates) + Brandon Keilen

Erin (Bates) + Chad Paine

Alyssa (Bates) + John Webster

Tori (Bates) + Bobby Smith

Carlin (Bates) + Evan Stewart

Josie (Bates) + Kelton Balka

... 3 Not–Married–So–Far Couples (Lawson Bates + Tiffany Espensen, Nathan Bates + Esther Keyes, and Katie Bates + Travis Clark), and 9 Non–Partnered Children—Trace, Jackson, Warden, Isaiah, Addee, Ellie, Callie, Judson, and Jeb.

The Bontrager Family

Marlin + Becky’s 10 Children, including 5 Married Couples—

Chelsy (Bontrager) + John Maxwell

Mitchell + Bryn (Leppert) Bontrager

Allison (Bontrager) + Jeremiah Helferich

Carson + Carolina (Bowers) Bontrager

Joshua + Cassidy (Bowers) Bontrager

... 1 Engaged Couple (Denver Bontrager + Praise Helferich), and 4 Non–Partnered Children—Taylor, Liz, Hudson, and Rebecca.

The Caldwell Family

Paul + Christina Caldwell’s 8 Children (+1 On The Way), including 1 Married Couple—

Kendra (Caldwell) + Joe Duggar

... 1 Engaged–But–Probably–Broken–Up Couple (Lauren Caldwell + Titus Hall), 6 Non–Partnered Children (Micah, Nathan, Timothy, Olivia, Jesiah, and Isaiah), and 1 Still In–Utero.

The Keller Family

Half of Mike + Suzette Kellers’ Children.  Just the quiverfull ones, comprised of 4 Married Couples—

Esther (Keller) + John Shrader

Priscilla (Keller) + David Waller

Anna (Keller) + Josh Duggar

Nathan + Nurie (Rodrigues) Keller

The Maxwell Family

Steve + Teri’s 8 Children, including 5 Married Couples—

Nathan + Melanie (Maher) Maxwell

Christopher + Anna Marie (Hamilton) Maxwell

Joseph + Elissa (Frost) Maxwell

John + Chelsy (Bontrager) Maxwell

Jesse + Anna (Craig) Maxwell

... plus, 3 Non–Partnered Children / Daughters—Sarah, Anna, and Mary.

The Rodrigues Family 

Jill + David’s 13 Children, including 1 Married Couple—

Nurie (Rodrigues) + Nathan Keller

... and, 12 Non–Partnered Children—Timothy, Kaylee, Renée, Phillip, Samuel, Gabriel, Tessie, Hannah, Olivia, Sadie, Sofia, and Janessa.

Miscellaneous Couples

... and why they’re notable—

Karissa (Goering) + Mandrae Collins  (Prolific Instagrammer)

Sierra (Baird) + Mark Dominguez  (Counting On; Friends of the Duggars)

Courtney (Harkins) + Christopher Rogers  (Prolific Instagrammer)

Kristen + Justin Young  (Counting On; Friends of the Duggars)

Also, I’ve decided to stop tracking Bethany (Baird) + David Beal...  Honestly, I just find her so annoying, I can’t handle following her Instagram anymore.  I’m not planning to follow any of the Girl Defined girls, I find them insufferable.

Duggar Data also casually follows several others—e.g., Amy (Duggar) + Dillon King, Sue + Noel Radford, the Kody Brown Family, and a few of the Predictor In–Laws (e.g., Dan + Deena Dillard and Meagan [Forsyth] + Bobby Ballinger).   

[dudleysaintdudley]

Just listened to Sade (The Remixes) by DJ Spivey "Like" My Facebook Page for More New music! https://ift.tt/1ztmSr2 Another crowed favorite from my YouTube channel with over 400,000 before being banned from the Tube... This Mix from (2014) features the incredible music of my all time Favorite artist, (The Incomparable) Ms. Sade Adu!!! Original (YouTube) Description and Track Listing: Yes, it was March 16th, 1993 (I will never Forget it) That Night I witnessed The Best Concert Performance I've Ever Seen! It was at The World Famous Fox Theater in Detroit and featured none other than The Great: Ms. Sade Adu! It was The "Love Deluxe" Tour and featured her always Tight Band: "Sade" which featured their incredibly talented band leader Stuart Mathewman (Sweetback). I have Loved this group since I first heard "Why Can't We Live Together" blasting on a lonely Detroit Street corner one late summer night in the mid 80s. But This Concert took me to another Level of Fan! When Sade sang "Haunt Me," "Pearls" "Cherry Pie" and "Like A Tattoo" Wooooo... I was in Complete Musical Heaven. I Always knew one day I would try to capture Sade's Essence with a "House Mix" but was never really sure about which Tunes to Play? Well, I think I've come up with a pretty good Playlist featuring some Incredible Remixes, B-Sides and Groovy Edits. I Hope this Mix will do "Team Sade" a tad bit of The Musical Justice they so rightfully Deserve! (Enjoy) Sade (The Remixes): 00:00 Sade Interview by DJ Frances Jaye 00:30 I Never Thought I'd See The Day (OtherSoul House Cafe Mix) by Sade 07:56 Hang On To Your Love (THEO Bootleg) by Sade 12:38 Smooth Operator (Dan K's Extended Edit) by Sade 20:03 I Couldn't Love You More (IndySoul Deep Love Remix) by Sade 25:12 Every Word (Paul Helsby Remix) by Sade 30:22 Hang On to Your Love (Sample Gee Remake) by Sade 35:18 Pearls (ReelSoul Rework) by Sade 39:52 Moon & The Sky (Bang Remix) by Sade 45:54 Maureen (KW's Underground Mix) by Sade 52:00 Nothing Can Come Between Us (Alysha Kid Remix) by Sade (Free) Limited Download Available For International Bookings please contact me here: https://ift.tt/1ztmSr2 Follow Us on Instagram: https://ift.tt/2kIgKgP Thanks So Much to All of The Respective DJ's Producers and "Remixers" who's material was played for this Set! Thank You Guys for Always Tuning In and Supporting (My Page) and This Beautiful & Important Genre of Music We call House! And last but certainly not least... Thank You, Thank You, Thank You Ms. Sade Adu, Your Music continues to Touch & Inspire millions of People all across The Globe!!! Peace & Blessings! djs

[dopecollectionfart-blog]

5 Unclean Hacks For Amazon Sellers To Control The Industry.

Smart house audio speakers furnished with microphones set to pay attention for whatever you say could be turned into gadgets that would certainly spy on every little thing you state. Just search Google for 'œsubmit a bargain' and you'll get a list of 500,000+ internet sites that all intend to showcase your deals. We need you to have the capacity to get your free code promptly without the trouble of downloading and install a program. how to get a free amazon gift card When you reload your Amazon credit scores balance utilizing an examining account, Amazon desires to offer you 2%. Getting with Alexa: Did you recognize you can save money on some products when you reorder them with an Alexa-enabled device? Deal it with your liked ones too!In the wake of working indefatigably to set-up the code generators and also communicate free Amazon codes, it was incredible to get messages from guests sending their appreciation. Mr. Spivey claimed Amazon alerted him of questionable task, but by the time he logged in, the bank account info had actually been transformed. The somewhat comforting information here it is that to be successful, the attacker has to get literally near the target gadget, and placed another speaker efficient in transferring ultrasonic audio near it, according to the Princeton team. Dan Goodin Dan is the Security Editor at Ars Technica, which he participated in 2012 after helping The Register, the Associated Press, Bloomberg News, and other magazines. With our Amazon Gift Card Generator, you could generate codes for any of the gift card of your option. Pay Attention Playing ... Stopped You're hearing an example of the Audible sound version. The company likewise claimed people who just purchased grocery stores at Whole Foods were not affected, neither the cyberpunks had the ability to gain access to Amazon deals in the protection violation. When you spend for anything with a bank card, the seller (Amazon) pays the bank card a few percent in fees. That's why safety and security flaws from this name suggest a lot (like the recent 80,000 Kindle usernames and passwords that were leaked because of a safety violation that Amazon didn't pay attention to). I understand that for a lot of items the value of brand-new might take priority over loan saved, but also for me tech does not fall into that group. Discounts range from percentages to real dollar amounts yet are just great when you order through the device. See if you can log into your email account connected with the Amazon one. Generally, imagine having a gigantic box, filling it with as much as it could hold and afterwards delivering it for $5.99. Why would certainly you do this instead of free two-day delivery? The audio of 20% off" or acquire one get one free" is songs to a smart consumers ears, which is why I'm constantly stunned that people don't make the most of Amazon's Warehouse Deals more frequently. The seller whose listing is being illegitimately piggybacked needs to get among the believed fake vendor's items to prove that it is indeed a different product. If you get government assistance, defined as having an EBT card, you can obtain Amazon Prime for simply $5.99 a month rather than the $99 a year ($ 8.25 a month). Hacks of dormant Amazon seller accounts specifically have enhanced given that mid-March, to greater than 20 some days from the reduced single-digits previously this year, inning accordance with Market Pulse, which keeps track of seller task on ecommerce websites. Some Amazon clients were in for a surprise Tuesday when they opened an e-mail from the firm telling them somebody had actually acquired a child gift for them.

[placetobenation]

*** Scott & JT’s Vintage Vault Refresh reviews are a chronological look back at WWE PPV and TV history that began with a review of WrestleMania I. The PICs have revisited these events and refreshed all of their fun facts that provide insight into the match, competitors and state of the company as well as their overviews of the match action and opinions and thoughts on the outcomes. In addition, Jeff Jarvis assists in compiling historical information and the Fun Facts in each of the reviews. Also, be sure to leave feedback on the reviews at our Facebook page. Enjoy! ***

Monday Night Raw #115

June 12, 1995 (Taped June 5, 1995) Struthers High School Struthers, OH Announcers: Vince McMahon & Jerry Lawler

1) Bam Bam Bigelow defeats Duane Gill with the diving headbutt at 2:00

Scott: Man, we haven’t seen Duane Gill in ages. Bam Bam Bigelow is in the main event of the KOTR show, but he easily could have been a tournament competitor and won it. Perhaps if Sid eventually wins the World Title from Diesel and Bigelow challenges him? Speaking of the WWF Champion he is on the phone with Vince McMahon & Jerry Lawler while this squash is going on. It’s more focus of Diesel’s elbow rehab and Sid maybe destroying it at the PPV. Bigelow wins. Grade: DUD

JT: Welcome to another installment of Monday Night Raw, where we are coming at you via videotape from Struthers, OH, just weeks away from the third annual King of the Ring. Vince McMahon and Jerry Lawler have the call for us tonight as usual and we waste little time in heading to the ring for our opening contest where Bam Bam Bigelow power walks out, flames-a-blazing to take on the erstwhile Duane Gill. Vince and King put over KOTR and talk about Bigelow’s big main event match there as he teams with Diesel against Sid and Tatanka. As the match chugs along, Diesel dials in to chat with Vince and King about his rehabbing elbow injury and they talk about whether he is pushing it to get back in the ring too soon. Diesel says he is WWF Champion and he has to be there to support Bammer and get a shot at Sid. He is aware of what could happen but it is worth it for a chance to Jackknife Sid. Diesel heads off to keep working at prepping for KOTR as Bigelow nabs the win with the diving headbutt. Usual squash here but this was well served to catch us up with Diesel’s status. Grade: DUD

*** We visit with WWF newcomer Waylon Mercy, who is hanging around on some rocks. He enjoys nature and worms but he doesn’t like worms crawling on him, just like he doesn’t want wrestlers touching him in the ring. And like the worm on his arm, he will squash any wrestlers that get in his way… you know what he means? ***

*** Barry Didinsky is backstage with the Mad Capper and the Smoking Gunns playing WWF Mat Caps. You can get a special gold WWF mat cap and playing board with an order tonight! Get in on it! ***

2) Kama defeats David Haskins with a belly-to-belly suplex at 2:09

Scott: We get the first Raw vignette for a character named Waylon Mercy, which seems like a Max Cady type gimmick from Cape Fear. Interesting, it seems like a pretty deep character for 1995 WWF. But perhaps not. It’s obviously Dan Spivey but that’s ok. This isn’t Doink or Mantaur. This type of gimmick could be one you think about. As for this match, Kama is getting stalked by the Undertaker’s Creatures of the Night at ringside, complete with black wreaths. Similar to what happened with Mr. Hughes two years earlier. Kama wins, but a match with Taker is clearly on the horizon. Grade: DUD

JT: We head back down to the ring as Kama and Ted DiBiase come walking out for a match with David Haskins. Kama still has that gold chain draped around his neck, forged from the Undertaker’s urn months ago. We get some talk about the KOTR tournament and then pan to the crowd where we see the Creatures of the Night sitting in the crowd, an ominous sign of the Undertaker’s presence. Vince promotes Mr. Mom, this week’s USA Movie, airing Thursday night. Jerry Lawler also talks some shit on Bret Hart and their Kiss My Foot match and we get some foot puns from both announcers as Kama mauls and defeats Haskins. After the match Kama gets in the faces of the Creatures and then destroys the black wreath they had placed at ringside. The heat continue to intensify in this rivalry. Grade: DUD

*** Todd Pettengill is in the house with this week’s King of the Ring Report. We are just under two weeks away and here are the matches discussed:

Diesel & Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Sid & Tatanka Bret Hart vs. Jerry Lawler – Kiss My Foot Match Undertaker vs. Mabel – King of the Ring Opening Round Match Shawn Michaels vs. Kama – King of the Ring Opening Round Match Bob Holly vs. Roadie – King of the Ring Opening Round Match Razor Ramon vs. TBD – King of the Ring Opening Round Match

There you have it, that is the full slate, plus the later rounds of the KOTR tournament, of course. Be sure to order now so you won’t miss out! ***

3) Man Mountain Rock defeats Bob Cook with the Whammy Bar at 1:04

Scott: We had our KOTR Report with Todd going over everything, and to be honest those brackets seem, well somewhat thin of talent. I mean there’s Razor Ramon, Shawn Michaels and Undertaker who are obviously the favorites. Interesting what they attempt to do with this bracket. This match is trash, but the guitar stuff is fun. Grade: DUD

JT: Next up in the ring, we have another appearance from Man Mountain Rock. MMR shreds the guitar in the ring for a little mini-concert before his match with Bob Cook. It was actually a pretty cool touch to have him do that before his match. Vince puts over MMR’s in ring and music skills as he makes very swift work of the rotund Cook. Vince reminds us that Bob Backlund has threatened to confront MMR here tonight to prevent him from playing his evil rock music. MMR gets the win with the Whammy Bar and celebrates a bit but no sign of Mr. Backlund just yet. Grade: DUD

*** Stephanie Wiand has an update on this year’s WWF Hall of Fame ceremony, going down in Philadelphia on King of the Ring weekend. Here is the full slate of inductees: Antonino Rocca, Ernie Ladd, Ivan Putski, Fabulous Moolah, Pedro Morales and Grand Wizard. ***

*** Backstage, Bob Backlund is stalking around looking for Man Mountain Rock and stumbles across Rock’s guitar, which he drops on the ground. He then rants and raves about the effect rock ‘n’ roll music has had on the world and affected children in school. 

4) Tekno Team 2000 defeats John Chrystal & Mike Khoury when Travis pins Khoury with a high cross body at 3:25

Fun Fact: We get the debut of Tekno Team 2000 as a new tag team this evening. Chad Fortune (Travis) and Erik Watts (Troy) started off as football teammates for the University of Louisville. Both of them later got into professional wrestling and were reunited in 1994 as a tag team. They began their careers in the AWA, but were later signed by the WWF in 1995. They made their debut at Madison Square Garden on March 19, 1995 where they defeated the Heavenly Bodies.

Scott: Who the hell are these guys? Well. at least we have another tag team to battle for Owen & Yoko’s belts. Is that Erik Watts? My god, it is Erik Watts. Yikes, I totally forgot about that. Their gimmick names are Travis & Troy. They work halfway decent in the ring, and they get the victory. Are they faces or heels? I can’t tell what any of this is about. Grade: 1/2*

JT: Back to the ring we go as a newcomer team, Tekno Team 2000, hits the ring for their debut match. Travis and Troy are slated to battle old friends John Chrystal and Mike Khoury as the WWF continues to refresh the roster and mix new faces into the fray. Troy and Khoury start off as Vince says we hope to hear from MMR later on about what happened to his guitar at the hands of Bob Backlund. King then takes his weekly shots at Helen Hart as the boys from the future continue to dominate the action with some pretty basic offense. These guys certainly have the look and the tag division does need some depth but the gimmick is kind of odd and they aren’t all that smooth in the ring. I just realized these goofs are wrestling in jean shorts with dress belts so either their gear got fucked with or they were trying for some sort of distinct look to make them stand out. Troy slams Khoury and Travis flies off the top rope with a cross body to pick up the win. Decent debut but we will see if these guys amount to anything going forward. Grade: DUD

*** Man Mountain Rock is sitting at his locker shocked and sad about what Bob Backlund did to his prized guitar. Rock vows revenge and says things have now become personal. ***

5) Yokozuna defeats Lex Luger in a King of the Ring Qualifying Match via countout at 7:57

Scott: Vince just said that Razor Ramon injured his ribs over the weekend at a house show at Nassau Coliseum. They are really pumping up this match as a feud two years in the making, going back to July 4,1993 and the Intrepid Slam, the botched match at SummerSlam and the disappointment at WrestleMania X. Is this the match where Luger finally wins a match clean on a big stage, and perhaps becomes the favorite in the KOTR tournament? Luger takes control for most of the match with Yoko missing moves, until Luger is distracted by Mr. Fuji and Yoko blindsides him. Yoko takes control with chokes and of course the nerve pinch. Luger tried to elbow out of it but that didn’t happen. These guys’ tag team partners (Bulldog & Owen) are backstage so this is straight up. Luger finally starts gaining an advantage until Mr. Fuji goes after Luger’s flag bearer (wrestler Scotty Anton) and takes the USA Flag. Luger gets the flag back to Anton but Yokozuna attacks Luger outside and throws him into the post, then a leg drop on the outside. Yoko gets back in the ring and Luger is counted out. What a horrendous ending to this one. Luger looks like a fucking chump again and Yoko will face Razor in the first round on June 25. The match wasn’t bad but the ending is putrid. Grade: **

JT: Time for our final bout of the evening as we head to the ring to finally fill the remaining KOTR slot. We saw British Bulldog and Owen Hart go to a draw last week, so their tag team partners now get a crack and heading to Philly to face Razor Ramon. Vince does inform us that Ramon injured his ribs at a live event over the weekend, so he will be dinged up come KOTR. I thought they did a nice job hyping this match both last week and this week, really focusing on the deep history between these two rivals. It added even extra heat to an already high stakes match. After Yoko and his entourage hit the ring, Lex Luger comes out flanked by his flag bearer, local Atlanta wrestler Scott Anton, a man that has admired Luger for years according to Vince. The crowd rallies up a big “USA” chant as Lex paces around the ring before the bell. We finally get going with Yoko controlling the action, opening with a big slam but Lex dodges an elbow drop and tries to work the arm. Lex keeps hammering away, eventually knocking Yoko out to the floor, a spot which Vince reminds us was reminiscent of SummerSlam 1993. Yoko would return and Lex kept clobbering him until Mr. Fuji gets in lex’s face, allowing Yoko to drill him from behind. Fuji is always poor Lex’s kryptonite. Yoko got really aggressive here, battering Luger without abandon and then choking away. After  break, Yoko cut off a comeback attempt but came up empty on an avalanche splash. Luger went back to work with shoulder tackles before dropping Yoko with a flurry of forearm blows and clotheslines to a big pop. As Lex fired up for the death blow, Fuji went over and smacked Anton and took away the American flag. That drew out Luger to lay out Cornette and take back the flag for Anton, but Yoko took advantage and slung Lex into the post. He followed that up with a leg drop and then slid inside for the count out win. I was just thinking that Lex was looking good here, seemed energetic and the crowd was hyped up… and then we get that. Yet again. Lex can’t keep his hands off Fuji and it costs him a big match. In an already disappointing year for Luger, this may be the final blow to end him as an sort of player. He chokes again. The match was actually kind of fun as the chemistry between these two was evident and the crowd was dialed in too. The finish shit all over that though. Yokozuna heads to Philly and a shot to be a surprising King of the Ring. Grade: **

*** After a break, we check out Jerry Lawler’s special King of the Ring training footage, which includes him walking around barefoot in his stables, stepping through all sorts of dirt and horse shit. We then head back to Superstars this past weekend where Lawler defeated Aldo Montoya and then shoved his foot in Aldo’s mouth after the match. ***

Final Analysis

Scott: What is up with these trash Qualifier endings? Can’t Luger just win the damn thing? They must have totally lost faith in him, even though he didn’t get pinned. Getting counted out like that make you look like a total putz. Some of these gimmicks right now are utterly ridiculous, like Man Mountain Rock. Nice WWF guitar, but he’s terrible in the ring. This Taker storyline with the urn is idiotic too. This new tag team could work out but they look like morons in their outfits. And it’s Erik Watts. At least he’s in a tag team. This episode isn’t as bad as last week’s but it’s pretty close. Diesel on the phone? YOUR WWF CHAMPION MUST BE ON TV. FINAL GRADE: D+

JT: Just like last week, while the actual wrestling product is starting to swirl down the bowl at a quicker pace, the production and presentation of the program continues to improve and carry the show. The pacing, audio mixing and sweetening and overall presentation has been quite good and it makes the shows feel brisk and effective, despite the actual meat of the show turning more and more sour. The roster is really starting to thin out and the effects of misuse of the actual name stars are now showing all over the place. The KOTR tournament could have really been loaded this year but instead it is an odd mishmash and the way the brackets are set up make you wonder just what the hell the show will bring us. Add on a really blasé main event and a Kiss My Foot match that nobody wants to see and the PPV card is not exactly bringing lots of anticipation. They are trying hard to overhaul the roster but these gimmicks are not exactly wowing the imagination either. And even if they are working a bit, none of them have main event level potential. Yet again, the show was pretty easy to watch but there just isn’t much to get excited about, unless you enjoy Lex Luger being made to look like an idiot over and over. Until next week… Final Grade: D+