#hulk hogan’s rock ‘n’ roll wrestling

[evilhorse]

CBS Saturday morning cartoon lineup (circa December 1985)

[oneforthemunny]

blurb game yay!!! shooting my shot here too: boxer!eddie (I MISS HIM AHHH), fluff, playful fighting 🥹🥹🥹

no bc i love him sm!!! this is so adorable ahh!!! this was actually so much fun, i love them being silly- sue me. i'll give a warning that they're a little drunk and silly in this one but it's super sweet and cute promise <3

"She's on the top ropes! What's she gonna do?" Eddie's exaggerated voice boomed off the walls of the hotel room, mixing with the infectious giggles that poured from your own lips.

You bounced on the edge of the bed above him, Eddie sprawled on the mattress below you, a sloppy grin spread over his features. You clutched the pillow, lifting it above your head, slamming it down dramatically with a grunt to his stomach.

"Oh! She's got me! She's got me!" Eddie groaned dramatically, turning to his side. "The ole ball buster's got me!"

"Hey!" You chirped, frowning at him though it wasn't very convincing, not with the laughs that were still bubbling over. "Watch it, Munson. Old?"

Eddie grinned, hands reaching to grab your knees, pulling you on top of him with a squeal. He rolled over top of you with ease, your loud shrieks and squeals deafening and his favorite sound all in one. His hands found your sides, lightly tickling under your rib cage so you bucked and screamed.

"Sorry, the beautiful ball buster." Eddie muttered, dodging your hand that broke free. His lips found your collarbones instead, playfully nipping at the skin there, sending you into another heaving fit of screaming laughs.

The night had started with a celebratory bottle of champagne, left in your room as a complimentary congratulations from the hotel on Eddie's win. Another bottle was ordered shortly after, arriving with your room service meal, and the Pay Per View code that tipsy Eddie had demanded.

"What even is this?" You'd frowned, a little tipsy from your own share of the bottle, teeth sinking into the fries.

"WWF?" Eddie's eyes lit up in shock. "You never watched wrestling? Stone Cold? Hulk Hogan?"

"No," You scoffed with an eye roll. "So this is what you do? But with costumes?"

"No, c'mon," Eddie snorted, shaking his head. "This is way more fun. Here, I'll show you. Let me put the moves on you."

You had half expected him to have you pinned to the mattress in a different way, hips snapping into yours furiously, leaving you drooling at shaking with pleasure. Instead, he'd popped the second bottle, standing on the chair in the corner, tapping his elbow before launching into the mattress dramatically. It was surprisingly silly, left you nearly choking on your fries with laughter.

He'd gotten you over his shoulders after a glass or two, shouting "Rock Bottom!" before flinging you onto the mattress easily, body sliding over yours, lifting your leg and pinning you while you cackled.

The roar of the announcers drowned out your own giggles, Eddie's slurring tone trying to match their cadence. "The Munsonator has her! Will she tap out? Tap out! Tap out!" Eddie boomed, fingers sinking into your hips.

"Never!" You screeched in laughter, tears leaking out of the corners of your eyes. "N-Never tap out." Your head spun, blood rushing mixing with the alcohol.

Your legs wrapped around Eddie's waist, twisting with all your might to roll him. Whether you'd actually rolled him or it was instinct, you weren't sure, but he rolled, his hands cradling your hip to steady you while yours pushed to his chest.

"Ah the ball buster's got me!" Eddie groaned, face smushing into the mattress when you pressed your palm to his cheek, pinning him there.

"Stop calling me that." You giggled, head tipping back. "I have a way better stage name than that."

"Yeah? What is it?" Eddie smirked, turning in your hold to look at you. "Joan Marie?"

"Who?" Your nose wrinkled with a snort of laughter. "No, I'd definitely go by something cool. Maybe, Elvira." Your eyes narrowed in the mean teasing way they always did, a little more exaggerated given your intoxicated state.

It made Eddie flush, cheeks burning with a rush of heat. Elvira, the movie the two of you watched the last time you got drunk like this. When you got a little loose, a little silly and sweet, and he did too. When he'd tell you little secrets more easily, less stoic and mean, softer. He'd lazily confessed to you that he'd always had a crush on Elvira, words slurred and the same half grin he was giving you now. You'd teased him endlessly about it, even sober, grinning as he'd shift with boyish embarrassment, trying to play it off.

"You're a little shit, you know that?" Eddie grinned, flinging you back onto the mattress like you were weightless. "You are the fuckin' Mistress of All Evil, that should be your name. You sho- hey! Ow! What the fuc- there's no biting in wrestling!" Eddie gaped, pulling his arm back, eyes glassy and wide with dramatic shock as he examined the teeth marks on his upper arm.

You grinned, sliding back from under him, sitting up on your knees. "C'mon, Munsonator, y-hic!-you know you like it." Your teeth bared, a little wobbly with the alcohol still in your system. "Now, let me show you my finisher."

[wrestlinghistorywithkay]

Remembering A Macho Man: The Life And Times Of Randy Savage

13 years ago, the professional wrestling world lost the ‘ Macho Man ’ Randy Savage . This article is to remember his life and his career.

(TW: Death , Car Accidents)

Randy Mario Poffo was born to Angelo and Judy Poffo on November 15,1952 in Colombia , Ohio. He was the eldest child of his parents. His brother, Lanny , was born on December 28,1954. Angelo was a professional wrestler in the 1950s and the 1960s. Poffo was raised in Zanesville , Ohio. He is a graduate of Downers Grove High School. The school is located in Downers Grove, Illinois , a suburb of Chicago. However, wrestling wasn’t his first sport of choice. It was baseball.

Poffo was a catcher on his high school baseball team. Thus, he was drafted by the St.Louis Cardinals out of high school in 1971. He was 18 years old. Poffo was placed in the minor leagues to train before he could play professionally in the MLB ( Major League Baseball). He was mainly an outfielder for the Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds systems. His baseball career ended after being injured in 1974.

Randy broke into the wrestling business in 1973 during the baseball offseason. His first gimmick was called , The Spider. This gimmick is based off of the comic book character, Spider-Man. Nevertheless, his second and most well known gimmick , Randy Savage , was suggested by his trainer and close friend , Terry Stephens and the head booker of Georgia Championship Wrestling ( GCW ) , Ole Anderson. Anderson felt like his real name didn’t fit him and came up with the name Savage because he felt like Randy wrestled ‘ like a savage ’. Poffo retired from baseball and joined his father in the wrestling business. His first match was against a wrestler named Paul Christy in the Midwest Territory. Savage along with his father and brother in the Carolinas, Michigan , the Maritime region , and in Tennessee.

Angelo thought that his family wasn’t getting the proper pushes they deserved as wrestlers, soon, he started his own promotion , International Championship Wrestling ( ICW) , in the Midwest. Soon, the company disbanded and the Poffo brothers went back to Tennessee, joining the Continental Wrestling Association ( CWA) , owned by Jerry ‘ The King ’ Lawler. Randy’s well known matches in this promotion, were against Lawler and teaming with his brother against the Rock N Roll Express.

Randy Savage was soon signed to Vince McMahon’s World Wrestling Federation in June of 1985. He made his TV debut for the company on July 6, 1985 on the show, Championship Wrestling against a local competitor named Aldo Marino. He was “ The Top Free Agent In Professional Wrestling ” . His first appearances on WWF TV were on the talk show ‘ Tuesday Night Titans ’ with managers such as Mr.Fuji , Jimmy Hart , Johnny Valiant ,Bobby Heenan , and Freddie Blassie asking him if they could be his manager. Savage turned them down and chose Miss Elizabeth , who was his actual partner , to be his manager. He made his Pay Per View debut for a 16 man tournament at The Wrestling Classic. He lost in the finals of the tournament to The Junkyard Dog via count out. Later that year, he was involved in a storyline with the Intercontinental Champion , Tito Santana. He challenged Santana for the championship on Saturday Night’s Main Event III , however , Savage won the match via count out . Tito Santana still kept the championship after being counted out. Savage finally won the Intercontinental Championship on February 8 , 1986 by using a steel object he hid in this tights to knock Santana out. He also engaged in storylines with future tag team partner , Hulk Hogan , George ‘ The Animal ’ Steele , Ricky Steamboat , and Bruno Sammartino, the longest reigning WWE World Champion in history.

Randy Savage won the King of The Ring tournament in 1987 . Being a Heel, Savage’s popularity rose to the point of being cheered on by the fans. He soon started a feud with The Honky Tonk Man for the Intercontinental Championship. He soon got his title match with the champion at Saturday Night’s Main Event. He lost out on the championship when The Hart Foundation interrupted the match by attacking Savage in order to help The Honky Tonk Man keep the title due to disqualification. Miss Elizabeth had a plan in mind to help her man. She ran back to the locker room to get some help and found Hulk Hogan. She brought him out and Hogan saved him. The tag team known as The Mega Powers was formed.

The Mega Powers first feud was against The Mega Bucks , the team consisting of Andre The Giant and Ted DiBiase , also known as The Million Dollar Man. Their second feud was against The Twin Towers , the team consisting of The Big Boss Man and Akeem. The Mega Powers starting having problems in 1989 when Hogan decided to take on Miss Elizabeth as his manager. Hogan eliminated Savage during the Royal Rumble by accident. Savage thought that Hogan wanted to steal Elizabeth from him, thus, attacking Hogan’s friend , Brutus The Barber Beefcake, as an act of revenge towards his former partner. This was the first time Savage turned Heel since 1987.

Savage became The Macho King in 1989 after defeating Hacksaw Jim Duggan in the tournament in September of that year. He soon faced Hogan for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship in 1990 at The Main Event III. Savage took on Sensational Sherri as his manager. She became known as Queen Sherri. He had feuds with Dusty Rhodes and The Ultimate Warrior during his time as King of The Ring. His career ending match was against Warrior in 1991. With Savage losing , Sherri attacked him , leaving Miss Elizabeth, who was in the crowd as a fan, jumping the barricade and coming to the aide of Savage. This led to their reunion.

Savage moved his attention from the ring to the commentary desk. He also had a feud with Jake The Snake Roberts as well as Ric Flair. Flair claimed that he had an affair with Miss Elizabeth in 1992. Savage and Elizabeth were separated in real life , this , the storyline continued. Savage and Elizabeth soon divorced the same year. Savage left the WWF in 1994 and signed with World Championship Wrestling the same year , reuniting with Hulk Hogan.

Savage became WCW champion in 1995 by winning the first three ring battle royal. He lost it to Ric Flair at Starrcade of the same year. Savage left WCW and claimed he was blackballed by the company before returning as a member of the nWo , ( New World Order ). He soon took more time off from the company before returning in April of 1999.

Savage returned to WCW in 1999 with a new manager , Gorgeous George. He was also joined by Marisa and Miss Madness, forming Team Madness. In 2004 , Savage signed with TNA Wrestling at the Victory Road Pay Per View.

Randy Savage also made some acting appearances on TV shows like Baywatch , Mad About You , and Walker, Texas Ranger. He also starred in the movie , Ready To Rumble and had a cameo in Spider-Man. He also released a debut rap album with a diss track about Hulk Hogan.

Randy Savage passed away in a car accident on May 20, 2011 at the age of 58. He was inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame in 2015.

My Final Thoughts:

Macho Man Randy Savage is a true wrestling icon. He will always be remembered as that wrestler that you loved , hated, or loved to hate. I actually love him. He’s on my list of all time favorite wrestlers. I actually know a wrestling legend who got to work with him on the indie circuit. He said that Randy was one of the most hard working guys he’s ever seen. Randy, thank you for everything! I wish I could go back and watch you live. But , I watch you on Peacock.

Love You All ,

- Kay

[rawiswhore]

Tommy Rogers x Fem Reader- "Baby Come Back"

Is it weird that I post fanfics about professional wrestlers a lot of people have never heard of?

______________________________________________________________

The World Wrestling Federation's Attitude era was mostly about creating and building new young stars, unlike WCW which mostly had wrestlers that had been famous for a very long time (i.e. Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, Macho Man Randy Savage, Rowdy Roddy Piper, etc.).

Granted, some Attitude era wrestlers do have their roots in the WWF's New Generation era (i.e. Kane as Isaac Yankem, Triple H as Hunter Hearst Helmsley, X Pac as the 1-2-3 Kid, Stone Cold Steve Austin as the Ringmaster), but at least these wrestlers were young.

However, there were a few wrestling veterans from the past that did make occasional guest appearances during the Attitude era, like Sgt. Slaughter, the Rock n Roll Express and Terry Funk.

One professional wrestler veteran from the past you wish would have a few matches again during the Attitude era was Tommy Rogers from the 80's wrestling tagteam the Fantastics.

Tommy doesn't have to frequently appear in the WWF now, but he can appear occasionally as a jobber.

Why?

For certain reasons that you'll say to him.

During the late 1990's, Tommy was actually a part of the ECW roster and had some matches.

But, you weren't allowed to cross over into other wrestling companies while being signed to the WWF.

When you had some free time in 1998, you pulled your laptop out and opened it up, where after your laptop turned on, you scrolled the cursor of your mouse to your email, where you typed a new email to Tommy.

Tommy was in the World Wrestling Federation for a brief while in the summer of 1997, and you had his email account.

After you typed the name of his email address as well as yours, not to mention typed the title of the subject of your email, you began to type away on the blank paper, filling up that blank paper with words.

What did you say in your email to him?

This was your email:

Dear Tommy,

Yes, this is me, y/n. The same y/n you had sex with from time to time. The same y/n that's been causing a lot of controversy in the WWF right now.

I know you were only in the WWF for 2 episodes in 1997, but I miss you quite a bit.

Do you miss me? Did you leave the WWF to get away from me?

And I know that the WWF is mostly about creating new stars now and not relying on old wrestling veterans from the past like WCW is, but I wish you could come back to the WWF, even if you were just a jobber.

I'd actually even be okay if you were a jobber, as long as you're in the WWF again.

The Rock N Roll Express were in the WWF at the beginning of this year, Barry Windham has made a few guest appearances in the WWF this year, even Terry Funk has appeared in the WWF this year.

I want you back in the WWF so if you were an opponent, I'd flirt with you and seduce you as a valet, not to mention distract you with my flirtatiousness and sex appeal.

That's not all---backstage, when the cameras aren't rolling, I wouldn't mind having sex with you again.

You still are kinda handsome now.

I'd love to do some sexual moments with you in the WWF backstage, during dark matches not broadcast on TV and maybe even when the cameras broadcast on television and in pay-per-views.

I don't like male wrestlers that are ugly and hideous and I have to flirt with them to distract them, ugh.

Since Jim Cornette is so obsessed with old pro wrestling from his heyday, maybe you can come back to the WWF.

I'll talk with Jim and ask him if you can come back to the WWF for a few appearances as a jobber.

Either that, or I'll join ECW.

I'd LOVE to be a part of the ECW roster sooooooooo much for so many reasons, and yes, one of the reasons is because I want to do sexual things on television and in pay-per-views (not to mention when the cameras aren't rolling) to some of the sexiest male wrestlers in that company!

I'm surprised you aren't in WCW considering that company is filled with a bunch of older wrestlers from the past--Hulk Hogan, Macho Man, Rowdy Roddy Piper, Ric Flair, Mr. Perfect/Curt Hennig, Ted DeBiase, etc.

Keep in touch and send an email back to me!

Love, y/n xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

After you've typed and proofread your email, you scrolled the cursor of your laptop to the "send" button and pressed send on the touchpad of your laptop, where now your email was sent away.

This was in the late 1990's, when as Britney Spears said, everyone was doing emails.

There was a popular romantic comedy in 1998 titled "You've Got Mail", which was a popular voice on people's computer if someone had a new email.

Backstage, you've talked with Jim Cornette privately if he can bring Tommy Rogers to the Fantastics back to the World Wrestling Federation, since Jim loves old wrestling so much and has tried bringing old wrestling legends back to the WWF.

Despite that Jim doesn't particularly like you due to your sexual promiscuity, he did like that you wanted Tommy to be back in the company for a while, even as a jobber.

Jim worked with Tommy sometimes during the 1980's, and I even think Jim managed the Fantastics tagteam duo in the 80's.

You did eventually get an email back from Tommy, even Jim Cornette emailed and called Tommy to get back in the WWF again thanks to you.

Tommy did tell you that he misses you much, and he wouldn't even mind working for the WWF again.

Tommy would not blend in the WWF in the late 1990's, which not only was creating new young stars, but was more edgier than professional wrestling of yore.

But it's okay if Tommy even just occasionally appears as a jobber.

ECW has often been stereotyped as nothing but hardcore wrestling filled with blood and violent matches, but ECW had all different kinds of wrestling matches as well as different types of wrestlers---from luchador wrestlers like Rey Mysterio to hardcore wrestlers to technical wrestlers like Chris Benoit to wrestling veterans.

You're not quite sure why Tommy would work for ECW, though.

He's probably better off in WCW since that company is filled with so many wrestling veterans.

Since Jim Cornette loves old wrestling so much, he was better off working for WCW in the 1990's since that company was filled with so many older wrestling veterans.

Your dream of joining ECW did come true at the end of the year 2000, however, by the time you joined ECW, Tommy was no longer in ECW anymore.

Tommy Rogers actually did join WCW for a while in early 2000, but you weren't in WCW then.

There was a short lived wrestling company in the year 2000 that Tommy appeared in called WXO, and that was a wrestling company that was family friendly and kid friendly wrestling as opposed to the raunchy WWF Attitude era and ECW, even WCW was becoming a little bit more vulgar in 2000 (and maybe, 1999).

Ted DeBiase (yes, the Million Dollar Man) was the CEO of WXO.

WXO was also a wrestling company that had wrestlers that were never really big stars, like Bart Gunn, Repo Man and Barry Horowitz.

But, you didn't appear in WXO, even though you wish you did, even if it was kid friendly wrestling.

When the new millennium and 21st Century entered, Tommy no longer wrestled.

But he'd be outdated by the 2000's and 21st Century and not even really a draw by then.

[wrestlingatthemovies]

Hulk Hogan’s Rock ‘n’ Wrestling

80s animated TV series featuring the characters and likenesses of a number of top WWF wrestlers of the time. The wrestlers are split into 2 groups, The Hulkster leads the good guys and their rivals are led by Rowdy Roddy Piper.

There is little or no actual wrestling in the show but the superstars are often referred to as wrestlers and many of the wrestlers’ nicknames and signature moves are referenced throughout.

There are generally two different types of episode, the first usually revolves around the Hulkamaniacs trying to do something good like cleaning Mean Gene Okerlund’s house while he’s working away or trying to overthrow a corrupt mayor while Piper and his cohorts try to sabotage their plans. The other type usually involves an innocuous act like cutting weight, running a summer camp or receiving a visit from a mother but something goes terribly wrong and all kinds of hi-jinks ensue.

Featured Wrestlers:

Hulk Hogan

Junkyard Dog

Andre the Giant

Captain Lou Albano

Wendi Richter

Tito Santana

Hillbilly Jim

“Superfly” Jimmy Snuka

“Mean” Gene Okerlund

“Rowdy” Roddy Piper

The Iron Sheik

The Fabulous Moolah

Mr. Fuji

Nikolai Volkoff

Big John Studd

Bobby “The Brain” Heenan

Wrestle Rating:

3 out of 5 Hulkster’s with a full head of hair

All the wrestlers are voiced by actors and the stories are not usually wrestling related but Hulk Hogan’s Rock ‘n’ Wrestling is a great time capsule for 80s Saturday morning style cartoons and the Rock ‘n’ Wrestling era.

[thirdworldrockout]

Dust Bros. a Writeup About Pro-Wrestling

It was 1989, in a place I used to call home where I discovered the brand of American entertainment called professional wrestling or what is called sports entertainment by the WWE, then WWF, since the mid-80's.

The 90's rolled... the golden years of my youth. Memories of the Ultimate Warrior pinning champion Hulk Hogan. Here's a short list while taking a walk down memory lane:

2 Undertakers at Summer Slam slug it out for there can only be one dead man.

1-2-3 Kid in a match against champion Bret Hart.

The N-W-O

Blondes with jugs at WrestleMania 11

Mr. Perfect vs Bret Hart for the IC title

The WrestleMania 10 ladder match

The blood matches and sleazy content of ECW.

Liger, Guerrero, DX, Monday Night Wars...

That's a lot of memories.

March and April 2022 is a very busy time in the world of pro-wrestling. Here's another list that I will go through quickly.

Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns headline WrestleMania.

Scott Hall passed away.

HHH retires.

Undertaker goes to the WWE HOF.

I grew up watching "Razor", he was cool and so was Scott Hall when he was NWO in WCW. That was a hot period for pro-wrestling, the flip of the coin and you have The Attitude Era of Austin and Rock.

HHH retiring was made official but it was not something out of the blue, I watch WWE programming on YouTube on an on and off basis for years now. I've stopped following the WWE product since 2004/2005. I don't see the full picture but I know bits and pieces of what's going on and I know HHH hasn't been wrestling a full schedule for years, it feels like it was a decade ago he was last in the active roster.

Mixed feelings about HHH. His in-ring career is legendary but he was also pulling so much string behind the scenes. I lost interest around the time he was champion and beating everyone on RAW. His good years were 2000-2001, his matches with Mick Foley and Chris Jericho were the best of his career.

Razor passed away. HHH officially retires. The dead man goes in the HOF. 2 Day WrestleMania. What a time to be alive.

[thesportssoundoff]

“Main card a dime, prelims are fine”The UFC On FOX Preview

Joey

December 10th

Fights: 12

Debuts: 2 (Pietro Menga, Julian Marquez)

Fight Changes/Injury Cancellations: 6 (Justin Scoggins OUT, Pietro Menga IN vs Tim Elliott/Antonio Rogerio Noguiera OUT, Jan Blachowicz IN vs Jared Cannonier/Sultian Aliev vs Nordine Taleb cancelled due to Aliev injury/Danny Roberts vs Sheldon Wescott cancelled due to Westcott injury; Roberts vs Taleb put together in its place, Vitor Miranda OUT, Darren Stewart IN vs Julian Marquez)

Headliners (fighters who have either main evented or co-main evented shows in the UFC):  10 (Robbie Lawler, Rafael Dos Anjos, Mike Perry, Glover Teixeira, Misha Cirkunov, Ricardo Lamas, Santiago Ponzinibbio,Jan Blachowicz, Tim Elliott, Erick Silva)

Fighters On Losing Streaks in the UFC:  3 (Jordan Mein, Oluwale Bamgbose, Darren Stewart)

Fighters On Winning Streaks in the UFC:  5 (Rafael Dos Anjos, Santiago Ponzinibbio, Ricardo Lamas, Mike Perry, Chad Laprise)

Stat Monitor for 2017:

Debuting Fighters (Current number: 44-38)- Pietro Menga, Julian Marquez

Short Notice Fighters (Current number: 24-36-1)- Pietro Menga, Darren Stewart, Jan Blachowicz, Josh Emmett

Second Fight (Current number: 32-39)- Galore Bofando

Cage Corrosion (18-15-1)- John Makdessi

Twelve Precarious Ponderings

1- #1 contender fights are basically suggestions. When I was studying to be a paralegal, they had an entire course (or what felt like it) on the term "reasonable expectations." #1 contender fights bend, twist and split the concept of a reasonable expectation. In boxing or kickboxing or MMA, the concept of the #1 contender is flexible since there's nothing binding to them. You can win an interim title and then never fight the champion OR you could win a #1 contender fight, become the mandatory challenger and then never get the fight. Or you could win the title fight and then move on with your life, we're talking about a reasonable expectation. Should the winner of this fight between RDA and Lawler have a reasonable expectation of a title show? Well.....

We can begin by setting the stage a bit. Who IS here and who ISN'T here as it pertains to the champion. Scratch our GSP and Nate Diaz, neither guy is getting this fight. Tyron Woodley is out for the foreseeable future with a shoulder injury. Before that point, Woodley bleeted about money fights and not thinking either fight did anything for him or so on so forth until death do us part. For one half of the equation, I can see the argument. Woodley beat Lawler and left no doubt----so hey! It might be fair to say "Look I beat Lawler and since then he's beaten two blown up 155ers (even if RDA is legit at 170 lbs), what else can I do?" It's not a knock to say that. It may be rude and unfair---but it's also kinda factual, am I right? Woodley doesn't GET anything from that fight. What's more, it could be genuinely argued that from a business standpoint, that fight is a hard sell unless Lawler KOs RDA in a fashion by which nobody expects.

For RDA though, it's a different situation. Dos Anjos is a fresh face at 170 lbs. He is a former champion at a different weight class. A win over Lawler establishes him as a genuine force at 170 lbs and RDA fights frequently (June to September to December) so it's not like Woodley would be in for a long wait. Dos Anjos would be beyond credible as a challenger and he'd be new to the picture. Also it's not RDA's fault that Woodley isn't a draw. One of the things that the UFC/MMA has stolen from its TRUE business model; the art of pro wrestling is that the heat is always on the B Side for not upping the numbers. When a Hogan feud didn't work or draw, the onus turned to whoever he was facing. When Mr. Perfect vs Hulk Hogan did poorly, they didn't blame Hogan (and why would they I suppose?) and it fell on Perfect. The Miz was punished for Rock/Cena vs Miz/R-Truth not doing big numbers. It's easiest to blame the #2 guy because why not? It's not RDA's problem that Woodley can't draw but if he wins, he's earned it. Why wouldn't he be the #1 contender? Woodley denying RDA would be foolish and incomprehensibly bad when he should be trying to get some positive publicity.

Then there are the three outsiders who could steal the title shot. Kamaru Usman is one, Colby Covington is another and Darren Till is the last. Usman PROBABLY is far off from a title fight for various reasons; some his fault and some not his fault. Darren Till would be an interesting story but one win over Cerrone probably isn't enough. Colby Covington, unfortunately, is the winner of this fights biggest threat. He has the big name win over Maia and he built an angle for himself, as tawdry as it may be. Covington's attitude attracts attention and while it's primarily the wrong kind, this is the fight business and not the "Do the right thing" business. Even so it feels like Usman vs Covington is in the works so why would Covington jump the line at this point? Wonderboy vs Woodley III needs to be a total non-starter.

So what, pray tell, is our reasonable expectation here as it pertains to a title fight for the winner? I'm not betting on it. Woodley is far, far, far away from being healthy and I can totally see him throwing a stink at whoever the winner is. As much as people might not wanna hear this, it's almost as likely that the UFC strikes while the iron is hot and rolls with Covington as it is that the winner of this fight gets a title shot. What's more, given that the UFC needs to fill up February soon-ish, why would they rush to conclusions anyways when you could probably get Lawler or RDA to fight again soon anyways?

2- Keep a VERY close eye on Lawler in rounds 2-5. Robbie's reputation in five round fights can be summed up as such; when it's going well, he's engaged for twenty five minutes with the occasional pauses in action. When he's just not firing, rounds 2, 3 and 4 are rounds where he seems incapable of turning up the jets and going.

Against Hendricks 1 and Rory-- He was always in the fight, laughing during exchanges and being a generally all around wild human being.

Against Condit, Hendricks 2 and Matt Brown-  He came out fast and firing early----and then slowed. Now he did score a big knockdown in the second round vs Condit so in that fight it was more about him just being mentally asleep for the middle portion of the fight. Now 5th round Lawler is a thing because he takes those rounds off BUT rallying vs a tremendously durable guy in RDA might be a tough ask.

3- I hope RDA understands that Lawler is hard to take down and even harder to keep down so his usual technical leg kicks into the clinch aren't going to work this time.

4- Dana White talked about Frankie Edgar as the #1 contender and he left the door open that Holloway COULD fight before Edgar is ready to fight again. That combined with Ricardo Lamas staying n the co-main spot despite a more attractive fight in Ponz-Perry, leads me to believe that there's a slight chance Lamas could sneak his way into a title fight with Holloway soon.

5- Does the fact that Ricardo Lamas' last three wins all lost their next fight make it harder to buy into him as a top 5 featherweight?*

So @theanticool corrected me and pointed out that Diego Sanchez beat Jim Miller (which I forgot about) and Oliveira beat Will Brooks. I’ll leave this here because I like laughing at my dumbness but will instead rephrase point five: Does the fact that Lamas’ top wins recently have all basically flamed out make it harder to make the argument that he’s a top 5 featherweight?

6- So much of what makes Mike Perry work is his aggressive approach backed by his one hitter quitter-esque power and sterling chin. Perry lives to create 50/50 exchanges where he believes his one will trump your two or three. He isn't entirely out of his element on the ground but it's clear what his gameplan is. His secret weapon are knees, be it in the clinch or out of the plum set up. Mike Perry is not the walking gimmick some people believe he is---but Santiago Ponzinibbio is one of those fighters who is always different in his approach going into each fight. Against Gunnar Nelson, he had a good idea how to attack Nelson even if it meant eating fire on the way in. Against guys Nordine Taleb and Zack Cummings, Ponz just outworked them with pressure, volume, versatility and power. Ponzinibbio can still be hurt by strikes and he isn't always the most intelligent survivor (the two times I remember him being most hurt, he just seemed to throw caution to the wind and fire back despite having no base of support on the feet) BUT he's one of those guys who doesn't need much to get going on offense. His footwork, movement and ability to turn the pressure on and off at a moment's notice makes him a serious threat for Perry who has struggled with those kinds of guys in the past. If this gets into a firefight in the pocket though, I think we'll ALL be winners.

7- So what do we make of Misha Cirkunov? Cirkunov is 4-1 in the UFC and he just turned 30 in a division devoid of youth. He is a prized commodity for sure and his last fight went by so quickly that it's hard to even know what went wrong. It seems everyone not named OSP falls victim to the Volkan Oezdemir dim mak. At the same time, Misha Cirkunov has one win over someone still in the UFC and he's so rigid and stiff on the feet that it's fair to wonder just how high is upside really is. He and Glover Teix is a great match up that'll test what Glover has left and whether Misha can beat a top 10 LHW. This division really needs Misha Cirkunov to be everything people think he can be.

8- Speaking of LHWs, Jared Cannonier gets a chance (again) to join the big boy lunch table when he draws Jan Blachowicz as the prelim fight headliner. Cannonier since dropping to 205 lbs has gone a tidy 2-1 with  the loss being a fight where Glover Teixeira simply had too much for him in the grappling department despite Cannonier occasionally landing hard shots on the feet. Cannonier was expected to get a big name in Antonio Rogerio Noguiera but instead draws a tougher test in Jan Blachowicz. Jan's coming off his first UFC win in about 9 years and 28 fights but he showcased a lot of the stuff that made him such a highly regarded LHW to begin with. It's worth pointing out that Blachowicz has only lost to ranked opposition (Gus, Manuwa and Cummins) so if Cannonier wants to take a step up, this is the right opponent to try it against.

9- The Dana White Tuesday Night Contender Series has delivered onto us some dandy fighters, would you not agree? Thus far, fighters who have competed on DWTCS in the UFC are 4-3 thus far BUT there are some caveats inside those numbers. Two of those fighters were short notice additions who were NOT offered contracts during the show (Mike Santiago and Azunna Anwanyu) and another one was Allen Crowder who was signed by virtue of just being big. On the other hand, Benito Lopez, Alex Perez, Karl Roberson and Sean O'Malley have all had exciting fights and wins in the organization. Julian Marquez will be the latest DWTCS guy to take to the cage and I'm....torn. I discovered Marquez while watching him fight in Combates Americas vs Matt Hammil. At the time a typo had me thinking he was older than he really was, like 10 years older. At just 27 years old, Marquez is already an interesting name and I think he can be something although he was very adamant that cutting to 185 lbs was really hard for him on the Contender Series so I can't imagine that being a cut he'll want to take more often. He takes on short notice Brit Darren Stewart at 185 lbs.

10- Is it a lock that Darren Till winds up facing the winner of Ponz vs Perry?

11- Danny Roberts has a 3-1 UFC record but it hasn't been easy outside of his debut vs Nathan Coy. Roberts is one of those guys who is winning until he loses and losing until he wins. Vs Mike Perry, Roberts won a ton of exchanges---except for three. The one that dropped him in the first round, dropped him in the 2nd round and then finished him in the third. He was getting lit up by Bobby Nash before he iced and finished Nash in the third. Roberts has that sort of talent where he's always in a fight no matter what the odds or the scorecards say.

12- Aye leggo Pietro Menga! New flyweight on the block!

Must Wins

1- Glover Teixeira

Once upon a time, Glover was in the position of needing a must win to really save his spot in the division. He rallied from that with three straight finishes over OSP, Patrick Cummins and Rashad Evans. NOW he's back in the same spot after a 1-2 run since that Evans finish. He was blasted by Rumble, beat Cannonier while looking shaky on the feet and then got beat up and battered by Gus. Glover is an old man in an old division which means that so long as you don't lose it all overnight, you've got a chance to be relevant. Still at this point you're left wondering just how relevant Glover can be. He's lost to the elite of the elites (Jones, Davis, the aforementioned Rumble and Gus) but a loss to Misha Cirkunov would officially close the door on him. This is a must win for both dudes if ya think about it.

2- Santiago Ponzinibbio

Ponz is one of those fighters who deserves a ton of credit for wall walking his way up the rankings. After losing to Lorenz Larkin, he's racked up five wins and three of those by finish. He's not just eating up on jabronis either with wins over the likes of Gunnar Nelson, Nordine Taleb and Court McGee. He's a damn good fighter who is improving every single performance he has. The problem is that Ponz is not the most marketable WW even if he's action packed and capable of speaking multiple languages. Ponz is the guy who should be a bigger force but alas alack. He's gotta beat Mike Perry to really secure his spot in the 5-10.

3- Ricardo Lamas

In the world of "all things are connected", Ricardo Lamas is competing vs not just Josh Emmett but also the likes of Brian Ortega, Frankie Edgar and etc etc down the line. Lamas has done a lot of good recently---but look at his wins at 145 lbs. We just saw Moggly Benitez eat up Jason Knight over three rounds, we've seen what's happened to Diego Sanchez recently and Charles Oliveira, while very credible, is not the sort of win that gets you talking title shot. He's got a short notice opponent he's being expected to run right through but Josh Emmett is no joke with how hard he hits.

Top 5 Must See Fights

1- Robbie Lawler vs Rafael Dos Anjos

2- Santiago Ponzinibbio vs Mike Perry

3- Jared Cannonier vs Jan Blachowicz

4-Chad Laprise vs Galore Bofando

5- Darren Stewart vs Julian Marquez

[ceenation]

Hustle, Loyalty and Persona

crossxskulled:

☠ VS CENA

Those were the proud words heard once he slammed open the large double doors leading to the arena. Flourishing lights danced around, soon focusing on the star of this show upon the center of the ring as he remained in his full showboating glory.

Part of the thief honestly couldn’t believe that this wasn’t a dream. Before his eyes was the crucial part of this heist; the owner of this palace and the shimmering blaze that was the champion ship belt that hovered within the air above. That excited pace of his heart couldn’t find a instant of chill as the prospect of a childhood challenging coming true in the wildest way got him clear into the zone. Even if the crowds held only praise for leader of the CEENATIONand nothing but spitting and foul language for the approaching blond was more than okay.

After all. What was a battle upon a champion’s home turf without some overwhelming adversity to spice up the stakes? He’d take their crude remarks for death with raised arms and laugh that practically beckoned for more to roll his way as he pressed down the stairs to the ring. Already were the announcer shadows sizing up the competition even if they weren’t a single doubt in his mind he’d be crushed in a instant. “To think this is the way you’d handle that calling card, man! Talk about leaving the best damn show for last! SKULL is here and he has some damn good things prepped to say to ya!”

With a bit of buckle in the knees, one long stride of a jump was made for his current standing and straight into the ring. A loud wham sounds as the ring reverberates due to the force of Shadow Cena’s newest opponent. “I see ya went and reeled in the full house for this ass kicking you’re about to go and take! I ain’t sleeping on anything you’re about to dish out either, but let’s get one thing straight here. Like you, I’m here to win. That part of me isn’t gonna be the only thing doing the talking.”

“Cause y’see?”

“I’m the Cream of the Crop!”

”And like they say. The Cream always rises to the top!” Such a bold declaration! It was the sort that initially baffled but soon drew the loyalCEENATION into a uproar at the gall of this fool! Was he worried? Not in the least bit! Failure simply wasn’t an option on the day of the calling card. The Phantom Thieves worked on a strict schedule were victory itself was the sole prime allowance. It was time to take this legend’s treasure and show him the error of his distorted ways!

“LET’S GET IT ON!”

The blinding lights. The roar of the crowd. The chorus of cheers and boos that would overwhelm the soul of any meager man who dared set foot in the squared circle. But, of course, this was no mere man. He knew that the moment he made his presence known. An entity that stood poised to topple the empire that the Doctor of Thuganomics had established.

An empire built upon the backs of broken rookies and beaten down veterans, all who dared to try and take away his spotlight. For in the world of sports entertainment, there was but one rule. John Cena was god. Be it CM Punk, The Rock or Hulk Hogan himself. No one was allowed to reach the heavens which John Cena inhabited. He was the eternal champion. He was number 1. Whether the fans liked it or not. And he would go to any lengths to make sure it stayed that way. Even if it meant sabotaging the hopes and dreams of others wrestlers.

So what if that made him corrupt? People were still paying to see HIM. People were filling arenas to see HIM. Without him, the world of wrestling was nothing. NOTHING! So how dare this young, uppity brat with a bad leg think that he had any say in the matter? How dare he think that he could go one on one with the TRUE great one? Such insolence would not be allowed in the house of hustle, loyalty and respect. He’d beat the fruity pebbles out of this punk and let the entire world know.. You don’t mess with John Cena.

AAAAAND FOR TONIGHTS MAIN EVENT! THE WORLD CHAMPION AND RULER OF THIS PALACE, JOHN CENA! VS, THE FOOLISH UPSTART FROM THE PHANTOM THIEVES!

                                           Let the match begin!

“HaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!“

“LET’S GO, PUNK. YOU WON’T BE ABLE TO TOUCH ME! HELL, YOU CAN’T EVEN SEE ME!“

[fromtheringapron]

Ranking the Songs on Piledriver: The Wrestling Album II

I had so much fun last year ranking the songs on WWE Originals that I’ve decided to travel back time over 30 years ago to ranks the songs on Piledriver: The Wrestling Album II. The first Wrestling Album was one of Vince McMahon’s many attempts in the mid ‘80s to present the WWF as a circus the whole family could love. They had a Saturday morning cartoon so why not take things one step further with an album featuring the WWF superstars themselves? In many ways, it was also the natural result of their relationship with MTV. Amazingly though, requisite player Cyndi Lauper didn’t partake. Instead, it was a pretty mixed bag of some of the most iconic entrance themes of the era and songs that were quickly forgotten, probably rightly so.

The second Wrestling Album follows that same formula. However, if its predecessor felt like a one-note gimmick, the sequel feels much more in touch with the pop sensibilities of the day. In addition to featuring more songs that would go on to serve as the entrance themes for several of the superstars here, there are a couple of tracks that could’ve blended right in with ‘80s Top 40. Even if their partnership with MTV was over by the time of the sequel’s release, 8 of the 10 tracks here got music videos, all released on a hot Coliseum Video release. Yes, there are some duds. Oh, boy, are there duds! No music production where Vince McMahon is involved would be complete without them. And you bet I’m gonna cover and rank all of them. As always, songs are linked in each entry so without further ado, let’s get to it:

1 (best). “Demolition” by Rick Derringer: A head-banger’s ball of loud noise and Hell roaming the earth⏤that’s literally the best way to describe this and I don’t even think it makes a whole lot of sense. This isn’t just the best song on the album; this is one of the best entrance themes in history. It can’t be stated enough how much this raised the bar on what a wrestler’s theme song could be. It manages to perfectly capture the essence of Demolition, the tag team, whilst sounding like an actual demolition. It sounds like burning buildings and brick walls getting bulldozed over, demon spawn crawling out from under the heaps of rubble. You can hear the Motley Crues of the world shake in fear somewhere in the distance. The thing is, Derringer already had enough of an accomplished music career at the time that he didn’t need to partake in such a gimmicky album, let alone give the performance of a lifetime. He didn’t need to go to this hard but he totally did. What an act of generosity. Bless him.

2. “Jive Soul Bro” by Slick: There’s no doubt the Slick character was largely birthed out of Vince McMahon’s racism. There’s also no doubt this song is a byproduct of that. Even its title should tell you how well Vince understands black culture. So with all that going against it, it’s practically a miracle the performer and producers have created something this stellar. This is an endlessly listenable piece of old-school hip hop, featuring some dope ass Santana guitar. There are so many ways it could’ve gone wrong but if it were to take its cues from anything, I’m happy it’s “The Message” by Grandmaster Flash. The sound is, well, pretty slick and could sound fresh on a dozen songs. Slick may have be presented as a stereotype, but he brings a ton of personality to this track. I personally love the inclusion of the female vocals. “NO WAY YOU JIVE LITTLE MOUSE” is certainly a highlight. It feels like I’m just listing off the good things about it, but I’d like to think they all tie together to make the song fantastic. It could’ve been a one-note production; it opts to revel in the potential of a three-dimensional world where Slick is the central character.

3. “Piledriver” by Koko B. Ware: Okay, so this actually slaps. Koko is the one member of the WWF roster who could’ve made a little career in music out for himself. He’s got so much charisma in his voice that it’s kinda remarkable it didn’t take him anywhere outside of this album. He almost makes me forget about the Sesame Street-level lyrics to this which include but not limited to “First you think you’re so strong/ but something goes wrong/it feels like a big bad mistake.” Love is said to be like a piledriver, as I guess they needed to tie it all back into wrestling somehow. Luckily, Koko’s voice isn’t the only distraction we have from the lyrics. The production is unexpectedly badass. It has absolutely no right to go as hard as it does. They could’ve turned it into a schmaltzy ballad but, god bless us all, they chose to dress it up in a leather jacket and torn jeans. Maybe love does feel like a pile driver. I don’t know; I’m not an expert. But if this song is any indication, it does at least sound good hitting the mat.

4. “Honky Tonk Man” by The Honky Tonk Man: Come on, you can’t just have The Honky Tonk Man not have a song on the album. That would’ve been remembered as one of the biggest blown opportunities in the history of recorded music, I’m sure. Anyway, this is everything it should be. Matches the gimmick perfectly. It’s catchy but never lets us forget that HTM himself is a total dweeb. Then opening guitar is now the stuff infamy. When it played in the arena, the fans knew a real asshole was about to walk his way down to the ring. I’ve never been a huge fan of throwback music because it often comes off as tacky and totally misses the point of what its bygone era of music so great. There was a troubling time in American history where we allowed The Cherry Poppin’ Daddies to make a career out of that sort of thing. But since the whole point here is to be as tacky as possible, I’m totally okay with it. It’s audio proof that a bad Elvis impersonation can really work.

5. “Girls in Cars” by Robbie Dupree & Strike Force: This is the biggest slice of ‘80s cheese on the album, which is appropriate because Strike Force is one of the definitive squeaky clean babyface tag teams of the era. I’ve always found the presentation of Strike Force kinda weird. Tito Santana and Rick Martel as teen idols? When they’re clearly two thirtysomething dudes with spouses and children? What? Why? Sonically, this is no different than a billion other pop rock songs of the era. It’s kinda catchy, kinda sounds like Uncle Jesse from Full House getting his big break. Dupree actually boasts some impressive credentials, with a Grammy nom for Best New Artist under his belt. He also had a top 10 hit in “Steal Away” which I’m sure you can hear playing at a CVS near you. Sadly, none of this can distract me from the fact that it’s still a song for two married dudes who are going too hard to reenact their best high school days which makes the overall effect really, really awkward.

6. “Waking Up Alone” by Hillbilly Jim & Gertrude: If there were ever a more unexpected song, I’d like to here it. When I first listened to it, I thought I’d actually made a mistake. Did I accidentally listen to the wrong song? Of course I didn’t but, man, this is so frickin’ bizarre. Hillbilly’s “Don’t Go Messin’ With a Country Boy” from the first Wrestling Album is kind of a bop but if you came into this album expecting more of the same, you’d be dead wrong. In fact, a standard ‘80s adult contemporary ballad is one of the last things you’d expect. Perhaps even more of a shock is that this is actually, um, not bad?!? I can’t hate on an 80’s ballad that knows its way around synths and percussion. Hillbilly’s voice is largely what you’d expect, though not super terrible or anything. Gertrude is the real standout here. I’ll probably never know her real identity, but she’s such a welcome presence on an album filled with muscled dudes trying to be singers. How did this poor woman get roped into this project again?

7. “Crank It Up” by Jimmy Hart: Literally every wrestler in the ‘80s and ‘90s used this as their entrance theme at some point.  Yes, literally every wrestler. I’m convinced of it. Recent WWE Network discoveries show even The Rock used it in a pre-debut dark match. Its status as a relatively evergreen piece of music isn’t all that surprising though. It’s generic heavy metal that can fit a wide range of gimmicks. Unfortunately, this isn’t anywhere near as catchy as it thinks. Jimmy Hart obviously has the chops to make a recordable song, but the trade off here is one that’s blandly competent at best. It tries to answer the question: is Jimmy Hart a rock ’n’ roll badass? And the answer is, no, he’s not. It’s really jarring to hear him talk about picking up chicks in his car or some shit. I can’t buy Jimmy as anything other than an annoying little mouse. I mean, that’s what the WWF wanted us to believe, right? This would be fine if it were parody, except I don’t think this is meant to be.

8. “If You Only Knew” by WWF Superstars: This sounds cute, in theory. Your favorite WWF superstars coming together to do some Band Aid collaboration should be at least get on through the absurdity alone. But in practice? Meh. Everyone sounds like they’re not even in the same studio with each other. That shouldn’t be surprising, but at least try to work me, y’know? There also aren’t any hilarious lines I’d usually expect with something like this. Just sounds like everyone is half-asking their part (except for Koko who, even in this bit role, seems to be stretching his vocals to their limit).It’s not even all that catchy, really. Astonishingly, this includes the only appearance of Hulk Hogan on this album. You’d think he would’ve had his own song here considering, y’know, he’s on the fucking cover. How dare they ignore the would-be bassist of Metallica like that? Oh well. At least we have the amazing Slammys performance to make up for all of this.

9. “Stand Back” by Vince McMahon: Dear god, where do I begin? Even if you’re not familiar with ‘80s wrestling, you may still recognize this one anyway, given its usage in the DX/McMahons feud of 2006. Its meme status aside, this is pure cringe. Maybe this is Vince’s way of waving his finger at the Jim Crocketts and Verne Gagnes of the world who doubted his clown shoes of a wrestling company. I honestly wouldn’t doubt he’d be that petty and ridiculous. Come on, who else could he be telling to stand back? It’s always fun to look for glimpses of the evil Mr. McMahon character he’d become, and it’s right here when he uses the the throaty “You’re firrrrreeedddd!” voice. Except he tries using it as a singing voice and the results are hilariously awful. I’m not sure who convinced him to do this, but I think it’s telling how it was brought up all those years later as a way to embarrass him. 

10 (worst). “Rock & Roll Hoochie Koo” by Gene Okerlund & Rick Derringer: To be fair, this isn’t the disaster I was dreading. I fully expected Mean Gene doing some excruciating throwback shit, but this is thankfully just him getting up on the stage on karaoke night after too many drinks. That doesn’t mean it’s good, because it definitely isn’t. While there are plenty of other songs here that can easily stand on their own two legs, this is one that totally feels like a novelty. After all, this is merely a cover version of Derringer’s lone solo hit from the ‘70s, so it feels kinda lazy. Did we really need Mean Gene’s take on it? Like, his take on the Star Spangled Banner at the first WrestleMania is more inspired than this. The production makes Mean Gene’s voice disappear under various guitar screeches, which is probably a wise decision. If I had my druthers, however, this entire song could disappear off the album altogether and I wouldn’t even care.

So there you go. Agree or disagree with this ranking? Am I just spouting nonsense? Will we ever see The Wrestling Album III? Is love really like a piledriver? While you’re pondering these questions, give this album another spin and, of course, don’t forget to crank it up.

[daleisgreat]

The Best of WCW Clash of the Champions

Younger and newer fans of pro wrestling, lend me your ears! I have to let you know how spoiled we are to have so many countless hours of top programming each week featuring marquee matchups/storyline angles. “The Monday Night Wars” between WWF/WCW in the second half of the 1990s changed that and forced both promotions’ marquee shows to consistently put on top matchups and rivalries each week. When I first started watching wrestling in the late 80s the bulk of weekly television put on by WCW and the then-WWF featured primarily squash matches and recaps from the latest big PPV and TV specials. WWF and WCW only had four or five PPVs a year around this time and they usually featured several big matches with many weeks of television buildup. To help fill those three-four month gaps between PPVs, both WWF and WCW did four-five TV specials/mini-PPVs for free on cable a year during this timeframe. WWF had Saturday Night’s Main Event (SNME) and WCW had Clash of the Champions (CotC). Instead of several big PPV-quality matchups over the course of three hours ad-free, these specials were 90-120 minutes with ad breaks. SNME and CotC mostly featured one top matchup, supplemented by other matches featuring top stars, but usually in last minute thrown together meaningless tag matches. WWE released a best of SNME DVD-set in 2009, but today I am covering their Best of WCW Clash of the Champions (trailer)BluRay set they released in 2012.

Dusty Rhodes is the host of this DVD set, and he has a good introduction to the DVD explaining that WCW made CotC free and held the inaugural show to compete directly against Wrestlemania IV as a response to WWE forcing the first Survivor Series PPV to compete directly against WCW’s first PPV a few months earlier. It was a joy seeing Dusty again a couple years after his passing, and he is charismatic as ever, but the rest of his appearances in The Best of CotC are surprisingly lackluster as he sheds no context or insight about the matches he is setting up and merely says a variation of, “here is wrestler A and here is wrestler B, oh-boooyy.” I know I am splitting hairs nitpicking over Dusty’s intros but Diamond Dallas Page did an excellent job with them in the trilogy of Best of Nitro DVDs that I cannot help but feel a little dismayed at Dusty’s performance. Another thing to keep in mind is that even though nearly all 27 matches contained in the Best of CotC (three of which are exclusive to BluRay) have top talent, only a small slice of the 27 bouts have clean finishes. If I recall correctly from watching these at the time I presumed the bookers did this to teach fans that they had to pay the big bucks for the PPV match that did not feature interference. At first I was increasingly agitated to see many excellent matches have run-ins for a quick DQ or tainted victory, but eventually I accepted it as par for the course by the end of the collection.

I want to highlight a few of my favorite matchups on this set. The first match is the main event from the first CotC, and it features one of the first televised matchups of Sting and Ric Flair as the two fought for the NWA World Title and went to a 45 minute time limit draw. The crowd is simply bonkers into Sting as the two put on a clinic in the ring and have several dramatic near falls in the final minutes. The infamous “I Quit” match between Flair and Terry Funk from 1989 is another epic match on this collection, and features a ton of hardcore action and brawling between the two before ECW popularized that style a few years later. Ricky Steamboat and Steve Austin (then with a full head of hair from his “Stunning” days) have an awesome match for the US title with tons of near falls and is one of the few great matches on here with a clean finish. My last top pick on here is a cruiserweight title match between Ultimo Dragon and Dean Malenko that features a good hybrid of Dean’s technical prowess and Dragon’s high-flying acrobatics. Those four matches are the feature bouts that have no cheap interference and left me wanting more. As I alluded to earlier there are many good-to-great matches on here that unfortunately suffer with a awful finish. The Rock ‘n Roll Express and Midnight Express light up the crowd in one instance and Ric Flair carries a young Lex Luger in one of his best matches, but both contests feature cheap DQs. Sting and Flair put on another classic match on here from 1994, but a theme of the match is on Sherri Martel’s presence at ringside throughout, and sure enough she factors into the finish. Two more tag title matches that have a lot of great action with crowd’s engaged throughout, only to be letdown with a lame DQ were Arn Anderson and Ric Flair taking on the Hollywood Blonds and Harlem Heat defending their gold against the Steiners and Lex Luger & Sting. Of the three BluRay extras, only one stood out and that was Ric Flair & Barry Windham taking on the Midnight Express with all four guys being on top of their game and making formula tag team spots stand out in a class of their own to the delight of a rabidly hot crowd.

The matches in here span from 1988-1997. In 1998, WCW introduced Thunder as its second top-tier weekly show to supplement Nitro, and that brought an end to CotC. Seeing how WCW and its production values evolved over the decade was fascinating and they came a long way in that decade, especially in its final few years. While a majority of the matches have awesome wrestling and very engaged crowds, it is regrettably unfortunate to not recommend The Best of WCW Clash of the Champions because of the sheer amount of cruddy finishes. There are four or five standout matches tucked away within that I breakdown above, but you are better suited hunting those down on the WWE Network than shedding out the money for the DVD. Past Wrestling Blogs Best of WCW Monday Nitro Volume 2 Best of Monday Nitro Volume 3 Biggest Knuckleheads Bobby The Brain Heenan Daniel Bryan: Just Say Yes Yes Yes DDP: Positively Living Dusty Rhodes WWE Network Specials ECW Unreleased: Vol 1 ECW Unreleased: Vol 2 ECW Unreleased: Vol 3 For All Mankind Goldberg: The Ultimate Collection Its Good to Be the King: The Jerry Lawler Story Ladies and Gentlemen My Name is Paul Heyman Legends of Mid South Wrestling Macho Man: The Randy Savage Story Memphis Heat OMG Vol 2: Top 50 Incidents in WCW History OMG Vol 3: Top 50 Incidents in ECW History Owen: Hart of Gold RoH Supercard of Honor V RoH Supercard of Honor VI RoH Supercard of Honor VII RoH Supercard of Honor VIII RoH Supercard of Honor IX RoH Supercard of Honor X ScoobyDoo Wrestlemania Mystery Sting: Into the Light Superstar Collection: Zach Ryder TNA Lockdown 2005-2014 Top 50 Superstars of All Time Tough Enough: Million Dollar Season True Giants Ultimate Fan Pack: Roman Reigns Ultimate Warrior: Always Believe Warrior Week on WWE Network Wrestlemania 3: Championship Edition Wrestlemania 28 Wrestlemania 29 Wrestlemania 30 Wrestlemania 31 Wrestlemania 32 The Wrestler (2008) Wrestling Road Diaries Too Wrestling Road Diaries Three: Funny Equals Money Wrestlings Greatest Factions WWE Network Original Specials First Half 2015 WWE Network Original Specials Second Half 2015 WWE Network Original Specials First Half 2016 WWE Network Original Specials Second Half 2016 WWE Network Original Specials First Half 2017

[kansascityhappenings]

Final goodbye: Recalling influential people who died in 2019

A lauded writer who brought to light stories overshadowed by prejudice. An actress and singer who helped embody the manufactured innocence of the 1950s. A self-made billionaire who rose from a childhood of Depression-era poverty and twice ran for president.

This year saw the deaths of people who shifted culture through prose, pragmatism and persistence. It also witnessed tragedy, in talent struck down in its prime.

In 2019, the political world lost a giant in U.S. Rep. Elijah E. Cummings. He was born the son of a sharecropper, became a lawyer, then an influential congressman and champion of civil rights.

Cummings, who died in October, was chairman of one of the U.S. House committees that led an impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump and was a formidable advocate for the poor in his Maryland district.

Another influential political figure, U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, died in July. Stevens was appointed to the high court as a Republican but became the leader of its liberal wing and a proponent of abortion rights and consumer protections.

Wealth, fame and a confident prescription for the nation’s economic ills propelled H. Ross Perot ’s 1992 campaign against President George H.W. Bush and Democratic challenger Bill Clinton. He recorded the highest percentage for an independent or third-party candidate since 1912. He died in July.

The death of Toni Morrison in August left a chasm in the publishing world, where she was a “literary mother�� to countless writers. She helped elevate multiculturalism to the world stage and unearthed the lives of the unknown and unwanted. She became the first black woman to receive the Nobel literature prize for “Beloved” and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012.

Among those in the scientific world who died in 2019 was Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Leonov, the first person to walk in space. Leonov died in October. Others include scientist Wallace Smith Broecker, who died in February and popularized the term “global warming” as he raised early alarms about climate change.

In April, Hollywood lost director John Singleton, whose 1991 film “Boyz N the Hood” was praised as a realistic and compassionate take on race, class, peer pressure and family. He became the first black director to receive an Oscar nomination and the youngest at 24.

Doris Day, a top box-office draw and recording artist who died in May, stood for the 1950s ideal of innocence and G-rated love, a parallel world to her contemporary Marilyn Monroe. She received a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2004.

The year also saw the untimely deaths of two young rappers, leaving a feeling of accomplishments unfulfilled. Grammy-nominated Nipsey Hussle was killed in a shooting in Los Angeles in March. Juice WRLD, who launched his career on SoundCloud before becoming a streaming juggernaut, died in December after being treated for opioid use during a police search.

Here is a roll call of some influential figures who died in 2019 (cause of death cited for younger people, if available):

JANUARY

Eugene “Mean Gene” Okerlund, 76. His deadpan interviews of pro wrestling superstars like “Macho Man” Randy Savage, the Ultimate Warrior and Hulk Hogan made him a ringside fixture in his own right. Jan. 2.

Bob Einstein, 76. The veteran comedy writer and performer known for “The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and his spoof daredevil character Super Dave Osborne. Jan. 2.

Daryl Dragon, 76. The cap-wearing “Captain” of Captain & Tennille who teamed with then-wife Toni Tennille on such easy listening hits as “Love Will Keep Us Together” and “Muskrat Love.” Jan. 2.

Harold Brown, 91. As defense secretary in the Carter administration, he championed cutting-edge fighting technology during a tenure that included the failed rescue of hostages in Iran. Jan 4.

Jakiw Palij, 95. A former Nazi concentration camp guard who spent decades leading an unassuming life in New York City until his past was revealed. Jan. 9.

Carol Channing, 97. The ebullient musical comedy star who delighted American audiences in almost 5,000 performances as the scheming Dolly Levi in “Hello, Dolly!” on Broadway and beyond. Jan. 15.

John C. Bogle, 89. He simplified investing for the masses by launching the first index mutual fund and founded Vanguard Group. Jan. 16.

Lamia al-Gailani, 80. An Iraqi archaeologist who lent her expertise to rebuilding the National Museum’s collection after it was looted in 2003. Jan. 18.

Nathan Glazer, 95. A prominent sociologist and intellectual who assisted on a classic study of conformity, “The Lonely Crowd,” and co-authored a groundbreaking document of non-conformity, “Beyond the Melting Pot.” Jan. 19.

Antonio Mendez, 78. A former CIA technical operations officer who helped rescue six U.S. diplomats from Iran in 1980 and was portrayed by Ben Affleck in the film “Argo.” Jan. 19.

Harris Wofford, 92. A former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania and longtime civil rights activist who helped persuade John F. Kennedy to make a crucial phone call to the wife of Martin Luther King Jr. during the 1960 presidential campaign. Jan. 21.

Russell Baker, 93. The genial but sharp-witted writer who won Pulitzer Prizes for his humorous columns in The New York Times and a moving autobiography of his impoverished Baltimore childhood. He later hosted television’s “Masterpiece Theatre” on PBS. Jan 21. Complications after a fall.

Michel Legrand, 86. An Oscar-winning composer and pianist whose hits included the score for the ’60s romance “The Umbrellas of Cherbourg” and the song “The Windmills of Your Mind” and who worked with some of biggest singers of the 20th century. Jan. 26.

Kim Bok-dong, 92. A South Korean woman who was forced as a girl into a brothel and sexually enslaved by the Japanese military during World War II, becoming a vocal leader at rallies that were held every Wednesday in Seoul for nearly 30 years. Jan. 28.

James Ingram, 66. The Grammy-winning singer who launched multiple hits on the R&B and pop charts and earned two Oscar nominations for his songwriting. Jan. 29.

Donald S. Smith, 94. He produced the controversial anti-abortion film “The Silent Scream” and, with help from Ronald Reagan’s White House, distributed copies to every member of Congress and the Supreme Court. Jan. 30.

Harold Bradley, 93. A Country Music Hall of Fame guitarist who played on hundreds of hit country records and along with his brother, famed producer Owen Bradley, helped craft “The Nashville Sound.” Jan. 31.

FEBRUARY

Kristoff St. John, 52. An actor best known for playing Neil Winters on the CBS soap opera “The Young and the Restless.” Feb. 4. Heart disease.

Anne Firor Scott, 97. A prize-winning historian and esteemed professor who upended the male-dominated field of Southern scholarship by pioneering the study of Southern women. Feb. 5.

Frank Robinson, 83. The Hall of Famer was the first black manager in Major League Baseball and the only player to win the MVP award in both leagues. Feb. 7.

John Dingell, 92. The former congressman was the longest-serving member of Congress in American history at 59 years and a master of legislative deal-making who was fiercely protective of Detroit’s auto industry. Feb. 7.

Albert Finney, 82. The British actor was the Academy Award-nominated star of films from “Tom Jones” to “Skyfall.” Feb. 8.

Jan-Michael Vincent, 73. The “Airwolf” television star whose sleek good looks belied a troubled personal life. Feb. 10.

Gordon Banks, 81. The World Cup-winning England goalkeeper who was also known for blocking a header from Pele that many consider the greatest save in soccer history. Feb. 12.

Betty Ballantine, 99. She was half of a groundbreaking husband-and-wife publishing team that helped invent the modern paperback and vastly expand the market for science fiction and other genres through such blockbusters as “The Hobbit” and “Fahrenheit 451.” Feb. 12.

Lyndon LaRouche Jr., 96. The political extremist who ran for president in every election from 1976 to 2004, including a campaign waged from federal prison. Feb. 12.

Andrea Levy, 62. A prize-winning novelist who chronicled the hopes and horrors experienced by the post-World War II generation of Jamaican immigrants in Britain. Feb. 14.

Lee Radziwill, 85. She was the stylish jet setter and socialite who found friends, lovers and other adventures worldwide while bonding and competing with her sister Jacqueline Kennedy. Feb. 15.

Armando M. Rodriguez, 97. A Mexican immigrant and World War II veteran who served in the administrations of four U.S. presidents while pressing for civil rights and education reforms. Feb. 17.

Wallace Smith Broecker, 87. A scientist who raised early alarms about climate change and popularized the term “global warming.” Feb. 18.

Karl Lagerfeld, 85. Chanel’s iconic couturier whose accomplished designs and trademark white ponytail, high starched collars and dark enigmatic glasses dominated high fashion for the past 50 years. Feb. 19.

David Horowitz, 81. His “Fight Back!” syndicated program made him perhaps the best-known consumer reporter in the U.S. Feb. 21.

Peter Tork, 77. A talented singer-songwriter and instrumentalist whose musical skills were often overshadowed by his role as the goofy, lovable bass guitarist in the made-for-television rock band The Monkees. Feb. 21.

Stanley Donen, 94. A giant of the Hollywood musical who, through such classics as “Singin’ in the Rain” and “Funny Face,” helped provide some of the most joyous sounds and images in movie history. Feb. 21.

Jackie Shane, 78. A black transgender soul singer who became a pioneering musician in Toronto where she packed nightclubs in the 1960s. Feb. 21.

Katherine Helmond, 89. An Emmy-nominated and Golden Globe-winning actress who played two very different matriarchs on the ABC sitcoms “Who’s the Boss?” and “Soap.” Feb. 23.

Charles McCarry, 88. An admired and prescient spy novelist who foresaw passenger jets as terrorist weapons in “The Better Angels” and devised a compelling theory for JFK’s assassination in “The Tears of Autumn.” Feb. 26.

Jerry Merryman, 86. He was one of the inventors of the handheld electronic calculator. Feb. 27. Complications of heart and kidney failure.

Ed Nixon, 88. The youngest brother of President Richard Nixon who was a Navy aviator and geologist and spent years promoting his brother’s legacy. Feb. 27.

Andre Previn, 89. The pianist, composer and conductor whose broad reach took in the worlds of Hollywood, jazz and classical music. Feb. 28.

MARCH

John Shafer, 94. The legendary Northern California vintner was part of a generation that helped elevate sleepy Napa Valley into the international wine powerhouse it is today. March 2.

Keith Flint, 49. The fiery frontman of British dance-electronic band The Prodigy. March 4. Found dead by hanging in his home.

Luke Perry, 52. He gained instant heartthrob status as wealthy rebel Dylan McKay on “Beverly Hills, 90210.” March 4. Stroke.

Juan Corona, 85. He gained the nickname “The Machete Murderer” for hacking to death dozens of migrant farm laborers in California in the early 1970s. March 4.

Ralph Hall, 95. The former Texas congressman was the oldest-ever member of the U.S. House and a man who claimed to have once sold cigarettes and Coca-Cola to the bank-robbing duo of Bonnie and Clyde in Dallas. March 7.

Carmine “the Snake” Persico, 85. The longtime boss of the infamous Colombo crime family. March 7.

Vera Bila, 64. A Czech singer dubbed the Ella Fitzgerald of Gypsy music or the Queen of Romany. March 12. Heart attack.

Birch Bayh, 91. A former U.S. senator who championed the federal law banning discrimination against women in college admissions and sports. March 14.

Dick Dale, 83. His pounding, blaringly loud power-chord instrumentals on songs like “Miserlou” and “Let’s Go Trippin’” earned him the title King of the Surf Guitar. March 16.

Jerrie Cobb, 88. America’s first female astronaut candidate, the pilot pushed for equality in space but never reached its heights. March 18.

Scott Walker, 76. An influential singer, songwriter and producer whose hits with the Walker Brothers in the 1960s included “The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine Anymore.” March 22.

Rafi Eitan, 92. A legendary Israeli Mossad spy who led the capture of Holocaust mastermind Adolf Eichmann. March 23.

Larry Cohen, 77. The maverick B-movie director of cult horror films “It’s Alive” and “God Told Me To.” March 23.

Michel Bacos, 95. A French pilot who’s remembered as a hero for his actions in the 1976 hijacking of an Air France plane to Uganda’s Entebbe airport. March 26.

Valery Bykovsky, 84. A pioneering Soviet-era cosmonaut who made the first of his three flights to space in 1963. March 27.

Agnes Varda, 90. The French New Wave pioneer who for decades beguiled, challenged and charmed moviegoers in films that inspired generations of filmmakers. March 29. Cancer.

Ken Gibson, 86. He became the first black mayor of a major Northeast city when he ascended to power in riot-torn Newark, New Jersey, about five decades ago. March 29.

Billy Adams, 79. A Rockabilly Hall of Famer who wrote and recorded the rockabilly staple “Rock, Pretty Mama.” March 30.

Nipsey Hussle, 33. A Grammy-nominated rapper. March 31. Killed in a shooting.

APRIL

Sydney Brenner, 92. A Nobel Prize-winning biologist who helped decipher the genetic code and whose research on a roundworm sparked a new field of human disease research. April 5.

Ernest F. “Fritz” Hollings, 97. The silver-haired Democrat who helped shepherd South Carolina through desegregation as governor and went on to serve six terms in the U.S. Senate. April 6.

Cho Yang-ho, 70. Korean Air’s chairman, whose leadership included scandals such as his daughter’s infamous incident of “nut rage.” April 7.

Marilynn Smith, 89. One of the 13 founders of the LPGA Tour whose 21 victories, two majors and endless support of her tour led to her induction into the World Golf Hall of Fame. April 9.

Richard “Dick” Cole, 103. The last of the 80 Doolittle Tokyo Raiders who carried out the daring U.S. attack on Japan during World War II. April 9.

Charles Van Doren, 93. The dashing young academic whose meteoric rise and fall as a corrupt game show contestant in the 1950s inspired the movie “Quiz Show” and served as a cautionary tale about the staged competitions of early television. April 9.

Monkey Punch, 81. A cartoonist best known as the creator of the Japanese megahit comic series Lupin III. April 11.

Georgia Engel, 70. She played the charmingly innocent, small-voiced Georgette on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and amassed a string of other TV and stage credits. April 12.

Bibi Andersson, 83. The Swedish actress who starred in classic films by compatriot Ingmar Bergman, including “The Seventh Seal” and “Persona.” April 14.

Owen Garriott, 88. A former astronaut who flew on America’s first space station, Skylab, and whose son followed him into orbit. April 15.

Alan García, 69. A former Peruvian president whose first term in the 1980s was marred by financial chaos and rebel violence and who was recently targeted in Latin America’s biggest corruption scandal. April 17. Apparent suicide.

Lorraine Warren, 92. A world-wide paranormal investigator and author whose decades of ghost-hunting cases with her late husband inspired such frightening films as “The Conjuring” series and “The Amityville Horror.” April 18.

Mark Medoff, 79. A provocative playwright whose “Children of a Lesser God” won Tony and Olivier awards and whose screen adaptation of his play earned an Oscar nomination. April 23.

John Havlicek, 79. The Boston Celtics great whose steal of Hal Greer’s inbounds pass in the final seconds of the 1965 Eastern Conference final against the Philadelphia 76ers remains one of the most famous plays in NBA history. April 25.

Damon J. Keith, 96. A grandson of slaves and figure in the civil rights movement who as a federal judge was sued by President Richard Nixon over a ruling against warrantless wiretaps. April 28.

Richard Lugar, 87. A former U.S. senator and foreign policy sage known for leading efforts to help the former Soviet states dismantle and secure much of their nuclear arsenal but whose reputation for working with Democrats cost him his final campaign. April 28.

John Singleton, 51. A director who made one of Hollywood’s most memorable debuts with the Oscar-nominated “Boyz N the Hood” and continued over the following decades to probe the lives of black communities in his native Los Angeles and beyond. April 29. Taken off life support after a stroke.

Ellen Tauscher, 67. A trailblazer for women in the world of finance who served in Congress for more than a decade before joining the Obama administration. April 29. Complications from pneumonia.

Peter Mayhew, 74. The towering actor who donned a huge, furry costume to give life to the rugged-and-beloved character of Chewbacca in the original “Star Wars” trilogy and two other films. April 30.

MAY

John Lukacs, 95. The Hungarian-born historian and iconoclast who brooded over the future of Western civilization, wrote a best-selling tribute to Winston Churchill, and produced a substantial and often despairing body of writings on the politics and culture of Europe and the United States. May 6.

Peggy Lipton, 72. A star of the groundbreaking late 1960s TV show “The Mod Squad” and the 1990s show “Twin Peaks.” May 11. Cancer.

Leonard Bailey, 76. The doctor who in 1984 transplanted a baboon heart into a tiny newborn dubbed “Baby Fae” in a pioneering operation that sparked both worldwide acclaim and condemnation. May 12.

Cardinal Nasrallah Butros Sfeir, 98. The former patriarch of Lebanon’s Maronite Christian church who served as spiritual leader of Lebanon’s largest Christian community through some of the worst days of the country’s 1975-1990 civil war. May 12.

Doris Day, 97. The sunny blond actress and singer whose frothy comedic roles opposite the likes of Rock Hudson and Cary Grant made her one of Hollywood’s biggest stars in the 1950s and ’60s and a symbol of wholesome American womanhood. May 13.

Tim Conway, 85. The impish second banana to Carol Burnett who won four Emmy Awards on her TV variety show, starred in “McHale’s Navy” and later voiced the role of Barnacle Boy for “Spongebob Squarepants.” May 14.

I.M. Pei, 102. The versatile, globe-trotting architect who revived the Louvre with a giant glass pyramid and captured the spirit of rebellion at the multi-shaped Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. May 16.

Niki Lauda, 70. A Formula One great who won two of his world titles after a horrific crash that left him with serious burns and went on to become a prominent figure in the aviation industry. May 20.

Binyavanga Wainaina, 48. One of Africa’s best-known authors and gay rights activists. May 21. Illness.

Judith Kerr, 95. A refugee from Nazi Germany who wrote and illustrated the best-selling “The Tiger Who Came to Tea” and other beloved children’s books. May 22.

Murray Gell-Mann, 89. The Nobel Prize-winning physicist who brought order to the universe by helping discover and classify subatomic particles. May 24.

Claus von Bulow, 92. A Danish-born socialite who was convicted but later acquitted of trying to kill his wealthy wife in two trials that drew intense international attention in the 1980s. May 25.

Prem Tinsulanonda, 98. As an army commander, prime minister and adviser to the royal palace, he was one of Thailand’s most influential political figures over four decades. May 26.

Richard Matsch, 88. A federal judge who ruled his courtroom with a firm gavel and a short temper and gained national respect in the 1990s for his handling of the Oklahoma City bombing trials. May 26.

Bill Buckner, 69. A star hitter who made one of the biggest blunders in baseball history when he let Mookie Wilson’s trickler roll through his legs in the 1986 World Series. May 27.

Thad Cochran, 81. A former U.S. senator who served 45 years in Washington and used seniority to steer billions of dollars to his home state of Mississippi. May 30.

Patricia Bath, 76. A pioneering ophthalmologist who became the first African American female doctor to receive a medical patent after she invented a more precise treatment of cataracts. May 30. Complications of cancer.

Leon Redbone, 69. The blues and jazz artist whose growly voice, Panama hat and cultivated air of mystery made him seem like a character out of the ragtime era or the Depression-era Mississippi Delta. May 30.

Frank Lucas, 88. The former Harlem drug kingpin whose life and lore inspired the 2007 film “American Gangster.” May 30.

JUNE

Leah Chase, 96. A New Orleans chef and civil rights icon who created the city’s first white-tablecloth restaurant for black patrons, broke the city’s segregation laws by seating white and black customers, and introduced countless tourists to Southern Louisiana Creole cooking. June 1.

Dr. John, 77. The New Orleans singer and piano player who blended black and white musical styles with a hoodoo-infused stage persona and gravelly bayou drawl. June 6.

John Gunther Dean, 93. A veteran American diplomat and five-time ambassador forever haunted by his role in the evacuation of the U.S. Embassy in Cambodia during the dying days of the Khmer Republic. June 6.

Sylvia Miles, 94. An actress and Manhattan socialite whose brief, scene-stealing appearances in the films “Midnight Cowboy” and “Farewell, My Lovely” earned her two Academy Award nominations. June 12.

Lew Klein, 91. A broadcast pioneer who helped create “American Bandstand” and launched the careers of Dick Clark and Bob Saget. June 12.

Pat Bowlen, 75. The Denver Broncos owner who transformed the team from also-rans into NFL champions and helped the league usher in billion-dollar television deals. June 13.

Charles Reich, 91. The author and Ivy League academic whose “The Greening of America” blessed the counterculture of the 1960s and became a million-selling manifesto for a new and euphoric way of life. June 15.

Gloria Vanderbilt, 95. The intrepid heiress, artist and romantic who began her extraordinary life as the “poor little rich girl” of the Great Depression, survived family tragedy and multiple marriages and reigned during the 1970s and ’80s as a designer jeans pioneer. June 17.

Jim Taricani, 69. An award-winning TV reporter who exposed corruption and served a federal sentence for refusing to disclose a source. June 21. Kidney failure.

Judith Krantz, 91. A writer whose million-selling novels such as “Scruples” and “Princess Daisy” engrossed readers worldwide with their steamy tales of the rich and beautiful. June 22.

Dave Bartholomew, 100. A giant of New Orleans music and a rock n’ roll pioneer who, with Fats Domino, co-wrote and produced such classics as “Ain’t That a Shame,” “I’m Walkin’” and “Let the Four Winds Blow.” June 23.

Beth Chapman, 51. The wife and co-star of “Dog the Bounty Hunter” reality TV star Duane “Dog” Chapman. June 26.

JULY

Tyler Skaggs, 27. The left-handed pitcher who was a regular in the Los Angeles Angels’ starting rotation since late 2016 and struggled with injuries repeatedly in that time. July 1. Choked on his own vomit and had a toxic mix of alcohol and painkillers fentanyl and oxycodone in his system.

Lee Iacocca, 94. The auto executive and master pitchman who put the Mustang in Ford’s lineup in the 1960s and became a corporate folk hero when he resurrected Chrysler 20 years later. July 2.

Eva Kor, 85. A Holocaust survivor who championed forgiveness even for those who carried out the Holocaust atrocities. July 4.

Joao Gilberto, 88. A Brazilian singer, guitarist and songwriter considered one of the fathers of the bossa nova genre that gained global popularity in the 1960s and became an iconic sound of the South American nation. July 6.

Cameron Boyce, 20. An actor best known for his role as the teenage son of Cruella de Vil in the Disney Channel franchise “Descendants.” July 6. Seizure.

Martin Charnin, 84. He made his Broadway debut playing a Jet in the original “West Side Story” and went on to become a Broadway director and a lyricist who won a Tony Award for the score of the eternal hit “Annie.” July 6.

Artur Brauner, 100. A Polish-born Holocaust survivor who became one of post-World War II Germany’s most prominent film producers. July 7.

Rosie Ruiz, 66. The Boston Marathon course-cutter who was stripped of her victory in the 1980 race and went on to become an enduring symbol of cheating in sports. July 8. Cancer.

H. Ross Perot, 89. The colorful, self-made Texas billionaire who rose from delivering newspapers as a boy to building his own information technology company and twice mounted outsider campaigns for president. July 9. Leukemia.

Rip Torn, 88. The free-spirited Texan who overcame his quirky name to become a distinguished actor in television, theater and movies, such as “Men in Black,” and win an Emmy in his 60s for “The Larry Sanders Show.” July 9.

Fernando De la Rúa, 81. A former Argentine president who attracted voters with his image as an honest statesman and later left as the country plunged into its worst economic crisis. July 9.

Johnny Kitagawa, 87. Better known as Johnny-san, he was a kingpin of Japan’s entertainment industry for more than half a century who produced famous boy bands including Arashi, Tokio and SMAP. July 9.

Jim Bouton, 80. The former New York Yankees pitcher who shocked and angered the conservative baseball world with the tell-all book “Ball Four.” July 10.

Jerry Lawson, 75. For four decades, he was the lead singer of the eclectic cult favorite a cappella group the Persuasions. July 10.

Pernell Whitaker, 55. An Olympic gold medalist and four-division boxing champion who was regarded as one of the greatest defensive fighters ever. July 14. Hit by a car.

L. Bruce Laingen, 96. The top American diplomat at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran when it was overrun by Iranian protesters in 1979 and one of 52 Americans held hostage for more than a year. July 15.

Edith Irby Jones, 91. The first black student to enroll at an all-white medical school in the South and later the first female president of the National Medical Association. July 15.

John Paul Stevens, 99. The bow-tied, independent-thinking, Republican-nominated justice who unexpectedly emerged as the Supreme Court’s leading liberal. July 16.

Johnny Clegg, 66. A South African musician who performed in defiance of racial barriers imposed under the country’s apartheid system decades ago and celebrated its new democracy under Nelson Mandela. July 16.

Elijah “Pumpsie” Green, 85. The former Boston Red Sox infielder was the first black player on the last major league team to field one. July 17.

Rutger Hauer, 75. A Dutch film actor who specialized in menacing roles, including a memorable turn as a murderous android in “Blade Runner” opposite Harrison Ford. July 19.

Paul Krassner, 87. The publisher, author and radical political activist on the front lines of 1960s counterculture who helped tie together his loose-knit prankster group by naming them the Yippies. July 21.

Robert M. Morgenthau, 99. A former Manhattan district attorney who spent more than three decades jailing criminals from mob kingpins and drug-dealing killers to a tax-dodging Harvard dean. July 21.

Li Peng, 90. A former hard-line Chinese premier best known for announcing martial law during the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests that ended with a bloody crackdown by troops. July 22.

Art Neville, 81. A member of one of New Orleans’ storied musical families, the Neville Brothers, and a founding member of the groundbreaking funk band The Meters. July 22.

Chris Kraft, 95. The founder of NASA’s mission control. July 22.

Mike Moulin, 70. A former Los Angeles police lieutenant who came under fire for failing to quell the first outbreak of rioting after the Rodney King beating verdict. July 30.

Harold Prince, 91. A Broadway director and producer who pushed the boundaries of musical theater with such groundbreaking shows as “The Phantom of the Opera,” “Cabaret,” “Company” and “Sweeney Todd” and won a staggering 21 Tony Awards. July 31.

AUGUST

D.A. Pennebaker, 94. The Oscar-winning documentary maker whose historic contributions to American culture and politics included immortalizing a young Bob Dylan in “Don’t Look Back” and capturing the spin behind Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential campaign in “The War Room.” Aug. 1.

Henri Belolo, 82. He co-founded the Village People and co-wrote their classic hits “YMCA,” “Macho Man” and “In the Navy.” Aug. 3.

Nuon Chea, 93. The chief ideologue of the communist Khmer Rouge regime that destroyed a generation of Cambodians. Aug. 4.

Toni Morrison, 88. A pioneer and reigning giant of modern literature whose imaginative power in “Beloved,” “Song of Solomon” and other works transformed American letters by dramatizing the pursuit of freedom within the boundaries of race. Aug. 5.

Sushma Swaraj, 67. She was India’s former external affairs minister and a leader of the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party. Aug. 6.

Peter Fonda, 79. The actor was the son of a Hollywood legend who became a movie star in his own right after both writing and starring in the counterculture classic “Easy Rider.” Aug. 16.

Richard Williams, 86. A Canadian-British animator whose work on the bouncing cartoon bunny in “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” helped blur the boundaries between the animated world and our own. Aug. 16. Cancer.

Cedric Benson, 36. A former NFL running back who was one of the most prolific rushers in NCAA and University of Texas history. Aug. 17. Motorcycle crash.

Kathleen Blanco, 76. She became Louisiana’s first female elected governor only to see her political career derailed by the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. Aug. 18.

David H. Koch, 79. A billionaire industrialist who, with his older brother Charles, was both celebrated and demonized for transforming American politics by pouring their riches into conservative causes. Aug. 23.

Ferdinand Piech, 82. The German auto industry power broker was the longtime patriarch of Volkswagen AG and the key engineer of its takeover of Porsche. Aug. 25.

Baxter Leach, 79. A prominent member of the Memphis, Tennessee, sanitation workers union whose historic strike drew the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to the city where he was assassinated. Aug. 27.

Jim Leavelle, 99. The longtime Dallas lawman who was captured in one of history’s most iconic photographs escorting President John F. Kennedy’s assassin as he was fatally shot. Aug. 29.

Valerie Harper, 80. She scored guffaws, stole hearts and busted TV taboos as the brash, self-deprecating Rhoda Morgenstern on back-to-back hit sitcoms in the 1970s. Aug. 30.

SEPTEMBER

Jimmy Johnson, 76. A founder of the Muscle Shoals Sound Studios and guitarist with the famed studio musicians “The Swampers.” Sept. 5.

Robert Mugabe, 95. The former Zimbabwean leader was an ex-guerrilla chief who took power when the African country shook off white minority rule and presided for decades while economic turmoil and human rights violations eroded its early promise. Sept. 6.

Robert Frank, 94. A giant of 20th-century photography whose seminal book “The Americans” captured singular, candid moments of the 1950s and helped free picture-taking from the boundaries of clean lighting and linear composition. Sept. 9.

T. Boone Pickens, 91. A brash and quotable oil tycoon who grew even wealthier through corporate takeover attempts. Sept. 11.

Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie, 83. A former Indonesian president who allowed democratic reforms and an independence referendum for East Timor following the ouster of the dictator Suharto. Sept. 11.

Eddie Money, 70. The rock star known for such hits as “Two Tickets to Paradise” and “Take Me Home Tonight.” Sept. 13. Esophageal cancer.

Phyllis Newman, 86. A Tony Award-winning Broadway veteran who became the first woman to host “The Tonight Show” before turning her attention to fight for women’s health. Sept. 15.

Ric Ocasek, 75. The Cars frontman whose deadpan vocal delivery and lanky, sunglassed look defined a rock era with chart-topping hits like “Just What I Needed.” Sept. 15.

Cokie Roberts, 75. The daughter of politicians and a pioneering journalist who chronicled Washington from Jimmy Carter to Donald Trump for NPR and ABC News. Sept. 17. Complications from breast cancer.

David A. Jones Sr., 88. He invested $1,000 to start a nursing home company that eventually became the $37 billion health insurance giant Humana Inc. Sept. 18.

Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, 83. The former Tunisian president was an autocrat who led his small North African country for 23 years before being toppled by nationwide protests that unleashed revolt across the Arab world. Sept. 19.

John Keenan, 99. He was the police official who led New York City’s manhunt for the “Son of Sam” killer and eventually took a case-solving confession from David Berkowitz. Sept. 19.

Barron Hilton, 91. A hotel magnate who expanded his father’s chain and became a founding owner in the American Football League. Sept. 19.

Howard “Hopalong” Cassady, 85. The 1955 Heisman Trophy winner at Ohio State and running back for the Detroit Lions. Sept. 20.

Karl Muenter, 96. A former SS soldier who was convicted in France of a wartime massacre but who never served any time for his crimes. Sept. 20.

Sigmund Jaehn, 82. He became the first German in space at the height of the Cold War during the 1970s and was promoted as a hero by communist authorities in East Germany. Sept. 21.

Jacques Chirac, 86. A two-term French president who was the first leader to acknowledge France’s role in the Holocaust and defiantly opposed the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. Sept. 26.

Joseph Wilson, 69. The former ambassador who set off a political firestorm by disputing U.S. intelligence used to justify the 2003 Iraq invasion. Sept. 27.

José José, 71. The Mexican crooner was an elegant dresser who moved audiences to tears with melancholic love ballads and was known as the “Prince of Song.” Sept. 28.

Jessye Norman, 74. The renowned international opera star whose passionate soprano voice won her four Grammy Awards, the National Medal of Arts and the Kennedy Center Honor. Sept. 30.

Samuel Mayerson, 97. The prosecutor who took newspaper heiress Patty Hearst to court for shooting up a Southern California sporting goods store in 1974 and then successfully argued for probation, not prison, for the kidnapping victim-turned terrorist. Sept. 30.

OCTOBER

Karel Gott, 80. A Czech pop singer who became a star behind the Iron Curtain. Oct. 1.

Diogo Freitas do Amaral, 78. A conservative Portuguese politician who played a leading role in cementing the country’s democracy after its 1974 Carnation Revolution and later became president of the U.N. General Assembly. Oct. 3.

Diahann Carroll, 84. The Oscar-nominated actress and singer who won critical acclaim as the first black woman to star in a non-servant role in a TV series as “Julia.” Oct. 4. Cancer.

Ginger Baker, 80. The volatile and propulsive drummer for Cream and other bands who wielded blues power and jazz finesse and helped shatter boundaries of time, tempo and style in popular music. Oct. 6.

Rip Taylor, 88. The madcap, mustached comedian with a fondness for confetti-throwing who became a television game show mainstay in the 1970s. Oct. 6.

Robert Forster, 78. The handsome and omnipresent character actor who got a career resurgence and Oscar nomination for playing bail bondsman Max Cherry in “Jackie Brown.” Oct. 11. Brain cancer.

James Stern, 55. A black activist who took control of one of the nation’s largest neo-Nazi groups — and vowed to dismantle it. Oct. 11. Cancer.

Alexei Leonov, 85. The legendary Soviet cosmonaut who became the first person to walk in space. Oct. 11.

Scotty Bowers, 96. A self-described Hollywood “fixer” whose memoir offered sensational accounts of the sex lives of such celebrities as Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant and the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. Oct. 13.

Harold Bloom, 89. The eminent critic and Yale professor whose seminal “The Anxiety of Influence” and melancholy regard for literature’s old masters made him a popular author and standard-bearer of Western civilization amid modern trends. Oct. 14.

Elijah E. Cummings, 68. A sharecropper’s son who rose to become a civil rights champion and the chairman of one of the U.S. House committees leading an impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump. Oct. 17. Complications from longstanding health problems.

Alicia Alonso, 98. The revered ballerina and choreographer whose nearly 75-year career made her an icon of artistic loyalty to Cuba’s socialist system. Oct. 17.

Bill Macy, 97. The character actor whose hangdog expression was a perfect match for his role as the long-suffering foil to Bea Arthur’s unyielding feminist on the daring 1970s sitcom “Maude.” Oct. 17.

Marieke Vervoort, 40. A Paralympian who won gold and silver medals in 2012 at the London Paralympics in wheelchair racing and two more medals in Rio de Janeiro. Oct. 22. Took her own life after living with pain from a degenerative spinal disease.

Sadako Ogata, 92. She led the U.N. refugee agency for a decade and became one of the first Japanese to hold a top job at an international organization. Oct. 22.

Kathryn Johnson, 93. A trailblazing reporter for The Associated Press whose intrepid coverage of the civil rights movement and other major stories led to a string of legendary scoops. Oct. 23.

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, believed to be 48. He sought to establish an Islamic “caliphate” across Syria and Iraq, but he might be remembered more as the ruthless leader of the Islamic State group who brought terror to the heart of Europe. Oct. 26. Detonated a suicide vest during a raid by U.S. forces.

John Conyers, 90. The former congressman was one of the longest-serving members of Congress whose resolutely liberal stance on civil rights made him a political institution in Washington and back home in Detroit despite several scandals. Oct. 27.

Ivan Milat, 74. His grisly serial killings of seven European and Australian backpackers horrified Australia in the early ’90s. Oct. 27.

Vladimir Bukovsky, 76. A prominent Soviet-era dissident who became internationally known for exposing Soviet abuse of psychiatry. Oct. 27.

Kay Hagan, 66. A former bank executive who rose from a budget writer in the North Carolina Legislature to a seat in the U.S. Senate. Oct. 28. Illness.

John Walker, 82. An Arkansas lawmaker and civil rights attorney who represented black students in a long-running court fight over the desegregation of Little Rock-area schools. Oct. 28.

John Witherspoon, 77. An actor-comedian who memorably played Ice Cube’s father in the “Friday” films. Oct. 29.

NOVEMBER

Walter Mercado, 88. A television astrologer whose glamorous persona made him a star in Latin media and a cherished icon for gay people in most of the Spanish-speaking world. Nov. 2. Kidney failure.

Gert Boyle, 95. The colorful chairwoman of Oregon-based Columbia Sportswear Co. who starred in ads proclaiming her “One Tough Mother.” Nov. 3.

Ernest J. Gaines, 86. A novelist whose poor childhood on a small Louisiana plantation germinated stories of black struggles that grew into universal tales of grace and beauty. Nov. 5.

Werner Gustav Doehner, 90. He was the last remaining survivor of the Hindenburg disaster, who suffered severe burns to his face, arms and legs before his mother managed to toss him and his brother from the burning airship. Nov. 8.

Charles Rogers, 38. The former Michigan State star and Detroit Lions receiver was an All-American wide receiver who was the school’s all-time leader in touchdown catches. Nov. 11.

Raymond Poulidor, 83. The “eternal runner-up” whose repeated failure to win the Tour de France helped him conquer French hearts and become the country’s all-time favorite cyclist. Nov. 13.

Walter J. Minton, 96. A publishing scion and risk taker with a self-described “nasty streak” who as head of G.P. Putnam’s Sons released works by Norman Mailer and Terry Southern, among others, and signed up Vladimir Nabokov’s scandalous “Lolita.” Nov. 19.

Jake Burton Carpenter, 65. The man who changed the game on the mountain by fulfilling a grand vision of what a snowboard could be. Nov. 20. Complications stemming from a relapse of testicular cancer.

Gahan Wilson, 89. His humorous and often macabre cartoons were a mainstay in magazines including Playboy, the New Yorker and National Lampoon. Nov. 21.

Cathy Long, 95. A Louisiana Democrat who won her husband’s U.S. House seat after his sudden death in 1985 and served one term. Nov. 23.

John Simon, 94. A theater and film critic known for his lacerating reviews and often withering assessment of performers’ physical appearance. Nov. 24.

William Doyle Ruckelshaus, 87. He famously quit his job in the Justice Department rather than carry out President Richard Nixon’s order to fire the special prosecutor investigating the Watergate scandal. Nov. 27.

Yasuhiro Nakasone, 101. The former Japanese prime minister was a giant of his country’s post-World War II politics who pushed for a more assertive Japan while strengthening military ties with the United States. Nov. 29.

Irving Burgie, 95. A composer who helped popularize Caribbean music and co-wrote the enduring Harry Belafonte hit “Day-O (The Banana Boat Song).” Nov. 29.

DECEMBER

Allan Gerson, 74. A lawyer who pursued Nazi war criminals and pioneered the practice of suing foreign governments in U.S. courts for complicity to terrorism. Dec. 1.

Juice WRLD, 21. A rapper who launched his career on SoundCloud before becoming a streaming juggernaut and rose to the top of the charts with the Sting-sampled hit “Lucid Dreams.” Dec. 8. Died after being treated for opioid use during a police search.

René Auberjonois, 79. A prolific actor best known for his roles on the television shows “Benson” and “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” and his part in the 1970 film “M.A.S.H.” playing Father Mulcahy. Dec. 8.

Caroll Spinney, 85. He gave Big Bird his warmth and Oscar the Grouch his growl for nearly 50 years on “Sesame Street.” Dec. 8.

Paul Volcker, 92. The former Federal Reserve chairman who in the early 1980s raised interest rates to historic highs and triggered a recession as the price of quashing double-digit inflation. Dec. 8.

Pete Frates, 34. A former college baseball player whose battle with Lou Gehrig’s disease helped inspire the ALS ice bucket challenge that has raised more than $200 million worldwide. Dec. 9.

Marie Fredriksson, 61. The female half of the Swedish pop duo Roxette that achieve international success in the late 1980s and 1990s. Dec. 9.

Kim Woo-choong, 82. The disgraced founder of the now-collapsed Daewoo business group whose rise and fall symbolized South Korea’s turbulent rapid economic growth in the 1970s. Dec. 9. Pneumonia.

Danny Aiello, 86. The blue-collar character actor whose long career playing tough guys included roles in “Fort Apache, the Bronx,” “Moonstruck” and “Once Upon a Time in America” and his Oscar-nominated performance as a pizza man in Spike Lee’s “Do the Right Thing.” Dec. 12.

Robert Glenn “Junior” Johnson, 88. The moonshine runner turned NASCAR driver who won 50 races as a driver and 132 as an owner and was part of the inaugural class inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2010. Dec. 20.

Elizabeth Spencer, 98. A grande dame of Southern literature who bravely navigated between the Jim Crow past and open-ended present in her novels and stories, including the celebrated novella “Light In the Piazza.” Dec. 22.

Lee Mendelson, 86. The producer who changed the face of the holidays when he brought “A Charlie Brown Christmas” to television in 1965 and wrote the lyrics to its signature song, “Christmas Time Is Here.” Dec. 25. Congestive heart failure.

Jerry Herman, 88. The Tony Award-winning composer who wrote the cheerful, good-natured music and lyrics for such classic shows as “Mame,” “Hello, Dolly!” and “La Cage aux Folles.” Dec. 26.

Don Imus, 79. The disc jockey whose career was made and then undone by his acid tongue during a decadeslong rise to radio stardom and abrupt plunge after a nationally broadcast racial slur. Dec. 27. Complications from lung disease.

from FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports https://fox4kc.com/2019/12/31/final-goodbye-recalling-influential-people-who-died-in-2019-2/

from Kansas City Happenings https://kansascityhappenings.wordpress.com/2019/12/31/final-goodbye-recalling-influential-people-who-died-in-2019-2/

[rawiswhore]

Various WWF Wrestlers x Fem Reader- "Back That Ass Up"

The 1990's...a time when most rock bands and singers didn't sexually objectify women in their songs and music videos.

A time when popular female singers, from female singer-songwriters to lead singers of bands to R&B singers, barely ever showed their bodies off and used sex to sell themselves.

A time when it seemed like women who defined the decade were sarcastic, deadpan, nonsexualized alt girls like Janeane Garofalo, Juliana Hatfield and Daria from the titular MTV cartoon.

A time where you had riot grrrl bands like Bikini Kill angrily protesting rape and sexual assault.

A time when Gwen Stefani, who was then known for being the lead singer of a band, stating how she's "had it up to here" with sexism while she points to her forehead.

A time when Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon asked "Are you gonna liberate us girls with your male white corporate oppression?" and Queen Latifah making diss tracks towards misogynistic men.

But then...as the 1990's come to a close, just when you thought professional wrestling had dwindled in popularity when so many of their top stars during the 1980's left the World Wrestling Federation, pro wrestling made a comeback in 1996 and 1997 due to Hulk Hogan turning heel and a wrestling company known as WCW was beating the WWF (World Wrestling Federation, not World Wildlife Fund) in the ratings.

What was the WWF to do?

Instead of having a kid friendly product that seemed like a live action Saturday morning cartoon and had their faces of the company not using profanity or adult-like things despite having lots of charisma and being fan favorites with the audience, the WWF by the end of the 1990's became edgier, more violent, sexualized, shocking, trashier, vulgar and "adult like" than ever before.

You could say that the WWF was growing up with their audience who were kids watching the WWF when Hulk Hogan, Macho Man and even Bret Hart and Razor Ramon were the faces of the company that were now transitioning into teenagers who love sexualized women, middle fingers, sexual innuendo, violence and profanity.

Speaking of sexualized women, during the 1990's, when you had hardly any sexualized female recording artists save for a few and rock bands who barely sexually objectified women, by the end of the decade, the World Wrestling Federation would have their women's roster, be it from valets like Debra and Terri Runnels to legitimate wrestlers like Ivory and Jacqueline, participate in bikini contests where they'd be judged for their beauty and dressed in bikinis that left nothing to the imagination, and worse, the women's roster would participate in the infamous "bra & panties" and evening gown matches where women would tear each others clothes and dresses off in the ring until they were down to a bra and thong, or they'd wrestle in bikinis in pools of mud or pudding.

To add insult to injury, this was considered "women's wrestling" by the late 90's and some women would end up winning the World Championship belt for participating in matches involving them tearing their clothes off or "wrestling" in bikinis in pools of pudding or mud.

Plus, the World Wrestling Federation during the late 90's was also a time when you had wrestlers playing pimps that would have groups of prostitutes following them and men who would have half naked women cuddled with them.

And worse of all...some wrestlers played characters that would degrade women, from the Rock telling Chyna she "belongs on her knees", Jeff Jarrett being a misogynistic asshole who thinks men are better than women, some racially insensitive Asian men degrading his wife and someone drugging a woman and marrying her through a drive through wedding whilst unconscious.

After a time where you had feminist-esque female recording artists that almost never used sex to sell themselves, wrote their own music and played their own instruments who performed at those Lilith Fair concert tours (tours that featured all female recording artists), male rock bands and singers who didn't sexually objectify women, the NBA launching the Women's NBA playing legit basketball like men and not dressed in skimpy outfits, and the list goes on for days, the World Wrestling Federation now had most of their female roster participate in bikini contests where they were judged for their beauty and women were mostly there to be portrayed as sex objects and nothing else.

It was like this was a backlash towards Lilith Fair and nonsexualized, feminist female singer-songwriters, rock bands that didn't objectify women, and nonsexualized women in the 1990's in general.

Then again, the WWF's Attitude era as it was known as was a product of its time, popular around the same time other trashy pop culture like the Jerry Springer show, Jenny Jones and Ricki Lake's talk shows, Howard Stern, "South Park", Tom Green, Eminem at his most shocking and Marilyn Manson was at the height of his popularity.

Granted, the 1990's weren't completely wholesome, considering this was also the era of gangsta rap that sexually objectified and sometimes even degraded women, "Baywatch" was a popular show that was just an excuse to see beautiful women with silicone breast implants running on the beach in slow motion in tight red swimsuits, Playboy playmates like Pamela Anderson, Jenny McCarthy, and Anna Nicole Smith were popular sex symbols, Howard Stern was a pop culture icon infamous for sexually objectifying women, and there were even some female singers who used sex to sell themselves during the 90's like Madonna, Janet Jackson, Salt N Pepa, TLC, Adina Howard and more, and by the end of the decade we had the Spice Girls, Lil' Kim, Foxy Brown, Mariah Carey becoming more sexualized, Britney Spears, and Jennifer Lopez getting a record deal.

However, for every oversexualized Adina Howard, there was a Mariah Carey or Whitney Houston. For every oversexed Madonna, there was a Tori Amos. For every band that objectified women, there was a band that didn't objectify women.

Speaking of sexualization, you were one of the many bricks in the wall of the oversexualized women's roster during the WWF's Attitude era.

Not only did you participate in a few of those bikini contests, bra & panties and evening gown matches as well as those mud/pudding/gravy matches where you and another woman wrestled in a bikini, but your character you will always be remembered for playing was a scantily clad, nymphomaniac-like slut who was basically the wrestling equivalent to Madonna during her early 90's sex era and a female Val Venis.

From seducing wrestlers while you wore outfits that left little to the imagination, entering the ring wearing nothing but wrestling belts covering your bathing suit areas, cutting wrestling promos while being gangbanged (though your private parts weren't shown on television), rubbing cum on your body like it's lotion (though it wasn't really cum), wearing outfits that exposed your uncovered breasts not even being covered by pasties, wearing shirts that read "Pervert 69" on the back (parodying Janet Jackson's "Pervert" shirt she wore at the 1995 MTV VMA's), and Ministry Undertaker sacrificing you for being a whore, to roleplaying as a urinal while wrestlers jerk off in your mouth or on your face, becoming one of the Godfather's hoes (and you don't mean "The Godfather" as in the Francis Ford Coppola masterpiece), Triple H and Shawn Michaels undressing you until you lay in the ring wearing nothing but a thong and they pulled a bottle of lotion out and squeezed it to simulate ejaculation, and to top it all off, having actual sex in the ring with Val Venis while over 1000 people watched this in the audience and it was broadcast on television.

The WWF was nearly rated TV-MA almost because of you, and was getting boycotts and protests partially because of you.

However, despite many shocking moments that made headline news and caused controversy and nearly got you arrested for obscenity charges, this particular moment was slightly tame in comparison.

Almost near the end of 1998, during one of those "up next" vignettes that had the guitar riff to Slam Jam's "We're All Together Now" playing, you were on all fours on your knees on top of a bench in the locker room.

While you were on all fours on top of this bench, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Billy Gunn, Val Venis, Christian, Test, Jeff Hardy, Steven Regal and Kane were circled around you, standing on your sides.

Triple H had his long blond hair hanging down, not with a ponytail in the back, Shawn Michaels didn't have his hair tied back in a ponytail, and Billy had his hair hanging down, not tied back in a ponytail or in little braids.

You were wearing nothing but a bra and thong and being filmed from behind, and as you were being filmed, you rolled your ass backward and arched it up a few times.

Your thong was buried and snug in between your ass cheeks, your pantyline covering your vulva.

Thankfully, you were shaved down there, not a single bit of pubic hair peeking out from your panty line or your panties, and you didn't have any bumps on your bikini line and thighs.

These aforementioned wrestlers around you were just staring at your ass rolling back, they all smiled from ear to ear, nearly salivating at your mouths.

These wrestlers surrounding you were cheering for you, Shawn even put his fingers into his mouth and wolf whistled at you.

Jerry Lawler sitting at the commentary table was going nuts, his eyes nearly bugging out of his head.

Grown men and underage boys in the audience are getting a massive kick over seeing you roll your ass to the camera, cheering for you and a few of them wolf whistling at you.

Triple H put his hand in one of his jean pockets and pulled out a dollar, where he slipped that dollar in between one of your thong straps.

Shawn, too, put his hand down the pocket of his slacks, where he pulled out a few dollar bills and his other hand stretched out one of your thong straps, putting that money at your hip, only to let go of your thong strap afterward, letting your thong hold that money.

Val and Billy really wish they could have some money to pull out and make it rain on you, though Billy wears those Mr. Ass shorts and Val is known for wearing a Speedo and a towel over it, neither of their outfits have pockets.

"Is that money!?" Jim Ross asked at the commentary table.

"Somebody better get her a pole!" Jerry Lawler exclaimed, his voice shrill as usual.

Indeed, you could use a stripper pole for this moment, but there sadly aren't any poles in the locker room.

You pulled yourself up from the bench, placing your feet on the bench and standing up on top of the bench, but after you got yourself up, you still continued dancing and shaking your ass.

Somebody come get her, she's dancin' like a stripper...

Some of these wrestlers surrounding you pretended to be shocked by when you assembled yourself up from the bench, their eyes bugging out and their mouths dropping open as well as walking a few steps back as if to act like they're shocked, only for them to smile after their mouths were agape.

Once you stood on top of the bench, you placed your hands on your knees and stuck your ass out, rolling your ass backwards and sometimes even shaking and bouncing your ass, basically twerking.

You smiled and your head was slightly turned looking at your rear whilst you rolled your ass backwards, hands on your knees, shakin' ass on your thot shit.

Triple H, Billy, Shawn, and Val were looking at you, smiling from ear to ear, especially Billy Gunn who placed one of his hands on your ass cheeks and squeezed it.

Hey, his nickname is Mr. Ass, that's why he did that.

You turned your body around and gyrated your ass and hips around in a circle, rolling your hips to the beat of the guitar riff of that Slam Jam song, and as you did that, you lifted your hands off of your knees and grabbed one of your bra straps, where you slid that bra strap down on of your arms, teasing the audience.

You looked at the camera filming in front of you with this "come hither" expression on your face.

Just as it looked like you were gonna take your bra off, the camera then cut to commercial.

Bah.

You wanted to do so much during this moment; besides spin around a stripper pole, you also wanted lie on your back on the bench with your legs spread up and shaking your ass, squat down on the bench and spread your legs out with your hands on your knees, but this moment was short.

Y'know, since you were roleplaying as a stripper and some wrestlers were pulling money out and sticking it in your G-string, you're surprised Vince McMahon, the CEO and boss of the WWF and pretty much the Ted Debiase Sr. of the Attitude era (and Ted DeBiase Sr. was known for playing a millionaire in the 80's and early 90's) wasn't in this segment pulling dollar bills out on you.

Though, Vince McMahon is a snake, even when the cameras aren't rolling.

[cbwalive]

CBWA MEGAOVER

Event: CBWA MEGAOVER DejaVu Pay-Per-View

Thread date: Tuesday, May 22, 2018 (Pay-Per-View) Location: The Forum in Los Angeles, California Capacity: 17,505 

Results by @BogotaMeltzer

MEGAOVER DejaVu Opener:

We open the show with a video package highlighting the ‘battle of the brands’, showing the formation of the new CBWA. The pyro hits and MEGAOVER GM @GODBOLDUNREAL welcomes us to the show.  

Tonight’s pay-per-view includes a 6-team tournament to crown the new CBWA World Tag Team Champions.

The Mega Powers (Hulk & Macho Man) and the team of Ranger ZZ & Lex Luger have bye's into the semi-finals.

1st Quarter-Final Match:

The New Hart Foundation (Steve & Jeff Hart) vs The New Rock n Roll Express (Shane Morton & Bobby Gibson)

2nd Quarter-Final Match:

The Parking Lot Patrol (Klondike Bill & Duke The Dumpster) vs The Rocker Express (Shawn Michaels & Bobby Eaton)

We’re going to take a quick break and be back in a moment. 

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MEGAOVER DejaVu is brought to you by: 

Pork Chops Repair Shop and Gas Station. With 5 Locations to serve you in Greater Bogota.

Quarter-Final Match: Rock n Roll Express (Shane Morton & Bobby Gibson) vs New Hart Foundation (Steve and Jeff Hart)

We open with the New Hart Foundation (Steve and Jeff Hart) already in the ring.

The crowd goes crazy for this new version of the Rock n' Roll Express.

They work the match just like their daddies using the same energy, gear and moves.

We start with Bobby Gibson and Steve Hart.

Gibson with an immediate dropkick and then a series of uppercuts.

Steve Hart catches Gibson with a boot in the corner. Steve Hart catches Gibson during a cross body attempt.

Steve Hart with a monkey flip on Gibson who lands on his feet. Steve Hart lands on his feet during a monkey flip by Gibson. Steve Hart avoids a drop kick and Jeff Hart with a clothesline to Gibson with the referee distracted. Jeff Hart gets the tag and stomps away.

Picking up near the finish, double drop kick by the New Rock n Roll Express. Shane Morton covers Jeff Hart for the pin.

WINNERS: The New Rock n’ Roll Express (Bobby Gibson & Shane Morton)

The New Rock n' Roll Express advance to the next round of the #MEGAOVER world tag team title tournament to face the Mega Powers (Hulk & Savage).

We are live from the Forum in Los Angeles. 

Did you know: The Lakers played at The Forum from 1967 to 1999.

Quarter-Final Match: 

BYE - The Mega Powers 

INTERVIEW: 

Hogan and Macho are cutting a promo. They’re talking about how great it is to have the Mega Powers back together and its all thanks to Mr @GODBOLDUNREAL. 

Macho Man goes off about how he can’t wait to bury Ricky and Robert’s kids. Hogan takes a jab at Southern Wrestling before Macho Sprinkles confetti over Ken Resnick. 

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Don’t miss CBWA IMPERIO #SuperEstrella 

EVERY Saturday Morning at 10AM on Univision and on Twitter. 

Quarter-Final Match: The Rocker Express (Shawn Michaels & Bobby Eaton) vs The Parking Lot Patrol (Duke the Dumpster & Klondike Bill)

In the Arena: The fans are on their feet.

Rocker Express (Bobby Eaton & Shawn Micheals) are both in the ring.

Klondike Bill's music hits and he makes his way out to the entrance ramp. He's wearing a #BALLSDEEP 2019 t-shirt. He's followed by his tag team partner, Duke the Dumpster Droese. Bill and Duke both have mics, and say DejaVu is an appropriate name for tonight, because tonight, they will return to the top of the wrestling world when they win the CBWA World Tag Team Championship. This is followed by a chorus of boos.

The Parking Lot Patrol make their way to the ring, but Klondike stops to shoot #BALLSDEEP 2019 ping pong balls into the crowd. He notices two women in the crowd and makes his way towards them.

Duke the Dumpster just shakes his head and continues to the ring.

Klondike Bill is still in the crowd. A couple of fans have taken off their underwear and are flinging them at him.

Duke the Dumpster starts the match by himself.

Shawn and Bobby don't waste anytime, they jump Duke. They are working great as a new tag team.

Where is Klondike?

Michaels gives Duke the Dumpster a Super Kick and Eaton comes off the top with the Alabama Jam. 1-2-3!

The Rocker Express get the victory and move onto the semi-finals.

WTF??? There's a naked man in the ring!!! Security are now running towards the ring -- and wait, no it's not a fan, it's Klondike Bill.  He's buck naked with lady underwear around his neck. He's trying to help up his tag partner. Duke shakes off the dust and flips out when he sees a naked Klondike helping him up. He leaves the ring on his own and the arena has gone dark.

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MEGAOVER DejaVu is brought to you by: 

Bogota SID VIDEO

#BEKINDandREWINDNow with 11 locations in Bogota. Open 24 hours a day.

@BOGOTASID Video #BEKINDandREWIND 

Quarter-Final Match:

BYE - Ranger ZZ & Lex Luger

A backstage camera catches Ranger ZZ and Lex arguing about something in their locker room, but they quickly push the camera man out of the room and shut the door. 

This only contributes to the rumours that there is trouble in paradise. Both Lex and ZZ were #MRW Tag Team Champions when they were drafted by @GODBOLDUNREAL last month. 

Over the weekend, @BogotaMeltzer reported that there is #kayfabe friction between the two friends and that Lex wasn't excited about leaving Bogota to tour in the States. 

There’s also talk that ZZ might be jealous of Lex’s new multi-year/multi-million dollar contract. ZZ’s contract is set to expire in 2019. 

SEMI-FINAL MATCH:

The New Rock n’ Roll Express (Shane Morton & Bobby Gibson) vs MEGA POWERS (Hulk & Macho Man)

The New Rock n’ Roll Express is having a real hard time with Hogan and Macho Man, their size makes a big difference. Macho hits Morton with the top rope elbow and Hogan is about to drop the leg when all the lights go out.....all of a sudden a spot light shines up into the rafters...

ITS ROBERTO GIBSON AND Dumpster Pedro!!!!!!!!! 

Gibson, with a beer in hand is standing on a platform, high above the ring. He’s wearing his airbrushed CBWA duster and accompanied by Pedro (I thought he was dead?)

When he gives everyone the finger, a beer can falls from his hand and hurdles towards the ground, exploding into the front row when it hits the floor. 

The spotlight disappears. 

The lights come back on and everyone in the ring is knocked out including the referee. 

Out from the back, here comes ##MEGAOVER assistant General Manager MINI GODBOLD!

Mini GOLDBBOLD is running to the ring and is calling for the paramedics. 

The main feed cuts to a CBWA commercial. 

FOR THE LATEST CBWA NEWS, visit the official website:

CBWA.LIVE and follow us on twitter at @CBWALive 

NOW A LIVE PERFORMANCE FROM RATT! 

WELCOME BACK TO THE FORUM IN LOS ANGELES.

INTERVIEW:

Bobby Blaze is backstage with @BogotaResnick

Blaze says he still plans to defend the #MRW World Heavyweight title until its unified with another CBWA championship.

As he gets ready to say something else he is attacked from behind by The Arabian Giant and Harley Davidson! 

Both men team up on Blaze, leaving him bloody and laying knocked out cold!

#MEGAOVER General Manager @GODBOLDUNREAL comes to the ring.

GODBOLDUNREAL announces that due to the events that transpired in the last tag team match, the following match will be for the new CBWA World Tag Team Championships. 

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CBWA IMPERIO Presents:

#CBWA #RiseToTheTop Pay-per-view on Friday, June 1st. 

A 7-man Ladder Match with decide who leaves with the CBWA World Championship. 

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Bogota SID VIDEO now has 11 locations across Bogota and Medellín, Colombia.ORDER IT TODAY! 

Visit CBWA.live for details.

THE MAIN EVENT

CBWA TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS

Ranger ZZ & Lex Luger vs Bobby Eaton & Shawn Michaels

All four men are in the ring, and Lex tells Ranger ZZ that he will be starting the match tonight. ZZ resists at first, but then agrees to let Luger kick things off. 

The bell rings, and Luger kicks Eaton in the gut, but he’s quickly taken off his feet and Michaels tags in, pounding on him in the corner with a series of quick rights. Bobby Eaton tags right back in and continues the beat down with a couple of well placed forearms, and Michaels is back in, helping his partner slam Luger back into the corner. 

Eaton laces Luger with a couple of right hands before tagging Michaels back in for a double team suplex. 

Luger finally makes it to the corner and tags ZZ in. ZZ comes in hard but is quickly rattled by Eaton. 

The MRW Champions, Luger and ZZ are clearly not on the same page, making several mistakes. Throughout this match there have been a number of miscues and their timing is not right. 

Eaton goes to the second rope and leaps off with a big elbow drop that’s good for a two count. ZZ kicks and chokes Eaton in the corner.

ZZ locks in a rear chin lock, hoping for the submission. Eaton is able to fight up to his feet, and out of the hold, but ZZ hits him with a kick to the stomach, followed by a pump handle slam that’s good for another near fall. ZZ pulls Eaton up and fires him into his corner. ZZ comes in hard with a boot, Eaton moves and ZZ nails Luger, sending hard to the floor. 

ZZ turns and receives some Sweet Chin Music. ZZ is out. Michaels tags in Eaton who goes for the Alabama jam! 

1-2-3! 

The Rocker Express make history, unifying the #MRW tag titles and becoming the new CBWA MEGAOVER World Tag Team Champions!

After the match, we see Ranger ZZ clutching the tag team titles in the corner. He gets up and hand them over to Bobby Eaton. 

Luger heads to the back without ZZ. 

The new champions stay in the ring and celebrate. 

THE END. 

ORDER YOUR #MEGAOVER DejaVu Merchandise!

NOW ON SALE AT CBWA.live. 

www.cbwa.live 

[delfu44]

Well...Its Been A While Since I Stopped watching WWE (wrestling worldwide Entertainment) so...I wanna Take a Little Backstory Of Me watching this (2015-2017) I did this Because yesterday was Wrestlemania 34 ...But the problem here is that I can't watch PPV...(Damn it) so...Enjoy! So it started at the end of 2015(probably) the First Time I Heard the WWE universe Name (Or Thing) I was Watching Scooby doo And Kiss: and the Rock n Roll Mystery with My family,and When The Movie Finished (Cause I Got The DVD) I explored The Special Features of The DVD. So I found The Trailer Of Scooby Doo At Wrestemania. So...I watched and...It Was Amazing to see Scooby wrestling with Some Stars Of WWE... Some Days Later I was Zapping the TV 📺 (Cause there was nothing to see) so I Found WWE in fox sports 2 (Latin America) And I remember Correctly what Was My First Match That I Saw: Dolph Ziggler Vs Kevin Owens (Before The Slammy Awards in 2015 December) so...after A Couple days I Started to Watched Raw Smack down,NXT And Vintage Shows! It was so Funny!! Ppl Told me that Wrestling was Fake...But I didn't care about that. Then I Heard one Name of One Superstar...Yes...Im obviously talking about JOHN CENA (its My Favorite WWE Superstar ) and Im Sorry (But Through this Days I Was Fangirling A Lot!) Then In 2016 my List Of WWE Superstar Just Grow Up With Superstars like AJ STYLES DEAN AMBROSE KEVIN OWENS SHINSUKE NAKAMURA NIKKI AND BRIE BELLA SASHA BANKS THE ROCK HULK HOGAN SHAWN MICHAELS RICK FLAIR SHANE MCMAHON THE UNDERTAKER PAIGE KALISTO AND SIN CARA And More... also... I watched the 2 last episodes of Total Bellas (Season 1) Then after 3 years of wwe in my heart ❤ I Stopped watching this Because I was bored. But...with all of My Heart I Still Love All Of The WWE Superstars! I Still Listening To WWE Music 🎶! And...Well...that is pretty much...i hope you like My Backstory! Buh-Bye!

[amtushinfosolutionspage]

Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi’s Friendship is Why We Love Pro Wrestling

Deep in the core of pro wrestling storytelling, beneath the tales of violence, vengeance, and betrayal, is a softer, more relatable hypothesis. It’s that friendship matters. Friendship might lead to those betrayals and it might always be tied to violence, but it also buoys and supports the drama in surprisingly earnest fashion.

The power of friendship is as old as everything else is in pro wrestling, and as simple. The Mega Powers don’t explode unless Macho Man Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan don’t first form a friendship. The sting of Hogan’s betrayal of Savage (he absolutely betrayed Macho Man and I won’t hear otherwise) and the latter’s subsequent maniacal focus on vengeance doesn’t work unless the initial friendship is there.

Or take the Rock ‘n’ Roll Express’s break up. Eternal babyfaces Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson had been friends for the better part of a decade and they were as pure as good guys come. Young, athletic, and quick, they were unimaginable as heels or even tweeners; they perfected the idea of a small babyface being beaten on by a larger heel, only to escape and deliver a hot tag to raucous cheers.

When Morton joined the York Foundation, a corporate heel group modeled on the foreboding (and, as it turns out, true) sense that soulless data was about to drive all of our interactions and decisions, it was a shock. Changing his name to Richard Morton, the team broke up after a savage attack on Gibson. Morton’s words “I’ve been waiting ten years to do this” don’t shock without the ten years of close as brothers friendship.

Even heels get in on the act. Underpinning the Four Horsemen’s 1980s successes was the idea that they were pals. They were pals whose storyline relationship was built on womanizing, booze, and excess, but it was there and tangibly felt in the promos and general sense of loyalty they had for one another. When someone was booted out, it always felt like something more than an asshole being ostracized from a group of other assholes, largely because there was a sense that these guys truly bonded over their shared character flaws. And, because of that, the audience both cheered the newly minted babyface for breaking free in order to find friendship elsewhere and booed the Horsemen ever more lustily for being assholes to their friend on top of their general greasiness.

All of this still holds true today, with one sly twist: kayfabe is dead and we can be in on the story in a way we couldn’t when we all still thought it was real, to the extent that we ever did. We can engage in the purity of friendship storylines while also holding onto our ironic attachment. It doesn’t have to be tragedy or comedy anymore, but both.

The best of the postmodern friendship storylines was Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho in their extended run as best friends. It was Jericho’s best work in ages, culminating in the Festival of Friendship. Jericho’s promo, about how his run with Owens was one of the best years in his career, seemed legitimately heartfelt, going beyond the demands of the story. But it was also delivered in front of a ridiculous painting of The Creation of Adam with the two men’s faces pasted on. It was a comedy angle at heart, especially when the ironic nonsense of Jericho’s List is added into the mix. When the inevitable double cross by Owens happens, the crowd loses its mind, with a strange mix of genuine hurt and amused bewilderment on the people’s faces.

Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi’s recent reunion stands to be the next great friendship story in wrestling, in large part because it’s based on (again) a very earnest and real friendship. An exhaustive history of the Golden Lovers was written in the aftermath of New Beginning by Emily Pratt and it’s worth reading in full, but the very general gist is that these two men met in the quasi-comedy/high weirdness of Japan’s DDT promotion, formed a remarkable tag team, and then went their separate ways, Ibushi to a sort of traveling free agent pro wrestling dilettante, Omega to headlining NJPW shows.

When Ibushi saved Omega from a double-crossing attack by fellow Bullet Club member Cody Rhodes, they embraced and confetti actually fell from the rafters. The crowd went nuts. All of that is fairly standard, if extremely heartfelt due to just how beloved both men are in Japan. But the statements afterwards ratcheted up the raw emotion.

“If we aren’t together, there’s no point. I want us to change the world together,” Omega told Tokyo Sports.

If you’re catching a hint of romance between the two on even a cursory reading, that’s natural. What’s fascinating about the story is that it exists at the intersection of a close male friendship which is expressed physically and a star-crossed queer relationship which isn’t, in any way, being played for laughs by the bookers or wrestlers. Both of those things are verboten, but in a strange way it’s the first which is even less tolerated by the broader American culture (I can’t comment on Japanese notions of male friendship). Gay people? Not as accepted as they should be, but certainly visible. Men having friendships where they hug and hold hands, but aren’t gay? As they say at the gym, no homo, bro.

Layers of unreality and reality crash into each other in the reunion of the Golden Lovers. Ibushi and Omega are best friends, and Omega has embraced the mystery of his own sexuality (“I don’t know what the hell I am” he tweeted at a fan who asked if he was gay or bi). This doesn’t matter other than that his relationship with Ibushi, whatever it is, is supposed to make us realize that perhaps the line between the deepest of friendships and being lovers isn’t as clearly marked as we pretend. Their work together, in other words, is masterful. And their second run together has only just begun.

What gives with the pro wrestling fan’s obsession with friendship, especially today, beyond the obvious fact that it makes for an important foundation for a story? My hunch is that the rise in mainstream interest in pro wrestling—even as ratings are admittedly down compared to past peaks—owes something, perhaps only a little something, to how loosely we hold our friendships in 2018. Because we do hold them loosely. We’re hopelessly atomized, urged on to leave our friends and family behind every few years to get a little extra money for a little extra house and a little extra car. We don’t go out (and that’s not to scold anyone, because I don’t go out like I used to), we’re glued to screens, and we never touch. We are achingly lonely, a truth which crosses continents.

I write about games of all stripes alongside my wrestling writing, and it’s been striking to me how many people I know who have, slowly but surely, moved from video games to board games and roleplaying games. Games which create a shared experience, not on a computer screen or series of texts, but real life flesh and blood space.

The thrill of friendship in pro wrestling is of a piece with this. Pro wrestling is best experienced live, with friends, and when you get there you jostle and hi-five your pals. All while Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho are being best friends, or Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi are embracing while confetti rains down. We need this particular genre of wrestling story, even more than when all of this tearing at the fabric of our social lives began in earnest and we turned to Flair, Hogan, and Savage.

Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi’s Friendship is Why We Love Pro Wrestling syndicated from https://australiahoverboards.wordpress.com

[mrmedia]

141 Mike Edison, author, "I Have Fun Everywhere I Go" (2008)

Today's Guest: Mike Edison, author, I Have Fun Everywhere I Go

  ] Have Fun Everywhere I Go by Mike Edison. Click on the book cover above to order your copy now!

In his new book, I Have Fun Everywhere I Go, Mike Edison does for sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll what Hulk Hogan did for wrestling! No, scratch that. Edison hates Hogan. Saying that will just piss him off. How about:

Mike Edison, author, I Have Fun Everywhere I Go

Mike Edison does for sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll what Lennon & McCartney did for elevator music! Damn, that won’t work either. Edison hates the Beatles, too. Here’s a thought: Let me just read the subtitle of Edison’s book. It’s so long, people will think it’s an introduction and not notice that I left out all the stuff about him being a former editor of High Times, Cheri, and Main Event, a contributor to Screw and Hustler magazines, and drummer in bands such as Raunch Hands, Pleasure F*ckers, and Rocket Train Delta Science Arkestra. Please welcome my guest today, Mike Edison, author of I Have Fun Everywhere I Go: Savage Tales of Pot, Porn, Punk Rock, Pro Wrestling, Talking Apes, Evil Bosses, Dirty Blues, American Heroes, and the Most Notorious Magazines in the World.

Mike Edison Website • Facebook • Twitter • YouTube • Mike Edison’s first Mr. Media interview • Book Excerpt • Order Dirty! Dirty! Dirty!

  "Mean Business: How I Save Bad Companies and Make Good Companies Great" by Albert J. Dunlap with Bob Andelman, available in print, e-book or digital audio. Order your copy now by clicking on the book cover above!

  The Party Authority in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland!

Check out this episode!