Diamonddust

I know something like 40 cable companies carry WWF 24/7 although I dont know how many actually subscribe. But, if it were put on a sports tier of a cable/satellite company, all of their subscribers would pay for it regardless of whether or not they watch the channel at all. Good example is NFL Network which charges cable/sat companies $.75 a subscriber, which some saw as too high, but eventually its carried now to almost 60 million households. If those 40 cable companies + Directv and Dish (which are roughly 20 million subs alone and dont offer 24/7 yet) add WWENet (or whatever the hell Vince called it) I could see about 40 million subscribers. 40 million subscribers x $.15 a subscriber (a really low price for a cable channel) would $6 million a month alone (or $18 million per quarter) not counting advertising rates that they wouldnt have to share or take a small cut of. WWF made $24 million in the 2nd quarter this year on their tv deal and it looks like that will be lower given the USA deal getting lowered. Granted I dont know all the details of how much it would cost to run the network but still.. I saw the general figure to set up a cable network is $100 million, however I do believe that the WWF probably has the equipment already in place to do it so they could probably save 1/2 of that easily. I think this is the general direction they are headed. Their popularity has declined and the cable networks aren't going to see any value at all in their programming if they aren't going to at least pop a decent cable rating. They are okay right now but with their numbers declining and some of the other shows on cable getting monster numbers, with competition that used to be on big networks like MNF and the MLB playoffs now on cable, their programming means less and less every year. They are no longer the premiere company on cable. They are no longer the kings of PPV. They've bombed on network television with NBC's attempts to revive SNME. Pretty much the only thing they have going for them is they monopolize wrestling for the most part. Their tape library is extremely important. Whether the current product is popular or not there will always be people that "used to watch wrestling". Your friends, people in your family, etc. There is no reason to think that someone won't want to watch old Nitro and Raws or ECW, WCW, NWA, AWA, World Class, PPV's, etc. My grandpap hates everything about WWE right now but he loves those Jim Ross Legends of Wrestling roundtables. WWE 24/7 would probably be more successful if they did a better job marketing the programming. I even think they could have clearance for a non subscription channel and get advertising if they handle everything correctly. They'd probably pick up some respectable numbers along side shows on USA, Spike, Comedy Central, MTV, etc. They need to one up that. They need to finish off acquring other tape libraries like Mid South/UWF, Memphis, St. Louis, Portland, Stampede and take that International as well. Work out deals with Japan, Mexico and Puerto Rico. This would round out the classic programming. I think they should farm ROH and other U.S. indies like they did ECW back in the day. Televise ROH stuff along with OVW, Florida and any other regional developmental they put together. Maybe even make access to those particular shows an online ON DEMAND subscription. The free network could plug ON DEMAND online programming like classic PPV's or DVD releases to generate some revenue that way. Another revenue generator they could use the network for would be to promote touring Legend Conventions where they ship out guys like Roddy Piper, Jimmy Snuka, Ted Dibiase, etc. for meet and greets. They could produce some interesting television. The retrospectives they have on WWE 24/7 and Confidential style pieces on current and legendary talent. They could show angles, matches, random segments, in MTV video style or broadcast entire classic shows from the past. Their current programming would have Raw, Smackdown, ECW, magazine type pieces, maybe even arena house shows, and special productions like WWE's own versions of Cribs, I Love the 80's, JBL financial advice, etc. Not to mention whenever they get their own international territories running. They have access to all those libraries with the exception of Mid-South. Bill Watts' ex-wife owns that collection, and her asking price must be outrageous for McMahon not to have already purchased it.

Noble would be a good choice. Just throwing a name out there, but Stevie Richards could play the Michael Hayes role as the mouth piece/talker.

I guess the Major Brothers have more pull than we thought. Gibson letting the Punk/Atlas thing happen probably had more to do with it.

Throw in "Freebird" as the entrance music for the Birds.... I think that added to the pop they got in Philly. Man, that crowd HATED HATED HATED Douglas and Ace.

It's a wonder with Michael Hayes on the Smackdown roster that he didn't push for Ray Gordy to be in a new version of The Freebirds. Lame or not, I'd cheer for it only if I could hear "Badstreet" on Smackdown every week.

I think this week... maybe next. The next episode, which should air late this month, is when he brings Bulldog and Owen into the fold.

John Cena's first WWE appearence was in a loss to Kurt Angle during the whole Angle Invitational gimmick. Even though Cena looked good in the fight, he lost the match... but still, it didn't hurt him in the long run. It's because he did like competitive that the loss didn't hurt Cena. In no way did Cody look competitive against Orton, which did just as much damage as losing did. I figured Cody getting the slap in on Orton was enough.

John Cena's first WWE appearence was in a loss to Kurt Angle during the whole Angle Invitational gimmick. Even though Cena looked good in the fight, he lost the match... but still, it didn't hurt him in the long run.

It would have been great only if the payoff was Flair jumping Cody Rhodes in the end simply because he's Dusty's son and "stupid" enough to trust "The Nature Boy". Would have been a good way to do a "legends" match as Flair's going out angle - Set up one last match with him and Dusty. Granted, it'd be pretty rough to watch... but would it be any worse than a lot of the stuff they're doing?

Which would have been the reason he was hired in the first place. Still, if they had pushed him more towards the "Thug from Brooklyn" side of his character (I remember one rumor stating they were going to bring in someone like Chris Chetti to play "Joey Numbers", things might have been different. Although, injuries were catching up with him.

From what I've read, Vince wanted to bring Foley back for the ME at WM, and Kreski was the one who pushed for Tazz, only to have McMahon shoot down Kreski's idea because Taz wasn't "big enough." Another angle in which Vince changed the ending. This is also when Steph started the booking. I believe the line about Taz was that "it wouldn't be believable that a man his size could suplex certain WWE stars."

Cause in terms of seniority, I think he's only behind the Undertaker. Holly is pretty much a protected guy in that he'll probably always have some type of job with the company.

From Tammy's mouth, they were just friends. Shawn was the one who had the affair with Sunny. Well there was the incident at a recent autograph signing where Sunny was running around screaming that she was the best pussy that Bret ever had. Didn't hear about that one. I was going off the shoot interview she did after Candido's death where she went into detail he relationship with Bret (Close friends) and Shawn (Full on lovers).

WWE 24/7 is McMahon's way of keeping the hardcore fans happy by showing, as crazy as it seems, actual wrestling. As long as he has them hooked on a niche product like on-demand programing, he doesn't have to worry about them in terms of the current product. I say this as a subscriber to the 24/7 service.

I think a problem we're all glossing over is that the WWE doesn't want a "wrestling booker". They want someone who can write a television program.

From Tammy's mouth, they were just friends. Shawn was the one who had the affair with Sunny.

Because Raw was a thousand times more enjoyable when he was writing the shows for WWE. Russo isn't writing TNA by himself, but I do think TNA is more watchable now than it was before he came there. Let's wait to see what he can do with 2 hours. I didn't see it, but reviews of the first show were mostly positive. And WWE obviously is not anywhere close to the same show as it was 9 or 10 years ago. You must not remember the Attitude Era at all if you think that. WWE feels stale now because it feels like nothing is ever happening. It was mentioned before that the one big storyline of the summer ended up amounting to nothing but a few comedy bits. Whether you miss a week of shows or a month, chances are you're not really missing anything and Raw will be the exact same show when you start watching again. In 1997 and 1998, something was always happening. That all boils down to competition. WWE has no serious competition going to head to head with them for advertising dollars and other forms of revenue, so they don't have to go balls to the wall every week like they did during the height of the Monday Night War. I don't think it boils down to that. It's just a matter of hiring a competent writer. You don't need to be going balls to the wall to be able to write exciting unpredictable storylines. In 2000, WCW was barely giving competition above what TNA is now. Yet Raw was still unpredictable. There was still intriguing storylines such Angle/HHH/Steph and Guerrero/Chyna. (See the youtube thread for more of that) They hadn't fallen asleep yet. It all changed in October 2000 when Kreski was replaced. I honestly wonder what would have happened if WCW had managed to stay alive for a little while longer. Yeah, and it ended in 2001 when WCW was completely eliminated as a threat. Sure, they were on a prolonged death march that they couldn't return from... but they still existed, which was the key point. McMahon put the final nails in the coffin during 2000. When 2001 hit, everyone thought the Invasion was going to be the next huge storyline, but we all remember what happened there. From that point, the WWE didn't have to do a whole lot to maintain things as they were the only show in town. If you can operate at say a lower level and still be successful financially speaking, why try to outdo yourself every week when it's not needed? As for Raw, it is pretty stale, as WWE 24/7 has shown us it's basically been the same show the past 10 years. They could do something to spice things up, but until USA gets real angry with them or in a position to use some leverage, nothing is going to happen. As for Russo coming back or any other writer, remember this - regardless who is the top writer, Vince still has the final say in things. I remember what Jim Cornette said in a shoot interview about Russo - He worked out in the WWE because McMahon was there to separate the couple of good ideas he'd have from the mountains of bad ones. In WCW, there was no one to do that, and he fell flat on his face.

Because Raw was a thousand times more enjoyable when he was writing the shows for WWE. Russo isn't writing TNA by himself, but I do think TNA is more watchable now than it was before he came there. Let's wait to see what he can do with 2 hours. I didn't see it, but reviews of the first show were mostly positive. And WWE obviously is not anywhere close to the same show as it was 9 or 10 years ago. You must not remember the Attitude Era at all if you think that. WWE feels stale now because it feels like nothing is ever happening. It was mentioned before that the one big storyline of the summer ended up amounting to nothing but a few comedy bits. Whether you miss a week of shows or a month, chances are you're not really missing anything and Raw will be the exact same show when you start watching again. In 1997 and 1998, something was always happening. That all boils down to competition. WWE has no serious competition going to head to head with them for advertising dollars and other forms of revenue, so they don't have to go balls to the wall every week like they did during the height of the Monday Night War.

Yeah, I knew Muta pretty much split after Starrcade, but I guess it was wishful thinking plus a little fantasy booking on my part to bring up the possibility of WCW/NWA trying to keep him around for a few more months... or at least until WrestleWar as a replacement for Sting. Besides, the Starrcade between Flair/Muta match wasn't long enough to really amount to anything. It would have been nice to see them with 20-30 minutes.

Turner has nothing to do with TBS anymore. Knowing Vince, though, he'd probably get a kick out of moving his show to Turner's former baby.

I was at the Smackdown they did immediately after ECW joined the Invasion in 2001 (It happened on a Raw in Atlanta, while the Smackdown was taped in Birmingham). RVD wrestled a dark match that evening, and he damn near got the biggest pop of the night. When ECW lost the TNN show, Birmingham didn't get the syndicated program they still did. RVD was still over like crazy, and I remember thinking to myself, "They need to get him on television ASAP."

It wasn't so much they were worried about Bret showing up with the title as they were worried Bischoff was simply going to announce "Hey everyone... our show is so much better that the REIGNING WWF Champion is coming here in a couple of weeks".

You're absolutely right on all fronts.

Since there is a thread for "Worst Indy Show", I figured I'd ask what are some of the best moments you've ever seen or been a part of at an indy show? One of the funniest indy moments I remember was when I helped set up the ring for a Robert Gibson led promotion. Tommy Rich and Terry Gordy were in town to take on Gibson and Morton. One of the guys helping Gibson run things looked at us on the ring crew and said, "We have a standing rule... no one gives Tommy Rich an open mic." It was also the show where Gibson and his assistant got pissed at my friends and I for cheering Rich and Gordy. They had Sensational Sherri as a manager, and they did a hair pull/referee ask the crowd spot. We of course were agreeing with Gordy and Rich. Sherri actually got the referee to look our way and try to take our word for it.

Just watched the Horsemen vs. Muta/Sawyer/Dragon Master... There is a brief moment where The Great Muta squares off against Arn Anderson. The crowd is JACKED for him. It boggles the mind that NWA/WCW didn't do at least one Flair/Muta PPV main event in the wake of Sting's injury. The story would have been great: With Sting on the shelf due to Flair, they could have done an angle where Sting picked his replacement. Flair would expect a babyface to get the nod, but Sting shocks everyone by picking The Great Muta... his mortal enemy because he knows he can take Flair to the limit. Muta and Flair at that point in time was a guaranteed 4 star match. They could have still turned Luger face for the May PPV instead of hot-shotting the turn and having him serve as a place holder. I know they were determined to make him their Hulk Hogan in the absence of Sting, but it fell flat on its face. The crowd wanted to cheer for Muta because he was so different at the time. He'd throw the handspring elbow, and they'd lose it. What could have been...