JimmyHendricks

After the 1992 Royal Rumble, when Flair is presented the belt backstage, Mean Gene is trying to interview him and right in the middle of it all he yells at someone off camera to "PUT THAT CIGARETTE OUT!" It just seemed so random and odd to say that. Anyone know what the deal was?

I just saw a few minutes of this the other day (I watched it when it aired in 98 too), but one error that caught my attention was saying that Andre jobbed the belt to Hogan at WM3. I'm almost 100% positive that Hogan was champ going into that match (though I didn't become a regular fan until WM6). Well yeah and Hogan claimed Andre died shortly after that match (if by shortly you mean several years ). I assumed that was the only things that were really wrong with it. Hogan revisionist history. The quote Steve Allen said was something like, "For 20 years, Andre was the top man in pro wrestling. No man could beat him, so he could win or lose a title as he pleased. Aware that his career was coming to an end, Andre agreed to lose the title to the younger, healthier Hogan that night." I think it was just written wrong, or they wanted to make WM III more important by saying ANDRE was losing the title and not Hogan. Or perhaps they wanted to make ANDRE seem like the champion because they had just said he was THE MAN in wrestling, and for him not to be champion (because he could win it anytime he wanted, you know) would be odd. I don't know. The bottom line was that they were trying to say Andre was losing to Hogan, passing the torch, blah blah blah. Yeah, and Hogan DID say Andre died SHORTY after that match, something like "Andre was really hurting that night, he needed back surgery, the clock was winding down and he died shortly after that. I knew he was in a lot of pain, but I didn't realize his life was close to being over." I guess Hogan thinks SIX YEARS is a short time. They added a little epilogue at the end of that segment saying that Andre died in 1993, so the non-wrestling fan wouldn't think he died in the locker room that night or something.

Well, the way that I look at it is that this is a set aimed at Hogan fans who didn't buy "Hulk Still Rules". I personally try and get all the speciality, superstar specific, non PPV releases WWE puts out, so of course 1/4 of this new set I will already have. But you know what? There's still 21 other matches that I DON'T have. I learned to not get pissed over it when the latest Undertaker set came out and was full of stuff I already had. But it still had 8 or 9 matches I didn't have, so oh well. As long as the majority of what is on the set is new to me, I usually pick it up. I am a little pissed that they didn't include more of the nWo in WCW stuff. The War Games and tag match vs Rock/Austin was, of course, already on the nWo DVD that of course, I own---so the only new match I get is the Sting one. Why not his first nWo title win vs. The Giant, or one of the Piper matches?

You wanted me to comment? Well, here you go: The Top 20: #20: WrestleMania XX - Evolution Vs. The Rock & Mick Foley ---I've always been bothered by the fact that this was a one time Rock appearance match, and that the crowd shit all over him because of it--which was a distraction, at least to me. I guess I need to go back and watch it again, and try to block all that out. #19: WrestleMania 21 - Money in the Bank Ladder Match ---I liked it, but there have been so many table, TLC, and ladder matches in the last 7 years that it had a definite "been there, done that" vibe. But the idea behind it (a world title shot) was a shocking booking move that I didn't think they had in them. #18: WrestleMania 2000 - The Dudley Boyz Vs. The Hardy Boyz Vs. Edge & Christian - Ladder Match ---I liked the X-7 match better (it seemed to have bigger spots), but this is a close second. #17: WrestleMania XX - Kurt Angle Vs. Eddie Guerrero ---A very good match that was overshadowed by Benoit's win. It's too bad these guys didn't get a six month program to tear the house down with. #16: WrestleMania X-8 - The Rock Vs. Hollywood Hulk Hogan ---I've already commented on this one. #15 - WrestleMania VIII - Bret Hart Vs. Roddy Piper ---One of those great matches that came out of nowhere. Piper's heel turn tease seemed like something out of the 80s, but it still worked within the context of the match (if he would have used the bell, he would have won. Instead he went for the sleeper, Bret reverses, and Piper loses). #14 - WrestleMania XIX - Kurt Angle Vs. Brock Lesnar ---Apparantly this is Bret's favorite match of the last 10 years or something. I would have rather seen more WRESTLING than "Main Event Style". I still can't disregard Brock's botched shooting star press, though. It sticks out like a sore thumb to me and basically almost ruined the match because it botched what would have been a classic finish. #13 - WrestleMania 21 - Kurt Angle Vs. Shawn Michaels ---I've already commented on this one. #12 - WrestleMania X-Seven - Kurt Angle Vs. Chris Benoit ---At the time, it was awesome, but I never liked the quick, roll up finish and the Royal Rumble 2003 match was better and had more drama. This one's still good though. #11 - WrestleMania VII - The Ultimate Warrior Vs. Randy Savage ---I've already commented on this one. #10 - WrestleMania X - Shawn Michaels Vs. Razor Ramon - Ladder Match ---I've already commented on this one, but I DO understand the historic significantance behind it, but like the Money In The Bank match, after seeing so many of these in my lifetime, I can't watch it and be amazed anymore. At the time, though, it was awesome. #9 - WrestleMania XIX - Shawn Michaels Vs. Chris Jericho ---Not a bad little match, but I have no idea why Shawn went over. Jericho desperately needed a WM win after the debacle he was put through a year eariler. If he would have won, I probably would have liked it as much as I liked Shawn/Angle at WM 21. #8 - WrestleMania XII - Bret Hart Vs. Shawn Michaels - Ironman Match ---I've already commented on this one. #7 - WrestleMania VIII - Ric Flair Vs. Randy Savage ---I like this one, especially with it's "Flair finds 356 ways to cheat, then Savage cheats once (holding the tights) to win and Flair blows a gasket" storyline. But it was unfortunately overshadowed by You-Know-Who and the return of his painted face friend. #6 - WrestleMania 13 - Bret Hart Vs. Steve Austin - Submission Match ---I've already commented on this one. #5 - WrestleMania III - Ricky Steamboat Vs. Randy Savage ---I've already commented on this one. #4 - WrestleMania XX - Triple H Vs. Shawn Michaels Vs. Chris Benoit ---I've already commented on this one. #3 - WrestleMania X-Seven - The Hardy Boyz Vs. Edge & Christian Vs. The Dudley Boyz - TLC 2 ---This is the best of all the ladder, TLC, or table matches the WWF/E has done since 1999. Buh Buh and Matt Hardy's mega-plunge through FOUR TABLES is still the biggest "Holy Shit!!" bump in WrestleMania--hell--WWF history. #2 - WrestleMania X-Seven - The Rock Vs. Steve Austin ---I've already commented on this one. #1 - WrestleMania X - Bret Hart Vs. Owen Hart ---I've already commented on this one, but I wouldn't put it at #1, just because Bret could have done a better job at pulling it off. The whole idea was genius, but Bret was never good at getting over an angle (well, sometimes he was, but he was always a very wooden character to me) and it was overshadowed by Bret's title win later--which was the plan. But I could never put it at #1 because it wasn't as dramatic or big as Rock/Austin.

In terms of my favorite matches to watch: 5: Bret/Austin, WM 13 ---It's interesting to watch them slowly build Austin into a mega-star, over the course of ONE MATCH. 4: Shawn/Angle, WM 21 ---I can remember everyone thinking this wouldn't be good because it was supposed to be about 5 years too late. Whew, were we all wrong or what? 3: Warrior/Savage, WM VII ---The first "career ending" match I ever saw, and I was almost throwing up when Savage dropped FIVE elbows on Warrior.....and Warrior kicked out. Then Warrior hit the gorilla press.....and Savage kicked out. Then the stuff with Elizabeth afterwards, which was a total shock. AMAZING. 2: Rock/Austin, WM X-7 ---The same reasons as #3, just with different moments. Yeah, I had heard Austin would side with Vince, but to still see it actually HAPPEN was mind blowing. 1: Rock/Hogan, WM X-8 ---I thought this would be a terrible match with a terrible finish, with Hall and Nash running in and doing a classic nWo beatdown circa 1997. I am happy to say I was completely wrong. The stuff before the match (Rock in the ambulance, Hogan with the semi) was goofy when you look at the result, but I never would have thought they would have brought back Hogan hulking up and I would have never thought Rock would go over clean. It could have been a passing of the torch, but Rocky wanted to do movies...... In terms of workrate: 5: Benoit/Shawn/HHH, WM XX ---Somehow they didn't fuck this up, and the right guy went over. I usually HATE 3 way matches, because it's usually one guy breaking up the pin all of the time. Not in this one. When Benoit had HHH in the crossface, I was just waiting for Shawn to break it up--but he didn't. MARVELOUS. 4: Bret/Shawn, WM XII ---It was a true wrestling match. 4 years later, HHH and Rock had a more exciting Iron Man at Judgement Day, with run in's and chairs galore (and unique booking), but this one truly lived up to the hype as one hour of WRESTLING. 3: Shawn/Angle, WM 21 ---Every once in a while they still pull something great out of their asses, and this was one of those times. It was a breath of fresh air in a usually cloudy, "Main Event Style" world. 2: Bret/Owen, WM X ---Everything made sense, including the finish. You don't see two guys with the patience to let a match build for 20 minutes like this anymore. 1: Savage/Steamboat, WM III ---It will be hard to ever top this one. Like Angle/Shawn, it was something great in a punch and kick world. They didn't do anything spectacular move-wise, but the pacing and near falls were absolutely perfect. In terms of drama: 5: Hogan/Warrior, WM VI ---Very hot crowd, and a shocking finish. One of those matches where you truly didn't know who would win. Ah, if EVERY match was like that. 4: Shawn/Angle, WM 21 ---I caught myself being on the edge of my seat during this one, which NEVER happens anymore. 3: Benoit/Shawn/HHH, WM XX ----Chris finally wins the big one, clean, with HHH tapping. Who would have ever thought? 2: Hogan/Rock, WM X-8 ---My friends and I were literally jumping up and down when Hogan hulked up. The complete opposite of what I thought it would be. 1: Austin/Rock, WM X-7 ---You had heard it would happen, but you still couldn't believe it. Rock kicking out of EVERYTHING Austin threw at him almost gave me a heart attack. It was like an ECW match, where you thought it was over about 10 times, but it wasn't. In terms of historical importance: 5: Shawn/Razor, WM X Ladder Match ---If this would not have been successful, we would have never had TLC matches or the Money in The Bank idea. 4: Shawn/Austin, WM XIV ---The final piece of the Austin star-making puzzle. The beginning of the real Attitude era. 3: Hogan/Andre, WM III ---It's called the most historic match ever, and if it was their ONLY meeting, it would be. Instead, they had a year long feud after this, with Andre deteriorating the whole time. It made this match seem less special. 2: Bret/Owen, WM X ---Owen goes from Bret's jobber brother to superstar in one match. I've always felt that if Owen wouldn't have won this match, he would have never become a star, quit the business, and never would have died. 1: Bret/Austin, WM 13 ---The beginning of the Attitude era, with Austin as it's star, which was finally sealed the next year. Remember when they actually THOUGHT out their booking? In terms of buildup: 5: Hogan/Savage, WM V ----You KNOW that they had this in mind before they ever decided to give Randy the title. 4: Hogan/Warrior, WM VI ----One of the few times they actually gave the fans something they had been dreaming to see. AND they kept both guys as faces. That would NEVER happen today. 3: Hogan/Rock, WM X-8 ----Once again, who would have EVER thought? Since then, they've done Hogan/HHH, Rock/Goldberg, Shawn/Hogan, and yet, they all just don't seem as special. 2: Bret/Owen, WM X ----Bret refusing to fight Owen was classic. You truly felt that it was personal. 1: Hogan/Andre, WM III ----Despite the crappiness of the match and the feud afterwards, there will NEVER, EVER be a bigger money match than this. Everyone thinks Hogan/Austin would be, but I disagree, as both men are WELL past their primes, and we all know it. Back in 1987, that wasn't so obvious, and no one knew how Hogan could beat the Giant. It's why 93,000 people went to see it. Vince is a fool for thinking he could fill up Ford Field next year. So, overall, MY top 5 for the GREATEST WRESTLEMANIA MATCHES EVER: (taking all things into consideration) 5: Shawn/Angle, WM 21 4: Bret/Owen, WM X 3: Bret/Austin, WM 13 2: Rock/Hogan, WM X-8 1: Austin/Rock, WM X-7 I'm sure I'll get shit upon for putting Hogan/Rock in the list, but I don't care. I LOVED watching that match. But Austin/Rock was one of the few matches I couldn't sleep after watching because I was so amazed by it. Matches that DIDN'T make it? Steamboat/Savage was the best workrate wise, but Steamboat lost the belt a month later, and the feud was overshadowed by Hogan/Andre. Hogan/Andre had everything but a good match, and I can't overlook that. Rock/Hogan was bad, but still dramatic. Hogan/Andre was TERRIBLE, and that made it less dramatic. Hogan/Warrior always seemed really rehearsed, and I wasn't surprised when I found out it WAS. Shawn/Razor at WM X was great, but the gimmick has been done to death since then, lessening it dramatically for me.

I was there live, so I thought I would add my two cents about the actual fall itself. Owen's fell occurred about 10 seconds after the Blue Blazer video package started playing. Some have said that he fell while they were showing a screen previewing the Godfather/Blazer match, because you can hear the crowd react. Well, the crowd DID react, but it was to the screen, because everyone knew the Godfather was coming out with the Ho's. The arena was dark when the fall happened, because the video package was playing. The lights were brought back up as the now infamous interview with Owen talking about taking his vitamins and drinking his milk was happening. Owen fell as the video package was playing. Something to the effect of "The World Needs the Blue Blazer BACK!" Well, right when "BACK!" was said, he hit the mat, because I can remember thinking the audio in the arena had screwed up. His landing was VERY loud, a large "CRACK!" went through the arena. I then looked into the ring, and saw Owen. Meltzer said in the Owen A&E biography that he looked like he had done 100 situps, but couldn't do 101. That is EXACTLY what it looked like. Earl Hebner (I'm about 90% sure) was the ref, and he stopped, looked at Owen, then ran to the announce table side of the ring, yelling loudly and waving his arms at King and J.R. to get help. It's sad, but I honestly thought it was all a joke, until I saw Owen moving. I thought it was a dummy, like when Sting would send a mannequin down to swerve the nWo before coming down himself. Several people weren't sure who it was, because in the preceding months, there had been multiple Blue Blazers. I think Jarrett was one time, and Mo from Men on a Mission appeared as well. So no one knew for sure if it was Owen, or some jobber. Well, a woman sitting in front of me held up the match listing (Kemper Arena always printed their own match list for WWF shows), and it said "Godfather vs. Owen Hart" on it, so we all knew who it was at that point. We saw a cop giving him CPR, and then it hit everyone: HE'S DEAD. We thought that perhaps he had broken his neck, or was paralyzed or something. Obviously not. This continued for about 15 minutes, and I thought that they had brought him back, because it didn't seem right to me to keep him in the ring if his heart had stopped. I thought they would get him to the hospital immediately. The fact that the show continued made me think he was OK. Speaking of the show continuing, the OVERWHELMING feeling going through the crowd as they were stretchering him out was that the show was over. Several THOUSAND people left right after he was taken out. Some have said it was in disgust, but I disagree. It looked like the 4th quarter of a football game when it's been decided. And frankly, there would have been no riot. We all understood why they would cancel the show. The show continued, and there was a very audible reaction from the crowd (just for a millisecond) when they showed Vince being loaded into an ambulance as part of a backstage skit about 30 minutes later. We then realized it wasn't Owen saying he was ok, and worried even more. It's been said a million times, but no announcement was ever made live in the arena. J.R. talking while Owen was being worked on was shown on the video screens (complete with him making "he fell from the ceiling" motions) but there was no audio. No audio either after the King came back to the announce table. No audio for the Jarrett/Debra interview. We could see them both visibly upset. And, obviously no audio for when J.R. announced Owen had died. We saw it on the screen, and my gut told me what it was, because they were both on screen for a long time. Lots of people have criticized them for not saying anything to the live crowd, like they were trying to keep us hot for upcoming matches, and saying Owen had died would have sucked the life out of everything. Well, I understand why they did it. To hear J.R talking about Owen falling and how the paramedics were working on him AS it was happening, well, that would have been a little weird. At the end of the event, the only thing announced was that tickets for the next house show would go on sale that Saturday. Outside the arena, EVERYONE was talking about Owen. And no one knew what had happened. Kemper is notorious for having a terrible cell phone signal, so very few could call home and figure out what was going on. My feeling is that it was a terrible accident, but just that, an ACCIDENT. Vince did not kill Owen. Yes, steps were not taken to ensure his safety, and Martha deserved every penny she got. But Vince McMahon is not a murderer.

Why do we need an Austin vs. McMahon "anthology"? The old VHS had a great documentary on it that was only recently eclipsed by the ECW one. The Hogan anthology is a must buy, especially if it's "Hulkamania" I-VI. One of them (the second one I think) is entirely about his feud with Andre, and in between matches, Hulk is interviewed in a boat out on some lake. I've always remembered that for some reason. I still want a second Flair set, a Rock set and a Kurt Angle release. Why they haven't released anything for him since the "It's True It's True" video is beyond me. A second Benoit set wouldn't hurt, either. Neither would a second Shawn set.

Not sure if this belongs here or in the Old School folder, but we talked about Bret's DVD here, so what the hell. I picked this one up yesterday, as I try and get all the wrestler specific releases. The main feature is the real (and perhaps only) reason to pick this up. It runs about 90 minutes. The first third is a little heavy on the Jesus stuff, but it's not too bad. It's obvious Hogan modeled himself after him, and he (Hogan) even says so. HHH says "With no disrespect to Hulk, but he's just a cheap Superstar ripoff--I think even he would admit that" They cover his WWWF title win over Bruno, his title loss to Backlund, and his "martial arts" phase, which everyone said was a mistake. They cover his in ring comeback, but he blows out his hip in his first match back and retires. The lawsuit is pretty heavily discussed, and Graham puts over Vince and Co. huge, saying he was addicted to drugs and desperate for money at the time. The liver transplant is obviously covered, with his crying wife and pictures of the diseased liver after it was taken out. Ugh. It is a miracle he can still function. They show his return backstage in 2003, and his first face to face meeting with Vince since the lawsuit. Hugs all around. They show his HOF induction in 2004 and HHH talks about how it was an honor to induct him. Vince gets the last line, something about how it was a priviledge to watch Superstar wrestle. He actually got quite emotional, but blinked and shut his eyes so the tears wouldn't start flowing. Interesting to watch him almost lose it since he always conveys such an ego. The extras are a couple of matches from AWA All Star Wrestling (with it's cool overhead camera). Both are awful and last about 2 minutes each. Superstar arm wrestles one guy then defeats him after a simply bodyslam. Yeah. His WWWF Title win over Bruno, with Vince on commentary. A title defense against Ivan Putski in MSG from 1977. A Texas Death Match vs. Dusty Rhodes A rematch against Backlund from 1982, when he was in his "martial arts" phase. Man, he had no body left and he couldn't even cut a promo right. "I will become the world championship tonight". 7 promos, including that one from Wrestling Challenge in the mid 80's where he had spiders crawling all over him. Easter Eggs: Go to the chapter selection and press left on "Growing Up" and right on "Meeting Valerie" (I believe) to get two 30 second interview snippets. All in all, it was an interesting doc, since I didn't know too much about him. It's actually quite uplifting, and you feel good at the end, unlike the Jake Roberts disc. The extras are pretty much worthless, except for the Rhodes match and the promos, but it's interesting to see how the whole "Hogan" type character got started Oh, and "20 years too soon" is a reference to how he was 20 years ahead of his time, and that the people weren't ready for him yet. They say he was the first heel that was so entertaining that he started getting cheered. It would have been nice to hear from the Rock on that part, but oh well. J.R. and Christian are both interviewed for the doc, so it must have been completed some time ago. And of course the Brooklyn Brawler is there to talk about how great Superstar was. It's 19.99 at Best Buy.

Oh Jesus. And here I was thinking you actually had the magazine in front of you. Instead, one of your in-laws works for the WWE, so we should all treat this as fact. This is like a bad tabloid rumor. Talk about your inside info all that you want, but until I see an actual scan of the magazine cover I will believe none of it. Oh, and by the way, my cousin's uncle's friend works for THQ, and Bret Hart was just in their headquarters the other day recording voice overs for himself as a General Manager type character for Smackdown vs. RAW 2007. It's true. Bret will be the next RAW GM!!! I'll be sure to come back to this topic when Orton wins on Sunday. Of course I could be wrong, but since this is all speculation at this point, I'm not believing a word of it.

At the 1995 Royal Rumble, Bob Holly and the 1-2-3 Kid won the tag team belts, then promptly dropped them the next night on RAW to the Smoking Gunns. A few weeks later on RAW there was a rematch between the two teams. The Kid tried some move off the top rope, missed and landed ackwardly, and seemed to go into a seizure. There was a close up of his face (with his eyes rolling back) and Vince muttered "He's in trouble" and they cut to a commercial. When the show came back, Vince gleefully announced from the announce table that the Kid got up and walked to the back under his own power. The match was never finished. Now, with all that said---did Waltman really have a seizure, or was it a work? I ask this because it was never mentioned again, and we never saw the Kid and Holly tag after that. It was forgotten and never built to anything. It just seemed a little odd that it was never mentioned again, and less than a year later Shawn Michaels collapsed in a match with Owen Hart (a work) and it was played up for months.

He has 2 daughters---Indiana, and Mattigan. I cannot imagine growing up with him as my dad. It was weird seeing Hogan's kids, but I can't see Warrior's. I'm waiting for the 30,000 word manifesto that he will surely post within the week or so about the lawsuit "defending the legend of the WOAH-YA!! **SNORT**" I wonder if "Hoak HO-GON!!" will be called to testify.

One small nitpick: The time between Palmer being shot and FOX News broadcasting his death was less than 10 minutes. I doubt it would really happen that quickly.

I like the Undisputed/WWE title belt (Eddie/JBL/Rock/Brock). It LOOKS like a World Title belt. The first one, the one HHH was given after WM 18 was smaller and didn't have a black outline on the plate. It looked like the WWE North American title or something. The Attitude Era WWF World Title (98-02) is probably my favorite overall, although it always looked a little cartoony with Austin. The Winged Eagle was cool as well, but it always seemed too small for a world title. I mean, it was the same size as the intercontinental belt, and the tag team title belt always seemed bigger. The Big Gold World/WCW title gets an enormous amount of love around here, but I don't like it as much. It seems too plain. The worst belt overall? The current (98--) Intercontinental belt. They took one of the best looking belts ever and made it look like some generic boxing belt. When I saw the Rock being interviewed with that thing on his shoulder the night after WM 14....ugh. No wonder HHH never wanted to hold it. I guess they wanted to make sure that the I-C belt was the MIDCARD belt, and the World title the MAIN EVENT belt, because they sure do look that way.

Is that the theme that he had RIGHT AFTER he broke off from Edge? It started with "Christian! Christian! At least, you're on you're oooooowwwwnnnnn!"--followed by some generic rock song---then followed by some guy singing opera in a foreign language. His Titantron had subtitles, though, like "No longer bound by my brother, etc. etc."

"434. Harley Race speeding through the Lake of the Ozarks at night, smashing his speed-boat into a family's much smaller dingy, killing the folks on the little boat." That one is true---sort of. No one was killed, but my grandparents used to live at the Lake of the Ozarks. They had some friends who were out on the lake with family around Memorial Day of 1990 or so. Anyhoo, Race was drunk off his ass, and was speeding through the cove in his boat when he collided with their boat, seriously injuring and paralyzing one of them. Race was pretty banged up as well.

I think it's insane as well. I don't understand dropping 2k on a "real" belt, unless it's the actual belt Hogan wore at WM 3, or Austin's first smoking skull belt, etc. It's not like you are buying a REAL WWF Belt--you are still buying a replica. Just because it's exactly like the real thing doesn't mean anything--to me, at least. The Figures, Inc. belts are awesome. Just because it isn't made by the same guy who made the original Winged Eagle belt is meaningless.

She is 34 years old, according to Wikipedia. Born September 29th, 1971. She would have been in her late 20's when she was in the WWF. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stacy_Carter I always thought she was younger, like 22 or so--because of Lawler's taste in women.

He has music in SvR 2006 as well.

I think its the brand name, since IIRC his boots at the time also had the same intials on them. and "the kliq" was shawns name for his fans in 96, "the clique" was hbk/nash, hall, hhh, waltman. I know this was from a few pages back, but I know the answer, and it isn't "The Kliq". "T" and "K" stood for Themis Klarides, his girlfriend at the time. The fact that he lovingly kissed both gloves and one of them had a heart on it should have given it away. She was a fitness trainer and attorney who was one of the RAW ring girls (who paraded around with the signs in between matches) for a while as well. She was featured in WWF Magazine a couple of times. Shawn gives her credit in his book for helping him get in shape for the Iron Man match at WM XII. Ironically enough, she is now a state representative from Connecticut: http://www.housegop.state.ct.us/members/klarides.htm

Evolution is the key. I think it's ironic that the WWE had a faction called "Evolution" when the product has become so stale from being the same thing for the last 8 years. I had an old tape of all the RAW's from January of 1999 (back then I was trying to record EVERY Raw for the entire year--my experiment lasted 4 weeks) and re-watched the first two episodes. Boy, did they suck. Austin was terrific, and so was Rock, Foley, D-X, etc. But the overall presentation was really boring and rough, like a bad play or something. I felt the same way when I popped in an old SNME (the split of the Mega Powers) and was laughing out loud at how hokey it was. I couldn't believe I had actually WATCHED this stuff. But back in 1999, when I was 17, The WWF was the coolest thing ever. I was in the EXACT demographic that they were looking to please, so mission accomplished, Vince. But now I am 23, and the product is literally the exact same thing. I have grown up, and so has the audience. Most of us were around back then, but the problem is that because of the success that they HAD with the current format, they won't change it. Remember, a 20 minute comedy skit with absolutely NO wrestling brought in the biggest ratings on a pro wrestling show, EVER. Is it any wonder that we will soon see Shelton Benjamin's "Mama"? The problem is that the company and the presentation hasn't evolved, and it has become stale. Also, the lack of serious competition has hurt as well. The WWF evolved from "Monday Night RAAAAWWWW!" to "RAW is WAR" because WCW was breathing down their necks. Vince will tell you it's because of his genius and that the idea just came to him in a dream one night. But we all know the real truth. With no company to kick their ass in the ratings 843 weeks in a row, there is no need, or any pressure, to completely evolve. Sure, after a bad quarter they'll move the title to someone else, but the overall presentation has been the same for EIGHT YEARS. But since there is no threat from anyone, and since the show is still pulling in OK numbers, everyone at Titan Towers has become complacent. I think it's the same reason The Simpsons has sucked the last 8 or 9 years. Everyone knows it will score decent ratings no matter what they put on, so why make the effort? They don't have to beat The Cosby Show or prove anything, so it's been on cruise control. The WWE is the same way. Because the current format brought them the biggest ratings in pro wrestling history and allowed them to kill all of their competition, they seem to have problems letting go. They refuse to believe that the product has become stale, and that there will be another boom any day now, because this is the same format that brought the boom in 1998. And finally, there is too much control over what happens out there. Austin and Rock became big stars because THEY went out there and did THEIR thing. Now John Cena is going out there and doing some shitty former "Ellen" writer's thing. I don't understand how we are supposed to buy into anyone on those shows if they all go out there and basically say, act, and wrestle the same way. Sure, John Cena has a different gimmick than HHH, but they both go out there and do the same thing week after week. The reason there was a boom in 1985 or so, and again in 1999 was because of the CHARACTERS, and the SHOW they put on. Someone on that roster could end up being the biggest star in wrestling ever, but that will never happen as long as Vince and Stephanie have the talent by the balls. I can understand creating and guiding the character along, but Vince and Co. need to step back and let the actual person fine tune the little things. I believe Vince has been told he is a genius so many times that he has started to believe that he is an invincible superbooker who is always right. Once again: Evolution is the key.

Hoo Boy, I hope that spoiler doesn't turn out to be the new GM. I don't think it will be Kennedy either, based on this interview snippet with WWE.com about his surgery: "I’m not allowed do to anything with my right hand for the next six weeks. So, that should be interesting. I’m not at all ambidextrous. I’m very right-handed, so I’ve been having a hard time doing anything. But I’m in a huge sling with a cuff that is attached to a cooler and it fills with cold water, so it’s pretty slick. My hand and wrist are Velcroed to my belly-button for the next six weeks. But I’m doing okay. I’m a little groggy still, obviously. I’m on pretty strong pain medication. Every once and a while it starts to wear off and I start to feel it, but what can you do?" http://www.wwe.com/inside/news/kennedysurgery Doesn't sound like he'll be doing much of anything for a while. I really wish they would drop the whole General Manager/President/CEO/Authority Figure character. It's just a crutch for the writing team to fall back on when they can't find a reason to have 2 people feud.

The whole "Sleeping with Stephanie" rumor/urban legend isn't true. I think Meltzer confirmed it wasn't at one point. Even if he hadn't, there's no way--Savage was still with the WWF for years after this supposedly happened. It doesn't make since for Vince to get pissed 15 years after the fact. Unless he didn't know about it. Oops. My all time favorite Savage moment was his commentary after the Doink/Crush match at WM 9. Heenan was going on about how the "Double Doinks" was just an illusion brought on by David Copperfield, since he was doing a show at Caesars around that time. Savage responded, totally serious..... "Well, if that's true, then Crush is going to beat up David Copperfield." I can't explain why, but I laughed for about 10 straight minutes when he said that, and still do everytime I hear it. It's just how he says it. Typing it doesn't do it justice.

I'm not saying it should be ignored. Kurt Angle obviously has been burning midnight oil for a long time now. But he isn't the only pro wrestler that pushes himself. Hell, let's talk about how Benoit pushes HIMSELF too far, or how Flair is too old to wrestle while we're at it. Hey, Batista's going to job to Orton with a torn chest muscle--isn't THAT pushing yourself as well? Again, I mention Eugene. Passing out in the locker room? Doesn't HE need help too? Angle isn't the only one. What pisses me off about this whole thread (and the whole "deathwatch" rumor as well) is that there isn't anything to back it up. Someone typed a paragraph, and everyone is acting like Moses came down from the mountain and declared it or something. In your mind it does. But really, here's the actual sentence: Now, HOW does that equal Kurt Angle? Couldn't it be HHH, Batista, John Cena, Ric Flair, or any non-jobber? I've said it before and I'll say it again, that sentence (and the entire report) doesn't really say ANYTHING. Could it be Kurt Angle? Yes, but to say it's no one but him because The Torch used the word "credentials" is one of the dumbest things ever. In Keller's eyes, HHH could have credentials. So could Batista. Or Cena, Flair, or even fucking Eugene or Rob Conway. In your eyes, it's Kurt Angle. In The Torch's eyes it's....well, they convieniently didn't say, did they? As far as any of us know, he could be talking about Daviari. If the report said: "Kurt Angle is on a deathwatch because he pushes himself too hard" then you could discuss away. But it didn't. I'm not trying to turn a blind eye to anything. I'm just (and still) trying to say that a topic like this wouldn't be discussed if not for Eddie's death. And it's just sad that people here are taking such a standard sounding paragraph and making it equal Kurt Angle: Injured pro wrestler hopped up on painkillers with nerve damage who's death is imminent. If you want to have an honest discussion about who is pushing themselves too far in pro wrestling, go ahead. But don't base it on a tabloid style report that didn't serve any purpose except to stir up shit among wrestling fans.

I seriously hope this whole topic and idea dies a quick death very, very soon. Once again, if Eddie Guerrero wasn't dead, we wouldn't be talking about someone else's eventual demise, and we wouldn't be talking about how Kurt Angle is a walking time bomb, loaded up on painkillers, pushing himself to the edge. Disagree with me all you want, but a topic like this wouldn't have been anywhere on this board last Friday night. But now, with Eddie's death, the topic has switched to "Who's next?", which in a way is really, really sad. Now anytime Kurt Angle takes a bad bump or isn't on TV one week, everyone will expect the worst. And worst of all, no one would be talking about it if it wasn't for some creepy paragraph that the Torch put out. I don't doubt that Kurt Angle has injuries and works through pain, but to talk about his upcoming death and how much news coverage it would get is terrible. The Torch wouldn't have talked about someone being on a "deathwatch" if Eddie was still alive, and all of us would be talking about how much it sucks to have Randy Orton as WWE Champ or how awesome it was that Eddie regained the belt. Hey, maybe The Torch was talking about Eugene? He's on his way to rehab, isn't he? Oh, wait a minute, that wouldn't be interesting enough. Well, there's no way to tell because that whole blurb didn't say ANYTHING. If it would have named names, then I could understand. But the whole thing just sounds like something out of the National Enquirer, and everyone is eating it up. I loved the whole way this thread started. It's SO obvious who it is, but HHH, Flair, and Hogan were all mentioned. Obvious, huh? Then someone said, "It's Kurt Angle!" without really explaining why, and now all anyone can talk about is when he will die and how many news outlets will carry it. Sheesh. This is why there are so many silly rumors/urban legends in professional wrestling. And you know what? I feel silly to still be commmenting on it, so I'll stop. I'm sure someone will come along and refute this entire post line by line, so go ahead.

Perhaps this is it....from Bret's webpage, from Bret himself: "When McMahon and his sidemen barged into my dressing room in Montreal, Rick was there. He was one of the guys who refused to budge. Refused to allow me to be put in a compromising position. Rick Rude stayed there to make sure my back was watched. There were -- and are -- some people who think the whole thing that happened between McMahon and I was a hoax. Rick was the one who called Eric Bischoff and said 'I was there. I was in the room and this is what happened.' When I was forming new business relationships in WCW, Rude's call protected me and saved me from a lot of doubt because even Eric Bischoff had to question whether this was a set-up or not. I was always grateful to Rick for making that call and for being with me in the room that day." http://www.brethart.com/column/april24.asp