Styles 0 Report post Posted January 16, 2004 So, I guess Piper aint coming back...Actually it would be real fun if they threw the 2 in the ring together to see what happens like last year with Piper and Russo...anyway... 01.15.04 | Ex-Survivor Cast Member Joins TNA Wrestling The Man America Loves To Hate Ex-Survivor Cast Member Joins TNA Wrestling The men the American people admire most extravagantly are the most daring liars; the men they detest most violently are those who try to tell them the truth. – H.L. Mencken January 15, 2004 ( Nashville , TN ) —TNA Entertainment, LLC announced today that former cast member of Survivor: Pearl Islands , Jon Dalton a/k/a/ Jonny Fairplay has signed a contract with TNA Wrestling. Dalton is scheduled to make his first TNA pay-per-view appearance Wednesday, January 21, 2004 . Known as the “Rasputin of the Pearl Islands ,” Dalton 's infamy helped catapult Survivor's viewership back to the top of the Nielsen television ratings. Michael Booth of the Denver Post said, “Survivor is back on top with its seventh season, in the Pearl Islands of Panama , thanks in large part to ‘Jonny Fairplay', the consciously obnoxious beach bum who fabricated his grandmother's death to buy three more days on the island, and then bought three more days by swearing allegiance on her nonexistent grave.” The Survivor season finale achieved an audience of 25.2 million viewers and beat the combined offerings of NBC, ABC and FOX. For the week of December 8-14, 2003 , Survivor: Pearl Islands was the second, third and fourth most watched show, and it ranks fourth in household ratings and share in the 2003-2004 Network Primetime Series to date. “The most successful wrestling personalities evoke passion—one way or another—from the fans,” TNA President, Dixie Carter explains. “Based on the reaction Jonny drew from 20+ million viewers weekly, there's no doubt he will ignite both controversy and intrigue each week on TNA's pay-per-views.” “TNA is a wrestling company that is going to the top, and I'm going to take them there,” boasted Dalton . “I'm Jonny Fairplay, and I don't play fair.” A native of Danville , VA , Dalton has a background in professional wrestling with stints at independent promotions New Dimension Wrestling and Portland Wrestling. Dalton also worked as a production assistant for wrestling icon, Rowdy Roddy Piper. TNA Wrestling is the first-ever weekly wrestling pay-per-view series available every Wednesday night at 8pm ET / 5pm PT. Available on iN DEMAND, DIRECTV and TVN as well as Viewer's Choice and Bell ExpressVu in Canada, TNA features some of the most recognizable faces in wrestling today—including Sting, Raven, Jeff Jarrett, AJ Styles, and more! With less talk and more in-ring action, TNA Wrestling has gained recognition as the definitive alternative for today's wrestling enthusiast. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest JMA Report post Posted January 16, 2004 How long before World Wrestling steals him? Vince has deep pockets and LOVES attention from the mainstream. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Styles 0 Report post Posted January 16, 2004 How long before World Wrestling steals him? Vince has deep pockets and LOVES attention from the mainstream. He had his chance, Vince showed no interest. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Steviekick 0 Report post Posted January 16, 2004 This is more Russo-esque thinking. This guy is going to have no impact on programming. The only plus is that it will get more mainstream attention. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheFranchise 0 Report post Posted January 16, 2004 The only plus is that it will get more mainstream attention. They dont need Hogan now! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest JacK Report post Posted January 16, 2004 Mainstream attention is always good; as long as he doesn't like beat AJ Styles or mess up the X-Division; it's all good. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Corey_Lazarus 0 Report post Posted January 16, 2004 What? David Arquette is coming to TNA?! Well, this is the equivalent. Plus, at least the thinking with Arquette was that since he'd been in a few hit movies (the Scream trilogy) as a major character, but this dude? Those who have not watched Survivor have no idea who he is. I predict very little mainstream attention, as TNA is just another "wrasslin' company" to the mainstream media. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OldSchoolWrestling 0 Report post Posted January 16, 2004 They have only one chance of this being any type of positive: If CBS allows them to show footage of Survivor. All they have to do is show the scene on Survivor where he and his buddy tell everyone his grandmother died while he was on the island just to win a challenge, and the footage of him imitating wrestlers, he'll be worth something. If they just If they just say he was the heel from Survivor, the fans won't give a shit. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Dynamite Kido Report post Posted January 17, 2004 Two words........ Fucking stupid. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Silence 0 Report post Posted January 17, 2004 Yeah, fuck CM Punk, Jonny Fairplay outdoes him as a major heel! Good job, TNA! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
