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WRESTLING GLOBE NEWSLETTER
Tuesday July 14, 2009
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Wrestling Globe Newsletter by Mike Aldren – All the latest professional wrestling news, gossip and occasional opinion direct to your mailbox.
WGN is read by industry power players, many top wrestlers and thousands of fans from all around the world.
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Please send any news tips or feedback to: [email protected]
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WORLD WRESTLING ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
7/13 Raw TV results from Orlando, FL: Maryse, Alicia Fox & Rosa Mendes over Kelly Kelly, Mickie James & Gail Kim; The Miz over Primo Colon; Jack Swagger over MVP; Mark Henry over Chris Jericho via CO; Hornswoggle over Chavo Guerrero; Big Show over Evan Bourne; and John Cena, Triple H & Seth Green over Randy Orton & The Legacy.
The only real news concerning the PPV is that they acknowledged the injury to Edge and Jericho will choose a new partner in the tag title match against The Legacy.
We’re looking for reader reports from the Smackdown/ECW tapings tonight in Miami to [email protected] with basic match results and any points of interest. ECW, back to its usual timeslot tonight on SyFy, has the main event of Tommy Dreamer vs. Kozlov in a non-title match; plus Shelton Benjamin vs. Christian; Yoshi Tatsu vs. the returning Paul Burchill; Zack Ryder vs. Goldust; and Sheamus vs. a local worker.
***
As always WWE are on the cusp of what is current and cool with the kids.
Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill of ZZ Top will guest host next week’s Raw in Raleigh. If you don’t know who they are ask your grand parents because they will probably remember when the band peaked in the 1970s.
But hey, Vince McMahon still thinks they are cool, and that’s all that counts right?
Raw on Monday night drew a 3.5 rating, down from 3.6 the previous week.
They took a slight hit from the Home Run Derby.
Some off camera notes from Raw. Billy Kidman was backstage with some developmental wrestlers from the school in Tampa. A few guys were working out in the ring before the show. Home Alone movie star MaCaulay Culkin was sat in the crowd, as was former WWE star Haku, who has a son in developmental. The dark match was Sheamus over Drew McIntyre, and taped for Superstars was Big Show vs. Kofi Kingston.
Last week’s Raw with Ted DiBiase Sr. as guest host finished the fifth most watched program among basic cable networks. The show finished behind Burn Notice, The Jackson Memorial Service, Royal Pains and the top spot went to The Closer.
Interesting note from Bill Behrens regarding Jesse (Ray Gordy Jr.) and his revived white rapper gimmick on Smackdown. During the latest Cryme Time Word Up segment, Jesse called himself Jezzy aka Slim J. The Jezzy name he used in Deep South Wrestling where he was called Ray Gezzy doing a similar gimmick to what he does now. The Slim J name is actually taken from Jeremy Boyd, an indy wrestler out of Atlanta, who has used the name for nearly ten years including with Ring of Honor and a TNA PPV. Boyd called Gordy over the weekend and Gordy told him using his name was a “tribute.” It will be interesting to see if Gordy keeps the name as there could be legal ramifications.
Apparently the new alter ego of Ron Killings, Pretty Ricky, was based on this http://tinyurl.com/nn3ubf.
Vince McMahon will report WWE’s second-quarter results on 8/6 during a conference call. This quarter includes Wrestlemania 25 which Linda McMahon said did 1 million PPV buys but according to WWE’s own corporate website is tracking less than 1 million buys.
Maria Kanellis is working out in Tampa this week with FCW.
Ricky Steamboat vs. Chris Jericho is advertised for Sunday’s Smackdown house show in Greenville, SC.
12 Rounds with John Cena on DVD sold just over 200,000 units for a gross of $3.1 million, for the week ending 7/5. The budget for the movie was
$23 million (not including marketing costs) which with its $15 million at the box office means a big loss for WWE studios.
Tony Atlas no showed his induction into the New England Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame this past weekend in East Providence, RI.
The Allied Powers Greatest Tag Teams DVD went on sale today. For all you wrestling DVD needs I recommend www.wrestlingshop.com.
Both WWE and TNA have shows in Orlando on 12/20. The TNA show is the Final Resolution PPV at Universal Studios and WWE has a house show at the Amway Arena.
Miyako Blassie, the wife of the late Classy Freddie Blassie, is selling their 1997 Lincoln Town Car on WWE.com at http://tinyurl.com/n53lvm.
Bob Holly said in an interview this week that he left WWE because he was tired of the travel and sick of “putting guys over so they can get all the credit and make all the money.” Well, someone has to.
TOTAL NONSTOP ACTION WRESTLING NEWS
Chris Daniels has donated one of his robes to Wrestler’s Rescue for auction at www.wrestlersrescue.org.
Jim Cornette at http://tinyurl.com/n3wxql plays word association with Kevin Eck of The Baltimore Sun.
Awesome Kong wrote on her Twitter today that she is getting close to making a big announcement. This might have certain people worried.
Jay Lethal in full gimmick mode “freaks out” courtesy of Jeremy Borash at http://tinyurl.com/no5b28.
The TNA iPhone game is $1.99 for a limited time at www.tnawrestling.com.
Following in footsteps of Jim Duggan, Rob Van Dam and others, Mick Foley
will be attempting a stand-up comedy routine at the Hollywood Improv in
California on 8/22. Mr. Socko will be there too, apparently.
Christy Hemme will be appearing on Saturday at Miller’s Collectors
Corner at in Swansea, IL. For more info you can call 618-234-3299.
OTHER WRESTLING NEWS
Takashi Matsunaga, the founder of All Japan Women’s Pro-Wrestling, and
arguably the most important figure in the history of women’s wrestling,
passed away on Saturday due to pneumonia at the age of 73.
Nigel McGuinness vs. Tyler Black has been added to Ring of Honor’s 7/25
show during their double shot weekend in Toronto. Bret Hart and Ric
Flair will be signing autographs at the shows. More info at
www.rohwrestling.com.
There is a legends show on Saturday with Brutus Beefcake and Greg
Valentine at the Rock Hollow Conservation Club in Freeport, IL. For more
info you can call 815-232-5428.
NWA Indiana billed as ‘A Night With The King’ with Jerry Lawler runs on
8/9 at the Lafayette Theater in downtown Lafayette, LA. More info at
www.thenwaindiana.com.
Former WWE Diva Krystal Marshall is featured in the Flex Magazine model
search. Fans can vote at www.flexonline.com.
www.inyourheadonline.com has an interview up with former Mid-Atlantic
Wrestling announcer Bob Caudle who will be appearing at the upcoming
www.nwalegends.com fanfest in Charlotte.
Frank Mir on his defeat to Brock Lesnar at UFC 100: “I basically was
(within) a half-an-inch of catching him. I knew he was hurt, but he had
good leverage, with my shoulder against the cage. I made a stupid
mistake. When I stood up, and he’s screaming, it took me a few seconds
to realize (what Lesnar was doing). ESPN showed him spitting and
hollering. My children are looking. I’m shaking my head, pointing at my
kids and going, ‘That’s not how you want to do it, guys. We’ll be cocky,
especially before a fight, to help sell it. I didn’t degrade him [when I
beat him at UFC 81] and say he was an idiot. There was no point to kick
the guy while he was down. OK, I beat the guy. What, am I going to spit
on you, too? If I can just nail that (weight) gap to even 10 pounds,
it’ll be a different fight next time. Hopefully next time, I’ll show him
how somebody is supposed to act in victory.”
Irv Muchnick at http://tinyurl.com/n3xs9a has an interesting look at
Brock Lesnar.
Diva-Dirt.com presents WGN’s Diva of the Day, Shelly Martinez at
http://www.diva-dirt.com/divaoftheday/
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WRESTLING GLOBE MAILBAG, QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
Please send any mailbag letters or questions to
[email protected]
***
I really didn’t care for Lesnar in WWE and I certainly don’t care for
him at all in UFC. You don’t come into the world of MMA, lose your first
official UFC match, win your second, and then demand a title shot. That
stuff happens rarely in WWE, so why should it happen in real sports? Not
even in boxing does stuff like this happen. Lesnar could have waited at
least until his eigth or ninth match before Dana White should have
considered him for a shot. Plus his post match celebration and interview
seems like it was Wrestlemania XX all over again. Flipping off the crowd
was normal, but to call out a sponsor of an event is wrong. And even
though he is married to Sable, by announcing to the world that he’s
going to spend the night with her was a bit too much. The only question
I now have is who is going to stop this guy?
Mike Caldwell
Long Beach, CA
***
It’s been two decades since pro wrestling’s famed Four Horsemen
dominated the National Wrestling Alliance. The legendary Nature Boy Ric
Flair, Ole and Arn Anderson, and Tully Blanchard were the originals.
Later, Barry Windham helped power the stable to a new level, second to
none.
With legendary manager James J. Dillon in tow, the Horsemen ride once
more as the most dominant faction in pro wrestling history. This time,
their destination is the NWA Wrestling Legends Fanfest Weekend in
Charlotte, N.C.
In an unprecedented appearance on Friday, August 7, all members of the
two greatest incarnations of the Four Horsemen will appear together to
sign autographs, pose for photos, and mix with fans at the Charlotte
gathering, which runs Thursday through Sunday, August 6-9 at the Hilton
University Place hotel.
The Horsemen will be reunited at the Friday session on the autograph
stage and photo op area, where fans can stand side-by-side with the
Horsemen and pose for a high-quality digital photo, suitable for framing
and autographing. That’s an item you’ll treasure for a lifetime.
The entire weekend is going to be incredible, but the Horsemen reunion
just puts it over the top! This will likely be the most important moment
in Fanfest history.
The NWA Wrestling Legends Fanfest Weekend, three huge days and four
nights featuring dozens of wrestling’s legendary heroes and villains —
and a bevy of today’s top superstars and future legends — returns
Thursday through Sunday, August 6-9, 2009 to the Hilton University Place
Hotel in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Stars from the glory days of the National Wrestling Alliance converge on
the Carolinas not only to renew old friendships but to rekindle old
rivalries. 29 featured legends have been confirmed for the 2009 NWA
Wrestling Legends Fanfest Weekend. Abdullah the Butcher, Ole Anderson,
Tully Blanchard, Dave Brown, Bob Caudle, Chris Cruise, James J. Dillon,
The Fantastics Bobby Fulton & Tommy Rogers, Don Fargo, Jackie Fargo,
Nature Boy Ric Flair, Susan Green, Jimmy Hart, Sir Oliver Humperdink,
Jerry Jarrett, Paul Jones, Rich Landrum, Mark Lewin, Bugsy McGraw,
Magnum TA, Judy Martin, Angelo Mosca, Angelo Mosca Jr., Harley Race,
Billy Robinson, Lance Russell, Bill Watts, and Barry Windham will be
signing autographs and taking photos with fans.
This year’s activities kickoff on Thursday night, August 6 with two
blockbuster question-and answer sessions! 25 Years After Starrcade
reunites former NWA World champions Nature Boy Ric Flair and Harley Race
in a discussion certain to be as no-holds-barred as that legendary steel
cage match more than a quarter-century ago. Flair won the championship
from Race at Starrcade ’83 in Greensboro, an event considered the
forerunner of today’s megabuck pay-per-views.
Immediately following the Q&A, VIPs will be able join Flair and Race on
stage, with the authentic NWA belt they fought for (pictured at right,
the subject of the Mid-Atlantic Gateway’s new book Ten Pounds of Gold,)
for an incredibly rare photo opportunity where you’ll stand side-by-side
with two of the all-time greats and get a beautiful 8″ x 10″
commemorative photo that will last a lifetime. Great to get autographed,
too!
Jim Cornette, the always-outspoken, always-controversial, award-winning
manager of The Midnight Express, finishes off Thursday with A
Conversation with Cornette, a late-night Q&A where among other things,
wrestling’s Louisville Slugger will take questions about his new book,
The Midnight Express 25th Anniversary Scrapbook. But you know that’s not
all…
Daytime festivities center around the Autograph Stage and Photo Ops.
This is your chance to get your photo taken with and the autographs of
dozens of featured wrestling legends.
Two huge nights of live wrestling matches will be showcased at this
year’s fanfest weekend. Your VIP “All Access” Pass includes a reserved
Ringside seat for BOTH nights’ matches!
Very popular is an exhibit area with vendors offering any and every type
wrestling memorabilia you can imagine. Some vendors will have booth
guests offering additional autograph and photo opportunities.
VIP All Access Pass holders will have early admission each day, first
access to all autograph signings and photo opportunities, exclusive
admission to revealing Question-and-Answer sessions, and ringside seats
to the live wrestling matches! Throw in a free fanfest weekend t-shirt
and a VIP All Access Pass with neck lanyard and you have the VIP hookup!
Your ticket purchase helps support our efforts to celebrate the
tradition of the once-mighty National Wrestling Alliance and to honor
the heroes of wrestling’s past and present. Thanks for being part of a
truly special weekend. Most folks will tell you it’s a remarkable
reunion.
Greg Price
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