RIC FLAIR IS COMING TO FANFEST!

*That's right, folks! The one and only "Nature Boy" Ric Flair will
indeed be at this year's NWA Wrestling Legends Fanfest in Charlotte,
North Carolina. Flair's appearance is Friday afternoon, August 15
from 1-4 p.m.

I want to thank the folks at MainEventMoments.com for their help with
Ric Flair's appearance here. Flair will be a vendor guest just like we
had Arn Anderson last year. Three hours in a separate area.

We'll be offering to the first 150 people that want it, at $100 per
person, a Photo Op with Flair and his signature on one of your own
items. Like we did last year with Arn, after the Photo Op photos were
taken and before folks got them back, I had Arn sign them as well. I'd
like to do the same thing with Flair, so you'd get your Photo Op 8x10
signed too, it's just much faster if he signs them all at one time
instead of each individual person taking their Photo Op 8x10 back to
him to get it signed. I think this way, we can give folks the
autographed Photo Op 8x10 and another autograph.

Each of the 150 people would pass through Ric's line twice. The first
time, we'll be doing Photo Ops only. Once those are out of the way,
the same 150 people will go back through the line and get your one
item signed.

For those of you wanting extra items signed, it's likely we'll accept
those items at Registration like we've done in the past for extra
items. Pricing has not been determined for extra items at this time.

Right now at http://www.nwalegends.com/2008/ricflair.htm
you are able to purchase your Photo Op/Autograph Combo and secure
your once-in-a-lifetime opportunity with the Nature Boy! Don't delay,
though. The response has been tremendous so far and I expect these
tickets to sell very quickly.

I want to personally thank each of you. It's evident there's a
tremendous amount of support for one of the all-time great NWA icons.
I thank you for making it possible for him to be with us this year.

Thanks again! Wooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

Please make plans now to be with us for 3 HUGE DAYS (and now 4 nights!)
celebrating wrestling tradition!

This will make a great summer vacation!

NWA Wrestling Legends Fanfest
Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, August 14-17, 2008
Hilton University Place Hotel; Charlotte, North Carolina

Website

NWA Legends

Media Man Australia Profiles

Ric Flair

Wrestling Legends

WWE

NWA

Wrestling

Former World Champs, Dillon & Humperdink Coming To Fanfest!

Bruno Sammartino and Superstar Billy Graham, along with legendary
managers James J. Dillon and Sir Oliver Humperdink, have been added
to the list of featured guests at this summer's NWA Wrestling Legends
Fanfest in Charlotte, North Carolina.

The NWA Wrestling Legends Fanfest, 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 14-17 to the Hilton University Place Hotel.

Sammartino and Graham are icons in the sport; both former WWWF world
champions. In addition to signing autographs and taking photos with
fans (including a rare Photo Op of the two together,) the pair will
be featured in a Sunday morning question-and-answer session, sharing
stories about their historic battles and discussing their
larger-than-life careers.

Dillon and Humperdink are two fanfest favorites, both of them having
taken part in our fanfest weekends previously. Both will be in
Charlotte all three days and both will be at our Friday night Hall of
Heroes dinner banquet and awards ceremony.

Other featured legends confirmed thus far include Ole Anderson, The
Assassin, Jack Brisco, Bob Caudle, Chris Cruise, Ted Dibiase, Jimmy
Garvin and Precious, Rip Hawk, Sam Houston, Paul Jones, Ivan Koloff,
Rich Landrum and Grizzly Smith.

VIP All Access Pass holders will have early admission each day, first
access to all autograph signings and photo opportunities, exclusive
admission to three revealing Question-and-Answer sessions, and
ringside seats to the live wrestling matches both Saturday and Sunday
nights! Throw in a free fanfest weekend t-shirt and a VIP All Access
Pass with neck lanyard and you have the VIP hookup!

VIP All Access Passes are just $155 and are on sale now at
http://www.NWALegends.com

Your ticket purchase helps support our efforts to celebrate the
tradition of the 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.

Visit our Fanfest Forum online messageboard to join up with other
fanfest attendees, introduce yourself, and join in the discussion as
we get ready for an incredible weekend in Charlotte! Go to
http://www.nwalegends.com/fanfestforum
and join in!

Should you have any questions or comments to share, please feel free
to email us at Info@NWALegends.com

*NWA Wrestling Legends Fanfest
Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, August 14-17, 2008
Hilton University Place Hotel; Charlotte, North Carolina
VIP All Access Passes on sale now at http://www.NWALegends.com

*

Please make plans now to be with us for 3 HUGE DAYS (and now 4 nights!)
celebrating wrestling tradition!

This will make a great summer vacation!

NWA Wrestling Legends Fanfest
Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, August 14-17, 2008
Hilton University Place Hotel; Charlotte, North Carolina

Website

NWA Legends

Media Man Australia Profiles

Wrestling Legends

NWA

Wrestling

Kyle Sandilands gets thrown by wrestler David Wallis - The Daily Telegraph - 8th May 2008

IS David Wallis the most enviable guy in Australia?

The pro wrestler did what so many can only dream of - flooring Kyle Sandilands. Literally.

Wallis, who mixes his grappling with singing, bumped into the omnipresent TV and radio star at the Perth Australian Idol auditions on Tuesday night.

And Idol judge, Big Brother presenter and 2Day FM radio motormouth Sandilands - who is either barmier or braver than we thought - challenged him to a clinch.

Sources say Sumo Sandilands put up a good fight, but was unceremoniously roughed up and pinned to the ground by Wallis, leaving his fellow judges Marcia Hines and Ian "Dicko" Dickson and the crew in hysterics.

Unfortunately, Sandilands' personal bodyguard was downstairs at the time packing bags for the red-eye flight back to Sydney.

The impromptu wrestling match didn't stop Wallis making a good fist of the talent quest. The power ballad-singing sales assistant, 23, who loves listening to John Farnham and Metallica, made it through to the top 100.

Media Man Australia Profiles

Wrestling

UFC: Dana White Says Either Fight Or Go Home, by Garrett Gonzales - Bleacher Report - 21st April 2008

After just learning through Dave Meltzer's Wrestling Observer newsletter that the UFC was trying to cut down from 200 fighters by about twenty five percent, I noticed today that Kalib Starnes was part of that twenty five percent. Just two days after his decision loss to Nate "The Rock" Quarry at UFC 83, Dana White confirmed with Yahoo! Sports writer Kevin Iole that Starnes needed to "consider a new line of work".

During the three round match-up, Starnes, a native of British Columbia, was being booed by the crowd at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, because of his unwillingness to fight. In the first round, Starnes seemed to be trying to get Quarry to tire by running him around the octagon. But in the second round, his strategy was the same. Quarry would circle and stalk Starnes, trying to get the former TUF Season 3 contestant to mix it up, but to no avail. At the end of the third round, Quarry, frustrated because of Starnes' lack of testicular fortitude, started to mock him. He first pretended as if he was running a race, chasing Starnes around the cage. He then covered up his eyes with his inner right elbow and threw his left arm out as if to pretend he was going to fight him blindly. Starnes didn't take advantage of either ploy and simply continued to backpeddle.

Quarry won the three round decision unanimously, with one judge scoring it 30-24, which meant that either he scored each round 10-8, or that he docked Starnes heavily in the third round for his non-fighting.

Dana White gave $75,000 each to Jonathan Goulet and Kuniyoshi Hironaka for having the best match on the show. Most of the scuttlebutt after the event was about how Starnes had to be fired because of his lack of performance if White was going to put so much importance on having exciting fights. And just like that, it happened.

I believe that the UFC has the power to cut any fighter after a loss. They also could simply not renew an expired contract. I'm not sure which avenue they chose as I don't know Starnes' contract situation, but fighters should've learned a few important lessons based on this.

1. You're only as good as your last win.
2. It's better to lose swinging than to win a boring fight (in case you lose in the future).
3. When you are put on PPV, be entertaining.


But maybe the biggest lesson learned is that it is best to fight hard or risk going home. Kalib Starnes learned the hard way.

Media Man Australia Profiles

UFC

PPV

Wrestling

Killer Kowalski in hospital, by Kevin Eck - Baltimore Sun

This entry is for the old-timers (like myself).

Wladek “Killer” Kowalski, one of pro wrestling’s all-time great heels, is recovering in a physical rehabilitation center in Massachusetts after badly injuring his knees in three separate falls, according to a report on wrestlingfigs.com. Kowalski, 81, has been at the rehab facility since April 2 after a two-week stay in the hospital.

The report attributed the news of Kowalski’s condition to wrestling great Bruno Sammartino, a longtime in-ring rival of Kowalski’s who has been in contact with Kowalski’s wife.

Kowalski, a member of the WWE Hall of Fame and The Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame, wrestled from 1947 to 1977. He is most famous for a match in 1954 against Yukon Eric in which Eric’s ear was severed as the result of Kowalski’s kneedrop. Kowalski was a frequent challenger to Sammartino’s WWE title throughout the 1960s and 1970s.

After retiring from wrestling, he opened a wrestling school and trained people such as Triple H, Big John Studd, Chyna and Perry Saturn. In 1976, he and Studd formed a masked tag team known as The Executioners and won the WWE tag-team title.

Kowalski was in WWE — then known as the World Wide Wrestling Federation — when I first started following wrestling when I was 6 and believed it was real. Kowalski, a menacing figure at about 6 feet 7 and 275 pounds, was the only wrestler that actually frightened me. I still remember watching him wrestle Tony Garea at the Baltimore Civic Center around 1974 and believing that Garea might not make it out of the ring alive. I took the “Killer” moniker literally because Kowalski was so good at being bad.

I wish Kowalski well in his recovery.

Media Man Australia Profiles

Wladek “Killer” Kowalski

Wrestling

Ring Posts - Q&A with Shawn Michaels - Baltimore Sun

Shawn Michaels has earned the monikers “The Showstopper” and “Mr. WrestleMania” for his show-stealing performances on sports entertainment’s biggest stage. On March 30, Michaels will compete in his 15th WrestleMania, but this one is perhaps the most special to him. Michaels will be facing Ric Flair, the man he idolized as a youngster, in a match that very likely will be the final one of Flair’s legendary career.

I spoke briefly with Michaels about the match and his legacy at WrestleMania in a phone interview this afternoon.

You have wrestled Ric Flair before, but can you put into words what it means to you to be facing him at WrestleMania in what could be his final match?

There’s just an emotional thing here for me and for Ric that I think is probably hard for a lot of folks to get a hold of. I’m going in there with a guy that, when I was 16 years old, I sat in front of the TV and I said, “Gosh, I want to be just like him. He embodies everything I want to be. Everything I picture the wrestling life to be, he’s it.” Fast-forward 20-some-odd years later and to be a grown man and be able to call him my friend – we’ve gotten so close with each other in the last several years – and then for him to handpick me to try to get him his greatest moment. I take it so seriously and so personally because of what he’s meant to me in the past and what he means to me now as a friend, and what he’s created in this industry. I know there are so many people that believe he ought to be honored and set apart, and to be the guy that needs to get that done, on the one hand, it’s wonderful. On the other hand, I go, “Gosh, I wish I wouldn’t have been calling myself ‘The Showstopper’ and ‘Mr. WrestleMania’ all these years. I’ve really worked myself into a shoot this time.”

I’ve always gone into WrestleMania, and most of my matches and pay-per-view matches, where no matter what I was feeling on the inside – there have always been nerves and things like that – but I always went in on the outside feeling 7-feet tall and bulletproof. This is the first time that I’m visibly shaken. Can I honor him? Can I do what I really believe he deserves, and can I make it happen for him? Because I want to. There’s a strange emotional thing going on for me that I’ve tried to detach myself from as best I can, but it’s still there. There’s still a part of me that’s 16. Everyone wants me to bring my best, and to do that would mean him leaving this industry forever. Being the guy that did that, and I recognize that there’s a whole show that goes with that, but bittersweet is the only way that I can describe it. There’s an inner conflict going on with me the likes of which I’ve never really had before because there are so many real emotional levels with me. The idea of Ric Flair not being in this industry is something that I don’t even know if I’m prepared for.

I remember a TV match in 1991 or’ 92 that you had with Ric when you were still part of The Rockers. You were a young guy at that point and not yet a singles star. What was it like to work with your idol at that stage of your career?

He had been in the company for a short time and that was our first chance to get to meet each other. That was when I first began to tell him sort of how I felt about him and his impact on my life. At that time I hadn’t become an established anything yet other than a tag-team guy. I think it was one of those things that he had probably heard before and was flattered by. When we went out there, it was business as usual for him. Obviously, me, I was giddy, and it was the fastest eight minutes of my entire life. It wasn’t that long of a match, but it was something at that point in my life that I held very precious. It was like, “Holy cow, I’m in there with ‘The Naitch.’ I’m in there with this guy that I watched.”

The thing that always sort of brings me back to reality is that I’ve got this buddy, Kenny, who was there with me when I was 16 years old watching Ric. And he called me way back then and said, “I can’t believe you wrestled Ric Flair.” And, of course, now to fast-forward so many years later, and we still talk, and he’s like, “Holy cow, Shawn. Can you believe it? He might be having his last match.” There’s still a part of me that I keep tucked away and hidden here in Texas that’s still 16 and chatting with my buddy Kenny about the fact that I’m wrestling Ric Flair at WrestleMania XXIV. I was giddy then. Now, when I talk to Kenny he gets me giddy about it. But the harsh reality is that Ric Flair has always been a part of this business for as long as I can remember. Of all the interest that I’ve ever had in this line of work, he’s been involved in some aspect of it. And the idea of him not being in there – I feel like the old couple that when one of them goes, the other one loses their will to live a little bit. And I really have to wonder, as goofy as it sounds, how much more I’ll want to go on if he’s gone.

I’m in the midst of counting down the Top 20 WrestleMania moments on this blog, and, not surprisingly, you have been involved in several of them. If you had to pick just one, what would be your favorite WrestleMania moment that you were a part of?

Wow. Gosh, that’s always been a hard one for me. I suppose I always have to go back to the ladder match [with Razor Ramon in 1994] because I think that’s the one that sort of put me on the map. That’s the one where people said, “You know what? Thus guy could be a player.” I really have to credit that one for taking me to that next level. I don’t know that any of those other WrestleMania moments would have been possible had I not been in that match.

The plan for the main event at last year’s WrestleMania was John Cena vs. Triple H, but you were inserted in Triple H’s spot after he got hurt. Had he not been injured, what was the plan for you at WrestleMania?

At that time, like every other WrestleMania, there were a couple different ideas. That’s sort of how it’s been with me every year. … The last call I got before Hunter went down was, “Well, we’re thinking about maybe you and King Booker, but we’re also thinking about maybe putting you in the Donald Trump thing. How would you feel about that?” I was like, “Well, Donald Trump and Vince [McMahon] will probably get all the focus and it doesn’t really matter who you put in the match.” Those were the two talked-about scenarios. Just like it was with every other WrestleMania before that, I was like, “That’s fine.” I landed in the main event at WrestleMania XX, which wasn’t really a discussed thing. They brought to me the [Kurt] Angle match years ago. So, things have just slowly gotten better each time. The only one that I’ve ever requested on my own was [with] Vince McMahon, because, for one WrestleMania, I wanted to be in a match where I didn’t have all the pressure of having to tear the house down.

Although it still did.

And I appreciate that, but it’s a lot easier to go in when the sights are set sort of low. Again, that’s when that whole “Showstopper” and “Mr. WrestleMania” thing works against you. I’m at a point in my life now where I don’t know that I enjoy the pressure-cooker as much as I used to. So, I’d love to have a WrestleMania where all the pressure in the world wasn’t upon my shoulders. Apparently it’s not going to happen this year, that’s for sure. I’m looking forward to a day, if it ever comes, when I can maybe be just “plus one other exciting match.”

Media Man Australia Profiles

Shawn Michaels

Ric Flair

WWE

Wrestling

Manager "Playboy" Gary Hart dies at 66, By Mike Mooneyham - Post & Courier - 18th March 2008

Manager "Playboy" Gary Hart dies at 66, By Mike Mooneyham (Credit: Post & Courier)


By Mike Mooneyham
The Post and Courier; Charleston, SC
Tuesday, March 18, 2008

*"Playboy" Gary Hart, one of the most successful managers in pro
wrestling history, passed away Sunday at the age of 66 in Euless,
Texas.

Hart, whose real name was Gary Richard Williams, had just returned
from a wrestling reunion over the weekend in Allentown, Pa., when he
died at his home from an apparent heart attack.

Hart was regarded as one of the greatest managers of all time, and
for a span of nearly 30 years managed such names as The Spoiler,
Bruiser Brody, Great Kabuki, Great Muta, Terry Funk and Abdullah The
Butcher, as well as such tag teams as Rip Hawk and Swede Hanson, and
The Missouri Mauler and Brute Bernard.

Hart also played a pivotal role in some of wrestling's most famous
angles, including the Dusty Rhodes babyface turn in Florida in 1974
when Hart managed the villainous Pak Song, and serving as booker for
a classic 1982 cage match in Dallas that involved Ric Flair, the Von
Erichs and The Freebirds.

Hart, who began his career in 1963 as a wrestler based out of
Chicago, was a major figure in a number of territories throughout the
country. He later turned to a more successful role as a cocky,
well-dressed manager who would do most of the talking for his heel
charges.

His greatest success, though, came as a booker and creative force
during the glory years of the Dallas-based World Class Championship
Wrestling, a position he held from 1979 to 1987. He is credited with
helping create the classic feud between the Von Erichs and The
Freebirds that set the territory on fire.

"I spent a lot of time on the road with Gary Hart," 16-time world
champ Flair said Monday. "He was a big part of that angle and success
(in Texas)."

One of Hart's last major high-profile stints was as leader of the
J-Tex Corporation in the now-defunct World Championship Wrestling in
1989 when he managed a stable that included Muta, Funk, Buzz Sawyer,
Dick Slater and Dragonmaster in a feud with Flair and Sting.

Hart, who had made a name for himself working as a manager for
promoter Jim Barnett in Australia during the late '60s, was brought
into the Carolinas in 1970 at the behest of veteran Mid-Atlantic star
Rip Hawk (Harvey Evers).

"I brought him in right out Australia, and I had to talk like hell
to (promoter) Jim Crockett (Sr.) to get him in here. It all worked
out. It was good for everybody," said Hawk.

"Gary was a great manager," Hawk added. "He always had his brain
working. He could get on the mic and do anything. He knew how to
handle the people and he knew how top control the wrestlers he was
with. He had a lot of good ideas."

Hawk, 77, last saw his former manager last August in Charlotte when
Hart inducted Hawk and late partner Hanson into the NWA Legends Hall
of Heroes.

It was Hart who NWA Legends Fanfest founder Greg Price first talked
to about the Hall of Heroes concept.

"I talked with Gary a bunch about it, and he loved the idea from the
beginning. It was different because they are the true legends, instead
of the legends who are on top now. He loved the idea as far as
honoring Rip and Swede, and the history that he had with them, and
the Crocketts. He always spoke highly of the Crocketts and about how
first-class they were and how well they always treated him. This area
meant a lot to Gary Hart."

Former Mid-South Wrestling owner Cowboy Bill Watts, who called Hart
one of the greatest minds in the business, credits the manager with
helping jump-start his Oklahoma-based territory in the early '70s.
Hart had been sent to Watts by Texas promoter Fritz Von Erich as part
of his commitment to helping an early partnership that included Watts,
Von Erich, Verne Gagne, Danny Hodge and Leroy McGuirk.

"Gary and I just clicked right off," said Watts. "He wore quality
handmade suits and alligator shoes, and that was an era where
managers dressed on the cheap because they always had junk thrown at
them and stuff thrown on them. But Gary had first-class, handmade
suits, like you'd see on a banker, and sharp shoes to go with them.
And he had a way of talking to people that really hit all their hot
buttons, because he could get so down and dirty."

Along with The Spoiler (Don Jardine), "who never really had made any
money before," said Watts, the two popped the territory.

Watts also said Hart worked well with promoters.

"Gary was always extremely flexible in that he knew different ways
to take things that would work out and still protect the man he was
managing, along with his gimmick and longevity. I knew I could go to
him to get ideas about where we wanted to go. And that was huge,
because when you had the burden of booking and running a territory,
sooner or later your mind went dry because you had done everything
and had repeated it. You had to have new ideas."

Hart proved just how valuable he could be while Watts was booking
Florida in the '70s.

"We had billboards around town with Pak Song Nam's army and a bounty
on Dusty Rhodes and Jack Brisco. That's when Dusty Rhodes truly became
'the American Dream' in the feud with Gary and Pak Song. Gary is the
one who positioned that. He was phenomenal. In Georgia, he managed
Dick Slater and Bobby Orton Jr., who were an awesome tag team. He
also managed Maniac Mark Lewin, who was a phenomenal worker and had
that new gimmick, and then he managed Kabuki. And, of course, he was
booking for Fritz when he positioned The Freebirds' feud with the Von
Erich boys. The kids got so hot after that."

"Gary was a dear friend and a stand-up guy," said Watts. "He would
always tell you exactly what he thought. He wouldn't back down from
anybody."

Watts related a story where Hart even stood up to the imposing
Abdullah The Butcher in Atlanta. Watts had asked Abby to do an angle
that the "madman from the Sudan" didn't particularly embrace.

"I was getting ready to can his (behind) when Gary Hart walked
over," said Watts. "Now Gary had no official status. But he walked
over and cussed Abdullah out right to his face in the vernacular of
the ghetto. They had started together under (Detroit promoter) Bert
Ruby years earlier. But Gary told him off and said if he wasn't going
to do things right, get the ---- out of here. I was just shocked that
he would talk to him so strongly, because Gary was never known as a
tough guy. But for somebody like that who didn't have an ax to grind
to come to my support like that, it said a lot."

Hart survived a 1975 plane crash in Tampa that claimed the life of
wrestling star Bobby Shane. The same plane that had been piloted by
Buddy Colt, who was badly injured in the crash, had been flown to
Atlanta to Jacksonville to Tampa by Watts.

"Buddy was a student pilot, and I already had my instrument rating,"
recalled Watts. "I was coming down anyway, so I flew his plane for
him. It was the same plane he crashed later that night in Tampa Bay
where Bobby Shane drowned, and Gary, Buddy and Dennis McCord were
injured. They were lucky to get out alive because they had to swim to
the beach. Gary lost his sight in one eye in that crash."

Hart had joined fellow Texas mat personalities Skandor Akbar (Jim
Wehba) and Bill Irwin over the weekend at a wrestling-themed event in
Pennsylvania. He also had been working on the final touches of an
autobiography, whose working title is "My Life in Wrestling: With a
Little Help from My Friends," that is expected to be published later
this year.

Hart hadn't been home long after being picked up at the airport
Sunday when he collapsed.

"Jason had just gotten to the house, and said his dad was acting
like he was trying to clear his throat. He was shaking real hard, and
he was having the final moments of a heart attack."

"Gary hadn't been sick," added Watts. "He was trying to talk me into
coming to some of these fan deals and meeting him there. He'd call me
about every two weeks, and we'd just talk. He was a great guy."

In recent years Hart had become a regular at fan conventions and
other related nostalgia gatherings, and had provided a major voice in
DVDs about the World Class years.

"From the little time that I was around him, I know he really
enjoyed the fanfests," said Greg Price. "He liked doing that stuff
and being around the fans, reminiscing about wrestling. Gary Hart was
one of the most intriguing men I ever met.

"The times that I got to know him and spend with him just confirmed
whatever I ever though about the guy about how smart he was and how
on top of everything he was. When I watched him manage, he was like
the consummate professional. And when I met him and got to know him,
that just confirmed everything I ever thought about him. He was
probably one of the coolest guys I ever met."

Hart indeed wore many hats. He was booker in charge of the first
Starrcade in Greensboro, N.C., in which Flair won the NWA world title
from Harley Race.

"A lot of people talk about Gary and World Class, but they forget
that he was so much more for so many years before that," said Price.
"He's what WWE now calls creative. He was creative at a time when the
business was much more protected and much more structurally relaxed.
It's completely different from what it is now."

Price says he'll have fond memories of the colorful manager.

"Gary Hart was like the best uncle you could ever have. He was that
'Uncle Gary' to a lot of people. I know Kevin Von Erich still refers
to him as 'Uncle Gary.'"

Hart, who described himself as "a kid from Chicago who worked very
hard to make it in wrestling," will be remembered as someone who
changed the landscape of the wrestling business. Even WWE
acknowledged his contributions to the business in a note on the
company's Web site.

"Gary Hart will live on in the hearts and minds of his friends,
family, and fans and colleagues."

Reach Mike Mooneyham at (843) 937-5517 or
mooneyham@postandcourier.com. For wrestling updates during the week,
call The Post and Courier Info Line at (843) 937-6000, ext. 3090.

Websites

The Post and Courier

NWA Wrestling

Media Man Australia Profiles

Wrestling

Bruno Sammartino

Media Man Australia Profiles

Bruno Sammartino

Wrestling

Still remembered. The legends of wrestlings history making years - 22nd Feb 2008

GOLD COAST, Australia - Still remembered. The legends of wrestlings history making years.

World Championship Wrestling (Australia) was broadcast every Saturday and Sunday lunchtime by the 9 Network through the 60's and 70's, with record ratings, over 300 live promotions per year and set attendance records that may never be broken.

Success was guaranteed by the action filled TV show, the continuing parade of unusual characters, superb athletes, the personalities, the best wrestlers representing almost every country in the world including Australia whose epic battles filled the stadiums throughout the land.

Stars such as Harley Race, King Curtis, Killer Kowalski, Mario Milano, Spiros Arion, Brute Bernard, Bulldog Brower, Ox Baker, Playboy Gary Hart, Killer Karl Kox, Roy Heffernan, Andre the Giant, Dory Funk, John Da Silva, Skull Murphy, The Australians Larry O'Day, Ron Miller, George Barnes, Steve Rackman, John Grey and many more. The hero's the villains who became household names, and are fondly embedded in the memories of most Australians.

The announcers and Referees famous in their own right, Mike Cleary, Ted Whitton, Jack Little, Sam Menacker, Wallaby Bob M'Masters, Ron Hanson, Mike Hunt etc.

World Championship Wrestling Australia was important enough for the National Screen and Sound Archive and the National Library to gratefully accept my donations of wrestling footage and memorabilia material. Scholars such as Dr. Barry York have researched and written about it as part of our history. The National Centre for History Education has published two features on the subject.

These memories of wrestling's glory days are revived in Ron Millers RUFF TUFF & REAL documentary and classic matches collection DVD set.

Visit www.worldchampionshipwrestling.com.au for more news.

Media Man Australia Profiles

Ron Miller

Wrestling

Alex Marvez's weekly look at professional wrestling, By ALEX MARVEZ, Scripps - 20th Feb 2008

The World Wrestling Entertainment return of Paul "Big Show" Wight was upstaged by an even bigger name.

Boxing champion Floyd Mayweather confronted Wight on last Sunday's "No Way Out" pay-per-view show. The undefeated welterweight was dwarfed by the 7-foot, 400-pound Wight, but Mayweather did land some punches that legitimately bloodied Big Show's nose.

Mayweather then appeared on this week's "Monday Night Raw" (9 p.m. EST, USA Network) and accepted Wight's challenge for a March 30 bout at "Wrestlemania 24" in Orlando, Fla.

A match pitting Mayweather and Rey Mysterio against Wight and Shane McMahon (who reportedly negotiated Mayweather's WWE appearance) was originally a possibility. Mysterio, though, is believed out of "Wrestlemania" -- and what would have been a sizable payday -- because of a torn right biceps.

WWE seems likely to pit Mayweather and Big Show in a wrestler-vs.-boxer match. Incidentally, Wight was training in boxing while contemplating a career change during his 14-month WWE hiatus.

WWE owner Vince McMahon Jr.'s father also promoted the same kind of bout on a major show in 1976. In one of the most memorable matches of its time, Andre the Giant defeated boxer Chuck Wepner via countout after dumping him over the top rope.

McMahon Jr. has used boxers at previous "Wrestlemanias" in various capacities, most notably Muhammad Ali (I/guest referee), Mike Tyson (XIV/ringside enforcer) and Eric "Butterbean" Esch (XV/knocked out Mike "Bart Gunn" Polchlopek in a "Brawl for All" match).

Tyson's main-event appearance was a smashing success, boosting the "'Mania" pay-per-view buy rate and also helping to raise the profile of emerging star "Stone Cold" Steve Austin. Tyson counted Austin's pinfall of Sean Michaels and then KO'd the "Heartbreak Kid" with a punch afterward.

Mayweather appeared in two boxing matches last year that drew a combined 3.4 million pay-per-view orders. But Mayweather may not be able to carry such magic to "Wrestlemania," which was already expected to draw in the range of 1 million worldwide orders. WWE traditionally hasn't had much crossover appeal to boxing fans, while the promotion's mainstream image remains tainted from the fallout of last June's murder/suicide by Chris Benoit.

Still, Mayweather was wise to get involved with sports entertainment than another legitimate fighting genre like the mixed martial arts. After improving his boxing record to 39-0 with last December's TKO of Ricky Hatton, Mayweather spoke about wanting to get involved in the MMA ventures being started by Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban. Mayweather, though, would need years of training in jiu-jitsu, wrestling and kickboxing to avoid being the kind of one-dimensional fighter who gets dismantled in today's MMA world.

X...X...X

Mayweather's appearance was the second consecutive major surprise on a WWE pay-per-view show, as John Cena returned from a torn pectoral muscle to win last month's "Royal Rumble." Such unadvertised happenings could help once again make WWE pay-per-views into "must-see" events -- something that had become increasingly rare as the promotion increased its show lineup.

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"Smackdown" is getting smacked down on CW, as the WWE staple will stop airing on the network in September. "Smackdown" could land on MyNetwork, which is largely comprised of former UPN affiliates that once carried the show.

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A Total Nonstop Action Wrestling story line took on some real-life overtones when Chris Harris -- who had trashed the promotion during scripted interviews -- recently left for WWE. He and James Storm were a quality tag team as AMW (America's Most Wanted), but Harris fizzled as a solo performer once the duo split.

Scott "Raven" Levy also has left TNA after five years with the company. On his Web site (theraveneffect.com), Levy has expressed interest in opening an Atlanta-area pro-wrestling school.

X...X...X

Nigel McGuiness vs. Austin Aries will headline Ring of Honor's "Rising Above" pay-per-view show that debuts March 7 on InDemand and other pay-per-view providers. A free 10-minute preview is available at www.rohvideos.com.

(Alex Marvez writes a syndicated pro wrestling column for Scripps-Howard News Service. Contact him at alex1marv(at)aol.com.)

Media Man Australia Profiles

Wrestling

Wrestling-Boxing crossovers, by Ciaran Baynes, 19 February 2008 (Setanta Sports)

With Floyd Mayweather Jr's dramatic introduction to the world of wrestling this week, we decided to look at the previous crossovers between boxing and the world of sports entertainment.

With the dimensions where the action takes place more or less the same in boxing and wrestling and both involving a walk into the ring and trash-talking there is no surprise they have linked often in the past.

Here are our selection of the most memorable. Let us know your favourites below:
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* Boxing

Tyson in Wrestlemania XIV
During perhaps the most exciting time in wrestling, WWF owner Vince McMahon brought in Mike Tyson in a major publicity coup against then-rivals WCW. Tyson was a ring enforcer for the fight between Stone Cold Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels. Prior to the bout there were memorable stand-offs between Austin and Tyson and the memorable quote from the Texas Rattlesnake: "Do I think you can beat my ass. Hell no! Do I think I can beat your ass? Why Hell yeah!" Tyson ended up officiating fairly, then laid out Michaels, before finding himself on the receiving end of a Stone Cold Stunner.

Michael Buffer announcing
Buffer became known as the most famous boxing announcer in the mid-80s with his catchphrase: "Let's get ready to rumble" and a decade later when WCW were looking to give themselves an edge over the WWF, he began announcing their big fights, such as the meetings between the two most famous world champions of the preceding decade, Ric Flair and Hulk Hogan.

Floyd Mayweather Jr vs Big Show
This could be as good as Tyson's involvement. In his introduction to the WWE on Sunday he jumped into the ring and squared up against the 7ft giant. When the big man got down on his knees, Mayweather punched him twice busting his nose (apparently connecting for real inadvertently). A tag-team match for Wrestlemania is in the pipeline with rumours that there could also be some involvement from Mayweather's boxing opponent later in the year, Oscar de la Hoya.

Mr T-Piper: Wrestlemania II
Perhaps the worst example of the two meeting as a fake boxing fight between the two lasted way too long until Piper threw his stool across the ring and then bodyslammed Mr T.

Muhammad Ali and Gorgeous George
Ali himself admitted that his tendency to boast about how he would beat opponents ahead of the bout came from copying wrestler Gorgeous George. Many boxers have done the same in the years since, few anything like as well.

Muhammad Ali-Antonio Inoki
Ali travelled to Japan to take part in a bizarre wrestling-boxing crossover match against Japanese legend Inoki. The 15-round bout ended as a three-all draw with Ali suffering a leg injury from this.

Muhammad Ali - guest referee in Wrestlemania I
A sad site this, Ali looking slow with the onset of Parkinsons Disease is a shell of his former self as he acts as a second referee in the main event between Hulk Hogan and Mr T vs Rowdy Roddy Piper and 'Mr Wonderful' Paul Orndoff.

Evander Holyfield-Matt Hardy
After failing to win in his three previous world title tilts and losing to former middleweight champion James Toney, The Real Deal needed a morale boost before he challenged Sultan Ibragimov for the WBO heavyweight title last year and he got it in this ridiculous 'bout' with Matt Hardy who he dropped three times in the first round before telling the referee to stop the bout in the second and then knocking out MVP for good measure as well.

Danny Williams-Alex Shane
Williams was in the crowd watching 'The Showstealer' at a British wrestling event when Shane got on the mic and abused the Brixton fighter and a brawl ensued.

Lewis carries flag British Bulldog
We're scraping the barrel now. Lennox Lewis led the British Bulldog Davey-Boy Smith for his inter-continental fight with Bret Hart at Wembley in 1992.

Let us know your favourites or any we have missed.

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Paul "Mr. Wonderful" Orndorff

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Paul "Mr. Wonderful" Orndorff

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Wrestling

In Pro Wrestling History (Credit: Wrestling Legends)

1914 - Walter Miller defeats Eugene Tremblay to win the World Lightweight Title in Fort William, Ontario, ending Tremblay's second reign.

1940 - Pantaleon Manlapig defeats Sandor Szabo in Salinas, California for the San Francisco Pacific Coast Heavyweight Title, ending Szabo's sixth reign.

1949 - Lee Henning wins his fourth San Francisco Pacific Coast Heavyweight Title, ending the 10th reign for Sandor Szabo in San Francisco, California.

1950 - Yvon Robért defeats Whipper Billy Watson to win the Toronto British Empire Heavyweight Title in Montreal, Quebec. This began Robért's third reign and ended Watson's ninth.

1951 - Tarzan Kowalski defeats Bill Longson in Kansas City, Kansas for the Heart of America (later known as Central States) Heavyweight Title.

1952 - Ivan Kalmikoff and Duke Keomuka defeat Miguel Gúzman and Rito Romero to win the vacant Texas Tag Team Title in Houston, Texas.

1954 - Wilbur Snyder and Sandor Szabo defeat Lord James Blears and John Tolos to become the first International Television Tag Team Champions in Hollywood, California.

1961 - Sam Steamboat defeats Dick Hutton for the Hawaii Heavyweight Title in Honolulu, Hawaii.

1963 - Buddy Rogers makes his first defense of the WWWF World Heavyweight Title, defeating Buddy Rogers in New Haven, Connecticut.

1964 - Dominic DeNucci defeats Ray Stevens for the San Francisco NWA United States Heavyweight Title in San Francisco, California, ending Stevens' fourth reign.

1965 - The WWWF held an event at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The results:
- The Golden Terror defeated Steve Stanlee.
- Don McClarity defeated Smasher Sloan.
- Sweet Daddy Siki defeated Luke Graham.
- Wahoo McDaniel defeated Boris Malenko.
- Dr. Jerry and Eddie Graham defeated Haystacks Calhoun and Miguel Pérez.
- Bobo Brazil and Gorilla Monsoon fought to a 20-minute time-limit draw.
- WWWF World Heavyweight Champion Bruno Sammartino and Bill Watts defeated
Gene Kiniski and Waldo Von Erich by disqualification.

1965 - The Mad Russian and El Shareef defeat Luther Lindsay and Pepper Martin to win the Pacific Northwest Tag Team Title, ending Lindsay and Martin's second reign.

1969 - Stan Pulaski and Chris Tolos defeat Butcher and Mad Dog Vachon in Omaha, Nebraska for the Midwest Tag Team Title.

1969 - Assassin #2 (Tom Renesto) and The Professional (Doug Gilbert) defeat Alberto and Ramon Torres to win the Georgia Tag Team Title, ending the Torres' fourth reign.

1972 - Dean Ho and Fritz Von Erich defeat Thunderbolt Patterson and Johnny Valentine for the American Tag Team Title in Dallas, Texas.

1972 - El Mongol wins his eighth A Georgia Heavyweight Title, defeating Buddy Colt in Macon, Georgia, ending Colt's third reign. At the same event, Flash and Rocket Monroe defeat Bob Armstrong and Bill Dromo for the Macon Tag Team Title.

1974 - The Wrestling Pro defeats Dick Dunn to win the Alabama Heavyweight Title in Dothan, Alabama, beginning the Pro's third reign and ended Dunn's third.

1975 - Bobo Brazil defeats The Sheik in Detroit, Michigan for his seventh United States Heavyweight Title, ending Sheik's seventh reign.

1978 - Championship Wrestling from Florida hosted the "Superbowl of Wrestling" at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida, with 12,000 fans attending. The show was given its name because it took place just over a week after Super Bowl XII. It was headlined by a world title unification match between WWWF Champion Superstar Billy Graham and NWA Champion Harley Race. The results were:
- Keith Franks (Adrian Adonis, subbing for Black Angus) pinned John Ruffin
after a neckbreaker.
- Bobby Duncum pinned Don Serrano after a shoulderbreaker.
- Americas Tag Team Champion Chavo Guerrero pinned Tank Patton after a
neckbreaker.
- Joyce Grable won a ladies' battle royal. Also in the match were: Suzette
Ferriera, Leilani Kai, Pepper LaBianca, Wenona Little Heart, Tandy Rich,
Terry Shane, and Vicki Williams.
- Ivan Putski defeated Ox Baker by TKO with a full nelson.
- Rocky Johnson defeated Killer Karl Kox by reverse decision. Kox had won
the match by pinning Johnson after hitting him with a foreign object, but
Jack and Jerry Brisco came to the ring and informed the referee as to what
happened.
- Jack and Jerry Brisco defeated Florida Tag Team Champions Ivan
Koloff and Mr. Saito, when Jack pinned Koloff with a cradle, to win the
title. This ended Koloff and Saito's third reign and began the Briscos'
sixth.
- Southern Heavyweight Champion Pedro Morales pinned Lars
Anderson with a cradle.
- Mike Graham and Steve Keirn defeated United States Tag Team
Champions Jimmy and Johnny Valiant, when Keirn made Johnny submit with a
sleeper hold, to win the title.
- NWA Texas Brass Knuckles Champion Dusty Rhodes defeated Ken Patera by
countout.
- WWWF World Champion Superstar Billy Graham and NWA World Champion Harley
Race fought to a 60-minute time-limit draw in a two-out-of-three falls
title unification match. Gorilla Monsoon and Don Curtis were the
alternating special referees for the match. Graham defeated Race by
submission with a bearhug in the first fall, and Race pinned Graham with
suplex from the apron into the ring in the second fall. The time limit
expired during the third fall, just as the count was beginning for Race
having Graham covered after knocking him out with a sleeper hold.

1978 - The Dynamite Kid wins the British Welterweight Title in Preston, England, defeating Jim Breaks, ending his fourth reign.

1978 - The Black Avenger and Don Wayt defeat Gama Singh and Igor Volkoff in Vancouver, British Columbia to win the Canadian Tag Team Title.

1979 - The Angel and The Assassin defeat Dusty Rhodes and The Spoiler, after Spoiler turned on Rhodes, for the Tri-State United States Tag Team Title.

1982 - Roger Kirby and Jerry Valiant (Guy Mitchell) defeat Eddie Gilbert and Ricky Romero for the Central States Tag Team Title in Wichita, Kansas.

1983 - The Fabulous Kangaroos (Johnny Heffernan and Don Kent) defeat Ron Bass and Barry Windham to win the Global Tag Team Title in Miami, Florida.

1983 - Kwick-Kick Lee (Akira Maeda) defeats Wayne Bridges for the European Heavyweight Title in London, England.

1984 - Angelo Mosca, Jr. defeats Iwan Koloff to win the Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Title in Shelby, North Carolina.

1986 - Jerry Lawler defeats Lars Anderson in Singapore for the Polynesian Wrestling Polynesian Pacific Heavyweight Title, ending Anderson's fourth reign.

1988 - The WWF held an event at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The results were:
- Scott Casey pinned José Estrada after a shoulderbreaker. This match
aired on the February 11 edition of Prime Time Wrestling.
- Sam Houston pinned Danny Davis with a small package. This match aired on
the March 14 edition of Prime Time Wrestling.
- Butch Reed (with Slick) pinned The Junkyard Dog with a roll-up and a
handful of tights, after JYD chased Slick into the ring.
- Omar Atlas pinned Dusty Wolfe with a roll-up. This match aired on the
February 11 edition of Prime Time Wrestling.
- The One Man Gang (with Slick) pinned Don Muraco (with Billy Graham),
after Butch Reed interfered and hit Muraco with Slick's cane while the
refere was distracted.
- Bam Bam Bigelow (with Oliver Humperdink) and WWF Champion Hulk Hogan
defeated Ted DiBiase and Virgil (with André the Giant), when Bigelow
pinned Virgil with a splash after Hogan hit the legdrop.
- The Young Stallions (Jim Powers and Paul Roma) defeated Barry Horowitz
and Steve Lombardi, when Powers pinned Lombardi after a powerslam.
- Jim Duggan pinned King Harley Race (with Bobby Heenan), by reversing a
crossbody off the top rope.
- Ron Bass pinned Hillbilly Jim with a double-underhook facebuster. This
match aired on the February 19 edition of Prime Time Wrestling.
- The Islanders (Haku and Tama) defeated The British Bulldogs (The
Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith) by disqualification, when the Bulldogs
used a leash on their opponents that was originally brought to the ring by
Bobby Heenan.

1989 - Mighty Inoue defeats Joe Malenko to win the AJPW World Junior Heavyweight Title in Osaka, Japan.

1979 - Seiji Sakaguchi defeats Johnny Powers in Okayama, Japan to win the NWF North American Heavyweight Title, ending Powers sixth, and final, reign with the belt.

1980 - Mr. Fuji defeated Invader I in Bayamon, Puerto Rico to win the WWC North American Heavyweight Title, ending Invader's second reign.

1985 - WWF ran three separate house shows in one night, which wasn't unusual for this period in the business. What was unusual was that WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan didn't headline, or even appear, on any of the show. One event in Vancouver, British Columbia was headlined by Andre The Giant & Blackjack Mulligan vs. Big John Studd & Ken Patera, a second event in Cincinnati, Ohio was headlined by Junkyard Dog & Ivan Putski defeating Roddy Piper & Paul Orndorff, and a third event in Canton, Ohio was headlined by Tito Santana defeating Intercontinental Champion Greg Valentine by countout.

1987 - At a WWF television taping in Tampa, Florida at the Sundome, The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart & Jim Neidhart) defeat The British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid & Davey Boy Smith) to win the WWF World Tag Team Championship. Manager Jimmy Hart knocked out Dynamite (who was injured and couldn't wrestle) with his megaphone before the match, and heel referee Danny Davis paid no attention to the Hart Foundation illegally double teaming Smith before counting the pin following a Hart Attack. This ended the Bulldogs' only WWF World Tag Team Title run, and was Bret Hart's first WWF championship of any kind.

During the same taping, three editions of Piper's Pit were taped. In the first, Andre The Giant turned heel, revealing Bobby Heenan to be his new manager, and challenged Hulk Hogan to a title match, tearing off Hogan's shirt and crucifix. In the second edition, Hogan accepted Andre's challenge, setting up the main event to Wrestlemania III. In the third edition, Roddy Piper revealed that he would retire following his match with Adrian Adonis at Wrestlemania

Website

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Media Man Australia Profiles

Wrestling

In Georgia, a smackdown over wrestling safety, by Jenny Jarvie, Los Angeles Times - 31st December 2007

Some fear the proposed regulations could put smaller arenas out of business in a state that reveres the sport.

ATLANTA -- Eddie "Iceberg" Chastain, a 385-pound wrestler with a shaved head and a red goatee, calls himself the Being of Inconceivable Horror.

In the ring, he wields a fork -- just like his mentor, Abdullah the Butcher. He pummels his opponents with cross-face forearms, levels them with clotheslines and crushes them with avalanche splashes.

But outside the ring he has begun to show a softer side.

"You know, it's not actually my intent to hurt my opponent," he said in a telephone interview last week. "I never actually stabbed anybody with a fork."

Chastain is worried about his future as a wrestler in Georgia. Officials with the state's Athletic and Entertainment Commission, citing health and safety concerns, have proposed a strict set of regulations governing bouts. A physician, two emergency medical technicians and an ambulance must be ringside at all times, a costly measure that promoters say would force many small operations out of business.

Many of the rules are also at odds with wrestling's most cherished traditions. Wrestlers would no longer be allowed to physically or verbally threaten the audience. They could not engage in "unsportsmanlike or physically dangerous conduct." They could not even rub their own bodies with lotion.

"It's as if the officials who drew up the rules don't understand the concept of wrestling," said Bill Behrens, bookings director for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. "Wrestling is fiction. It's a passion play of good versus evil. Rules that attempt to tell us how to stage our show don't make sense."

Drawing up rules for how colossal, muscle-bound men should pretend to tear each other's heads off is, it turns out, a delicate matter. About 70 wrestlers and promoters, including legends such as Claude "Thunderbolt" Patterson, filled a recent commission meeting in Atlanta to offer critiques of the proposed regulations.

Unlike boxing and mixed martial arts fighters, they said, wrestlers simulate a fight with a predetermined outcome. Some argued their performances were more akin to ballet, theater and pop shows.

"We should be subjected to no more regulations than Hannah Montana," said Rob Fields, a 299-pound ordained minister who wrestles as Rob Adonis, referring to the Disney show about a girl who leads a double life as a pop singer. "Sure, Hannah Montana is singing, and we're slamming. But it's all make-believe."

Although the fighting is staged, wrestlers do not always successfully dodge the forks, baseball bats, axes, sledgehammers, frying pans and folding chairs that come their way. Many have the scars to show it.

J.J. Biello, chairman of the state commission, says he has watched professional wrestling matches since he was 12, and that comparisons to Hannah Montana are ludicrous.

"Yes, it's staged -- but that doesn't mean it's not rough," he said. "I've seen blood."

Over the years, he said, bouts have become increasingly flamboyant and wrestlers more powerful. He has seen a wrestler hurl a folding chair into the audience and blood dripping from wrestlers' heads.

"The more violence, the more things that blow up, that sells more tickets," he said. "We're just trying to make it safe."

Georgia legislators have attempted to tighten wrestling regulations since 2001, but safety became a particularly hot-button issue in 2007 after Chris Benoit, known as the Rabid Wolverine and the Crippler, killed his wife, son and himself at their suburban Atlanta home in June. Tests showed he had about 10 times the usual amount of testosterone in his system.

Local wrestlers point out that Benoit, a Canadian who held the world heavyweight championship in both World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment, committed his crimes outside the ring. They fear the proposed rules -- which do not apply to operations with assets exceeding $25 million, such as World Wrestling Entertainment -- would mark the end of their shows in Georgia, long a hotbed of small-town wrestling.

During the 1970s and 1980s, communities across the state ground to a halt from 6:05 to 8:05 p.m. on Saturdays as residents watched Georgia Championship Wrestling on WTBS. Even former President Carter's mother, Lillian Gordy Carter, was reputed to have a favorite wrestler: Johnny Walker, aka Mr. Wrestling II.

"Not having wrestling in Georgia would be like New York not having baseball," said Bob Ryder, owner of www.1wrestling.com, who noted that the move reversed a national trend toward looser regulation. In the 1980s, Vince McMahon, chairman of World Wrestling Entertainment, coined the term "sports entertainment" to differentiate the discipline from sports, such as boxing, and to avoid tighter regulations. Until then, most professional wrestlers tried to hide that their battles were staged.

Although about 25 states have some kind of wrestling regulations, Ryder said, the rules Georgia officials are proposing would be the most strict.

Wrestling experts reserve particular scorn for the language of Georgia's proposed regulations, which they say would treat the referee as the ultimate arbiter of the fight. Part of the mystique of wrestling, they say, involves the referee pretending not to notice when the bad guy breaks the rules.

Riling the audience, they say, is also a vital part of the show.

"When the crowd screams 'You suck! You big doo-doo head!' what is the bad guy supposed to say?" Behrens asked. " 'I respect you as an audience?' "

After hearing from wrestling legends from across the state, the commission decided to delay its vote on the rules until February. In the meantime, wrestlers and promoters have formed the Georgia Wrestling Promoters Advisory Committee to try to devise an alternative proposal for new regulations.

This close-knit community of professional wrestlers -- most of whom have day jobs as plumbers, mortgage brokers, heating and air guys, or delivery drivers -- say it is worth a certain amount of self-policing to save their shows.

Already they have begun to compile a list of rules, such as imposing regular mandatory drug tests and requiring that mats be clean to prevent staph infections.

"It's kind of like when your mama tells you to go out and pick a switch from the yard," said Jerry Palmer, a firefighter who owns NWA Anarchy, an independent professional wrestling promoter in Cornelia, Ga. "If you choose one that's too small, she picks her own. If it's too big, well, you'll get beat with it."

jenny.jarvie@latimes.com

Media Man Australia Profiles

Wrestling

WWE 2008 DVD release schedule, By ERIC GARGIULO - phillyBurbs.com - 31st December 2007

The WWE released their list of scheduled DVD releases for 2008. Keep in mind that this is all subject to change. However, an early look reveals some surprises, some obvious choices, some expensive collections, a lot of nostalgia, and maybe the biggest surprise of all.

The WWE will be producing documentaries on some of the current superstars. The list includes Triple H, John Cena, and Edge. All of the DVDs should contain some great matches from the three over the course of their careers. The Edge DVD in particular should be a must-buy for the TLC matches that will likely be included.

Every year the WWE showcases a historic superstar that is not necessarily on their roster. Bret Hart, Hulk Hogan, and the Ultimate Warrior have all been spotlighted whether they wanted to participate in the documentary or not. In 2008 WWE will be going down two roads that nobody had expected. For the first time one of their biggest stars ever will be acknowledged by the company. The other is a superstar that has never wrestled for the WWE and currently wrestles for their competition.

“Macho Man” Randy Savage has been persona non grata with Vince McMahon and the WWE since he left for WCW. The Savage mystery has been one that is talked about quite a bit by people within the wrestling industry. Vince McMahon seems to forgive everyone he has had any heat with, if it can benefit his company. At one time Hulk Hogan, Bret Hart, Eric Bischoff, Jesse Ventura, and Roddy Piper were some of Vince’s biggest enemies. Yet when the dust settles, Vince always does what is good for business and buries the hatchet.

Randy Savage is one of the biggest stars that the WWE ever had. Randy Savage still has a lot of fans and there has been a demand for Savage to return to the WWE for quite some time. Rumor has it that Vince hates Savage so much that every time Savage’s name has been suggested for the Hall of Fame, Vince gives a dirty look and changes the subject. It is well known that it is never a good idea for any WWE employee to bring up the name Randy Savage in Vince McMahon’s presence.

There are some really juicy rumors as to Vince hates Savage with such a passion. Since nobody has ever confirmed any of those rumors it would be unfair for me to write about them. If true, you could almost understand and admire Vince for putting business second to his own feelings and morality.

It is unclear whether the DVD is the first step to an open door for the former WWF World Heavyweight Champion. I can guarantee you that there are a lot of fans out there that would love to see Savage back in the WWE culture. A Hall of Fame induction is long overdue for such an important part of company history.

WWE will also be releasing a DVD spotlighting former WCW World Champion and current TNA star, Sting. This is a strange one as I have no idea why the WWE would want to promote the biggest star of their rival. All the WWE has to do is wait a few years for Sting to retire and I am sure they could get him to be a part of a DVD. Doing it now makes me wonder if Sting really is going to re-sign with TNA after all.

Other highlights include DVDs on the Hardys, the Rock, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, “Mr. Perfect” Curt Hennig, a 20-disc Summerslam anthology, and the best of Starrcade.

WWE has done a great job of assorting a collection that appeals to everyone. It is no coincidence that quite a bit of the DVDs will be marketed towards their nostalgia fans. Even the ex-WCW/NWA fans that have disappeared may have to come out hiding for these DVDs. 2008 looks like it is going to be a great and an expensive year for WWE DVD fans.

Eric Gargiulo writes about pro wrestling, MMA and more in his blog, The Camel Clutch. He can be reached by e-mail at egargiulo@phillyburbs.com. Eric's "Pro Wrestling Radio" airs on WBCB 1490 AM every Saturday from 12:05-1PM/EST and can be heard live online at http://www.wbcb1490.com

Media Man Australia Profiles

World Wrestling Entertainment

Benoit incident marred pro wrestling in '07, by Mike Mooneyham - The Post and Courier - 30th December 2007

The pro wrestling industry will not soon forget 2007.

Never before in the history of the business has one story garnered such mainstream attention as the Chris Benoit double murder-suicide in late June. It was a gruesome, grisly tragedy that far transcended professional wrestling, yet its link to the business added another dimension that made the story even more sensational.

The face of pro wrestling would forever change the day the 40-year-old Benoit, wife Nancy and 7-year-old son Daniel were found dead in their suburban Atlanta home. The wrestler, who had been universally respected for years as one of the most accomplished performers in the business, took his own life by hanging himself after strangling his wife and suffocating his son. Bibles were placed near the bodies. The horrific incident drew a staggering level of public interest in the days and weeks that followed.

The story opened the floodgates for serious discussion and action concerning a number of hot-button topics including steroids, painkillers, concussions and congressional hearings. Benoit's extensive use of steroids and prescription medication exposed loopholes in WWE's drug-testing policy and drew media scrutiny.

The ramifications of the Benoit rampage are still being felt, and most likely will for years to come.

A nasty legal battle is expected in the wake of WWE's recent rejection of a deal offered by Benoit's estate. WWE has adamantly insisted that it had absolutely nothing to do with the Benoit tragedy, and balked at paying $2 million to Benoit's two surviving children from a previous marriage. The Benoit estate would have renounced any future claims against WWE in exchange for the settlement.

Medical experts in September detailed the many concussions Benoit suffered over the years while performing. The tests showed that Benoit's brain was so severely damaged it resembled the brain of an 85-year-old Alzheimer's patient. The research team claimed the damage was the result of a lifetime of chronic concussions and head trauma suffered while Benoit was in the wrestling ring.

Michael Benoit, overseeing his son's estate, alleges the WWE knew of the head injuries, but failed to provide treatment to any of their performers or much-needed rest. He believes years of head trauma his son suffered while in the ring contributed to the killings.

"Had the WWE taken the slightest interest in its wrestlers — before it became the object of the interest of district attorneys and Congress — there is little doubt that Chris Benoit and his family would still be with us today," Cary Ichter, Michael Benoit's Atlanta-based attorney, recently told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Despite the overwhelmingly negative publicity, WWE has weathered the storm, finishing the year strong with plans for major worldwide expansion in '08.

Among the many wrestling personalities we said goodbye to in 2007: Harry "Cowboy" Lang (Jan. 4, age 56); Cocoa Samoa (Ulualoaiga Onosai Tuaolo Emelio) (Jan. 9, age 62); Scott "Bam Bam" Bigelow (Jan. 19, age 45); Bob Luce (Feb. 8, age 70); Jim Melby (Feb. 11, age 57); Mike Awesome (Mike Alfonso) (Feb. 17, age 42); Ray "Thunder" Stern (Walter Bookbinder) (March 6, age 76); Bad News Brown/Allen (Allen Coage) (March 6, age 63); Ernie "Big Cat" Ladd (March 11, age 68); Arnold "Golden Boy" Skaaland (March 13, age 82); Abe Coleman (March 22, age 101); Harold "Sonny" Meyers (May 7, age 83); Ferrin "Sandy" Barr (June 2, age 69); Sensational Sherri Martel (Sherri Russell) (June 15, age 49); Princess Tona Tamah (Tona Ford) (June 15, age 72); Nancy "Woman" Benoit) (June 22, age 43); Chris Benoit (June 24, age 40); Biff Wellington (Shayne Bower) (June 24, age 42); Moondog Nathan (Nathan Brian Randolph) (July 4, age 37); John "Eliminator" Kronus (George B. Caiazzo) (July 18, age 38); Ronnie P. Gossett (July 23, age 63); Tor Kamata (McRonald Kamaka) (July 23, age 70); Karl Gotch (Karl Charles Istaz) (July 28, age 82); Frank Butcher (Francisco Garcia) (Aug. 2, age 84); Bronko Lubich (Sandor Lupsity) (Aug. 11, age 81); Brian "Crush" Adams (Aug. 13, age 43); Dewey "Missing Link" Robertson (Aug. 16, age 68); Frank Fozo (Aug. 23, age 79); Karloff Lagarde (Carlos de Lucio Lagarde) (Sept. 1, age 79); Billy Darnell (Sept. 7, age 81); Enrique Torres (Sept. 10, age 85); Zack Murray (Sept. 23, age 61); Sean "Shocker" Evans (Oct. 2, age 36); Rey "The Great Kabooki" Urbano (Oct. 16); Lillian "The Fabulous Moolah" Ellison (Nov. 2, age 84); El Gran Markus (Juan Chavarria Galicia) (Nov. 15, age 68); Dave "Angel of Death" Sheldon (Nov. 24, age 54).

Reach Mike Mooneyham at (843) 937-5517 or mooneyham@postandcourier.com. For wrestling updates during the week, call The Post and Courier Info Line at (843) 937-6000, ext. 3090.

The gurus of grapple, By Jon Geddes - The Daily Telegraph - 7th December 2007

THEY were the legends who thrilled and chilled Aussies with their antics in, and often out, of the wrestling ring for two decades.

Stars such as Mario Milano, King Curtis, Brute Bernard, Bulldog Brower, Spiros Arion, Killer Kowalski and the sinister Professor Tanaka - who threw salt in opponents' eyes - became household names.

And let's not forget our homegrown heroes Ron Miller, Larry O'Dea and George Barnes, who matched it with best of them.

Forget the glitz and showbiz associated with today's WWE. World Championship Wrestling was the real deal.

People of all ages religiously tuned into World Championship Wrestling, an institution on TCN 9 at midday on Saturdays.

"We did three TV shows a week and 300 live shows a year - which would average 15,000 a week," 66-year-old Miller said, who is retired and living at Tweed Heads.

"You would have 1000 people at the airport to meet you. We stayed in first class hotels and would get upgraded by the airlines."

On one trip to Tokyo, Miller and the other wrestlers were mobbed by 10,000 fans.

Miller said the big years for the WCW program were from 1964 to 1978 and the reasons it was so successful were the weekly TV show, the different nationalities, the characters and those fantastic language-crunching interviews.

There is no bigger character than King Curtis, who made a huge impact whenever he visited.

"For the last 26 years the King has had a hire company with surfboards and everything on Waikiki Beach, in his native Hawaii," Miller said.

"He was a really good professional guy and the master of the interview.

"In those days he was absolutely incredible. None of his rants were scripted. I don't know where he got it from. It just came to him from the top of his head.

"And then there was Mario Milano. He came to Australia in 1966 and never left."

After leaving the ring, Milano had a number of businesses including a pizza shop and travel agency and lives in retirement in Melbourne.

Killer Karl Kox became a prison warden. One day an inmate reminisced how he used to watch Kox all the time.

"Now I watch you all time time," Kox replied.

A former Australian champion himself, Miller has revived those halcyon days with a DVD called Ruff Tuff & Real, which provides an amazing insight into what really was a phenomenon in Australian life.

The DVD includes rare footage of the dark time Milano grew a moustache and turned bad guy, with referee Bob McMaster suggesting he may have been hypnotised or mesmerised by his manager.

And what about those sensational moves - the sleeper hold (Mark Lewin), the Texan brain buster (Killer Karl Kox), the coconut butt (Bobo Brazil) and the Indian death lock (Chief Billy White Wolf).

Commentator Jack Little - wrestling's version of Frank Hyde - would often warn the audience that a competitor had a "foreign object down his trunks".

There were also those mysterious wrestlers, often masked, who hailed from "parts unknown".

Miller and his long-time tag team and business partner O'Dea started their wrestling careers at a small gym in Wentworth Park.

"We did all the hard yards in the small clubs and gyms and learnt some hard lessons and how to respect the business," Miller said.

"By 1973 we owned it."

But WCW wasn't to last forever and it took something with the viewer appeal of World Series Cricket - which took its regular time-slot - to spell the end.

Miller and O'Dea remained close friends until O'Dea died in 1997.

These days Miller keeps fit by diving into the water rather than on to the canvas mat.

"I've got new knees and new hips. I'm like a mechanical man. Most of the guys are like that," he said.

And Miller told a story proving the old wrestlers really were a special breed.

He said Killer Kowalski, 79, got married for the first time last year to his blushing bride of 78.

When Killer was asked: "Why would you get married now?", he replied: "She told me she was pregnant so I had to do the right thing."

WHERE ARE THEY NOW:

Ron Miller: Retired and living in Tweed Heads

King Curtis: Runs a beach hire business on Waikiki Beach

Mark Lewin: Living in the US and is married to a Tahitian princess

George Barnes: Ran successful trucking business

Spiros Ario: Retired and living in Greece

Ox Baker: Farmer, New York state

Killer Karl Kox: Prison warden

Professor Tanaka: Ran a fishing boat before passing away

Brute Bernard: Died playing Russian roulette in a bar

Skull Murphy: Committed suicide after a failed romance

Bruiser Brody: Stabbed to death in a dressing room in Puerto Rico. Nobody saw a thing.

Big Bad John: Fatally shot in Tennessee bar

Abdullah the Butcher: Runs a restaurant in Carolina. "He doesn't have a menu, he tells you want to eat," Ron Miller said

Steve "The Crusher" Rackman: Executive manager of a gym

Jan Jansen: Former Bondi parking ranger. Now in the fitness industry on the South Coast

Media Man Australia Profiles

Ron Miller

Wrestling

Local fans infuriated by decision to pull Flair from Raw, By Mike Mooneyham - The Post and Courier - 9th December 2007

The formula was to have been fairly simple for last week's Monday Night Raw at the North Charleston Coliseum.

Ric Flair, the greatest performer in the history of the business, would make his first live local wrestling appearance in more than three years. The moment would be even sweeter considering he had returned to WWE a week earlier following a hiatus of several months. His promo on that week's edition of Raw, which aired from his hometown of Charlotte, was the highlight of the show, and his non-title win over WWE champion Randy Orton drew one of the best numbers in months for the highly rated mat program.

Some local fans remained skeptical, however, recalling past WWE shows in which Flair was pulled at the last minute for storyline reasons (selling an injury) and off-camera circumstances (fallout over a highly publicized divorce and an alleged road rage incident in which charges were later dropped).

But this event, Flair followers reasoned, would be different. Vince McMahon's "lose and you retire" stipulation was the beginning of a can't-miss, Rocky-like storyline, with fans tuning in each week to see if the 16-time world champion could beat the odds. And while Charlotte may be the Nature Boy's hometown, Charleston ranks a close second, being smack dab in the heart of Flair country.

Even of more import historically was that last Monday night most likely would have marked the 58-year-old Flair's final match in Charleston, a town where he first laced up the boots back in 1974, making his appearance that much more special. With the plan calling for Flair to retire at Wrestlemania next March, another local showing before then would be highly unlikely.

There would be no early Christmas present for local wrestling fans Monday night. Flair, once again a victim of company politics and a contract dispute, was pulled from the show. Those in attendance at the North Charleston Coliseum were left wondering why in the world were they deprived — yet again — of seeing the beloved performer who helped define a generation of wrestling in this area.

Local response was fast and furious.

"I am incensed. I don't understand," said longtime fan Robert Ellington of Charleston. "We're in Charleston, South Carolina, and this is Ric Flair country. Why did we not at least even see Ric Flair get a chance to cut a promo or do a run-in? Anything with Ric Flair would have been fine. It didn't have to be a full match. We didn't even get to hear him talk. I just don't understand it. That was really a bad move. WWE needs to do better than that."

Ellington said he hasn't seen Flair in a live appearance since 2002 and was greatly looking forward to Monday night's nationally televised event.

"It was a decent show, but it could have been that much better with Ric Flair. The pop would have been amazing."

Greg Pitt of Charleston also voiced his displeasure with the decision to scratch Flair from the show. He harkened back to the days when Flair worked for WCW and often found himself the victim of backstage politics.

"When WCW — and mainly Eric Bischoff —were trying to bury his career, it made me extremely angry and sad. One year after WCW folded, it was great to see the Nature Boy back on TV, and this time getting the respect he so richly deserved. As usual, though, over time he's put in a mid-card role and putting younger talent over. It's tremendous for the younger talent because they launch their career by getting one over on the greatest professional wrestler of all time. On the other hand, year by year, Ric has done what's best for the business only to be put down and not given what he deserves — one final title reign."

Pitt also pointed to why Flair has had to play second fiddle to Hulk Hogan during their respective careers in WWE.

"Vince McMahon made the overrated, overpaid Hulk Hogan ... but he didn't make Ric Flair. Ric was already the best when he went to the WWF the first time. That's the only reason why Vince gives Hogan more liberty and Ric less. It looks as if Ric's last match will be at Wrestlemania. Unfortunately I probably won't see it.

"Shame on Vince McMahon and the entire WWE for not doing the right thing for tradition and the business ... No one can take away what Ric Flair means to this business, this part of the country and tens of thousands of fans."

It should come as little surprise that Raw's ratings, which held up nicely the previous week on the strength of Flair's return, dropped to a 3.2 for last week's lackluster show. A strong Monday Night Football game, combined with viewers tuning out after realizing there would be no Flair, the numbers suffered.

WWE is rolling the dice with this week's installment of Raw. The company is presenting a three-hour celebration commemorating Raw's 15 years on the air, advertising such past and present WWE luminaries as Hulk Hogan, Steve Austin, Mick Foley, Bischoff and Lita (Amy Dumas). Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, one of the biggest stars in the company's history, turned down an offer to appear on the show.

Flair is being listed for the special as part of an Evolution "one night only" reunion with Triple H, Batista and Orton.

--WWE has extended its contract with USA Network for two more years. Its current deal, which expires at the end of September 2008, was renewed until September 2010. The contract includes two specials per year on NBC.

--It appears that Scott Hall's short-lived stint with TNA is over. Hall no-showed the company's Turning Point pay-per-view last Sunday night. He claimed to have had food poisoning. No one bought the excuse, however, and Samoa Joe buried him in a promo during the event.

Hall, 49, whose career has been beset by personal problems, most likely squandered his last opportunity to work for a major wrestling promotion.

--Old School Championship Wrestling will hold a show tonight at Weekend's Pub, 428 Red Bank Road, Goose Creek. Main event will be an elimination match for a chance at "King of the Ring." Semifinal will be pit Josh Magnum against Roughhouse Matthews. Bell time is 6 p.m. Adult admission is $8 (kids 12 and under $5). For more information, call 743-4800 or visit www.oscwonline.com. X-Media Productions features wrestling commentary podcasts, including OSCW shows, at www.livefromthesunsetflip.com.

Reach Mike Mooneyham at (843) 937-5517 or mooneyham@postandcourier.com. For wrestling updates during the week, call The Post and Courier Info Line at (843) 937-6000, ext. 3090.