Al

Rocky Johnson? He was an established star by then.

Mad Dogs, Midgets and Screw Jobs. Not formatted perfectly in that sometimes text overlaps pictures. Otherwise I found it a fantastically worthwhile read. Want to note that I received an update to my Kindle edition, fixing the formatting issues. No reservations making a full recommendation now.

Duggan even joked about that in his Hall of Fame speech. But he was pushed pretty well out of the gate, winning the first Royal Rumble. He didn't often do clean jobs and when he did, it was against heels receiving sizable pushes. And of course, having a pro-America everyday working man gimmick doesn't hurt in the slightest.

Believe the underage girl is his daughter, but many publications won't name a sexual assault victim.

I often wonder why WWE hasn't looked to sports figures for inspiration. MVP seems like such a natural heel character. The overpaid, primadonna athlete.

Or Dick Hutton

Legitimately, it might be a hassle for the actual area hospital to deal with people who think the wrestler is actually there.

Even if the athleticism isn't played up, it still doesn't hurt for wrestlers to have athletic skills. I honestly think it's a great idea. First off, wrestling has a long history of former pro football players becoming stars. Dick the Bruiser, Ernie Ladd and Wahoo McDaniel were all former NFL players. Second, I think you're probably going to have a higher success rate with former pro athletes who have already shown they can maintain the discipline needed to perform at a high level. (I'm making a dangerous assumption, but I'm assuming indy wrestling schools attract a high number of flakes.) I also presume they're getting a very good vibe right now from the success of Joe Anoai (Roman Reigns).

Hey, the way urgent care clinics have exploded the last few years WWE may have been on to something!

Is there a link or is it subscription only?

Mad Dogs, Midgets and Screw Jobs. Not formatted perfectly in that sometimes text overlaps pictures. Otherwise I found it a fantastically worthwhile read.

There's a Youtube clip where Terry Funk has a falling out with Stan Hansen and Ole Anderson, and is helped out by Dusty Rhodes. I'd love to see the blowoff of that angle.

They were actually fortunate timing wise in that they were an American/Canadian tag team pairing when the WWE's hot feud was USA vs Canada. But my recollection is that Lafon's car crash injuries derailed the team as much as anything.

Which means he was 20 when he started the newsletter? Jesus, I'm 31 years old now. If you asked me my opinion of things now compared to ten years ago, I'd give you drastically different answers. I can't imagine what another 20 years of perspective will do.

Dave tweeted that he recorded a podcast interview with Colt Cabana. That should be fun.

Bob Backlund feels like he might belong on such a list. Maybe the Iron Sheik in his early days. One or more of the Von Erichs.

Boss Man was a fine enough hand at his peak, but I'd have to give the edge to Haku. More durable, more versatile.

Young David = Davey Boy Smith? John Quinn always intrigued me as he had a significant WWWF run as Virgil the Kentucky Butcher. And I don't see Big Daddy. I assume you meant to put him under all time greats, correct? (And yes, I'm joking)

I'd say the comedy match was often booked as a special attraction in the territory days. Generally when you booked midget wrestling.

Given that tickets are sold months in advance, I doubt WWE could do much to hurt revenue unless they flat out failed to deliver matches they promised (i.e. Rock no-showing the event).

Of course there's also the issue with MMA that you can only do it as long as you can win. You can be a 40 year old pro wrestler and be protected. No such guarantee for the 40 year old MMA fighter.

Someone needs to catalog all the Dusty finishes for the AWA Championship from 1980-89.

Zbyszko is amusing. How many times as a commentator did he claim he retired Bruno at Shea Stadium? The fact that he LOST the match wasn't exactly unverifiable inside information!

Previous commentary on WWE DVDs tends to be background voiceovers. They aren't pretending to recreate the match.

Didn't Bigelow suffer an injury around the time of Wrestlemania IV? It would make sense that an injury at that point not only would've hurt his momentum, but affected his ability to work as well. Thus explaining why his best matches were as a rookie.