Where does Larry Zbyszko get his reputation for stalling? I'm watching him in the AWA and he seems to always be go go go. More so than a lot of others of his time.

I'm sure it was some shitty Scott Keith talking point that's nowhere near accurate.

You can find plenty of matches where Larry does stall, but it's sort of a potential/kinetic energy conversion thing. He uses it to build up and build up and build up the heat and then unleash it. When he ends up going, he can to at a frenetic pace. You see a little less of that in 91 even though he keeps stalling, which is where I think a lot of people saw him the most. I still feel that the issue isn't necessary that Larry stalled (even though there are many matches where he DOESN'T) but that people spent twenty-five+ years not actually valuing how awesome stalling can be.

Here's a quote from Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame: The Heels.

 

Get Larry Zbyszko going on his masterful technique of stalling — delaying the actual physical contact in the ring with his beloved opponent by yapping at fans and constantly bailing out of the ring — and you are in for a rant.

 

“There is no such thing as stalling. There are people like [journalist Dave] Meltzer and some guys who became pioneers of the mark/stooges, and they came up with term,” Zbyszko spat. Simply put, he was there as the eras collided, and the mid-’80s ushered in steroid monsters who were very limited in what they could do. “Things in the business changed to suit the inability of the new wrestlers. Basically, what was invented was a lot of entrances, music, pyro, and the favorite move of the modern-day wrestler with no ability, the clothesline. But because they didn’t know psychology, and they couldn’t work a match, and they couldn’t build a match, all they did was have an entrance.”

 

Enter “The Living Legend” Larry Zbyszko, with his epic betrayal of his mentor and trainer Bruno Sammartino in 1980 still fresh in fans’ minds. Given Zbyszko’s high position on cards, by the time he would hit the ring, fans had already seen a couple of matches. He took a different approach than the beastly mountains of the day. “I knew the psychology of getting to the crowd, which takes time. It takes a few minutes. The match tells a story,” he explained. “If I chose to do what everybody else did — tie up, start taking bumps, and flopping around — my match would have been like everybody’s else’s. All I did was stay the same. I took my time. I set up the beginning of the match so people would hate me, and get the story and the idea. Then when something did happen, whether it was three, four minutes, or five minutes down the road, the place would go through the ceiling, the place would go nuts. That somehow became known as stalling."

I can't remember the date or even the opponent, but I remember one match I saw with Larry Zbyszko when he was AWA champ during the dying years of the promotion on ESPN. He stalled so damn much - bailed out of the ring and wandered around ringside jawing at the 17 fans in attendance, then rolled back into the ring, went to lock up, and then repeated the whole damn routine - that I just stopped watching the match. I don't know if it was a habitual thing for him, but if it was then he deserves the reputation he got. That was some boring-ass shit. Doing that for up to five minutes (which is what he is claiming in the interview clip posted above) is ridiculous. That's not ring psychology it's wasting time. It's another thing if the wrestler tries that and their opponent goes after them. I've seen Kevin Owens do that (although I still hated it.)

Things I am currently thankful for in wrestling this year:

 

1. AJ Styles

2. Good tag team matches. Nothing beats a good tag team match for me.

3. NWA/WCW concepts like WarGames and Starrcade being revived and treated with respect.

4. The plethora of easy to access wrestling, from tv to streaming to DVD's.

5. PWO, a great place to talk wrestling with great people.

 

Happy Thanksgiving everybody.

You can find plenty of matches where Larry does stall, but it's sort of a potential/kinetic energy conversion thing. He uses it to build up and build up and build up the heat and then unleash it. When he ends up going, he can to at a frenetic pace. You see a little less of that in 91 even though he keeps stalling, which is where I think a lot of people saw him the most. I still feel that the issue isn't necessary that Larry stalled (even though there are many matches where he DOESN'T) but that people spent twenty-five+ years not actually valuing how awesome stalling can be.

I've seen him do it, particularly in 91. Which I am not saying it is a bad thing, I enjoy stalling. I just came across a bunch of matches that were very fast paced. Moreso than other guys of his era.

Flicking through youtube and came across ECW Legend Stevie Richards reviewing the Nintendo Switch!

 

So, Dave Prazak just posted on a Facebook group that Mel Phillips has been dead since 2012. I pressed him to make sure that it was the same guy and that was his real name, and he was pretty adamant that WhitePages and other places confirmed the address and that it was the same guy.

It's still in the SSDI range, so that might solve it. Which details about him are known anyways?

So, Dave Prazak just posted on a Facebook group that Mel Phillips has been dead since 2012. I pressed him to make sure that it was the same guy and that was his real name, and he was pretty adamant that WhitePages and other places confirmed the address and that it was the same guy.

Keep pressing Prazak for more information because I have a feeling that something is afoot here.

Flicking through youtube and came across ECW Legend Stevie Richards reviewing the Nintendo Switch!

 

Off topic but the Switch is an absolutely fantastic system.

So, Dave Prazak just posted on a Facebook group that Mel Phillips has been dead since 2012. I pressed him to make sure that it was the same guy and that was his real name, and he was pretty adamant that WhitePages and other places confirmed the address and that it was the same guy.

It's the same guy, Melvin Douglas Phillips of Philadelphia. Some databases didn't reflect his death until early this year, though.

I laugh every time the Toyota Camry commercial that uses John Cena's theme music comes on.

I laugh every time the Toyota Camry commercial that uses John Cena's theme music comes on.

I like how there are "jbl" speakers. Of course, this isnt the first time Toyota and the WWF/E have met:

 

Shinobu Kandori is fighting Gabi Garcia in an MMA fight on December 29 for RIZIN.

 

The fight was originally scheduled to take place last year on NYE, but Kandori had to pull out due to an injury and Yumiko Hotta stepped in and got crushed by Gabi in the fight.

 

Hotta did get to run the ropes in the fight though!

 

Also if youre not familiar with who Gabi is, then do a quick Google search. Shes a huge BJJ world champ.

Can anyone who knows a good amount about about lucha (which is my one of my wrestling blindspots) recommend me some Blue Panther matches that are available online? or a comp I could inquire about? after hearing Bryan put him over so much in a video where he received a Blue Panther mask and spoke about his great work I feel like I absolutely need to learn more about him and check out his work.

Look for any of his singles matches with Atlantis, Super Astro, Villano V, Santo, and Negro Casas. Should be enough to get you started.

Can anyone who knows a good amount about about lucha (which is my one of my wrestling blindspots) recommend me some Blue Panther matches that are available online? or a comp I could inquire about? after hearing Bryan put him over so much in a video where he received a Blue Panther mask and spoke about his great work I feel like I absolutely need to learn more about him and check out his work.

 

I'd argue that you can't just jump into Blue Panther without some legwork to prepare you though.

My friend told me about the Cena/Toyota ad that's awesome! Delivery's time is up! Pick-up time is now!

in presumably unrelated news, Cena is being sued by Ford for selling a custom car they gave him. He said he did it to pay bills, which is kind of concerning when you consider all the money he makes from WWE, Hollywood, and endorsement deals. Has he been taking financial advice from Ric Flair?

 

Can anyone who knows a good amount about about lucha (which is my one of my wrestling blindspots) recommend me some Blue Panther matches that are available online? or a comp I could inquire about? after hearing Bryan put him over so much in a video where he received a Blue Panther mask and spoke about his great work I feel like I absolutely need to learn more about him and check out his work.

 

I'd argue that you can't just jump into Blue Panther without some legwork to prepare you though.

 

I'd argue the opposite. For the most part, you can watch Blue Panther's big matches and just from those get a sense of who he was, what he did well, and what the match was about. Maybe he changed as he got older but in his thirties Panther didn't surround his singles matches with the kind of buildup and followup that make for great feuds and add to the one on one match.

Can anyone who knows a good amount about about lucha (which is my one of my wrestling blindspots) recommend me some Blue Panther matches that are available online? or a comp I could inquire about? after hearing Bryan put him over so much in a video where he received a Blue Panther mask and spoke about his great work I feel like I absolutely need to learn more about him and check out his work.

 

Blue Panther vs El Mariachi (El Solar)

Blue Panther vs Negro Casas (2011)

Blue Panther vs Negro Casas (2012) x2

 

 

Can anyone who knows a good amount about about lucha (which is my one of my wrestling blindspots) recommend me some Blue Panther matches that are available online? or a comp I could inquire about? after hearing Bryan put him over so much in a video where he received a Blue Panther mask and spoke about his great work I feel like I absolutely need to learn more about him and check out his work.

 

I'd argue that you can't just jump into Blue Panther without some legwork to prepare you though.

 

I'd argue the opposite. For the most part, you can watch Blue Panther's big matches and just from those get a sense of who he was, what he did well, and what the match was about. Maybe he changed as he got older but in his thirties Panther didn't surround his singles matches with the kind of buildup and followup that make for great feuds and add to the one on one match.

 

I think it works for the Barr match and for some of the fun stuff that's popped up in Japan where Panther's working more broadly as a stereotypical rudo, but in general, you understand what makes Blue Panther so special, you need to understand lucha (trios organization and how he's so good at directing traffic, how title matches operate and why, the role he played when teaming with guys like Fuerza, what makes maestros matches special, etc.). Otherwise, he's just a guy who can get in and out of matwork quickly. I assume Bryan sees more in him than that but who knows?

To add to that, Panther and Casas were the first guys I "got" when I tried to dive deeper than athletic spot lucha. They would continually be guys I gravitated towards and continued to enjoy even with a primitive knowledge of lucha. Of course Casas is far more transcendental (being the all-timer great he is and having the charisma that he does) but Panther captured me in so much that he was the first and only guy I ever tried a Complete & Accurate career retrospective of.