According to Twitter, Memphis manager Nate "the Rat" Whitlock passed away today. He was quite the character - his interview on Scott Bowden's Kentucky Fried Wrasslin' podcast was wild. On a side note, his brother is legendary Memphis keyboard player Bobby Whitlock, who was Derek and the Dominos.

Here's something unique: Regal vs. Robby Brookside in a 60 minute match at the WCW Power Plant in 1993 with DDP as ref.

 

 

This has been mentioned before but watching 80s and even early 90s wrestling it's amazing how many elderly fans were in attendance at the matches.  I guess it ended when both companies really went kid friendly.

Going along with that. Watching old Mid-Atlantic TV, the studio seems like it's full of mostly middle aged women most weeks. 

14 hours ago, Strummer said:

This has been mentioned before but watching 80s and even early 90s wrestling it's amazing how many elderly fans were in attendance at the matches.  I guess it ended when both companies really went kid friendly.

I think the Attitude Era ran off elderly fans. I don't know of many old folks who watched WWF in 98. But I knew a lot who stuck it out with WCW

There's something so genuine about old people at wrestling events. My grandpa will never be an old man in my eyes, but (to this day) nothing surpasses bringing him to live wrestling. The experience is only always a truckload of fun, and he comes from Watts country where you show you're having a good time by giving the heels pure hell. (2009 Randy Orton did not look amused when it was suggested that he might, in fact, be a bastard.)

Historically though, who *were* the elderly darlings?

 

 

Well, in the Northeast it was Bruno, all the way.

Whoever was big when wrestling was on the DuMont Network.

even well into the 80s the AWA always had a ton of elderly fans in their crowds.  Especially at the Las Vegas TV tapings

I was just thinking, this year has been awesome in wrestling. There have been 4 or 5 matches so far that I'd have as a runaway MOTY pretty much any year in the past 15 years. The LA Park vs Rush feud, the Ciampa vs Gargano feud, everything in Omega's title chase and title win, Pentagon vs Caristico feud, Hideki Suzuki's title reign in BJW, etc. Its been an amazing year for wrestling so far. 

9 hours ago, Johnny Sorrow said:

Well, in the Northeast it was Bruno, all the way.

I grew up on Long Island and I have lots of stories of my Dad's Grandma who LOVED Bruno and loved to attend MSG shows, and would call him "my boy" and get angry whenever a heel would rough him up. 

My grandpa liked Freddie Blassie, and even called my mother's school principal - who he didn't like - a pencil neck geek. 

Before Hunter got injured who was the most likely person to win the 2002 Rumble?

 

I still feel it was a terrible decision to book Hunter to when considering how over Austin was with the crowd reactions leading up to the show and even during the show. I think id rather have seen Hunter beating Jericho for the title at No Way Out and Austin winning the Rumble so we finally get to see Stone Cold's revenge after the 3 stages of hell the previous year. Then at Mania have Austin beat Helmsley for the Championship.

I wasent impressed with HHH/Jericho and felt it was a poor main event, watching the weeks leading up to the Rumble you could see Austin was getting jobbed out losing to Booker T and then handicap match against Booker/Boss man when Austin was the number 1 guy in 2001.

Of all the questionable things from that period, HHH winning the Rumble after having been on roll the previous year and getting massive reactions for his return is one of the last things I'd go after. Austin was way to banged up to be main eventing Mania at that stage, especially in a match that would have had huge expectations to live up to. If I were in the mood to fantasy book, I'd focus on everything they did after the Rumble win or go further back and look at how they could have stretched the Invasion out to Wrestlemania.

Initially upon his release, I paid no attention to the slew of shoot interviews Simon Gotch did. But, now having heard a few of them, I gotta say - the guy is a surprisingly engaging speaker. Straight up. Dude can talk.

Gotch comes off really well in everything I've seen. Very expressive. Convincing and captivating as a storyteller, too. Whether it's the sort of charisma that has, would, or could ever translate to actual character work or his on-screen presence, I couldn't tell you. But I was pleasantly surprised.

There's been some talk of him resembling Punk with his demeanor and expressions or mannerisms, which I actually never noticed before but cannot UNsee now that it's been brought to my attention.

Scope out his clips talking shit on Enzo on YouTube for recommended viewing. Good stuff.

Gotch isn't as captivating in his promos as he is when he shoots on Enzo (maybe he needs to refer to his physicist friend), but he's not too far off. Getting released from WWE and doing indie runs has made him tweak it all and find things that work. I love the $250 challenge he does in MLW, and his chemistry with Tom Lawlor in general. 

As great a team as Seven and Bate are, "Moustache Mountain" has got to be the absolute worst tag team name ever.

11 hours ago, Laz said:

Gotch isn't as captivating in his promos as he is when he shoots on Enzo, but he's not too far off

"You got fake gold. Fake Jordans. Fake leopard print. Fake hair. With a fake accent. And you call yourself the realest guy in the room?!"

Tremendous.

Braun Strowman posted video of himself at a Sam Smith concert. The video does not end with Braun destroying the stage and throwing a port-a-potty containing Smith off a balcony. This is most disappointing. 

50 minutes ago, Log said:

Braun Strowman posted video of himself at a Sam Smith concert. The video does not end with Braun destroying the stage and throwing a port-a-potty containing Smith off a balcony. This is most disappointing. 

He's exposing the business!!! - Jim Cornette

Maybe Sam Smith's music soothes the biggest of monsters?

Also, the Vaudevillains gimmick was not going to work at all on the main roster. English is doing incredibly well with his current role as Rusev's hypeman, and Simon Gotch could do well with a different role, because he can talk well. But that gimmick... it was Superstars/Main Event tier material.

English singing was great. English doing this hybrid of spoken word poetry & Cena slow rap is silly. But it is over af, which is ultimately what matters.

The Vaudevillains gimmick had a shelf life, for sure. But I do think it could have continued in other incarnations or directions. Sillier shit has succeeded on the main roster, but it's hard to say when something is never really given much of a chance.

Does anyone have a link to the old Live Audio Wrestling commercial of the Bill Alphonso impression singing the Christmas songs? I can't find it!

It would have been better if the Vaudevillains had wrestled in an old school style, and by old school, i'm talking 20s-30s, but I cant see that getting over with the majority of fans.

Disregarding any "T-shirt and jeans" type look, is there any ring gear in wrestling more awful than Double J's bird cage attire from the mid-nineties?

It has to be among the dirt worst.