thee Reverend Axl Future

I too wondered about that TT interview. - RAF

Oh, ATM Eric knew. A demographic is a demographic. It was all about the ratings then. - RAF

Has there been any word yet from Meltzer/WWE on how the boys will get paid from PPV revenue to compensate for the Network eating buys? This is a huge issue. - RAF

I am reading The Grappler's autobiography right now, and it is very enjoyable (about halfway through). Some pluses: no glaring typos, excellent cover and design, no proselytizing, interesting lack of kay fabe and no dreary explanation of basic wrestling terms. Basically, Len Denton is aware of the state of the business in 2014 and assumes you know who he is and what wrestling is about. It's not too deep or detailed, but it is an amazing document about coming up through the territories. I would really be interested to see what an open-minded non-fan would think about it, as it does present the incredible ability and dedication it took to make it back in those days. - RAF p.s. - thanks to a late tax refund, it's been the month of auto/bios: this, "Secret Historian: The Life and Times of Samuel Steward, Professor, Tattoo Artist and Sexual Renegade", "Fug You: An Informal History of the Peace Eye Bookstore, the Fuck You Press, the Fugs, and Counterculture in the Lower East Side", " The House of Pain: The Strange World of Monique Von Cleef, The Queen of Humiliation: An Autobiography and a Message to All Human Slaves", "I Dreamed I Was a Very Clean Tramp: An Autobiography" by Richard Hell and I have the "Pig Farmer" and the Don Fargo books in the chute.

Was anybody else as confused, scared, disgusted, repelled and/or unnerved by the Mama's Boy stuff in the pre-show and PPV as I was? - RAF

I am really digging the tag tournament, but the promise of thee Vaudevillians vs. Cass/Amore is making me have markgasmsTM. This could be Mempho levels of getting one's gimmick over. - RAF

Good PPV that set up many future angles. My prediction matches Cristobal's: with Lesnar dominating the championship(s) & with minimal appearances contracted, it will give the belts back their aura of exclusivity and allow for the open-ended booking of WrestleMania, namely the return of a healthy DBryan, and if not then a ring-tuned RReigns, and if not a revengeful Cena. I really really want Cena to show up in a halo soon a la Pitbull #1, and for Lesnar to throttle him about whilst Heyman gloats and cackles. I was convinced that the German announce team was a gimmick, and that they would (pick one) A) reveal that they had bought controlling shares in the WWE and were the new Teutonic Uberkommissars. 2- ally themselves with Lana & Rusev as well as a debuting KENTA as the Neu Axis. III, after the main event, they stand up and their announce table would transform into a BMW mechabot, who would be the next Heyman guy/drone. or four, Heyman would introduce them as Das Enkel von Frankenstein, who would take credit for creating Brock Lesnar who would then clobber through the EMTs to drag off Cena's body for them to harvest for their next creation, let down, RAF

Team him up as Rutger Hauer's young protege in Hobo With A Shotgun 2, and Ambrose can start writing his Best Supporting Actor speech now. Paging BEN!: please tie this in with the Vince's Hobo Army continuity. stat, RAF

Actually, it's Eddie Graham and his hard-on. - RAF

Leroy Zybysko is my new favorite rassler that I have never seen yet. Thank you< Pro Wrestling. - RAF

This was in 1999(?) for Moolah's Ladies International Wrestling Association gimmick. A quick Googling reveals that it's actually called the Movie & Magic Hall of Fame, and is now located at 3555 Las Vegas Blvd. S., Las Vegas, NV 89109. Call first to inquire upon Rocco: 702-737-1343. The super creepy dummy from the movie "Magic" also lived there. - RAF

At the Museum of Magic & Ventriloquy in Las Vegas, located in the seedy O'Shea's Casino, I saw a Rocco dummy on display. Fabulous museum, lotsa posters and Houdini stuff from Orson Welles collection - I visited during a L.I.W.A. event. Maybe the Precious One traded Rocco for a $.99 hot dog there... - RAF

Hello, Kevin Steen, I am looking at you. He's more indy than indy with that shite. I cannot disagree with your argument more: for one thing, there is a huge difference between antics during a worker's entrance, promos and highspots, and beating up the audience trying to get a reaction (instead of emotion) from them instead of telling a story in the ring. Wrestling is always evolving and adapting. I could foresee the collapse of the WWE, and then minor territories re-emerging. Whether they can survive for another century is a different debate but I think it's possible. -RAF

I am truly agog that anybody could be down on Enzo Amore and/or think that Eva Marie will improve past mediocre. I also don't foresee KSteen "making it", but I have a low opinion of his work. The lad is not unintelligent, however, and he may be able to find himself a place. It seems that HHH has been allowed to hire up scads of workers and keep them around a while, and I applaud this business model and hope it lasts. Will this drain the resources of indy feds and foreign promotions and take away their talent too rapidly, causing the future talent pool to dry up? I hope not. The old method of bringing in two or three potential superstars at a time seemed and inefficient use of brainpower, airtime and money, as only a couple a year seemed to work out. There certainly aren't too many veterans left that can "go" in the ring. - RAF

Is this... the Lament Configuration? The one that summons the dread Cenobite Stanozolol, Dark Vizier of Nepotism? Ph'nglui Mglw'nafh McMahon Stamford wgah'nagl fhtagn, RAF

I wish that I could have been at the match in Houston where Harley Race gave AndreTG a vertical suplex, mybe with a time-travelin' video recording device... The rest of the card looks fun, too. - RAF

For the Dx crotch chop, did the usual series of them count as one crotch gesture, or three? If HHH, HBK and the NAO did it at once, was that one, four or twelve crotch gestures? Also, what percentage of the middle finger numbers were from SCSAustin? My guess would be 90%. academia, RAF

If Cena turned heel, and I am undecided on whether the writers could pull this off (bring back Pat Patterson as a long term angle consultant! And Hayes and Rotundo and anyone else over 50!!) as well as if it will be worthwhile in the long term, I would want him to really be the antithesis of his Cena Klassic character as it stands now. Meaning, not just an evil Master of Thuganomics w/more cheating, but more like a Million Dollar Man gimmick: an arrogant but skilled ring competitor who uses his money and influence to hire minions to get what he wants, who is difficult to get into the ring for babyface revenge. Use him sparingly, lots of video and live-via-satellite from his palatial mansions and backstage at rap concerts and from the cabin of his private jet, with his long-suffering wife at his side. He is too big for even the Authority to control, maybe only Mr. McMahon is his equal in influence and power. I gotta think on this more... - RAF

Infamous/unheralded/underground/coolerthanthou/goawaymark event direct from thee Hostile City, another attempt on thee rawk'n'rassling connection: Ya hadda be there: I was, and I got paid, RAF

I was at the Studio 54 debut of Bam Bam Bigelow, fresh out of the Monster Factory. If I recall correctly, he destroyed two enhancement talents at once. Also appearing for the first time in the ring, Lisa Sliwa, wife of Curtis Sliwa, Emperor of the Guardian Angels. She was horrific. The event was sparsely attended. It paled in comparison to Freddie Blassie coming to L'Amour (pronounced Lah-Moorz) East. If the Hollywood Fashion Plate of Wrestling had so desired, he could have had his pick of a dozen nubile metal queens, but instead he waved them away with his cane, shouting "Get out of here! I already have 9 ex-wives! What do I want with you dingy broads?". My young self was duly impressed. memories, RAF p.s. - I cannot find the invite to that S54 event, but I do have a poster of the Blassie fete. I possess some extraordinary pics and ephemera. I will start scanning soon.

But I do think that keeping it real, so to speak, worked within the realities of budget, injuries, skilled work pool and the fact that it is reality - you can't just bring in any element you can dream up. It worked as a sport with an dash of entertainment rather than entertainment with a sports flavor, which might be better served by a traditional movie/TV script & production. Don't forget, the business model was based on arena ticket sales. I think that eliminating kay fabe hurt the biz, but it was inevitable with the advent of new mass media (cable, nationwide news, internet). Think of an era when you could run the same loser leaves town match six times in the same state, or magazines that were written months in advance. Intellectual and aesthetic appreciation has replaced emotional response as the driving force behind hardcore fans. Merely being entertained doesn't keep people consistently viewing or spending money, there is too much competition for that (Game of Thrones, football, etc). - RAF

I really dig the Sheepherders in Southwest Championship Wrestling with Warlord Jonathan Boyd's Commonwealth Army. I would really love a SH DVD set. Does Mr. McMahon own the SCW library? - RAF

Tyler's eyes look painted onto his eyelids. - RAF

Cactus Jack is one of my fave raves, but I can't imagine that any red-blooded Amerikan woman could not help but be tempted by a 7 time NWA champ, what with your husband out at some Santa's Village somewhere, and Mr. Race right there in your living room with a thermos full of vodka & 7-Up, wearing a polyester shirt with photos of dirt bikes on it. Perhaps it's was a Faustian bargain of sorts, and Harley had Vader "take it easy" on CJack for a little quid pro quo and that is the reason thar Mrs. Foley's little boy is ambulatory today. just sayin', RAF

At first, I thought you were implying that Noelle has Harley Race's eyes, and Cactus Jack was wrestling Vader (managed by Mr. Race) in WCW during the timeframe of her birth... I wonder if she straightens her hair? oh my, RAF