Bix

To me, IWA not begging for money means they're really closing. The whole point of threatening to close is to bring money in, and they always encourage people to buy stuff when they threaten to fold.

http://www.cagesideseats.com/2009/8/28/100...podcast-8-28-09 Rob Naylor finally rejoins me as we get back into the groove with the first Loser Leaves Town Podcast to be part of Cageside Seats (which is my main outlet now, but this site is staying put to make things easier for iTunes users and the like), part of the SB Nation network of blogs. In the sequel to our popular Pacific Islanders show, we discuss the many Russians throughout the years in pro wrestling on top of our favorite memories of IWA Mid-South. Learn which Russians were real (not a lot...at all), listen to us debate the merits of Nikolai Volkoff, be amazed at the match we suggested to IWA that they didn't book because they thought it wouldn't draw for some reason, and much more. Over 2 hours(!!! - It's not like you have to listen to it all in one sitting) of heart-stopping action and the usual fun that results from putting me and Rob together.

Real in Memphis.

Could someone post the latest Dave vs Snowden wars?

Kenny McBride expresses his frustration vis a vis Dave Meltzer and Brits in the WON HOF:

http://ringpsychology.wordpress.com/2009/0...t-you-sold-out/ It was always planned that we'd move onto SBNation if we got enough unique visitors, but the name change was forced upon us. And yes, the rumors allege that it was Dustin Lee and Nadia Nyce. Felt it was something better left off SBNation since Nadia was 17 at the time and Lee was never charged with anything AFAIK.

My tl;dr-ish thoughts about IWAMS folding.

Yeah, Rey was pretty awful during much of his maskless run. I liked his CMLL matches though he was usually outworked in them.

I tend to think that when you've watch around 60 matches of someone and pay attention to how they push matches along, it's not terribly hard to figure out when they're doing it. Flair is pretty obvious when he want to move along and get to more stuff. I haven't watched enough Lawler to call his spots and what small things he does that indicate what he wants to do next, but I'm sure you can. It's a bit like it's not mind reading to know that when Ric is going to the top in a certain way, he wants to get thrown off. Wrestlers are repetative in what they do, and how they signal to their opponents it's time to do something else. It's not always verbally calling spots. So you're saying that generally Backlund wrenching the headlock seems to immediately precede the next spot in his matches, correct?

Booking wise I would probablly say the peak was the Chris Kreski era (between Russo and Stephanie, covering most of 2000). Plenty of good wrestling and the non-wrestling stuff was generally solid, with the best continuity in company history (Kreski was known for doing extensive storyboarding and continuity charting). That or the best of the initial boom period, maybe.

Someone commenting at Scott Keith's blog (yeah, I know...) posted this: Any truth to it?

As far as Jarrett goes, I'm planning on converting all of the tapes I have with USWA Challenge episodes so maybe I'll do some writeups and/or uploads. I remember there being an oddly great Jarrett/Travis vs Chico Torres/Sweet Daddy Falcone match that was all due to Jarrett and Travis being great. In the meantime I can rip and upload the Gilbert match w/ the Dusty finish.

I was more bothered by the mindreading here:

1998 through current WWE? 1998 WWF like is a completely different promotion from current non-Raw WWE.

It set up the "Padrismo" interpromotional show that Televisa wanted to do.

I posted this last year in a "wrong kind of heat" thread at KM: He was always hurt most by being pushed ways that he shouldn't have. He was doing fine for his first two years or so in Memphis to the point that he was a favorite of newsletter readers (especially the Tanaka feud, which included tags that out of town fans in the area for conventions raved about as incredible 5 star matches), but then , which was a terrible misstep as it overdid the blowjob face aspect without the "cool edge" of the Fabs' music videos or the tough guy aspect of the Fabs. As mentioned above, he never clicked well as a heel aside from a 2 month or so period in 1999, and burnt out in Memphis after his heel turn to the point that his dad pulled strings to get him into the WWF. He was waaaaaaaaaaaay overpushed in WCW. He pushed himself too hard in TNA as such a dominating champion (especially with not putting the belt on Raven when Raven got over big), and too many fans knew he was the owner/booker. He seemed rejuvenated during his babyface runs (the TV match where he carried Raven in a Memphis style arena tour brawl was really good, and while I haven't seen that Angle match it seems like everyone liked it a lot) but during the last run he also pushed himself too much like a '80s Bill Watts (though the sympathetic widowed single father angle was a good one to play).

It’s not really puzzling, to me anyway. Cornette had a similar mindset when doing the little angle between SMW and WCW. Most fans believe that all promotions hate each other, so they go all the way with it. It’s not as bad as Russo’s stuff where they use wrestlers real names and vague shoot references that most fans don’t understand. Although, I will admit, that I didn’t care for his line in the Flair promo about Vince deciding who’s hand goes up and who’s shoulders stay down. I was referring to that Flair/Vince line, not the idea of him making any semi-insider references.

Cornette doing "everything you're watching is fake except this right now, which is real" stuff is really puzzling but this could still be good.

Don West fired, as expected. It sounds like he's gently suggesting that Angle commit suicide. It really does read that way but there's no way that's what he meant. I think.

Could someone please translate that from Jim Ross doublespeak to English, because I have NO idea what he's saying.

Burnsgate audio.

I need to know more about this. He would tell people he met that he wasn't a wrestler? Would say it was a temp job and he wasn't "in the business"? Would tell people he wasn't this "Lex Luger" fellow?

Oh geez. When did he say this and in what context?