C.S.

Not a new issue, but dumb as fuck that UFC is contending for the same awards as wrestling - such as Feud of the Year. How are the two even comparable? One is real life and the other is a storyline. I get that Dave thought expanding the Observer to include UFC would increase his readership, but I think there should be separate awards for pro wrestling and MMA. Full list here (and in the Observer newsletter itself, of course): http://www.cagesideseats.com/2016/1/21/10805104/2015-wrestling-observer-newsletter-awards-analysis

A fantastic read! I had no idea about any of this. The mention of T.J. Wilson threw me off at first, as I thought initially that Tyson Kidd was somehow involved in all of this, but it became quickly apparent that you were referring to a different T.J. Wilson entirely. Hulk Hogan becoming a standoffish dick to his longtime friend is sad but probably not particularly surprising. I really have to wonder what either of them were thinking getting involved in this whole mess. I know Show needed the money, but still... Thanks for writing and posting.

Other than a couple of recent posts, the last few posts are a month old.

Don't agree with this at all. Not when you have guys like Jake "The Snake" Roberts and Scott Hall - both good workers, no? - preaching that it's better to have only five moves if those five moves are all massively over with the audience.

I, too, preferred the Nation, but I liked DX as well... I'm probably in the minority in thinking that the Triple H/X-Pac/New Age Outlaws version of the group was miles better than the original - with a stoned, stale Shawn as an anchor weighing it down. I actually thought Trips really came into his own as Shawn's sidekick. I was ready for him to take it over when he did. I refuse to acknowledge the X-Pac/Road Dogg/Tori shit version of the group or the "old men who are no longer cool, and realize it, but act like they are anyway" reunion tour.

I'll play: Bob Backlund Superstar Billy Graham Superfly Jimmy Snuka Cowboy Bill Watts Erik Watts Bob Orton Mr. Hughes

Not exactly what you're talking about in the OP, but it drives me nuts when people discount the impact, storylines, crowd reactions, and general consensus of a match at the time - undervaluing that and replacing it with how they may feel now when watching it blindly or out of context. Sure, there's something to be said about a good match that's still good even when you watch it cold, but I don't think it's accurate to say a generally beloved match is bad if you weren't there and don't understand the context, emotions, and reactions it generated at the time. Obviously, some matches don't age well - like any other form of entertainment - but I think it's dangerous to say all '50s matches and workers were lazy, lumbering oafs who didn't do anything interesting (I'm exaggerating) when the business was different, matches were structured differently, and - most importantly of all - expectations were different. BTW, Dean Malenko wasn't better than Earthquake IMO. Maybe I value character more than most people here, but Earthquake played his character to the hilt - even in the ring, with his mannerisms during the Earthquake Splash, etc. Dean just 'rassled, and he's far less interesting in the ring than most people give him credit for (though I think most of PWO is with me on that one). Don't get me wrong, I liked Deano Machino well enough at the time, but he's also kind of instantly forgettable - both ring-wise and character-wise. His most memorable feud was with Jericho, and that was all Jericho and all out-of-the-ring stuff. I don't even remember their actual matches.

What I actually said, though, was either the PPV before Mania or the one after it. Several more examples open up for the latter. Other than "Twice in a Lifetime," a Mania main event has never been repeated at Mania. (UT/Shawn and UT/Trips weren't main events both times, and I think - but could be wrong - that only UT/Shawn was ever the last match of those four, and that was only once.)

I thought Ross and Jesse were fantastic together, just because they were each individually fantastic. If that didn't translate to chemistry as a team, I certainly never noticed, because they were both good enough on their own to make it work.

Plus, the WWE's style has always been to repeat the Mania main event either the next month or a year later at the show before or after Mania. We saw that with Hogan-Rock and countless other examples.

Glad I'm not the only one who sees the potential in Danny Burch. He definitely has an awesome Jason Statham/Vinnie Jones/soccer hooligan vibe to him. I can't wait for him to get a repackage and a push. I hope it's soon. Eva Marie has a better character than 90% of WWE/NXT. There, I said it. #RedArmy, baby

They're definitely exclusive to Walmart. It's even mentioned in the ad.

Thank you, victory and Sidebottom. And agreed, Blehschmidt. I could be wrong, but I don't think specifically. I believe there was just a brief mention made of charity cards in Kamala's name where he didn't see a dime of the money.

I was going to post that Evan Bourne came across as a sleazy dickbag "player" on Total Divas, but that was actually Justin Gabriel. Can't tell these flippity-floppity guys apart.

Double post. Please delete. Actual post here: http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/32974-kamala-speaks-wrestling-book-is-spectacular/

The ebook version of Kamala Speaks recently landed on the Kindle store, so I decided to treat myself to it as a Christmas present. After reading Backlund's book, I dived right into Kamala's. I am a huge Kamala fan from childhood, so I was really excited to finally be able to devour this. As a kid, I knew I couldn't ever be Hulk Hogan or Ultimate Warrior, but maybe I could be Kamala... (I don't mean growing up to become an African savage - kind of hard for a white kid to aspire to, haha - and I definitely don't mean becoming a bodyguard for Idi Amin. I mostly mean the belly. I could rub my belly with the best of them!) I knew I'd have fun with this, of course, but I wasn't expecting it to be as good as it is. What really makes Kamala Speaks stand out is that James Harris (and/or Kenny Casanova, who is listed as the book's co-author) is not afraid to dig deep, show his emotions, and lay his soul bare for the reader - anger, sadness, regret, longing, fear, and those sweet but fleeting moments of happiness. Whether it's losing his legs or headlining Madison Square Garden with Hulk Hogan, all of his feelings are described powerfully. One of the most impactful moments of the book, for me, was when a retired Kamala returned to one of the arenas he headlined - this time as a truck driver making a delivery - and ran into his old wrestling co-workers. And Kamala definitely has some strong opinions about those co-workers - particularly Vince McMahon and Andre the Giant. He also goes into his low payoffs, racism in wrestling, the creation of the gimmick in Memphis with Lawler and Jerry Jarrett, Friday/Kim Chee, Mid-South, his WWF runs and eventual face turn there, his brief stint in WCW, his one remaining friend from the wrestling business, and all of the other topics you'd expect from his career. Occasionally, the book will slip off into weird side-tangents. In one instance, former WWF ring announcer Mel Phillips' foot fetish and accompanying scandal is mentioned - possibly to parallel Kamala's own foot amputation issues? There are also a bunch of Pat Patterson and "Brooklyn Brawler" Steve Lombardi stories. Kamala addresses those rumors head-on, apologizes for his part in them, and then goes on to make fun of Lombardi several more times anyway. It's all a bit bizarre, but it does make for strangely compelling reading. Oddly enough, Lombardi, Harvey Wippleman, and pretty much anyone from the WWE apparently refused to be quoted for Kamala Speaks - "out of fear," according to the author(s). I can believe it, because the book is pretty hard-hitting. But still, to me, it only makes everyone currently in the WWE look petty for not contributing their own thoughts to a former colleague's life story. What harm would that have really done? Kamala was going to write whatever he was going to write anyway - and he did! WWE didn't really do itself any favors by distancing itself for no reason, if you ask me. The foreword is written by Jim Ross, but the ebook version contains several unused forewords at the end and other extra material that didn't make it into the print version. There was nothing wrong with J.R.'s foreword - it was fine - but I have no idea why they didn't use Koko B. Ware's instead. It was far more personal and heartfelt. My only guess is that J.R.'s version was ultimately chosen because he's a "bigger name." There are a couple of minor errors in the ebook edition (not sure if they're also present in the print book). There are two instances where a sentence is cut off. I believe this happens in Chapters 1 and 7, but I'll have to double-check. Hopefully I can find a way to contact the authors so these tiny gaffes are corrected (easy enough in a ebook, since existing buyers can get updated versions automatically). Other than that, this is clean, polished, and professional. Overall, Kamala Speaks is fantastic - definitely up there with the best wrestling books I've ever read, and I've read most of them. Link to the ebook: http://www.amazon.com/Kamala-Speaks-eBook-Editors-Autobiography-ebook/dp/B019JJR59Q/

Patera was in the Giants documentary, on behalf of Big John Studd.

Isn't he injured?

On that note, all of the Vicki Guerrero fat shaming comments, especially by who is quickly becoming the patron saint of this thread, Jerry "King Scumbag" Lawler.

Jerry Lawler ranting about Jake the Snake's alcoholism during their feud, which culminated in Lawler hitting Jake with a bottle of whiskey and pouring it all over him. (Heck, you could probably devote an entire podcast to scummy Lawler angles that didn't draw money!) Jake, during the same angle, exploiting religion by acting like a Born Again Christian, which he wasn't and isn't. Stone Cold pouring beer down alcoholic Scott Hall's throat. Shawn Michaels vs. God. The Raven crucifix angle. (At least the Undertaker angle really did use a ridiculous UT symbol, so even though the intent was obviously the same, it was too cartoonish to be taken seriously.) The elderly Stu Hart, who was clearly out of it, being paraded around in the front row of a Raw episode in Calgary (along with the rest of the dopey dead-weight Hart clan) - which I believe ended with yet another recreation of the Montreal Screwjob. Most of the Harts were greedy, selfish, spoiled, useless, money-grubbing attention whores, but a badly-aging Stu didn't deserve to be carted out for that. Any miscarriage or spousal abuse angle (Terri Runnels miscarrying and Chaz giving his girlfriend a black eye immediately come to mind in the Attitude Era).

Why wasn't Boss Man suspended/fired when he made fun of Big Show's dead daddy? The injustice and hypocrisy of the WWE brings me to tears.

Same with George Steele. (Paraphrasing) "You could only have one kind of match with him, but he was such an intelligent guy and the fans came out in droves to see him."

I just finished the book. Got the hardcover for Christmas. (The ebook price is the same or close, which is just nuts and I can't see that version selling many copies.) It's awesome. Backlund is very honest about everything, a straight-shooter, but never vindictive and always classy. One of the most enjoyable aspects of the book is finding out which wrestlers he respects (I was surprised by a few of the people he named). If he's critical of anyone, it's never in a nasty, petty way - he's always very fair and just. If you're looking for salacious dirt or bitter axe-grinding, you won't find it here. He also goes into detail about his relationship with Vince Sr. and every major match and feud he had - including his title loss and who came up with the "throw in the towel" booking. Maybe I bought too much into the straight arrow character and narrative they built for Backlund over the years, but I was genuinely shocked that he ever took a sip of beer, LOL - especially with Andre. To be fair, he is still the clean, sober, hard-working "All American Boy" we know him to be. If you're looking for a lot of detail about his '90s comeback, there isn't much (as Ricky Jackson pointed out too). Backlund doesn't even cover anything past the Diesel loss. He acts almost as if his career ended right then and there, followed by his Hall of Fame induction a few years later. As cool as the Diesel surprise switch was at the time to my kid self, I really wished, both then and now, that Backlund had gotten a longer run with the title. I would've loved more about oddities like clash of styles WM match with Razor, his disappointing WM rematch with Bret, and his bizarre feud with Man Mountain Rock (one of the rare instances of WCW using a wrestler better than the WWF did). Overall, it's a great book - marred only by some formatting issues (all of the quotes are surrounded by a grey border, but some of the quotes inexplicably begin or end outside that border) and minor inaccuracies (for example, the Backlund heel turn was incorrectly identified as happening on Raw when it actually took place on Superstars). Still, those are minor nitpicks, especially considering the length and depth of this book. I don't think there's a more detailed account anywhere of the WWWF/WWF and its players and personalities (especially Vince Sr.) in the late-'70s and early '80s.

If you don't mind ebooks, it's $5 on Kindle last time I checked. I believe it was even formatted and uploaded by someone here, but I could be wrong on that.

Cena vs. Undertaker would've meant infinitely more if the Streak were involved, but if Taker announces ahead of time that this will be his final match, I think it will still create enough doubt over the outcome and feel like an "epic" last ride. Am I the only one who would want to see Reigns vs. Rock? Rock would have to play the asshole Hollywood heel who resents Reigns for getting him booed at the Rumble last year, and I'm not sure that's something he'd go for at this stage of the game, but it would be fun. Even better if Nia Jax comes in as Rock's badass female bodyguard. Miz as Rock's supporting actor lackey would be cool too. But all of that negates the Rock-Trips build we got last year, so it won't happen. I don't see why Trips has to wrestle at Mania. I think the show would be just fine if he sat it out and concentrated on his executive duties.