Johnny Sorrow

The last two pages here were totally fun to read. Good stuff, guys. jdw, do you write about baseball elsewhere ala articles, Op peices, or analysis? I really enjoyed your stuff here.

The knees went. That had me going, "Oh come on, Mike! Greg Luzinski is coaching high school ball and THE BULL ain't crying." Seriously, Schmidt was the fucking man. I lived and breathed Phillies baseball in the 70's and 80's. And I agree that it's great that Alverez is watching 24/7 and finding out how awesome the 80's stuff from the territories is. It's the only time on his radio show he seems to enjoy talking about wrestling. It's just strange to me, as someone who grew up watching all that stuff, and is now reliving it via the DVDVR projects, hearing a guy who's job is covering wrestling discovering stuff that's only 20-30 years old. Eh, I'm just a nerd.

A guy who currently gets his jollies twittering silly shit and doing shoots acting silly in order to get a laugh when marks are over reacting to his BS that he knows is BS.

I enjoy listening to Alverez and Verhei gush on about how great the 80's stuff they watch on WWE Classics, but it brings up a strange difference between Sports Journalists and Wrestling Journalists. It always baffles me when they start praising the wrestling they've never seen before. Wouldn't it be part and parcel of being someone who writes about a subject to know about the history of all of it from before you started watching it? Minor quibble, but whatever.

Everyone always likes to say that the only star WCW made during the Monday Night war is Goldberg, but DDP also became a star. I don't care how many swapping parties he went too, getting over depends on the guy getting the push being able to take it and run with it. DDP managed to go from manager who's no longer needed to World Champion. He was as over as any guy I've ever seen for awhile there. And no wonder the Savage/ DDP stuff is so well remembered, it was two guys who love to plan every little detail. I'd iimagine they'd sit together and purposely try and write/ their stuff to steal the show. Savage and Steamboat both agreed to the same thing at Mania 3, but just for the match stealing the show. By the time of Savage/ DDP the angle, promos, and booking all had to work with great matches, and they pulled that off.

Youve a very liberal take on the term "taking out." Seriously what was going on there. Kendrick appeared out of nowhere and took out Kazarian is what happened, correct? Christ, of all the people to complain a one sentence statement.....

I buy like one TNA PPV a year, when I'm just like "fuck it." I bought this one and it was a mistake. I mean, I like parts of it, but overall it was shitty. Kendrick appearing on top of the cage, taking out Kazarian, and then sitting lotus and mediating was awesome, though.

After watching this set, I totally forgot how the announcers, Vince included would regularly refer to other sports that were going on. It was NASCAR races, NFL games, College football results, Boxing results, etc. Jim Ross would always do that, but Vince and Savage did it all the time as well.

This could be a whole new thing for me. "Johnny Sorrow: Wrestling Psychologist". I could be the the next Dr. Sidney M. Basil.

Jerry Lawler making fun of Stu and Helen Hart to their faces during Bret's match with Bam Bam from the 7/26/93 RAW still fucking rules. I still maintain that a lot of fans who hate Lawler and worship Bret, if psycho-analyzed, would be boiled down to being kids at this moment and being traumatized by Lawler being so "mean" and the fued that followed.

Cena didn't look like a wimp for Christ's sake. They completely played up the "He's a man of his word" deal as soon as the GM reminded him that the contract said he had to do Barrett's bidding. It's a mixture of Cena "having to keep wrestling cause it's all he has" and "keeping his word, even though he was cheated." If he got fired and showed up causing chaos until he made Wade piss himself with a fake gun, he'd be Austin. He's not Austin. And what the fuck does "wimp here as definied by mother nature" even mean?

They were still treating the tag belts as a big deal. Man, that Perfect/ Doink match is the fucking tits. It's better than the HBK/ Janetty match.

Yes, that is correct. You're learning young one, you're learning. I have no idea what paint chips taste like. Paint maybe?? You don't realize that I'm far older than you are? Are you one of those weird Calgary fans who think that the shit they watched was "realistic" and apply that to all other wrestling? Are you one of those wackos who thought everything in WWF was Vince hype EXCEPT his whole "dungeon, excellence of execution, best ever, Calgary" promotional horseshit? Does it grate you that Vince carnied Old Stu out of his business, but he could never put Memphis out of business? What's the preferrable way for a wife to submit to her husband? Unconcious after being dosed and getting rammed up the ass or becoming an old cat woman who looks on as she regrets her life as a brood mare for a sadistic imbecile? Why do dogs have cold noses?

Jason was an awesome gimmick, but Memphis was too phony? Question: What do paint chips taste like?

Given certain things that are obvious, Who's your favorite Bear? Terrible Ted or Mick Foley?

That depends, did they bust a nut while achieving physical exercise intensity?

1991? Ok then, Norman the Lunatic...Calgary dude..thoughts? Oh, and what's your take on Carrot Top? He's definately corny, but he has a hard work ethic and a body to die for, thoughts?

"It's impossible to fake intensity in the wrestling ring." Do you read that and even somewhat realize that it's a flawed point in every possible way considering that EVERYTHING is faked in a wrestling ring? Also, when you "discovered" the more realistic NWA/WCW during the Starrcade you mention, was it the "realistic" nature of Lex Luger's Torture Rack and Liger's costume or the non silliness of "Das Wunderkind"and Johnny B. Badd? Honestly, that was an awful, boring Starrcade. The best part was Flair covered in blood holding the belt.

Of course, it's obvious that it would have been worse if Punk wasn't on the debut show on a new network. Being on TV and getting beat is a lot better than being left off the "big new show".

Nah, I'm not so dopey that I thought THAT was true. But Alverez criticizes lots of wrestlers, it's his job. But around a year or two ago his criticisms of Punk just came off as if Punk ran over his dog and I have idea why. And I know he's against unnessecery stiffness, and rightly so. But the guy has detested McCool far more than any other mediocre current WWE Woman wrestler recently, gone off on how "talented" similar stiffs like Alicia Fox is and his "She'll get hers" came off really weird. Also, his changes to his newsletter make total sense. He said himself "Why do we need two Observers?"

Oh come on. I don't remember what it was with that. But the dude seemed to really have a dislike for Punk that felt like more than, "I'm not a fan of his wrestling." I havve no idea what for.

Jesus Christ, that Rock interview is the biggest Non-story ever. It was Duane Johnson at an MMA show being interviewed by an MMA reporter. He plugged his movie and put over the show he was plugging his movie on by saying the stock answer of "I'd have considered the UFC if it had been as big as it is now!" If Roller Derby suddenly hit huge and was on PPV and was the big thing you'd have Rock saying "I'm plugging my movie and I'd have considered Roller Derby!" I read his awful book. He, and most guys in wrestling historically wanted to play in the NFL more than anything, if you're gonna go with the "What real sport would I have wanted to do" deal.

Looks aside, the point I was getting at was that it was really weird hearing Alverez get that upset over McCool stiffing her, going as far to say on air that McCool is going to get hers, and coming off like he wants someone to hurt McCool. It was that weird place he goes, ala him hating CM Punk for all kinds of personal weird reasons.

Different strokes and all that. She's way muscular. Has a pretty face, though.

Growing up in the area watching the TV, Lou Abano was THE manager in the WWF. Edit: The Murdoch arguement going round and round on WO radio with Dave and Larry Matysik and Alverez popping in here and there to show he knows these names is interesting.