Cross Face Chicken Wing Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/689179...stler-real-life Most of the people on this board are probably familiar with everything discussed in this story, but it's still very depressing to read all of this when it's clumped together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ditch Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 Really good article, albeit sad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FLIK Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 1/2 way through reading it, never heard the stories about Reid before, sad stuff. Seems like a small miracle Flair's never gotten any significant jail given how many legal troubles he's had. Comes across like one of the greatest con men to ever live given how many diffrent people he's managed to get to give him loans he wouldn't/couldn't pay back and invest in businesses with him that were doomed to failure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 Comes across like one of the greatest con men to ever live given how many diffrent people he's managed to get to give him loans he wouldn't/couldn't pay back and invest in businesses with him that were doomed to failure. Now that's a worker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dooley Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 Does Meltzer still cling to the "he has millions in retirement accounts" story? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Victator Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 Paints a really bad picture of his second wife. Its funny in a sad way he is still on the hook to pay her considering she is at least just as responsible for the mess he is in financially. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rovert Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 I know he LIVED the fucking lifestyle. Along with turning all sorts of colours cutting promos but has his heart condition - alcoholic cardiomyopathy ever been reported on before? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bix Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 I don't think it had been. Why were so many people making the ROH suit out to be dead with the Sinclair purchase when it turns out they won? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdw Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 I know he LIVED the fucking lifestyle. Along with turning all sorts of colours cutting promos but has his heart condition - alcoholic cardiomyopathy ever been reported on before? I am interested with the source of that. Almost all of the rest of the items look like they're from court papers. There's some ugly stuff that's come out in them, no doubt some of it he-said-she-said... though not to the degree that Flair Defenders make out. But the alcoholic cardiomyopathy... where is that from? I don't think Ric would ever use it in one of his own filings, or cop to it in a depo unless really pushed with clear evidence. I would guess that it might be in the last divorce and that she dropped it into the record. His twitter is: @TobaccoRdBlues Can someone on twitter ask him the source of that specific item? John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigerpride Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 Does Meltzer still cling to the "he has millions in retirement accounts" story? I think we found out what happened to the millions in retirement accounts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdw Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 And it happened long before Dave started pointing to them. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cross Face Chicken Wing Posted August 25, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 I plan to later tonight. I can't go through the entire piece again right now, but I'm guessing it must've been in one of the divorce papers. I know he LIVED the fucking lifestyle. Along with turning all sorts of colours cutting promos but has his heart condition - alcoholic cardiomyopathy ever been reported on before? I am interested with the source of that. Almost all of the rest of the items look like they're from court papers. There's some ugly stuff that's come out in them, no doubt some of it he-said-she-said... though not to the degree that Flair Defenders make out. But the alcoholic cardiomyopathy... where is that from? I don't think Ric would ever use it in one of his own filings, or cop to it in a depo unless really pushed with clear evidence. I would guess that it might be in the last divorce and that she dropped it into the record. His twitter is: @TobaccoRdBlues Can someone on twitter ask him the source of that specific item? John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shoe Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 That was a total train wreck to read. PLus his beatings that both his sons take from old school wrestlers. I believe it was Ole who punched David at a convention a few years back. This year it was the Raging Bull call Reid a crackhead and smacking him around. Only in wrestling where former co workers start fights with your sons. I can safely say I have never even been close to be punched by my Dad's former co workers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smkelly Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 What was the point of the article? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bix Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 What was the point of the article?That there's a lot of documented proof of how screwed up Flair is that nobody has bothered to look through before, I guess. Did a run-down of the new information at BR. And as long as the list is, it doesn't even scratch the surface of everything covered in the article. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdw Posted August 25, 2011 Report Share Posted August 25, 2011 What was the point of the article? I thought the intro summed up the point of it: The story of Ric Flair was once about a college dropout who rose through the ranks of professional wrestling to become a legend. It was about his nickname, "The Nature Boy," and his signature figure four leglock, both lifted from an older wrestler named Buddy Rogers. It was about his multiple championships, his bleach-blond hair, his fast-talking patter (by his own reckoning, Flair was a "stylin', profilin', limousine-riding, jet-flying, kiss-stealing, wheelin'-n'-dealin' son of a gun!"), and his signature, trademarked cry: "WOOO!" Today the story is about a man known in the court system as Richard Morgan Fliehr, 62, born in 1949 and adopted by parents who raised him in Minnesota. That's what he was called this past April, when a judge ejected Fliehr from his Charlotte home because he couldn't pay his rent. That's what he was called in May, when he faced an arrest order for an unpaid $35,000 loan. That's what he's called on the paychecks from Total Nonstop Action, a second-tier outfit where he's still compelled to perform despite suffering from alcoholic cardiomyopathy, and where almost everything he earns goes toward old debts: lawyers, ex-wives, the IRS, former business partners, and anyone who made the mistake of lending him money. [...] The Mecklenburg County courthouse in Charlotte contains thousands of pages documenting Fliehr's legal adventures. [...] Taken together, the information produces a rough timeline that illustrates Fliehr's self-destructive impulses. It includes excesses that Hollywood screenwriters wouldn't have the audacity to invent, and yet it follows its own logic — one bad decision comes after another, each magnifying the damage of the one to follow. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sean Liska Posted August 26, 2011 Report Share Posted August 26, 2011 That was a total train wreck to read. PLus his beatings that both his sons take from old school wrestlers. I believe it was Ole who punched David at a convention a few years back. This year it was the Raging Bull call Reid a crackhead and smacking him around. Only in wrestling where former co workers start fights with your sons. I can safely say I have never even been close to be punched by my Dad's former co workers. Oddly, Fifi the Maid said that Manny was going after her verbally for some reason, and that Reid stepped in to defend her. I can't imagine anyone but hardcore wrestling fans reading that whole thing, there had to be a more engaging way to format it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cross Face Chicken Wing Posted August 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 26, 2011 What was the point of the article? Flair's a big time celeb in the Carolinas, not just some wrestler. As far as I know, no comprehensive review of his misdeeds has been done by a mainstream -publication. There have been short blurbs in the local papers whenever he has a run-in w/ the police, but that's about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Childs Posted August 26, 2011 Report Share Posted August 26, 2011 It might have been a more fun read with a few more voices in the story, but in a way, I admire the notion that a stripped-down recitation of Flair's legal history paints the truest picture of his existence. I'm sure the writer wanted it to feel uncomfortable. Has anyone else gotten the impression that Flair just isn't terribly bright? It's hard to distinguish between that and his gross immaturity, but I remember thinking the same thing after watching his shoot interview. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cross Face Chicken Wing Posted August 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 26, 2011 It might have been a more fun read with a few more voices in the story, but in a way, I admire the notion that a stripped-down recitation of Flair's legal history paints the truest picture of his existence. I'm sure the writer wanted it to feel uncomfortable. Has anyone else gotten the impression that Flair just isn't terribly bright? It's hard to distinguish between that and his gross immaturity, but I remember thinking the same thing after watching his shoot interview. Flair still spends thousands of dollars per month on lavish housing, dining, and toys while owing money to several individuals and the government. The guy's a genius! I think I'd call Flair a lying, cheating, lowlife scumbag before I'd call him stupid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdw Posted August 26, 2011 Report Share Posted August 26, 2011 He's a con man and a grifter. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loss Posted August 26, 2011 Report Share Posted August 26, 2011 Flair still lives a lavish lifestyle. He has yet to really suffer the consequences of his choices. Yes, he is broke, but he still finds ways to spend money he doesn't have. Until he ends up in jail, it's just going to continue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdw Posted August 26, 2011 Report Share Posted August 26, 2011 Or dead. I suspect that's long been Ric's plan: death makes him judgement proof and means no one can come after him for money. Of course he could end up leaving his spouse and kids (i.e. the Estate) with loads of debt. But I think we all would agree that deep down, Ric doesn't give two shits about his wives and kids, and instead cares only about Ric Flair. That's really cold to say, but do Ric's actions suggest anything other than living a life that entirely revolves around his living the Ric Flair life? :/ He hands out cash and stuff to the wives and kids because it's part of the Ric Flair Lifestyle, and he really has very little other way to connect with them. It's really a shallow, pathetic life when you peel it all back. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smkelly Posted August 26, 2011 Report Share Posted August 26, 2011 What was the point of the article? I thought the intro summed up the point of it: The story of Ric Flair was once about a college dropout who rose through the ranks of professional wrestling to become a legend. It was about his nickname, "The Nature Boy," and his signature figure four leglock, both lifted from an older wrestler named Buddy Rogers. It was about his multiple championships, his bleach-blond hair, his fast-talking patter (by his own reckoning, Flair was a "stylin', profilin', limousine-riding, jet-flying, kiss-stealing, wheelin'-n'-dealin' son of a gun!"), and his signature, trademarked cry: "WOOO!" Today the story is about a man known in the court system as Richard Morgan Fliehr, 62, born in 1949 and adopted by parents who raised him in Minnesota. That's what he was called this past April, when a judge ejected Fliehr from his Charlotte home because he couldn't pay his rent. That's what he was called in May, when he faced an arrest order for an unpaid $35,000 loan. That's what he's called on the paychecks from Total Nonstop Action, a second-tier outfit where he's still compelled to perform despite suffering from alcoholic cardiomyopathy, and where almost everything he earns goes toward old debts: lawyers, ex-wives, the IRS, former business partners, and anyone who made the mistake of lending him money. [...] The Mecklenburg County courthouse in Charlotte contains thousands of pages documenting Fliehr's legal adventures. [...] Taken together, the information produces a rough timeline that illustrates Fliehr's self-destructive impulses. It includes excesses that Hollywood screenwriters wouldn't have the audacity to invent, and yet it follows its own logic — one bad decision comes after another, each magnifying the damage of the one to follow. John Eh. Obviously, my question wasn't, "WHAT was the article ABOUT?" My question was, "What was the point of the article?" As in, "What am I supposed to learn from this?" Which was, "Ric Flair is a scummy, irresponsible, cheating, money-stealing low life." Thing is, I already knew that. Just sounds like someone found some new information and decided to compile it a little bit more, which is why I am questioning it. What is the point of making an already horrible person look even worse when the facts he added only added up to something Ric had done before and was pretty much common knowledge to people that 1. know him and 2. know about him. I mean, I knew as far back as 2003 (1 year after I got online) that it would be behoove of me to avoid financial interactions with Ric Flair. Is it to protect the general public who don't know who Ric Flair is? I kinda doubt it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Slickster Posted August 26, 2011 Report Share Posted August 26, 2011 We might know some of this stuff about Ric Flair, but few casual fans or non-fans who recognize the name have any idea about it. Should a guy like this have state governments paying him to promote lottery tickets? Should Republican political candidates be associating themselves with an alleged rapist? Should Carolina sports teams really be paying this career con man to give pep talks and say his catchphrases? This article could have far-reaching effects on Ric Flair. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.