J.R.'s Family Bar-B-Q

That 4:30 a.m. wake up call came awfully early Tuesday morning but that was what The King and I had to do to make our 6 a.m. flights home from Lafayette, Louisiana. Working in Lafayette brings back lots of memories of some emotional nights in southwest Louisiana when fans would literally attempt to maim the bad guys for screwing over the heroes. I have always said that a great wrestling antagonist is one that by their actions and words can motivate a fan to purchase a ticket to a live event and go to the trouble and expense of leaving their home, traveling to and from the event, parking, concessions, and not to mention the cost of the tickets. All the talent knew each market for a variety of reasons, women, food, hotel, etc as they played these towns weekly on the same nights of the week. In other words, there was a circuit or a route that was scheduled for the wrestlers to work as much as 7-8 times per week. Because there were no guaranteed, formal contracts in those days a man’s word was his bond and if you did not work you did not get paid. So wrestlers worked even when many of them shouldn’t have, due to injuries or other issues. One of the things wrestlers remember towns for is the security that was provided for them in the arenas. Emotionally and beer fueled fans would erase their inhibitions and simply have a helluva night cheering the ever challenged hero and jeering the “cheat to gain an advantage but bad to the bone when on the offensive” antagonist. Having the house darkened and only lighting the ring also added to the chaos and the overall mood of the event. Those were amazing times and as a young referee in my early 20s, many nights the antagonists prevailed, which often times involved a controversial officiating call which did not make yours truly the most popular guy in the neighborhood. But, I often made $40-60 per night! (out of that came my expenses) I rarely traveled alone so I usually had “back-up” if things got out of hand. Raw emotion was on display essentially 7 nights a week if everyone was doing their jobs correctly. It was the last of an era that will most likely never be replicated again. James Roberts- I truly hope your dreams become realities. Never stop dreaming and never stop pursuing your goals. Anything can happen if you stay in the hunt. I’m pulling for you! We get lots of emails about Kane. I am very high on Kane’s abilities and am proud that I helped facilitate his hiring in the WWE. Kane is a gifted athlete who I think was more unique when he was masked. There is no reason Kane could not go back there if he chose to and certainly “the Big Red Machine” would make a great, competitive champion. I generally think that amateur wrestlers and ex-football players have the potential to make solid pro wrestlers and better than the majority of body builders and non athletes who have great looks. Marketable looks are essential in today’s marketplace but that means to me to be in excellent, athletic shape and not necessarily an “Arnold’s Classic” only type of body. To be a great wrestler one must be naturally athletic and often times amateur wrestlers and football players fit the bill for a recruit as it relates to mental and physical toughness, playing on a team, and being able to be motivated and coached up. It isn’t a fool proof formula, but I would bet on it more often than not. JBL’s announcing work has been a popular topic. JBL has done an amazing job for being in the role such a short time. John should only get better as time goes by. He is bombastic, entertaining, informed, and caustic enough to keep me involved in the broadcast. JBL fills a niche that used to be the norm but now is unique in being an antagonist color analyst. I hope to work with him some day…..maybe even at the Royal Rumble this Sunday. Who knows? I don’t know for 100% sure but I am pretty sure that Psycho Sid is able to wrestle again after healing from his severely broken leg. I seem to recall Sid wrestling at a small event in the Memphis area a while back, but I am sure some one will know. I have heard nothing of Sid returning to the WWE but that doesn’t mean that he won’t. Sid had a great face and frame for a wrestler and I hope he is healthy. Maybe there is some gas left in the tank. Colts vs. Bears—-This is pretty early for a Super Bowl prediction but I am sentimentally pulling for the Bears because of all the Oklahoma kids playing for Chicago. Close to the “big game” is when we will talk Indy-Chicago. I don’t talk about contracts here as in when they end, etc. That is not ethical and serves no purpose. If wrestlers choose to move on for whatever the reason, usually money or creative, then so be it. When someone leaves or is injured it creates an opportunity for some one else or that is what I have been taught. I try not to spend much time worrying about who is not happy with creative or whatever and that said wrestler may end up leaving. Because I cannot solve these perceived issues I, choose not to dwell on them. I do know that often times the grass looks greener on the other side of the fence and over the long haul it isn’t. Will Matt Hardy be the World’s Champion in 2007? I love Matt, and Jeff for that matter, but the answer would be “high unlikely.” Matt is an excellent in-ring performer and someday I think Matt might be “the man’ but I do realistically feel it will be farther down the road. If I owned a territory, the Hardys would be hired in a heart beat. Someone asked me the whereabouts of my old broadcast colleague Chris Cruise, who I worked with for a while at WCW/TBS. Chris was a interesting guy who was highly intelligent, which might have been why some felt Chris wasn’t a perfect fit in the business. I found Chris to be a student of the game, a hard worker, and a much better announcer than he was ever given credit for being. I think that today Chris is in the mortgage business or some sort of financial oriented business on the East Coast. I feel, don’t know for sure, the issue about why the WWE is not running more events in Madison Square Garden is all about the financial arrangement the arena charges the WWE now. Long story short, it is all about the cash as the Garden is expensive to operate. I still think the WWE and MSG will do business in the future but have no clue as to when these issues will be rectified. The “Heroes of World Class Wrestling” DVD is on my list of things to watch. Friends have told me they enjoyed it even though it was not real slick from a production standpoint. Nonetheless, count me in on this one. The WWE should be able to do some awesome DVDs and WWE 24/7 content with the World Class library now in house. I can’t wait to see some of the offerings and the titles are endless. How the Von Erich-Freebird saga unfolded was text book stuff. I have not heard if the WWE Hall of Fame will be on USA Network this year or not. I assume that is a USA decision. The HOF Ceremony will make a helluva DVD nonetheless. Honestly, if the event is not on live or taped live TV, it might make it a better event to attend. One has to feel badly about all the folks that lost their jobs in recent days. That is never a good thing but it an unfortunate part of the process. I know the feeling from both sides of the fence. It doesn’t feel good on either side, trust me. Hopefully, those that have the desire and drive to continue will do so and continue to chase their dreams. Others may want to explore other options. I do know there are some talented people who are looking for work, but I also know that everyone isn’t cut out for this business. The Ring of Honor definitely is a great training ground and feature some amazing performers. Any company would be wise to keep an eye on ROH and watch their young talent develop. In lieu of the dozens of territories wrestlers years ago where could earn a living and improve their game at the same time, ROH is a much needed alternative. I wish them success. I have only seen a limited number of their DVDs, but I love the effort of the wrestlers. Will Hulk ever wrestle Savage again? I say no, but if the money was right….....you never know brother! Will any book I write after leaving wrestling walk a “company line” or will I tell the truth? Sounds like someone wants or needs “the dirt” the way the question was posed. Any book of my life will be 100% the truth. Lawyers and publishers often times affect what makes the final edit but I don’t plan on writing any fiction if I actually ever do the project. We’re not there yet. Thanks and tell your friends about our site and visit our online store. Our sauces are the best and I invite you to try them or some of our exclusive, Slobber-Knocker signed merchandise. We do appreciate your business. More blogs are on their way…. J.R.