Welcome to J.R.’s Blog

Thanks for checking out our site, and for those that are regular visitors, thank you for continuing to support our efforts by becoming customers in our store. Our Jerky and Sauce sales are still doing better than we forecast thanks to you. We will soon be changing our latest “Hall of Fame special,” so stay tuned for that news coming any day now.

We are still on target to open J.R.’s Family Bar-B-Q in Norman, Oklahoma at I-35 and Main Street at the location that was formerly a Krispy Kreme. The construction crew is rocking along and now that it has stopped raining for a few days here in Oklahoma, the exterior of the place is starting to look noticeably different.
For those that have asked the sauces’ nutritional information, each is listed on their respective labels and will be listed here on the site ASAP. Bottom line is that they are healthy sauces that taste great on a variety of your favorite foods. As far as the Jerky nutritional contents are concerned we are working on that exact info now but I can tell you that the Jerky is high in protein and low in fat and carbs. More info to come on both these matters per your requests.

The WWE is selling some of our sauces and beef jerky on WWE ShopZone which can be accessed at WWE.com and remember, they ship everywhere. Check out WWE ShopZone especially if you live outside the USA.

Click here to order J.R.’s Family Bar-B-Q sauce or Beef Jerky from WWE Shop to get worldwide shipping.

Also many have asked about how to see my Hall of Fame induction speech in its entirety and that too is available on WWE.com and I am anxious to hear your feedback on that special night for yours truly. By the way, my Raw column is available every Friday at WWE.com.

My choice of words when asked why Bruno Sammartino was not in the WWE Hall of Fame, which I have addressed numerous times and this will be the last, was perhaps not the best choice of words I could have selected. Bruno is not “living in angst” as I alluded to regarding Bruno not being in the WWE Hall of Fame. He simply does not enjoy today’s WWE product for his own personal reasons and therefore chooses to not be a part of the WWE Hall of Fame. According to friends, Bruno is neither angry nor bitter. Indeed the business has changed since Bruno’s heyday and it is certainly his prerogative as to whether he chooses to be involved on any level with today’s wrestling business or not. I wish him good health and happiness. Case closed. (I still think Bruno’s fans would love to experience his induction into the WWE Hall of Fame, but what do I know?)

We get tons of comments about the scheduling of WWE events and subsequent routing. Firstly, complaining to me is like flatulence in the wind, it doesn’t last long. For the hundredth time, I can’t address these issues. Secondly, understand the WWE has one TV production truck that has to be able to safely travel from the previous set of TV’s to the next. For example, the TV truck has to make it from Baltimore last Tuesday night to St. Louis by Saturday night and then on to Moline Monday and Des Moines on Tuesday this week and then from Des Moines to Toronto for Raw, and so forth. As you can see the selection of cities entails several criteria and it is much more than simply “why doesn’t the WWE come to my town more often? Why doesn’t the WWE like us, etc?” It is all about workable routing, geography, and making sure the desired arenas are all available. That’s the lay of the land of how that works in simple layman’s language and remember I HAVE NOTHING to do with where the WWE produces TV or live events.

After finding out I was born in Ft. Bragg, California and went to elementary school for a time in Santa Rosa, I have received several comments from former Santa Rosa natives, but to set the record straight I have not been back there since I moved from there in the 4th grade. Maybe I will make a visit some day.

I was also informed of something someone wrote on a website about us barring Randy Savage comments from this site, especially as it relates to the WWE Hall of Fame, which was totally false and completely fabricated. These comments were written as if I had written them myself. I realize many folks do the best they can to run honest websites and tell the truth as best they know it, but there are many wrestling sites that exist that are simply loaded with premium, horse manure. Not all, but some.

The voting for our upcoming T-shirt concepts is up on the home page. I hope you will take a moment before you leave us and cast your vote. There is no obligation or cost involved with voting. I value your opinion and am anxious to see what designs you prefer.

Another side note on women wrestling men, which is not a personal favorite of mine; yes-I was involved in a match with Steve Austin vs. HHH and Chyna one night on Raw, I think from Atlanta, several years ago. What that has to do with me not liking women wrestling men is beyond me, but I did not put myself into the situation and was, no doubt, the weak link in the presentation. I do recall Chyna “Pedigree’ing” me, which was about as graceful as a “cow on ice” on my behalf. The encounter was bowling shoe ugly to say the very least, and that match will likely not make my “J.R.’s Personal Highlight Reel.”

Here is feedback to some of your comments:

Clint- Will the WWE Brand Separation ever go away? My guess would be no as the WWE seems committed into building its 3 brands, which won’t happen over night by the way, and has its challenges especially when injuries begin taking their toll. I am not anti-brand extension for the record as I like the concept of it providing more wrestlers the opportunity to work. I suggest that the WWE steer the course for the immediate future.

Spicyboy- Will we ever see Rey Mysterio on Raw? That would be great as far as I am concerned, but as we speak Rey is a Smackdown superstar and I expect Rey to return to Smackdown when he is medically cleared which is expected to be in the next month or two. However, someday perhaps Monday Night Raw will be graced with Rey’s talents which are another side benefit of the brand extension.

Josh- Will the WWE ever do a Sting DVD? My educated guess would be… absolutely. The WWE owns all the WCW footage since day one and therefore have all the necessary ingredients to put together a super DVD of Sting. Perhaps someday the WWE will acquire the Mid South library and fans can see the Bladerunners in action, the tag-team that consisted of Sting and the wrestler who later became known as the Ultimate Warrior, then called Rock.

Cory- I appreciate the kind words regarding my HOF speech and am pleased that it helped you with your decision to major in communications. Passion is the key in so many things we do and we all have varying degrees of passion in our lives, much of it unutilized. I never felt I had more talent than many broadcasters, but I would put my passion and product knowledge up with any of them. We can all strive to “be the best” at whatever we do both personally and professionally. My HOF speech is available in its entirety on wwe.com

Everette- Why has Funaki lasted so long in the WWE? Can you say Polaroid’s?? Seriously, Funaki is a talented “utility man” who can wrestle competitors with varying skill levels, is reliable, doesn’t cause problems, and is professional and a good citizen. Obviously, Funaki most likely won’t be able to stay in the WWE for life, or maybe he will as a teacher, but other wrestlers could learn from Funaki’s professionalism. My philosophy when I managed talent relations in the WWE, was to do everything humanly possible to solve a problem, but if I couldn’t solve a specific problem I eliminated it. Funaki has never been a problem, which is not to say that every one that leaves a wrestling company is a problem, but often times they are.

Wes- I am not aware if Rick Rude was training for a comeback when he passed away. Somehow I doubt it because of the condition of his back.

Scott- It’s funny, when the King and I verbally spar on the air it becomes an issue to some. When we don’t, some will say they miss it when King was more of an antagonist and when we debated things more often. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t, but Monday we simply had a difference of opinion on a couple of things which isn’t unusual. We rode to the hotel together after the show and never discussed our “arguments” on Raw. I have worked with color commentators in the past who argued simply for the sake of arguing and to draw attention to themselves, which oftentimes made for a so-so presentation. As it relates to the King, friends can argue and disagree and still remain friends the last I looked. We are.

A.- My choice of beverages during my usual, daily stops at The Sonic… one large diet, cherry limeade please.

Eddie- Yes, I am absolutely sure the King would love to “run” an all-Diva wrestling federation. Within a month, I wouldn’t be surprised if Nancy Grace would be covering the story, too. Or Larry Flynt.

Ian/Manchester- I had a blast working with Terry Funk the few times I did when he filled in as a color commentator. Terry is ultra talented in so many aspects of the wrestling business and is a wonderful communicator that is colorful and unique. Again, Terry Funk is another legend that young wannabes should study while learning their craft.

CR- My favorite Eddy Guerrero moment was probably when he won the Title in the Cow Palace. A magical night to say the very least. My relationship with Eddy, as he documented in his autobiography, was special and I will always remember him for the great days we had together, even though we had our share of challenging days, too. Even through the times when Eddy was battling his demons, I never gave up on Eddy and look at his life’s journey as a success story that I was proud to have been a small part of. What a talent!

Scott- I don’t have a clue as to what the future of the NWA Title will be, but it will never be the same as when men like Flair, Brisco, Funk, Thesz, Race, Rhodes, etc. traveled the globe defending it. This is not a “knock” on the recent status of the title, even though some will make it such, which is the same in name only and not as prestigious as it once was in prior generations. The NWA Title will never mean what it once did in the wrestling business. How could it?

Dudley- I know zilch about an alleged tattoo on MVP that necessitates him wearing the ring attire that he does. MVP’s current ring attire doesn’t kill me, no. It is not traditional ring attire and I am old school, maybe too old school, as I am much more impressed with MVP’s level of improvement and seemingly unlimited upside. That’s a helluva lot more important than his choice of ring attire.

Katherine- I am not familiar of any wrestling schools for females only, but you might check out OVW in Louisville or Harley Race’s school near the Lake of the Ozarks, as both do a great job in training wrestlers to be.

Steve- I am looking forward to BlackJack Mulligan’s book, as I am sure it will be a smashmouth, honest piece of business. Mulligan has had a helluva life, that quite frankly might make a great documentary. Mulligan wrestled thru the era of “sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll” of the wrestling business during the territory days which separated the men from the boys, so to speak, and where only the strong survived the grueling road trips, the booze and drugs, the women of the road, wrestling politics and working nightly with some of the most complex and entertaining characters one could imagine.

Dale- My pal and former OU Sooner, Teddy Lehman, is in the hunt to start for the Detroit Lions at linebacker and the former Butkus Award winner is healthy now and raring to go. Teddy attended Wrestlemania 23 at Ford Field and had a blast. I sure hope he stays healthy and on the field for the NFL Lions, who look to be definitely on the upswing.

I am relatively certain the WWE does not accept outside storyline ideas and please do not send them to me because we would rather not include them on this site either, for a variety of legal issues which I choose not to deal with.

Kyle- The Spurs/Suns NBA playoff series has been fun to watch simply because the players have turned up their passion and their will to win. The increased physicality adds to the drama, too. San Antonio, lead by the great Tim Duncan, a big time Ric Flair fan, will be hard to eliminate in this series. Robert Horry is a big WWE fan who I have met on many occasions and is a great guy, contrary to what some Suns’ fan may feel after Robert hip checked Steve Nash.

Ivan- The Rock-Foley empty arena match that took place in Tucson was no doubt special. Two of the businesses’ all-time greats in an extremely unique setting. However the original empty arena match featuring Jerry Lawler vs. Terry Funk in Memphis was tough to beat because it was the “first.”

BDD- St. Louis has to rank as one of the top cities ever in the wrestling business. At one point when Promoter Sam Muchnick was rocking along, St. Louis was arguably second only to NYC and Madison Square Garden as the best wrestling city to wrestle in the United States. The heritage of St. Louis Wrestling will endure forever.

Billy/Scotland- Did I dread working with Paul Heyman? No, quite the contrary. Paul was talented and knew the product. He had an “edge” that was perfect for his role, As I have told him, his persona is easy to dislike, which is a great trait for a wrestling antagonist. The “urban myth” that Heyman and I “hated each other” is somewhat embellished (how unique for the wrestling biz), but fans will believe what they choose to believe nonetheless, so there is no sense in trying to change many of their minds in this space.

Alan- Can I, or have I ever wrestled? NO. I have been in matches, much to my chagrin, but I would be insulting the legacy of the wrestling business to say that I “wrestled”. Even though some of these “matches” earned a nice TV rating the artistic presentation of J.R. in the ring was pretty pathetic. I have zero desire to ever be in the ring again and after my health scare of a year or so ago I hope I am never called upon to be in the position again to “wrestle” and I personally use that term loosely as it relates to yours truly. I do fondly remember how “proud” I was to read that a “match” I was in was voted “worst match” on an internet poll for a particular broadcast. At least the pundits and ‘rasslin experts got that one right.Martyr- I actually did like Matt Borne’s portrayal of Doink now that you mention it, but all in all the character was destined for the mid card, even though Matt had main event abilities. We all like different things, which makes the wrestling business so much fun, but the “Doinks” of the world just aren’t my cup of tea. The hunt for potential main eventers is paramount to finding entertaining personas such as Doink. That’s simply a personal opinion that one doesn’t have to agree with.

Matt- I have not kept up with any alleged issues between The Iron Sheik and The Ultimate Warrior. Sounds entertaining nonetheless. Maybe it’s a reality show in the making?? Perhaps some enterprising TV producer should put Sheik and Warrior in a motor home and tape them driving across the country! There might be a need for sub-titles, but I would watch it.

Ethan- As it relates to HHH being on the Supershow in Dallas on July 2, I would take the ‘under’ on that one. It might be a little quick for The Game’s return in early July as I think he is slated to return perhaps as early as August. No sense in rushing things after the quad surgery.

Joe- Yes, some wrestling fans occasionally yell some “unflattering” chants to simply be defiant and to draw attention to themselves. That’s not a wrestling issue, but a societal issue. Fans chanting for wrestlers they know are not even in the arena, make what level of sense? Is it simply to let the promotion know they want to see a certain wrestler or is it merely a way to be defiant? I personally don’t care one way or another as I feel that if people pay their $$$ for their seats, they can say whatever they want, unless it is profane and offensive to others, especially kids.

Terry- Yes, we have collected some really great pieces of memorabilia over the years and some of those items will find their way to J.R.’s Family Bar-B-Q to be on display when we open in late June. I hope you will be able to come and see us.
Keep those comments coming. I really enjoying reading them and addressing those for which we have the time.

Also, check out the book “Being There” by Eric Mirlis who included yours truly with several famous sportscasters who documented their most favorite sports moments they had seen in person. I am included with several Hall of Fame broadcasters, including Keith Jackson, Marv Albert, Ernie Harwell, Harry Kalas, Verne Lundquist, Pat Summerall, and many others including some major names from ESPN.

Keep those Jerky and Sauce orders coming as we want to keep saying, “Business is about to pick up!”

BOOMER SOONER!
J.R.