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Tornado Dodging..Deadman Retirement Thoughts..Atlanta WM27 HOF..Q&A's Updated..Place an Order Today.
Tue, 05/11/2010 - 12:51pm — J.R.
Posted in:
Thanks for dropping by and for the many of you that have checked on us since the tornadoes passed through Norman yesterday.
The tornadoes that killed several people in our area yesterday missed our house by a mile or two which was plenty close for me. It got pretty spooky for a few minutes but our weather people here in our area are so good a tracking the bad weather than they can actually provide ETA's for the worst of the weather. Both our home and the restaurant were unscathed and avoided Mother Nature's wrath.
We got a slew of text messages from many of the biz's biggest names this morning which is always nice to receive. Bottom line we are o.k. and thankful that we received no damage or injuries but, unfortunately, some of our fellow Okies weren't so lucky.
Historic night for WWE playing the last event at "The Igloo" in Pittsburgh Monday night as apparently, or so we heard ample times, 14,000 plus were on hand for the Steel City farewell.
The arena is obsolete as it relates to many modern day amenities but it is wrought with memories that will last a lifetime.
Raw had plenty of sizzle Monday night with the eclectic elements that seem to be coveted such as a surprise appearance by Meatloaf, better with JR's Chipotle Ketchup BTW, and the ageless Flavor Flav, who promoted something, a TV show I think, that I still did not understand. I do know that Meatloaf has a new CD that 'drops' today. 'Drops' how hip is that lingo?
Just a thought but I've often wondered if getting 'some' TV time is better than not getting any TV time at all? Perhaps this is a more arguable point that one might imagine. Perhaps a cast of thousands can be counterproductive but certainly some will argue that being on TV, no matter how succinct that the appearance might be, is always a good thing.
I've updated many of the most recent Q&A's if you are interested in some fresh reading material. I encourage you to check out the most recent Q&A's and Blogs before submitting questions that might be repetitive. We've been getting some good questions and comments recently BTW, so thanks.
We've getting several emails from people wondering if I think that Undertaker should retire. Short answer, hell no. If any one in the business should be able to dictate when they hang it up or not it's the Undertaker. Plus, and more importantly, he will know when it's time as 'Taker is not the kind of wrestler who will stay long after it's time to go as we have seen many others do. The Deadman will never get to the point to where he never leaves his feet and people merely run into his fist. Ugh.
Nonetheless when the Undertaker does decide when it is time to say adiós that farewell will obviously be at a Wrestlemania and if promoted strategically should deliver huge numbers. Personally, I hope that we aren't getting too close to that milestone date.
Wrestling schools. Be careful when picking a wrestling school. If one isn't smart enough to ascertain what is a good or not so good wrestling school what makes one think that they are smart enough to be in the wrestling business. Wrestling doesn't need any more dumb people working in it. Do your research on these schools. Ask to speak to successful graduates. Observe the training sessions. Simply be smart and know that making it in pro wrestling is a helluva long shot so don't quit your day job if you don't have to.
We've received a ton of emails regarding who will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in Atlanta in 2011. You're asking the wrong BBQ lover. Yes, I assume that the inductees will have some sort of Atlanta flavor meaning perhaps WCW and TBS related individuals. It looks as if the Goldberg ship, according to Bill himself on line, may have sailed. Hope that changes but I'm not holding my breath on that one. I also don't know the status of Sting's TNA contract, why would I, so I can't say if Sting will be available to enter the WWE HOF in Atlanta or not. Obviously, I would encourage Sting's induction if he were able to contractually participate. The Freebirds are also on my 'wish list' for Atlanta.
What about, instead of doing a DVD extra of the HOF on the Wrestlemania DVD release, that it be down loadable on ITunes or Amazon without interruption? Just an idea.
BTW I enjoyed Vickie Guerrero being named Raw General Manager as she is a MUCH better choice than I would be. For the record, no one from WWE has asked me about this TV role and, secondly, I have zero interest in it which I have previously stated. Again, another reason for reading some of our content before submitting questions.
Our focus on our on line business with our delicious products derived from our family recipes is slowly but surely building some steam. Plus, our efforts to get our products in grocery stores is in the works but is also a challenging piece of business. Nonetheless we thank all of you who shop with us and keep our products in your Fridge. Why stock any other Ketchup or BBQ Sauce? Yes, we're biased...but honest.
I mentioned on Twitter that Bret Hart was now a grandpa which is really cool. Bret's daughter Jade had a healthy little girl who 'tipped the Toledo's' at 8 lbs 11 ounces and was named Kyra Beans Doenz. Congrats to all.
Hopefully, the ACC in Toronto sells out for Raw as it is a three hour, commercial free episode apparently with Bret wrestling The Miz for the United States Title in Ontario. There's lost of 'irony' in that equation.
Paul Heyman has an insightful write up about the Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin UFC fight on July 3 in Vegas. It's at www.heymanhustle.com.
Don't forget to join us on Facebook. We're at http://facebook.dj/jrbbq/.
Did you check out my '10 Things to Ponder' blog on www.wwe.com on the Smackdown page?
Again, thanks for all the thoughts and prayers during the Tornadic weather here in Norman on Monday. We'll count our blessings and encourage you to do the same.
Boomer Sooner!
J.R.
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Undertaker has been wrestling on a "half-year schedule" for a while now. I've always thought this was due to a combination of injuries and other interests he has. As a fan, I'd love to see more of him, but I get that the careers of pro wrestlers are often similar to those of professional athletes in other sports. They're usually done by late 30s-mid 40s.
However, given the sheer amount of abuse these guys take 300 days a year on a full schedule and how long Undertaker has been doing this, the guy's earned the right to go out on his own terms and pretty much dictate his own schedule, but I suspect he doesn't. The Swagger vs. Undertaker match likely wouldn't have happened had the Raw Superstars not been stranded overseas. That seemed pretty clear from the getgo and Undertaker very likely was called in to help maintain momentum on Raw during some rather trying times for the regular stars.
And that's the thing about Undertaker that I've always liked. The guy is a Pro's Pro. At WM26, the moment I'll remember most isn't Shawn Michaels waving goodbye to the crowd, we all knew that was coming. No, what I'll remember is Undertaker breaking character and telling HBK "You're one tough son of a bitch" and actually HUGGING him in the ring. "Undertaker" doesn't do that, but Mark Callaway does and I think that's what gets lost when the retirement discussions come up are examples like that littered throughout Undertaker's history where he's done nothing but show respect to the industry and business he works for. People would be very wise to take those facts into consideration before they start talking about how disrespectful he is for trying to hang on too long. I agree with J.R. wholeheartedly that the first man who will know it's time to hang it up will be the Undertaker himself and he will make no bones about it or question it later. The only thing I dread though is when he does finally hang it up, the creative team is going to have to be very creative to keep him around a la the legends...
And J.R., I truly do hope you return to the announce booth in some capacity. I like the King and Cole dynamic and I even don't mind Grisham and Striker. They certainly won't make me turn off a product I've enjoyed watching for 20ish years though they might make me mute it from time to time. However, don't sell yourself short. You are the best and even though I like the notion of giving other announcers a chance to shine, part of me thinks it's still too soon for that to happen. You're in the same league as the Undertaker in my opinion and you should be able to dictate your own schedule and your own terms to go out on. Vince, Bell's or contracts should have no say in the matter (even though I know you'll say matter of factly that they do).
Keep up the good work, I enjoy reading your blog on a day to day basis and hopefully, you get the Wrestlemania send off you deserve in the future.
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The discussion of Undertakers retirement and next weeks match with Miz vs Bret Hart got me thinking about the WWEs policy of sending guys off with a loss. I understand the premise, giving the other guy a boost on their way out, but I don't think it should be done all the time. For one thing it's predictable as hell, if you know they're going out you know they're going to lose, and if they're midcarders you know they're going to lose big. For another, going out with a loss isn't that great a way to say thanks for all you've done. We know Bret is past his prime and no longer a serious wrestler, we know how good Miz is and that he's in his prime, what's the point of having him humiliate Bret and send him out on a stetcher? Some of the best moments in wrestling, and elsewhere, is seeing the champion go out with the crown still on his head. My personal belief, since Miz hasn't actually defended the title since he and Show won the tag titles I say give it to Bret and afterward put it up in tourny, Bret goes out with a massive bang and even if Miz gets it back at least it'll get some movement. But that's just my thinking.
I think you people that say the Undertaker should already be retiring are CRAZY. The man is a bona fide legend in this business and his back to back matches @ WrestleMania 25 & 26 proves that he still has more than enough "Gas left in the tank". And besides the MOMENT the Undertaker decides to retire all we will see on here is how the WWE doesn't have any major league stars on their roster, so people... Just enjoy the Undertaker's matches while you can and stop trying to anaylize the man's career to death. It's wrestling ENJOY it pete's sake.
I forgot to mention, during The Undertaker's title reign last year, he was so beat up that he was almost never on Smackdown. When he was, it was invariably in a non-wrestling role (run-ins or promos). he was obviously being protected due to his health. If the World Heavyweight Champion is too injured to appear on TV, something is very, very wrong.
I truly hope that he gets enough time off in the upcoming months to heal, but if he does not get better, he needs to retire.
J.Ja
JR -
I have to respectfully disagree about The Undertaker. It is clear to any TV viewer that sometime around the European Tour in the Fall of 2009, he got hurt. He has been visibly limping. I am not saying that he puts out bad matches, far from it. I respect him and his body of work greatly, despite being a wrestling watcher for less than two years. But he is clearly working while extremely injured. For his sake, I hope that he seriously considers retirement.
The fact is, what makes The Undertaker who and what he is in the eyes of the fans is the aura of invincibility. When we see him limping in the ring, that illusion is shattered. When we saw him on Raw a few weeks ago, it looked like Jack Swagger was trying very hard to carry him through a long match; I am used to seeing 'Taker be the one to carry someone through a match. Watching his match at WrestleMania, there is no doubt at all in my mind that he was legitimately injured on that Old School attempt, and that the pain in his leg was 100% real. Maybe he's the best seller in history (he is good, no doubt about it), but the problems with his leg are too consistent to be mere selling. It really looks to an observant fan that the formula for matches with him now is for "something" to "hurt" his left leg early in the match to provide cover for the very real problems he is having.
Additionally, having The Undertaker on the roster presents massive logistical challenges in terms of storyline. It is nearly impossible to keep him out of the title picture when he is active. And it is very hard to justify giving someone a major win over him unless they are at the level of John Cena or Triple H. As a result, deserving people get buried or deprised of TV time so that the fans can get their Undertaker satisfaction. I look at what happened with C.M. Punk's title reign last year, it was a total mess. Punk is clearly one of the top performers in the company right now. His only peers on the microphone are Chris Jericho and the Miz (although Batista has been stellar lately). His in-ring work is excellent as well. He is a seasoned veteran when you include his time in the indies. But when The Undertaker returned at Summerslam, Punk got buried, despite being on an amazing roll after retiring Jeff Hardy, the most popular face of 2009, in one of the most well executed storylines on TV PERIOD.
I can't blame him in any way. He is a tall, large man and it is a no brainer that his leg(s) could be hurt badly at this stage in his career. He is still an outstanding performer regardless; he facial expressions throughout a match are rivaled only by the recently retired Shawn Michaels. But at the end of the day, I truly beleive that the wrong man lost at WrestleMania 26. The right ending in my viewpoint would have been for The Undertaker to tap out to the Figure Four or the Sharpshooter, and decide to call it a career. While I understand Shawn's decision to retire, and I love how he went out and did it with such class and grace, for the good of the business and the good of 'Taker's health, I think it would have been much better for him to have been the one to retire in 2010.
J.Ja
JR,is it me or is Randy Orton's acting skills the best in the biz today?I mean on Raw last week,without saying a word the crowd was in the palm of his hands and his facials and mannerisms are top notch.You can tell he practices hard on his character and its working.You agree?
Hi there J.R.,
No real question, just an observation I think worth sharing with you. Like many fans, my interest in professional wrestling (I'm only twenty-five) peaked around the on-set of the "Attitude" era - sometime in 1997. I was a loyal WWF fan and stayed with the product through every plot-twist, dream match and Wrestlemania up until a couple of years ago. I don't dislike the product now, but as I'm growing up and moving into a professional career I find I have less time to devote to one of my favorite childhood hobbies. I do try to catch it when time permits however, and such was the case this past Monday night. I've known of Randy Orton for some time, and watching him on Monday was a real eye-opening experience for me.
From the time Orton's entrance music opened the show to the very last segment, Randy Orton owned the fans. They hung on every gesture, begged for every RKO. For the first time in seemingly years, the WWE has an organically created megastar on their hands with a legit connection to the audience. As RAW came to a close and Edge had been RKO'd straight to hell and Vickie Guerrero ran in fear, the crowd clearly had choosen Randy Orton as their hero. And then the show ended. Just like that. The end of the show came off as flat and uninspired. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but I wasn't left with a sense of Randy Orton had arrived as a superstar like I thought I would be, even though all the signs were there.
And then it clicked what was missing: you.
All due respect to Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler, but what was missing from Randy Orton's "arrival" was your voice. Cole very basically and quite low key summarized the events of RAW with about as much emotion as a tax auditor as the show came to a close. What I (and I suspect many fans) needed was the passion you brought to the announce table. "Randy Orton has spoken tonight! Randy Orton has made sure this is a night Edge will never BY GOD forget!"...or something to that effect. Something that invested in the product, and to show us Randy Orton has THERE.
I'm not trying to kiss your ass, but I am trying to thank you for being the voice of my wrestling generation. Older fans have their Gordon Solies and Gorilla Monsoons, but when people my age envision professional wrestlng, it's your voice they hear calling the action. I'm aware stars like Steve Austin ("Stone Cold! Stone Cold! Stone Cold!"), The Rock ("My GOD what an ovation for The People's Champion! It's deafening!"), or Mick Foley ("with God as my witness, he's broken in half!") would have more than likely become megatars without you behind them, but I dare say it might have taken them a little bit longer.
So thank you for your dedication to your profession. I'll soon be enterting my own career (a teacher), and if I approach my new job with as much passion, preperation, and dedication as you have with your's I'll consider myself a success. Thank you for being the voice behind so many unforgettable moments, and being the voice a wrestling generation STILL hears in their heads.
P.S. - Also, hears hoping we might not have seen our last wrestling match called by J.R....