» Reported by Mike Siciliano of WrestleView.com
» On Thursday, December 13, 2007 at 9:07 PM EST
In what could have possibly been the most negative 24 hours in sports, combined with a pretty negative 48 hours personally, for reasons I won't go in to, I thought this topic would be very appropriate at this time. Instead of sitting here bashing and screaming, I'd like to take a few moments of your time to recollect some of the memories I have enjoyed during my time following pro wrestling, at live events, and at autograph signings.
When you talk about live wrestling cards, and specifically WWE, my repetoire is quite small. As a matter of fact, I've only been to three WWE shows. One way back in the day, and two back almost 7 years ago. The first one, which was back in the 80's, I couldn't tell you exactly, there's only three things I remember. Actually, four.
It was in the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island, and in a match was Nikolai Volkoff, the Iron Sheik, and Corporal Kirchner. That's it. That's all I remember. I was also small as heck, and basically was just there to scream my lungs out.
Fast forward about 20 years, and I did attend two WWE shows after the year 2000. I attended a Raw at Nassau on November 5, 2001. Two things there I remember vividly. One. How boring it was between commercial breaks, where there was little to no action to be had, and two, how they screwed up Jericho's entrance in the WCW title match, and they had to redo it. It obviously was a bad omen for the self proclaimed savior of WWE, as he ended up losing the WCW title at that Raw to the Brahma Bull. I remember the show barely, but I still do possess the card flyer from that show, hanging on my wall here in the Palace. (Ok, that's corny.)
The other show was in the Meadowlands, or the Izod Center, or back then, the Continental Airlines Arena. Couple of things to note about here. It was the last house show before the brand extension, and there was almost a kayfabe break between the Dudleys, the Hardys, and the APA, where the best line was Bubba Dudley sayin' "Stacy's got the best ass I've ever seen," of course, referring to the bodacious Stacy Keibler.
A couple of other things of note was the sheer size and strength of Brock Lesnar. My buddy Barry and I looked at each other, and said how big this guy was going to be when he turned Spike Dudley and the Hurricane in to pools of jello, and we were Nostra-freakin'-damus at that time, as we all know the resume Brock built before being a dope and leaving WWE for the NFL.
And lastly, not too much, Hulk Hogan live. I may hate the man, and I do, but seeing him live is an experience. It was Hogan and Triple H vs. Hall and Nash of the NWO. And yes, Hall did make this show. (Sorry, had to.) It was a sight to see Hogan work live. I didn't stay to see the celebratory posedown at the end of the show, but damn, it was definitely a big pop, especially for a house show, when Hogan came out.
I have a few memories I could share with you from my ventures to Ring of Honor. Since most of you aren't huge ROH fans, I'll share only a couple. The first, is obvious. My 1st venture to Ring of Honor, in July of 2005, was the show "Sign of Dishonor". CM Punk, then ROH World Champion, signed with WWE, and signs a "contract" in the ring at Sports Plus in Lake Grove, on top of the ROH World title. Me, as a freckle faced fan, (of extended years), loved this promo, and it's still gold, watching it even to this day on DVD. I knew back then, 2 years prior, that Punk could be golden in this business, and so far, he's proven me to be Nostradamus, again.
Another fond memory was Glory By Honor IV. When you follow pro wrestling, you try and see if you can make it to historic shows. Not many of them can be considered historic, but when you're fortunate enough to attend a show where a title changes hands, you remember it. And especially when its a world title. At GBH IV at Sports Plus, American Dragon Bryan Danielson won the ROH World title from James "Jamie Noble" Gibson. I truly believe to this day that Gibson was having the most fun in his career while wrestling for ROH, and he showed tenacity and toughness that would make even JBL cringe during his match with Danielson. And Danielson proved to me then, and he has continued to prove to me ever since, how the "best wrestler in the world", is just that. He was that damn good during that contest.
It's fortunate when you see one title change. When you see two, you're a shoo in for a lotto ticket, if you play it. I did see two. The second one was Final Battle 2006, when Homicide beat Danielson, ending Danielson's year plus reign as ROH World Champion, and sending me home with a myriad of emotions. I remember that show vividly because at first, when the false ending came down during the main event when Adam Pearce and Shane Hagadorn caused the DQ, I thought the place would riot, and I was looking for the exit, and the 7 flights down the stairs. (I almost died getting up the stairs to the Grand Ballroom, sheesh, its a long climb... oxygen, help!)
But, the match did restart, Homicide did win the match, and I have to say, with conviction, I've never come out of a show more jacked up emotionally than that night in December 2006 when I left the Manhattan Center followin' Homicide's ROH World title win.
I could continue with memories, seeing Christian Cage compete in ROH, the multiple times I've seen Samoa Joe and AJ Styles compete live, seeing the NOAH all stars of Misawa, KENTA, and Marufuji last month at Glory By Honor VI Night 2, it's kind of repetitive to an extent, but still, memorable, to say the least. If you're interested, I'll expound, but not here. It's good fodder for my palace blog and empire, to which I'll provide a link at the end of this column.
Moving on, I've been to a significant amount of autograph signings, and while I probably have ended that portion of my collection, I do have some very fond memories. From nearly fainting at the mere sight of Christy Hemme, to the sly grin on Shelton Benjamin's face after I make a crack as to how he rearranged Snitsky's skull with a chair, I've had a few moments that could be described as very poignant. Here are a few.
The vicious vixxen, Victoria, when I hit the table in front of her, she looks me dead in the eye, and says, "Have we met before?" I had my wife there next to me, so I didn't have the guts to say something witty and off the cuff, but damn, my brain was going a mile a minute when she hit me with that line, if you catch my drift.
Mick Foley, who I met after an ROH show, was gracious as hell, and we spoke briefly about the Make A Wish Foundation and Give Kids the World village, where I had recently returned from at that time. Foley has been to that location, as proven by a stone he had etched in the cement down there, and quite frankly, it was pleasant to be able to talk to him about it, if even for a few seconds. Shows a human side to celebrities, which is definitely something we all need these days.
Small aside, if you want more information on Give Kids the World, drop me an email, and I'll send you the link.
Back to business, I have a memory that is very pleasant and fond involving a signing I attended with Chris Benoit, but out of respect for all parties involved, I'll keep that to myself. Again, at my blog/empire site, if you're interested, I'll share it. But, this is more public, and I'll refrain, for now.
Kurt Angle. My son Jonathan, (who just went through hell, but is doing OK, thanks to anyone who's asked about him), was a few days post-op when we saw him, and Angle looked visibly touched when we told him that Jonathan was walking through the halls of the hospital singing "You suck!" "You suck!" Seeing a kid with an IV pole, and a bald head singing that stuff, while it breaks your heart, it also makes you laugh your ass off.
First time I met Jackie Gayda, I stuttered like I was Stuttering John on speed. I sounded like a dope. She took it in stride, but I was embarassed. I redeemed myself second time out, but damn, my kids let me have it the first time when I sounded like a stark raving lunatic.
I've met John Cena numerous times, and each time was more pleasant than the one before, but the best has to be, when we were first in line to see the champ, he sees us coming, and says, "Each and every time I come to Long Island, these guys are always the first in line..." Nice to be remembered by someone who's got the world on a string like the champ does. 'Nuff said.
Hurricane Helms enjoyed the tribute my kids gave him when they came in dressed in homemade Hurri-capes. I still have one of them. It was terrific. It was also memoralized in a picture. I'll see what I can do about getting it up online.
I can't do a column like this without talking about the time when I met the Game and the Nature Boy. Right before Wrestlemania 20. It was an honor meeting someone of Flair's stature, and The Game, with all the negative press he gets, was a pro's pro. Even more coincidental was how Jonathan and my wife were able to see the Game the next day at the Wrestlemania 20 press conference, and how the Game remembered Jonathan from Toys R Us and the autograph session. Nice to be able to make an impression, don't you think? It's also obvious we did, because the picture from this signing of Jonathan shakin' hands with the 16 time world champion made Raw Magazine. I know that for fact, because WWE sent me copies of the picture, and I nearly tore down a Wall Mart when I saw it for the first time in print.
Beat that for a memory...
Last one for this column has to be Goldberg. While I never met him personally, I took the time to write his website and told him about Jonathan. After some time, he sent back not one, but SEVEN autographed WWE promo pics of him, three solo autographs, and four personalized, one to me, one to Jonathan, and one to each of his neurosurgeons. You know generally neurosurgeons are kind of arrogant, and I guess they have a right to be a little, when they're that skilled with their hands, but damn, when I can get a neurosurgeon to be impressed when he gets a personalized autographed picture of Goldberg, that's got to be something I'm not going to forget anytime soon.
During this time when the world is revolted by the Mitchell report, and there's negativity all over the place, pretty much anywhere you look, I thought it was appropriate and refreshing to take a trip down memory lane, and remember why I enjoy doing what I do so much. I think its a terrific program, business, and hobby, and I hope to continue following it for the forseeable future. It's the closest thing to an escape that I personally have found, and from my own perspective, it's damn good. Hook, crook, cry, whine, bitch, moan, and scream, it's still all good.
I offer my readers the chance to share their memories with me at my blog site. There's room there for it. Trust me. Come check it out by clicking here.
Email links are available at the blog site as well.
Thank you very much for reading.
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