Retro Video Review: WWF Action

This will be the first of many retro video tape reviews I do here for my wrestling ramble column. I am finally disposing of these tapes and want to make sure all you wrestling fans know what they were before I do so.

First up we have the WWF's (yes this was pre-WWE times) release 'Action' .

This special video was a 90 minute look at some of the best action from 2001 in the world of the WWF/WWE.

First up we got a look at just how wonderful the attitude era was. The much-missed Hardcore Championship was one of the best inventions during this era and it was perfectly suited to the time in the companies growth.

The Hardcore Title was created for Mick Foley, but as the violent matches grew so did the titles legacy. By 2001 the championship had become one that had evolved into one that was defended on a 24/7 basis. This led to countless titles changes, many memorable encounters and of course some brutal scraps between some of the WWF's finest at the time. There are many highlights included here. This was a time where the title could change many times on one night and blood would flow with ease, unlike today's family friendly WWE.

Next up we saw one of the WWF of the times less family friendly approaches to wrestling. This was the 'bra and panties' series of matches. These were basically the companies attempt to draw in more male viewers and they were more than often shot scraps that saw one or both of the females involved standing in the ring in their underwear. Here we get to see Ivory, Chyna, Trish Stratus and Terri all involved in these poorly judged encounters.

We then get to see Perry Saturn become a deranged madman (due to countless head shots), the former ECW legend ended up becoming a joke of a character and instead of being aligned with Terri he became obsessed with a mop. I'll not say any more about this storyline as it was awful in my opinion and went on far too long.

The risque and Vince McMahon ego-stroking storyline involving Trish, his wife Linda and daughter Stephanie is equally weird as we get to see Vince kiss, degrade and obsess over Stratus, use his wife for his own maniacal schemes and utilise his daughters love the same way. We do get to see Trish gain a measure of revenge, but much of this was unnecessary.

This all led to a few matches that gave Vince his dream of entering the ring as a wrestler. His appearance in a tag match with Trish, William Regal, Stephanie is featured here in parts and works ok until we see poor Stratus degraded once more. (this was not a highpoint in her illustrious career of the WWE's)

Next up we got the fun and very well conceived romantic relationship between Spike Dudley and Molly Holly. This was a great idea and one that saw the Dudley clan embark on a violent series of match-ups against the Holly family. We don't get to see a while match here, but we do get to see some great highlights and some pretty brutal spots.

WWE legend 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin's heel turn as a member of Mr McMahon's posse is then given some time. This was a period where Austin held the World Title, was joined at the hip with (a comical) Kurt Angle and also put forward some of his most comical performances, just watch out for his guitar spots with Angle and you will see what I mean.

The buyout of WWF rival WCW was a wonderful event and one that many thought the WWE/WWF would have handled expertly. Initially this was the case and the beginnings were indeed boding well for an invasion storyline. However when push came to shove even after an initial burst of well-received matches and even a few title changes the WWE roster began to dominate proceedings and the idea of a separate WCW brand within the WWE/WWF drifted away quickly. The inclusion of the (also) defunct ECW helped a little, but did not do much to boost PPV buy rates and it dropped off the radar too. (ECW did make a brief comeback though).

Had the WCW/ECW invasion been handled better it could have become a huge piece of wrestling history. WCW had of course dominated the ratings over the WWE for many months and had almost crippled the company. Had Steve Austin and his era of superstars not taken with the fans they may well have lost the fight. ECW were never direct competition, but they did offer something different to the WWE product and gave us a much more violent approach to grappling. The inclusion of Vince's son Shane and Daughter Stephanie to the mix was a nice move, but yet it never saw its full potential.

'Action' offers a wonderful peek at the WWF/WWE at a pivotal time in its existence. The 'Attitude' era had begun, Steve Austin's star had risen and a man called 'The Rock' was nipping at his toes. There was also end of rival companies ECW and WCW to factor in, this was the time that the WWE/WWF saw its full potential as world leaders in wrestling.

It may not be available on DVD yet, but this video tape is a very interesting look at the WWF/WWE in a time of its history that many of remember fondly.

By Phil Allely

DVD Review: The Best of Raw and Smackdown 2012

The WWE produce so many of hours of TV each year that we fans cannot possibly tape or own them all. So the company very kindly produce DVD sets like this one. Here they pull together some of the best moments of the raw and Smackdown shows throughout the past year and offer them up in one nicely presented package.

This year we get to see the action unfold throughout 2012 and as all of us know this was a period in WWE's history that embraced not only the company's newest stars, but those of times gone by.

Across these three discs we get to see some superb matches and moments from 2012.

So what can you expect to see here? Well first up there are some superb verbal encounters between The Rock and John Cena. Rock and his guitar sing-along are worth the price of this release alone. You will also see Brock Lesnar make his return to the company.  There are also some nice touches as D-generation X re-form (for one night only) and some old school names turn up as well. I for one enjoyed seeing Vader back on WWE TV again. The build up to some of the biggest and most highly anticipated feuds of modern time are included here too. All of which make this a must-have purchase for fans across the board.

The Best of Raw & Smackdown 2012 is a nice look at the goings on within the company over the past 52 weeks. The best and most interesting matches and feuds are highlighted well. The quality of the bouts does range from decent to excellent and each does progress a storyline in some way. Nothing here is throwaway at all. 

One other bonus here is that the majority of the events featured here will be unique to this release and less likely to be repeated elsewhere. Which makes them all the more desirable for fans.

Whilst the matches are well chosen, it is nice to see the WWE have handpicked some choice moments from these shows too. I'll not ruin them, but any fans viewing will savour some of the events that book end the bouts here. 

Blu-ray buyer will be privy to six bonus matches and a host of back stage interviews and footage.

The Best of Raw & Smackdown 2012 is available now on DVD and Blu-ray from FreemantleMedia, via all good retailers.

RRP £24.99 (DVD), £34.99 (Blu-ray)

WWW.wwedvd.co.uk

www.wwe.com

By Phil Allely

WWE DVD Review: For All Mankind - The Life and Career Of Mick Foley

As wrestling fan for nearly three decades (scary I know) I feel I  have pretty much seen it all and watched it all in the industry. I was fortunate enough to become a fan at a time when Ted Turner's WCW were on the rise, The UK scene still had a TV outlet and the WWE (then WWF) were on the brink of world domination.

During these years I was able to see many of my heroes perform live. This was a time when the WWE, WCW and UK promotions toured one to two times a year and we got to see some of the companies top stars perform for a very reasonable fee.

I over a short time saw Sting lose the WCW World Title, Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart perform live in a small hometown ring and even got to meet WWF superstar Rowdy Roddy Piper in person too. He was a pop star back then (don't ask).

You may wonder where I am going here? Well the answer is that whilst much of the wrestling industry at that time was about the performers physique and character, there were the odd few who defied the rule and broke the mould.

I am of course talking about such guys as Vader, The Fabulous Freebirds and others who stood out for not being musclebound cartoon-ish characters.

Mick Foley was one such wrestler. Mick is not a man who has the conventional build of a grappler. Yet this is a man who as brightened up every company he has worked for and also netted himself a nice selection of title belts along the way.

Foley's secret to his success is one that many will not follow. He found out early on in his career that he was not only able to receive an absurd amount of punishment, but he made it look easy. Mick was (and still is) that rare breed of wrestler who would willingly bleed, take un-protected blows to the head with weapons and accept some of the worst beatings imaginable.

Although he started out as the crazed Cactus Jack Mick over the years has fought as himself, Mankind and the party loving Dude Love. Each of which have proved their worth in some way or another.

Mick has always been a wrestler I look up to and I very rarely saw him work a match that I felt short-changed by. Of course to many fans he is the guy who Undertaker famously threw off the Hell In A Cell Cage (which has been seen on many WWE DVDs since). But this is a man who has done so much more.

The worry sometimes with wrestling profile DVDs is that sometimes they can repeat their previous selves (Foley to date has at least five DVDs about him on the market). What is nice here is that even with Mick's previous DVD outings we do have some new material here.

Foley now seems to be happy with his place in life and wrestling. The documentary section here is well made and covers his career perfectly. We get to learn about his early days and the struggles (gambles) he undertook to achieve his dreams. We also get to learn about his trips to Japan, his big breaks and the pivotal moments in his professional life as a wrestler.

This is a man who very literally has given his body, blood, sweat and tears for his profession.

So what can you expect to see here across these three discs? First up disc on is a fine documentary. Mick is wonderfully nice and witty in his pieces and each talking head (from WWE staff old and new) adds to the piece perfectly. Of course we don't get to see anything from any current TNA staff (but that is to be expected). Even the most diehard Foley fan will find something new here.

His charity work for example has not really been touched upon before. It really does endear you to the man.

Discs 2 and 3 house over 15 matches, taking in most of his career and many companies he has worked for. There are also a few nice alternate commentaries by Foley and former ECW commentator Joey Styles (this includes the infamous Hell In A Cell with Undertaker). There are many new to DVD matches, some from WCW, ECW, early WWF footage and much more. We also get to see Foley in Tag action, him battle Sting, being brutalised by The British Bulldogs and a graphic scrap between Cactus Jack and The Sandman. This last one is fought under barbed wire rope rules and leaves nothing to the imagination.

For All Mankind: The Life and Career of Mick Foley is available from April 22nd 2013.

Visit www.wwedvd.co.uk for more details.
RRP: £24.99 (DVD), £34.99 (Blur-ray)

By Phil Allely

Undertaker returns to the ring

Undertaker returns to the ring.

By Phil Allely

WWE legend Undertaker (Mark Callaway) has perhaps silenced his critics by stepping back in to a WWE ring. The 49 year old has been nursing numeorus injuries since he last graced a WWE ring.

That  match against Triple H saw Taker retain is unbeaten streak at WrestleMania. Recent months have seen many insiders specualte that Callaway was too beaten up to enter the ring this year. However there were rumours that he may indeed be returning to face the companies top bad guy CM Punk.

This past weekend (at a WWE house show in Waco, Texas) saw a well looking Undertaker team up with Sheamus to battle the Rhodes Scholars combo of Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow. Taker took the win for his team with a nice nostalgic 'Tombstone Piledriver' on Sandow.

Many fellow WWE superstars were quick to tweet their response to Undertaker's re-appearance.

Randy Orton: Got to watch Undertaker perform in Waco tonight at the Smackdown live event. Very motivating to watch him do his thing.

Ricardo Rodriguez: Ca't describe the feeling we all got here tonight in Waco, Texas after having the Undertaker compete. I legit got goosebumps.

Wade Barrett: Hell of a night at #wwewaco. Expect the unexpected.

This live appearance by Undertaker must surely be a clear sign that we will see him return to TV and defend his streak. Whether that is against CM Punk is yet to be seen, but as the next few weeks play out all will become clear for the WWE's biggest event of the year.

DVD Review: Hitman Hart - Wrestling With Shadows (10th Anniversary Collector's Edition)

DVD Review: Hitman Hart - Wrestling With Shadows (10th Anniversary Collector's Edition)

Wrestling DVD fall into two distinct categories. There are those that present us with wrestler bios and matches (these are usually done in character). However on the other hand there are DVD releases that take us behind the scenes and let us into a world that very few fans ever get to see.

One such release that falls into the latter category is this one. Hitman Hart - Wrestling With Shadows takes us on the road with legendary wrestler Bret Hart, taking in every aspect of what would be a remarkable year for him. In 1997 Bret was not only the most popular man in the WWE, but he was also the World Champion. But when rival company WCw came calling Hart took the decision to remain with the WWE and forgo a large pay rise, for 20 year contract with Vince MacMahon's company.

The real story here was that as the year progressed McMahon decided to withdraw this multi-year deal and force Bret to open up negotiations once more with WCW. As Hart drew near his final days with the company McMahon grew even more cagey about the situation.

By November 1997 Bret was still the WWE Champion and he was more than happy to lose the belt before he moved on to pastures new. The only snag was that he did not want to lose it on Canadian soil (Bret is a loyal Canadian and his family are very well respected there). Which meant that Hart would retain the gold at Survivor Series (held in Montreal) and subsequently lose it the next day at Monday Night Raw.

But as history now states that was not the way things panned out. McMahon for some reason felt that (the loyal to WWE) Hart may decide to break character and sully the belt. So he decided to insure the title was taken away in Montreal instead.

The event itself is a shocking one and one that filmmaker Paul Jay has been able to capture perfectly. Referee Earl Hebner and opponent Shawn Michaels were both in on the plan and knew that McMahon was about to pull the rug out form under Hart's feet. The match itself was fine and yet now it is almost forgotten, its aftermath is now the thing we all know about.

Fans of wrestling will love this new edition of the DVD and especially the extras.

Firstly we all know that Bret Hart is only one member of a wrestling dynasty and that whilst he is the most famous, one other brother made a name for himself in the WWE. The second disc here looks at the life and sad death of Owen Hart.

Owen was a talented wrestler and yet throughout this release we learn that he only grappled to provide for his young family. He longed to have a normal day job instead.

Unfortunately just as his career rose and he began to main event shows across the country, 'The Montreal Screwjob' happened and Owen was left to fend for himself in the WWE (without his big brother). This meant Owen was saddled with some dodgy storylines, he was also involved in an infamous match with rising star 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin. During this bout Hart botched a piledriver and severely injured Austin. Austin never fully recovered form this and Hart had to live with the knowledge that he could have killed or paralysed a fellow wrestler.

But an event even worse was about to happen. With Bret in WCW, Vince Mcmahon and his creative team decided to mock many of their rivals top stars. They used Owen (as The masked Blue Blazer) to do so. Poor Owen was even forced into using a harness type of device to drop into the ring (like WCW's Sting).

On one fateful night live on Pay-Per-View Owen plummeted to his death. Falling nearly 80 feet into the ring the wrestler stood no chance (his head snapping back on the ropes during impact. Your reviewer was one of the millions who were watching the event live and can still remember the chaos and drama that occurred when Owen fell. The PPV did continue though and many felt that was in poor taste.

This bonus DVD takes us into the life of Owen. It features some moving tributes by many of his peers and also some key family members too.

Hitman Hart - Wrestling With Shadows is available now from all good retailers.

By Phil Allely

Booker T Interview Highlights

Current SmackDown G.M and multi-time World Champion, Booker T, took to the hot seat with AllWrestling.com’s show host, Dan the Cannon. In a 2.5 hour long interview, he talked about various things ranging from his autobiography to personal and professional life. Highlights from the interview are given below: On His Book (From Prison to Promise): About his autobiography that released on Sep. 1st, he says that he wanted to write it for a long time. According to him, it is an honest book that talks about his troubles and eventual triumph. On His Early Life: He shares how difficult his early life was. He lost his parents at a very young age and had difficulty in making friends. He also shares his jail experience and in his words he learned a lot from that experience and wouldn’t like to change that. On Family and Son: He discusses how he had to fight for his son and prove that he was worthy of being a father to his son. On the prospects of his son joining wrestling, he cleared that he hasn’t talked about it with his son. He also discussed working with Sharmell and the ‘King and Queen’ gimmick they had together. Booker T spoke about being on the road without a break and how the schedule affects his family life. On Early Career: He says that he’d always dreamt of becoming a wrestler and that wrestling has totally changed his life. He also thanks his fans for their continuous support. He also says that he was never greedy about the belts. He also discusses his time in the Texas Indy scene and the racial issues he had to face in GWF, and how things eventually changed. On His Gimmicks: He talks about the multiple characters he has played over the years, including G.I. Bro, and King Booker. Also, according to him, Spinaroonie helped him win over fans. He also discusses how the move was born and how it immediately changed people’s reaction towards him. Time in WCW: He was spotted by Sid Vicious, who brought him into the company from where his true success story began. He also sheds light on his first title reign, backstage environment and the difficulties he had to face to reach the position he has reached. He also credited many people, such as Vince Russo, for his success in WCW. Time in WWE/F: He explains how he had to go through a character development session when he joined the ‘E. He also sheds light on working with names, such as Steve Austin and Kurt Angle. He discussed his early feuds and famous scenes, such as the supermarket brawl with Austin. Time in TNA: He discusses his stint in TNA, where he was a part of a famous stable, Main Event Mafia. He also praises the up and coming TNA stars, such as James Storm and Robert Roode. On Current Phase: On the PG era, he says that things have changed and one has to make every move carefully. He also said that he enjoyed his stint as a commentator and he always wanted to try his hands at it. He also talked about the social media rage and how it affects the business. According to him, people have to be responsible regarding social media and be careful with their words. On Relationship with Colleagues: He talks about Chris Benoit in detail, and also states that he has great respect for JR, who helped him a lot in his career. Talking about friends, he says that he considers JBL and Michael Cole great friends, and has good relationship with backstage people. He also appreciated The Rock and says that he has no problem with Dwayne working in the ‘E. Other Things: He discusses his time as a trainer, and how much fun he had training the newcomers. He says that he considers himself a ‘teacher’ and not a trainer. He also discusses being the general manager and how he was not prepared for it. On Future: He says that in his opinion the business is in good hands and he has great expectations from guys like Cody Rhodes and Dolph Ziggler. However, he says that he has yet to see the next ‘superstar’. On his own future plans, he says that he is thinking of coming up with an improved wrestling school so that he can churn out talent. As far as HOF is concerned, he says that he has never thought about it, but it would be great to be inducted. Other than this, he talked about various other controversial topics including his favorites, the firing of Abraham Washington, regrets in his life, possible DVD, invasion angle and many more. You can listen to the complete interview here.

Jerry Lawler News

WWE Hall of Famer Jerry “The King” Lawler continues to recover in a hospital in Montreal, Canada, after suffering a heart attack during Monday’s Raw broadcast. Lawler’s family members are with him, including son and former WWE performer Brian Christopher Lawler, who released a statement Tuesday evening concerning his father’s condition. Though stable, the concern now is whether he suffered brain damage following the heart attack. His message reads: “Ok, here’s the latest real update. Lauren and I are here at the hospital in Montreal. He does not look good at all. He is responsive to questions that he is asked which is very good. His sedation and breathing support are being lowered slowly right now. He was shocked a total of 7 times at the arena and underwent a balloon stint to open up a clogged artery when he arrived at hospital. Everyone out there needs to say a special prayer for his brain at this point, please. Tests on his brain will not be available until the morning. One of us two will keep all you guys informed as we know more.” Stacy Carter, Lawler’s former wife, remains optimistic on “The King.” She tweeted late Tuesday night, “Gonna try to get some sleep. Been a long 24 plus hours. I just know there will be some good news about @jerrylawler ‘s condition tomorrow!!!”

Former WWE Writer Interview Highlights

Former WWE writer Alex Greenfield recently talked with MLWrestling about a verbal exchange with Vince McMahon that came close to exchanging blows. Here is the story. "Now that I think about it, I can't remember what arena it was but it was over the stupidest f--king thing in the world. It was during the thing when it was Shane and Vince vs. DX and we were doing some silly, little backstage pre-tape. This isn't even a live show. This is something we're taping earlier in the day to feed back into the show. "So, Snitzky and a couple other guys are watching DX make fun of Vince and Shane on the monitor. Then, we come out of the monitor, and we see the guys laughing at all the hilarity of Shawn and Hunter -- which is a whole other issue -- and then you do the slow reveal that Shane and Vince are standing right behind them. Then they yell at the guys and I think Shane punches one of them out or something like that. "What I wanted to do was get Kevin Dunn to feed back in the bottom of the scene, so that we would be seeing them still standing in the ring and the audience cheering or whatever it is they were doing when we pull out so that the audience understands what these guys are laughing at. Vince is like, 'No, God damn it.' Then he gets on the headset with Kevin Dunn and says, 'Just put the Raw logo up and we'll come out of the logo.' "I said to him, 'Vince, that's not going to make any sense to the audience.' He said, 'Yes it will. We're just doing it.' I said, 'No, let me explain.' He said, 'I don't want to hear an explanation.' I said, 'You f--king hired me, I'm going to give you an explanation.' His eyes went wide with shock. "I think the thing that pissed him off is that I did all of this in front of everybody standing there. But, he was just shutting me down without listening to what I had to say and I was f--king right. "Anyway, we go back and forth and it's his company so Vince gets it his way. When it aired, the shot didn't make any sense whatso-f--king-ever. You couldn't tell what the guys were laughing at. Then, after the scenes over, he says, 'You come with me right now!' I was like, 'OK,' thinking I was going to get fired, frankly. "He lights me up outside, saying, 'God damn it! How dare you get on my case in front of people. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.' Understand, there are fans in the background because we're standing right outside the arena. There were fans way back that were wondering what the f--k Vince was doing yelling at this little Jewish kid. [Laughs.] I just refused to back down and said, 'My way is the right way. You did it wrong.' He said, 'God damn it, I wish you were 6'7".' I said, 'I'm not but I'm standing right here.' I get pretty pissed myself. "There was a moment in that conversation where I thought he was just going to haul off and punch me in the face. Don't get me wrong; I'm not talking like a bad ass here, like I would have won this confrontation. [Laughs.] He probably would have broken my jaw. But that was the big, almost-coming-to-blows confrontation. I'm convinced to this day that he thought about knocking the s--t out of me. "I think it became a game to Vince. (Fellow ex-WWE writer) Court (Bauer) and I played this little game once. I was going to pitch this idea that everybody on the writing team believed in and we decided, you know what -- because Vince liked Court a lot -- you know what Court, let's have you pitch this. He did and it got over and I know with a certainty that if I had pitched the same idea, it wouldn't have. I think for Vince -- and this was right before I quit -- it became the game of 'how far can I push this guy before he blows up?'

Goldberg interview highlights

Goldberg disses McMahon


By Phil Allely

Former world heavyweight Champion Bill Goldberg has slammed his former boss Vince McMahon in a recent TV interview.

Whilst attending an MMA event at the Hard Rock Casino in Oklahoma the former WWE/WCW star made his thoughts very clear about McMahon when asked about the WWE chairman’s persona and how intimidating he is in real life.

Goldberg responded to the local Fox station’s question with the following statement "I can't really say anything positive about the man, it's like working for a carny who's driven only by his ego. Business is out the window, as evidence by what he did with my character. I don't have anything positive to say about the man."

Goldberg is on record as not being a fan of McMahon or his stint with the WWE. His successful (in WCW) monster character was famously buried within the WWE structure and his world title run proved to be unspectacular. His one year contract ending with a whimper as he and Brock Lesnar were let go form their contracts to little response.

Rumour has it that Goldberg will step back into the ring this coming October as part of an event in Africa alongside fellow former WWE/TNA stars. Although he has to yet to fully confirm this Bill has already filmed a preview piece for the appearance.

DVD Review WWE The True Story of Wrestlemania

WWE The True Story of WrestleMania By Phil Allely


It may seem odd to some that as the WWE try to step away from the word ‘Wrestling’ this latest DVD box set looks at the very wrestling event that put the company where it is today WrestleMania. Let’s concentrate on the main feature first. The two hour documentary style piece on offer here gives a pretty decent overview of how the concept for Mania grew out of Vince McMahon Jnr’s idea of combining rock and wrestling. With that collaboration initially between 1980s pop icon Cindi Lauper and the Hulk Hogan led (then) WWF, the seeds were sown to use the media, TV stars, pop stars and celebrities to boost the WWF’s profile and get the grapple game out of sweaty gyms and into the media spotlight.

Longtime fans will already know the story of how McMahon gambled most of his money on the first WrestleMania. Fortunately for him his dream of a wrestling supershow of epic proportions took the world by storm and has now evolved into the must-see event of the year for many of us (even the odd flop main event or lack of star power can’t harm the buzz Mania season brings).

The main feature houses a host of talking heads giving their insights, thoughts and stories of their Mania experiences. There are some vintage quotes from The Hulkster amongst other veteran stars, these sitting nicely with current WWE superstars and even celebrities who participated in the events.

Told in a semi-chronological order (some pieces skip forward to illustrate the event returning to a venue etc.) this is an at times warts and all look at how Mania has grown to become the jewel in the WWE crown, attracted some huge star endorsements and broken attendance records along the way. Of course this being a WWE production there are some of the more unsavoury pieces of history erased, but overall that is minimal and the fact that McMahon himself admits some ideas worked better than others certainly makes for welcome viewing. Diehard fans will enjoy the little trivia snippets sprinkled across the disc, anyone who has ever wondered why Flair/Hogan at Mania never happened or how Sgt Slaughter was convinced to portray an Iraqi sympathiser will be in their element.

This may be a slightly sugar-coated look at the ‘Grand daddy of the all’ but this is perhaps the best potted history of WrestleMania that we will ever see. By skipping at a reasonable pace through the years and pausing briefly on only key storylines and matches, the overall target of celebrating the success of the company’s annual extravaganza is met perfectly.

Of course the subject of best match ever is touched upon and whilst we all debate what that is, this release does let you glimpse some matches that maybe get overlooked for the more obvious Undertaker/Michaels bouts, Michaels/Flair and even Hogan/Rock outings. Some of these are luckily featured on discs two and three, including the exciting Warrior/savage scrap from Mania VII, Mania 2000’s three way ladder brawl for the tag team gold and a thoroughly enjoyable Shane versus Vince McMahon Street Fight from Mania 17.

WWE The True Story of WrestleMania is released on May 23rd by Silver Vision. www.silvervision.co.uk

Available on triple disc Blu-Ray and DVD, both RRP £29.99

New WWE Statement Re: Future Plans

It was reported last week that WWE dropped World Wrestling Entertainment as their name in an attempt to move past the boundaries of being labeled a professional wrestling (a term which has also been dropped) organization.




They issued a press release this morning, outlining their future plans and revealing a new marketing tagline. They also acknowledge Triple H's new corporate role:



The New WWE® Expands Beyond Wrestling



STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--To better reflect the company’s global entertainment offerings, World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: WWE) announced today a new business model for future growth, including formally rebranding itself, WWE.



“The new business model of the company better reflects what WWE is all about, being a global entertainment company”



Two key components to WWE’s brand expansion will be the active pursuit to acquire entertainment content companies and the outsourcing of WWE’s core competencies – television and film production, live event production and licensing. As part of the new business model, the company will also focus on the development of new television products including scripted, non-scripted and animated programs, as well as the launch of a new WWE network in the next 12-18 months. The first new program of the brand expansion is Tough Enough®, WWE’s non-scripted program that debuted on the USA Network on Monday.



“The new business model of the company better reflects what WWE is all about, being a global entertainment company,” stated Vince McMahon, Chairman and CEO, WWE. “We will always be loyal to our core business that made WWE a globally known entity, however, the future of WWE will be the addition of new entertainment content opportunities beyond the ring.”



This new rebranding initiative will be highlighted through a national consumer and business-to-business advertising campaign entitled “Bigger. Badder. Better.™” The campaign kicked off at WrestleMania® XXVII on Sunday and will be featured on cable TV, print and online.



In addition to focusing on the expansion of the company, the company will bolster its core business with the launch a new talent development department headed by Paul “Triple H®” Levesque. The new department will put a greater emphasis on worldwide recruitment, training and character development to identify future WWE Superstars and Divas. The first recruit acquired under Levesque’s new department was the signing last month of future WWE Superstar, Sin Cara™, formerly known worldwide as Mistico

Steve Austin Plugging Wrestlemania and Tough Enough Interview Highlights

Steve Austin is promoting WrestleMania 27 and Tough Enough in a new interview with IGN. In the interview, Austin revealed that each week on Tough Enough, he will select the "Bottom 3." These will be the lowest level performers on the show. Austin will give them a chance to convince him to let them stay before eliminating one and allowing the other two to stay.


Here are some highlights from the interview:



His approach to eliminating contestants:

"When it's time for me to be Stone Cold, when we go into elimination and it's time to ask the nitty gritty questions, and they've got a chance to either stay or go, you know, I get on them pretty good, and I'm looking to see who I can rattle, or undo, and you know, we've weeded out some of the ones who really needed to go first."



Using other wrestlers as examples to the Tough Enough contestants:

"There are many guys who I'll bring up in the course of a week. We'll have a different superstar come by each week and talk to the kids. I'll use myself as an example some of the time, but not all the time because you know, one of the things I'll tell them about me is, I was never the best wrestler in the world. I was never the best looking wrestler in the world. I was never the best built guy in the dressing room. I was never the best at anything. But I had enough things and I wanted it bad enough that I made it to the top and I did what I did. But not everybody's going to have my style. Not everybody comes from the background I come from. I use Shawn Michaels, I use The Undertaker, I use The Rock a lot, Ric Flair, my favorite pro wrestler. And Rey Mysterio came by. Some of these guys might be more in a Rey kind of mode. But I'll use as many examples as I can, and I've got a bunch of them because I grew up watching this business since I was seven or eight years old."



Being a heel vs. face:

"Shoot, man, I loved being a damn heel. Something about that, just going out there and being the most despicable person you could ever be, was a real turn on for me. And I grew up a real shy kid in south Texas, and it was something for me to lean on and have fun with. But when I came up with the Stone Cold thing, I really kind of brought a gray area in to a black and white world."



What?

"I tell you what, I would have never in a million years went up to Vince and said, 'Hey, I've got this thing that I'm going to do and it's going to make people say 'What?' after every pause or break in someone's promo for the next ten years. I had no idea that even these days, when Michael Cole's in the ring cutting a promo, if he puts that pause in there, they'll come with a 'What?!' - but it's been interesting!"

Abdullah The Butcher Interview Highlights

Abdullah the Butcher recently spoke with Slam Wrestling about the 2011 WWE Hall of Fame. Here are some highlights:


Getting the call from WWE:

"When they phoned and said, 'We want to put you in the Hall of Fame,' I started smacking myself to make sure I was hearing them right. It took them a while to get me in to their Hall of Fame, but I'm very happy. Even though I don't live far away, they're going to pick me up in a limousine. I love it!"



His drawing power today:

"If you were to put me with The Undertaker today, we could sell out any place. I need a new hip, but I still look 100 per cent good. Hulk Hogan and I wrestled in Japan for two weeks back in the '80s, selling out and having great matches, and we could do it again today. I think we could still give the people action."



Never working for WWE:

"I've never met Vince McMahon Jr. The WWE were scared of me because I was an outlaw, and I did not kiss anybody's butt. The boys, back in the day there, would say, 'Don't bring Abdullah in -- he'll be trouble.'"

DVD Review WWE Raw The Best of 2010

DVD Review: WWE Raw - The Best Of 2010




WWE’s flagship TV show Raw is perhaps its best known product and is also recognised as the longest running episodic programme on television (clocking up 900 plus episodes to date). This three disc set contains some of the most exciting, imaginative and entertaining things to have happened on the weekly show during 2010.



Raw like its stable mate Smackdown has featured many pay-per-view quality matches over the past few year sand 2010 was a year where the show itself was essential viewing week in week out.



Broken down into monthly chunks this box set has cherry picked the best bits from Raw and put them all in one place, making this perfect for everyone and of course meaning that we can all finally own and re-watch the great action and in-ring entertainment as it unfolded on TV, for the very first time on DVD.



2010 kicked off in style as WWE legend Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart made a return to promotion after a decade , his triumphant return, hatchet burying with arch rival Shawn Michaels and ex-boss Vince McMahon made for great viewing and led to some nice storylines along the way. Of course this was also the year that we bade farewell to Shawn Michaels after his Wrestlemania re-match with Undertaker saw him fall short in ending the Phenom’s winning streak. Featured here are Shawn’s final Raw match and a his retirement speech, plus a nice match with Triple H as DX.



Elsewhere you can once again see how despised heel Randy Orton moved to the good side and became one of the company’s most liked faces in a short space of time. There is the Miz’s unrivalled rise to champion status and the formation and growth of the Nexus faction, all of which paved the way for many of the events that feature here.



Each month gets a quick rundown of highlights and then we see in full some of the events that transpired and often led into the upcoming PPV or next feud for those concerned.



All in all Raw - Best of 2010 has over 20 made for television bouts and each one is a cracker. Ones to watch out for are D-Generation X taking on CM Punk/Luke Gallows and ShowMiz for the Unified Tag team Titles, WWE Champ Sheamus tackling ECW Title Holder Christian, Chris Jericho against Evan Bourne, the King of the Ring final with Sheamus facing John Morrison and many others. There are also nice video pakcages showcasing the Shawn Michaels/Undertaker feud to date, a Piper’s Pit segment featuring Randy Orton and John Cena and a nice finishing piece looking back at the year that was.



The best thing about this DVD set is that even the most ardent of fan won’t have these matches on disc already and that makes them all the more irresistible to have.



WWE Raw The Best of 2010 is available now from www.silvervision.co.uk and all good retailers.



Upcoming releases from Silvervision include:

WWE Survivor Series 2010

WWE Tagged Classics: Wrestle fest ‘88 & ‘90

WWE Live in the UK (recorded November 2010)

WWE Top 50 Superstars of All Time

Former WWE Writer Talks About Vince McMahon

Former WWE writer Dave Lagana's latest podcast on IWantWrestling.com features another former WWE writer, John Carle, who wrote for WWE from 2006-2009. Here's what he had to say about working with Vince McMahon:




"He loves to test people. I don't mean in terms of just talent either, I mean in people's personalities. There were tons of times on the road when Vince would point out something embarrassing just to see how you would react to it. There was something that occurred one day in Denver and the next day in the meeting he called me out on it just to see how I reacted…I stood up and said, 'Yes sir, that is what happened.' Vince smiled and laughed and Kevin Dunn did a spit take, but I think I earned a little more respect in his eyes because of how I reacted to that situation."

Triple H interview highlights

The New York Post's Page Six features an interesting interview with Triple H this week. Here are a few highlights:




Wrestling and home life:

"Vince McMahon runs the WWE. I'm married to his daughter seven years. We live in Connecticut with three girls -- 4½, 2½ and 6 months. I'm 41. Still wrestling. It's very physical. I've had injuries, like torn quads off my biceps and thighs. People believe the sport's fake and nothing hurts. Listen, doesn't hurt any the less when a 350-pound guy jumps on you. Ten years from now I want to be able to pick up my kids. I'm also a WWE executive. I'm a wrestling fan. As a boy I watched it on TV with my father. At 20, I met a guy and the rest is history. Right away you get a flashy trick name so you're a superhero come to life. Nobody pays $20 to see his next-door neighbor. Wrestling's made me rich. Very. But everyone's surprised that a wrestler can be not only talented but also articulate. Listen, we're theater actors. Bad guy versus good guy. It's a show. We're onstage telling a story through our actions."



The McMahons:

"The WWE financed this movie. Both McMahons love the grandchildren. Come around all the time. Take them to school. Their house even has sleepovers. I did appearances and campaign rallies for my mother-in-law. She's great and staying politically involved. Lieberman's not running again so she can try once more in 2012."

Honky Tonk Man Rips Hogan

WWE Legend The Honky Tonk Man said on his Facebook this weekend that a top behind-the-scenes player in TNA, someone close to Hulk Hogan, has left and is returning to WWE. Honky's team then wrote the following blog on his official website against Hulk Hogan:


"You guys keep asking what's the issue with Hogan. Here's the deal. Hogan is in a back brace and without it he is on a walker as an old crippled dogsh## of a man who could only be found with his feet in Lard Ass Bubba's ass. You ask why HTM doesn't like Hogan?



Jeff Jarrett approached HTM for a TNA merchandise deal in 2010 and "sent" a contract. Contract never came. HTM signs with WWE & Mattel. The same time, Hogan and Bischoff join TNA and Bischoff publicly insults HTM. HTM is called up for the "Hogan & Friends Tour", went to the show and had a great event with the boys and the fans. HTM and Jimmy Hart spend hours setting up the show, spots etc. HTM and his web team promote "Hulk and Friends" everywhere which Hogan's agent praised and admitted none of the other stars did! Bubba the lard sponge calls out HTM on his radio show so HTM posted a video owning Bubba in retaliation. Hogan goes off without seeing the facts and HTM is off the tour.



HTM went to Hogan's room on the Hogan & Friends tour and spent hours talking to Hogan. Hogan was nice to HTM's face. That's the deal with Hogan. That's always the deal with Hulk Hogan. Ask Vince McMahon or Randy Savage.Hogan is a walking dead because he went with that travelling door to door meat salesman Bischoff instead of hanging with the guys who stood beside him and once again turned on WWE. McMahon's done with Hogan and WWE have no interest in his dead ass. They put over Hogan, built him up as Babe Ruth and he spat in their face. Hogan was due to wrestle John Cena at a recent past WrestleMania but couldn't commit due to his health issues then announces at Vince's backyard MSG that he's signed with TNA. Now after taking TNA nowhere Hogan's had to take a pay cut with TNA and mark my words within 6 months he'll be gone.



What is WWE going to do with a free agent crippled Hulk Hogan? Nothing. They own the entire back catalogue, anything of worth they have. Hogan has his chance to be the Babe Ruth of WWE and spat in their face. He demands top money from Vince and has nothing in return to offer.Hogan's "Hulk & Friends" Tour is dead in the water. Events were cancelled due to poor ticket sales and performance and Hogan's $100k fee demand while paying his fellow boys $3k.



THQ recently signed Hogan to WWE Allstars as his contract allows for outside licensing which is a slap in the face to TNA. Would McMahon let any WWE star sign a TNA merchandise deal? How is that taking "the company to the next level" Brother!.



The guys in the back have no respect for Hogan and Nash is laughing his ass off now that Hogan is broke and Nash is back as a player.



A major TNA backstage player has bolted TNA for WWE, someone close to Hogan which has left Hogan reeling. More on that to come..



Hulkamania killed itself.



HTM Team"

Kevin Nash Recent Tweet about his return to WWE as Diesel

Kevin Nash talked about retiring as Diesel on his Twitter last night. He wrote:


"To explain why I want to retire as Diesel: Vince McMahon was the 1st person to ever see anything in me and believe in me. He gave me my 1st push and made me a star. Without Vince there is no Diesel. Without Diesel Kevin Nash is a mediocre basketball player from the University of Tennessee. The biggest pop I've received since '97 happened Sunday night. Diesel's back, where he belongs. Circle of Life."

Scott Hall Interview Highlights

Highlights from a recent Scott Hall Interview:

His health:


"I recently had this pacemaker/defibrillator put in my heart. We have bad hearts in my family genetically. My lifestyle contributed to it, too. I made some bad decisions and some bad choices. If you dance with the devil, you got to pay the price."



Helping former WWE star Ricky Ortiz (Ricky Young):

"This is my first student ever. People ask why I don’t open a wrestling school. I tell them that I’m not just going to take anybody’s money, if they can’t handle it. If I don’t think you are going to be a big star, I’m not going to try to hurt anybody’s feelings, but I’m not going to waste my time. So I got this cat [Young]. He doesn’t drink or do drugs. He is very positive. He is like the young me."



Going to rehab:

"I have been to about nine rehabs. They were high dollar and some of the best ones around. [WWE Chairman] Vince [McMahon] has picked up the tab the last couple of times. If you ever work or worked for WWE, if you ever need help, he will give it to you. He is really cool. Thank Vince, his wife Linda, [daughter] Stephanie, [son] Shane and Paul [Levesque/Triple H]. Thank you for helping me. It’s hard to ask for help. It’s even harder to accept it, when people offer it."

Torrie Wilson some posed pics

a few nice pics of Torrie wilson to compliment the recent interview highlights published here.