The Official Web Site of Pro Wrestling’s “Louisville Slugger"
Posted May 27, 2009
WOW!!! In the first month of this site, almost 1000 questions were submitted to Ask Jim! Obviously, I can't begin to answer ALL of them here, but I want to try to knock out a lot of them at one time, so since many questions were variations on the same topic, I've grouped them together. Firstly, I'd like to thank everyone for their compliments, kind words and personal anecdotes about meeting/seeing me in the past, in many cases it's meant as much to me as it did to you. Also, many questions were either multi-part or essay questions that would require a commentary-length answer for each, so while I can't do those here, you HAVE given me material for future commentaries, so be sure to watch for them!
While I hate to start out with a shameless plug, just to save space and/or keep from repeating stories a lot of folks have heard, I can tell you that almost every question asked about my time with the Midnight Express or my career in general from 1982-1990, including where the tennis racket came from, what the NWA, Mid-South, World Class and WCW were like, how it was working for the WCW booking committee, the inside story of Starrcade 86, etc., are answered in my new book, THE MIDNIGHT EXPRESS 25TH ANNIVERSARY SCRAPBOOK, available on this site.
Other "mass" answers to questions include: Picking my one favorite match, angle, wrestler, or opponents over the last 30 years is pretty much impossible.
---No, I don't believe tag team wrestling or male managers will ever be as prominent again as they once were, because it would take the "industry leader" to get behind that for it to happen, and since Vince seldom admits when he's screwed something up, I don't look for that anytime soon.
---Yes, I feel more "young" talent and fresh faces should be given more of a chance to eclipse the "veterans", for the long term good of the sport.
---No, the territories aren't coming back, and yes, it's a shame.
---Finally, to answer the question approximately 300 of you asked, yes, I do believe an alternative product of credible, athletic-based pro wrestling is the best way to compete with Vince's "sports entertainment", and no, I don't know why in the world nobody's trying it. And yes, if somebody did, I would book it in a heartbeat if asked, but I am not interested at my advanced age in a "creative team" or "writing" position, only a "booker" position, and those don't exist anymore.
Now to individual questions---
Q.---Who is the most overrated wrestler of the past, and today?
Asked by Joe in Bourne, Massachusetts.
A.---The whole idea of promoting wrestling is to make the fans think a wrestler is better than he is, so to me, overrated is not the term. OverPUSHED is a different story. Who has been pushed on a major league basis way more than their talent or attitude should have dictated? One has to look no further than the mass hypnosis Vince McMahon worked in getting the Ultimate Warrior over. A body with no substance, Warrior was stunningly bad when he entered the business, and never got much better. His work sucked, he was dangerous, never tried to get better, he couldn't cut a coherent promo, he had a superstar attitude, he was a prick to many of his fellow talents, and he was pushed solely because of Vince's fascination with steroided-up male bodies. He had a 3 or 4 year run before both his bad attitude and the public seeing through him coincided, and a 6 week nostalgia run 4 or 5 years later. The only legacy he left was that he made a lot of money undeservedly and had really bad matches with some really good workers. On the female side, look to the female version of Warrior, Sable, and pretty much repeat the above paragraph. Couldn't talk, no emotion, couldn't work and wouldn't try to learn, star attitude (she did hide it well toward those in power--for awhile), and was pushed only because of her ability to pick a good plastic surgeon and Vince's apparent sexual frustrations. I've seen hotter ice sculptures. Killed her husband's career by powerbombing him on TV and no guys would sell for him (or in Steve Austin's case, even WORK with him) after that.
For the present, let's go with Hunter Hearst Helmsley-McMahon. Actually, he's a very good worker and studies the business. His promos are usually as exciting as a coma and last longer than this recession, but he has good matches. Problem is, as hard as he's been crammed down people's throats for the past 10 years, he should have surpassed Hogan, Austin, and Rock, but HHH is what is called in the business "the guy that works with the guy that draws money." He should be in there to have a good match and put the star over. Actually, he should have been fired in 1996 when he shit on the entire sport with the infamous "curtain call" at MSG, but Vince, the guy with "balls of steel", let HHH piss in his face and not only didn't do anything about it, but let him marry his daughter! And a sledgehammer? Jesus Christ, I wish he'd hit me in the head with it before he starts talking on TV. HHH will be the top guy in the WWE until he looks like Dick the Bruiser in his final days working an Indiana county fair show, and if THAT'S not overrated, I don't know what is.
Q.---If I was in the business today, what organization would you advise me to go to? Asked by Adam in Boston, Massachusetts.
A.---The unemployment office.
Q.---What is your favorite movie?
Asked by Satchmo in San Francisco, California.
A.---Normally, this would be a tough one, but I just saw Religulous by Bill Maher, so look no further. This is not only an hilarious movie, but an incredibly well done and well researched project that should be required viewing in every public school in America, but unfortunately it won't be. Also, the funniest movie ever made may be "Four Rooms" with Tim Roth ("The Misbehavers" segment makes me piss myself and I love Quentin Tarantino).
Q.---If I win $100 million in Powerball, can I hire you to book my promotion?
Asked by Chris in St. Louis, Missouri.
A.---Yes
Q.---What is your opinion on the Rock leaving wrestling to make movies fulltime and the backlash he has gotten for "not giving back to the business that made him"?
Asked by Amar in Toronto, Ontario-Canada.
A.---PULEEEZ! What he gave to the business was--he drew mega-houses for several years and enriched all the talent on his cards, showed all wrestlers that if you possess incredible talent and charisma you can leave WWE in the dust and go on to greater success on your own terms, gave the fans some great and memorable matches and promos, and showed the general public that not all pro wrestlers are drug addicts, homicidal maniacs or washed up has beens sleeping in their vans. I predicted when I first saw him he would main event Wrestlemania in 5 years, (it took him 3), but I never dreamed he'd attain the level of success he has, and I couldn't be prouder of him, as every wrestler in the profession should be. Rock is a great guy and was always business professionally, and he I'm sure would have been happy being in wrestling for a career as his father and grandfather were, because he loves the business, but if he had turned down these opportunities he should have had his head examined. By the way, I think equally highly of John Cena as a person and talent, and John is smart enough to know that on the slim chance Rocky would ever wrestle again, if he gets the promos out now, he might get the opponent spot in one of the biggest money matches of all time.
Tune in next time for more answers to the most pressing questions of the day, including my opinion on WhatAburger!!
WOW!!! In the first month of this site, almost 1000 questions were submitted to Ask Jim! Obviously, I can't begin to answer ALL of them here, but I want to try to knock out a lot of them at one time, so since many questions were variations on the same topic, I've grouped them together. Firstly, I'd like to thank everyone for their compliments, kind words and personal anecdotes about meeting/seeing me in the past, in many cases it's meant as much to me as it did to you. Also, many questions were either multi-part or essay questions that would require a commentary-length answer for each, so while I can't do those here, you HAVE given me material for future commentaries, so be sure to watch for them!
While I hate to start out with a shameless plug, just to save space and/or keep from repeating stories a lot of folks have heard, I can tell you that almost every question asked about my time with the Midnight Express or my career in general from 1982-1990, including where the tennis racket came from, what the NWA, Mid-South, World Class and WCW were like, how it was working for the WCW booking committee, the inside story of Starrcade 86, etc., are answered in my new book, THE MIDNIGHT EXPRESS 25TH ANNIVERSARY SCRAPBOOK, available on this site.
Other "mass" answers to questions include: Picking my one favorite match, angle, wrestler, or opponents over the last 30 years is pretty much impossible.
---No, I don't believe tag team wrestling or male managers will ever be as prominent again as they once were, because it would take the "industry leader" to get behind that for it to happen, and since Vince seldom admits when he's screwed something up, I don't look for that anytime soon.
---Yes, I feel more "young" talent and fresh faces should be given more of a chance to eclipse the "veterans", for the long term good of the sport.
---No, the territories aren't coming back, and yes, it's a shame.
---Finally, to answer the question approximately 300 of you asked, yes, I do believe an alternative product of credible, athletic-based pro wrestling is the best way to compete with Vince's "sports entertainment", and no, I don't know why in the world nobody's trying it. And yes, if somebody did, I would book it in a heartbeat if asked, but I am not interested at my advanced age in a "creative team" or "writing" position, only a "booker" position, and those don't exist anymore.
Now to individual questions---
Q.---Who is the most overrated wrestler of the past, and today?
Asked by Joe in Bourne, Massachusetts.
A.---The whole idea of promoting wrestling is to make the fans think a wrestler is better than he is, so to me, overrated is not the term. OverPUSHED is a different story. Who has been pushed on a major league basis way more than their talent or attitude should have dictated? One has to look no further than the mass hypnosis Vince McMahon worked in getting the Ultimate Warrior over. A body with no substance, Warrior was stunningly bad when he entered the business, and never got much better. His work sucked, he was dangerous, never tried to get better, he couldn't cut a coherent promo, he had a superstar attitude, he was a prick to many of his fellow talents, and he was pushed solely because of Vince's fascination with steroided-up male bodies. He had a 3 or 4 year run before both his bad attitude and the public seeing through him coincided, and a 6 week nostalgia run 4 or 5 years later. The only legacy he left was that he made a lot of money undeservedly and had really bad matches with some really good workers. On the female side, look to the female version of Warrior, Sable, and pretty much repeat the above paragraph. Couldn't talk, no emotion, couldn't work and wouldn't try to learn, star attitude (she did hide it well toward those in power--for awhile), and was pushed only because of her ability to pick a good plastic surgeon and Vince's apparent sexual frustrations. I've seen hotter ice sculptures. Killed her husband's career by powerbombing him on TV and no guys would sell for him (or in Steve Austin's case, even WORK with him) after that.
For the present, let's go with Hunter Hearst Helmsley-McMahon. Actually, he's a very good worker and studies the business. His promos are usually as exciting as a coma and last longer than this recession, but he has good matches. Problem is, as hard as he's been crammed down people's throats for the past 10 years, he should have surpassed Hogan, Austin, and Rock, but HHH is what is called in the business "the guy that works with the guy that draws money." He should be in there to have a good match and put the star over. Actually, he should have been fired in 1996 when he shit on the entire sport with the infamous "curtain call" at MSG, but Vince, the guy with "balls of steel", let HHH piss in his face and not only didn't do anything about it, but let him marry his daughter! And a sledgehammer? Jesus Christ, I wish he'd hit me in the head with it before he starts talking on TV. HHH will be the top guy in the WWE until he looks like Dick the Bruiser in his final days working an Indiana county fair show, and if THAT'S not overrated, I don't know what is.
Q.---If I was in the business today, what organization would you advise me to go to? Asked by Adam in Boston, Massachusetts.
A.---The unemployment office.
Q.---What is your favorite movie?
Asked by Satchmo in San Francisco, California.
A.---Normally, this would be a tough one, but I just saw Religulous by Bill Maher, so look no further. This is not only an hilarious movie, but an incredibly well done and well researched project that should be required viewing in every public school in America, but unfortunately it won't be. Also, the funniest movie ever made may be "Four Rooms" with Tim Roth ("The Misbehavers" segment makes me piss myself and I love Quentin Tarantino).
Q.---If I win $100 million in Powerball, can I hire you to book my promotion?
Asked by Chris in St. Louis, Missouri.
A.---Yes
Q.---What is your opinion on the Rock leaving wrestling to make movies fulltime and the backlash he has gotten for "not giving back to the business that made him"?
Asked by Amar in Toronto, Ontario-Canada.
A.---PULEEEZ! What he gave to the business was--he drew mega-houses for several years and enriched all the talent on his cards, showed all wrestlers that if you possess incredible talent and charisma you can leave WWE in the dust and go on to greater success on your own terms, gave the fans some great and memorable matches and promos, and showed the general public that not all pro wrestlers are drug addicts, homicidal maniacs or washed up has beens sleeping in their vans. I predicted when I first saw him he would main event Wrestlemania in 5 years, (it took him 3), but I never dreamed he'd attain the level of success he has, and I couldn't be prouder of him, as every wrestler in the profession should be. Rock is a great guy and was always business professionally, and he I'm sure would have been happy being in wrestling for a career as his father and grandfather were, because he loves the business, but if he had turned down these opportunities he should have had his head examined. By the way, I think equally highly of John Cena as a person and talent, and John is smart enough to know that on the slim chance Rocky would ever wrestle again, if he gets the promos out now, he might get the opponent spot in one of the biggest money matches of all time.
Tune in next time for more answers to the most pressing questions of the day, including my opinion on WhatAburger!!