Wrestling: In Your Face

Greatest Hits of Eric E. Jenkins

Professional wrestling is deeply saddened as one of its greatest performers ever passed away on July 27, 2000. He suffered from throat cancer, which spread to his brain, which lead to his passing away at the age of 71. I am not talking about a wrestler, or even a manager who used to be a wrestler. I am talking about the greatest wrestling announcer in the history of the sport. The voice of professional wrestling, and the "Dean of Wrestling Broadcasters", Gordon Solie.

Gordon Solie was the voice of the National Wrestling Alliance, spending time in many of the different NWA territories before the NWA went national, and even after Ted Turner purchased the organization and converted it into World Championship Wrestling. Gordon Solie was the voice behind professional wrestling's first commercially released videotape, "Lord of the Rings", a compilation of the National Wrestling Alliance and its many stars. Gordon Solie knew the names of all of the holds, all of the parts of the body effected by the holds, and called every match as if it were a pay-per-view main event, even though there were no pay-per-views in Gordon's heyday.

For those of us old enough to remember the National Wrestling Alliance, Georgia Championship Wrestling, Florida Championship Wrestling, or any of the other regional NWA broadcasts, we were privileged to have heard the great Gordon in action. For those of you who are not old enough, find some tapes of NWA wrestling from the period just before the conversion to WCW (late seventies/early eighties). Find out how wrestling should be done, and by all means, rent or buy a copy of "Lord of the Rings" See and hear professional the way it used to be, the way it was before "sports entertainment".

Good-Bye Gordon Solie. There is a hole in the professional sky because of the loss of one of its brightest stars.

At the Republican National Convention, Dwayne Johnson, known to all wrestling fans as "The Rock", delivered a message where he stated that there are some 14 million wrestling fans who are eligible to vote, and that those fans will help to decide the next president of the United States. If this is so, then the next president of the United States will be…Republican Nominee George W. Bush. If what The Rock says is true, then wrestling fans will probably be more inclined to vote for Bush, and Vice President Gore has no one to blame for this but himself.

Vice President Al Gore chose as his running mate, Connecticut Senator Joseph Lieberman. Lieberman has been a vocal opponent of the excessive sex and violence that is broadcast on television these days. He has also been associated with the Parent's Television Council, the organization that has targeted the World Wrestling Federation and the content of the federation's shows. Lieberman alleges that he is not interested in censorship, just responsible governing of the things that are shown on television and in the movies.

While I personally agree that there are some things that are inappropriate for television, I also agree that people are far more sophisticated today than they were twenty years ago, therefore making them better able to relate to the things that are being shown on television. Besides, it is the responsibility of the parents to monitor what their children see on television, and how their children respond to what they see.

Since the PTC is a staunch opponent of the World Wrestling Federation, and Lieberman is an associate of the PTC, it would be very difficult for the 14 million eligible voters that The Rock spoke about at the Republican National Convention to vote for the Gore-Lieberman ticket. Therefore, the next President of the United States will be…Republican Nominee George W. Bush. If you smell what The Rock is cooking.

In professional wrestling, promoters usually ask a wrestler that they like to put over a few guys who could use the help. The promoter or the booker usually rewards the wrestler with a championship down the line, or a sizable contract in return for his or her loyalty and professionalism. Taz was asked to do this when he first joined the World Wrestling Federation. He was scheduled to reign as hardcore champion, and compete for the intercontinental title when an injury interrupted his push. In WCW, the promoters owe a huge debt to Devon Storm.

Devon Storm was a wrestler who had developed quite a following on the independent circuit. Though he had been signed by WCW several times before, he never was able to stick with the federation, but he never quit trying. He stayed active, and continued to improve his overall package. WCW signed him again, and this time he was able to find a space for himself within the federation, but WCW had other plans

At the time that Storm signed, WCW was trying to find a vehicle for David Flair. The writers were not sure how they could make Flair a star like his father, and Devon Storm was selected to partner with David, and serve as his sidekick, while David felt his way through the sport. As the result of teaming with a veteran like Storm, David has become a more confident performer in and out of the ring. Devon Storm was rewarded with a few title shots for his efforts.

WCW has lately been attempting to bring forward some of the graduates of their Power Plant. Usually, the easiest way for a young star to get over is for the young wrestler to defeat an established veteran. Devon Storm was chosen for this task. Storm is a talented wrestler, and his abilities in the ring rival those of Al Snow, which make him a perfect choice for an assignment of this nature. Recently, Storm has jobbed to Mike Sanders, Elix Skipper, and Reno, three gentlemen who, if their total experience at the time had been added together, would probably have been involved in the sport less than a year. WCW was very high on these gentlemen, as well as other recent graduates, which meant that they would all need a victim for their first big victory.

Storm is a professional, he knows that he is getting his chance in a major federation. He also knows that if he does what is best for the business, he will be rewarded. After advancing the career of David Flair, and then putting over Sanders, Skipper & Reno, and whichever other rookie that WCW wants to put him in the ring with, the federation will be deeply indebted to Storm. Reinstating the Television title and awarding it to Storm with a tournament victory would not be out of the question, neither would a reign a Cruiserweight champ or United States champ. The World title might be out of the question, but the prestige of the belt will soon match the size of the debt.

WCW is a federation in turmoil. Many of the stars that made WCW into a viable competitor in the professional wrestling wars are currently sitting at home, waiting for the day the WCW calls them to return to work, or releases them from their contracts so that they can ply their trades somewhere else. Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage & Miss Elizabeth helped the WWF to grow into the giant that it is today before venturing south to Atlanta, while at the same time, Lex Luger, Ric Flair & Sid Vicious were helping WCW to blossom. Dallas Page is another one who helped WCW to grow, and he is also sitting at home. There was, however, one other performer who was a vital part of the growth of professional wrestling, and he is currently employed by, and a key component of, WCW, because he checked his ego and is willing to do what is best for the business. This performer is Steve Borden; the man called "Sting".

While the other "millionaires" are forced to watch wrestling from the outside, grumbling about how they are being wasted, Sting competes night after night under the banner of WCW. Before the "New Blood" was formed, Sting teamed with Vampiro and did battle against the forces of evil, showing the world that Vampiro was ready to be involved with front line wrestlers. When the New Blood/Millionaire's Club feud started, Sting was matched against Vampiro, and they competed in many brutal matches. All of this was done in an effort to help propel Vampiro to main event status. Sting continues to work his program with Vampiro, and waits patiently for his next championship opportunity.

Sting is a 7-time former WCW World Heavyweight Champion. Sting has worn the Television, United States & Tag Team Belts many times over as well. While he doesn't qualify for the Cruiserweight & Women's divisions, Sting could be a top contender for the Hardcore belt if he chose to. In short, Sting is a champion, always has been, and always will be. Sting could be clamoring for his title shot, using his past record and drawing power as political ammunition as Kevin Nash has to garner for himself another championship run. Instead, Sting has chosen to do his job, do what he is told, and be one of the boys.

Many of the legends of the 80's & 90's are currently absent from wrestling television, but Sting has chosen to think about the institution of wrestling and the company that he works for over and above thinking of himself. While the others sit at home, Sting continues to work because WCW wants him to. This is what makes Sting a true professional, in every sense of the word.

When "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan began to make his rise through the ranks of professional wrestling, he was a member of the "Rat Pack" in the Mid-South area. Duggan's partners in the pack were Ted DiBiase & "Maniac" Matt Borne. They terrorized the territory, but it all came to an end when DiBiase, "The Big Cheese", elected to take on General Skandor Akbar as the group's manager. Duggan couldn't handle having an anti-American as a partner, so he left, and then feuded with, the group.

Duggan went from Mid-South to the NWA, to the UWF, and then to the WWF, preaching is pro-American sentiment. No matter where he went, he received the biggest, or one of the biggest, pops in the federation with his chants of "USA…USA…USA". Duggan was one of the most popular wrestlers in the history of the sport, but it all changed. Jim Duggan, at WCW's Fall Brawl, decided that he had had enough of the United States, and aligned himself with Lance Storm and the nation of Canada.

Jim Duggan alleges that the fans of the United States stopped caring about him. How could the fans care about someone that they do not see? Duggan has to understand that he had retired from the sport, so why would the fans care about him? Well, they did anyway. They loved him. They cheered for him and cried with him when he said that he had developed cancer and needed an operation. They cheered for him when he made a full recovery. They cheered for him when he anointed General Rection as the new guardian of the USA, and the stopped cheering for him when he turned his back on the country.

"Hacksaw" Jim Duggan is now one of the most hated men in the country. Not because he turned his back on the United States, but because he has convinced himself that it is somehow the fan's fault that he had to. Duggan figures that he needed to do this to justify the fan's forgetting about him while he was away, but because they actually hadn't Duggan is only trying to convince himself. The fans already know that what Duggan sees as the truth is only in the mind of "The Great American Canadian".

Vince McMahon knows what side of his bread the butter is on. Vince McMahon knows not to upset a person that he is in bed with. Vince McMahon knows that in business, sometimes a few friends can translate into a lot of money. Vince McMahon makes a lot of very good business decisions, and he has just made another one and props to him

Beginning on September 26, 2000, the WWF began its alliance with TNN. September 23, 2000 was supposed to be ECW's last day on TNN. Vince McMahon's move to the new network was hindered by the USA network repeated appeals of the court decision that allowed the WWF to leave USA and move to TNN. Because of all of the excess drama involved in the move, Vince McMahon felt that ECW did not have an adequate opportunity to secure for itself a new network home. Therefore, Vince waived an exclusivity clause that it had with TNN, and allowed ECW to remain on the network until the end of 2000, or until they found for themselves another home, whichever occurs first.

The exclusivity clause, simply put, stipulates that TNN can not air any other professional wrestling program on their network, except for those belonging to the World Wrestling federation. By waiving that clause, the WWF guaranteed that ECW would always have a network home. The WWF also guaranteed that they would always have a friend in Paul Heyman and Extreme Championship Wrestling.

Vince has sent a number of wrestlers, most recently Vic Grimes and Kaientai, to ECW for grooming. This is not to say that ECW is a minor league federation, in fact it is just the opposite. Paul Heyman has developed a reputation for finding the star quality in wrestlers where other promoters could not. Jerry Lynn and Justin Credible are prime examples of Heyman's "star-making" ability. By sending wrestlers to ECW, Vince allows Paul to find the hidden gem in the men, while, it helps add to the talent roster of ECW. This is a relationship that could have been destroyed had Vince McMahon shown a callous attitude towards ECW and their plight. But maintaining the relationship with ECW is not only a nice thing to do, it is good business.

Vince McMahon has been called a lot of things throughout his career with the WWF, but he has never been called a dummy. Only a very smart man could see all of the benefits of helping a competitor. Vince is a very smart McMahon.

Lately, I have been having numerous heated discussions regarding a singular issue. The mistake that I made was in having the discussion with "WWF fans" and not "wrestling fans". For those who do not know, a wrestling fan is someone who watches wrestling, any wrestling. They will watch any federation, any time it is on television. They will even watch WCW, even though WCW is not producing compelling stories these days. A WWF fan is a fan that watches the WWF only, but claims to know about wrestling. They will answer any question about Stone Cold, but do not know what has happened to Bret Hart since he had the title stolen from him by Vince McMahon. A WWF fan feels that ECW stands for "Extremely Crappy Wrestling" because Jerry Lawler said so. I had the discussion with a WWF fan, and was very disgusted with the results.

The topic of the discussion was the double standard that TNN is attempting to perpetrate with regards to ECW and the WWF. TNN scouted ECW programming, signed ECW to an agreement that stated that ECW would provide weekly programming to TNN in return for a regular timeslot and some network promotion. TNN's main issue was the fact that ECW didn't draw the ratings that the WWF and WCW did with their shows, and ECW countered with the fact that they were the top rated show on the network. ECW had another issue with the fact that TNN only advertised ECW programming during ECW shows, which meant that the fans had to already know that it was on TV to be able to see the ads. TNN countered with the fact that they felt that ECW was too violent, vulgar, and profane. Hence the discussion. How could TNN possibly think that they were right? If you do not advertise the show, then how can you expect better ratings? More specifically, what did you think that you were getting with ECW? If you scouted their programming, the only show you could have been watching was the syndicated "Hardcore" show, which is as violent, vulgar, and profane as you could have expected, yet you signed the deal anyway.

Now, the double standard begins with the fact that I personally have seen commercials for the WWF's move to TNN on all of the Viacom networks that are available in my area. These ads began some three weeks before the WWF was allowed to begin airing their shows on TNN. Where were these commercials for ECW? Why could TNN not utilize the power of the Viacom family to promote ECW, if TNN hoped to draw better ratings for the show?

Next, is the perception that ECW was too violent, vulgar & profane. This may be true, but Paul Heyman scaled down his product for TNN, but informed TNN that the company would not totally change what had gained them their audience in the first place. The first episode of the WWF on TNN featured the return of Stone Cold and his foul language, a "First Blood" match between X-Pac & Chris Jericho, and Chyna cutting a lengthy promo regarding her Playboy spread, followed by the actual pictures from the spread being shown on television. How different is this from anything that ECW does?

The difference, according to the WWF fans, is the fact that the WWF is a proven commodity, a proven moneymaker. The WWF is a seasoned ratings champion, so they deserve the extra promotion and the extra concessions from the network. HUH? Shouldn't it be the other way around? In attempting to create a proven ratings and revenue champion you make some concessions in order to assist in the process. ECW should have had the excess promotion before the first broadcast. ECW should have been allowed to be more like themselves instead of trying to change the way that they did business. ECW should have had commercials on the other Viacom networks. ECW needed the help the WWF does not. It was wrong for TNN to treat ECW the way it did, especially when ECW premiered one year before TNN knew that it had a chance at acquiring the services of the WWF. TNN could have, and by all rights, should have, been left with nothing, but according to the WWF fan, that was what TNN had anyway.

A few months ago, someone asked me to imagine what would have happened in the world of professional wrestling if Paul Levesque, the man we know as Triple H, had never come to the World Wrestling Federation. With 3H's recent conversion to a fan favorite, I recalled the question, and I wrote down some thoughts about what the world of wrestling might be like if there had never been a Triple H in the WWF.

If Paul Levesque had never come to the World Wrestling Federation, there may have never been a Sable, because she was introduced as Hunter's arm-piece, and used to allow Hunter to put Marc Mero over. No Hunter means no Sable and possibly no Marc Mero. No Marc Mero means that Ron Simmons might possibly have won the Intercontinental Title in the tournament that saw Mero become champion. That title win might have propelled Simmons to a successful singles career, which might have meant no need for a Nation of Domination or an Acolytes to establish Farooq, the Ron Simmons character. Without the formation of the Nation, there might have been no outlet for The Rock to become what he has become. The Rock would probably have become a star anyway, but without the DX/Nation battles; it might have taken a little longer.

If Hunter had stayed in WCW, then his "squeeze" Joanie Lee Laurer, the woman we have come to know as Chyna, might have had to begin her career in WCW with him, provided he had become something in that federation. She would have been his valet or manager, and would probably have battled Medusa and Mona, which might have allowed WCW to have a potent woman's division, lead by those three women. Jacqueline might also have been inclined to stay in WCW to compete in this division. This would have meant that is wouldn't have been necessary for WCW to disband the Nitro Girls in order to establish a strong woman presence within the federation. With Chyna, Medusa, Mona & Jackie competing against one another regularly, other women stars would have clamored to join WCW.

If Hunter had stayed in WCW, there might have been an opportunity for the artist formerly known as Aldo Montoya to become Justin Credible within the ranks of the WWF, instead of having to venture to ECW. Hunter might have seen an opportunity within the ranks of ECW after seeing his career get stuck on the WCW treadmill, which would have lead to Paul Levesque/Shane Douglas matches in ECW for the title. He might have become the biggest star in ECW, which means that he would have ended up in the WWF anyway.

3H's presence in the WWF is also responsible for making a star out of Stephanie McMahon. Without him in the federation, then the marriage of Stephanie and Test would have come to pass, and Andrew Martin would probably have been a huge star within the WWF. This means that Prince Albert would have fallen farther down the WWF ladder than he has because he would have been at a loss for a credible gimmick after the injury to Darren Drozdov.

A lot has happened since Paul Levesque (his real name) became Hunter Hearst Helmsley, and he is at the center of it all.

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