TOSSING SALT WORLDWIDE NEWS
Doug Maynard 12/01/2003
What up all and welcome to another gut-wrenching edition of Tossing Salt. I'm the ever lovin' degenerate, Doug M., coming at you from my Dojo of Info here deep in the basement of Wrestling Informer HQ. I've got another packed load to share with some news from TNA, a possible Mick Foley TV series, Ric Flair going to Puerto Rico?, and so much more. Of course, I have some more quotes by "the Brain", as well as the Time Warp. And some match results from not only Japan, but Germany and Memphis, TN as well. And that's still not all, I'm going to do a top ten list of who I consider to the be most over-rated wrestlers in the biz. This one should stir something up. But enough chit chat. This is the Wrestling Informer and not "Coffee Talk with Dougie Fresh", so I better live up to the marquee and inform already. So let's get going with some:
ASSORTED SPICES:
As you've no doubt heard, Larry Booker (Moondog Spot, Larry Latham) passed away due to what appears to be a massive heart attack on Saturday night while wrestling in Memphis, TN. I'm saddened to also report the death of Joe Rositino (Joey Rossi) who also passed away on Sunday due to cancer. Rossi was perhaps best known as part of a father/son tag team in the 70's with Len Rossi. My sympathy and condolences go out to the family and friends of both of these wrestling greats. Both gentlemen made their mark in the world of professional wrestling and will surely be missed.
IWA Puerto Rico is reportedly in talks with the "Nature Boy" Ric Flair in regards to having Flair do a one night appearance in January. Ric's son, David Flair is currently wrestling for IWA -PR and is using a "son of a legend" gimmick similar to the one he used, along with Brian Lawler & Erik Watts in TNA earlier this year. The plans would be to bring Ric in to help boost David's current storyline.
Over at IWA - Japan, new tag team champions were crowned as "Dr. Death" Steve Williams & Ryo Miyake defeated Keizo Matsuda & Leatherface Sunday night at the IWA-J show in Korakuen Hall. Ted DiBiase was also present at the event and worked a "commissioner" type role in an altercation with "Dr. Death".
TNA is considering moving their weekly PPV shows from the Fairgrounds in Nashville to some other venue. The feeling seems to be that the Fairgrounds are not in the best part of town, and that somewhat discourages some fans from attending the weekly events. I agree that TNA needs to move away from the Fairgrounds, but not for the reasons they state. I think if TNA ever wants to be considered anything more than just a second string promotion, they need to get out of Nashville and take the show on the road. Go to Atlanta. Go to Miami or Charlotte. Give the people in the other parts of the country a chance to experience the TNA magic up close and personal. It may cost a great deal more, but they need to suck it up and do it if they want to really be considered major league. Maybe just once a month to start with. I really feel that it would be a big step and may some people take another long look at TNA as something worth watching, rather that just another local territory.
BOBBY "THE BRAIN" HEENAN QUOTE #1:
"He (Virgil) looks like George Foreman on Nutri-system".
ADDITIONAL SEASONINGS:
WESTSIDE XTREME WRESTLING 11/29/03 Essen, Germany The Roxy Club
BATTLE ROYAL
Andrew Patterson won the battle royal over Justin Geek, Crash Kid, "The Player" Lazio, Craig BC, Crazy Johnny Tiger, "T-Bone" Thomas Freakz, & ICE.
Paul Birchall beat Darksoul (w/ Treasure)
3 WAY DANCE
X-Dream defeated Eddy de la Combe' & Alex Pain
Swi$$ Money Holding stopped Murat Bosporus & G-ses
WXW HARDCORE CHAMPIONSHIP - I QUIT MATCH
Thumbtack Jack beat "Darkslayer" Steve Douglas (w/ Shadow)
FWA EUROPEAN, WXW CRUISERWEIGHT, IPW/AULL MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
"Wonderkid" Jonny Storm versus "Lightning" Mike Quackenbush ends in a double pin.
4 ON 5 HANDICAP TAG MATCH
Team wXw (Darksoul, Thumbtack Jack, Madcow, & Tyrant) defeated Team WXW (Salvatore Bellamo, Mot & Bas Van Kunder, Louis Von Eden, & Steve Taurus)
MEMPHIS WRESTLING 11/29/03 Memphis, TN Mid South Coliseum
With all the news concerning the death of Larry Booker, the wrestling event itself that took place has been rightfully overshadowed. But it was still a great card of classic Memphis wrestling, so I decided to include the match results here.
Derrick King & Big Bully Douglas defeated "Cadillac" Casey James & "Cowboy" Tony Falk
XWF LADIES CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
Kristy Richy defeated One Dirty Babe to retain her title
Reggie B. Fine defeated Koko B. Ware in a "Loser Wears A Chicken Suit on Beale St." match
The Rock & Roll Express won the "Concession Stand Battle Royal" over the Moondogs, the Lifeguards, & Alan Steel & Money Mike.
Corey Maclin & Short Dawn defeated Jimmy Hart & Low IQ when Hart & IQ attacked the referee.
SCAFFOLD MATCH
Kevin White won over "Superstar" Bill Dundee
BOXING VERSUS WRESTLING CHALLENGE
Rocky "Soulman" Johnson versus King Mabel was declared a "no contest"
Jerry "the King" Lawler & "Grandmaster Sexay" Brian Christopher w/ Jackie Fargo defeated "Dirty" Dutch Mantel & Doug Gilbert w/ Jimmy Hart.
DDT 11/30/03 IMP Hall
Super Uchu Power & Viewtiful Joe stopped OK Revolution & Masahiro Takanashi in 11:10
Daichi Kakimoto beat Syuji Ishikawa in 8:02
IRON MAN HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE BATTLE ROYAL
Danshoku Dino won the event and title in 18:44
Poison Sawada Julie & Takashi Sasaki stopped Tanomisaku Toba & Yashihiro Saiki in 10:30
HANDICAP MATCH
Sanshiro Takagi beat Gibessan & KuisinBOO Kamen in 14:33
KO-D TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP - 3 WAY DANCE
Tomohiko Hashimoto & Seiya Morohashi beat MIKAMI & Onryo and KUDO & HERO! in 13:39
ALL JAPAN 11/30/03 Ishikawa Industrial Exhibition Hall # 3
Masa Fuchi & Taichi Ichikari stopped Masayuki Kono & Hi69 in 12:53
Jamal & Justin Credible beat Tomoaki Honma & Kazushi Miyamoto in 8:26
ABDULLAH THE BUTCHER, Kendo KaShin, & Yasu Urano destroyed Shigeo Okumura, Mitsu Hiria Jr., & Ryuji Hilikata in 10:24
Gigantes & Buchanan defeated La Parka Original & Parka Guerrera in 10:19
Keiji Mutoh & Arashi beat Taka Michinoku & D-Lo Brown in 19:54
Toshiaki Kawada & Nobutaka Araya beat Satoshi Kojima & Kaz Hayashi in 25:24
NEW JAPAN 11/30/03 Fujisawa Akiba Bunka Gym
Tiger Mask IV, Heat, & Masayuki Naruse beat Ryuouke Taguchi, Naofumi Yamamoto, & Hirooki Goto in 11:50
Yutaka Yoshie & Blue Wolf stopped Hiro Saito & Tatsutoshi Gotoh in 8:34
Shinya Makabe stopped Ryushi Yanagisawa in 4:34
Tadao Yasuda & Makai # 1 beat Takashi Iizuka & Osamu Nishimura in 7:47
ELIMINATION MATCH
Jushin Liger, El Samurai, Wataru Inoue, & American Dragon defeated Jado, Gedo, Katsushi Takemura, & Dick Togo (4-3) in 26:14
Minoru Suzuki beat Toru Yano in 4:54
Josh Barnett beat Mitsuya Nagai in 10:07
Hiroyoshi Tenzan stopped The Shadow in 9:21
Scott Norton defeated Manabu Nakanishi in 11:30
BOBBY HEENAN QUOTE # 2:
(Referring to a match in progress in Texas) "Well, we'll be right back with a fight that's taking place very near where where a big fight occurred many years ago".
LET'S DO THE TIME WARP AGAIN!!
LET'S DO THE TIME WARP AGAIN!!
December 1rst...
1878 - the first telephone is installed in the White House
1907 - In a shocking upset, Fred Beell defeats Frank Gotch in New Orleans, LA to capture the American Heavyweight Championship.
Happy Birthday to Woody Allen (68)
Happy Birthday to Bette Midler (58)
1941 - At the Hollywood Legion Stadium in California, Billy Varga defeats Wild Red Berry to win the NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship.
1955 - Rosa Parks is arrested for refusing to move to the back of the bus.
1971 - John Lennon and Yoko One release "Happy XMas (War Is Over)" in the United States
1973 - Philadelphia, PA - Stan "the Man" Stasiak defeats Pedro Morales to capture the WWF World Heavyweight Championship.
1982 - Michael Jackson releases "Thriller" lp.
1989 - Dallas, Texas - Robert Fuller & Brian Lee defeat Jeff Jarrett & Matt Borne to capture the USWA Tag Team Championships.
BOBBY "THE BRAIN" QUOTE # 3
JR: "Back in Oklahoma Bobby, we called a match like this a slobber knocker!"
Brain: "I thought that's what they called the waitress at the Tip Top Cafe in Downtown Tulsa?"
In my last column, I listed who I considered the most underrated wresters in the business. Now, it's time to go to the other extreme and do a top ten of who I consider the most overrated wrestlers ever. You may agree, or you may not. That's OK. But these are just my opinions based on 20 plus years as a fan.
10. Kane - let's start this off with the "Big Red Machine". He's an OK wrestler, but the Kane gimmick sucks. I do like the changes they've made as of late, but he's never interested me too much, and I really doubt if he ever will. I just can't see why he got the big pushes while someone like Sean O'Haire, Rhyno, Al Snow are stuck on the B-shows or working as commentators. It just isn't right.
9. Sid Vicious - Far be it from me to kick a man when he doesn't have a good leg to stand on, but I have never understood the appeal of Sid Vicious. He has a great look, but nothing else. He's lousy at cutting promos, he does shoddy ring work, and takes every spring off to go play softball. And then the companies just keep taking him back. My question was always "Why?".
8. Undertaker - I can already see the e-mails coming in. I like Taker to a point, but he's just a shadow of what he once was in the ring, and that was never very much. He's got a good look, and he can talk, but needs to give it up on the wrestling end of things. I hope that Wrestlemania is the end of the Wrestling Legend that is the "Dead Man". Keep him around as an agent, a trainer, a manager, whatever. But no more wrestling, please.
7. Jerry "The King" Lawler - The King is another guy I like, as an announcer. But as a wrestler, he's nothing to brag about. He's a legend in Memphis, but that's more to politics and controlling the action down there for the past 25 years than anything else. He's more hype than substance. I love to hear him on RAW, especially when he and Ross disagree about something, but he doesn't really belong in the ring.
6. Sting - He is all image, but not much to back it up. He started off looking like a million bucks, destined to be an all-time great, but somewhere along the way, he stagnated and got stuck. Sting has all the potential, but without the push of WCW behind him, he's not really anything to "crow" about. His current stint in TNA isn't really catching fire because Sting doesn't care. He's there, but his heart is somewhere else. He's going through the motions. Nothing more.
5. The Von Erich's - Of the entire family, only Kevin remains alive today. And not so ironically enough, he seems to be the only one who kept a level head and avoided getting sucked down in the drug scene that was World Class in the early 80's. The whole family was a great example of a little potential and talent crammed down everyone's throats so much by the local promoter, who happened to be Fritz Von Erich, that everyone (including the wrestlers) started to believe the hype. Kerry had a good look, but not much natural ability. David had some good talent, but died before he could really expand upon it. Chris and Mike were just victims of the hype, who couldn't live up to it and ended up committing suicide. But I'm getting off track. Of the entire family, possibly Kevin was the only one who had the ability and talent to make it anywhere without the push from World Class and their father. The rest just didn't - bottom line.
4. The Warrior - Here's another example of all hype, and not much else. He's a muscle bound freak with a great look, but nothing else to offer. As far as being a "wrestler" goes, he even ranks behind Kevin Nash and Goldberg and that's bad. He reeked of intensity, but his type of character never seemed to change and got old fast.
3. Kevin Nash. Simply put - Kevin Nash is a lousy wrestler. His entire move-set consists of elbows, boots, and a powerbomb. I like Kevin and think he's a remarkable talent on the mic. But with his bad knees, bad neck, bad back, etc, he doesn't need to be trying to wrestle in the ring. Or if he doesn't want to give up on working matches, stick to tag action where he can work in small spurts, as seems to suit him best, and work with a partner (like Scott Hall or Shawn Michaels) who's own talents will cover up for Nash's shortcomings in the ring.
2. Bill Goldberg. I'll bet everyone who knows me was expecting Bill to be #1 on my list. Not quite. That's reserved for you know who. My problem with Bill is a couple of things. First of all, he is totally intense and really comes across as a monster. But he seems to get too wrapped up in his character and get's careless. He's already ended Bret Hart's career by being careless. He's hurt Vince Russo and Eric Bischoff by being careless. Until he learns to keep it all together, it's an accident waiting to happen. He has a limited range of moves, far less than what you'd expect of a 6 year veteran. He can't even call a match from in the ring, and more often than not depends upon his opponent to carry him to a good match if it goes longer than 5 - 6 minutes. Plus I hate the hypocrisy. This is beating a dead horse, but Goldberg stated several times before coming to the WWE about the low regards in which he holds wrestling, and how he's only doing it for the money. That's all well and good, and he's entitled to his opinion, but to know a man said things like this, and then is handed a World title and big contract, while there are guys out there busting their asses for $20 and $30 payoffs in gyms and armories all around the country - who wrestle because they love wrestling, it just really irks me.
1. Hollywood Hulk Hogan. Let's see. Some fists and a rake across the back. Get beat on for a little bit, and "hulk" up. Some slow motion fists and a big body slam. Time for the legdrop. I've just described every Hulk Hogan match over the past 20 years. Yet, he's still considered "the greatest of all time!" Well, for the kids who grew up on WWF TV in the 80's, I feel sorry for you. I grew up with Rick Steamboat, Ric Flair, The Andersons, etc. Ole and Gene Anderson would've destroyed Hogan without breaking a sweat. I'll give credit where it's due. It was right place and right time, and Hulk Hogan, MTV, and the WWF created a media monster that has endured after all these years. With that much hype, there has to be something there. And if you tell someone he's a superstar enough times, he'll start to believe it and project the image. Hogan was a star because he considers himself a star. He truly believes his own hype, and his confidence and aura have others believing it as well. But the package didn't match the hype. Never did and never will.
I guess that's going to do it for this edition of Tossing Salt. If you have any comments, questions, or whatever, give me a holler at either Doug28352@yahoo.com or DougMaynard@wrestlinginformer.net. A quick shout out to my boy, Brent. I got the e-mails you sent me, and I'm looking them over tonight. I'll get back with you. And on that, I'm gone, my friends. I'll see you later tonight with the RAW recap. Until next time, take it light!
12-01-03
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