So he said "Summerfest..."

So its been awhile... I typed up my thoughts on WWE/UFC Battle but I wasn't pleased so I didn't post it up. And since, well I've been busy with new website projects, one of which is the newly redesigned WXWC4.com.

Anyway, I felt compelled to comment what seems to be the hot topic in the wrestling world this week... Jeremy Piven saying "Summerfest." Wow... Is this how bad things have got? That's a talk for another time.

I've heard nothing but bad comments about his hosting job. Quite frankly I thought he did pretty good. I am a fan of his, so maybe my opinion is a bit swayed. And bringing Dr. Ken I thought was great too, although if you haven't seen the Hangover then you may not understand Dr. Ken. Granted I didn't think Piven was fantastic and stole the show, but I thought he did good for what was GIVEN to him. I think it should have been expected that "The Goods" was gonna be promoted throughout the show, so that didn't really bother me. What did both me was how the WWE chose to use him. If anything the blame falls on whoever wrote the show. Anyone who knows Jeremy Piven, knows he plays a damn good HEEL. Old School is a perfect example. On top of that, Piven has been in the news in the last few months as being a bit of a prima donna of sorts, which seems to be untrue but the fact is he's a heel in the eyes of Hollywood right now. So why wouldn't you have Piven be a HEEL the ENTIRE show? It wasn't until the end of the show that we got to see Piven in true form. That alone is what killed his appearance. Jim Ross basically said in his blog he should be a heel as "thats what he heard." They already had it promoted that way. WWE dropped the ball there. And really... How many of these hosts will actually be hardcore wrestling fans? So I think it would work to the WWE's advatage to allow more heels.

So he said "Summerfest?" How many times as Good Ol' JR screwed up? It happens. And I actually wasn't surprised that he said it. As we here in Philadelphia got the treat to have Piven in town last Friday. As he was in town to... You guessed it... Promote "The Goods." First he was on the Preston and Steve Show on WMMR and then later on in the day he was at the sneak peak/Q&A. On Preston and Steve, we got a little insight into Jeremy Piven. He admitted that basically he's not all that good at getting the script right, especially with last minute changes. I'm sure in the two weeks that we were told Piven was hosting, I'm sure they told him that WWE is building towards Summerslam. But I doubt he was given a script until probably a few hours before RAW. So I wasn't surprised when he screwed up. You also have to remember, he's not in his element. Wrestlers and wrestling personalities pretty much do everything live and have to be on their toes. Piven and most other actors... Don't. Sure he's been on a stage in front of a crowd, but after weeks of rehersal. Wrestlers may be able to get in the ring for a few moments before the show. Go back at watch Robert DiNero on SNL... One of the greatest actors of all time, and if you watch SNL the entire show he's looking at the cue cards!

So I say backoff... He did the best with what he was GIVEN. I think the real argument is... We don't want Celebrities taking up time from the wrestlers. So far the host thing hasn't been so bad, but... I can't imagine this going on forever. If anything they should use this as a vehicle to get a big celeb/wrestler storyline for Wrestlemania and then just call it off.
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So here's the part where I shamelessly promote... WXW-C4 debuts in Drums, PA this Saturday. Go to the show, and visit the new site WXWC4.com!

Actually there are quite a few shows this weekend to choose from. Its actually good to see, maybe things are starting to turn around in the indy wrestling world. So really if you can't make it out to Central PA... Go to one of the shows out there. I garauntee there won't be any celebrities taking up your wrestlers time!

Stay tuned as my next project should be unveiled soon... As I am very glad to be working on it.

Until next time...
You stay classy,
Dan The Phan

Competition

Here I am again... Lately the creative juices have been flowin'. Which weren't flowing for awhile.

ANYWAY...

Over the last week or two the idea about competition in wrestling has been on my mind. It is no secret that I "left" Pro Wrestling Unuplugged for a brief time to join the new Velocity Pro. And its no secret that I "left" Velocity Pro to come back to PWU. Yes, there is a whole story behind it... But no I won't go into all that now.

However very recently it all started getting me thinking. Granted I am on the side of letting the workers work wherever they want and pretty much be booked however the promotion feels fit, within reason. I say within reason because... Well its not good for one company's champion to be booked for the "competition" and to not be booked to win. Hence why I totally agree with the decision to dismiss The S.A.T. from PWU... They were PWU TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS JOBBING IN CZW! Yeah I know... I contradicted myself. But it makes sense. Other wrestlers have worked both and some currently work both PWU and CZW or CZW and Chikara, or whatever. But very rarely to champions get "jobbed out." Now if its out of state say like PWG all the way out in Cali... Well then who cares?! But when its in the same market (in this case Philly) its a huge deal. Otherwise I don't really care who works where.

With that being said now... I do understand why other promoters are uncomfortable with people working competing companies within the same market. While I don't really like it... I understand it. And this is the thought that has been "haunting" me. Because it really gets me contradiction myself. Rewind to January 2007... The Philadelphia Wrestling scene was seemingly hot! Maybe not as hot as it was in the late-90s into early 2000s, but it was hot! I was still a young buck in the wrestling business and it was exciting. I'm sure if you go back in the posts on DOI you'll see the back and forth battle between PWU and CZW. At the time, talent was held closely by the management by either company. Very, very, very few worked both at the same time. And it made sense. It was almost a mini-WWE/WCW feud. I think a few of the workers benefitted from this "war" as I know some people were paid hefty just to stay with one company or another. And who won in all of this? The Philadelphia Wrestling Fans! All the message boards were on fire. People were choosing sides. It was great. Competition is a very good thing.

Now February, 2009... The war is more or less over. Maybe it will flare up again. Who knows? But now I sit here and go... Why? Why can't this person work here, etc.? Who cares?! Do I look at things this way because I'm not out there calling all the matches like I was back in 2006-2008? And at the same token... People are calling it all a "war" when there really isn't. We're in a terrible economy and no company is staying afloat easily. Here now I look at things like... Well I think a few of us should try to team up to keep going. Or do we try that competition thing again to get people into it. Because we all know, no one will go out to a show or buy into a product that doesn't satisfy us. We all do it. What are we to do?

It looks like the wrestling world has decided to keep competing with each other. So that's what the name of the game is. Some will be left behind, while others will strive. And honestly... Although I am a little worried about the not only the state of the wrestling world, but the economy... I remember that I'm a history teacher and remember that this was all experienced before and there is a light at the end of the tunnel. So the thought of competition gives me hope that the wrestling world will survive and be stronger.

Stay classy...
Dan "The Phan" Cowhey

Jericho versus the World

That's right... Two blogs in very short period of time. And on top of that, I gave my blog an official home right here on Blogger.

Not many people, that I could tell, wrote about Chris Jericho's run in with some fans over the weekend. The news picked up on it and all. Funny, when he was trying to be mainstream, it didn't really work out. Now he's mainstream with very little effort, although that's probably proof that the WWE Machine works.

Anyway, if you didn't hear/see the news... Jericho was trying to leave a house show over the weekend and was mobbed by a group of fans. Long story short, he was blocked in the parking lot by a huge group of fans and was being harassed. One thing led to another and he was spat on and attacked. During the attack he hit a female fan, male fan, and a worthless security guard (or two or three). Just search for it YouTube and you'll find it. Actually Fox News did a piece on it for one of their legal shows. One lawyer sided with Jericho, while another sided with the fans.

I should start off by saying... I love the fans! I hope I personally have a fan or two out there, even if I've only been in the "spotlight" for 3 years. But even the fans can agree that there are some out there that "cross the line." For crying out loud, I'm from Philadelphia and I know every Philly fan out there will admit that we cross the line time to time. (Cheering at Michael Irving NECK injury) Personally I believed these people crossed a line. Granted, Jericho I'm sure played it up since he's heel and he seems to be a little more old school at heart. Hell, that's probably the best part about being heel. You can be a dick in "real life" and get away with it. But still, he's trying to leave. People circled his car and prevented that, and security just stood there picking their noses. Obviously Jericho isn't gonna run them down in his car. From the videos I saw, it really didn't look like he got out of the car to kick some ass. I'm sure he figured he'd get out, maybe sign a few autographs to appease the people and leave. But then he got harassed. Sure, he egged them on all night. But still did he take a swing at people during the show? No! So whether the guy is a jerk or not is besides the point. At that point, security should have stepped in and moved the mob. If it was a "real" sports star that would have happened. And a guy like Terrell Owens garners more heat than Jericho. So yeah... He was justified. And yeah... WWE is right by not punishing him. Hell... They probably liked it! Now he's more of a heel by hitting a fan or two and making it onto the news. And sure the news gives it a negative spin. Just look at the video, and from the fan accounts I saw, Jericho was pretty much justified.

If you read any biography of wrestlers that have worked the Old School or Mexico, you'll fully understand what Jericho did. To the best of my knowledge stuff like this doesn't happen anymore, except in Mexico. They are just a different breed of fan there. They get so wrapped up in wrestling that they take everything to heart. But back to the point... They are trained when they are heels for situations exactly like this. I think its Eddie Guerreros Biography that really explains this. They are pretty much told to grab the first person they see and just go nuts on them, and that prompts everyone to back off. Look at the video, Jericho does that. At the very end of the video when a couple people come at him, he gets his hands on one guy and takes him to the ground and lands a few shots. He lets go and just goes nuts at security. And look! The crowd backs away. And Jericho finally is able to leave.

Even if Jericho is somehow in the wrong. I really blame it on the security. They all pretty much allow the situation to escalate. They don't lift a figure until Jericho goes after someone.

And really I could go on about security but I don't really feel like it. Haha...

My verdict...
Jericho is innocent
(And I'm not just saying that because I'm a Jericho Mark!)

Stay classy,
Dan "The Phan" Cowhey