mcstoklasa
Hank Scorpio
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Post by mcstoklasa on Aug 17, 2016 13:34:54 GMT -5
I am talking about the photo with the extensive diagram/list of injuries that Foley had sustained (up until 1999) on the back of Mick Foley's 'Have A Nice Day'. At the time I thought Foley was the baddest, coolest dude on the planet. I mean, I still kind of do, I haven't turned on the guy- I'll always love Foley, but it was because of the risks and pain he went through that made the fourteen old me in awe of him. I genuinely wanted to be the brave wrestler hobbling about with a limp and a few battle scars, just like Foley. I don't really know why, I just wanted to be like Mick Foley. Of course, now looking at how all of those hard falls, those chair shots to the head, those high falls, the smacks on concrete, the battering into the steel steps and everything else he did in his career have probably shortened his life (if fattened his bank account), and the fact that I am now a grown man means I no longer necessarily see the value in throwing oneself onto concrete. How do you feel about the risks Foley took? The damage he ahs done? Was it worth it? And my second question is, what shape is Foley in now. Is it true about his severe short term memory loss? The fact he cannot look at camera flashes? What else is wrong with him? Thank you.
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Post by Magic knows Black Lives Matter on Aug 17, 2016 13:37:38 GMT -5
Dude's in pretty bad shape mentally. Apparently, he has horrible short-term memory now and essentially needs to be escorted to and from hotels and venues.
As a fan, I value all the wonderful moments that he provided but looking back on it? I really wish he didn't do all that stuff. For f***'s sake, put your hands up when taking a chair shot. HHH pointed out how stupid that is from a logic standpoint. If this was real and you saw something coming towards your head, why would your hands not instinctively come up to try and block it?
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JCBaggee
Hank Scorpio
Writer, streamer. I used to write for CBR but then they fired everyone who cared about their writers
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Post by JCBaggee on Aug 17, 2016 13:37:47 GMT -5
Foley's in better shape now than he was a few years ago (I think he's doing DDP Yoga), but his body is wrecked. He has trouble getting around and can't really do much. I think he still has issues with forgetfulness, but not as bad as it used to be - I could be wrong though, I haven't looked into it in ages.
It's weird to see that cover. In the context of the 90s, it was being shown as bragging points about how much damage Mick Foley could take. Now it looks more like a cautionary tale.
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Bo Rida
Fry's dog Seymour
Pulled one over on everyone. Got away with it, this time.
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Post by Bo Rida on Aug 17, 2016 13:48:58 GMT -5
The concussions and resulting memory problems are largely down to wrestling and society in general ("Just a concussion") not taking them seriously enough. Thankfully that's changing now.
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Post by A Platypus Rave on Aug 17, 2016 13:54:49 GMT -5
The concussions and resulting memory problems are largely down to wrestling and society in general ("Just a concussion") not taking them seriously enough. Thankfully that's changing now. Yeah, and even at hte time Foley said that number was only the number of confirmed concussions and knew he had more because "he knew the feeling quite well". because the common stance was if you have a concussion take it easy and walk it off
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Brood Lone Wolf Funker
Ozymandius
Got fined anyway. Possibly a Moose
James Franco is the white Donald Glover
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Post by Brood Lone Wolf Funker on Aug 17, 2016 14:17:04 GMT -5
Because of Foley I kinda worry about Abyss
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Aug 17, 2016 14:20:47 GMT -5
I'm actually glad Foley might have a extensive stay as the GM. Because it's one last hurrah to fatten up his bank account and will for his family and children and I'm sure memorizing lines or improvising in a live audience is a good brain exercise. Plus a better sense of purpose and distractment from the pain he's going through.
But yeah I wish more wrestlers took Bret Hart's or HHH or HBKs advice of try acting in pretending to get hurt rather than Foleys or Chris Benoits or almost everyone on ECW method of method acting in getting hurt for real. Like you hear how about Benoit was one of the only guys willing to take a unprotected chair shot to the back of the head is stupid beyond belief.
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Post by ben:friendship frog on Aug 17, 2016 14:20:52 GMT -5
The fact that he has eight CONFIRMED concussions is terrifying. Dude must have had at least 20, maybe more, it's sickening to think about.
It's good to see him dropping the weight and he still has his charm and humour, hopefully he can carry on enjoying retirement and later life despite his memory issues.
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canal
Samurai Cop
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Post by canal on Aug 17, 2016 14:24:37 GMT -5
It makes me think of that ECW interview he did during the Tommy Dreamer feud. He talked about the 20/20 expose on wrestling, and how this thing he loved more than anything in the world was now subject to ridicule for being phony. He said he was on a righteous mission to make the world respect professional wrestling. I don't think that was just a promo, I think there was serious truth to that. In his own deranged way, he thought if he could take enough indisputably realistic punishment, it could convert doubters into believers.
I think that attitude is a downplayed but important part of the Attitude Era boom. Sure, it was about Austin and Rock and all the great storylines, but it was also about Foley and those he inspired taking insane punishment that made people who may have found wrestling hokey and phony before take notice. It signified that wrestling wasn't just Hogan and Flair cartoon stuff anymore, it was people literally putting their lives on the line, and people thought it was cool and badass, perfect for the 90s XTREME culture. The Hardcore division, the tag ladder matches with all the wild bumps (which still influence the product today through MITB matches), even the wicked unprotected chair shots guys like Taker, Kane, Austin, and everyone else were giving and taking, that stuff was Foley(and ECW)-inspired, and added the element of spectacle to the Attitude Era that I'm sure drew in more fans.
Now, much like Benoit and Guerrero, he's more of a cautionary tale than anything. He sacrificed his health to become a highly influential star in the business he loved. Since he's always been such a good guy and got along with everyone, the business has taken care of him in return, continuing to give him chances to make money and even get his kids jobs.
In Mick's case, I bet he doesn't regret that much personally, but judging on how bothered he was by things like the JT Smith incident in ECW, I bet it bothers him that other wrestlers and even backyarders took after him and tried to emulate his freakishly physical style. It was even going to be the basis for that Ambrose/Foley feud that never was. True to form, I'm sure Mick was going to dig into some real, conflicted feelings for promo material.
I see it like this: there's so much inspiration to take from someone like Mick Foley, and there's plenty of recklessness one can discard and reframe into a smarter way for doing things. That's how the world turns, we look to the past and learn from successes and mistakes.
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ayumidah
Wade Wilson
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Post by ayumidah on Aug 17, 2016 14:25:05 GMT -5
I met Mick about ten days ago at an autograph signing. He was very nice, personable. I only spent about five minutes in his presence, including time where I was in line and watching him interact with the people in front of me. He seemed ok, in that short time, cracking jokes and being accommodating to everyone, but when I walked up, he did ask if we'd met before, then snapped his fingers when I said that no, it was the first time we'd met each other.
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mizerable
Fry's dog Seymour
You're the lowest on the totem pole here, Alva. The lowest.
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Post by mizerable on Aug 17, 2016 14:40:35 GMT -5
How do I feel about the risks Foley took?
I f***ing hate them.
Not only because what he did to himself, but what countless others tried to imitate because they felt that was what they needed to do to succeed. There was a good decade or so where garbage wrestling was very prevalent, where countless backyard wrestlers took stiff legit shots to the head as well as other extreme stunts, and they have next to nothing to show for it.
And I don't blame Foley directly for it, since there's plenty of blame that goes to the promoters and organizations that took advantage of it before and after Foley helped popularize it.
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Phil Parent
El Dandy
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Post by Phil Parent on Aug 17, 2016 16:25:02 GMT -5
Truth of the matter is, it's impossible to wrestle and not concuss yourself, ever. I've had two, accidental. I was knocked completely out by a Phil Lafon dropkick that I walked into way too aggresively (I was young. I learned.) and then I didn't tuck my chin on a Kurrgan chokeslam where he sort of threw me down at a weird angle. Both are on me. I have a certain forgetfulness, but nothing like what's described Foley has.
I've had 3 knee surgeries, one of them locks up from time to time. I went down the stairs the hard way a couple of times.
This ain't ballet.
But Foley went beyond what a normal wrestler would do. He shortened his life and guaranteed his life quality would be pretty bad for years by doing the elbow on the ground, the high falls and the chair shots to the head. He sacrificed for your entertainment. Is there value in that? Well, that's yours to decide. If you're a hockey fan, many of your favourites will have horrible qualities of life too, because of concussions. And football, same thing. And boxing. And MMA. If you remember Gary Goodridge, he's got fighter's dementia now.
It comes with the territory. Would he have done the same had he known the consequences? Who knows.
But I'm pretty sure major promoters will not let anybody abuse themselves like he did, and that's a good thing.
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Post by bearned on Aug 17, 2016 16:29:54 GMT -5
#thanksmick
Looking back at some of the stuff he did it's incredibly dangerous and probably unneccesary but it is what it is. At the time I thought it was awesome but watching (for example) chairshots right on the head now - it just makes me cringe.
Though I will say Foley can't be that bad mentally otherwise they wouldn't have let him be in such a prominent position on live tv every week.
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Post by "Gizzark" Mike Wronglevenay on Aug 17, 2016 16:32:25 GMT -5
Foley is my all time favourite wrestler and the state he is in now is heartbreaking for me.
That said... There are guys in this industry who were dumber than Foley. People like Marty Jannetty who posts the appalling shape he is in now but still wrestles on the Indies for a few hundred bucks and can't face doing anything else. And hey, Marty is at least still alive unlike many of their colleagues.
Mick has been married to the same woman for 25 years. He lives a good life without over indulging so that his family is set up for the foreseeable future. His children love him and among other wrestlers publicly at least he is one of the most popular wrestlers ever.
To paraphrase Paul Heyman in Mick's documentary, not a lot of people in this industry can say any of that.
Mick took too many risks, made too many sacrifices and sadly was the guy who took risks in a time for the industry when everyone was taking risks so he has to ratchet it up.
However... He has something to show for it, he has got something back from the world when he gave so much to it. Does that make it worth it? Probably not. But it is a much more even trade than most of his peers managed to make.
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Shai
Hank Scorpio
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Post by Shai on Aug 17, 2016 17:51:49 GMT -5
Mick has always had a special place in my heart beyond just him being a great wrestler. When I was 25 I hit a really bad patch in my life. I became homeless due to my addictions and ended up in a rather bad homeless shelter. Mick Foley is really active in some of the homeless charities on Long Island. He made a large donation to the shelter I lived in and the conditions got a lot better. They were able to hire a drug abuse councilor for the shelter. That person is the one who finally got through to me and got me into rehab.
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Post by Raw is Doodie101 on Aug 17, 2016 18:57:16 GMT -5
Mick has always had a special place in my heart beyond just him being a great wrestler. When I was 25 I hit a really bad patch in my life. I became homeless due to my addictions and ended up in a rather bad homeless shelter. Mick Foley is really active in some of the homeless charities on Long Island. He made a large donation to the shelter I lived in and the conditions got a lot better. They were able to hire a drug abuse councilor for the shelter. That person is the one who finally got through to me and got me into rehab. Wow that's amazing. Mick seems like such a great dude man.
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Shai
Hank Scorpio
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Post by Shai on Aug 17, 2016 19:16:24 GMT -5
Mick has always had a special place in my heart beyond just him being a great wrestler. When I was 25 I hit a really bad patch in my life. I became homeless due to my addictions and ended up in a rather bad homeless shelter. Mick Foley is really active in some of the homeless charities on Long Island. He made a large donation to the shelter I lived in and the conditions got a lot better. They were able to hire a drug abuse councilor for the shelter. That person is the one who finally got through to me and got me into rehab. Wow that's amazing. Mick seems like such a great dude man. This is me meeting Mick at a charity event a few months after I got clean. I cried like a baby.
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Post by MAD TITAN on Aug 17, 2016 19:30:09 GMT -5
Dude's in pretty bad shape mentally. Apparently, he has horrible short-term memory now and essentially needs to be escorted to and from hotels and venues. As a fan, I value all the wonderful moments that he provided but looking back on it? I really wish he didn't do all that stuff. For f***'s sake, put your hands up when taking a chair shot. HHH pointed out how stupid that is from a logic standpoint. If this was real and you saw something coming towards your head, why would your hands not instinctively come up to try and block it? How the hell does he memorize the scripts they give him on Mondays is what I always ask myself.
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Post by celtics543 on Aug 17, 2016 21:28:02 GMT -5
I guess I look at it a couple ways. As a fan of the guy I wish he hadn't taken the insane risks he did because the effects of those will only get worse over time. He seems like a great guy and it's going to suck to see him continue to deteriorate because of something he did just for the entertainment of others.
On the other hand I don't think he'd do much of it any differently. Mick pretty much traded his golden years, or at least pain free golden years, for immortality in the wrestling world. His sacrifices have earned him the right to never be forgotten about in his profession. He's a hall of famer, former world champion, and one of the most popular superstars of all time. A lot of guys who took the kind of risks that he did, or worse, can't say any of those things.
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ASYLUMHAUSEN
Fry's dog Seymour
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Post by ASYLUMHAUSEN on Aug 17, 2016 21:43:17 GMT -5
A couple years ago, at a Comic Convention locally, Mick was there doing the autographs/pictures/Q&A panel thing. I was at one of the tables browsing something or another when he...uhhh...shuffled by on his way to his panel. Shuffled is not the best word to describe how stiff he was just walking the, oh, 200 feet from his table to where the Q&A was. And, while I couldn't hear their conversation, his handler appeared to be reminding him of exactly what he was doing and where he needed to be. As somebody who was in the late teens/early 20's target demo for his Attitude Era Prime it made me sad to see...because I marked like hell for a bunch of the spots that resulted in that condition But, that said, dude was a hell of a nice dude. Prior to that experience I stood in line with my son (who was about 6 at the time) so he could meet Mick, get his autograph, etc. (he loves the E...so the chance to meet a real wrestling legend was a big deal for him.) When we got up to the table & Mick talked my son up there was a funny moment I thought; Mick asks my son his name so he can personalize the autograph, my son says "hunter" (that is actually his name...he's named after an author, not the wrestler.) Mick looks at him and says "Like Triple H?" "No, an author my Daddy likes." I leaned down and say to my son "Mick had some GREAT matches with Triple H years ago, son." So my son talks to Mick about that, just small talk and you could see on Mick's face that this little ankle biter, who had never seen any of these matches (yet) being interested in matches he'd had years before he was even born was the coolest thing. That always sticks in my head every time I see Mick on my TV. Or walk past my sons room and see that autographed 8x10 on his wall. Hell of a guy for a guy who made his name (mostly) for playing two of the most notorious psychopaths in the history of the business. Makes me sad to think about the pain he has to deal with every damn day.
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