XPW (Rob Black's promotion)

[Big Bad Kahuna]

Have any of you seen this promotion? Started as a westcoast ECW ripoff in 1999, lasted til 2003 when Rob Black went to jail

Didn't see much of it (YT highlights), what stuck out: needlessly stupid dangerous spots en masse, lots of pornstars, lame gimmicks (Pogo The Clown?), Joey Styles-wannabe Kris Kloss and many ECW guys resurfacing (Sabu, Shane, Sandman). I mean when has obviously ripping off other successful concepts ever worked in wrestling?

[Larryhausen]

Say what you will about the company, but every person I know that worked there has been an absolutely amazing person.

[Deleted]

I never saw the gimmick but I'm curious....
Was Pogo's gimmick that he was obsessed/inspired by John Gacy, or did they play it up like he WAS Gacy?

[agent817]

I remember having seen a shoot interview/promo with Rob Black talking about the Heat Wave 2000 incident. Look at the link below:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKnyZ2Yr_ag

Anyway, I also remember finding some clips online and man, they went too far in some areas. I can deal with flaming tables at times, but I remember one guy still being on fire after having gone through one. What did they use? Actual gas? Also, there was a tasteless segment of a home invasion with some guy attempting to, well, you figure it out, to a woman.

[MolotovMocktail]

Tried to watch a show. Someone did a pretty funny Vince McMahon impersonation in the first 60 seconds of the show, and it was all downhill from there.

This was a glorified backyard fed. It was the only time I've ever rooted for a promotion to fail.

[jagilki]

All I remember was a ran a short lived e-fed that had a strict "no real wrestlers" rule.

Some kid wanted to join and be "Supreme from XPW"

When explained that he can't be a real wrestler, he wanted to be "Super Supreme from Triple XPW"

[Deleted]

I used to watch it sometimes when I lived in California. Basically just a crappy ECW wannabe.

[sebulba]

I started watching it years ago. My abiding memory of it was that it was a Pound Shop ECW (and that's saying something!) That and watching a character called Homeless Jimmy (I think) take a superplex onto a shopping trolley that had been left on its side in the ring. Having been 'brought up' on FMW and the insane antics of Mr.Pogo, Tarzan Goto, Terry Funk and Atsushi Onita, I still found that spot irresponsible and dangerous! Then there's that story about one of the XPW wrestlers fooling with another one's wife and ending up being beaten and having fingers cut off or something? FAN, help me out here....?

[Deleted]

In 99/00 when Ecw hardcore tv wasn't available in my area I'd watch the livestream on America One's website there was a 4 or 5 hour block of wrestling and after Ecw xpw would come on and there was very little wrestling and it was mostly Rob Black in his office trying to do comedy and Porn Stars trying to act.

[Ted Sheckler]

I've actually always had a huge interest in XPW because for a time a lot of people considered them the number 2 or 3 promotion in the USA. Between the time of ECW and WCW closing and MLW/TNA/WWA starting up they would have been considered number two in the United States.

For me, they were ECW with the volume turned up but where ECW excelled (Compelling stories, great wrestling matches, interesting characters) is where XPW often failed. The locals that XPW used generally were not very good in terms of talent with them heavily relying on the former ECW guys to not only pull a crowd but provide good matches.

Despite all that though, XPW did have some great moments. Terry Funk (Whilst contracted to WCW) made an appearance with them and then returned later down the track to perform with them for a couple matches. Shane Douglas received a mega push which is alright by me because I'm a huge fan, Sandman had a really decent run there as did New Jack who was really good in XPW. They also had a lot of solid matches from Chris Hamrick, Jerry Lynn, Sabu and even ex WCW wrestlers such as Damien 666, Halloween, Juventud Guerrera, Psicosis and Snuff (Devon Storm)

So all in all, the locals like Pogo The Clown generally sucked (Although Josh Prohibition, Luke Hawx and M-Dogg 20 were great) you still had a decent amount of ECW performers and guys who could work to have at least an enjoyable match or two each show. They're not amazing, definitely not the second coming of ECW but they get way too much negativity on the internet with the general consensus being that every show sucked and nobody had any idea of what to do within the company. I disagree with that.

[thegame415]

Nov 19, 2016 14:28:31 GMT -5 jagilki said:

All I remember was a ran a short lived e-fed that had a strict "no real wrestlers" rule.

Some kid wanted to join and be "Supreme from XPW"

When explained that he can't be a real wrestler, he wanted to be "Super Supreme from Triple XPW"

I ran an feed where someone was Jeff Hardy JR.

[SHAKEMASTER TV9 is Don Knotts]

Nov 19, 2016 16:00:46 GMT -5 sebulba said:

I started watching it years ago. My abiding memory of it was that it was a Pound Shop ECW (and that's saying something!) That and watching a character called Homeless Jimmy (I think) take a superplex onto a shopping trolley that had been left on its side in the ring. Having been 'brought up' on FMW and the insane antics of Mr.Pogo, Tarzan Goto, Terry Funk and Atsushi Onita, I still found that spot irresponsible and dangerous! Then there's that story about one of the XPW wrestlers fooling with another one's wife and ending up being beaten and having fingers cut off or something? FAN, help me out here....?

It was wrestler Messiah having a rumored affair with Lizzie Borden, Black's wife. Black's never been criminally charged, but he seems like the type of sleazeball to do it.

[Father Dougal McGuire]

Nov 19, 2016 16:00:46 GMT -5 sebulba said:

I started watching it years ago. My abiding memory of it was that it was a Pound Shop ECW (and that's saying something!) That and watching a character called Homeless Jimmy (I think) take a superplex onto a shopping trolley that had been left on its side in the ring. Having been 'brought up' on FMW and the insane antics of Mr.Pogo, Tarzan Goto, Terry Funk and Atsushi Onita, I still found that spot irresponsible and dangerous! Then there's that story about one of the XPW wrestlers fooling with another one's wife and ending up being beaten and having fingers cut off or something? FAN, help me out here....?

Here is a quick synopsis:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1JHVadv4-4

[Viking Hall]

I remember WOW Magazine giving them loads of coverage and pushing them hard. From a pre-mainstream internet UK this made them seem a much bigger deal than they actually were, especially when I'm sure they went as far as calling Homeless Jimmy the new Mick Foley.

[Deleted]

Messiah was a pretty good wrestler and had a good run in CZW. Angel was good too, once you got past some of the more exploitative aspects of the gimmick.

[Brood Lone Wolf Funker]

I remember they had a wrestling gimp named Tool

[Mozenrath]

I just remember Pogo and "Angel the Hardcore Homo".

[OVO 40 hunched over like he 80]

It says something when their most famous match was fn New Jack vs Vic Grimes in a scaffold.

By the way they paid their wrestlers in porn when the cash was low.

Joey Styles said in a shoot that he only worked one show there and that he didn't return because he was appalled when he found out that a porn company was funding the whole thing...

[kingoftheindies]

XPW's attempt to do a hostile takeover of Philly and try to put CZW/ROH/3PW out of business ended up breaking the company that did give some good wrestlers a chance to showcase themselves,

That being said, Rob Black is a disgusting human being.

[Futureraven: Beelzebruv]

Nov 19, 2016 17:28:37 GMT -5 Viking Hall said:

I remember WOW Magazine giving them loads of coverage and pushing them hard. From a pre-mainstream internet UK this made them seem a much bigger deal than they actually were, especially when I'm sure they went as far as calling Homeless Jimmy the new Mick Foley.

Yeah, they really tried to expand into Europe, I remember them making a European title and working with Alex Shane to get a foothold in England. It was a decent idea, which is why it worked a lot better when a competent company like ROH did it.