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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Feb 23, 2008 20:49:44 GMT -5
You know, say what you want about Kevin Nash as a proformer. He odvisely one hell of a guy as a person. Just gives me more respect for the guy. While his friends go though trouble. He always seems to keep his head on straight and help them out. Nash is odvisely a true friend. I'm a Nash fan, but come on. Every single one of us would do the same stuff for our own close friends.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Mar 26, 2008 2:53:04 GMT -5
Short story. Bruno Sammartino was billed as "The Living Legend" Bruno Sammartino. So, when Larry Z turned on his mentor in 1980, he started calling himself "The Living Legend". It was a way to get heat, that was just part of the storyline/Larry's new gimmick, and Larry called himself that from there on out. It's like Bret Hart calling himself "The Best There Is, The Best There Was, The Best There Ever Will Be (TM)"...it was just part of his whole schtick, devised by he and Vince around 1993-94 to make little kids believe that Bret was the best in the world, after Hogan, Piper, Andre, Warrior, Sid, Savage, Flair, and the rest of the then-recent WrestleMania headliners weren't around so much. A catchphrase, not to be taken as gospel, though some do, and some are just annoyed by it. Or like HBK calling himself "...The ICON!!!" around 1997, when he'd only been main-eventing for maybe two years....or The Rock calling himself "The Great One" after main-eventing for less than that. Just hype, dude. Wrestlers say stuff to make themselves sound cooler than they are so people will pay money to see them. You missed the point though, none of these performers were out of the lime light for many years, and then come back and use a monicker like that, not to mention Larry was never as close to a star as any of the previous people you have mentioned.. No, you missed the point. I don't think anybody really thought Larry was a legend, that was just something he said. I didn't believe Bret Hart when he said he was "The Best There Is...", didn't believe HBK when he called himself "The Icon" while headlining a company getting killed in the TV ratings. Larry Z used "The Living Legend" like those guys, and like Savage used "The Macho Man" and Flair used "The Nature Boy". Just a moniker, dude. This is like starting a thread stating, "I don't really believe Randy Savage was all THAT macho". Just a nickname. And Larry Z called himself "The Living Legend" when he was in WWWF, on TBS, in the AWA, in WCW...and worked from 1982-through whenever he got fired from announcing Nitro, so I don't know when he was ever really out of the limelight. The guy was always employed.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Mar 26, 2008 2:03:14 GMT -5
Short story. Bruno Sammartino was billed as "The Living Legend" Bruno Sammartino. So, when Larry Z turned on his mentor in 1980, he started calling himself "The Living Legend". It was a way to get heat, that was just part of the storyline/Larry's new gimmick, and Larry called himself that from there on out.
It's like Bret Hart calling himself "The Best There Is, The Best There Was, The Best There Ever Will Be (TM)"...it was just part of his whole schtick, devised by he and Vince around 1993-94 to make little kids believe that Bret was the best in the world, after Hogan, Piper, Andre, Warrior, Sid, Savage, Flair, and the rest of the then-recent WrestleMania headliners weren't around so much. A catchphrase, not to be taken as gospel, though some do, and some are just annoyed by it. Or like HBK calling himself "...The ICON!!!" around 1997, when he'd only been main-eventing for maybe two years....or The Rock calling himself "The Great One" after main-eventing for less than that. Just hype, dude. Wrestlers say stuff to make themselves sound cooler than they are so people will pay money to see them.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Jan 31, 2008 3:48:52 GMT -5
I thought he was a Raven rip-off for weeks, then he debuted in-ring and broke a guy's neck. I couldn't stand him for years, especially during his super roided-up babyface run earlier in this decade, tagging with Rey and/or Hogan (I wasn't watching much when he and Christian started reeking of awesomeness.)
Now he's pretty much the best thing going in WWE, and has been for two-three years, IMO.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Jan 21, 2008 16:58:21 GMT -5
The Flair/HHH match (and probably that whole show as a trial run) was in HD on USAHD. I watched it. It looked great. There were no bars on the side.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Feb 23, 2008 20:30:59 GMT -5
Wrestling on TV would be much better if they aired more stuff like this in between matches.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Feb 23, 2008 20:25:07 GMT -5
Scott Hall namechecked the Freebirds a lot when he discussed the creation of the NWO, saying how the Image and mindset was a direct link to how the Badstreet lads did things. Absolutely, 100% correct. Hall (and many others) were marks for The Birds. The Freebirds were the first money drawing FACTION in wrestling. Period. Hayes was the centerpiece. He's a big deal. This was before Four Horsemen, NWO, everything. Jimmy Hart started copying it in Memphis (after the Birds came through briefly in 1979-80ish) with this "First Family", WWF tried 1980s/1990s stables, NWA/WCW tried Varsity Club/Dangerous Alliance/Paul Jones Army, but nothing stable-wise (aside from Four Horseman) hit with the fans like The Freebirds until Four Horsemen/NWO/DX. And whomever (earlier in the thread) said that the Von Erichs outdrew their Freebirds feud against Adams/Hernandez or Jake Roberts...has been watching too many WWE produced WCCW DVDs, or watching something else entirely. Don't want to bash, but IMO, that's a seriously infactual assumption. PS: If you think the Freebirds (especially Hayes) weren't draws...go watch an interview with babyface Kerry Von Erich between 1981-86...or, through the end of his career and see if that would entice you to watch him win a wrestling match. RIP Kerry, but on the mic, that guy was the epitome of brutal. Kerry's draw was his look, and the Lex Lugers of the world were far ahead in that department, but Luger's daddy didn't own a Texas wrestling promotion with national syndication. Luger could cut 10X a better promo than Kerry Von Erich, which (considering Luger's interviews) could be a hilarious stance around these parts...but I'll stand by it. The only Von Erich son that could cut a promo was David, and he was better in his short times as a heel. PPS: If you need further proof that Hayes rules...Edge is the best heel in the business...AFTER working closely with Michael Hayes. Watch a clip of Michael Hayes from 1982-86, then watch Edge heel it up any week, especially after the face gets one up on him. Exact same thing. Exact same mannerisms, right down to the cartoonishly bugged eyes and swooping back the hair. Edge has been doing "Classic Heel Michael Hayes" heel tricks since the Matt Hardy situation, but he's a much better worker than Hayes ever was. Go watch an old clip of Michael Hayes in the Freebirds/Dark Journey angle, or Freebirds/Austin Idol angle...you're essentially watching 2005-08 Edge with a Southern accent.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Feb 20, 2008 3:01:21 GMT -5
Jeesh. This guy is a total mark for himself. If you guys have had a chance to watch the WWE 24/7 Legends of wrestling shows hosted by Ross or watch the WCCW dvd. You will know what im talking about. This guy acts like he is on hogan level drawing. He thinks he was the draw for world class. When it reality it was the von erichs. This jerk is so full of himself. How long was actually in the business? I dont remember him making a much of a splash in NY for any long period of time. He couldnt work a lick in the ring. Just had some decent mic skills and was a big loudmouth. It was Gordy and Roberts who carried the workload. He's got every right to feel like he was a hell of a big deal. He was. No, not Hogan big, but still a far bigger deal than most acts from the 1980s, especially from 1980-86. -When Hayes was like 21 or 22, he drew a Superdome record crowd of 30,000+, main-eventing against JYD in a steel cage dog collar match to pay off the famous "JYD blinded by Freebird Hair Cream" angle. Hayes' match was the big drawing event on the August 2, 1980 card in New Orleans also featuring Andre the Giant, Hulk Hogan, Dusty Rhodes, Ted DiBiase, and Paul Orndorff. Attendance-wise, no heel outdrew Michael Hayes for a Superdome show until maybe WCW Monday Nitro during the NWO days. -After blowing off the JYD feud, Hayes almost immediately stepped onto national TV, and on the Freebirds' first run as stars of WTBS' Saturday Night show, they drew national ratings in the 10s. Those numbers sound insane/false compared to the Monday Night War era ratings, but keep in mind, there were far less TV channels/viewing options. Being on cable, SuperStation WTBS had the only true national wrestling show, and the 'Birds were the hottest act on that show...because of Hayes' weekly interviews, not because Gordy and Roberts showcased their "carrying the workload" in two minute squashes. -In late-82, his stable was the major reason that WCCW became the hottest territory in the country...pretty much at the same level as New York and the Carolinas, at least leading up until the first Starrcade and WrestleMania. -In '84, Vince brought Hayes and the 'Birds, paired them with Cyndi Lauper and David Wolff, and were going to push them into the moon if Gordy and Roberts wouldn't have ditched the place. They were even in Highlander. Any other wrestling factions in Highlander? Hayes could've made a "splash in NY" if he wouldn't have ditched McMahon went he wanted to turn him into a singles star, instead rejoining the Birds for another good run in WCCW and UWF before Gordy pretty much split for Japan full-time in 1988. ...I could get how Hayes comes off like an obnoxious mark for himself if you only knew him from his lame WCW "Fauxbirds" run with Jimmy Garvin, Humperdink, and DDP, or his even lamer time as Dok Hendrix. But come on, the guy was a pretty damn big deal during his peak years, mostly by his talent for interviews, unique charisma, and almost unrivaled ability to draw heat...not by proxy of his faction being stuck in a long feud with the Von Erichs in Texas, nor because he says he's so great on WWE 24/7 and WWE DVD releases.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Mar 26, 2008 1:34:33 GMT -5
Flair being a HUGE draw is debatable. He may have been a draw. But if the guy was so GREAT, why was NWA or WCW always performing to half, empty arenas with Flair on top. Um, okay then... Starrcade '83: "A Flair For The Gold" (Flair vs. Race): 15,477 paid attendance WWF's 1984 "War to Settle The Score" @ MSG on MTV (Hogan, etc.): 15,000 The Great American Bash '85 (Flair vs. Nikita): 27,000 paid WWF's 1985 WrestleMania I: 22,000 Hogan & WWF did major business in the 1980s, but Flair & Crockett were neck and neck with them until national touring/WrestleMania/Hogan/marketing to 3-yr. olds exploded things in WWF's favor. Dusty's generally putrid booking from 1986-88 killed the crowds and the gates in the Mid-Atlantic. Wasn't Flair's fault. If you want to know why Ric Flair was performing in front of half-empty arenas during the prime of his career, don't blame him, blame the fat man who talked funny who booked himself as if he were tougher than the Road Warriors and Magnum TA combined...and made crowds eventually start cheering the evil Four Horseman. (Notice that the attendance figures that Flair drew as examples were him working as a BABYFACE, something Flair was never allowed to do while jealous-ass Dusty Rhodes controlled his career with the book...unless Flair was fighting a heel Russian, as was the case in the '85 GAB). And to me, you saying that Nick Bockwinkel is a better worker than Ric Flair feels a whole hell of a lot like someone saying that Jeff Jarrett or Shane Douglas was a better worker than Shawn Michaels. C'mon, dude. Bockwinkel's not bad, but to say he's better is...your opinion, I guess. IMO, Bockwinkel wasn't even one of the top five workers in any particular time during his own era, much less better than Flair. And to me, the best compliment paid to Flair is when the biggest stars of the Attitude/1990s Boom Era...Steve Austin, The Rock, HHH, Shawn Michaels, even somebody like Scott Hall have all gone on record as saying Flair was a major influence on them when they were fans, and that they were all big-time Flair marks. Hell, just this week in one of the UK papers, Steve Austin said Flair was and still is his all-time favorite wrestler, and that Flair is the GOAT. The mod with the five-tool baseball player analogy was dead on. Hogan, Austin, or The Rock may be the biggest stars of all-time, but that's like being the all-time home run king. Hogan's definitely the Babe Ruth of Wrestling, but Flair's like a Willie Mays. Timeless ability, a natural, and there wasn't much that he couldn't do better than 99% of his peers, and that makes him the greatest of all-time, IMO.
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