Boo!
Dennis Stamp
Posts: 4,417
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Post by Boo! on Nov 22, 2013 22:36:29 GMT -5
My namesake. I know this guy gets a lot of stick and I can see is he's 'JR good' in terms of calling wrestling like a sport but for me he was like a big, fat jolly uncle who'd guide you through the show. He reacted in ways that the audience would react, how I would react.
"Holy mackerel!"
"He literally just took his head off"
"Whoa, that'll give you a bad attitude in a hurry"
It was like he was there specifically for the marks. As opposed to someone like JR who I've always felt smarks prefer as he calls matches like they're legitimate sporting occasions whereas Monsoon calls everything as a event and it suited the WWE style and my own personal needs so well. I was devastated when for health reasons he wasn't able to call Wrestlemania 9 because he was the voice of that era and as bad as the show was (WM9) I think the fact that poor JR was groping his way unconvincingly through a new style of announcing really didn't make it any the better. I think Savage, Monsoon and Heenan with the work between them could have covered for a lot of the dross that we saw which JR wasn't really in a position to do having only just turned up.
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Post by JTG Fan on Nov 22, 2013 22:42:14 GMT -5
Love the guy. He always looked 10-15 years older than he really was, which added to his charm.
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Post by Amazing Kitsune on Nov 22, 2013 23:32:48 GMT -5
He always seemed genuine, which is difficult for many. For example, I enjoy Michael Cole's work overall, but he never seems very genuine about anything.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Nov 23, 2013 0:18:48 GMT -5
"The ring just shifted 6 inches!"
"It's a donneybrooke!"
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Nov 23, 2013 7:02:00 GMT -5
I love Gorilla Monsoon threads. Takes me back to a time when I didn't know or care about backstage politics and who was keeping who down. The show was all I cared about. Hercules vs. Koko B. Ware on Superstars? "Main event anywhere in the country!"
Monsoon would even put over the jobbers/former stars. "Rene Goulet, with that patented Scorpion Clawhold, can put your lights out in a hurry!" I never even seen the guy execute the move, but Monsoon told us that it can be applied at any time.
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Post by Mighty Attack Tribble on Nov 23, 2013 9:23:59 GMT -5
From a technical standpoint he sucked royally, but he made up for it in his enthusiasm and rapport with everybody who worked the booth with him. Commentary with Gorilla and Piper, Savage or Neidhart was almost as entertaining as it was with Gorilla and Heenan or Ventura, despite the gulf in ability of his co-commentators.
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Totorob101
Hank Scorpio
Glob Glob Glob
Posts: 5,809
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Post by Totorob101 on Nov 23, 2013 9:30:56 GMT -5
"the fans are going bananas!" "will you stop?" I loved whenever Gorilla would say these, i always had fun watching a match when he commentated, even as a kid, i loved his enthusiasm, no matter what the match be it Hogan Warrior, or Jim Powers Brooklyn brawler, he was just great fun to listen to. Still miss Gorilla .
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Post by RowdyRobbyPiper on Nov 23, 2013 9:58:18 GMT -5
From a technical standpoint he sucked royally, but he made up for it in his enthusiasm and rapport with everybody who worked the booth with him. Commentary with Gorilla and Piper, Savage or Neidhart was almost as entertaining as it was with Gorilla and Heenan or Ventura, despite the gulf in ability of his co-commentators. How did Gorilla "suck" from a technical standpoint? That's what I don't get. He was a helluva lot better at that job (and way more listenable) than Vince. I have no qualms saying JR was wrestling's greatest broadcaster, but I also have to say that Gorilla was and still remains my all time favorite.
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Post by Mighty Attack Tribble on Nov 23, 2013 10:55:41 GMT -5
From a technical standpoint he sucked royally, but he made up for it in his enthusiasm and rapport with everybody who worked the booth with him. Commentary with Gorilla and Piper, Savage or Neidhart was almost as entertaining as it was with Gorilla and Heenan or Ventura, despite the gulf in ability of his co-commentators. How did Gorilla "suck" from a technical standpoint? That's what I don't get. He was a helluva lot better at that job (and way more listenable) than Vince. I have no qualms saying JR was wrestling's greatest broadcaster, but I also have to say that Gorilla was and still remains my all time favorite. Gorilla's problem, to me, was also his greatest strength. He called every match like it was a spectacle from start to finish. While it helps get the product over, and is enjoyable to listen to, I'm of the opinion that you can't call Ted Arcidi vs Hercules the same way as Savage vs Steamboat. The matches are worked with a different psychology, so the commentary should be tailored to accentuate it rather than have a uniform blanket style. JR was always good at finding the right balance, which is why he's considered the best of all time. I won't argue that he was a far superior announcer to Vince. Vince may be one of the worst of all time, and I hated his commentary even as a kid .
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Jiren
Patti Mayonnaise
Hearts Bayformers
Posts: 35,163
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Post by Jiren on Nov 23, 2013 11:04:24 GMT -5
It was fun hearing Vince get torn to shreds by Heenan or Ventura though
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Post by "Gizzark" Mike Wronglevenay on Nov 23, 2013 11:16:08 GMT -5
Gorilla Monsoon is the WWF's favourite uncle. I'm not a huge fan of his work, but something about his work makes me feel warm inside, reminds me of a more innocent time as a fan - and I didn't even start watching until 1999.
There is something beautiful and naive about the way he would call everything.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Nov 23, 2013 12:03:26 GMT -5
The way he would use words like "literally" wrong, made him sound like Gorilla Buffoon. "Fans are literally hanging from the rafters!"
Monsoon wasn't the only guy using hyperbole to this extreme, but he was looked upon as a moron by mainly fans of "wrestling". (Before there was an IWC, you either stood on the side of the WWF or were looked down upon by people who say "that isn't wrestling, it's glitz, glamor and show business". "It's a circus." If Gordon Solie said that, he'd be cited as a genius.)
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Boo!
Dennis Stamp
Posts: 4,417
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Post by Boo! on Nov 23, 2013 12:54:13 GMT -5
I think one of the main reasons I loved him was how he'd sell an entrance, for example. Take Hogan's 'Babe Ruth' run, JR would spend his entrance talking about the past, facts, figures etc, which is all very interesting but not very 'occasiony'
Monsoon on the other hand: "It is defeaning in here in MSG. 20,000+ on their feet in unison to recognise that man. In my book the greatest professional athlete in the world today. This place is going bananas, they're literally hanging from the rafters. Hulkamania is a live and well"
Meanwhile Heenan would chip-in, almost screaming to get is voice heard "The whole arena is shaking Monsoon!"
...that sort of stuff was AWESOME and just made Hogan who already looked a million bucks look like a billion bucks.
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Post by Todd Pettengill on Nov 23, 2013 14:35:11 GMT -5
I love Gorilla Monsoon threads. Takes me back to a time when I didn't know or care about backstage politics and who was keeping who down. The show was all I cared about. Hercules vs. Koko B. Ware on Superstars? "Main event anywhere in the country!" Monsoon would even put over the jobbers/former stars. "Rene Goulet, with that patented Scorpion Clawhold, can put your lights out in a hurry!" I never even seen the guy execute the move, but Monsoon told us that it can be applied at any time. He was so good at making bit players into Big Players. He knew almost every moves name, and did a pretty good job at telling the ongoing story (although, he'd get a little flabbergasted on that every now and then). I was always confused when I got older & saw that he won the "Worst Announcer" award for many years in the Wrestling Observer. Like, really, how & why does Meltzer hate him so much?
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Post by RowdyRobbyPiper on Nov 23, 2013 14:53:33 GMT -5
Dave says that the guys who worked as heels in the WWF thought Gorilla's commentary undermined their ring psychology. Two things amaze me about Gorilla hate. First, I am shocked that Rick Rude (just to use a random example) would rather have Vince call his matches. Secondly, were there that many smarks in the 80's that agreed with Meltzer in the 80's about Gorilla.
Sandman Superbrawl is right. There was a vocal group of fans who were adult-aged in the 80's that HATED the WWF with a passion! That's the Ice Capades, not pro wrestling.
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Post by I *still* ✡ Johnny on Nov 23, 2013 15:25:44 GMT -5
What I love most about Gino (for that was the name he was sometimes referred to as on commentary) is that he metamorphisised from one of the most evil heels of the 60s (he DRANK THE BLOOD OF HIS OPPONENTS) to the gentle giant we all know and love. I find him very cute and endearing. In fact, I think he's replaced Johnny Polo for me.
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Post by Citizen Snips on Nov 23, 2013 15:34:18 GMT -5
I think one of the main reasons I loved him was how he'd sell an entrance, for example. Take Hogan's 'Babe Ruth' run, JR would spend his entrance talking about the past, facts, figures etc, which is all very interesting but not very 'occasiony' Monsoon on the other hand: "It is defeaning in here in MSG. 20,000+ on their feet in unison to recognise that man. In my book the greatest professional athlete in the world today. This place is going bananas, they're literally hanging from the rafters. Hulkamania is a live and well" Meanwhile Heenan would chip-in, almost screaming to get is voice heard "The whole arena is shaking Monsoon!" ...that sort of stuff was AWESOME and just made Hogan who already looked a million bucks look like a billion bucks. I also loved Heenan's "WHAT?! I can't hear you!" when it got super loud. There was also a running gag during Wrestlemania 3 where he kept saying "I know back in your day, Jess...". It was this subtle little joke that actually took Ventura a few times to notice. "Wait, what's with this "In my day", Gorilla? When was the last time you stepped in the ring?!" The chemistry Gorilla had with both Jesse and Heenan was amazing; either of those teams is a solid #1 choice for best team ever in my book, though I personally lean to Gorilla/Jesse.
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Post by RowdyRobbyPiper on Nov 23, 2013 16:11:32 GMT -5
What I love most about Gino (for that was the name he was sometimes referred to as on commentary) is that he metamorphisised from one of the most evil heels of the 60s (he DRANK THE BLOOD OF HIS OPPONENTS) to the gentle giant we all know and love. I find him very cute and endearing. In fact, I think he's replaced Johnny Polo for me. Like Scott Levy, Bob Marella made one of the most drastic character transformations in wrestling. People tend to forget that Monsoon in the 60's was a monster heel who drew huge money with Bruno.
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Post by Tiger Millionaire on Nov 23, 2013 16:25:28 GMT -5
People love JR, and rightfully so. If I had to have someone call a big main event match, I might give the edge to him. Gorilla's greatness is that he put some entertainment in Outback Jack vs Rene Goulet, and made that match seem important. People today talk about the death of the midcard, I think some of that is because the announcers treat it as such. Gorilla didn't do that. He made them seem important, there outcomes seem important.
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Post by RowdyRobbyPiper on Nov 23, 2013 16:39:09 GMT -5
People love JR, and rightfully so. If I had to have someone call a big main event match, I might give the edge to him. Gorilla's greatness is that he put some entertainment in Outback Jack vs Rene Goulet, and made that match seem important. People today talk about the death of the midcard, I think some of that is because the announcers treat it as such. Gorilla didn't do that. He made them seem important, there outcomes seem important. Exactly. if Cole, Lawler and JBL can't be bothered to care about Kofi vs. Wade Barrett, then why should we?
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