The Axeman Speaks 10-18-2011

This photo must be very important to an individual named David Sebastian. You see, he has emailed it to me 23 times. I have no clue why. I have no idea what he wants me to do with it. Maybe he wants me to use it in a column. It really is kinda cute! So here it is. David, please stop sending it now!

The Axeman has spoken.

The Axeman Speaks 10-18-2011

Greetings, my friends! Here is an article which was emailed to me today. It has been posted in several places on the Internet, but I thought it was worthy to pass along here.

This was written by Joe Dombrowski. I have never met the man, but I hope to meet him one day. He wrote this - therefore the opinions expressed in this column do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Wrestling News Center, the Webmaster, or anyone else connected with this site. They are Joe Dombrowski's alone. However, I agree with everything he says here.

PRO WRESTLERS TAKE NOTE! The Dos and Don'ts of Social Networking!
by Joe Dombrowski, www.facebook.com/joedombrowskiwrestling

One of my many pet peeves lately has been the illogical way many people within professional wrestling treat their Facebook or Twitter accounts. Some have accounts using their wrestling name, yet post information about their private life, 9-to-5-jobs, etc. Some have accounts using their real name, but use it to cut wrestling promos and promote upcoming shows they will be appearing at. Some decide to post cute and humorous comments on the Walls of people they are feuding with, or thank one another for a great match. Some decide to outwardly expose the business by airing dirty laundry, locker room sleaze, or discussing the inner-workings of their match/experience at said show. All of the above is completely counter-productive and potentially harmful to business, both your own and where you work.

The excuse of "Everyone knows" and "The business has been exposed" is complete BS. Your job is to get the viewer to emotionally invest and buy into you specifically and your story. Every post you make that goes against that perception is counter-productive to your own progression and development. It's about building and sustaining an illusion strong enough for your audience to get lost in. They want to believe. If you can't make them, they will go somewhere else.

"I can't make you believe wrestling is real, but I can make you believe that I am." - Johnny Valentine

This point was hammered home to me upon reading something Dave Meltzer wrote -

"I was in a discussion yesterday with the head of a major promotion talking about how that every major company (UFC, WWE and TNA) that has embarked on usage of twitter and Facebook has ended up having their key business metrics (ratings, PPVs) decline, while the former two bring in literally millions of fans. There is a reason why. Stars killing their aura as stars. They get people to talk about them, but they also make people less want to pay to see them because they come across like they aren't stars. Not saying some people don't come across as stars or it's a negative, but the ones that do are the minority."

Although Dave's quote was written in a different context than this blog, I still feel it applies. With that in mind, a few personal bits of advice for professional wrestlers on Twitter...

- Separate business and personal completely. If you are posting under "Wrestling Name", it should only be things that persona would post. Promos, videos, upcoming shows, etc. Nothing you wouldn't say on a microphone or to a fan at an event. Nothing too "inside". If you are posting under "Real Name", keep it completely void of fans and only accept those who know you personally. Which should be two different categories, but that's a rant for another time. Some choose to have a personal profile and a "fan page" devoted to their wrestling. Good call.

- Remember it is beneficial to create an "aura" around yourself. If you spend six days a week in the gym to look like a superstar, then get onto Facebook to complain about the fact you have to do a double shift at Arby's tomorrow, you've just undone all of your own hard work to present yourself in a certain light.

- Treat your public wrestling updates seriously. Don't LOL at the guy you're in a blood feud with and keep it in line with how your character is presented at the actual shows. If not, you undermine and belittle your own character, and make it infinitely more impossible for people to buy into you.

- Don't post that you hated your match, didn't enjoy it, blew spots, etc. If you don't even enjoy your own work, how in the world are you supposed to convince fans to?

- Remember you are a brand and commodity. It is up to you to sell you. No one will do it better than you can. Perception is reality. And you are, even if on a very small level, a public figure. Work to sell that image. Use FB and Twitter as a glorified advertisement to showcase why fans should pay to see you and why promoters should pay to hire you.

With these few mindsets, we can turn social networking from a counter-productive peek behind the curtain into an easy and widespread enhancement for the business as a whole.

Joe Dombrowski
iwcmc_dombrowski@yahoo.com
www.Facebook.com/joedombrowskiwrestling
Twitter: @joe_dombrowski

The Axeman Speaks 10-12-11

The opinions expressed in this column do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Wrestling News Center, the Webmaster, or anyone else connected with this site. They are mine, and mine alone, unless otherwise stated. If you agree with me, OK, and if you don’t, that’s OK. Either way, you're gonna read this, and that's what is important.

Greetings, wrestling fans!

A few days ago I had the pleasure and privilege of attending a taping at MLW up in Memphis. I must say, I really enjoyed myself. I got to meet one of my favorite female wrestlers, Amber O'Neal, which was a real treat. I have followed Amber's career for several years. She's great!

It was good to see Brandi Wine again. She is my favorite MLW star. I met her the first time at the MLW taping and show in Tupelo several years ago, and she's been my favorite MLW star ever since.

Another treat was seeing Lil Bit again. I have not seen her work for several years. She has improved a lot.

One young lady who was there also impressed me. She has only been in the business a couple of years, and she has a long way to go and much to learn, but she has a real desire to learn and excel in wrestling that you don't see very often. She's called Aida (pronounced Ida), also known in wrestling as Aida Marie. She's from New York, and she weighs less than 100 pounds, but I predict she will one day make a name for herself in pro wrestling, if she sticks with it and works hard, which I believe she will. Take a look at the photo above. My gut feeling is this little gal will one day prove that big things come in small packages.

That's all for now.

The Axeman has spoken.

The Axeman Speaks 10-9-2011

The opinions expressed in this column do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Wrestling News Center, the Webmaster, or anyone else connected with this site. They are mine, and mine alone, unless otherwise stated. If you agree with me, OK, and if you don’t, that’s OK. Either way, you're gonna read this, and that's what is important.

Wrestling News Center, received the following email last week:

"Message = Copyrighted documents by MLW and TIWF being used by TFW in a recent post.
Uploading or downloading works protected by copyright without the authority of the copyright owner is an infringement of the copyright owner's exclusive rights of reproduction and/or distribution. Anyone found to have infringed a copyrighted work may be liable for statutory damages up to $30,000 for each work infringed and, if willful infringement is proven by the copyright owner, that amount may be increased up to $150,000 for each work infringed. In addition, an infringer of a work may also be liable for the attorney's fees incurred by the copyright owner to enforce his or her rights. Please remove all unauthorized copyright material. Thank you."

This email was sent to the WNC webmaster by a guy calling himself Steven Hunter. Now, I never heard of this guy. Nobody at WNC has ever heard of him. Who he is, I do not know.

The strange fact is that the guy never says what documents he is referring to. I have looked back at the TFW posts on WNC for the month of September, and any TFW posts for October, and I see nothing that indicates any photo or document is copyrighted by anyone.

I, along with others, have emailed this "Steven Hunter," asking which photo(s) he is referring to. As of today, none of us have received the courtesy of a response.

So.... As Head Writer at Wrestling News Center, this is my final attempt to get a response from this Steven Hunter, whoever he may be, wherever he may be, whatever he may be up to here. Contact me at axemanchopchop@yahoo.com if you have a legitimate issue to discuss with Wrestling News Center. If you do not want to do that, contact the owner of Wrestling News Center, who I know has also emailed you. Otherwise, we will consider the matter closed. It's your move.

The Axeman has spoken.

The Axeman Speaks 8-15-11

The opinions expressed in this column do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Wrestling News Center, the Webmaster, or anyone else connected with this site. They are mine, and mine alone. If you agree with me, OK, and if you don’t, that’s OK. Either way, you're gonna read this, and that's what is important.

Greetings, wrestling fans! Two subjects to cover in this column, so here we go....

The top photo above is a copy of the poster for the Mississippi Championship Wrestling show this Saturday in Kosciusko, MS. Notice anything strange about this poster? The WWE Smackdown logo is used right in the middle of the poster, yet this is NOT a WWE show. The official name of the show is "1st Annual SmackDown in K-Town". I wonder if the powers that be in MCW got permission to use the Smackdown name and logo from the powers that be in WWE? Hmmm....

The poster also advertises Brian Christopher as being from WWE, which, to the best of my knowledge, he is not.

Now, I am not downing the show or any of the wrestlers they are using. I am just questioning two of the tactics they are using to promote the show. Frankly I wish MCW well with their show. They just need to be careful how and what they advertise.

OK, on to the second subject, recent WWE releases....

Gail Kim, Melina, Vladimir Kozlov, Chris Masters, and David Hart Smith were all recently released by WWE. However, Gail Kim later said she was being kept under contract by WWE until her contract expires.

OK, Kozlov, Masters, and Smith were not major players and will not be missed. They made no significant contribution to WWE.

Melina, on the other hand, is an extremely talented female wrestler, and I am surprised to see WWE release her. Oh, I know she has been injured, but still, she is a talented and attractive athlete, and, unlike so many WWE Divas, she can WORK! WWE's loss is, I sincerely hope, TNA's gain!

Gail Kim falls into that same category. Gorgeous and talented, she was never used right by WWE since they re-signed her. She should have had a major push, but instead got the major shaft. Again, WWE's loss will, I hope, be TNA's gain eventually.

Also, eight developmental talents were released from Florida Championship Wrestling by WWE, among them a female wrestler named Sonia. Now, I am rather surprised that not many posts or comments were made on the various message boards about the release of Sonia, which is the name WWE gave to Su Yung when she was signed to a WWE developmental contract. Now, I have no idea what her plans are, but I do hope she returns to this area and that we do see her involved in wrestling around here again. She is talented and gorgeous.

That's all for now. I will be back in a couple of weeks, because I have some stuff on my mind about the TFW organization I want to talk about.

The Axeman has spoken.

The Axeman Speaks 7-12-2011

The opinions expressed in this column do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Wrestling News Center, the Webmaster, or anyone else connected with this site. They are mine, and mine alone. If you agree with me, OK, and if you don’t, that’s OK. Either way, you're gonna read this, and that's what is important.

Greetings, wrestleholics! Surprise! Two columns in two weeks! Betcha didn't expect that! I have some stuff on my mind, plus I will answer a couple of emails in this column, so here we go....

Randy Orton via Twitter: "If Arn Anderson isn't in the HOF next year I'll go on strike. Well maybe not go on strike, but damn it, he's earned it. Anyone else agree? He has tutored me thru out my career and speaking of the punt, his idea 100%."

Randy Orton says Arn Anderson belongs in the WWE Hall of Fame. Apparently, a number of other WWE stars feel the same way. So, does Arn really belong in the HOF? I say yes. Arn Anderson had a long and successful wrestling career. I best remember him as a member of the Four Horsemen, where he spent a large part of his career making Ric Flair look good. That was the whole purpose of the Horsemen, to keep Flair in the spotlight, much the same way the NWO was designed to keep Hogan in the spotlight. Anderson did his job, and did it well, for years. However, Anderson accomplished more than that. He held numerous titles:

In Jim Crockett Promotions/World Championship Wrestling, he held the NWA National Tag Team Championship 1 time, with Ole Anderson; The NWA Mid-Atlantic/WCW World Tag Team Championship 5 times, twice with Tully Blanchard, once with Larry Zbyszko, once with Bobby Eaton, and once with Paul Roma; and the WCW World Television Championship 4 times.

In Southeastern Championship Wrestling he held the NWA Southeastern Tag Team Championship 3 times with with Jerry Stubbs and once with Pat Rose.

In the World Wrestling Federation he held the WWF Tag Team Championship once, with Tully Blanchard.

Arn Anderson had a successful career entertaining wrestling fans for many years. He continues to work behind the scenes with WWE to this day. Does he belong in the HOF? ABSOLUTELY. Will he ever be in the HOF? Who knows - it's WWE, after all. But he does belong there.

I'll tell you someone else who belongs in the Hall of Fame, and that is JJ Dillon, one of the greatest managers of all time.

On to other things....

Posted recently on the message board: "Why does Axeman bring all this up again in his column? Seems to me it is very unnecessary!" Well, it seems that someone did not like my comments about Izzy Rotten in the last column. I brought it up because it needed to be said. Period. I ain't sorry for saying it!

Also posted on the message board: "And why does Axeman post that very same picture of Lilian Garcia on WNC every 4th of July?!" Well, in case you have not noticed, Lilian Garcia is a very attractive woman. I like that picture of her in a bikini in front of the American flag. I like it a lot. That's why I post it. I like it. I like looking at it. And that's all the reason I need!

OK, to another subject:

Over the last few years, numerous things have been said on the internet about Gary "Lord Humongous" Nation, most of them negative. I have always given him the benefit of the doubt. I have kept quiet about Hugo, but I will not remain silent any longer.

EPW has booked Gary four times. He showed up and worked the first time, no problems. The last three times he was booked, he did not show. The first time he said his mother died. I certainly understand his not coming to Booneville if that was the case, and everyone else at EPW understood also - again, no problem. However, the next time he was booked, he did not show up. I don't know what, if any, excuse he gave then. This past Saturday night he was once again booked in Booneville and did not show. I don't know and I don't care what excuse he has, if any. He has way too many excuses.

Now, why EPW would book him again after the first no-show is beyond me. But the fact is that Gary got a second chance, then a third chance, and blew them both. I am certain EPW is done with him. There is no excuse for accepting a booking and then simply not showing up. No call, no text message, nothing - just did not show up. He has done the same thing at other shows around the area as well in the past.

As far as pro wrestling goes, Lord Humongous is, in my opinion, an unprofessional individual who no-shows wrestling events he is booked on more often than he shows up. He is another of the individuals I alluded to in my last column who give pro wrestling a bad name. Let this be a warning to all wrestling organizations everywhere, if you book this guy, you do so at your own risk. More than likely, he will no-show your event also.

Now to answer a couple of emails:

Paul Potts emailed me a few days ago and asked me who the 10 greatest wrestling managers of all time are. Paul, you asked me this same question a couple of years ago, didn't you? I don't know who the 10 greatest of all time are. But I will give you a few names who I think are truly great managers: Gary Hart, JJ Dillon, Bobby "The Brain" Heenan, Paul Ellering, Jimmy Hart, Bronco Lubich, Paul Bearer/Percy Pringle, Lou Albano, Ernie Roth, Jim Cornette, Sherri Martel, Bobby Davis. Unfortunately, the era of managers in pro wrestling, a least in the big organizations, is over.

Russell Lee asks: "Why didn't Tasha Simone come to TFW with Motely Cruz?" Well, Motely & Tasha split up a while back. She went her way and he went his way. I do not know what happened and don't care. It's not my business.

Lastly, I have been told that Kenny Valiant was upset at my remarks in my last column. Well, Kenny, if you have anything to say, send it to me. I will post it. But you know I was right.

That's all for now. I have a lot more on my mind, but I am out of time again. If you have any feedback, send it to axemanchopchop@yahoo.com. All feedback, positive or negative, is welcome.

The Axeman has spoken.

The Axeman Speaks 7-1-11

The opinions expressed in this column do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Wrestling News Center, the Webmaster, or anyone else connected with this site. They are mine, and mine alone. If you agree with me, OK, and if you don’t, that’s OK. Either way, you're gonna read this, and that's what is important.

OK, I have not posted in a while, but I have some stuff on my mind, so here we go....

The poster shown above is for a show which took place recently in Ripley, MS. Now, this poster says it is a show presented by XOW. I am not sure just how XOW is involved in this event, but I have been told it was actually Kenny Valiant's show. The poster advertises "Stone Cold" Steve Austin. Now, it would really be something if he could have really booked Austin, but, of course, that ain't gonna happen. Austin is under contract to WWE, and Vince is not gonna let him appear at an indy show in Ripley, MS.

Also pictured above is another photo showing this so called Steve Austin. This does not even LOOK like Steve Austin. It is obviously a Steve Austin impersonator - I forget his name - that pops up from time to time around the country. Again, he does not even look that much like Austin, in my opinion.

So... Bottom line: A bunch of fans who were expecting to see Steve Austin were royally ripped off, screwed over, and royally shafted. What a shame. Kenny Valiant should be ashamed. I am shocked that someone who has been in the business as long as Valiant has would do something like this. I thought Kenny had more respect for the business than that. This is the type of BS that has given pro wrestling a bad name. At one time Kenny was one of the best promoters in the business. He put on some of the top wrestling events in this area for years. So... why would he decide to resort to these tactics now? It is, to say the least, very disappointing!

On to another subject, Ixxy Rotten. It is not new news that Gary Woolridge aka Izzy Rotten was arrested on numerous charges. He seems to have pushed his luck just a little too far this time.

Izzy has been pushing his luck for years. He gets himself into jam after jam and always seemed to weasel out of it. He has ripped off so many people I could not begin to name them all. It was not that long ago that Charlie Parks showed up at TFW and confronted Izzy about stealing a belt. Izzy, of course, denied it. Several weeks later I asked Izzy if he had taken the belt. His response was, "Hell no, I didn't take it! Why would I jeopardize my job by doing something like that?" I asked him if he knew where the belt was or who had it. He again said no.

In the mean time, Charlie Parks has passed away, and I have found out that Izzy did, indeed, have the belt in his posession and sold it to another worker in Mississippi. Now, the individual Izzy sold the belt to had no idea the belt was stolen when he bought it. When he found out it was Charlie's belt, he started making arrangements to return it to Charlie. Now that Parks had passed away, I guess it really does not matter. The point is that Izzy did have it and lied about it.

But, out of every situation comes some good. The good that has come out of all this is that Izzy Rotten is finished with wrestling - for good. Izzy has been ripping people off and giving wrestling a bad name for years - most recently at his show in Olive Branch, MS. But no more! Even if, by some miracle, Izzy manages to avoid going to jail, I do not see any way Izzy would ever be used by any group again, or get a wrestling license, for that matter. Bye bye, Izzy!

I have a lot more on my mind, but I am out of time again. If you have any feedback, send it to axemanchopchop@yahoo.com. All feedback, positive or negative, is welcome.

The Axeman has spoken.