The Heat and the Shine

There are some things from the March 7, 1983 episode of World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW) (now available on the WWE Network ) that cannot be duplicated.  A booker can hope for three local babyface brothers.  A promoter can want a mad villain like Michael Hayes.  But they are stars.  There is no way of knowing when they will appear or how bright they will shine. What bookers and promoters have control of is the storytelling.  Great storytelling will elevate present wrestlers and draw future wrestlers.  It will make dreamers want to work for you and make deciders want your show on their channel. The salient angle of the March 7, 1983 episode of WCCW begins at about the twelve minute mark.  The match is "Ice Man" King Parsons vs. Buddy Roberts of the Freebirds. The angle begins before the match with a shirtless Michael Hayes accompanying Roberts to the ring. The Lesson:  Two fundamental heel/antagonist move here.  Heels will try to bend or break rules.  Heels ar

The Nevada State Athletic Commission banned testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) and the people celebrated.  The people who put on the fights, cover the fights and watch the fights all reacted in unison.  "Yay!  A win for fair play." It is a win for fair play.  As MMA fan/anti-drug advocate Lance Storm liked to say, TRT doesn't level the playing field, it levels the player.  The egalitarian ideal is that each sportsman trains and studies and uses his natural talent to compete under the agreed upon rules.  People born with a disability must compete with that disability.  Being born with low testosterone would be treated no differently than being born with a poor work ethic.  Some will succeed, but most will never join the elite. The Nevada Commission's ruling is also a win for the public perception of MMA.  The scolds have been held at bay.  The loudest online fans and the most muckraking journalists will have to wait another day to complain. Some complainers

Back when I wrote with a writing partner, we used procrastinate a lot in the afternoons.  (Maybe this is why one of the top comedy guys in Hollywood is named  Christopher  and not Benjamin.)  Our favorite procrastination activity was watching ESPN's afternoon lineup, and our favorite ESPN afternoon lineup gimmick was "Coors Light Cold Hard Facts".  The gimmick involved some ex-jock making predictions by saying "fact" or "fiction".  It was glorious and we began to integrate it into our daily lives (much to the chagrin of girlfriends, baristas and call center representatives).   Here, then, is the first of what might become a series (provided that I finally kick that procrastination bug):  Pro Wrestling Fact or Fiction.  Just as with ESPN's "Coors Light Cold Hard Facts", none of this is fact, much of it is fiction and all of it is speculation. Fact or Fiction: Dish Network will not offer Elimination Chamber this Sunday Fact.

With about a half an hour to go until tonight's Monday Night Raw, the author wanted to watch some basketball.   Milwaukee Bucks basketball , specifically.  And there are two ways to be in Los Angeles and watch Milwaukee Bucks basketball (legally, at least) in our modern age: NBA League Pass on cable/satellite or NBA Game Time over the Internet. And so, like Jamie Foxx in 1994, it seemed a good time to do a little Experiment .  How easy is it to watch on cable/satellite?  How easy is it to watch on the Internet? Dish Network Step 1: Power on the TV and satellite box.  This can be done with one remote control.  And the Dish guy sets the controller up so that it manages your TV's power and volume. Step 2: Go to channel 561 and hit "Guide".  Or go to the Guide and then hit "561".  Either way, a standard program guide shows the SD (in case I need to save DVR space) and HD channels that broadcast the games. Step 3:  I'm in luck!  Tonight there was

For a person who graduated in 1999, a recent stroll through the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts was dichotic.  On one hand film-based cameras and projectors that were used over the past one hundred and twenty years populate the basement of the decades-old Norris Theater.  (A basement that has now been re-branded as the Hugh M. Hefner Moving Image Archive, believe it or not.)  On the other hand the towering Cinematic Arts Complex provides all the charm of listening to the DJ at a Clippers game play “Pump Up The Jam” from the 3rd deck of luxury boxes.  Every space is clean and every film is digital.   A Cinematic Arts student at USC can create anything they want.  The lighting, the camera movements and even the special effects that are seen in major film releases can be added to student films.  Gone are the days when Hershey’s syrup was used in lieu of blood.  Everything is possible at the students’ request.  But does it make for a better experience?

Welcome to my lawsuit.   For years I played your game.  I made a lot of money.  I had a lot of fun.  It was my choice.   But you told me that you were keeping your game safer than you really were.  Other players used drugs.  They used drugs that made them stronger.  More aggressive.  Gave them better vision and focus to hit me.  You put my health at risk.  I knew the game was dangerous.  But that was something different.  That was like handing my opponent a crowbar before he walked into the cage.   Now I’m screwed.  I get angrier than I used to.  I forget things that I’ve known for years.  People have to tell me their names three or four times.  It’s hard to keep a job that way.  Or a wife or a family.  And you’re still fine.  You dissed the rank and file fighters.  Now my fight is going to court.   You see there are two keys to my lawsuit.  You knew; that’s the first key.  You knew that my opponents were using these Superman drugs.  You knew that your testing was in

Michigan State's head coach is saying that the Big Ten champion deserves a shot at the National Championship.  ( http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/10073294/mark-dantonio-stumps-big-ten-champ-title-game )  He's right.  The Big Ten champ does deserve a shot.  And so does the SEC champ and the Pac 12 champ (and maybe even the Big 12 and ACC champs).   College football's season is so short that it is difficult to know which conference is best.  It seems like it's the SEC this year.  South Carolina beat Central Florida (the likely AAC champ).  Ole Miss beat Texas (the possible Big 12 champ).  That's pretty good.  But better than the Pac 12 with Oregon (who killed everyone and only lost within conference) and Stanford (who did the same, only with a win over Notre Dame as well)?   The uncertainty in conference quality frustrates a lot of people.  Under the BCS system only two teams can be chosen for the national championship.  Right now the major con