March 20, 1995
- The first of WWF's 4 new PPVs will take place in May and will be called "In Your Home." Between WWF and WCW, there are already 18 PPVs scheduled for this year, not to mention possible AAA and UWFI PPVs, as well as the 4 UFC shows. But by increasing the number of PPVs and increasing the costs, both companies run the risk of over-saturating the market and the PPV distributors might be wary of giving an unproven wrestling group a chance. This might hurt AAA's or ECW's chances of running future PPVs of their own. The 4 new PPVs, starting with In Your Home, will be cheaper and shorter than normal PPVs and WWF is planning to make a distinction so that fans know that these mini-PPVs aren't the same as the traditional Big Five PPVs.
- WWF is planning to drastically reduce the number of house shows they run and instead focus on PPV. Dave notes that PPV is where the real money is at right now and even a record low buyrate on PPV generates far more money than a great house show does, which is why they're making the decision.
- WCW's planned UFC-type ripoff event that they were putting together with K-1 in Japan looks to have fallen apart. Due to cable deadlines, they won't be able to do it in June as planned and now the next earliest available date would be in September but that's considered unlikely to happen now too.
- Dallas wrestler John Hawk (JBL) will be debuting at a WAR show in Japan using the name Death Mask which will be a complete Undertaker rip-off gimmick, much like Brian Lee did in WWF last year (can't find any video of it, but here's a pic of JBL as Death Mask).
- There's been a lot of talk about the future of SMW lately. It's no secret that the promotion is basically surviving hand-to-mouth and with so many of their stars leaving recently and spot shows not drawing well, it's causing a lot of concern. Bringing in The Undertaker next month should boost business temporarily, but that won't last. And Dave says the upcoming Salute The Flag match, which is obviously just a way to get the promotion's only black wrestlers to salute the confederate flag, is a new low even by wrestling standards.
- The Comfort Inn hotel next to the airport in Philadelphia has long been the unofficial hotel for ECW because Tod Gordon had an excellent relationship with the management there. But after a series of disturbances, the hotel is no longer working with ECW or allowing wrestlers to stay there.
- Dr. Zahorian was recently released from prison after serving about 3 years and is now attempting to get his medical license back. In a newspaper story, Zahorian described his prison stay as "worse than hell" and claims he was led astray and used by those in the wrestling business. Currently, Zahorian is working as a store clerk and making $5 an hour (I believe he did eventually get his license back and to this day, he works as a urologist in Hershey, PA).
- Sabu doesn't seem to be having luck with indie show crowds. After being maced by a fan a few weeks ago, another fan threw a brick at him this week during a show.
- There was a lot of behind-the-scenes drama in WCW with Ric Flair this week. Flair was reportedly furious about the booking of the latest TV tapings and threatened to quit the company before cooler heads prevailed and everything was smoothed over. Dave isn't sure of all the details, but it apparently had something to do with Hulk Hogan refusing to work the TV tapings, forcing them to rewrite some storylines. There were also issues with Randy Savage, who wants the same power Hogan has to completely control his own storylines and Flair, as booker, is having to deal with all these big egos that want to do their own thing rather than do what he books for them.
- Both Hogan and Flair want to recreate the 80s, but both men have a different vision of what that should be. Flair wants to re-do things like the Four Horsemen and the Road Warriors, while Hogan wants to re-do angles that worked for him, like Ultimate Warrior (with indie wrestler Rio Lord of the Jungle) and Andre The Giant (with Paul Wight). Meanwhile, the good, younger stars like Steve Austin, Brian Pillman, and Dustin Rhodes are caught in the middle and pretty much ignored. Rio Lord of the Jungle is expected to be brought in soon under a new name, as an Ultimate Warrior-clone because the original is too expensive (he later became Renegade).
- TV Guide's "Cheers & Jeers" column ripped Gene Okerlund over the 900 Hotline "dead former champion" tease from a few weeks ago. Also, it turns out that Vince McMahon personally wrote a letter to Ted Turner about the situation, basically telling Turner that he should fold WCW because the Okerlund thing and the resulting coverage in the media has given the entire wrestling business a bad name and it makes Turner look bad. Oh, Vince. That's adorable. Points for trying, I guess...
- The Dustin Rhodes/Blacktop Bully match at WCW's Uncensored PPV will be taped in advance and spliced into the show. The match will take place in the back of a moving flatbed truck and WCW didn't want to take the chance of something going wrong. Even though the PPV is taking place in Tupelo, MS, this match will be taped on a highway in Atlanta.
- The May issue of Muscular Development magazine has an article about DDP's wife Kimberly Page as a fitness model.
- Paul Roma was given notice that WCW is planning to release him and has been jobbed out on house shows ever since. Word is Roma didn't want to put Alex Wright over at the last PPV and they weren't happy about that, so he's being let go.
- WCW wants to bring in Curt Hennig as a member of a future Four Horsemen stable. There have been negotiations with Hennig before but he has a really high asking price, because he's apparently in great shape financially and doesn't need the money. So to get him to leave the house and wrestle, they have to meet his demands and in the past, they haven't been willing to do it.
- WCW is still considering bringing in Miss Elizabeth, but it's just backstage talk and she hasn't actually been contacted yet.
- Louie Spicolli worked a dark match at the latest WWF tapings.
- Also at the tapings, they did a pull-apart brawl between Kama and football player Steve McMichael who was there doing commentary on a match as part of the build-up to the Bigelow/Lawrence Taylor match at Wrestlemania. Dave said this angle actually came off really great and McMichael was a natural out there and not nearly as awkward and goofy as most celebrities are when they get involved in wrestling.
- Shawn Michaels isn't expected to win the title at Wrestlemania, but word is he will win the King of the Ring tournament in June (if only we had been so lucky...)
- The Smoking Gunns will face Owen Hart and a mystery partner at Wrestlemania. No word on who it will be yet, but WWF reportedly wants to bring in Chris Benoit for it and immediately shoot Benoit and Owen to the top of the tag team division but no word if Benoit will take the deal.
- WWF is also interested in using Erik Watts. Actually, it's more like Jim Ross is pushing for them to hire him.
- DirecTV is offering a $49.95 special that gets you the upcoming Wrestlemania 11, plus you can watch all 10 previous Wrestlemanias as well. WWF advertising for this package deal says, "See Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan in their prime!" Petty.
- Pierre, formerly of the Quebeccers tag team, re-debuted as "Pirate" John Pierre Lafeite and sporting an eyepatch.
- Pamela Anderson filmed a promo with Shawn Michaels, where she acts like she doesn't want to be around him (and of course, at WM she comes out with Diesel and Shawn comes out with Jenny McCarthy).
- Salt N' Peppa will accompany Lawrence Taylor to the ring at Wrestlemania, performing their song, "Whatta Man." Dave notes that Salt N' Peppa's business manager is a man named Darryl Brooks, who is also the American promoter that books AAA shows in the U.S.