Wrestling With A Grin The Brighter Side Of The Squared Circle Part VIII

Brian Damage

Make no mistake about it, pro wrestling does have a dark side to it. There are hundreds upon hundreds of stories about the dark and sometimes sinister side as chronicled in my ‘Wrestling with Sin‘ series. This piece is a direct opposite of that. With every bad story I have shared…there are also positive stories. Stories of wrestlers making it above and beyond the ring. Positive stories to inspire. Pro wrestlers aren’t all drug addicts, scam artists and carny sideshows. They all don’t die at an early age, or are broke and need to wrestle till they die. They don’t necessarily have to get into acting like The Rock or Batista. They don’t have to necessarily switch over to MMA like Brock Lesnar or CM Punk. Some of these stories are just about hard work, dreaming big and doing whatever it takes to succeed. We’ve already covered some stories as chronicled in part 1, part 2 , part 3   part 4  part 5 , part 6 and part 7. With that said, let’s look at some positives…

Top Five Rumored Angles and Storylines That Didn’t Happen

Brian Damage

There have been countless heavily rumored angles and storylines in pro wrestling. Some have actually panned out and happened, while others turned out to be nothing but rumors themselves…or at the very least…scrapped ideas at the last moment. Today we look at my top five rumored angles and storylines that never saw the light of day.

Chew the FACT: Gorging on More Useless Wrestling Facts, Stats and Trivia

Brian Damage

It’s time to once again dig in to more useless wrestling facts, stats and trivia. Some of these facts may be common knowledge to some and may be completely new and unheard of to others. In either case, they are all meant to entertain and maybe learn a little something about nothing. So here are pro wrestling facts for all of us to chew on for a bit.

Top Five Favorite Big Men

Padraic Toolan and Brian Damage

Pro wrestling has been filled with larger than life characters. Who are your top five favorite big men all time in pro wrestling? The key word is favorite…not necessarily the best…although could be some of the all time greats.

Wrestling With Sin: 379

Brian Damage

This is the 379th installment of the ‘Wrestling with Sin‘ series. A group of stories that delves into the darker, underbelly of pro wrestling. Many of the stories involve such subjects as sex, drugs, greed and in some cases even murder! As with every single story in the Sin series, I do not condone or condemn the alleged participants. We simply retell their stories by researching interviews, newspapers, magazines and various other sources of media.

The Ladder Of Success: The Match That Made A Hardy Boy A Man

Brian Damage

The biggest misconception in pro wrestling in making a top star, is having said wrestler win the promotion’s world title. While that can certainly help elevate a mid card star into main event status…there are no guarantees that it will always pay off. The truth is, you can make a star out of an individual just as easily by having them lose a match. It all depends on how the match is booked. Such is the case of the ‘Charismatic Enigma’ Jeff Hardy.

Bret Hart Snaps: The Push Towards A New Era in the WWF

Brian Damage

With World Championship Wrestling emerging as a legitimate threat to the World Wrestling Federation in 1997…the WWF began making changes to how they did business. Fewer squash matches were used to enhance top stars and in its place were more meaningful confrontations. The WWF was slowly getting a bit more edgier with its content. We were seeing less and less cartoonish gimmicks and were being given more characters with relateability. This was a time where Vince McMahon and company were testing the waters for a product with a bit more…attitude.

Wrestling With A Grin The Brighter Side Of The Squared Circle Part V

Brian Damage

Make no mistake about it, pro wrestling does have a dark side to it. There are hundreds upon hundreds of stories about the dark and sometimes sinister side as chronicled in my ‘Wrestling with Sin‘ series. This piece is a direct opposite of that. With every bad story I have shared…there are also positive stories. Stories of wrestlers making it above and beyond the ring. Positive stories to inspire. Pro wrestlers aren’t all drug addicts, scam artists and carny sideshows. They all don’t die at an early age, or are broke and need to wrestle till they die. They don’t necessarily have to get into acting like The Rock or Batista. They don’t have to necessarily switch over to MMA like Brock Lesnar or CM Punk. Some of these stories are just about hard work, dreaming big and doing whatever it takes to succeed. We’ve already covered some stories as chronicled in part 1, part 2 , part 3  and part 4. With that said, let’s look at some positives…

Top Five Great Wrestlers But Not So Great Promos

B. Dangerous, Brian Damage, Gypsy King and Lowlife Louie Ramos

This week’s top five is all about wrestlers who were really good inside the ring, but weren’t the best at doing interviews and promos. We would also like to give a warm welcome to a new contributor to the blog…The Gypsy King! Welcome!