- Stone Cold Steve Austin recently did a short interview with iF Magazine regarding his future as an actor. Austin told the magazine the following:
"[Acting] is what I'm pursuing full time. I'm through with wrestling. Wrestling was one of the best jobs, the most fun I've ever had in my life, and I had a good time doing it. Fifteen years on the road, it's time to do something else. I'm trying to find the number two movie right now so we can start shooting ASAP. I'm working on certain projects here in Los Angeles. That's what I want to do with the rest of my life. I had a ton of fun on The Condemned and I learned so much. I also realized that I have a ton more to learn and improve. I remember my first wrestling match. I was pretty terrible, but I turned into a very good professional wrestler. My goal is to turn into a very good actor."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: WrestlingObserver.com
- For those wondering when exactly former WWE Champion John Cena was injured Monday on RAW, it was when he delivered his unique version of a hip toss to Ken Kennedy. While the maneuver didn’t look any different from any other Cena hip toss, as soon as he got up he gave an arm drag to Kennedy and began talking to the referee immediately. Cena was forced to work the rest of the match with basically one arm.
- WWE will hold their final ECW/SmackDown! taping of the year on Sunday, December 30th at the Richmond Coliseum in Richmond, Virginia.
- Tickets will go on sale for WWE Armageddon, the company’s final pay-per-view of the year, on October 20th. They will be priced from $175 down to $25. WWE Armageddon takes place on December 16th in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
- To update you on Hulk Hogan hosting the new “American Gladiators†on NBC, the deal has not yet been finalized; however, both sides have reached a verbal agreement. The series will be taped next month and will air as a midseason prime-time replacement.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Rob Van Dam posted a new blog entry on his MySpace.com page today. In it, he addresses the largely debated issue of health insurance and wrestlers. While I do not normally offer opinions in my news posts, he makes an excellent point, below is what he wrote:
"If you haven't heard any of my interviews on the subject of wrestlers being taken advantage of, I offer an honest but probably different opinion than most. Forget the wrestler's union. It'll never happen. Wrestlers are all replaceable and have nowhere else to go anyway. Are you surprised when you hear that wrestler's don't get insurance benefits? Big deal. We are independent contractors, just like the guy you paid to paint your house. If the painter signs a contract that says he will work for you for 3 years, and work for no one else and give ownership of any plans or ideas created or used on the job to you, and he gives you the right to amend the contract on your side to implement dress codes and fines and wellness programs and whatever else you decide along the way, that's the deal he made. If you are paying him enough money so he can get his own insurance, set up his own retirement funds, and you take care of getting him to the job and back home, what's the problem? He's not an employee. He's self-employed. Would he rather have less pay, but get insurance through you? Probably not, especially since he's covered if he gets hurt on the job anyway. Make sense? I hope I cleared some questions up for you and gave you a different angle to see the situation from. I admit as quickly as anyone that the job is way challenging, but it's a challenge we agree to. That's why I finished the agreement that I made and now I'm done. For the moment, anyway."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: F4WOnline.com
The rumor making rounds in the WWE locker room is that Edge will interfere in the SmackDown main event (World Heavyweight Champion Batista vs. The Great Khali in a Punjabi Prison match) at No Mercy this Sunday, however, that has not by any means been confirmed.
As we’ve been reporting, the plan is to have Edge return by Survivor Series so it’s unclear on his role on SmackDown before the November pay-per-view if he does return prior to that date. Edge’s original return date from his torn pectoral muscle was set for November so if he returns earlier it could be he is being rushed back.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: F4WOnline.com
- John Cena is a nominee for the Best Sports Personality in the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards. Cena joins soccer star David Beckham, Formula 1 racecar driver Lewis Hamilton, and Olympic medalist Dame Kelly Holmes who are all in the running for the award. The show will take place on October 20th in London.
- As we reported last week, the entire WWE creative team was in Ohio Valley Wrestling last Wednesday, looking at potential names to bring to the main WWE roster. While this was before last week’s low ECW rating came out, everyone in WWE panicked when it was released, and have decided to bring up more names from developmental.
- Two people failed drug tests in WWE’s Ohio Valley Wrestling developmental territory last week. One worker tested positive for marijuana, the other for cocaine. It is believed that the tests were administered by the Kentucky State Athletic Commission, not World Wrestling Entertainment.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: PWInsider.com
- The new TNA Impact video game is slated to be released next year by Midway Games for PS3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, and PlayStation 2. Midway will have a major presentation of the game during TNA Bound for Glory weekend next week in Atlanta, Georgia.
- The Saturday replay airing of TNA Impact did a 0.4 cable rating on Spike TV.
- TNA Champion Kurt Angle will be a guest on the Between the Ropes radio show tonight. The show airs from 10 PM-Midnight Eastern on WQTM 750 The Team in Orlando, Florida and is streamed live on the Internet at BetweenTheRopes.com
- Former TNA personality Johnny Fairplay got in a real life fight with comedian Danny Bonaduce. The legitimate altercation was picked up by several gossip web sites.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ric Flair met with Vince McMahon on 9/20 at Titan Towers, and according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the meeting didn't go well. McMahon was upset that Flair brought lawyers with him. There are unsolved issues which nobody appears to be aware of. The meeting resulted in the two sides being farther apart.
Flair owes the company a significant amount of money. McMahon extended Flair a sizeable personal loan to help the "Nature Boy" resolve his tax problems with the IRS.
In terms of creative, Raw head writer Brian Gewirtz is against the push of Flair beating top guys on his way out at his age since he would be leaving the squared circle.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"[Acting] is what I'm pursuing full time. I'm through with wrestling. Wrestling was one of the best jobs, the most fun I've ever had in my life, and I had a good time doing it. Fifteen years on the road, it's time to do something else. I'm trying to find the number two movie right now so we can start shooting ASAP. I'm working on certain projects here in Los Angeles. That's what I want to do with the rest of my life. I had a ton of fun on The Condemned and I learned so much. I also realized that I have a ton more to learn and improve. I remember my first wrestling match. I was pretty terrible, but I turned into a very good professional wrestler. My goal is to turn into a very good actor."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: WrestlingObserver.com
- For those wondering when exactly former WWE Champion John Cena was injured Monday on RAW, it was when he delivered his unique version of a hip toss to Ken Kennedy. While the maneuver didn’t look any different from any other Cena hip toss, as soon as he got up he gave an arm drag to Kennedy and began talking to the referee immediately. Cena was forced to work the rest of the match with basically one arm.
- WWE will hold their final ECW/SmackDown! taping of the year on Sunday, December 30th at the Richmond Coliseum in Richmond, Virginia.
- Tickets will go on sale for WWE Armageddon, the company’s final pay-per-view of the year, on October 20th. They will be priced from $175 down to $25. WWE Armageddon takes place on December 16th in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
- To update you on Hulk Hogan hosting the new “American Gladiators†on NBC, the deal has not yet been finalized; however, both sides have reached a verbal agreement. The series will be taped next month and will air as a midseason prime-time replacement.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Rob Van Dam posted a new blog entry on his MySpace.com page today. In it, he addresses the largely debated issue of health insurance and wrestlers. While I do not normally offer opinions in my news posts, he makes an excellent point, below is what he wrote:
"If you haven't heard any of my interviews on the subject of wrestlers being taken advantage of, I offer an honest but probably different opinion than most. Forget the wrestler's union. It'll never happen. Wrestlers are all replaceable and have nowhere else to go anyway. Are you surprised when you hear that wrestler's don't get insurance benefits? Big deal. We are independent contractors, just like the guy you paid to paint your house. If the painter signs a contract that says he will work for you for 3 years, and work for no one else and give ownership of any plans or ideas created or used on the job to you, and he gives you the right to amend the contract on your side to implement dress codes and fines and wellness programs and whatever else you decide along the way, that's the deal he made. If you are paying him enough money so he can get his own insurance, set up his own retirement funds, and you take care of getting him to the job and back home, what's the problem? He's not an employee. He's self-employed. Would he rather have less pay, but get insurance through you? Probably not, especially since he's covered if he gets hurt on the job anyway. Make sense? I hope I cleared some questions up for you and gave you a different angle to see the situation from. I admit as quickly as anyone that the job is way challenging, but it's a challenge we agree to. That's why I finished the agreement that I made and now I'm done. For the moment, anyway."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: F4WOnline.com
The rumor making rounds in the WWE locker room is that Edge will interfere in the SmackDown main event (World Heavyweight Champion Batista vs. The Great Khali in a Punjabi Prison match) at No Mercy this Sunday, however, that has not by any means been confirmed.
As we’ve been reporting, the plan is to have Edge return by Survivor Series so it’s unclear on his role on SmackDown before the November pay-per-view if he does return prior to that date. Edge’s original return date from his torn pectoral muscle was set for November so if he returns earlier it could be he is being rushed back.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: F4WOnline.com
- John Cena is a nominee for the Best Sports Personality in the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards. Cena joins soccer star David Beckham, Formula 1 racecar driver Lewis Hamilton, and Olympic medalist Dame Kelly Holmes who are all in the running for the award. The show will take place on October 20th in London.
- As we reported last week, the entire WWE creative team was in Ohio Valley Wrestling last Wednesday, looking at potential names to bring to the main WWE roster. While this was before last week’s low ECW rating came out, everyone in WWE panicked when it was released, and have decided to bring up more names from developmental.
- Two people failed drug tests in WWE’s Ohio Valley Wrestling developmental territory last week. One worker tested positive for marijuana, the other for cocaine. It is believed that the tests were administered by the Kentucky State Athletic Commission, not World Wrestling Entertainment.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: PWInsider.com
- The new TNA Impact video game is slated to be released next year by Midway Games for PS3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, and PlayStation 2. Midway will have a major presentation of the game during TNA Bound for Glory weekend next week in Atlanta, Georgia.
- The Saturday replay airing of TNA Impact did a 0.4 cable rating on Spike TV.
- TNA Champion Kurt Angle will be a guest on the Between the Ropes radio show tonight. The show airs from 10 PM-Midnight Eastern on WQTM 750 The Team in Orlando, Florida and is streamed live on the Internet at BetweenTheRopes.com
- Former TNA personality Johnny Fairplay got in a real life fight with comedian Danny Bonaduce. The legitimate altercation was picked up by several gossip web sites.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ric Flair met with Vince McMahon on 9/20 at Titan Towers, and according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the meeting didn't go well. McMahon was upset that Flair brought lawyers with him. There are unsolved issues which nobody appears to be aware of. The meeting resulted in the two sides being farther apart.
Flair owes the company a significant amount of money. McMahon extended Flair a sizeable personal loan to help the "Nature Boy" resolve his tax problems with the IRS.
In terms of creative, Raw head writer Brian Gewirtz is against the push of Flair beating top guys on his way out at his age since he would be leaving the squared circle.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------