Credit: The Wrestling Observer Newsletter
WWE tried to get Trish Stratus to appear on last week's McMahon Appreciation show, but the word is that she turned them down, citing that she wants to move on in her life. Although, others internally were speculating that she was smart enough to know if she was going to return, this would be trivializing what could be a big deal. Had Trish appeared on the show, it would have been in Ashley's spot on the show where she showed the clip of Vince forcing Trish to bark like a dog and strip to her underwear.
WWE also wanted to get NBC executive Dick Ebersol on last week's show. Ebersol was instrumental in getting Saturday Night's Main Event on NBC in the 80's. He is a long-time friend and ally of Vince's. Ebersol didn't appear on the show because he couldn't get time away from his duties to shoot a promo.
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Source: PWInsider.com
- Despite a couple of people within WWE wanting to see the end of the “Mr. McMahon dead†storyline after the sudden and unexpected death of Sherri Martel, it looks as if WWE plans to stay the course. Yesterday, WWE.com did another “story†where they noted that it would be the first Father’s Day that Shane McMahon and Stephanie would spend without their father. Today they are building towards RAW as "the first time in the show’s 14-year history, Mr. McMahon will not be any part of it whatsoever."
- There has been a significant amount of pressure on WWE by the USA Network for the lagging RAW ratings and that can explain why the WWE Draft was so lopsided. It’s not a secret to anyone that RAW is the most profitable show that WWE has and consequently is where the main focus is going to be when allocating talent and developing storylines. At the end of the day, everything goes back to ratings, and WWE must do what they feel is right to increase their ratings for the show.
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King Booker moved to Raw because he feuded with pretty much everyone on SmackDown. He now has new people to work with. He'll likely stick to being a heel instead of going babyface because Raw is light on the heel side as Randy Orton and Umaga are the only other major heels at the moment.
Mr. Kennedy will likely be a babyface upon his return, and then turn heel when its time for him to feud with Triple H.
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On his Wrestling Observer Live radio show Sunday night, Dave Meltzer stated that Sherri Martel didn't die of natural causes. According to Meltzer, "This was not a typical wrestler's death," "Not a suicide," and "She did not die of natural causes." The case is currently under investigation by law enforcement. Police were in abundance at Martel's mother's residence in Birmingham, Alabama where the WWE Hall of Famer was found dead Friday morning, according to her husband of 10 years, Robert Schrull. Meltzer knows more about the situation at hand, but he didn't want to specifically say anything until he has more information on the case. Meltzer plans on talking to the police later today to gather more information regarding her sudden death.
When Martel passed away on Friday, there were a number of people in WWE who were downright embarrassed by the way her death was placed far down on the company's website, under all of the reports of Vince McMahon's "demise." It has led to discussions internally about ending the angle, but in the end, the storyline will likely continue.
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Source: PWInsider.com, Wrestling Observer
- Today on the E! channel's Talk Soup, they showed clips of the Iron Sheik on last weeks RAW and clips of Moolah and Mae Young barking like a dog.
- The Staten Island Advance has an article about Mick Foley "crashing" the graduation of the Hungerford School. Foley was once "Principal for a Day" at the same school.
- When Bret Hart agreed to do the Appreciation night segment, he had no idea the show would conclude with Mr. McMahon’s limo being “blown up.â€
WWE tried to get Trish Stratus to appear on last week's McMahon Appreciation show, but the word is that she turned them down, citing that she wants to move on in her life. Although, others internally were speculating that she was smart enough to know if she was going to return, this would be trivializing what could be a big deal. Had Trish appeared on the show, it would have been in Ashley's spot on the show where she showed the clip of Vince forcing Trish to bark like a dog and strip to her underwear.
WWE also wanted to get NBC executive Dick Ebersol on last week's show. Ebersol was instrumental in getting Saturday Night's Main Event on NBC in the 80's. He is a long-time friend and ally of Vince's. Ebersol didn't appear on the show because he couldn't get time away from his duties to shoot a promo.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Source: PWInsider.com
- Despite a couple of people within WWE wanting to see the end of the “Mr. McMahon dead†storyline after the sudden and unexpected death of Sherri Martel, it looks as if WWE plans to stay the course. Yesterday, WWE.com did another “story†where they noted that it would be the first Father’s Day that Shane McMahon and Stephanie would spend without their father. Today they are building towards RAW as "the first time in the show’s 14-year history, Mr. McMahon will not be any part of it whatsoever."
- There has been a significant amount of pressure on WWE by the USA Network for the lagging RAW ratings and that can explain why the WWE Draft was so lopsided. It’s not a secret to anyone that RAW is the most profitable show that WWE has and consequently is where the main focus is going to be when allocating talent and developing storylines. At the end of the day, everything goes back to ratings, and WWE must do what they feel is right to increase their ratings for the show.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
King Booker moved to Raw because he feuded with pretty much everyone on SmackDown. He now has new people to work with. He'll likely stick to being a heel instead of going babyface because Raw is light on the heel side as Randy Orton and Umaga are the only other major heels at the moment.
Mr. Kennedy will likely be a babyface upon his return, and then turn heel when its time for him to feud with Triple H.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
On his Wrestling Observer Live radio show Sunday night, Dave Meltzer stated that Sherri Martel didn't die of natural causes. According to Meltzer, "This was not a typical wrestler's death," "Not a suicide," and "She did not die of natural causes." The case is currently under investigation by law enforcement. Police were in abundance at Martel's mother's residence in Birmingham, Alabama where the WWE Hall of Famer was found dead Friday morning, according to her husband of 10 years, Robert Schrull. Meltzer knows more about the situation at hand, but he didn't want to specifically say anything until he has more information on the case. Meltzer plans on talking to the police later today to gather more information regarding her sudden death.
When Martel passed away on Friday, there were a number of people in WWE who were downright embarrassed by the way her death was placed far down on the company's website, under all of the reports of Vince McMahon's "demise." It has led to discussions internally about ending the angle, but in the end, the storyline will likely continue.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Source: PWInsider.com, Wrestling Observer
- Today on the E! channel's Talk Soup, they showed clips of the Iron Sheik on last weeks RAW and clips of Moolah and Mae Young barking like a dog.
- The Staten Island Advance has an article about Mick Foley "crashing" the graduation of the Hungerford School. Foley was once "Principal for a Day" at the same school.
- When Bret Hart agreed to do the Appreciation night segment, he had no idea the show would conclude with Mr. McMahon’s limo being “blown up.â€