“What?” Has Run Its Course
By Mike Mooneyham Jan. 19, 2002 What? Enough already. That four-letter word, which has become the biggest catch phrase in the business, has also become the most annoying. Catch phrases have become a vehicle that has helped elevate many of this generation’s top stars. In small doses they can be fine – something the audience [...]
A Grand Tradition Comes To A Close
Commentary by Mike Mooneyham March 25, 2001 Turn out the lights. The party’s over. If you listen closely enough at the conclusion of this week’s Monday Nitro, you might be able to hear the Texas twang of Dandy Don Meredith in the background signaling an end to one of cable television and professional wrestling’s grandest [...]
Bischoff Faces Tougher Task This Time
Commentary by Mike Mooneyham Published Jan. 14, 2001 World Championship Wrestling may have new owners, but the man in charge of turning the company around is a very familiar face. Eric Bischoff, whose vision for a live Monday night show and access to Ted Turner’s deep pockets helped transform WCW into the top wrestling company [...]
Flair Keeping Ship Afloat
Commentary by Mike Mooneyham Published in March 2000 The 14-time world champion did high-profile jobs last Sunday night to Sid Vicious in his hometown of Charlotte and the next night to Curt Hennig on Nitro at the Dean Dome in Chapel Hill. In recent weeks Flair has worked to elevate younger talent such as Buff [...]
Flair Deserves Reins At WCW
Commentary by Mike Mooneyham Published Sept. 26, 1999 Last week in this space I offered a suggestion as to how WCW might begin its rebuilding process in the post-Eric Bischoff era. Turner Sports president Harvey Schiller could make no better move than to name Ric Flair as company president. New executive vice president Bill Busch [...]
Should Pro Wrestlers Be Role Models?
A commentary by Mike Mooneyham Published August 1999 Two WWF performers recently posed that question provided contrasting takes on the subject. Two-time NCAA wrestling champion Kurt Angle, who parlayed his 1996 Olympic gold medal success into a lucrative professional career, says the answer is “a definite yes,” but with a disclaimer. “I think we do [...]
The Line Between Fantasy And Reality
Commentary by Mike Mooneyham Published May 19, 1996 All too often in professional wrestling, the thin line between reality and fantasy becomes much too blurred. Sometimes that fantasy world provides an escape valve from the stress and pressures that go along with the artificially glamorized lives of pro wrestlers. Professional wrestling can be a brutally [...]
Bad Gimmicks Plague Taylor
Published in September 10, 1994 Terry Taylor smiles at the notion of being labeled the “Taylor-Made Man.” Of course, it’s all part of his latest gimmick in the gimmick-filled world of professional wrestling. Last year as a member of the York Foundation, he was tabbed the “computerized man of the ’90s” and symbolized a stylish, [...]
Lou Thesz: The Best There Was…
Posted by Mike Mooneyham on May 5, 2002 · Leave a Comment
By Mike Mooneyham May 5, 2002 “And the winner – and still heavyweight champion of the world – is…” Lou Thesz probably heard those words more times than any other champion in the history of professional wrestling. But early last Sunday, the man many regarded as the greatest wrestler of all time, passed away in [...]
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