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1). How long have you watched wrestling? (If it's "off and on," include only the total of "on" years)
I've been watching wrestling since 1989 or 1990, at least that's as early as I can remember.
2). What is your first memory of professional wrestling?
My first memory of professional wrestling was of this big tournament in the NWA/WCW in which they had eight tag teams from around the world all competing. I remember throughout the whole tournament I was rooting for the Mexican tag team but when they lost I decided to root for The Steiner Brothers who were representing the United States. They wound up winning the tournament and wound up becoming the first wrestlers I was a fan of.
3). Who was your first favorite wrestler?
When I was a kid some of my favorites were The Steiner Brothers, Sting, Bret Hart and my absolute favorite wrestler of all time was than and is now still Brian Pillman.
4). Who is your favorite wrestler now?
My favorite wrestler of all time is still Brian Pillman. My favorite wrestler that is still alive and in perfect shape to wrestle and may come back is Chris Jericho. But my favorite wrestler that is currently Christopher Daniels.
5). If your favorite wrestler is not currently working, who's your favorite active wrestler today?
I suppose I just answered that.
6). What is your favorite match?
My favorite match of all-time is Brock Lesnar [c] v. Eddie Guerrero for the WWE Heavyweight Championship at WWE No Way Out 2004. I think the underdog story of that match was brilliant. At the beginning of that match you thought (and even when I still watch it I fake myself into believing) that Eddie had no shot of winning and as the match progressed you start to believe. Eddie was on top of his game and Brock played the perfect bully/monster. Even the Goldberg run-in was great.
7). What is your favorite moment in wrestling history?
My favorite moment is when Brian Pillman wrestled in War Games with a broken shoulder. Its so odd but that actually taught me that no matter how hurt or scared you are you always go out there and try your best. Its funny how something as silly as wrestling can teach a young kid such a valuable life lesson.
8). Have you ever stopped watching? If so, what made you stop? What made you start back up?
I never stopped wrestling on the whole but I did stop watching the WWF after Wrestlemania XII and then only got back into it during some the the aftermath of Wrestlemania 13. I think what kept me away after Wrestlemania XII was because I never really liked Shawn Michaels so I wasn't very keen on watching his run as the WWF Champion. I came back after Wrestlemania 13 because a friend of mine told me Bret Hart had turned heel so I figured I'd watch again cause I wanted to see what heel Bret Hart was like.
9). On a scale of 1 to 10, how much of a mark are you? (10 = Little Jimmy, 1 = Vince McMahon)
I really don't know. I think I'm a little too analytical to be a total mark. But I do have an irrational distaste for Shawn Michaels, I know he's the greatest in ring competitor of all time and possibly the greatest wrestler of all time but I still dislike him and I know that is purely a mark reaction on my part as I was always a Bret Hart fan so I'd say I'm like a 6.
10). Describe some of your markish tendencies from when you were younger, and/or some that still manifest from time to time.
See above with my irrational distaste for Shawn Michaels.
11). Did you start off as a mark? If so, how long didn't you know about the nature of the business? If you started watching with the knowledge that it's fixed, what drew you to it?
I think for the first 2 or 3 years I thought it was all real. Then I thought that all the talk and storylines were faked to get people to watch but the matches were real, that lasted for a few years. By about 1993 or so I pretty much knew it was all fake.
12). How many live events have you attended? Which ones? What are some of the differences you experience when watching on television, as opposed to in the arena?
I've been to:
A WWE House Show Early 1992: Main Event Ric Flair/Roddy Piper
WWE Smackdown 6/10/2004: Kenzo Suzuki's WWE Debut
ROH Final Battle 2008: Main Event Bryan Danielson/Takashi Morishima Fight Without Honor
ROH 7th Anniversary Show: Main Event Nigel McGuinness/KENTA
ROH Manhattan Mayhem III: Austin Aries become the first 2 time ROH World Champion
ROH Glory by Honor VIII: Bryan Danielson & Nigel McGuinness' farewell show
ROH 8th Anniversary Show: Tyler Black become the ROH World Champion
ROH Supercard of Honor V: Main Event Tyler Black/Roderick Strong
ROH Glory by Honor IX: WGTT's ROH debut/Roderick Strong becomming the ROH World Champion
ROH Final Battle 2010: Main Event El Generico/Kevin Steen Fight Without Honor
ROH Manhattan Mayhem IV: Eddie Edwards becomes ROH World Champion
ROH Best in the World 2011: Davey Richards becomes ROH World Champion
13). Who is your least favorite wrestler, and why? (Any time period)
I'm tempted to say Shawn Michaels but that's not right. There are far too many of his matches that I love too much to ever hate the guy. Probably my least favorite of all time was Batista because of how boring and useless of a competitor and mic worker he's been.
14). What was, in your opinion, the stupidest/worst moment in wrestling?
I'll go with stupidest, because worst would have to be one of the many many untimely deaths. The stupidest has to be the Raw Diva Search which would take 15 to 30 minutes out of Raw ever week and at the end of the thing the WWE would be innundated with useless women. Though on the bright side it did give us Christy Hemme and Layla who are two of the hottest girls ever. But if you look at all the contestants only Layla and Eve have remained, so what good was it in the long run anyway?
15). Who is the WORST wrestler? (If other than your least favorite)
The worst wrestler of all time was Tank Abbot, no redeeming qualities at all.
16). Who is the BEST wrestler? (If other than your favorite)
Best all around wrestler of all time is Ric Flair.
17). Choose 5 adjectives to describe the qualities of a successful wrestler.
In descending importance:
Intelligence
Toughness
Charisma
Athleticism
Improvisation
18). What key factors make the difference between being bored with a match and blown away by it?
Story. It could be as simply as Wrestler A working on the arm of Wrestler B, or as complicated as Rock/Mankind Royal Rumble 1999 in which Mankind got so badly beaten up that you wanted him to Quit but you knew he wouldn't because Foley doesn't quit. There are many matches that are athletically great but have no story and fall flat. And conversely there are many not too technically sound matches that have a great story.
19). If you had the power to start your own wrestling company, and the power to hire any five wrestlers to spearhead your roster, who would they be? (Feel free to include past wrestlers in their primes)
Using Current Wrestlers in their Current Standing:
Chris Jericho
Alex Shelley
CM Punk
Kevin Steen
Austin Aries
Using All Time Wrestlers:
Rick Rude
Sting
Chris Jericho
Raven
Ric Flair
20). (This is stolen from another thread) Finally, if Vince McMahon and/or Dixie Carter (or any other authority in wrestling) asked you for one minute of advice, what feedback would you deliver with the highest priority?
For Vince McMahon my advice would be "Don't be ashamed of being a Wrestling promoter. Your father and you have made so much money that has provided for your family off of wrestling. I know pro-rassling isn't well respected among the masses but you have more than enough fans that you have the ability to bring joy and entertainment each and every week. Stop fooling yourself into believing you can parlay wrestling into being legit, you can't. And also don't just push people that sell t-shirts because if you push people they will sell shirts."
For Dixie Carter it would be this "You're not Vince McMahon, you can't compete Vince McMahon. Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff are leeches that only care about getting themselves over. Give creative control to your company to me."
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