Rasslin' Time Machine

Going on 30 years in the pro wrestling business and still having a blast doing it.  I read so many cool stories online of people meeting and working with their favorite performers and personalities.  I've got some pretty good stories of my own with some familiar names from the past.  Do you know that I was the one asked to take photos for Ivan Koloff's official retirement from pro wrestling.  I'm talking about in the late 90's.  And I'm totally serious.  Not saying why, but I got the shots.

"Chief" Wahoo McDaniel was my first mentor, instructed me on the ins and outs of television interviews and actually let me interview him for my very first one.  His instruction was simple, something like "Put yourself over as a wrestling announcer and then introduce me and ask me to explain the rules of the Indian Strap Match and then just hold the mic for me..."  Did exactly as asked, totally surprised to be told to put myself over.  Shocking.

Favorite interaction was late 90's with ACW at a building near the Greensboro Coliseum with a personal favorite grappler, "Pistol" Pez Whatley.  Pez came out before his match and demanded the house mic, calling me a "long-haired raggedy roody-poo".  I popped as hard as anybody in the building.  True story, he apologized to me afterward for calling me names.  I thanked him for talking to me and told him that he would always be a favorite memory.

Got to spend a lot of quality time over a few years with my very first pro wrestling "hero", Johnny Weaver.  I could barely speak, I just wanted to hear him talk.  He was great about answering questions or explaining details or memories, and seemed to really enjoy going down memory lane.  Worked with Ricky Morton from the Rock & Roll Express dozens of times, Ricky is the master story-teller in the locker room.  Dude is gold, all day long.  Always a glad hand for this man, a lot of memories shared.

The wrestler that terrified me most when I was a young fan was Swede Hansen, the right-hand man of Rip Hawk.  He came to a couple of events with Wahoo and was honestly shocked to be recognized.  Super sweet gentleman, would sit and talk for hours about wrestling.  The most feared guy EVER in pro wrestling was the rookie Ivan Koloff.  Big, muscular, vicious and downright frightening.  Another great guy who made for me the greatest social media icon photo in history!

Dammit Jim! He Updated The Blog!

We're all over the pro wrestling news again with CWF Mid-Atlantic's Heavyweight Champion Trevor Lee reporting to his new job at the WWE this past Monday.  Trevor makes his last appearance with CWF Saturday night as he defends the title against his protege Cain Justice at CWF END OF AN ERA.  We've sold out 3 straight events and are well on our way to #4 with advance tickets flying out of the box office.  We're on Year 20 of CWF Mid-Atlantic and I figure Year 30 of the Insiders website.  Have I been doing this mess THAT LONG?  HA!

The music front has went into hyperdrive for a few weeks with the release of a second collaboration with Rick Medlock and Phil McWalter on Soundcloud two weeks ago.  The tune is a cover of the Sweet's "Action" done in the style of Steve Stevens and the Atomic Playboys.  I kid you not.

ACTION! Featuring Phil McWalters and Rick Medlock

We've spent a LOT of time in front of the board and the mics working on another collaboration with Rick and Phil, a "dark metal" rendition of Eleanor Rigby.  Between Tommy and I both catching the crud, he's been down with it longer than I have and has not even felt like checking his email for days.  I totally get it.  We're shelving Eleanor for the time being and may return to it later with a different set of ears.  We have our cover of Led Zeppelin's Immigrant Song in the can as well as a totally unexpected authentic cover of the Patsy Cline standard, Crazy.  Yes.  I sing Crazy.  Weirdest part?  That song was a BIG hit in 1961 on both country and pop charts, written by Willie Nelson.