Sure you meant Sheer?

The word "sheer" means "utter".
Which also means Complete...Total...Absolute.

Yeah...we're all about the wrestling.

Some wrestling fans get pigeonholed as uneducated, unemployed and in some case, un-washed.
I'm proud to not fall into any of those categories.
I'm a college graduate, a full time business executive ..and I shower every morning.

But as far as "hobbies and interests" go, Wrestling has always been my #1
(with music being #2. I played in more bands than I can count, and only gave it up when Girlfriend-of-Sheer became Mrs. Sheer)

How much of the week is taken up with wrestling-related activty?

• The watching of WWE products, of course.
• Listen to about a dozen wrestling-related podcasts.  (many are which are listed, here.)
• Regularly play Grey Dog Software's TEW  (Total Extreme Wrestling), which we'll blog about in a near-future blog for CERTAIN.
• I do the Twitter thing, of course, because I want to talk to other, like-minded fans. 
• Daily use the on line news to catch results of shows I don't get to see....like Impact (now GFW) or some UFC shows.
• I've read more wrestling biographies than I can count, and I still have more to go. I love biographies.
• Years ago, my son and I invented a wrestling Board Game that we used to play every night. He's older now, and has apparently outgrown me. But I hope one day to look into whether there is still a market for board games, much less wrestling-based board games.
• Have watched more Shoot Interviews than I can recall, also.  Some guys never wrote their memoirs but the 2 hours they spent with RF Video or Kayfabe Commentaries was well spent if you want to get caught up on their history!
• Rgularly rely on YouTube to watch old/classic matches, as well as some of the Japanese feds. (Does anyone remember Dragon Gate USA? Man I used to LOVE that company...when the talent was Japanese!)
• When there is time left, I might visit a wrestling chat board to ask a question or catch up on a topic.

Being that I have children, and a full time job, I don't go to live shows much anymore. Maybe a local indy gig once a year to keep the experience, but there is so much free content these days that I don't need to brave the crowds. That being said, with the recent uprising of Indy Wrestling, I might start again!

So after a day of work, parenting , going to the gym and eating....wrestling still makes it into  my 24 hours?  I often wonder how I do it. .
But when you love something, it just sorta comes to you, right?

I imagine you are all about the wrestling, too. The plan is to use this blog to connect with wrestling fans all over the world and talk about whatever wrestling topic you care to!

If not here, be sure to hit me up on Twitter: @SheerWrestling



  

MLW's Podcast Round up

Yeah, my wrestling history dates back. Waaaay back.
But I'm a big fan of the current collection of Wrestling Podcasts that exist today.

I'm also sorta fortunate that MLW Radio, which started out as one weekly podcast, has grown into a network of podcasts, most of which are absolutely top notch.

I realize that my opinion is just one man's opinion, but I wanted to share which ones I listen to, and why.

1) Something to Wrestle - this features Bruce Prichard (remember Brother Love?!) and Conrad Thompson.  Once a week, the 2 discuss "something" that happened during Bruce's tenure at WWF/E. It could be a specific PPV event (like the recent Summerslam 2000 episode), or it could be a specific wrestler (like the Brian Pillman episode).  Bruce is very forthcoming. You might not always agree with him, but he's willing to tell you exactly what he saw/thought/felt.  As an added bonus, Prichard does a TON of imitations that are Spot On!
       Quick word of advice: If you are a fan of Dave Meltzer's Wrestling Observer, you'll find that one of these guys LOVE that publication, and other one HATES it.  You'll learn quickly...

2) What Happened When - Conrad returns for a second show each week, this time with Tony Schiavone! Again, the topics are various, and since Tony spent 1 year working for WWF you often get his opinion of folks who did NOT work for WCW.
       Quick word of advice: while Conrad is a very thorough researcher, it's not unusual to have Tony not know the answer to one of his questions. But you'll love his non-confrontational demeanor. Except for when he tells someone to eff off...

3) JJ Dillon Show - JJ Dillon and Rich Bocchini discuss events from Dillon's long past in pro-wrestling. Dillon may be one of the nicest men from the sport. Listening to him talk is like listening to your favorite Uncle tell stories.  And his 40 years in the business means there is an endless inventory of stories to tell.!
       Quick Word of Advice: Dillon is admittedly long winded, but it's because he's thorough and he's too polite to rush through a story.

4) Bischoff on Wrestling - Eric Bischoff is joined by Nick Haussman to share their views on today's product, as well as answer listener's questions. Given that Eric worked for WCW, AWA and WWE, he has plenty of stories to tell, and he talks business as well as booking. Conversely, when Eric does NOT like fantasy booking and when he doesn't have an opinion he doesn't fake it. He can be as curt as he is interesting.
       Quick Word of Advice: Eric also has strong Political opinions, and they are diametrically opposed to Nick's. Sometimes the show wanders and has to be reeled back in.

5) MLW Flagship Show - This is the show that started it all. Originally hosted by Court Bauer (MLW's founder) and Mister Saint Laurent (MSL) they cover all the happenings of the week in wrestling. Recently, Court has taken on other projects and Rich Bocchini has taken over his half of the gig. A very objective and all-encompassing hour of wrestling each week.

6) Prime Time with Hacksaw Duggan and Sean Mooney - Yes, you are reading this right. Two very different names from the past have come together to discuss Duggan's era in the WWF. Both guys keep the show very "clean"...there's no dirt or finger pointing, but they still give a capsule of the late 80's WWF each week
       Quick Word of advice: Duggan can be a little corny at times, but he also has some good stories and he's very honest with his view. .    

7) Marty and Sarah Love Wrestling - Not for the serious minded!  Imagine 2 of your closest friends get together each week to talk about wrestling, but they have a LOT of fun with it.  Aside from being wrestling fans, both are improvisational comedians, so the show is FILLED with parodies of current wrestling stars. It's hilarious.
       Quick Word of Advice: unlike the above-listed podcasts, this is NOT a show that is deep on scoops, wrestling history or dirt. It's just 2 wrestling fans having a good time enjoying wrestling.

8) Corny's Drive Through - Jim Cornette actually has TWO shows on the MLW network, but I really only listen to this one. Cornette is joined by Brian Last and each week they spend the hour answering listener's questions. Given his long history and strong opinions, every answer is fun to listen to.      
       Quick Word of Advice: Cornette has no filter and he knows a lot of 4 lettered words. He also has very strong political views. You might not always agree with him, but you WILL be entertained.

9) MSL & Sullivan - What a tag team! Mister Saint Laurent is joined by Kevin Sullivan to talk recent wrestling news AND recap Monday Nitro episodes!  It's a great 50-50 split, allowing the listener to get insight on what Kevin was thinking in the late 90s as well as today! For a guy in his late 60s, Kevin is very tuned in to today's product(s) and has a lot of ideas to share.
       Quick Word of Advice: Kevin will often recount a Baseball or Boxing story to make an analogy. But he's referring to things that happened in 1960. Or 1860.



MLW Network hosts MANY more shows than what is listed here, but you would need a LOT more free time to listen to any more of them!

(Note - there are also many wrestling podcasts NOT affiliated with the MLW network....some of which I even listen to!  We can talk about them the next time around...)

Sheer Wrestling....In the Beginning

The most ominous thing about a new blog or a new Twitter handle is "what will they think?!".

Not that the blog won't get read, or that the information won't be good/valid/interesting...but when it's the FIRST blog post there is no History behind it. I can be virtually anyone...or no one at all. I can be a one hit wonder. I could that Blind Date that you never call back.

But as the founder of Sheer Wrestling I've built a long history with Pro Wrestling, and I want to use this space to write about it. To "talk" about it.  Your comments are always welcome. You can share so much more info here than on Twitter.  I mean, 144 characters?  Really?

Oh! Did I mention that our Twitter handle is @SheerWrestling ?
Ok, glad we got that out of the way...


I don't like to talk about "myself"...but let me use this blank space to share some history and get us acquainted.

I found pro wrestling in the Mid-80s.
Ok, wait, I lied already. I FIRST found Pro Wrestling in the mid-SEVENTIES, but I it was a one shot. It was a WWF television show on my black-and-white television. I'm know for a fact I saw Mil Mascaras and I'm 99% sure I saw Big John Studd.  That's all I remember about THAT afternoon.

But in the mid-90's I inherited a step-brother who was a HYOOOGE Pro Wrestling fan.
on Saturday Nights I stayed up to watch WWF programming on Channel 9. (WWOR. Shout out to Sean Mooney).

I saw the Snuka-Muraco feud.
I saw the Samoans lose the titles to Rocky Johnson and Tony Atlas
I saw Bob Backlund lose the belt to the Iron Shiek, who in turn lost it to Hulk Hogan.

These are my earliest memories, but I'm in no way exclusive to old school WWF...or to ANYthing Vince McMahon and company puts out.

Every Summer as a kid I'd go to Florida to see my grandparents. This was when wrestling still had Territories. It was the only time I could see wrestling from Florida, and sometimes USWA from Memphis.

Once we got cable at home, and I found Turner Broadcasting (TBS), I leaned about the Mid-Atlantic/NWA and watched them progress into World Championship Wrestling (WCW).

Since the mid-80's there has only been 1 year that I DIDNT follow pro-wrestling.
I traded wrestling for a girl, she ultimately broke my heart, and I decided that any girl that came after her had to like pro wrestling. Well, at least tolerate it.

Mrs. Wrestling used to like it.
Now she just tolerates it.

Today I still watch the WWE product (and like you, I like some of it, I hate some of it) and keep an eye on a LOT of other products/promotions.

I'm old enough that I can go on and on, but I don't want to burn it all on the first post.

So, in closing...and just to show my age...I'm going to list my "all time" favorite wrestlers and then some quick notes about today's crop of  wrestlers.  (Just to prove that I CAN be objective when measuring old school versus today's product)

All Time Favorites (not really in any order):
Ric Flair
Bret Hart
Arn Anderson
Barry Windham
Muta
Goldust
Magnum TA
Rick Steamboat
Nikita Koloff
Stone Cold version of Steve Austin
William Regal


Today's inventory:

• I don't hate on Roman Reigns like most others. I DO think they should turn him heel, he's got a natural heel vibe. But on either side of the book I think he's rather good.


• I think, if booked properly, Braun Strowman can be absolutely mind-blowing-ly incredible for as long as he and the WWE want it.


• I think Lucha Underground is one of the most amazing TV shows Pro Wrestling ever produced. I hope they can keep their funding, because both the talent and the production are amazing.


• I'm NOT a fan of women's wrestling. At all. That's not to be sexist. It just doesn't entertain me. For every "great" like Gail Kim, Sasha Banks and Charlotte Flair there are too many others who are just average in the ring and awful on the stick. When you couple this with limited talent pool (most every fed sees the same 6 or 7 girls wrestle each other each month) it gets un-interesting, quickly.


• Doesn't Charlotte wrestle JUST like her father?! I mean .. the mannerisms! Not just the ring work.


• AJ Styles?  Of course, yeah. Phenomenal.


• Kevin Owens?  For a guy who doesn't "look" the part, he's entertaining as all get out.


• Have you seen Pro Wrestling Guerrilla?  If you haven't, you need to. PWG was cool long before NXT was.

Oh man, I can go on and on.
In fact, some of the stuff I wrote above I'm going to expand into Blog entries.

PLEASE feel free to comment the blog, and connect with me on Twitter!