– WWE is set to do another major promotional push for the WWE Network starting after the Thanksgiving holiday. They will be pushing the Network as the best Christmas gift possible for the wrestling fan in your home.
– Below is a new video interview with Kevin Steen, courtesy of Jim Varsallone of The Miami Herald.
(Partial Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
– Although Roman Reigns’ interview on Monday’s RAW was said to be “live via satellite,” he was backstage at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. We noted originally that the plan was for Reigns to do a taped interview, however Reigns himself said in a media interview that he was going to appear live on RAW. Apparently this was a simple case of miscommunication between WWE and Reigns.
– Below are some recent WWE attendance figures:
October 3rd in Toronto, Ontario, Canada drew 4,700 fans
October 4th in Providence, Rhode Island drew 5,500 fans
October 4th in Trenton, New Jersey drew 4,000 fans
October 5th in Bridgeport, Connecticut drew 3,000 fans
October 5th in Allentown, Pennsylvania drew 4,400 fans
October 6th in Brooklyn, New York for RAW drew a legit sellout of 11,800
BROCK LESNAR To RETURN To UFC After His WWE Deal Expires In 2015?! [READ >>]
(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
The following are highlights of a new Ring Rust Radio interview with Eddie Edwards:
Edwards on moving to Wednesday and Spike TV negotiations: “As far as the move to Wednesday, I think it was a good idea, you know, with the NFL having the Thursday night games televised now, I thought it was a good idea because it’s a similar fan base and it’s just a smart thing to do. As far as the contract situation, you know, we have nothing to do with that so we just focus on our stuff in the ring and let that stuff handle itself; if you can’t control it, no need to worry about it.”
Edwards on working with Team 3D and The Hardys, and what he and Davey Richards have learned from the experience: “I mean, we have no choice but to learn from being in the ring with those guys. Both teams are legends and me and Davey both watched them growing up and we want to have careers like both of those guys. Being in there, you have no choice but to learn and see what true tag wrestling is and it’s just an honor to be in there with guys of that caliber.”
Edwards on whether he prefers to work tag team or singles: “Right now it’s all tag team stuff, I feel like we have something great going and I would never want to do anything to deter that. Do I look forward to singles matches? Yes, but right now the main concentration is tag wrestling.”
On disappointment that The Wolves are not scheduled for Bound For Glory: “I think as competitors we want to be on every event that they have, but I think they were just trying to play it safe due to Davey’s injury and whatnot. I know that we’re both disappointed but they gotta do what’s best for the company. Either way it’ll still be a great show.”
The most important aspect of building an entertaining match: “I think it would be trying to connect with the fans. The crowd, you have to get that emotion out of them, so that’s the main focus because if the crowd is not paying attention and they’re not emotionally involved they’re not going to care, so you have to make that connection.”
On some of the differences between American wrestling and Japanese wrestling, both in terms of style and crowd interaction: “The style is definitely more hard-hitting and more intense than one might see in the States, and the crowd, you almost have to earn their respect because they almost look at it as a pure sport over there, so they’re waiting to see what you can do and once you get them reacting to what you’re doing, you know you’re doing something right because they won’t just give it to you, you have to earn it.”
Independent wrestlers who would be a good fit in TNA: “There’s so many talented guys out there right now, the Indies is overflowing with them. It’s unfortunate because obviously everyone can’t be seen all the time, but obviously Ring of Honor has a lot of great guys, I don’t know if they’re considered Indy or not, but look at the roster for PWG. You could just pick and choose from that roster and so many of those guys would be ready to jump right into TNA.”
Would Edwards prefer to wrestle with Davey Richards in a tag team match or wrestle against him in his final match either with the company or his career: “That’s a good one, could I do them both? I don’t know, it’s a tough one, I think it’d be, depending on who our opponents are, tag wrestling.”
Check out the complete interview at BlogTalkRadio.com.
– Paul Heyman’s Heyman Hustle has published exclusive photos of WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus’ recent appearance at the Wizard World Hamilton Comic Con event. Needless to say, she’s looking better than ever.
– With WWE SummerSlam 2015 taking place from the “NY/NJ” area, the Wrestling Observer reports that WWE is expected to announce a major Los Angeles-based pay-per-view at the December 30th live event from the Staples Center.
– WWE Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler indicated on Wednesday that United Airlines still has not returned his luggage, including his Intercontinental Championship belt. He tweeted:
update: still no bag or contact. bought new clothes & supplies just to go to work! lose my number @united
#PRAYFORDOLPHsbag
— Dolph Ziggler (@HEELZiggler) October 8, 2014
The following are highlights of a new Busted Open Radio interview with Drew Galloway (aka Drew McIntyre):
Was there a fear of leaving WWE and going on the indy scene? I guess you have that on the back of your mind. After I got the call, I sat down and said I am 29, I been in the WWE for seven years and I been wrestling since I was 15. I am going to go out and make stuff happen. I didn’t want to be like everyone else when they get finish from WWE and be like ‘Oh I am young I’ll be hired again and they just fly under the radar’. I don’t want to do that. I want to go out and make as many bombs go off as I can. We are living in the social media age and it is a great time to be a professional wrestler because people can follow you and people are following what I am doing.
Does it feel like wrestling is becoming almost like a curse word to a company like WWE? I wouldn’t put it that way. WWE is like a different animal these days. It’s a multi-million almost billion dollar juggernaut. It has a particular style. It won’t have that typical long match. It has certain things to stick to and products to sell. That is why WWE is now sports entertainment. Like independent wrestling they don’t try to be like WWE because nobody can compete with it. It’s a big difference. WWE labels themselves as ‘Sports Entertainment’. When I was in WWE I was a Sports Entertainer but I am not anymore I am a Professional Wrestler.
So there really is that division with what you’re doing now in pro wrestling and what you did at WWE with sports entertainment? Yeah, absolutely, I didn’t think much of it. It is a completely different animal now. They have phone calls to answer to, sponsors to answer too. It became a completely different thing and that is why it became Sports Entertainment because it’s not pro wrestling as we know it. What I am doing now is pro wrestling and that is what I want to do as long I am young enough to do it. I’ve been in America since I am 21, I just want to wrestle for a few more years and maybe start doing the 3MB thing when I get older. (Laughs) I just want to get the wrestling out of my system.
I don’t understand how a guy goes from the Chosen One to 3MB to gone? I don’t know. That’s wrestling I guess. I wish we stuck with the story line a little longer because we were on the right track with it. I remember the pinnacle of it with myself, Kofi Kingston, and Teddy Long at ringside. I remember how into it the crowd was getting and it was a lot to take in. It was such a big show and we were strictly on Smackdown. It was a process getting the character across and then suddenly we started pulling back. Then we had something with Edge & Kelly Kelly then we pulled back. Suddenly I wasn’t doing anything and it was disappointing. I wasn’t the only guy that happened too. I wasn’t doing anything when they came up with the 3MB thing. The writers had to take me to the stands to tell me. I don’t know what they expected me to do like I was going to flip out and attack everybody. I wanted to take an opportunity and run with it, but the first week in I had a broken wrist and had to get surgery. Vince was so invested into 3MB. The first week the main wrestler of the group had a broken wrist so it kind of killed it.
Was there somebody on that roster that you wished you had a program with and could have made a lot of money with? Yeah, I said a million times, it is always Sheamus. He and I came up together from the independent scene. We had such a big feud in Europe we have boat loads of footage working together. We came up together, we went through development together. We won the developmental titles together. When I won the Intercontinental Title and he won the World Heavyweight Title on the same night. It is kind of like the big brother thing of one ups man ship. It is such an easy big brother, little brother storyline that can make money because it is real. People like real.
What was it like working for a guy like Vince McMahon? Lifelong dream and it was all I wanted to do. He created modern day wrestling into Sports Entertainment. That’s his baby, he created an image and he made himself so much money with so many hours of TV a week. That is why I didn’t go crazy about wins and losses and I see why they make they focus on the main story lines, because that is where the money comes. I see everyone else going crazy over wins and losses. Just take a step back and relax and wait your turn. That’s what I did with 3MB we went out there and did our best.
Check out the complete interview at BustedOpenNation.com.
The following matches are scheduled for tonight’s episode of NXT on the WWE Network:
Former WCW / IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Vader recently spoke to Raj Giri of WrestlingINC.com. You can get a video message from Vader and other wrestlers and celebrities at CelebVM.com.
Here are some highlights from the interview:
The Ultimate Warrior originally being groomed for the Big Van Vader gimmick in Japan:
Vader: Yeah! This is just my understanding, but I heard that Sid Vicious was also up for it. And [Antonio] Inoki had designed this thing and he was going to put this helmet on somebody and pay him a lot of money. They brought the Warrior over and—let’s face it…may he rest in peace and with all due respect—he looked fantastic, he had a lot of energy, he’s a Hall of Famer, but athletically, he was limited; in other words, he was a little stiff. In other words, I don’t think he could play a real good game of basketball. I’m not trying to be disrespectful but I believe the best wrestlers are also athletic in nature. Look at someone like Sting who is a tremendous athlete. Look at Undertaker, who is just a fabulous athlete. A guy like Shawn Michaels, who is a smaller athlete but…tremendous athleticism. I think Ultimate Warrior and Sid, although they looked fantastic, athletically I don’t think they’d have been given college scholarships to play football or basketball or something like that.
“This is my point: over in Japan, these guys were just very special athletes. They were raised in this. They were like gods and these guys were raised to do this from childhood. These guys started when they were 10, doing squats and pushups and they were handpicked. The best athletes moved on. There was never a case when I got in the ring in Japan and I wasn’t with a superior athlete. These guys were all fantastic athletes. They could do anything. A guy named Mitsuharu Misawa—he worked for a while and then started his own company, NOAH—he could do anything physically. He was just gifted. He got heavy and smoked towards the end and still could do 20 and 30 minute matches with me and just do anything—and hold, any move, anything off the top rope. All of them: Kobashi, Akiyama, Inoki—was probably the least athletic of them all—Gret Muta—God, you talk about a 6’3” athlete. So that’s just my opinion and they didn’t work out because Inoki saw that they could not go 20 minutes a night and work with these athletic, smaller guys. Especially Sid, because of his height. He’s 6′ 7” and you know, I was a lot taller than these guys and compared to Sid…Sid towers over me. I’m 6’4” and he’s 6’7”…6’8” with a boot on. But again, if you watch Sid in the ring, he’s kind of stiff. He kind of reminds me of Kane. Kane is stiff. He moves… that robotic kind of thing. Not real fluid. And you compare Kane to the Undertaker and I think that’d be a fair analogy. Kane gets up to the top rope and he comes off and it’s kind of difficult for him and it’s kind of awkward. The Undertaker walks up backward gracefully and comes of the top rope and there’s just a difference in athletic ability. Don’t get me wrong; Kane’s a Hall of Famer and he’s going to do great but I’m trying to make a point here.
The sid Vicious – Arn Anderson hotel fight in the U.K. in 1993:
“Me and Steve [Austin] are sitting there [in the hotel bar] and then all hell breaks loose. Neither one of us really saw what happened but next thing I know, man, Sid comes walking up to me because I was headed that way to see if I could help or, you know, just hold somebody because it was a violent fight. I mean there were chairs and bottles. And Sid, if memory serves, it was either just to the left of his belly button or just to the right of his belly button, he had a hole in him and I looked and he was doing the Frankenstein walk and he just said, ‘Leon, Leon,’ and I said ‘Oh sh–‘ and I looked and it about a nickel sized stream of blood squirted out every time his heart pumped. It came out about four inches before it fell down, it wasn’t trickling down his stomach, it was squirting out, and it came out about two to three inches and then it dropped and I thought to myself, ‘He’s not going to last long, he’ll bleed to death.’ I said ‘Sid, trust me,’ and I grabbed a chair and I sat down and said, ‘Sid, don’t move, you’re gonna die’ and I slowly eased my thumb into that hole and higher and he said, ‘You’re hurting me.’ and I said, ‘You gotta take it’ and I got it in there a little bit more and it slowed the bleeding enough and kept him alive until the ambulance came.
“That’s the true story. This was instinct on my part, I knew if I took a towel he’d bleed to death. I thought I had to plug it and somehow I got in there and I had stopped the bleeding partially because I got my thumb on the vein that had been cut and it slowed it down and, you know what? As far as I’m concerned, Anderson owes me a “Thank you” because I don’t care if you’re right or wrong, when someone gets killed, you’re in trouble. Someone dies. And as far as Sid, I probably saved his life and, you know what? Not probably, most definitely did, because I was there, I saw it and (laughs) neither one of them thanked me. No good deed goes unpunished, brother.
Being promised the WWF title:
Vader: You know what, the title was promised to me two times. I was supposed to be a two-time heavyweight champion. If I did the job for Shawn at SummerSlam, and then something would happen and I’d get it then give it to somebody else, take it back and then give it back to Shawn in San Antonio. Instead, somehow that got changed around.
Anyway, Sid took that run and then I had a really great opportunity, Vince said to me, “You’re not just a good worker, you’re a great big man and there’s this guy coming in here called The Rock. Just take him under the arm about ninety days and just beat the hell out of him. I want you to teach him how to wrestle but be rough on him.” The Rock was just “Yes, sir, no, sir” to me and for ninety days, I beat him every night, but I made him listen. You know, “Hit me harder,” and “Do this,” and “This psychology and that psychology,” and the last night, he beat me and we shook hands and he went on and I think I did a pretty good job. He had a whole lot to work with. And then, for that, [Vince] said “We’re going to give you a run at the Intercontinental and then that never happened.
Vader also discussed another gimmick Vince McMahon had for him, getting his start in pro wrestling, his NFL career getting cut short, signing with WCW, Ron Simmons defeating him to become the first African American World Heavyweight Champion and what it meant to him, Eric Bischoff taking charge in WCW, his WCW departure, signing with WWE, WWE not pushing him properly and much more. You can read the full interview by clicking here.
At one point, WWE was planning on having Brock Lesnar return for a brief feud over the WWE World Heavyweight Championship with Big Show. Apparently, that is no longer in the plans and will not be happening.
Lesnar is not scheduled to make his return to WWE until January to begin promoting his Royal Rumble title defense, which is expected to be against John Cena.
It’s been reported that Cena may face Rusev at WrestleMania 31 next year, so the belief is that if they wanted to, WWE could have Rusev cost Cena his match with Lesnar at the Rumble, setting up Cena-Rusev at WrestleMania.
(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
TNA apparently made a play recently for CM Punk. It was said to be done in similar fashion to how they reached out to Alberto Del Rio, which is through an intermediary who is friends with Punk.
The idea was that Punk would be the top star of the company with pay similar to what Hulk Hogan was making when he was with the promotion.
TNA was hoping that Punk could be their flagship star and if he signed with them, could help them get a strong television deal.
Punk reportedly expressed zero interest in working for TNA, or in pro wrestling in general.
BROCK LESNAR To RETURN To UFC After His WWE Deal Expires In 2015?! [READ >>]
(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
On this week’s edition of WWE SmackDown, there will be a backstage segment involving The Rock, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. The segment sees Rock and HHH going back-and-forth over who would win if they wrestled again, including each guy taking shots at the other.
Apparently this was a tease for a potential WrestleMania 31 main event between Rock and Hunter. A match between the two was actually discussed at one point for WrestleMania XXX, but obviously ended up not happening.
During the segment taped for Friday’s SmackDown, The Rock actually brought up the main event of WrestleMania 31 and WWE generally does not tease something that big if it’s not in the plans.
(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
WWE was apparently not pleased that Rey Mysterio was backstage at the AAA Lucha Underground taping in Los Angeles recently, particularly because photos of him at the show and later at a dinner with people involved with the promotion appeared on social media.
It’s worth noting that the photos were quickly deleted.
There is no word yet as to whether or not this latest incident will result in any specific repercussions, as at this point, Mysterio is still legally under contract with WWE.
(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
– Apparently Randy Orton reached a new agreement with WWE recently where he’s no longer working full-time on the road. Orton is no longer obligated to work all of the weekend live events.
– As noted earlier this week, movie directors The Soska Twins, who worked on WWE Studios projects such as “See No Evil 2” and “Vendetta,” are very interested in making a movie based off of The Wyatt Family. The story received a very big response on Twitter after they tweeted about it and even garnered some mainstream attention with a Dread Central article. The Soska Twins noted in recent interviews that WWE gave them a lot of creative control over “See No Evil 2,” so it will be interesting to see if WWE bites on the idea of a possible Wyatt Family film.
(Partial Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
The storyline with Big Show and the Russian flag, including the company’s apology, was all simply part of a planned angle. WWE does have television shows in Russia, so they may have wanted to soften the blow, however it’s said that the entire thing was all planned out in advance.
The incident actually made the news in some Russian outlets, although it wasn’t treated as a major story or anything like that.
The part of the angle where Big Show pulled down the Russian flag ended up being edited off WWE’s Russian version of RAW, as the show airs on a five-day delay.
On a somewhat related note, Rusev and Lana are apparently put over strong by the Russian announcers as national heroes and babyfaces.
(Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
WWE Hall Of Famer “Superstar” Billy Graham has been hospitalized again. Graham’s wife Valerie wrote the following on Facebook about his condition:
“This is a message from Superstar’s wife Valerie. Billy has been admitted to the Mayo Clinic from complications from his previous medical conditions. Not much specific information is known at this time, but this post will be updated soon. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.”
As noted, John Cena tweeted The Rock after his surprise appearance on Monday’s edition of WWE RAW in Brooklyn, New York. The Rock has since responded to Cena, which you can read below.
@JohnCena Thank U homeboy. Great seeing ya backstage. Keep hustlin and grindin and one day I will beat you in a squat competition. #Never
— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) October 8, 2014
Another exchange on Twitter involving The Rock is the back-and-forth he had with Lana after the show, which you can read below.
@LanaWWE @WWE @RusevBUL Clearly, you didn't appreciate my "Smirnoff bottle shoved up your Putin" joke. You're still smokin'. #Boots2Asses
— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) October 7, 2014
Lana fired back at Rock with the following response:
I'm obviously stunning/beautiful/perfect @TheRock but I know word in English and Russian that perfectly describes you… PIG! @RusevBUL
— LANA (@LanaWWE) October 7, 2014
The following are highlights of a new Daily Mirror interview with TNA star Bram:
On TNA’s TV situation: “TNA management and Dixie [Carter] keep us in the loop as much as they can. I’m confident in the company. I don’t worry about it. Whatever they choose to do I know it’s going to work out.”
On being married to NXT Women’s Champion Charlotte: “I’m doing my own thing in TNA and she’s doing her own thing there. We have a bond in wrestling and in most relationships, wrestling can get in the way. We both understand when we’re away for a long time or we’re hurt or you’ve got to do things some people wouldn’t be too happy with. There’s a nice understanding there which makes our relationship a lot easier.”
On being Ric Flair’s son-in-law: “It’s not something you think about. If you had told me all of the things I would have done, people that I would have met when I was 13, I would have been like ‘wow’. But as the years pass, everything kind of seems normal. From an outside point of view it might seem cool or bizarre, but to me it’s normal. It’s a great relationship, it has been from day one, he’s a hell of a guy. As long as Ashley’s happy, he’s happy.”
You can check out the complete interview at Mirror.co.uk.
Triple H recently spoke to SIRIUS/XM host Sam Roberts and responded to the topic of fans seemingly enjoying the NXT product more so than the main WWE roster product.
“At the end of the day down here, I take the talent that I have and I try to write the best show,” Triple H said. “I try to write a show that I want to watch, and that’s all I do. People can say, ‘Oh, the difference in the shows.’ Listen, if I had to write a three-hour show ever week? You know, I don’t, I have to write a one hour show.”
HHH continued, “The pressure is a lot different. There’s a lot of masters that have to be served – Raw and Smackdown and all of those things. I’m flattered that people love the product. I think it’s great. I’m excited for these kids. At the end of the day, the goal is still to get them up to the main roster, but the bigger I can make the platform for them to jump off onto that main roster, the better it is.”
You can check out the complete interview above.
– Former WWE Superstar Alberto Del Rio will be competing at the WRESTLE-1’s big Sumo Hall show in Japan on November 1st. The show will mark Keiji Muto’s 30th anniversary as an active wrestler.
– The Rock will be appearing on Friday’s SmackDown in a backstage segment with Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. The segment was recorded on Monday at RAW.
– The dark main event that took place after last night’s SmackDown tapings saw John Cena and Dean Ambrose defeat Kane and Seth Rollins. Late in the match, Ambrose got a hot tag and unloaded on Kane and Rollins. Cena and Ambrose hit their finishers for the win.
After the match, they played to the crowd to see who could get the bigger pop (like they did after RAW) and Ambrose won (again).
It was announced at the WWE SmackDown television taping on Tuesday night in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that at the upcoming WWE Hell In A Cell pay-per-view, the match between John Cena and Dean Ambrose will now have a stipulation.
The Cena-Ambrose bout will now be a no holds barred match with a contract on a pole, with the winner still advancing later in the pay-per-view to a match with “Mr. Money In The Bank” Seth Rollins. Based on advertising, the person who loses the Cena-Ambrose match will likely face Randy Orton later on in the pay-per-view.
You can read a complete SmackDown spoiler report for this week by clicking here.
Bo Dallas recently spoke with Jim Varsallone of The Miami Herald. Here are some highlights:
Working in NXT: “The NXT today is a developmental system unlike anything that has ever been done before. It’s a great platform for someone to grow. I had the opportunity to do that and live through it. I wouldn’t be the same performer if I didn’t get the chance to go down to NXT and perform in front of a crowd like that. It really helped me hone my craft and character unlike I ever thought possible.”
His Family Lineage: “Obviously, you have the big shoes to fill and having people wondering if you will ever compare up to your family members. I got into this business to make it as myself, whatever that was. I don’t think you look at me and say, ‘Wow, he took a lot from his father or grandfather or uncles.’ I think I’m a completely different entity. I think I do a good job distancing myself from that.”
R-Truth Ending His WWE Undefeated Streak: “The undefeated streak was great, but you are forever changing to keep yourself relevant and driven. No matter what happens, you’re going to come out okay…You never know where the character is going to go. I never knew I was going to get to this point. If I can say anything, I have my eyes set on the Intercontinental championship. So whoever is holding that at any point, that is where I’m going now…Bret “The Hitman” Hart, Shawn Michaels, Randy “Macho Man” Savage, the Intercontinental title needs to be put on that pedestal it was when I was growing up. Hopefully, I can strive to do that one day.”
Here are some highlights of Kofi Kingston’s recently interview with the UK’s The Independent newspaper:
NXT Champion Adrian Neville: “Some of the things he does are just incredible, he calls himself the man that gravity forgot, and he just defies gravity with everything he does. For me, as a fan, I think he’s going to be one of the greatest of all time when he gets it all going. As a performer I would love to get in there with him and mix it up, I think our styles would mesh well and produce a great match for the people watching.”
His new stable with Big E and Xavier Woods: “I’m always trying to climb the ladder, and right now myself, Big E and Xavier Woods are trying to get a team off the ground. We have been having a lot of matches on live events, and we are trying to get something going. If ,and when it does take off, it should be very entertaining, and something people can get behind. As of now, we’re just three smart athletic friends hanging out and having a good time. As a matter of fact, when we come to the UK I’ll be teaming with Big E, and Xavier will probably be there too as we’ll be taking on the Wyatt Family. It’s awesome, I tell everyone that the UK is one of my favorite places to go.”
Wanting the WWE World Heavyweight Championship: “That’s what everyone always strives for. Myself, I always tell people that if you’re not getting better you’re only getting worse, and every day I try and be better than yesterday. The ultimate goal in mind being to be WWE World Heavyweight Champion. That’s what you always strive for, and if you don’t believe that you can then you probably shouldn’t be in WWE.”
Be A Star Anti-Bullying Program Goes Purple in Support of GLAAD’S Spirit Day
NEW YORK and STAMFORD, Conn., October 7, 2014 – WWE® and The Creative Coalition will support GLAAD’s Spirit Day by “going purple” through their joint Be a STAR (Show Tolerance And Respect) anti-bullying initiative. Support kicked off this morning at a Be a STAR anti-bullying rally in New York and will continue through Spirit Day next Thursday, October 16 with promotion on TheCreativeCoalition.org, WWE.com, WWECommunity.com and on WWE and Be a STAR social media assets, reaching more than 400 million people globally.
As part of The Creative Coalition and WWE’s support for GLAAD, a Be a STAR Alliance Member, the Be a STAR logo was turned purple, a first in the program’s history, and students at the rally were given co-branded t-shirts that encouraged them to “Go Purple” on Spirit Day, show their support for LGBT youth and speak out against bullying. WWE has supported GLAAD’s Spirit Day since 2011.
“No one should be bullied because of who they are,” said GLAAD President & CEO Sarah Kate Ellis. “GLAAD is proud to stand with WWE in the fight against bullying and in a visible display of support for LGBT youth.”
“Spirit Day is an important time for everyone to stand up against bullying and discrimination,” said Stephanie McMahon, WWE Chief Brand Officer. “WWE is proud to support the LGBT community and GLAAD by spreading the message of respect and inclusion through our global platforms.”
“The Creative Coalition is proud that GLAAD is a member of our Be a STAR Alliance and even more proud to support Spirit Day as an initiative that embodies the tenets of the Be a STAR program,” said CEO of The Creative Coalition Robin Bronk. “We commend GLAAD for Spirit Day and believe it enhances our commitment to utilizing the resources of the arts and entertainment community to increase acceptance of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth.”
Additionally, WWE and Be a STAR will stand up against bullying and support GLAAD’s Spirit Day by promoting the initiative through homepage takeovers on WWE.com and WWECommunity.com as well as social media support from WWE Superstars and Divas.
Spirit Day was started in 2010 as a response to the young people who had taken their own lives. Millions wear purple on Spirit Day as a sign of support for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) youth and to speak out against bullying. With GLAAD’s help, Spirit Day has since garnered widespread support from entertainment organizations, sports leagues, celebrities, TV news and entertainment programs, corporations, schools, local communities, and even national landmarks.
According to GLSEN’s 2011 National School Climate Survey, 63.5% of LGBT students reported feeling unsafe at school because of their sexual orientation and 43.9% because of their gender expression. GLSEN also reported that 81.9% of LGBT students report being verbally harassed because of their sexual orientation and 63.9% because of their gender expression.
CMT issued the following press release:
“REDNECK ISLAND” SET TO RETURN TO CMT WITH HOT NEW TWIST AND HOT NEW CO-HOST ON DECEMBER 4
Jessie James Decker will Join Steve Austin as Co-Host, Presiding Over 10 New Episodes of the Popular CMT Series
Nashville – October 8, 2014 – CMT’s ultimate competition series REDNECK ISLAND returns for a fourth season rowdier than ever, with a hot new co-host and even hotter new twist. Country singer/songwriter and TV personality Jessie James Decker joins wrestling icon Steve Austin as masters of ceremonies on the “island” this season, tucked away at a lake in North Georgia. CMT greenlit 10 one-hour episodes of the new season, marking the return of one of the most popular CMT series since it debuted in 2012. Part of CMT’s outrageous Thursday nights, the all-new REDNECK ISLAND debuts with a 90-minute extended premiere on Thursday, December 4 at 9:00-10:30 p.m., ET/PT.
This season on REDNECK ISLAND, 12 guys and 12 girls will fight to win cold hard cash in the ultimate redneck competition series where time spent partying is just as important as time spent competing. While these rednecks may arrive single and ready to mingle, a high-stakes, sexy spin on the original format will pair male and female teammates up as bunkmates in a new twist that is sure to fuel both competition and romance at the lake house. In the end, one guy/gal team will walk away from this little redneck heaven $100,000 richer.
Steve ‘Stone Cold’ Austin, six-time World Wrestling Federation Champion and 2003 WWE Hall of Fame inductee has been busy since retiring from the ring in 2003. Austin began his acting career in 2005 with a breakout performance in the Adam Sandler starrer, The Longest Yard, which went on to make $187 million worldwide; followed by a starring role in The Condemned, which continues to be one of the World Wrestling Entertainment’s most lucrative releases. In 2010 Sylvester Stallone tapped Austin for his action thriller The Expendables. In 2013 Austin had a featured role in Adam Sandler’s comedy Grown Ups 2. Austin currently hosts two successful TV shows for CMT, Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Challenge and Redneck Island. In addition, he shakes things up every week with his highly-rated podcast, The Steve Austin Show on www.podcastone.com. When not hanging out on his 2100+ acre Broken Skull Ranch (www.brokenskullranch.com) in the back country of South Texas, Austin lives in Marina del Rey, Calif. with his wife, Kristin, and their three Labradors.
Multi-talented country singer, songwriter Jessie James Decker recently released her EP Comin’ Home, a candid celebration of her pop and country influences. The EP, produced by John Fields (Miley Cyrus, Jonas Brothers, Switchfoot), debuted at #5 on the Billboard Country chart and #28 on Billboard Top 200. Comin’ Home found major success on iTunes reaching #1 on the iTunes Album Chart and #9 on the Overall Digital Chart. Tracks from the EP were featured on her hit reality series “Eric & Jessie: Game On” which she starred in with husband, superstar pro football wide receiver Eric Decker. Jessie burst onto the music scene with her self-titled debut album in 2009. The album’s first single “Wanted” was certified gold with record sales of more than 120,000. Jessie is currently working on new music and enjoying time with her husband and newborn daughter Vivianne Rose. She also launched the Eric & Jessie Decker Foundation to positively impact the lives of United States military veterans and at risk children.
REDNECK ISLAND is executive produced by Christian Sarabia and Fred Birkhead from 51 Minds Entertainment and Clay Newbill from 310 Entertainment, along with Steve Austin from Broken Skull Ranch Productions. Jayson Dinsmore and Morgan Selzer serve as executive producers for CMT.
Paul Heyman appeared at last night’s SmackDown tapings from Philadelphia and cut a promo on John Cena and Dean Ambrose.
Heyman spoke about the news of Cena and Ambrose facing each other at Hell in a Cell for the right to wrestle Dean Ambrose in the main event of the PPV. Heyman said this is all part of Cena’s downward spiral that began when Cena lost WWE World Heavyweight Championship to his client Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam.
Since the promo took place after Main Event and before the SmackDown broadcast began taping, it’s unknown if this segment will appear on Friday’s SmackDown 15th Anniversary show.
WWE Hall of Famer Jerry Lawler was a guest on the debut episode of the new “This Is Awesome Wrestling Show” podcast.
– He talked about him and the announce team not knowing about The Rock coming back on Raw and how they thought when his music hit, it was going to be the Big Show dressed as The Rock. He mentions you see how much The Rock is still relevant and compares to stars now.
– The King also talks about possibility stepping back into a WWE ring. He also talks about a possible John Cena heel turn, which he says “never say never”.
– He also talks about announcing back in the Attitude Era vs. now, his jokes he used back then and now. How Triple H and other higher ups asked Jerry about Kevin Steen, who Jerry wrestled before Kevin signed with WWE.
Also, he talks about the crowd at Raw in Brooklyn, and even mentions when the crowd started chanting “This is Stupid” and says, hey, I was thinking the same thing.
The Lawler interview starts around the 21 minute mark; it lasts 30 minutes.