WrestlingClassics.com DVDs Available Now

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WrestlingClassics.com is excited to debut it's line of DVDs just in time for the holidays. We have 13 of our most popular titles ready to ship immediately. Order today at a special low price plus get free domestic shipping and handling on all selected videos.
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WrestlingClassics.com Shoot Interviews

Playboy Gart Hart, Sir Oliver Humperdink, and Jimmy Garvin
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It's the three of the most provocative, powerful, and controversial Shoot Interviews ever. Order these three new Shoot Interviews and the critically acclaimed Jack Brisco Shoot Interview at one low price. All interviews are professional two camera shoots with professional studio post production.
Click here to get three great Shoot Interviews

WrestleMania XX thoughts 
By Mark Nulty
I’m going to duck as a I say this but…I was disappointed with WrestleMania XX. I  thought the card had so much potential going in. There were so many matches I was looking forward to. But something fell flat. Here's why: 
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Multi-Media tribute to Wahoo McDaniel 
By Mark Nulty
Wahoo McDaniel's in-ring career is truly legendary. As Tully Blanchard says, "Some guys could draw money in their little area... But Wahoo McDaniel was a star everywhere he went." This is a multi-media celebration of the legendary Wahoo McDaniel featuring video clips of Wahoo in action. Listen to interviews with Joe Blanchard, Tully Blanchard, Jack Brisco, Ivan Koloff, and Superstar Billy Graham. 
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Multi-Media tribute to Johnny Valentine
By Mark Nulty
A multi-media celebration of the legendary Johnny Valentine featuring video clips of Johnny in action. Listen to Real Audio interviews with Lou Thesz, Dory Funk Jr., Brian Blair, Larry Matysik, Jose Lothario, Ivan Koloff, Buddy Colt, Paul Jones, Joe Blanchard, Skandar Akbar, Red Bastien, Killer Karl Kox, and Wahoo McDaniel. Enjoy photos of Johnny in action and more. .. more

Kurt Angle
By Paul Herzog
When we look at the 00s and beyond, one wrestler stands out as a "savior" to classics wrestling fans...that wrestler is Kurt Angle... more

Valets and the XFL
By Paul Herzog
There are some times for everyone who writes for a living where the words don’t seem to flow from brain to fingers to the page.  Other times, one runs into a situation where there are multiple topics, which are both solid ideas, and the decision-making process is a difficult one.  For me, this is one of those latter situations.  So bear with me, cause we’re gonna talk about both.... more

XFL:  Success or flop?
By Paul Herzog
I’ve gone on the record as stating that that XFL was a bad idea, a bad use of the money gained from their IPO, and an eventual profit drain that will cause shareholders to force WWFE to drop the league.  After one week, I’m a little more open-minded.  I’m not quite converted.  But I’m there enough to come up with three reasons why I think the XFL will end up a long-term (anything longer than three seasons) success... more

Taking stock in the McMahons as performers: Is this any way to run a company?
By Paul Herzog
Professional wrestling may be my passion, but I pay the mortgage with a company called Tellabs. Tellabs has been one of the leaders in the telecommunications boom…in fact; we were one of the top 10 performing stocks of the 90s, along with household names such as Microsoft, Dell, and Cisco Systems... The World Wrestling Federation has to do the same activities that Tellabs, Microsoft, or any other publicly traded company does. However, it is unique in its product, and how it presents itself.... more

Requiem for a Promotion
By Paul Herzog
It was easy for me to fall in love with NWA Eastern Championship Wrestling when I first saw a tape of Ultra Clash back in late 1993, but now, it looks like the renamed Extreme Championship Wrestling ran their last scheduled shows last weekend... more

A Look at the PWI Top 20 for Y2K
By Paul Herzog
It’s one of my favorites times of year to be a wrestling fan…this year’s PWI 500 has been released, covering August of 1999 to August of 2000. I picked up a copy... and we’ll start with my thoughts on the Top 20... more

Free political advice, Johnny Valentine update and more
By Lou Thesz - Six-time World heavyweight champion
The trip to the International Wrestling Institute and Museum was incredible...the best ever. Some of my dearest friends were there and the support for the Museum is growing. Mostly, the appreciation for the preservation of wrestling history is being expressed. .. more

Vince Russo ran me off from WCW
By Paul Herzog
Over the last several years, I’ve returned over and over to the question, “What would it take for me to stop watching professional wrestling?” Over the last couple of weeks, I think I’ve found it. It came from the man whom I should have expected it’d come from, Vince Russo. But the method behind the madness was something I never expected:.. more

Tribute to Gordon Solie
By Mark Nulty
A celebration of the greatest wrestling announcer of all time. In addition to a column dedicated to his legacy, enjoy audio clips of Gordon at his best. .. more

More blunders on Thunder
By Paul Herzog
Before becoming a full-time member of the WrestlingClassics.com family, I reviewed WCW’s weekly Thunder broadcasts for 1wrestling.com, and it’s associated Wrestling Lariat newsletter.  Sometimes, old habits are hard to break, and as such, here’s some thoughts that crossed my mind watching the 6/7 edition:.. more

ECW gambles future with TNN tirade
By Mark Nulty
On the ECW show on TNN, Heyman blasted his own national television outlet. I’d love to tell you exactly what Heyman said, but TNN muted it out and ran a crawl across the bottom saying, “Please ignore this gentleman’s temper tantrum.” I know that ECW is working an angle where they play baby face and portray TNN as heels, but I don’t know if Network Officials understand the concept of working. And if they do, they probably want to be Hulk Hogan-style baby faces. In other words, it’s doubtful if they want to take bumps for Paul E.... more

The real reason David Arquette was a bad idea
By Paul Herzog
It’s one thing for WCW to produce bad sport. Even if they produced an amazing product week in and week out, they wouldn’t gain until the WWF does something to slip up. It’s quite another for WCW to produce bad business. It’s inexcusable, far more so than a scrawny gimmick actor holding the World heavyweight championship... more

Can we please table the tables?
By Paul Herzog
Whether you cut it or not, pad underneath or not, that’s real wood, and real things can go wrong. New Jack was an incredibly lucky man when he overshot the bump at the ECW Living Dangerously PPV. Fit Finlay almost lost a leg in a meaningless third-from-the-bottom match on a WCW house show when he didn’t go through clean. How much longer until something like that, or worse, happens on live TV, and there’s nothing that can be done to fix it? The curve says it could any day now... more

Celebrating the Career of Jumbo Tsuruta
By Masanori Horie
Jumbo Tsuruta will be remembered as a legend of Puroresu forever, like Rikidozan, Giant Baba, and Antonio Inoki by the wrestling fans. He had 3,329 matches in Japan over 26 years. He won the AWA World heavyweight title, United National heavyweight title (five times), International heavyweight title (three times),  Triple Crown title (three times), International tag team title (eight times), PWF World tag team title (two times), and World Tag Team title (six times)... more

Wrestling in Korea; great museum in Iowa
By Lou Thesz - Six-time World Heavyweight Champion
I had been invited to serve as the commissioner of wrestling in Korea and possibly China, so I needed to check it out. Just because I will be 84 next week, I have no intention of giving up my search for some acceptable professional wrestling. And while the matches were not perfect, the main event made me proud of both Wang Pyo Lee and Giant Kurrgan... The International Wrestling Museum has even acquired the weights and pulleys and heavy bag Joe Stecher used to train. I have to admit, there is a bit too much Lou Thesz there. While my original belt is in Japan, I had a duplicate made by a jeweler. It is so damn beautiful and so exact; it puts a lump in my throat. .... more

Brandon Baxter
By Paul Herzog
It was a good time in Memphis, with the USWA v. SMW feud reaching a hot point, and after an introductory period trying to bring down Jerry Lawler and Bill Dundee with a group of heels called the Legend Slayers, Brandon became the Smoky Mountain sympathizer. He got to represent main eventers in the area, like the Heavenly Bodies, Prime Time Brian Lee and Tracy Smothers. More important, when things didn’t go as planned, he was forced to learn to think on his feet. Sometimes it went better than others... more

Here's Who Was Really Over in Chicago
By Paul Herzog
The toughest thing a booker has to do is to determine who can carry a push. It's usually skewed to a certain extent by backstage politics and personality conflicts. Other times, like at the WCW Pay-Per-View in Chicago, the answers are clear – if you’re willing to listen to the crowd... more

Misuse of the Term "Worker"
By Paul Herzog
The vocabulary of professional wrestling has expanded out into the dictionaries of casual fans, along with the nature of the business, kayfabe (a key word in that dictionary), and the general illusion of what you see being played out each week on TV. ... In fact, there are some that are completely misused, and none greater than "worker.". more

Greatest Wrestler of the Century is no Contest
By Lou Thesz - Six-time World Heavyweight Champion
I would like to begin with is the man who would be my Wrestler of the Century. For those who know me, this will not be a surprise. When people tell me I was their hero when they were kids I know what that means, and I am even more flattered. This man was one of my heroes when I was a kid and my only hero when I was an adult... more

The Heel of "00s"
By Paul Herzog
It might be a little presumptuous after only three months, but I've got a nomination for "Heel of the 00's", and his name is Don Callis, better known today as ECW's Cyrus. more

The Difference between Wrestling and Sports Entertainment
By Paul Herzog
I've been trying to figure out exactly Sports Entertainment is recently, and what makes it different than professional wrestling. After all, it seems that most of us like the latter, but have varying opinions about the former. My initial theory read something like this…more

The curse of Tony Norris' Unfulfilled Potential
By Paul Herzog
You know the flat-footed jump from the floor to the apron that X-Pac does? Moadib (Tony Norris) did that. You know that big press slam that Steve Williams did? Moadib did that. You know that huge flying shoulder tackle that Road Warrior Animal did? Moadib did that. You know that picture-perfect floating moonsault that 2 Cold Scorpio does? Moadib did that ... more

The Retirement of Cactus Jack
By Paul Herzog
It's rare that we can actually appreciate the last days of an athlete's career as we know they're happening ... more

CAC, the Museum, the Message Board and me
By Lou Thesz - Six-time World Heavyweight Champion
On the 11th of February, in Las Vegas, NV, I resigned as president of the Cauliflower Alley Club. It has been a great 7 year run, but I guess you could say I have the seven-year itch. The itch is not to get away from the CAC, but to have time to spend on raising money for the International Wrestling Institute and Museum... more

Look back at 1999 and toward 2000
By Lou Thesz - Six-time World Heavyweight Champion
First, let me say, this is not the beginning of a new millennium! We have to wait a year for that. Y2K was only a dress rehearsal for the Millennium... more

Lou Thesz discovers the Fountain of Youth
By Lou Thesz - Six-time World Heavyweight Champion
St. Louis celebrated a Century of St.Louis Sports this month. I was honored to be included with such greats as Stan Musial, Lou Brock, Bob Gibson, Ozzie Smith, Red Schoendienst, Jackie Joyner-Kersee and too many more to mention. The football players, soccer players, basketball players, tennis players, swimmers, and Olympic athletes were represented. ... more

I like wrestling better as a sport than a business
By Lou Thesz - Six-time World Heavyweight Champion
I never had any illusions that it was anything but a business. As I said in my book, anytime you sell tickets, it is a business. However, I preferred to see professional wrestling as it was in the gym and in public workouts. Today, pro wrestling is a fantasy of vulgarity and violence and incorporates all the negatives in our society today - gangs, concern only for number one, sex for individual pleasure, and death. ... more

The strange life and times of Jonathan Boyd
John Boyd was one of the first bookers I ever worked with and one of the oddest individuals I ever met in this business. Rather than giving the typical chronological bio and "wasn't he great" platitudes, here are some stories that demonstrate what made this man unique, even in the context of the wrestling business. ... more

Owen was all Hart
Five wrestlers, Dory Funk Jr., Joe Blanchard, the Bushwhackers and B. Brian Blair pay tribute to Owen Hart by talking about what he was like in and out of the ring. ... more

Joey Styles Can't Play It Both Ways
Selling the product as a higher-quality alternative to other professional wrestling groups has always been a marketing angle for ECW, and that's fine. It's the "us vs. them" mentality that has worked for ECW during its lean times, its growth periods, and most of the time in between. But in his zealousness to keep that mentality alive, and his enthusiasm for the product, Styles has often been glaringly forgetful. Some samples that come to mind over the past year or two. ... more

The Price of Being a Wrestling Fan Just Got Higher
Rick Rude dies in his sleep Tuesday night. Rude would be 40 this year. Chris Palacios remembers Rude and asks deeper questions of the wrestling industry and its fans. ... more

An Exercise in Hypocrisy...
Indiana University released a study where they counted all the inappropriate acts in a year's worth of Monday night RAW TV shows. If the school had wanted to count inappropriate acts, I could have saved the taxpayers a lot of money. All they had to do to find inappropriate acts was to walk across campus.... more

The Augmentation of Women's Wrestling
The Internet gossip started when the rumor leaked that ECW's promoter, Paul Heyman, had requested that Dawn Marie undergo breast augmentation surgery. Her character, Tammy Lynn Sytch, isn't exactly flat-chested, but an increase in cup size would make those catfights more appealing to a large percentage of the ECW audience, and perhaps make it easier to portray her character.... more

Shohei Baba was a Giant in and out of the ring
One of the most universally respected figures in professional wrestling history, Shohei "Giant" Baba, passed away Jan. 31. Hisaharu Tanabe, the leading authority on Japanese wrestling in America, discusses Baba's legacy and speculates on the future of Japanese wrestling in a Real Audio interview.Tanabe publishes the most respected English-language Website in wrestling when it comes to the history of Japanese wrestling. Also, comments from stars that wrestled for Baba's All-Japan promotion. ... more

The Nature of the Beast
The World Wrestling Federation has sponsors that have been part of the "family" for many years. Most of them make children's toys, candy bars, or video games, products aimed at and marketed toward those under the age of 18. In the quest for ratings, the WWF radically changed the focus of their programming, without regard of the focus of the sponsors. Needless to say, folks like Milton-Bradley have voiced their displeasure, because Monday Night Raw is no longer suitable for their target audience. Their arguments may have a ring of truth to them, but they reveal a total lack of understanding with regard to the wrestling business. Professional wrestling has always had one focus, as should any business: making money.... more

Sam Muchnick Tribute
Sam Muchnick was to professional wrestling what Pete Rozelle was to the National Football League. The foundation for the success enjoyed today by World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation can be attributed to Sam Muchnick's leadership of the sport through three decades. It was a leadership built on integrity, honest and credibility. Sam Muchnick passed away Dec. 30, 1998 in St. Louis at the age of 93.Sam Muchnick's legacy will live forever.... more

Sam Muchnick remembered by Joe Blanchard
Legendary St. Louis promoter and National Wrestling Alliance president Sam Muchnick passed away on Dec. 30. In a Real Audio interview, Joe Blanchard talks about his memories of Muchnick, what made Muchnick special as a promoter and what he learned from Muchnick in creating his own promotion. Blanchard starred on Muchnick's cards in St. Louis. Blanchard would later start his own successful promotion in south Texas, Southwest Championship Wrestling.... more

Why Bother having the Wrestling Match?
Wrestling has always had managers interfering and foreign objects and blind referees missing tags. That's one thing. Another thing is when any outcome that McMahon or Shawn Michaels don't like is simply tossed out. So the odds are  stacked against one competitor, usually Steve Austin or Mankind. But when that competitor succeeds despite those odds, a knife gets stuck in his back.... more

No Place to Raise a Child
Wrestling companies (namely the World Wrestling Federation and Extreme Championship Wrestling) are offering up weekly television shows that feature everything from women tearing the clothes off of each other to wrestlers offering suggestions on how to service their sexual organs. I often wonder how any parent can allow their 8-year-old child to watch wrestling, as we know it today.... more

Wrestling is now a Rock Concert
It hit me a couple weeks ago watching Raw, when the New Age Outlaws came out to defend their tag titles against...well, I don't remember, since none of their other tag teams have even a passing knowledge of the term "over".... more

Thanks, Dad
Little did I know that the program airing before "This Week In Baseball" would change my life forever. That program was Southwest Championship Wrestling, a promotion based out of San Antonio, Texas.... more