R.I.P. SCOTT HALL AND THANK YOU

On Monday, the wrestling world lost one of its greatest stars. Scott Hall passed away at the age of 63, after complications from hip surgery. Hall made his name in wrestling in WWE as Razor Ramon and in WCW (World Championship Wrestling) as part of the NWO (New World Order) with Kevin Nash and Hulk Hogan. 

When Scott Hall entered the WWE in 1993, it was the beginning of a new era. Superstars like Hulk Hogan and the Ultimate Warrior were on the way out and Vince McMahon was looking to build new stars. Scott Hall and Vince McMahon created the character of Razor Ramon, a Cuban tough guy from Miami based off of Tony Montana from the movie Scarface. 

Razor Ramon was the epitome of a cool heel that turned into a great babyface. His feud with Shawn Michaels over the Intercontinental title and their epic ladder match at Wrestlemania 10 solidifiied Razor Ramon as a superstar. Razor Ramon held the Intercontinental title a record 4 times with feuds with stars like Jeff Jarrett, Diesel, and Goldust. Scott Hall would leave the WWE in 1996 and begin the Monday Night Wars when he appeared on WCW Nitro in September of 1996.

The NWO changed the game in pro wrestling. Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, and Hulk Hogan were cool heels that were trying to destroy WCW. The years from 1995 to 2000 were some great years as WCW/NWO battled the WWE for ratings supremacy in the Monday Night Wars. Wrestling became big business for cable and generated millions of dollars for both companies.  

Thank you Mr. Hall. You made the wrestling business better and gave millions of fans great memories that will last a lifetime. Rest In Peace. 

THE PROFESSOR

CODY RHODES IS THE "RIC FLAIR" OF ALL ELITE WRESTLING

Cody Rhodes won the TNT Championship on AEW Rampage, Saturday night. This makes Cody the first three-time champion in All Elite Wrestling. Many fans are calling for Cody Rhodes to become a heel (villain) in AEW, but I think he's already a heel.

Cody reminds me of Ric Flair more than his father, Dusty Rhodes. Dusty was a wild cowboy while Ric Flair was a businessman. Cody isn't a cowboy he prefers to wear suits and fancy shoes like Ric Flair. Lately, Cody has received a lot of boos from the fans in different cities. It seems that in places like Greensboro, North Carolina where Jim Crockett Promotions had a great stronghold, Cody received a strong babyface (hero) reaction. Greensboro was the place where Ric Flair and Dusty Rhodes were major superstars with the Starrcade wrestling event in the 1980's. 

All Elite Wrestling has their own version of Ric Flair and his name is Cody Rhodes. He can be heel or babyface just like Flair because the fans may not like him all the time, but they respect him. Cody has been apart of the wrestling business for more than a decade. He made his name in WWE from 2006 to 2016 and then moved onto the independent scene from 2016 to 2018 before becoming apart of All Elite Wrestling. 

Currently Cody is the first three-time champion in All Elite and I'm sure he'll have more championships in his future. Personally, I loved Cody winning last night. I thought he and Sammy had a great match and they told a great story. Cody is the Ric Flair of All Elite, from the business suits to the blonde hair and I love it.

THE PROFESSOR

THOUGHTS ON WRESTLING.....

On WWE Friday Night Smackdown Roman Reigns and Paul Heyman ended their professional relationship as Brock Lesnar made the save. Reigns vs. Lesnar is now the new Austin vs. Rock.

Bron Breakker has an intensity and an athleticism that reminds me a lot of Kurt Angle.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman is the best villain in the wrestling business in my opinion.

These are just a few of my thoughts on wrestling. I hope you enjoy. 

THE PROFESSOR

 

HAPPY 20TH ANNIVERSARY SMALLVILLE

Twenty years ago Smallville debuted on the WB (now the CW network) in the fall of 2001. The producers of the show turned the town of Smallville into a character unto itself. Clark Kent's arrival in a rocket ship caused a meteor shower and changed everyone's lives. Today there is an explosion of superhero movies and TV shows on every channel but in 2001 that was not the case. In syndication you had Hercules and Xena but they were starting to wind down their runs.  Most networks were focusing on teen dramas once the WB network found success with Dawson's Creek. 

The genius of Smallville was that it was a superhero show mixed with teen drama featuring a young Clark Kent who is 16, in high school, and finds out that he is an alien. In Smallville Clark Kent (Tom Welling) was a nerd, an outsider who never fit in. He was in love with his best friend Lana Lang (Kristin Kreuk) but he couldn't say anything because she was in a relationship with the football captain. Like any regular teenager that deals with puberty, Clark's powers would manifest themselves at awkward times. All these things made Superman who has been portrayed as so perfect since the end of World War Two, more relatable to the audience. 

One of the biggest reasons that Smallville succeeded was because of the relationship between Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum) and Clark Kent. As fans we not only got to see the evolution of Clark Kent into Superman but we also see how Lex Luthor becomes the man he is. Through the machinations of his father Lionel Luthor (John Glover), Lex becomes the tyrant we know him to be. Clark and Lex start as friends but over 7 seasons Clark and Lex become enemies as they both embrace their destinies. 

 

As Smallville moved on they introduced new characters and other heroes into the show. Characters like Lois Lane (Erica Durance) and Green Arrow (Justin Hartley) entered Smallville. When Kristin Kreuk and Michael Rosenbaum left the show in season 8, the relationship between Clark and Lois became the centerpiece of the show until its end in season 10. 

 

In Season 8 Clark moved to Metropolis and embraced his superhero identity known as "The Blur". As a fan I always wanted to see Tom Welling in the classic Superman suit and I always thought it was wrong that he never wore it on the show. In hindsight, Clark never needed the classic suit and his "blur" costumes were very modern and would fit well in today's superhero culture.  

Since it ended in 2010, superheroes have become big business in movies and television with Marvel and DC battling for supremacy. The CW network has garnered big ratings with shows like Arrow, Flash, Supergirl, and Legends of Tomorrow on its programming slate. Today, Warner Brothers has struggled to make Superman relevant with movies like Man of Steel and Batman vs. Superman being critically panned. Its possible that if they stayed with the formula that Smallville started they might be more successful. 

Smallville was one of the most successful TV shows ever, airing for 10 seasons. It introduced Clark Kent and Superman to a new generation of fans and delighted longtime fans. 20 years after its debut, it is still fondly remembered as a precursor to what we see now.

Thank you Smallville. 

THE PROFESSOR

 

THOUGHTS ON WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW AFTER MONEY IN THE BANK

 

KARRION KROSS

On Monday night, WWE Raw had a few big moments on its show. One of the big moments was the debut of Karrion Kross, the current NXT Champion. Kross faced Jeff Hardy and was dominant during the match. Kross lost the match after he backed Hardy in a corner, climbed the ropes to rain down hammer fists and Hardy stacked him up with his feet on the ropes to get the pin on Kross. While most wrestling pundits may look at this moment as negative, I think this was a smart move by WWE. Kross is the NXT champion at the moment so he won't be back on RAW for a while and he needed a way out. With a loss to Jeff Hardy, Kross can go back to NXT, lose his title because he's distracted by the loss to Hardy, and when he comes back to the main roster, he can wreak havoc until he gets a rematch with Jeff Hardy. 

Other Thoughts: 

JOHN CENA

John Cena started the show and told the audience he was back because of the WWE Universe and because "Roman Reigns is an a$$hole." The match between Cena and Reigns will be EPIC. Reigns is the ultimate dominant villain and Cena is a superhero that's a legend. The match will happen at Summerslam but I don't expect Cena to be pinned or submit. Since Cena said at Money In The Bank he will make multiple appearances, the match at Summerslam will probably end with outside interference. Cena is now the WWE's new Undertaker. He'll show up and help get talent over but he's still their biggest star.

GOLDBERG

Goldberg returned on RAW and he challenged Bobby Lashley for the WWE World title. Lashley defeated Keith Lee after Lee accepted Lashley's open challenge. Many fans want to see Brock Lesnar vs. Lashley but I don't believe Brock Lesnar wants to come back yet. Lesnar may be happy at home with his family. Both Lashley and Reigns are copying Brock's gimmick so he may see no need to return. Goldberg will be a great opponent for Lashley to have on his resume since he's an icon in wrestling. 

WWE Monday Night Raw pulled out all the stops. WWE is pushing towards Summerslam and with John Cena and Goldberg, they really want to give fans their money's worth. 

THE PROFESSOR

R.I.P. "MR. WONDERFUL" PAUL ORNDORFF

Paul Orndorff, one of pro wrestling's biggest stars of the 1980's passed away on Monday. He was 71 years old. In May, his son Travis, announced that Orndorff was dealing with dementia. The man known in the 1980's as Mr. Wonderful, was one of the best and toughest wrestlers of his generation. 

Orndorff started his career in 1979, and for over 20 years he was one of the best wrestlers in the world. He worked in many different territories including Memphis, Mid-South Wrestling, Mid-Atlantic Wrestling, Georgia, and New Japan Pro Wrestling. Paul Orndorff wrestled some of the best superstars of the 70's and 80's including Jerry Lawler, Ted Dibiase, Buzz Sawyer, Ernie Ladd, The Junkyard Dog, Dusty Rhodes, and Ric Flair. By the time he signed with the WWE (then the World Wrestling Federation at the time) in 1983, Orndorff was a hot commodity in pro wrestling. 

On January 23,1984, Orndorff debuted for the WWE on the same night that Hulk Hogan defeated The Iron Sheik for the WWE World Championship. Orndorff and Hogan's career would intertwine from 1985 through 1986. Orndorff or Mr. Wonderful, as he would be known, would team with Rowdy Roddy Piper against Hulk Hogan and Mr. T at the inaugural Wrestlemania in 1985. By 1986, Orndorff was one of Hogan's biggest challengers for the WWE World title. Their feud lasted for half a year and culminated in a cage match on NBC's Saturday Night's Main Event. The Hogan-Orndorff feud is one of the most notable and profitable feuds in WWE history. 

Orndorff would leave the WWE in 1988 and move on to other territories such as the UWF (Universal Wrestling Federation) and WCW (World Championship Wrestling) but his career would never reach the same heights. By 1995, Paul Orndorff would retire due to injuries sustained throughout his career. He became an agent and trainer at WCW. 

Paul Orndorff was one of the toughest men in professional wrestling. His feuds with Jerry Lawler, Ted Dibiase, and Dusty Rhodes made him a star. His feud with Hulk Hogan in 1986, made him a superstar. Thank you Mr. Orndorff. You've created a legacy that will never be forgotten. 

THE PROFESSOR

R.I.P. RICHARD DONNER AND THANK YOU

CHRISTOPHER REEVE AND RICHARD DONNER

Richard Donner, the prolific director of the Lethal Weapon franchise, and The Goonies passed away on Monday July 5th. He was 91 years old. Richard Donner was important to me because he directed one of my favorite movies, Superman: The Movie. As a child, who wore glasses and was awkward, I could relate to Clark Kent. But I could also fantasize about having the powers of Superman. Mr. Donner had a long history in Hollywood before he made Superman.

Before he directed the Superman movie, Mr. Donner worked in television. During the 1960's and 1970's he directed some of the best TV shows of the era including, Route 66, The Rifleman, The Twilight Zone, Gilligan's Island, Perry Mason, and The Wild Wild West. 

In 1961, Donner's debut feature, X-15 starred Charles Bronson and Mary Tyler Moore. He followed it up with Salt and Pepper with Peter Lawford and Sammy Davis Jr. In 1976, Donner directed, The Omen, a supernatural film and he transferred to films full time. The Omen would be the film that caught the attention of Ilya and Richard Salkind, the father-son producing team that were working on a live-action Superman film. 

In December of 1978, Superman:The Movie debuted in theatres starring Christopher Reeve, Margot Kidder, Gene Hackman, Ned Beatty, and Marlon Brando. The film had a budget of 55 million and grossed over 300 million at the global box office. It won a special Oscar for its visual effects and was nominated for three Academy Awards. Superman: The Movie would be the beginning of the modern superhero cinematic universes we see today from Marvel and DC. 

After a dispute with the producers, Richard Donner left the sequel to Superman II and Richard Lester took over as director. Donner moved on to direct other projects that have become pop culture classics like The Goonies, The Lost Boys, and The Lethal Weapon franchise with Mel Gibson and Danny Glover. 

Richard Donner was one of the most prolific and amazing directors of the 20th century. Thank you Mr. Donner, you've created a legacy that will never be forgotten. 

Class Dismissed,
The Professor