Email This Article- Contact Us - VIP Sign-Up - Back to Home Page

|

-I joined the Hall of Fame Ceremony online coverage in progress shortly after the (hour later than advertised) start with JBL giving an induction speech to Jerry and Jack Brisco. He said there were stories he can't tell. "I'm not going to tell you about the time the entire Seattle fire department had to come to Jerry's room; that's all I'm going to tell you about that." He said he won't tell how people know when he's had to much to drink. He said he text messages all of the Texans he knows (Dusty Rhodes, Steve Austin, Bruce Prichard, himself) a message, usually misspelled, that says "Texan and the female anatomical term I cannot repeat here." He talked about them being independently wealthy after the Vince McMahon buyout of Georgia Championship Wrestling. He said Jack retired in 1984 while Gerald took on a life partner in Pat Patterson. He said they have introduced various wrestlers to pro wrestling including Brock Lesnar, Kurt Angle, Kevin Nash, and himself. He said they owned the business from 1973 to 1983 and "the Hall of Fame is now complete." JBL seemed to be totally in his element giving the induction speech.

-The Briscoes walked out to the podium with big smiles on their faces. Jack read from a speech and said Danny Hodge and "the incredible" Lou Thesz were his inspirations. He said it was a thrill to live out his childhood dreams. He thanked: Eddie Graham, Chief Jay Strongbow, Paul Jones, Killer Karl, Johnny Valentine, Wahoo McDaniel, Roddy Piper, Ric Flair, The Road Warriors, Buddy Colt, Harley Race, Gene Kiniski, Jose Lothario, Ricky Steamboat, Jay Youngblood, the Funks, and a couple others. He thanked his brother for always having his back.

Jerry said, "I want to know who's running the Gorilla backstage." He said nobody's back there to tell him to hurry up in two minutes. He joked that Jericho had two minutes for his match tomorrow night. He said he suspected that Bruce Prichard had something to do with them. He thanked his sons Wes and Joe and asked them to stand. He said they're the next two Brisco Brothers. His voice began to crack as he thanked his wife, Barbara, and his brothers, sisters, and other family members, plus great people from Oklahoma State. He said he had the privilege of working in the business for 40 years dating back to his start in Australia working for Jim Barnett. "He saw something in the Briscoes. Something that he liked," he said with a chuckle. "Something in the ring, that is." He also thanked Jim Crockett Sr. and talked about the titles he won in that territory. He thanked Eddie Graham. They cut to a shot of Barry Windham in the crowd. He talked about giving back and mentioned a few places he's volunteered or helped with high school and amateur wrestling. He gave special thanks to Bruce Prichard and JBL. He said he discovered JBL in the shower and he learned there that it's a myth that everything is bigger in Texas. They cut to Shawn Michaels laughing. He gave a shout-out to Steve Austin also, and they cut to him smiling. He talked about traveling the world and being away from his family so often. He talked about being at the Taj Mahal with Triple H and various other travels. He said it's all been worth it. He finished by thanking the troops.

-Host Gene Okerlund (who works for WWE on retainer and is brought in just for special occasions) introduced the video for Gordon Solie, the next induction. Okerlund then said it was about time he was introduced. Jim Ross came out to give the induction speech. They showed Jerry Lawler standing and applauding. Ross said he's thought a lot about Gordon in the last few days. He said he's excited about calling Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels tomorrow. He showed Michaels, who must be feeling the pressure these days. Ross said Gordon had the rarest of qualities in that when he talked, people listened. He said in 1964 he heard Gordon for the first time, and had he not, he may not have chosen his life's work to be a wrestling broadcaster. He said Gordon began his career as a ring announcer earning $5 per show (the going rate for many indy wrestlers yet today). He did his best imitation of Gordon saying Harley Race's face was a crimson mask. They cut to Race laughing in the crowd. They also showed Greg Valentine and Blackjack Mulligan. Ross said four wrestlers were looking for an exit ramp to get to the penthouse apartment of Jim Barnett. He said Gordon Solie, "Cowboy" Bill Watts, the Briscoes, and Dusty Rhodes were in the car. Gordon told him the smoke was "like a purple haze." He said they were probably drinking a beer or two. He said they drove around I-95, circling Atlanta several times. Ross said Barnett was the Truman Capote of wrestling. He said the big doorman wouldn't let Dusty through, but they paid off the doorman to get through. He said the doorman got fired for taking the payoff.

He said in 1989, Gordon came back to work for TBS. He said he got to work with Gordon at that time, including the Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk I-Quit match. He also said Gary Hart managed Funk and sent out best wishes to the late Hart. He said it was a dream come true. He said he feels that way every WrestleMania weekend. He said it was during that match the soundbite was coined that will live forever: "Five letters, two words: I-Quit." He said Solie was the best ever and always will be. He said he had a tireless work ethic, an unabashed love of the business, and a thorough understanding of the product. He said his voice "was amazing, obviously a gift from God and a few hundred packs of Benson & Hedges Menthol 100s, and the occasional taste of vodka." He said he treasures sharing drinks with Gordon.

He talked about a WCW Saturday Night TV taping when Gordon wasn't feeling well. He sent a runner to get a thermos, Florida orange juice, and vodka. He said that elixir got them through "four hours of the most boring wrestling you'll ever experience." He said he loves him and misses him to this day. He said his passion was amazing and his delivery was unique. He said the last time he saw him he was talking to Lou Thesz. He said the night before he died, he received a phone call from Ric Flair. He said the two men who were the greatest in their fields had a final good bye with each saying he loved the other. He said a few hours later, the Dean left us to ascend to heaven to be with his wife Smokey, whom he missed so much. He said Solie's is the one voice in wrestling that will live forever. He said, "The rest of us yahoos are fighting for no. 2." They cut to Joey Styles applauding with a smile. He then inducted Solie into the WWE Hall of Fame and welcomed Gordon's five children onto the stage.

One of his sons spoke, but was interrupted a couple of times by a loudmouth fan, drawing some boos. They cut to Arn Anderson, who looked like he was tempted to go hunt down the heckler. He said he wasn't the show, but he made the show better. He said his interview style allowed the wrestlers to shine through and wrestlers and fans respected him. He said he was the best and challenged others around him to be excellent. He was void of any emotion when reading the statement, a bit reminiscent of Big John Aires from the UWF. Another son, who looked a lot like him, spoke less articulately, but more passionately, about him. He brought up his non-wrestling announcing, but said his passion was pro wrestling. He said he would have loved to call a three-way between "Mr. Charisma" John McCain, "The Rock" Barack Obama, and "The Pitbull" Hillary Clinton. Clinton's name was booed. He said he set the standard and others followed such as Jim Ross, Mean Gene, Michael Coles (sic), and Joey Styles. He said Gordon kept viewers on the edge of their seat. He told a story of a blind man who "watched" wrestling every weekend thanks to Solie's descriptive commentary. He closed with, "For one last time, until less week, the Solie family, for Gordon Solie, says so long from the Sunshine State." He winked and saluted the crowd, which stood unison.

-Okerlund introduced the induction video for Mae Young. Lots of comedy included from recent years. Okerlund said she's only the third lady to be inducted.

-Pat Patterson walked out looking dapper and vibrant. He said since she's been in the business for 68 years, he has a lot of stories to tell. He said he was told to cut it down. There were boos. He pulled out a tiny piece of paper. He read it. It sad, "Three double Vodka tonics." He said that was from last night. He said she told him this afternoon that her dream is to have a match in the ring when she turns 100 years old. He said she asked what he was going to say about her. He said he gave her his papers. She said she couldn't see. He asked if she has glasses or contacts. She said, "I have a contact in Chicago, one in Miami, and one in Puerto Rico." He said he met her for the first time in 1960 in Boston. He said he was 18 and didn't speak any English. He said he was put in a car with her to drive to the matches. He said she had a brand new car. He sat in the front seat. She told him, "Kid, smoke cigars?" She said, "If you want to be a wrestler, you better smoke a cigar." She said they both were smoking a cigar a minute later. He said he was dying to see her wrestle. He said she looked like a star. He said she was rough in the ring.

He said what you hear about Mae Young is all true. He said he had a small apartment in Boston. He said someone knocked on his door at 1 a.m. He said she was in her panties, her bra, and had a drink in her hand. He said she lived across the street! He said he asked her what she was doing there. She said to just let her in for drinks. He said he was scared of her and her tattoo. He said before he knew it she began to fall asleep. He tried to find out if she got thrown out of her apartment. He said she couldn't talk, but made all of these hand gestures as if she was trying to tell him something. He said he got up the next morning and she wasn't where he last saw her. He said he looked in the bathroom down the hallway and she wasn't there. He said a couple of days later he saw her he asked her about the hand gestures. She said, "I was too drunk to do this, you bastard!" He made the "up yours" hand gesture. They cut to Mick Foley laughing in the crowd.

He said he's been in the business for 50 years this year. He said he's proud to say he's wrestled in six decades, but the "next girl to come out" wrestled in eight decades and she's been in the business for 65 years. He said that's a record that will never be beaten. He put on his glasses and said he hopes he was doing a pretty good job. He said, "I'm not used to this type of thing." He said the best way to describe her career is with a song's lyrics. He paused and laughed and said he was trying to think of the words. He sang, "She did it her wayyy!" Then he introduced Mae.

She said she became the first women's wrestling champion in Florida and won it in Orlando. She said she's been around a long time, but plans to be around a while longer until she's 100 years old. She told some anecdotes about her start in pro wrestling. He said he learned amateur wrestling but hadn't heard about pro wrestling. She said she saw an ad in a Tulsa newspaper about pro wrestling. She called her brother and had him go with her to the show. She said she wanted to challenge Mildred Burke, the world champion. She told the promoter she could beat her. She fought Killum Gillum the next day as a tryout and she beat her in just seconds. They cut to current WWE Divas laughing and applauding. She said she beat Elvira Snideglass next, the only other woman wrestler at the time. The promoter said he could make a pro wrestler out of her. She began officially training thereafter. She said she met The Fabulous Moolah shortly thereafter. When she said she began wrestling in Charlotte, N.C., fans whoo'd. She said they used to wrestle so hard, and thank god it's different today.

She talked about long car trips. She said she still loves it and it's the greatest thing in the world. She said the greatest compliment she ever received came from Ed "Strangler" Lewis, a champion for many years. He told her he didn't believe women should be in the ring, they should be in the kitchen, but after watching her, he said he believed she was born to be a wrestler. She said she is thrilled and happy to be there with the fans. She said the fans still inspire her to be around on her 100th birthday to see them. "Thank yo so much! I love you all!"

-Okerlund introduced the Eddie Graham HOF video. Then he introduced Dusty Rhodes to induct him.

-Dusty walked out and said it's good the People's Elbow left when the Bionic Elbow arrived. He said his mentor was Eddie Graham. "He took from zero," he said. "The only time he got mad at me was when I said 'Funky like a monkey' and he didn't know what it means. But after a sellout on Tuesday, he liked it." They cut to Batista in the crowd laughing. He was a bit disjointed, almost Roddy Piperesque. He said John Cena comes up to him all the time and asks how he can do better. "That makes me feel good," he said. He shifted to a plug for WrestleMania, then back to Graham making him who he is. He said Graham told him how to do everything and why what he did meant something. He said he taught him not to shortchange the fans of the industry. He said he loved him dearly and he gave him his wings to fly. He said he gave him an opportunity to move mountains and entertain millions of people. Crowd shots included Big Show and Michael Hayes. Dusty introduced his son, Mike Graham, the godfather of his youngest daughter.

Mike joked that the venue was a whole lot different than the Eddie Graham Sports Complex. He said he was overwhelmed. Someone shouted "Hogan." He said he'd talk about him later. His response to the fan shouting encouraged more fans to shout and heckle. He said Graham loved the blood and violence of pro wrestling, reminiscent of the Wild West. He talked about his times in Texas, then meeting Vince McMahon Sr. whom he said was all first class. He said the heel heat was such that he couldn't raise his family there, so he relocated to Texas. He got choked up as he talked about his dad. He said he was a firm believer in giving back. He said if it weren't for the YMCA, he wouldn't have learned to wrestle and couldn't have stopped the neighborhood bullies from stealing his paper route money. He said he always gave back. He held up a framed picture of a gathering of promoters from around the country - an incredible who's who. "This is the true Hall of Fame members who got us where we are today," he said. He said he was proud to be here to accept the induction on behalf of his dad. He thanked the fans and other Hall of Fame members.

-The web feed ended with a plug for the telecast of the final hour on USA Network at 11 p.m. ET.

For more BREAKING NEWS on WWE, TNA, ROH
visit our affiliate: JASON POWELL'S PROWRESTLING.NET

For UFC AND MMA NEWS & BLOGS
visit our affiliate: MMATORCH.COM - now featuring the MMATorch Daily Audio Update!

REACT TO THIS STORY IN OUR FREE PWTORCH FORUM

PWTORCH VIP SIGN-UP INFO - NO ADS, EXCLUSIVE CONTENT

|