Teddy Hart finally signs developmental deal with WWE

Da Meltz reports in his daily news update that Crazy Canuck Teddy Hart has signed a developmental deal with WWE and will begin his tenure in the farm league system at Florida Championship Wrestling a.k.a. Deep South v.2. Hart was previously known for his appearance in MTV's short-lived WSX promotion/TV show in a tag team with Matt Cross/M-Dogg 20 known as The Filth And The Fury (named after a Sex Pistols movie) as well as his antics in such indy feds like CZW, Jersey All Pro, Ring Of Honor and MLW. Teddy Hart vs Harry Smith will make for an awesome match in WWE years from now.

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Carano off "Dynamite USA!!"

Photo: MMAWeekly.com


By Art Shimko
shimko_7@hotmail.com

-- The Fight Network reported today that Gina Carano is off K-1's Dynamite USA!! show on 6/2 due to a recent intestinal illness she experienced following a two-week stay in Thailand participating in a role for the upcoming season of Fight Girls. At last weekend's WEC event at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Carano was taken to a local hospital via ambulance and treated for dehydration. Carano (4-0) was to fight Ohio native Jan Finney (3-2) who has fought in HookNShoot and King Of The Cage and has lost two fights to Carano's opponent Julie Kedzie who she fought (and beat) in February.

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Check out the new VOD:POD feature at Strong Style Shimko~!

By Art Shimko
shimko_7@hotmail.com

You now watch music videos, wrestling matches and MMA fights on Strong Style Shimko: TheMeanFilipineBlog~!!!

You'll see a widget on the right side of the home page, there's a total of 27 videos that you can also visit at strongstyleshimko.vodpod.com to see more videos that I've chosen in my collection as you only see five of them on the blog.

So head on over to Strong Style Shimko: TheMeanFilipineBlog to see this new feature, also check out our daily updates on pro wrestling, mixed martial arts, music and concert news and current events.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT~!!!

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Strong Style Shimko Late Pro Wrestling news and notes 4/13

Weekend Wrestling/MMA news & notes (4/13/07)

By Art Shimko
shimko_7@hotmail.com

-- From WWE.com: For the first quarter of 2007, individual episodes of WWE Monday Night Raw accounted for six of the top ten highest rated cable telecasts among households, according to Nielsen Media Research. Among adults 18-49, individual episodes of WWE Raw accounted for eight of the top ten highest rated cable programs with Raw achieving the second, third and fourth highest individual ratings in that demographic finishing only behind the NBA All-Star game.

-- This Friday night edition of Smackdown is the 400th episode.

-- Steve Austin will be the Grand Marshall at Sunday's 500 NASCAR Nextel Cup at the Texas Motor Speedway in Dallas/Fort Worth.

-- Edge has an NHL blog here.

-- Where Are They Now? Percy Pringle

-- Wrestler Foley's Lecture Packs a Punch

-- Cheats and codes for the WWE SmackDown! vs. RAW 2007

-- The Times Herald out of Port Huron, MI has an article on D'Lo Brown and the Springfield Stallions, a Continental Indoor Football League team that he co-owns with Justin Gettys, who are currently 0-1. Brown, a defensive end at the University of Maine during early 90s, has been wrestling for All Japan Pro Wrestling but took some time off to help with the team. "Things are going very well," said Brown, 36, a former World Wrestling Entertainment grappler. "It was an easy mix to lend myself to the team and become part of the organization. They're still trying to get me on the field."

-- The Torch's James Caldwell has an article about the Don Imus controversy.

-- IGN has an interview with Christopher Daniels.

-- Myself, Casey Trowbridge and Euan Taylor (both from Old Country Times) recorded a podcast to attempt previewing this Sunday's TNA Lockdown pay-per-view. You listen to the podcast here but if you get easily offended then don't listen.

-- Christian Cage, Samoa Joe and Kurt Angle will be appearing at Wrestlefest on 4/22 at Bristol Central High School in Bristol, CT at 5PM. The show will feature 8 matches and a meet-and-greet with Joe, Christian and Angle at 3PM. Tickets can be purchased at: FYE Music and Video stores; Bristol Central High School' main office; Tropical Suntan Center [194 Main St]; the Webster Bank on Queen Street in Southington; S & S Sports Apparel [117 Broad St.]; Curves for Women on Farmington Avenue; Southington's Modern Formals and Fazo's Deli in Waterbury; through www.northwestwrestling.com or by calling (860) 874-1244.

-- IWA Mid-South Saturday night at Southwestern High School in Shelbyville, IN: Demolition Ax vs. Tank; Honky Tonk Man vs. "Marvelous" Mitch Ryder; Danny Basham vs. Ian Rotten; Josh Abercrombie vs. Brandon Thomaselli (Tables, Ladders & Chairs match for the IWA Light Heavyweight Title); Chuck Taylor vs. Drake Younger (IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Title); "Spyder" Nate Webb vs. C.J. Otis; Mickie Knuckles vs. Kristy Summers (IWA Mid-South Women's Title); Puppet vs. T.O.; Iron Saints vs. Billy Roc & Tony Kozina; Vortekz vs. Diehard Dustin vs. xOMGx, Jack Thriller vs. Ricochet vs. ?

-- Mike Quakenbush will be special guest referee for Claudio Castagnoli and Chris Hero's match at Chikara's Rey de Voladores event on 4/22 at the New Alhambra Arena (Viking Hall) in Philadelphia.

-- Director Lovestruck on wrestling

-- A 64-year-old pro wrestler set to perform in Newbury

-- Power Team spreads message in Statesboro

-- MCRD Parris Island sailor lived professional wrestling dream

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Combat Zone Wrestling turns on fans, wrestlers

By Art Shimko
shimko_7@hotmail.com

-- Combat Zone Wrestling is involved in a feud, but it's not with another wrestling federation, it's with some of CZW's fanbase and some of its wrestlers. On Saturday night at CZW's Out With The Old, In With The New show following the Chris Hero/Eddie Kingston Loser Leaves Town match, owner John Zandig came out to get into it with Kingston following his win over Hero. Kingston left the ring and Zandig ended up "firing" Kingston from the company, later on Zandig came out "shooting" on the fans, particularly criticizing "5 to 10 people" on the CZWFans message board who he felt leave negative posts about the company bringing everyone down.

First off, it more than 5-10 people (as seen in this thread which is one of many) bitching about how shitty CZW's quality has been as far as booking run-in after run-in to finish matches, bringing in no-name no-talent wrestlers while pushing out wrestlers fans actually want to see and other dipshit ideas.

I haven't been to a CZW show since December 2006, and before that I was at maybe two or three shows throughout last year which is the least number of CZW events that I've attended. I have not decided to boycott the product entirely yet I'm not sure when I'll be at another show, this sentiment is shared by many fans on the board who feel cheated and shat upon by an owner who instead of listening to some feedback from fans just looks the other way thinking that such criticism is just negative internet ranting.

Eddie Kingston later left a two-part YouTube interview on all that went down Saturday night, it's since been taken down by Kingston's request but I did get to see it and some points included:
- Kingston arrived at the building early Saturday and was asked by wrestlers in the back if he was talking to Tod Gordon of PWU. Kingston said the last time he talked to Gordon was last summer when he and some members of BLK OUT (Sabian, and Joker) were to work for PWU.
- Kingston saw on the sheet that there were run-ins booked in his match with Hero which he shot down. He was then approached by Zandig and told that he would clothesline Kingston in the ring afterwards, Kingston said ok.
- After the match, Kingston told security that his hand was numb and to tell Zandig not to clothesline him, Zandig then suggested that he slap Kingston. Kingston saw this as an insult and later questioned why a supposedly "retired" wrestler who's not involved in this feud would come out and steal the heat from Kingston and Hero's moment. Kingston left the ring and later heard he was "fired" from a company that he wasn't even contracted with as he left the building.
- Kingston also confirmed the events that transpired resulting in Jigsaw also leaving the company that night as reported on Declaration Of Independents. Jigsaw wanted to drop the Jr. Heavyweight title to Vortekz clean, run-ins again were suggested and Jigsaw has to politic to drop the title without any screwjob finish. Jigsaw was told he would be needed for this year's Best Of The Best show, then it was announced in the ring that the loser of the match would not be in Best Of The Best which not only confused Jigsaw but made him feel as if he was forced out of the company, Kingston also noted that the Chikara-CZW relationship was rocky from the start and that the Chikara wrestlers felt like outsiders in the CZW locker room. Kingston was classy when he said no matter who much you hate the product and/or one person (being Zandig of course) not to take it out on the boys and boycotting the shows takes money out of the boys' pockets. The only thing with that is that ONE PERSON is approving of the goofball shit going on in that ring an as hard as the wrestlers work it's hard to have to sit through nonsensical booking and storylines and wrestlers who don't know how to get themselves over...

Well I'm not sure what's going on with this company, I may not be going until Cage Of Death this December unless I hear or read that the company's shows are getting better. The whole deal with Jig and Kingston really puts a sour taste in my mouth, Zandig and company need to take their heads out from their asses and figure something out. A new booker? Wrestlers (not necessarily big names) who can work the crowd as well as match? It's more than one thing that needs to be fixed, but first things first: Promoters should not ever insult their fanbase, you know, the folks who are willing to put money in your pocket for a decent product.

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Just when you thought Keith Richards did every drug known to man...

By Art Shimko
shimko_7@hotmail.com

-- The late comic genius Bill Hicks once said that if there were a nuclear war that two things would survive: cockroaches and Keith Richards. The Rolling Stone guitarist, more famous (or infamous) for his drug habits and partying (rock and roll legend has it that the guy once had a complete blood transfusion because his old blood was so poisoned by the chemicals he ingested over time), recently told NME the strangest thing he'd ever snorted: "The strangest thing I've tried to snort? My father. I snorted my father. He was cremated and I couldn't resist grinding him up with a little bit of blow.

"My dad wouldn't have cared, he didn't give a shit. It went down pretty well, and I'm still alive."

I am speechless... that is fuckin' insane.

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Floyd Mayweather talks shit about MMA, Liddell

By Art Shimko
shimko_7@hotmail.com

Jesus H. Christ, raggin' on MMA lately is the In Thing~! as the kids like to say, take Floyd Mayweather for instance from an article on The Sweet Science:

“UFC ain’t shit,” he said. “It ain’t but a fad. Anyone can put a tattoo on their head and get in a street fight.” He singled out UFC poster boy Chuck Liddell for an extra overhand right. “We should put Liddell against a good heavyweight, under Mayweather Promotions, and if Chuck wins, then I’ll give him a million dollars out of my own pocket.” PBF then shoe-shined all MMA fighters. “These are guys who couldn’t make it in boxing,” he said. “So they do (MMA). Boxing is the best sport in the world and it’s here to stay.”

Someone been watching old wrestling tapes for promos?? Another jack-off talking tough, and I'm not denying Mayweather's a tough fighter but c'mon, he sounds like a total hack here. Stick to shit-talking De La Hoya you fuckin' tomato can...

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Some douchebag golf writer gives his thoughts on the UFC/Pride merger

By Art Shimko
shimko_7@hotmail.com
meanfilipine.blogspot.com

-- William K. Wolfrum: UFC, Pride merger brings hyperbole normally reserved for Tiger Woods

Read further below his moronic comments and my response:

Amongst the wisdom this idiot graces upon us is this little gem: "This is really going to change the face of (mixed martial arts fighting)," Fertitta said. "Literally creating a sport that could be as big around the world as soccer. I liken it somewhat to when the NFC and AFC came together to create the NFL."

While I understand he'd like to compare this merger to the AFL-NFL union, I'd like to compare my genitalia to the Empire State Building. But, that doesn't necessarily make it so.

He ends with this statement: Besides, Tiger Woods could kick all their asses anyway.

My reponse on his blog? you don't understand why this story is so huge because you write about Golf. Frankly I don't understand the big deal about Tiger Woods. And your understanding of mixed martial arts is like me saying golf is nothing more than someone trying to get a ball in a hole. Yes, it's an intriguing sport I'm sure.
So why would you write a story about MMA then? It's a big story in the news but it looks like you just want an opportunity to jump on the bandwagon and write this sport off. Do us all a favor and stick to the Tiger Woods love, leave the MMA writing to people who understand and love the sport.

Editor's Note: Casey here, I don't usually do this but I wanted to post my comment on this as well but didn't think it warrented a new post, so I'm just going to add it to what Art said above.

My comment to his blog.

Typical MMA basher, completely you miss the point, so allow me to explain it to you.

If you were going to attack the Fertitta quote as being full of hyperbole you would've done better to attack the part where he said that this could make
MMA as popular as soccer.

Comparing the AFL/NFL merger to the joining of UFC and Pride is not a reach at all. The latter will ultimately have the same impact on competition as did
the former. Think about it, what successful pro football leagues have sprung up since the AFL and NFL merger and offered the new NFL any real competition?

The level of talent under the UFC/Pride umbrella will make it just as difficult for any other company to seriously compete. Some will try just as many have
tried against the NFL, but if anyone makes a name for himself in a competing group they will probably be signed by the Fertittas at the earliest opportunity
with the promise of more money and the ability to be a bigger star by competing against the top competition in the world. Sound at all familiar in any
sport?

Surely, as someone who makes a living in a world that often requires the use of quotes for a story you should know that usually there is what a person says
and what they really mean in a given statement. You figured out what he said but missed the point on what he really meant.

Oh, and last thing, you've obviously seen few if any MMA bouts based on your description of what happens.

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Philadelphia witnesses debut of Wicked Hanuman in historic Viking Hall

You can read OC Times contributor Art Shimko's report Here

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Canvas Chronicle To Provide Coverage Of Saturday's Wicked Hanuman Card In Philly

-- http://canvaschronicle.com/newsandviews/49.html

From Ric Gillespie, proprietor of canvaschronicle.com: Art Shimko has been kind enough to provide his services, which will include a detailed write-up and exclusive photos, for Saturday's first Wicked Hanuman show, taking place at Philadelphia's New Ahalambra Arena.

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Some pro wrestling promoters and bookers need to watch "STAR WARS"

By Art Shimko
arts767@verizon.net

-- So I just finished watching Return Of The Jedi on HBO and almost 24 years after seeing it in the movie theater I still felt the emotional highs and lows, even with some seasoning here and there via special effects and such the main point of good vs. evil and watching it unfold was not in anyway compromised nor was the character development. The main and secondary characters in the films each had a unique personality which wasn't so complicated you couldn't figure out what their deal was. You could feel out who had good intentions and who didn't and which side they were on, in other words George Lucas didn't re-invent the wheel when he wrote these stories. He did create an elaborate world yet kept the story simple with the universal themes of good vs evil, friendship and romance.

Lucas also gave the audience a cliffhanger with Empire Strikes Back when Han Solo was frozen and taken off to the Emperor and Luke found out Vader was his father leaving that movie on a depressing note which made me and lot of people anticipate the conclusion in Jedi... would we see Han Solo again? How does Luke deal with the fact that his enemy is also his father? Would the Galactic Empire reign supreme?

All these questions were eventually answered.

I still got choked up during the scene when the Emperor (Palpatine) is shooting lightning at Luke after he refuses to kill Vader and join the dark side and after Luke's begging for Vader's help he eventually comes to his senses and saves Luke by throwing the Emperor down a reactor shaft in the Death Star. That moment really struck a nerve in me, to see the most evil motherfucker in the movie make a "babyface turn" (becoming a good guy) and save his son. The part later that got me also was Luke taking Vader's helmet off so he could see Luke before he died. And of course in the end the Rebels prevailed.

So... what does that rambling intro above have to do with pro wrestling? Well maybe a bit more than you think.

I was listening to Figure 4 Weekly's Bryan & Vinny show yesterday and they were breaking down the basic story of tag match of when two guys are beating on one guy it's seen as cheating but when the other partner tags in and starts beating on those two guys at once the crowd cheers seeing the one guy beat the shit out of two men. Basic story, simple, no gimmicks needed. Same thing with Star Wars, which I believe folks like... Vince Russo... Dutch Mantell... Jeff Jarrett (see a pattern TNA?)... John Zandig and anyone in charge of booking CZW this week... Stephanie McMahon and some members of the WWE creative team... and any other pro wrestling promoter and booker incorporating illogical angles into matches... ALL need to watch the Star Wars trilogy and understand the simple story of good vs evil and how you get that point in a story.

Fans are getting sick of endless mic promos and segments that have no payoff as well as gimmicks like an X-shaped scaffold and reverse battle royals or even just every match on a pay-per-view or TV taping having some type of gimmick as if the promoters and bookers lack any confidence in their product or maybe they want to try and "bring in new fans" which always cracks me because non-wrestling fans already despise it and if they watched 30 seconds of an Impact, WWECW or WWE TV on a night where logic holes are aplenty and people who can't even read from a cue card have a live mic on TV doing storylines about shooting someone's father or putting someone's girlfriend in an ankle lock to set up a match, their disdain for pro wrestling would grow even further.

Guys like Russo and the TNA bookers need to understand that simple storytelling, building up to a finish, basic psychology and less to no gimmicks in matches and on their show are all the fans basically want, enhancing the product can come later. Why are you trying to do something "new" and "innovative" when you can't even get the basic shit correct the first time?

CZW could also refer to this statement, although they're one of many indy promotions that rely on irrelevant spot-fest matches and ultra-hardcore-violence way too often, and hey I can enjoy a spot-fest or a garbage match if it sets a unique pace on a show with no other gimmicks but I would rather seeing good pacing to a crazy-ass spot/move or use of a "weapon", but CZW has had other recent problems with their product including nonsensical booking, fan backlash and bringing in people WHO CAN'T FUCKING WORK.

One thing I ask CZW, TNA, WWE, etc. Please make me care about these characters, give me a reason this guy is after his opponent instead sticking two random guys in a ring who'll smash each other's skulls with chairshots. And it can be simple, not like this guy went to city hall or the library to find out his opponent's criminal past and expose his dastardly act. Because at some point I'll lose track of the story and not because I lack an attention span but because the story gets so convoluted and I end up stop giving a shit.

I know some people are thinking, "Art, these guys don't necessarily need to watch Star Wars to understand basic storytelling." I would have to disagree, yes there are other sources to refer to in learning what makes a good story. I picked Star Wars because after all these years I can still watch these movies and they never get old; the characters, the sub-plots, the struggle for survival, peace and the destruction of the Empire, it all remains fresh because these are basic concepts presented in an entertaining manner and doesn't get sidetracked by "outside interference".

The story of good vs evil is as universal as music and romance, it's a story everyone in the world understands and embraces and why? Because we all want to see the good guys win, when the bad guy's superior in a match, or in any situation, mercilessly beating the shit out of the underdog it feeds our desire more and more to see the good guy make his comeback and get his revenge.

Star Wars may not be an example most would think of in referencing to for how to book a wrestling match, all I'm saying is the back story is so basic, even with all these characters in the first trilogy alone, if done correctly the story of a match can be told without any problem. Sure there's always going to an idea or two thrown in to enhance the product and I understand that. My problem with "over-booking" and throwing every idea out there will just crowd things up and confuse fans.

And when I mentioned earlier how promoters attempt to bring in non-wrestling fans into their shows, I think promoters need to understand and satisfy their real fans first, the ones who come every month to live shows, buy a DVD and puts the product over online and to friends.

Once that's taken care then promoters and bookers can think of ideas to help cross-promote their product with something mainstream to get into the conscious of the rest of the folks who don't follow or haven't followed wrestling in years. Because frankly, I'm tired of seeing a god damn baseball player in a fucking wrestling match.
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Updating the look

Over the next little while, you may see some changes to the way this blog looks.

Given that OC-Times.net is still in the planning stages, there needed to be an update to this here blog.

So, all of the changes that you will see visually are the work of Art Shimko (MeanFiliPine.blogspot.com{ who is not only a contributor to this here corner of Cyberspace, but if you click that link above you'll go to his own blog which has even more content.

If you like things as they develop, tell Art thanks, and if you don't thank him, he'll inform me of the names of all the people on earth who did not thank him, and you can expect a visit from me and my giant club. I hope you have food on hand because after I club you I'm going to want a snack and if you don't have one I'll have to club you again. I know where all of you live!

So, it is just easier to thank Art yourself.

Also, on another note, Euan and I did a brief audio assault before Sunday's TNA PPV and well...it was just posted today. Anyway, the lateness not withstanding, you need to listen to it so that you can hear the fantastic introduction Euan created, it is the funniest thing he's probably ever done up to this point, and that's high praise.

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Art does podcasts

OC Times contributor and all around cool dude Art Shimko who runs his Meanfilipine.blogspot.com blog has done some podcasts this week.

I'll let Art Plug them himself

Art will be participating in the CARE/Other Vuz, Vuz, Vuz Jabroni preview of Destination X this Sunday, and I can't speak for anyone but myself but I think it is safe to say that he Euan and I had so much fun the other day we'll find reasons to have regular shows.

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Morishima Crowned ROH Champ - Live Thoughts

By Art Shimko
shimko_7@hotmail.com



[Photo credit: www.ROHWrestling.com]

-- Takeshi Morishima defeated Homicide last night in Philadelphia to become the new ROH World Champion in front of close to 1,000 fans at the Pennsylvania National Guard Armory. Morishma was a fucking monster as he wasted no time beating the shit out of Homicide pulling off power moves a man half his size normally does. My friend DJ called him the Japanese Terry Gordy and that pretty much summed it up. I was fine with Morishma winning the title from Homicide because let's face it, Homicide's NWA tag champ in TNA and I'm sure the office wants him concentrating on his TNA tenure than outside indy dates not booked by TNA. People from the back came out, including BJ Whitmer towards the ring only to get their asses kicked by Morishma, he then stormed towards the back. It was also Samoa Joe's final match in Philadelphia defeating Jimmy Rave in a match that was good, not great in my opinion but it was somewhat of a historic moment which included Joe coming out to his original entrance theme Another Body Murdered by Boo-Yaa Tribe and Faith No More and concluded his match putting Philadelphia and its fans way over. The Briscoes and Kevin Steen and El Generico had an AWESOME (~!) match that really got the crowd hot, Steen and Generico impressed the crowd and recieved a "PLEASE COME BACK~!" chant. I'm not crazy about FIP title matches on ROH shows, just not into it man and Roderick Strong/Delirious furthered my opinion of FIP matches on an ROH card. The tag title match was decent but fell apart at some point only to pick up the pace and turn out for the better. The street fight was fun, lots of brawling in the crowd and Lacey and Daizee both looked so hot, I don't know why but I really became more into BJ Whitmer after this match and the storyline with Lacey/Jimmy Jacobs/Colt Cabana has been great. Aries/Castagnoli and McGuinness/TJ Perkins were good opening matches. Here are the results from last night and from results from Friday night in NYC.

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CHIKARA King Of Trios Finals results/thoughts

By Art Shimko
shimko_7@hotmail.com

Great show tonight from the New Alhambra Arena in South Philadelphia (Viking Hall for all you historians), lots of the usual fun and crazy spots and great wrestling overall, here are the results from CZWFans.com -

CHIKARA King Of Trios 2007 Night 3
2/18/07 - Philladelphia, PA
1. King Of Trios Tournament Semi-Finals: MIYAWAKI, Yoshiaki Yago and KUDO defeated Gran Akuma, Icarus and Chuck Taylor to advance to the Finals of the King Of Trios Tournament.
2. King Of Trios Tournament Semi-Finals: Mike Quackenbush, Jigsaw and Shane Storm defeated El Pantera, Sicodelico, Jr. and Lince Dorado to advance to the Finals of the King Of Trios Tournament.
3. Allison Danger defeated La Malcriada following an STO.
4. CHIKARA Young Lion's Cup Match: Max Boyer defeated Sal Thomaselli following the Life Style to retain the CHIKARA Young Lion's Cup.
5. Hallowicked defeated Matt Sydal following The Graveyard Smash.
6. Gauntlet Match: Cheech and Cloudy won the Gauntlet Match over Lucky and JC Ryder, Jason Gory and Shiima Xion, Dunn and Marcos, Dashinoku Dino and American Balloon, Mitch Ryder and Robbie Ellis, Dr. Cheung and Darkness Crabtree, Jagged and Shane Matthews, Joey Ryan and Excalibur, Soldier Ant and Fire Ant, Jimmy Olsen and Colin Olsen, Larry Sweeney and ShareCropper, Player Uno and Create-A-Wrestler, Chris Bosh and Scott Lost, Fire Ant and Equinox, UltraMantis Black and Hydra and Vito Thomaselli and Brandon Thomaselli.
a) Jason Gory and Shiima Xion defeated Lucky and JC Ryder to advance in the Gauntlet.
b) Dunn and Marcos defeated Jason Gory and Shiima Xion to advance in the Gauntlet.
c) Dashinoku Dino and American Balloon defeated Dunn and Marcos to advance in the Gauntlet.
d) Mitch Ryder and Robbie Ellis defeated Dashinoku Dino and American Balloon to advance in the Gauntlet.
e) Mitch Ryder and Robbie Ellis defeated Dr. Cheung and Darkness Crabtree to advance in the Gauntlet.
f) Jagged and Shane Matthews defeated Mitch Ryder and Robbie Ellis to advance in the Gauntlet.
g) Jagged and Shane Matthews defeated Joey Ryan and Excalibur to advance in the Gauntlet.
h) Jagged and Shane Matthews defeated Soldier Ant and Worker Ant to advance in the Guantlet.
i) Jimmy Olsen and Colin Olsen defeated Jagged and Shane Matthews to advance in the Gauntlet.
j) Larry Sweeney and ShareCropper defeated Jimmy Olsen and Colin Olsen to advance in the Gauntlet.
k) Larry Sweeney and ShareCropper defeated Player Uno and Create-A-Wrestler to advance in the Gauntlet.
l) Chris Bosh and Scott Lost defeated Larry Sweeney and ShareCropper to advance in the Gauntlet.
m) Chris Bosh and Scott Lost defeated Fire Ant and Equinox to advance in the Gauntlet.
n) Chris Bosh and Scott Lost defeated UltraMantis Black and Hydra to advance in the Gauntlet.
o) Cheech and Cloudy defeated Chris Bosh and Scott Lost to advance in the Gauntlet.
p) Cheech and Cloudy defeated Vito Thomaselli and Brandon Thomaselli to win the Gauntlet. As a result of the win, Up In Smoke now have 3 points and can challenge F.I.S.T. for the Campeonatos de Perejas.
7. MECHA Mummy defeated Mokujin Ken.
8. Daizee Haze defeated Sara Del Ray.
9. Masamune defeated Nobutaka Moribe.
10. Claudio Castagnoli defeated Ricochet.
11. King Of Trios Tournament Finals: Mike Quackenbush, Jigsaw and Shane Storm defeated MIYAWAKI, Yoshiaki Yago and KUDO to win the King Of Trios Tournament.

Masamune/Nobutaka Moribe kicked ass, the tag team guantlet match was fun, long but not too long as there were some quick eliminations, the return of SHARECROPPER~! got huge pops, Hallowicked/Sydal was good, Ricochet moves like crazy and the main event had lots of action and at the end out of respect the Quack's team gave the Dragon Gate team the medals they won. I heard the first two nights were great shows with the first one sounding like it was the best... GET THE DVDS~!

P.S. - The most amusing moment of the evening wasn't anything CHIKARA-related but Mickie Knuckles from IWA-Mid South came over and asked if I had bought tickets IN ADVANCE for their upcoming show at the New Alhambra Arena on 6/30 which was so funny on many levels which only me and few people would get.
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Note to webmasters/reporters: When recapping news or referencing commentary from this site please include a link to meanfilipine.blogspot.com as opposed to "Strong Style Shimko", "From The Mean Filipine Blog" or derivatives. Thank you!

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STRONG STYLE SHIMKO WEEKEND WRESTLING/MMA/MUSIC NEWS/NOTES

We've got tons of pro wrestling, mixed martial arts and music news at Strong Style Shimko: Themeanfilipineblog this weekend including music news with notes for tonight's Grammy Awards show as well as updates on The Who, Rush, Dream Theater, Jerry Garica's estate and recordings, what killed late R&B singer Gerald Levert and so much more.

Click here for Casey, Ric, Euan, myself, Marcus, Scott and Wade's big-ass preview of TNA's Against All Odds PPV for tonight, other weekend wrestling and MMA news can be viewed here and British wrestling fan and all-around great guy Oliver Newman stops by to offer his latest column on seeing three days of British wrestling in a row.

All this plus updates on Metallica, results from this weekend's IWA-Mid South and CZW shows and tons of content to keep you busy for a while.

THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT~!
Art

P.S. Tune in to The Dark Match w/James Young and Wacko Bob this week with special guest Bill DeMott~!

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Schlock N' Hyperbole Flashback: Scourge Overkill® - Music notes for 2/8/06

By Art Shimko
shimko_7@hotmail.com

Scourge Overkill® - Music notes for 2/8/06

-- Below is a music news report from my old blog Schlock N' Hyperbole dating back to 2/8/06...

== I wrote on this blog sometime ago about my feelings regarding illegal music downloads being the cause of the music industry's current slump in CD sales. I, along with friends I've discussed this subject all agreed that it was in fact the music industry's current product combined with outrageous CD prices that were turning people away from purchasing music. MTV.com and MSNBC reported that Rolling Stone Magazine and the Associated Press conducted a poll where 92% of 1,000 people never downloaded music and 80% think it's stealing. BUT, 75% said that the reason for decline in record sales is due to CD COSTING TOO MUCH with the average price being $20US which is fucking insane, and 58% said the quality of music is basically shitty. More than 99% buy their music digitally opting to buy a single track for 99¢ rather than buy an entire album. It's funny because the music industry is behind the times in general, and while these reasons for declining record sales have been known for years, the music biz is FINALLY seeing the writing on the wall. Buying music digitally may in fact bring singles sales back into the industry as buying entire albums are being extinct, unless you have an album that will be full of great songs, but in this day and age where pop acts reign supreme, they rely more on a single hit rather than a hit album producing 4 or 5 hit singles or a cohesively great album.

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== The line-up for this year's Bonnaroo festival in Manchester Tennessee on 6/16-6/18 is nothing worth making a road trip for in my opinion. The headliners are Radiohead, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers and Phil Lesh & Friends which is quite a hodgepodge that in a post-Lollapalooza age just seems weird and doesn't speak to speciific demographics as in the past, which would be fine except this year's line-up and headliners are all over the place. I enjoy Radiohead but Bonnaroo is not a place I'd expect to see them, think Lollapalooza '96 when Metallica headlined, yeah it was different but did it make a difference in booking Lollapalooza as far as its audience accepting such a move? Tom Petty is not a weird choice for Bonnaroo but as a headliner I question that move although I don't doubt he'll have a crowd at his set, and I love Phil Lesh and Friends but his band line-up this year is not getting such critical acclaim like in the past and he's played with clowns like John Mayer, Ryan Adams and Chris Robinson, yuck! Many music fans have diverse tastes with so many genres and mixing of genres to choose from, but there are times you expect a certain flavor at festivals. Would Iron Maiden being booked for a jazz festival be innovative booking or way too radical, that may be an extreme example but think about it for a moment then look at past Bonnaroo line-ups and compare to this year's and 2005's line-up and you'll see major differences. I feel, why screw with a formula that's been successful for years prior to the 2005-2006 Bonnaroo, but as I saw when I went in 2004, lots of younger, college kids were attending as compared to 2003 when my friends went saying it was a mix of old heads and young people, the booking seems to be catering to the young folks who have endless money supplies from mom and dad as far as the choice of bands on the bill. Sure you still have Bela Fleck & the Flecktones, Buddy Guy, Bill Frisell, Jerry Douglas Medeski Martin & Wood and Steel Pulse who help bring the essence and flavor of past Bonnaroos but to me there aren't enough bands on the line-up to convince me that another 13-hour road trip is worth enduring for this festival. The rest of the line-up can be seen on the Bonnaroo site.

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== MTV dot com reported on 2/2 that The Smashing Pumpkins will indeed be reforming, although frontman Billy Corgan and drummer Billy Chamberlin are the only two original members working as the Pumpkins so far, this makes sense as Corgan said in interviews that he felt that Chamberlin was a musical soulmate so-to-speak and that Chamberlin was the only other talented musician as Chamberlin is a jazz drummer, they have signed with Azoff Management and are currently writing new music. Former Pumpkins bassist Melissa Auf Der Maur who replaced original bassist D'Arcy Wretzky in 1999, said she wasn't sure if Corgan has contacted Wretzky and original guitarist James Iha about the reunion and that it wouldn't be a true reunion without them, however she offered her services to Corgan should Wretzky not come back. There have been lots of rumors going around the internet regarding this story, including a website which I blogged about here about a new album by "The New Pumpkins" called "Drawn" coming out in April which was a hoax. Also rumors of the band headlining the Coachella festival in California in April were spread, only to be put to bed when it was announced that Tool and Depeche Mode where announced as headliners. This all started when Corgan took out a full page ad in the Chicago Tribune regarding a reunion but contained no other information. Corgan had remained quiet about the subject until now, from here we'll see what unfolds in the soap opera that is The Smashing Pumpkins.

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== Friday 2/3 was the 47th anniversary of "The Day The Music Died" where musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. Richardson (The Big Bopper) all died in a plane crash as they were headed to Moorhead, Minnesota from Clear Lake, Iowa for the Winter Dance Party tour which was to cover 24 Midwest cities. The tour was not booked conveniently as the tour stops were very far from each other, and on the fateful night at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Holly wasn't going to put up with the tour bus any longer and decided to charter a flight to the next tour stop instead. Despite horrendous weather conditions, Holly decided to take a plane to travel the 430-mile trek to Fargo, North Dakota because Moorhead didn't have an airport. At 1AM CST on 2/3/59, the plane took off from Mason City, Iowa, at 1:05AM CST, the manager of the Surf Ballroom saw lights of the plane disappearing from the sky to the ground, he thought it was an optical illusion. The next morning a search party was sent out when the plane never landed in Fargo and found wreckage of a light plane in a farmer's cornfield about five miles away from Mason City Airport. One eerie part of the story was when The Big Bopper, who had the flu, asked Waylon Jennings, a member of Holly's band, for his seat on the plane. Holly heard about this and said to Jennings, "Well, I hope your old bus freezes up!" to which Jennings replied, "Well, I hope your plane crashes!" Of course the two were ribbing each other but that exchange haunted Jennings for years.

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== On 2/5 a security guard was shot and killed in a Brooklyn warehouse where rapper Busta Rhymes was filming a video. The victim, 29-year-old Israel Ramirez, was shot in the chest. Five other bullets also hit an SUV outside the building. The police have not found a motive nor have any suspects been caught, one piece of information released from a production team member said that security had asked a group of rowdy men watching the video shoot to leave 30 minutes before the shooting, said to be a lot pf tension during the incident. That afternoon, police recovered a gun near the building and are still determining if it is the weapon that was used in the shooting.

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== Velvet Revolver frontman Scott Weiland has signed a deal with Scribner to publish his memoir about his rise and fall in Stone Temple Pilots and his drug abuse as well as his road to sobriety. That should be an interesting read.

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== Thomas "Pig Champion" Roberts, a founding member of influential punk act Poison Idea, died in his Portland, Oregon, home on Monday 1/30 at the age of 47. Roberts had left the band in 1993 yet they went on and Roberts made occasional appearances.

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== Heather Locklear is divorcing her second rocker husband, Bon Jovi's Richie Sambora, after 10 years of marriage, they have an 8-year-old daughter, Ava Elizabeth.

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== Rolling Rock beer is ending its annual Rolling Rock Town Fair, a one-day music festival that took place in Latrobe, PA since 2000. The brewery plans to work with Little Steven Van Zandt on a series of nationwide shows called "Garage Rock" which is designed to bring new rock acts to cities across America such as New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chicago, Cleveland, Minneapolis, Atlanta and Seattle.

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== With iPods and other mp3 players being a major part of people's everyday lives, forbes.com has an article on how listeners should be aware of the potential hearing loss these devices can cause with the way people tend to listen to music at extremely loud volumes through the little ear buds that accompany the devices. This concern has been brought up many times since headphones where introduced to home stereos years ago.

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== In another story that involves both pro-wrestling and music, which is pretty much the basis of this blog site, Peter Gabriel's hit song "Big Time" is the theme song for this year's Wrestlemania 22 which will take place in Chicago on 4/2.

©2006 Schlock N' Hyperbole

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Odd news this past week

Strong >< Style >< Shimko: themeanfilipineblog: You're crazy, man. You're crazy. I like you, but you're crazy. Vol. 3 (2/4/07)

-- Two cities terrorized by a cartoon character, caffeinated pastry, something in the bathroom which can get you drunk, new ways for meth heads to get high, what's giving boys breasts, a cop who writes himself a traffic ticket, Chewbacca gets arrested for battery plus so much more~!

Thanks for your support,
Art

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Weekend music news and notes

By Art Shimko
shimko_7@hotmail.com

-- Music news and notes from the last few days...

-- After being hospitalized Thursday in Galveston for a low grade fever and flu-like symptoms, 81-year-old blues legend B.B. King was discharged Saturday and said to be feeling better. King will be rescheduling dates he missed early this week in June and plans on performing a show in Fort Worth on Tuesday.

-- The Police will be rehearsing for their upcoming reunion tour at Vancouver's Lions Gate Studios as reported by local classic rock station CFMI this past week, there's even a rumor of the band performing at the Grammys on 2/11 in L.A. Sting (accompanied by lutenist Edin Karamazov) will be touring from 2/18-3/12 in Europe supporting his lute album "Songs From the Labryinth".

-- Exclusive: Van Halen Reuniting With Roth For Tour

-- Line-up & ticket info for this year's New Orleans Jazz Fesitval: New Orleans, LA (January 25, 2007)—Harry Connick Jr., Rod Stewart, Steely Dan, Norah Jones, ZZ Top, John Legend, Van Morrison, Brad Paisley, Jill Scott, Ludacris, Dr. John, Bonnie Raitt, New Edition, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Irma Thomas, Jerry Lee Lewis, Counting Crows, Allman Brothers Band, Allen Toussaint, George Benson, Pharoah Sanders, George Thorogood, Stephen Marley featuring Jr. Gong, Better Than Ezra, Joss Stone, Banda el Recodo, Calexico, Taj Mahal, Johnny Rivers, Lucinda Williams, Branford Marsalis, Richie Havens, Soulive, Cowboy Mouth, Percy Sledge, Tony Joe White, Gillian Welch, Bobby Jones & the Nashville Super Choir, T-Bone Burnett, Rebirth Brass Band, Galactic, Mose Allison, Marcia Ball, Roy Hargrove, Chuck Leavell, Arturo Sandoval, The Holmes Brothers, Snooks Eaglin, Dr. Lonnie Smith, The New Orleans Social Club, James Carter, The Radiators, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Lucky Peterson, Darrell McFadden, Sonny Landreth, Danilo Perez, Ivan Neville, Dottie Peoples, Davell Crawford, Ba Cissoko of Guinea, George Porter, Jr., Joseph “Zigaboo” Modeliste, Tab Benoit, Les Amazones of Guinea, World Saxophone Group, John Mooney & Bluesiana, Buckwheat Zydeco, Anders Osborne, Elder Baab & the Madison Bumble Bees of Winnsboro, Eddie Bo, Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys, Rosie Ledet, Amanda Shaw, The Iguanas, Marva Wright, Walter “Wolfman” Washington, Deacon John, Donald Harrison, Nicholas Payton, Terence Blanchard, Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews & Orleans Avenue, Bob French, Elysian Fieldz, The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Kermit Ruffins & the Barbecue Swingers, Ellis Marsalis and over 500 more groups will gather in New Orleans for the 38th annual New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival presented by Shell, April 27-29 and May 4-6, Festival organizers announced today [January 25th].

Tickets to the 2007 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival presented by Shell go on sale today at www.nojazzfest.com and www.ticketmaster.com, at all Ticketmaster outlets or by calling (800) 488-5252 (outside Louisiana) and (504) 522-5555 (New Orleans). Tickets can be purchased in person at the Jazz Fest ticket office located at New Orleans Arena, 1501 Girod Street. Tickets to Jazz Fest are on sale by specific weekend, with each ticket valid for a single day’s attendance. Prices are $35 in advance, $45 at the gate. Children’s tickets (ages 2 - 11) are only $5 in advance or at the gate. A limited number of Jazz Fest’s popular Big Chief VIP Experience packages featuring a full weekend pass and VIP amenities is available for $600 per weekend, $700 with parking. Additional ticket and VIP information is available at www.nojazzfest.com.

-- Tom Waits and GM Motors German division settled a lawsuit filed by the singer after the auto company and the McCann Erickson agency released commercials featuring a singer who eerily sounded just like Waits. The money Waits received in the suit will be donated to charity, and also this isn't the first time Waits has chased after companies producing ads using singers mimicking his vocal style. In 1992 Waits sued Frito-Lay for a Dortios commercial featuring a vocalist also mimicking a singing voice like his winning $2.5 million and also has sued Audi and Italian carmaker Lancia for similar reasons.

-- In an interview on BBC Radio 4's "Front Row" Brian Eno said that he has been drafted to produce Coldplay's upcoming fourth album.

-- From the Smashing Pumpkins' Myspace blog: The Smashing Pumpkins have made their first official announcement of an appearance in 2007. The band will headline both Rock am Ring (6/2/07) and Rock im Park (6/3/07) Festivals in Germany. Tickets are available beginning on Saturday, January 27, 2007. Tickets can be purchased by visiting www.tickets-per-post.de/tickets-per-post/Main.php. Check out the festival website for more information http://www.rock-am-ring.com. Stay tuned for many more announcements…

-- Deicide drummer Steve Asheim was detained earlier this week in Innsbruck, Austria where the band is on tour after attempting to deposit merch money at a local bank. The bank staff was suspicious when some of the money was colored in a red dye, the police were contacted and Asheim was questioned for hours before police released him with no charge.

-- Pearl Jam have released European concert dates on their website:
6/8-Lisbon, Portugal (Passeio Maritimo Alges)
6/9-Madrid, Spain (Festimad)
6/12-Munich, Germany (Olympichalle)
6/13-Katowice, Poland (Chorzow Stadion Slaski)
6/15-Italy TBA
6/16-Vienna, Austria (Nova Rock Festivval)
6/18-London, England (Wembley Arena)
6/21-Dusseldorf, Germany (Ltu Arena)
6/23-Tuttlingen, Germany (Southside Festival)
6/24-Scheebel, Germany (Hurricane Festival)
6/26-Copenhagen, Denmark (Forum)
6/28-Nijmegen, Holland (Goeffert Park)
6/29-Werchter, Belgium (Werchter Festival)

-- Thrash-metal veterans Testament are getting back together for an upcoming tour featuring original members Alex Skolnick, Greg Christian, Eric Peterson, Chuck Billy and drummer Nick Barker (Dimmu Borgir, Cradle of Filth). The band plays tonight at Independent in their hometown San Francisco and then heads to Australia and Europe for more tour dates:
AUSTRALIA
2/7 - Prince of Wales Hotel - Melbourne
2/8 - The Manning Bar - Sydney
2/9 - The Waterloo Hotel - Brisbane

EUROPE
3/23 - Almassy MK Hall - Budapest, HUNGARY
3/24 - Hala Spodek - Katowice, POLAND
7/26 - Hellwood Fest - Subotica, SERBIA
8/25 - Up from the Ground Open Air Fest - Gemunden, GERMANY

-- In case you're confused which bands are "gay" and which are "safe" the kind folks at www.lovegodsway.org can "straighten things" out for you:
"Gay" bands include: The Spores (endorse suicide); The Grateful Dead (AIDS); Morrissey(?questionable?); George Michael (texan); Ted Nugent (loincloth) - the Nuge sure would LOVE that one... Metallica; Jay-Z; Motorhead and plenty more. This ministry is so fucking dumb... "Safe" bands include the usual bunch of idiots: UnderOath; Cyndi Lauper (I thought she was a lesbian); Falling Up; Flyleaf; THE TURNING; Disciple; P.O.D; Evanescence; By The Tree; Scott Reed; Michael W. Smith; Jars of Clay; DC Talk.

-- AP: Michael Jackson Returns to the U.S.

-- EMI to Merge Capitol and Virgin Labels

-- Rapper Young Buck arrested in Nashville

-- Singer-actress Brandy involved in fatal traffic crash

-- Beastie Boys Working On "Different" New Album

-- Scott Ian Announces Anthrax "Reunion is Over."
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A Look Back: Wrestling Society X premier

Art reviewed the first episode
Always happy to toss a plug his way, especially as he reviewed this show which I did not see but was hoping to, but it is MTV so I'll have a zillion more chances.

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