TRYING TO PUT IT ALL IN PERSPECTIVE. You just never know...

Wow.  I really did it now...


All I planned to do was go to Mt. Carmel and Waynesboro, do a camp, come home, write a blog, get caught up and do it all over again.  Things don't always work out the way we plan them.  Come to think of it, very rarely has anything turned out the way I planned.

I wrote a blog after my experience at a camp I did for promising hopefuls looking for direction or wanting to learn and given proper instruction.  At least I was under the impression they came to learn something they might not know or could use when they went back to from where they came.
I named names. I responded to comments and emails.  I heard everything from "thank you for exposing these hacks" to "that was a bit strong, you don't know what you're talking about, you're a racist, bitter, angry, has been, that is smearing three upstanding people through the mud for no reason." I won't rehash the blog.  You can read it yourself and make your own call.


After a couple days Tyger Smith emailed me and asked if we could speak.  At least he wanted to get to the heart of the matter and straighten out any "misunderstandings" or mis-perceptions about what happened or was said over the weekend. I can appreciate that.  Nobody else contacted me wanting to clear the air. I will tell you I talked personally with Tyger Smith and in the course of our conversation I told him the way to make things different and better for everyone in that area was to actually make things different and change things in that area!  Lead by example.  Prove and show people that you really do want to make a difference and you have passion for professional wrestling.  Change the perception of what is out there right now.  Because I got so many emails and hits on this blog alone it was mind boggling.  95% were thanking me and relaying their experiences with the guys I mentioned, but there was a small contingent of supporters that took me to task for what I wrote. 

I was prepared to take the heat.  I was prepared to be bombarded.  I got over 8,000 hits from Tuesday night to Friday morning.  I don't know if that's good or bad but it was definitely a hot topic for a lot of people.  I was called unfair, bitter, out of touch, angry, jealous and a few things I really can't print.  And I did answer some in the comments section. I emailed some back.  The blog did evoke emotion and passion from a lot of people.  I had a feeling it would.


Some thought I was too harsh.  Naming names, responding to trolls, "arguing" or even answering baseless comments.  Others said I didn't go far enough.  You can't (and never will) please everybody.  I stopped trying to please everybody a long time ago.  I've said it many times, "Show me a man who never had heat in this business and I'll show you a man who's never been in this business."  I put it out there, attached MY name to it and I better be able to take as well as give....


Independent wrestling is in pretty bad shape for the most part across the country.  I would hope it gets better and that I helped shine a light on some of the scammers out there but I know better.

I would like to think if someone gives me their word, they will follow through.  But again, I know better.  I believe in second and even third chances.  I think Tyger Smith genuinely reached out to straighten things out from his end and only time will tell.  As I said, this problem is not exclusive to Rochester, Buffalo or New York state.  There is an infestation of so called "rasslers" all over the country that don't have a clue and the only way they should be let into a wrestling event is through the front door, buying a ticket!

There should be a way to tell the difference between  a good school  from a bad school, good trainer from bad trainer, but there's really not.  Until you train at a school or with someone for at least three months, you can't tell what you're going to get.

This week did make me somewhat introspective on the wrestling business from starting as a kid to the business it's grown into.

When I first started I just wanted to be a wrestler.  Now, it seems everybody wants to be a celebrity and be on TV.  I would go to building where the toilet was in the middle of the dressing room.  No stall or walls around it.  Just a toilet in the middle of a small, cramped dressing room.  Some buildings and towns were nicer than others but for the most part, it was show up, wrestle and go home or the next town 7 days a week.  And yes, in Louisiana, we worked  twice on Saturday and Sunday as well.  That system no longer exists.

Vince McMahon took wrestling out of the "dark ages" and made it possible for everyone to make a bigger and better living.  He called it what it was..."entertainment."

Professional wrestling has always been about entertainment but you had the tough guy veterans, shooters, hookers and con men during that time as well, who would defend it to their death if you claimed it was anything but a true, legitimate sport or contest! The only difference is the world wasn't as connected as it is now.  That's good and bad in my opinion.



Muhamid Farouk AKA The Iron Sheik 1978

Two incidents immediately came to mind.  I was slapped by The Iron Sheik during training and Les Thorton after a match in Fort Worth, TX.  I screwed up and potatoed Sheik and he slapped me down.  I worked with Les in one of my first matches and was nervous as hell and screwed up the match.  He came back to the dressing room and in showing me how to take his arm, he slapped the hell out of me I think partly as a receipt and partly because he was angry he was booked with a young, green punk!

My trainer/Coach Iron Sheik, 1977

I had my debut singles match against Les Thorton in my hometown of Houston, TX.  I'd been wrestling a couple months and Paul Boesch didn't want to book me too soon before heading to the west coast.  Les Thorton was campaigning for a run with the NWA Jr. Heavyweight Championship and was in no mood to be in the opening match in Houston against a kid who had been the promoter's assistant (gofer) and have to go 15 minutes with him to boot!

Me VS. Les Thorton, Houston 1980

I was nervous beyond belief and between that, Les' English accent and my inexperience, it was the longest 15 minutes of my life!  Les picked me apart in the dressing room after the match for a good 45 minutes!  I wanted to be a wrestler my whole life and now here I was, going 15 minutes with the next World Jr. Heavyweight champion in my home town and he's ripping everything I did apart in front of the entire locker room!  He showed me the correct way to reverse a hold, when to relax, how to slow down, stressing TIMING was everything and there were a lot of four letter words uttered with telling frustration!


Danny McShain looks on as Les is begging me to relax!

Sure, I had trained with the Iron Sheik and Nick Kozak.  Sure, I worked with Les in Fort Worth and he had been over my mistakes before and I should have learned then.  But I was green as grass and even though I'd trained, worked out and watched my whole life, I had a long way to go.  That's why it was advised if you wanted to get better and learn how to wrestle and learn the business of professional wrestling, you had to be willing to travel to different territories where you would learn different styles, work with different people and learn how to make a living on the road.



Wonder why Al was so mad all the time?

When I went to California I was put in a tag team with Al Madril.  Al was ten years older than me and I watched him when he worked in Texas and won the NWA Jr. Heavyweight Championship from Nelson Royal.  But my god!  What a miserable guy!  I couldn't understand how he could be in such a bad mood ALL the time!  We were the America's tag team champions for goodness sake.....What a mark, what an IDIOT I was!!!  Now I understand a little more about why Al was the way he was.

Houston Wrestling Office 1978

I was so fortunate to be able to sit ringside and be Paul Boesch's assistant on Friday nights to watch, listen and learn the business up close and personal.  Working in the wrestling office was an invaluable experience as I learned everything from answering the phone to selling tickets. 

In Texas at that time they had official "seconds" who accompanied the wrestlers to and from the ring and took the jackets to the back.  I was able to referee and learn and listen in the ring. 

Paul & I ringside

That learning process doesn't exist today.  It's not the young guy's fault.  The business has changed and continues to evolve.  The problem is there are so many people out there who want to wrestle and be on TV so they can buy a ring, have a belt made, open their own company and run shows.  They watch and try to mimic what they see on TV without knowing or understanding the reason or key to what's happening.  Therefore, we find the state of independent wrestling today filled with guys just "playing rassler" with no idea how or where to go to get better.


Jack Brisco's second 1976



Paul's assistant 1977

There are some good trainers out there.  But you have to search and then investigate.  Don't just "settle" for something because it's close or convenient if you believe in yourself.  But you must be honest with yourself too.  The odds are against you making it to developmental, much less a major company. 
Professional wrestling is the entertainment business. It can be a self centered, cut throat, heart breaking, vicious, dog-eat-dog BUSINESS.  Where do you fit in?  Why would anyone pay to watch you perform?

To get better you have to find someone who's better than you and knows more.  There's a small minority of people out there that understand how to teach the basics and fundamentals.  But they are out there.  If you can't seek them out, then you will stay where you're at.  If you keep doing what you're doing, you're going to keep getting what you're getting!

I've been accused of having a "negative attitude."  If trying to save you from driving your car (or company) off a cliff is having a "negative attitude" then I'm guilty.

To paraphrase former president Clinton; "It depends on what your definition of "negative" is."  Did I take pictures and posters off the wall and sling them to illustrate a point and demonstrate how absurd it is when someone wants to rip down a list of rules that have been up for years without asking why they're up, I'm guilty!  But everyone (OK, not everyone) but the majority of people there knew what I was doing; I was "performing" absurdity!  It was a work and those that didn't get it, never will. 

But I will stand by my record of how I taught, mentored and helped anybody I trained in FCW or any place else I held a camp.  Every coach has his style.  Bobby Knight threw chairs... Was HE negative or passionate?  I know we had a winning team while I coached and trained at FCW.  When someone comes in and doesn't have a clue about what I do or how the business works on a training level and tries to tell me how it needs to be run, I will do the best I can to follow through with their direction.  That's one reason I am so passionate about people who get in this business being trained properly and not abused or taken advantage of. 

So, if exposing con men, cowards and people who have no idea what they're doing is negative, I'm negative.  If caring and teaching how absurd something is by demonstrating the absurdity of it all, I'm negative.  But I've been around long enough to read the signs and see the writing on the wall.  Independent wrestling is in big trouble and has been for a long time!

This is a dying art.  And I can only imagine what it will look like in five years. I am not a negative person!  I believe in positivity. I think it's a positive thing if just one coward hung up his boots and tights this week due to my blog.  That's one less idiot anybody has to worry about getting hurt by.

Now, I hope we can all move on...

It's been a helluva week.  In addition to stirring up the Independent scene up north and getting the most hits ever so far on my blog, an event happened that put things into perspective.

Dutch Mantell

I've known Dutch Mantell and wife Cathy close to 30 years.  I knew their daughter Amanda as a little girl.  Dutch, John Layfield (JBL) and I travelled together when we were all in WWE and usually "heeled" a room together.  I met Dutch during my first run in Memphis in the early '80s. He was a great story teller and trips were never boring.

Amelia Keown

On Tuesday afternoon (Aug. 14) Dutch's 16 year old granddaughter, Amelia Keown was hit head on by a man speeding trying to run from a state trooper.  She was killed instantly.  I heard the other driver lingered in critical condition before he passed away around 1AM.

In an instant, Dutch and his family's lives changed forever.  All the wrestling, indy crap and out and out BS that happens in this business means absolutely nothing in the end.  It comes down to what's most important to you.  And I can't imagine the sadness and grief Dutch and his family are experiencing at this time. 

What do you say?  How do you reach out?  I don't know.  But I sent an email just to let them know I didn't know what to say but I'm here if they need to vent, scream, cry or talk.  Kind of made me think about all the times on the road and all I worried about was getting to the town and wrestling.  It could have been my daughter.  I don't know how I would handle it.

There are a lot of people who love and support Dutch, Cathy, Amanda and Amelia's little sister.  There are some trying to help with donations and trying to put together a benefit show.  If you want to help and have a paypal account you can send donations to dirtydutchmantell@gmail.com.


General Skandar Akbar

I also realized that two years ago on Aug. 19 we lost two other respected members of the wrestling community.  I worked my first match in the Dallas Sportatorium against General Skandar Akbar.  He passed away at age 75.  The General was a good, kind man and explained what I did in a calmer manner than Les Thorton!  I think you would be hard pressed to find any negative comments from anyone in the business about Ak.

Ted Allen

I worked with Ted Allen many times.  He was getting ready to make a town to wrestle and was found not breathing on his bed after getting out of the shower. Ted was a solid worker and a great guy.  He helped Arn Anderson early in his career and has helped a lot of the young guys when he was around.  His most recent protege is a kid named Kyle Matthews who wrestles everywhere he can and goes to Japan for Noah thanks to Ted's recommendation.  Ted was also a partner of Danny Davis in the original incarnation of The Nightmares.  He was talented and while he traveled extensively down south, Ted was happy being home around Georgia.  He was 54. 

I turned 53 Aug. 18.

Chris Candido, NWA Champ 1995

Hated the gimmick. Loved Chris.

One death affected me more than others was Chris Candido.  At 33 years old, Chris wrestled a tag match for TNA at Lockdown in 2005. He broke his ankle on a freak bump from a drop kick.  Four days later, he passed away from a blood clot.  He flew from Orlando to New Jersey and apparently the altitude is what caused it.  On April 28 I got a call from Tommy Dreamer telling me Chris had died.  I was in shock.  I had just talked to him Monday afternoon and he was on his way to the doctor and was going to call me when he got out.  That was the last time I spoke to Chris.  I cried for days and still think about him.  He grew up in the business.  His grandfather was Chuck "Popeye" Richards and Chris was incredibly talented.  While I hated the Body Donna gimmick, I loved working with Chris.  He was smart and made an insufferable gimmick a little more bearable.

After causing such a stir in some places last week and the events that happened, I got to thinking.

I wish there was a way to help make things better in the business.  That was my goal when I wrote my blog.  Believe it or not. By exposing those that need exposing, maybe that will change just a bit.

Dutch Mantell and his family suffered a tragedy I wouldn't wish on anybody.  It shows how fragile life is and how much your last words mean something.  And none of us know exactly  when we will utter our "last words." 

I wrote what I wrote and I'm passionate about the subject of con men, cowards and bullies.

I'm also aware that wrestling isn't the most important thing in the world when it comes right down to it.  I've met some good people in this business. And it hurts when they are hurting. 

I hope there is some change in Rochester and Buffalo.  Time will tell. I went on a rant and I stand by it until I'm shown it's no longer the way I described.  I know I affected some people because I got emails and comments and more pageviews than ever. If what I wrote makes a difference, great.  I'm not so naive to think I will change the world.  But getting rid of just one cancer is a good start!

At the same time, while trying to think of what to write about next, tragedy struck a good friend of mine.  I can't say I know exactly how he feels.  I hope I never have to find out.  After all is said and done, it's just wrestling.  Entertainment.  Have fun with it, enjoy yourself and be safe. Protect you and your opponent.  But don't take yourself too seriously.  It could all be over in an instant.

I am going to attempt to keep things in perspective going forward.  I've been extremely fortunate and really do want to help.  But right now, all I can think about is Dutch, Cathy and their family.  There is nothing I can write or say to bring Amelia back. But I will be there if Dutch or Cathy need anything. They are in my thoughts and prayers. 

Thanks for reading.