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Review: An Evening With Jim Ross in Baltimore

Review: An Evening With Jim Ross in Baltimore

Posted: May 20th 2015 By: Kevin Eck

If you're a pro wrestling fan of any era, whether it's the territory days, the Attitude Era or even if you're a new fan, you'll be doing yourself a huge favor by attending Hall of Fame announcer Jim Ross' one-man show if you have the opportunity.

I was fortunate enough to catch "Ringside: An Evening With Jim Ross" this past weekend at Rams Head Live in Baltimore and it was every bit as captivating as I thought it would be.

With more than 40 years in the business and having worked in prominent positions behind the scenes with the biggest companies and alongside everyone from Cowboy Bill Watts to Ted Turner to Vince McMahon, Ross has a surfeit of material from which to choose, and he proved to be a masterful storyteller.

His stories were both entertaining and educational, as he talked about turning his love for the business as an 8-year-old into a career that saw him rise up the ranks from gofer to executive, holding just about job possible along the way.

Ross related memorable interactions he has had over the years with the likes of Ric Flair, Steve Austin, The Rock, Gorilla Monsoon, Randy Savage and others.

His story about Jim Cornette's extreme fear of flying and their experience at the Canadian border was laugh-out-loud funny. It was exceeded only by his hilarious account of being the driver for the legendary Leroy McGuirk when the grizzled, blind promoter/former wrestler had murderous intentions toward a famous wrestler for dating his daughter.

The latter part of the show featured a Q&A session with audience members. No subject was off limits, and Ross spoke candidly when asked for his thoughts on how WWE handled the live Raw broadcast on the night of the Chris Benoit double murder/suicide, his opinion of McMahon and the current state of the business, his own booking philosophy and more.

The show lasted nearly three hours, but the audience was engaged for the duration. In fact, I got the feeling that they could have listened to Ross talk wrestling all night, and that's as much a testament to Ross' likable personality as it his to his ability to tell compelling stories.

One of the recurring themes throughout the evening was that Ross was no different than the people sitting in the audience. He started out as a wrestling fan, got to live his dream and is still a fan today.

After the show, I was privileged to be an observer backstage when Ross met with several wrestlers and staff members of the local independent wrestling promotion, Maryland Championship Wrestling. The insight and advice that Ross gave them was invaluable, and I was impressed by how generous he was with his time after a long evening that began by signing autographs and taking pictures with fans during a meet-and-greet prior to the show.

I can't imagine anyone who was at the show not having a good ol' time spending an evening with good ol' J.R.

Note: Ross will be doing his show in Washington, D.C. on Aug. 19 and New York City on Aug. 22.

 

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Spotlight in History

  • 1964 Karl Kox def. Louie Tillet for the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Champion
  • 2004 Shane Morbid def. Dirty Harry Sanchez for the SRPW Hardcore Champion
  • 2004 Codie Mullins def. Shane Morbid for the SRPW Hardcore Champion
  • 2004 Dexter Hardaway def. Codie Mullins for the SRPW Hardcore Champion
  • 2004 Pork Chop def. Dexter Hardaway for the SRPW Hardcore Champion
  • 2004 Dexter Hardaway def. Pork Chop for the SRPW Hardcore Champion
  • 2004 S.K. Fulton def. Dexter Hardaway for the SRPW Hardcore Champion
  • 2004 Dirty Harry Sanchez def. S.K. Fulton for the SRPW Hardcore Champion
  • 2006 Ryan Davidson def. Angel Williams for the MSWA Mid-South Heavyweight Champion
  • 2011 Michael Barry def. Kenny Campbell for the IZW Impact Division Champion
  • 2016 Spyder became the SRPW United States Champion
  • 2016 Skylar Slice became the IZW Womens Champion
  • 2021 Lady Sensacion became the FIW Women’s Champion
  • 2021 Rodeo (Chandler Hopkins & Malico) def. Cam Cole & Johnny Bedlam for the TexPro Tag Team Champions
  • 2022 Duke Cornell def. Blue Bolt for the WFC Prime Champion
  • 2022 Maddox Jones def. Striker for the EPW Heavyweight Champion
  • 2022 Mike Gunns def. Jake Danielsson for the NAW Heavyweight Champion

Week of Sun 06-16 to Sat: 06-22

  • 06-16 1959 The Zebra Kid def. The Golden Giant for the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Champion
  • 06-16 1970 Johnny Valentine def. Killer Kowalski for the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Champion
  • 06-16 1984 Terry Taylor def. Krusher Khrushchev for the MSW Television Champion
  • 06-16 1986 Buzz Sawyer def. Chris Adams for the WCCW Television Champion
  • 06-16 2006 Bobby Burns def. Shane Morbid for the SRPW Heavyweight Champion
  • 06-16 2006 Beau Dalton became the SRPW X Division Champion
  • 06-16 2006 Ray Martinez became the SRPW X Division Champion
  • 06-16 2012 Big Business (Kevin Morgan & Damon Windsor) def. The Old School Suckas (Gary Tool & Randy Price) for the IZW Tag Team Champions
  • 06-16 2017 Saints of Pro Wrestling (Scott Sanders & Shawn Sanders & Chaz Sharpe) def. Cursed (Kuda & Blade [2nd]) for the MSWA Mid-South Tag Team Champion
  • 06-16 2017 Nytronis A'Teo def. Saints of Pro Wrestling (Scott Sanders, Shawn Sanders, & Chaz Sharpe) for the MSWA Mid-South Tag Team Champion
  • 06-16 2023 Jason Simon became the MajCW Native American Champion
  • 06-16 2023 Dan Webber def. Cappuccino Jones for the UWE Heavyweight Champion
  • 06-17 1957 Billy Raborn became the TSW Oklahoma Junior Heavyweight Champion
  • 06-17 1958 Bull Curry def. Fritz Von Erich for the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Champion
  • 06-17 1983 Jimmy Garvin def. David Von Erich for the WCCW Texas Heavyweight Champion
  • 06-17 1983 Kerry Von Erich & Bruiser Brody def. The Fabulous Freebirds (Terry Gordy & Michael Hayes) for the WCCW American Tag Team Champion
  • 06-17 2005 Kenny Campbell def. Shane Morbid for the SRPW X Division Champion
  • 06-17 2006 The Party Express (Mitch Carter & Cade Sydal) def. Impact Inc. (John Zorthos & Bernie Donderwitz) for the IZW Tag Team Champions
  • 06-17 2008 Kunna Keyoh def. El Culo Intruso for the 3DW Violent Division Champion
  • 06-17 2017 Prince Mahalli def. Paul Puertorico for the WFC Hometown Heroes Champion
  • 06-17 2017 Michael Wolf def. Aaron Anders for the ComPro Oklahoma X Division Champion
  • 06-17 2017 Randy Price def. Double D for the IZW Impact Division Champion
  • 06-17 2023 Alex Royal def. Justin Lee for the WFC Hometown Heroes Champion
  • 06-18 1964 Karl Kox def. Louie Tillet for the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Champion
  • 06-18 2004 Shane Morbid def. Dirty Harry Sanchez for the SRPW Hardcore Champion
  • 06-18 2004 Codie Mullins def. Shane Morbid for the SRPW Hardcore Champion
  • 06-18 2004 Dexter Hardaway def. Codie Mullins for the SRPW Hardcore Champion
  • 06-18 2004 Pork Chop def. Dexter Hardaway for the SRPW Hardcore Champion
  • 06-18 2004 Dexter Hardaway def. Pork Chop for the SRPW Hardcore Champion
  • 06-18 2004 S.K. Fulton def. Dexter Hardaway for the SRPW Hardcore Champion
  • 06-18 2004 Dirty Harry Sanchez def. S.K. Fulton for the SRPW Hardcore Champion
  • 06-18 2006 Ryan Davidson def. Angel Williams for the MSWA Mid-South Heavyweight Champion
  • 06-18 2011 Michael Barry def. Kenny Campbell for the IZW Impact Division Champion
  • 06-18 2016 Spyder became the SRPW United States Champion
  • 06-18 2016 Skylar Slice became the IZW Womens Champion
  • 06-18 2021 Lady Sensacion became the FIW Women’s Champion
  • 06-18 2021 Rodeo (Chandler Hopkins & Malico) def. Cam Cole & Johnny Bedlam for the TexPro Tag Team Champions
  • 06-18 2022 Duke Cornell def. Blue Bolt for the WFC Prime Champion
  • 06-18 2022 Maddox Jones def. Striker for the EPW Heavyweight Champion
  • 06-18 2022 Mike Gunns def. Jake Danielsson for the NAW Heavyweight Champion
  • 06-19 1977 Fritz Von Erich def. Bruiser Brody for the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Champion
  • 06-19 2010 Aaron Neil def. John O'Malley for the IZW Heavyweight Champion
  • 06-19 2015 Bree Ann def. Claudia for the NWA-TXO Rose Champion
  • 06-20 1972 The Continental Warriors (Bobby Hart & Lorenzo Parente) def. Tom Jones & Ivan Putski for the TSW United States Tag Team Champion
  • 06-20 1977 Bill Watts became the TSW North American Champion
  • 06-20 1987 Barry Windham became the UWF Western States Heritage Champion
  • 06-20 2004 X-Cal def. John O'Malley for the ACW Heavyweight Champion
  • 06-20 2009 Dustin Heritage def. Dane Griffin for the IZW Impact Division Champion
  • 06-20 2009 BLK-OUT (Montego Seeka & Jermaine Johnson) def. Impact, Inc, (Johnny Z & Bernie D) for the IZW Tag Team Champions
  • 06-20 2014 Bree Ann def. Miss Diss Lexia for the NWA-TXO Rose Champion
  • 06-20 2021 DNR (Drake Gallows & Revan) def. Malik Mayfield & Maui Mike for the ASP Tag Team Champions
  • 06-21 1982 Junkyard Dog def. Bob Roop for the MSW North American Heavyweight Champion
  • 06-21 1987 Al Perez def. The Dingo Warrior for the WCCW Texas Heavyweight Champion
  • 06-21 2003 Kitty def. Manservant for the TPW Womens Champion
  • 06-21 2008 Tim Rockwell def. El Super Colibri for the ComPro Oklahoma X Division Champion
  • 06-21 2008 Li'l Joe def. Xavior for the GPCW Cruiserweight Champion
  • 06-21 2014 Buster Cherry def. Havoc for the SWCW All-American Champion
  • 06-22 2005 Phillip def. Se7en for the ACW Hardcore Champion
  • 06-22 2018 Joe Cuedo def. Brock Baker for the ComPro Oklahoma X Division Champion
06-18
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