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Chatting With J. R. And HBK

Chatting With J. R. And HBK

Posted: Apr 11th 2009 By: CMBurnham

As part of my Wrestlemania preperation last week, I had a 50-minute conversation with Jim Ross, the WWE's top play-by-play announcer, and a shorter conversaion with Shawn Michaels, the veteran performer from San Antonio, about the changing aspects of pro wrestling on television.

The story didn't make the newspaper because of space constraints, but both men had some interesting thoughts on the art and science of wrestling on TV. For example, Michaels noted that advances in TV technology allow performers to craft their moves not only with sufficient flair to appeal to fans in the upper decks, but with slight nuances to fans watching on TV.

"You have to continue to hone your craft," Michaels said. "I have found so much joy in the last year of seeing if I can tell a story and convey emotion and reaction without saying a word, as opposed to the days when I started having to use my entire body to get a point of view across.

"When I started, you didn't focus so much on production, certainly not, gosh, down to the finest detail of how you shifted your eyes or how you turned to somebody. A lot of the shots were far away from a still camera. There weren't as many close-ups and intimacy."

At the 2008 Wrestlemania, by contrast, the evenings' emotional high point came during Michaels' match against veteran ring star Ric Flair, who in the evening's storyline would be forced to retire if he lost the match.

As Michaels prepared to put Flair down for the final three-count, the cameras caught him mouthing the words, "I'm sorry. I love you," before delivering the final blow.

"We can bring it all down to the subtleties of the shifting of an eye, because we know the camera will catch it," Michaels said. "That has been a great thing to learn, and it makes it interesting for a guy who has been in it as long as I have."

I spent much of my conversation with Ross, 57, reminiscing about his days working with the late Paul Boesch, who promoted wrestling in Houston from the mid-1960s into the '80s and hosted weekly shows on what is now KIAH (Channel 39).

"The people of Houston treated Houston wrestling like a franchise, like they would the Oilers or Rockets or Astros -- different genre, different values, different characters," he said. "(Boesch) knew his audience better than most promoters ever dream of doing."

Ross, 57,worked alongside Boesch in the promoter's final years of presenting weekly events at the Sam Houston Colesium. They sat in folding chairs at a card table, sharing a single microphone with no headsets and a single monitor connected to a couple of cameras.

"It was not real dressed out," Ross said. "There were not a lot of bells and whistles."

Even though modern pro wrestling is a scripted entertainment product, Ross likes to think he shares some characteristics with his sportscaster brethren.

"I had dinner the other night with Brad Nessler from ESPN, and we were talking about how our jobs were similar in that we are now storytellers," Ross said. "If you listen to a basketball game, those guys are telling a story. They are not talking about how Player A passes the ball to Player B. They are telling you a story so you can emotionally invest in the product.

"Instead of being the old school play-by-play guy, I have become more of a contemporary storyteller."

Ross learned about the importance of descriptive storytelling in an unusual fashion. In his early days in the business, he worked alongside Leroy McGuirk, a former world junior heavyweight wrestling champion who had lost his eyesight in a car crash, but continued to promote wrestling in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and East Texas.

"I had to start off by being a storyteller," Ross said. "I would say that Danny Hodge has a headlock on Skandar Akbar, and Leroy would pick up on that and describe on what a headlock does and how the head controls the body and that type of thing"

He later worked for promoter Bill Watts, whose talent for storytelling frequently produced pro wrestling's most dastardly, convoluted heel turns and plot twists.

"When the dust settled, I always had to make sure that people knew who is the good guy and who is the bad guy and what the links are between them," Ross said. "Then, if I do my job with enough natural emotion, then you hope the viewer will be emotionally invested in the product. And the end result of that would be that he would buy a ticket to a live event."

 

Tags: Jim Ross, WWE, Ric Flair, Leroy McGuirk, Bill Watts, Danny Hodge, Skandar Akbar

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  • 1966 Ramon Torres def. Lorenzo Parente for the TSW Missouri Junior Heavyweight Title
  • 1973 Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan def. The Hollywood Blondes (Jerry Brown & Dale Valentine) for the TSW United States Tag Team Titles
  • 1974 Thunder Cloud & White Cloud def. Bob Sweetan & Seigfried Stanke for the TSW United States Tag Team Titles
  • 1978 Ray Candy & Steven Little Bear def. Ernie Ladd & The Assassin for the TSW United States Tag Team Titles
  • 2004 Michael Barry became the NWA-OK Oklahoma Heavyweight Champion
  • 2006 Tyler Bateman def. Seth Allen for the MSWA Mid-South Cruiserweight Title
  • 2006 Michael Faith became the MSWA Oklahoma Champion
  • 2016 Athena def. Erica for the IZW Queens Title
  • 2022 The Blue Bolt def. Richie Adams for the WFC Prime Title
  • 2022 Koko def. Reed for the WFC Hometown Heroes Title
  • 2022 Rhett def. Hornsby for the WFC Drillsville Title

Week of Sun 04-19 to Sat: 04-25

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  • 04-19 2008 The New Age Syndicate (Scott Sanders & Shawn Sanders) def. Nathan Sensation for the IZW Tag Team Titles
  • 04-19 2013 Bree Ann def. Barbi Hayden for the NWA-TXO Rose Title
  • 04-19 2014 Aaron Anders def. Michael Wolf for the OWA Junior Heavyweight Title
  • 04-19 2014 Jake O'Brien def. Brian Breaker for the OWA Heavyweight Title
  • 04-19 2014 Tim Rockwell def. Jon Cross for the UWE Heavyweight Title
  • 04-19 2014 Randy Price def. Drake Gallows for the IZW Impact Division Title
  • 04-19 2014 Miss Diss Lexia def. Paige Turner for the IZW Queens Title
  • 04-19 2014 Erica def. Miss Diss Lexia for the IZW Queens Title
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  • 04-19 2026 Gideon Vane became the WTW Open Promotions Champion
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  • 04-20 2013 The Canadian Red Devil became the OWA Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-20 2013 Daemon Storm def. Justin Dynamic for the UWE United States Title
  • 04-20 2018 Jack Swagger def. MVP for the IWR Heavyweight Title
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  • 04-21 1979 Mike George def. Jerry Stubbs for the TSW Louisiana Title
  • 04-21 2006 Ray Martinez became the SRPW X Division Champion
  • 04-21 2007 Kareem Sadat def. K-Rob for the AACW Hardcore Title
  • 04-21 2007 Team Shenanigans (Tyler Bateman & Kenny Campbell) def. The Re-Gex (Seth Shai & Mace) for the IZW Tag Team Titles
  • 04-21 2017 Sam Stackhouse def. Spyder for the BPPW Oklahoma Title
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  • 04-21 2018 The Untamed (Rex Andrews & Ryan Davidson) became the ComPro Tag Team Champions
  • 04-21 2023 Leo Fox def. Mr. Nasty for the UWE Apex Title
  • 04-21 2023 Mr. Wobble def. Tego for the TexPro Oklahoma Title
  • 04-21 2023 Mr. Wobble def. Tego for the TexPro Texas Title
  • 04-21 2023 Franco D'Angelo def. Mr. Wobble for the TexPro Texas Title
  • 04-21 2023 Franco D'Angelo def. Mr. Wobble for the TexPro Oklahoma Title
  • 04-22 1940 Jesse James def. Danny McShain for the NWA World Light Heavyweight Title
  • 04-22 1955 Ricki Starr def. Mike Clancy for the TSW Oklahoma Junior Heavyweight Title
  • 04-22 1968 The Spoilers (Spoiler #1 & Spoiler #2/Smasher Sloan) def. Fritz Von Erich & Billy Red Lyons for the WCCW American Tag Team Titles
  • 04-22 1980 Terry Gordy def. Junkyard Dog for the MSW Louisiana Title
  • 04-22 1985 The Great Kabuki became the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Champion
  • 04-22 2006 Michael York def. Jon Davis for the TPW Heavyweight Title
  • 04-22 2016 Brock Landers def. Mascara La Parka for the MSWA Mid-South Cruiserweight Title
  • 04-22 2016 Mascara La Parka def. Brock Landers for the MSWA Mid-South Cruiserweight Title
  • 04-22 2017 Double D def. Randy Price for the IZW Impact Division Title
  • 04-22 2017 Nikki Knight def. Skylar Slice for the ComPro Ladies Title
  • 04-22 2018 Chaz Sharpe became the ASP Inter-County Champion
  • 04-22 2018 Johnny Kove & Tristan Thorne became the ASP Oklahoma Tag Team Champions
  • 04-22 2018 Damon Windsor def. Chandler Hopkins for the IWR Revolutionary Title
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  • 04-22 2023 Devion Black def. Adrian Vega for the EPW All-American Title
  • 04-22 2023 Logan Knight def. Gemini [2nd] for the EPW Heavyweight Title
  • 04-23 1966 Ramon Torres def. Lorenzo Parente for the TSW Missouri Junior Heavyweight Title
  • 04-23 1973 Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan def. The Hollywood Blondes (Jerry Brown & Dale Valentine) for the TSW United States Tag Team Titles
  • 04-23 1974 Thunder Cloud & White Cloud def. Bob Sweetan & Seigfried Stanke for the TSW United States Tag Team Titles
  • 04-23 1978 Ray Candy & Steven Little Bear def. Ernie Ladd & The Assassin for the TSW United States Tag Team Titles
  • 04-23 2004 Michael Barry became the NWA-OK Oklahoma Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-23 2006 Tyler Bateman def. Seth Allen for the MSWA Mid-South Cruiserweight Title
  • 04-23 2006 Michael Faith became the MSWA Oklahoma Champion
  • 04-23 2016 Athena def. Erica for the IZW Queens Title
  • 04-23 2022 The Blue Bolt def. Richie Adams for the WFC Prime Title
  • 04-23 2022 Koko def. Reed for the WFC Hometown Heroes Title
  • 04-23 2022 Rhett def. Hornsby for the WFC Drillsville Title
  • 04-24 1999 The Casualties of War (Grunt & Shrapnel) def. The East-West Express (J. J. Mustang & Joey Steiner) for the OPW Oklahoma Tag Team Titles
  • 04-24 1999 Original Renegade def. Tarantula for the OPW Oklahoma Light Heavyweight Title
  • 04-24 2004 Dexter Hardaway became the NWA-OK X Division Champion
  • 04-24 2004 Tejas def. Al Jackson for the NWA Texas Title
  • 04-24 2015 Rick Russo & Largus RagnaBrok became the MSWA Mid-South Tag Team Champions
  • 04-24 2025 Floyd Maystorm def. Brandon Warhawk for the WAH Hunger Dojo Title
  • 04-25 1969 Alberto Torres & Ramon Torres def. Karl Von Stroheim & Treach Phillips for the TSW United States Tag Team Titles
  • 04-25 1971 Dusty Rhodes def. Sputnik Monroe for the TSW Brass Knucks Title
  • 04-25 2003 Ichiban [1st] became the TPW Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-25 2003 The Heatseekers (Karl Davis & Rick Styles) became the TPW Tag Team Champions
  • 04-25 2003 Outcast def. Tyler Bateman for the TPW Light Heavyweight Title
  • 04-25 2008 Ky-Ote became the 3DW Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-25 2008 Les Mayne became the 3DW Texoma Champion
  • 04-25 2008 2AM (Javi Hernandez & Kunna Keyoh) became the 3DW Dual Kombat Champion
  • 04-25 2008 Al Farat became the 3DW Violent Division Champion
  • 04-25 2008 Frankie Dee became the 3DW Femme Fatale Champion
  • 04-25 2008 Joshua Smith def. Al Farat for the 3DW Violent Division Title
  • 04-25 2010 David Kyzer def. Outlaw for the SWCW Luchadore Title
  • 04-25 2010 David Kyzer became the SWCW All-American Champion
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