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JR's Blog: Heyman in MSG..MSG Memory for JR..@MichaelCole..Fav Tag Team..Best All Around Star Ever..WWE Hall of Fame..Order JR's Products

Posted: Dec 29th 2012 By: CMBurnham

It's a snowy Friday here in Norman, Oklahoma. We appreciate you paying our site a visit. I updated the Q& A's and invite you to take a look at them and submit your question there if you'd like. With that said...Random Thoughts.....

Paul Heyman @HeymanHustle stepped into the ring in Madison Square Garden Thursday night to face @Ryback22 of all people. Ryback won. Shocked? The point here is that even though Heyman likely knew that this encounter wouldn't work out favorably for the New York native, he likely fulfilled a bucket list moment by being in a match in 'The Garden.' Happy Heyman started his career as a teen photographer in MSG back in the day some 25+ years ago.

I had my moment in the ring in MSG many years ago against HHH in the final segment of Monday Night Raw. I can always pull an old timer quote out of my black hat and say, "Yeah, I closed the show, sold out by the way, in the main event in 'The Garden,' got bloodied up and still got my hand raised. (Thanks to Batista. ) I will freely admit that night was the most apprehensive evening of my career as a talent on any level. I was in foreign territory, the ring, in the World's Most Famous Arena against a future Hall of Fame talent who had the challenge of not killing his in ring persona or me. Thanks to the abundant talent of HHH neither issue occurred. My wife was a little concerned as my appearance after the bout wasn't too PG. The athletic commission doctor wanted to put 6 or 8 stitches in my head but I declined, he seemed disinterested and reminded me of a veterinarian, and instead I had him glue the cut closed. It wasn't like it was going to affect my modeling career or any thing.

You will likely never see any photos of that encounter but I still have the bloody, torn Oklahoma Sooners jersey that I wore that fateful evening stored somewhere. Not sure why I kept it but it does serve as a reminder of one of my 'Bucket List' moments in the business.

It's amazing on Twitter how so many followers try to stir the manure with @MichaelCole and me. I assume they must be defiant, looking for trouble young men. For the record, there is "nothing to see here." I've enjoyed working with Michael since he first arrived in WWE and am happy that he is now the lead announcer in WWE. He's earned that opportunity and some day, likely not soon, it will go to someone else. That's just the way it works. Same for essentially any TV entity especially one that is more entertainment that sports. Our styles are different as they should be and we, as lead announcers, have entirely different products with which to work. Most fans don't realize how challenging it is to broadcast WWE in today's world with the addition of all the non ring oriented info that must be disseminated such as social media, etc. Michael handles that amazingly well. Better, most likely, than I ever could.

Does all this mean that I'm done as a broadcaster? I think not. I enjoy my guest shots on the NXT broadcasts and one never knows when WWE will utilize me for selected events in the future. As I said in my last blog, if I only make one appearance on WWE TV or PPV, other than NXT, in 2013 I hope it's at WM29 because it means so much to me personally. But if that doesn't happen I've had my 'run' that I'm very proud of and blessed to have had.

As we usually do this time of the year, I'm getting tons of questions regarding who will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2013 as a part of WM29 in the much anticipated ceremony to be held at Madison Square Garden. Apparently the internet wrestling community has more info than do I as some have 'inside info' on who's being inducted. Obviously, I don't have such sources. I do know that many men and women are deserving and it's not my place to say who doesn't belong. I remain steadfast in that I feel MSG would be a wonderful place to induct the great Bruno Sammartino if he would accept the induction as I know that many of his fans, some in Bruno's age group, would love the moment as would their kids and grandkids. That's my personal opinion. In a perfect world, Bruno Sammartino would be my #1 choice to head the 2013 WWE HOF class but as we all know the world isn't perfect.

Former WWWF Champion Bob Backlund is also high on my person list of candidates. Hopefully, Bobby is at a place in his life where he would feel that it's timely to accept this honor.

The accomplishments that both Bruno and Backlund earned in WWE will likely never be duplicated and many of those amazing moments actually occurred in MSG.

I'm also hopeful of @RealMickFoley going into the WWE HOF in this class as his induction in MSG would complete an emotional full circle for Mick at the World's Most Famous Arena. Selfishly, I am prideful of the men and women who were hired on my watch in WWE when they are inducted.

WWE.com has some interesting Top 50 lists that always provoke the ire of many fans. Any list of top anything always flips the switch of many fans. They're all subjective and are generators of controversy. One doesn't have to agree with them but at the same time please don't complain to me about them as I get the info the same time that other fans do. Do I agree with all WWE.com lists? Hell, no but I enjoy reading them.

Case in point is that I think that the Masked Assassins were the greatest tag team that i ever saw. Most fans today don't even have a clue as to who the Assassins were, Tom Renesto and Joe Hamilton, by the way or that they took their name in 1963 when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. I can still vividly remember their promos and in ring work from that period and that was almost 50 years ago.. Most won't agree with my take on this particular matter but that's simply my opinion of which we all have a right.

I also say that even though @ShawnMichaels or Ric Flair are generally considered the best in ring talents, over the long haul, as any one ever in pro wrestling that the greatest all around performer that I ever witnessed do their thing was Bobby 'the Brain' Heenan. Many younger fans will disagree of which they have the right.

Anxious to head to Dallas for the Cotton Bowl next week. Hopefully it will be a memorable birthday for yours truly as I hope that my underdog Sooners can overcome the Manziel Aggies aka Texas A&M. @JManziel2 is an amazing QB, first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy, and seems to be more socially active than the Kardashian's. Nonetheless, the national media has embraced the young man and are back burnering the Sooners and I hope that continues through kickoff on Friday night January 4. When a team has to endure the ridiculous wait from the end of the season to their bowl game having to listen to the pundits say that they will lose and that one guy is 'The Star' in a major bowl game, it should serve as motivation. It motivates me and I'm just a fan. Time will tell but I'm excited to be going to Jerry's World which I'm relatively sure will be a WrestleMania site some day when the dates are compatible.

Excited to be heading back to Orlando for the Thursday January 10 NXT TV taping @FullSail headlined by an appearance by WWE HOF'er the great @ShawnMichaels. I'd suggest getting the very affordable tickets early for this event. The venue seats approximately 500 and is a great atmosphere to watch the stars of tomorrow attempt to turn heads of the decision makers.

As promised...I took left over pot roast and diced it....cut up onion, celery and bell peppers in a pan with a small amount of olive oil over medium heat...added diced potatoes...allowed the vegetables to almost cook before adding the cubed pot roast...seasoned with JR's All Purpose Seasoning and JR's Chipotle Ketchup. It made a helluva rejuvenated left over meal.

Remember that fans in the UK can access JR's products via @americansoda and at selected American Candy locations throughout the UK.

Visit wweshop.com at http://www.wweshop.com for great deals on our entire line of products. Prices can change daily with unannounced specials.

Boomer Sooner!

J.R. @JRsBBQ