• Look Back In History
• Pmessages
• Quiz
• Stump The Staff
• Top Fifty
• Close

The Foley Files: March 12, 2010

Posted: Mar 12th 2010 By: mikeiles

Hello Foley filers. Thanks for checking in with me again, especially during this historic time in the wrestling business. There sure seemed to be a little magic in the air this past Monday, as we kicked off what we all hope will be a very exciting time for the company, with what I felt was an excellent "Impact". I know the rating wasn't quite what we are hoping for, but if we keep delivering the type of show fans saw Monday night, I have to believe that eyeballs will start turning our way and the ratings situation will take care of itself.

There just seemed to be a palpable sense of excitement in the air. I was watching the show with Ken Anderson, and we had to ask each other "hey is it us, or does the show actually look different, too?" Maybe a few new things in the way of camera shots, but I think most of the difference was simply in the level of excitement. Speaking of Ken - I am really digging his promos. In wrestling, as in life, anything that's new and different is bound to face criticism, and I know Ken has gotten a little over the past few weeks, but I think his promos have been incredible. He manages to be both humorous and menacing; taking the old wrestling adage of "make them laugh, then cut them off" to its highest level. It really seems like Ken is a new man in TNA, taking advantage of the change in scenery to brighten his star, instead of just living off the star power he brought with him from WWE. I think I might well be saying the same thing about Jeff Hardy soon. I've never pretended to know Jeff's thought process, and I kind of only semi-know what brought him to TNA. But I know he feels it was the right move for him - a move that wasn't about money, but about doing what he felt in his heart - and wrestling fans are bound to be much better off for it.

So let me get this straight...Elijah Burke sat on the shelf for months on end, and was eventually dropped from WWE because they didn't have any ideas for him? Hmm, here's an idea. How about giving him a microphone to speak into, and a ring to wrestle in? Seems to be working pretty well.

Sorry to be so brief during such a big week, but I am in the midst of a couple of the craziest days in a long time. Just alot of different things to do, and a very short amount of time to do them in.
But before I go, I would like to thank Melanie DG Kaplan for doing such a nice story on me for smartplanet.com It was very flattering, and I thank her and the people at their fine website for taking the time to point out my association with RAINN.

And now, with spring almost upon us, I thought it would be a good time to show you a list of some of my favorite amusement parks (in alphabetical order, so as not to offend any of the parks that I am so fond of.)

Dutch Wonderland - Lancaster, PA - Set in the middle of Pennsylvania Dutch Amish country, this is a great park for families with small children. A great assortment of rides, including the Kingdom Coaster, a traditional out and back coaster just cool enough to make little guys feel like big guys.

Hershey Park - Hershey, PA - Man, I miss this place. It's been a few years since I've visited Hershey, about ten years since my glory days at the park when I'd trade a personal appearance for the run of the place; a free suite at the hotel, all the food I could eat, all the rides I could handle. Slowly, the perks slipped away - first the food, then the suite, then the rides. We went back a few times after, but it just wasn't quite the same.

Holiday World - Santa Claus, IN - A long history, a warm atmosphere and a trio of world-class wooden coasters make this one of the top family owned parks in the country. It's been a few years since I've gotten out Santa Claus way - a situation I hope to remedy in the coming months.

Knoebels Grove - Elysburg, PA - Unofficially located "in the middle of nowhere," this amazing place has been family owned and run since 1926 when it opened as a picnic grove. Brian Knoebels, the great great grandson of the park's founder, told me his dad had only a few requests when/if Brian should ever take over the reigns at the Grove: 1.) No charge for parking; 2.) Don't fence the park in; 3.) No mandatory admission charge. The more I see of this place, the more of its history I feel with every step I take, every ride I take. It may be on every park enthusiast's check-list now, but the Knoebel's family still values its hard working multi-generational local clientele, and doesn't want a mom or a dad or their mom or dad, to pay an admission to watch their children or grandchildren enjoy the rides.

Magic Kingdom/California Adventure - Anaheim, CA - I love all the Disney parks in Orlando, but there's just something special about the original Disneyland. Sometimes when I'm in the area, I'll just wander around the Kingdom by myself, imagining the orange groves that grew there in the early 1930's, before Walt Disney revolutionized the industry.

Santa's Village - Jefferson, NH - It would be hard to overstate just how much this place has meant to me and my children. Mostly to me. My parents took me there twice, when I was three and four years of age, and something about the place stuck with me over the years. If Orson Welle's had "Rosebud" in "Citizen Kane," then I've got Santa's Village as my symbol of childhood. I've been there every year since 1996, sometimes more than once - including five years when I lived in Georgia or Florida. In fact, I'm pretty sure part of the reason I had two more children was my inability to accept a world in which my children were too old to go to Santa's Village. Which is indicative of either a deep love for the place, or an even deeper psychological problem.

Sea World - Orlando, Florida - Two world class coasters and an amazing water ride aren't even the best part about this place. This was my daughter's favorite of all the Orlando parks. She loved the dolphins, orcas, manatees, even the sharks. Didn't care for the Jets though - a little weak "West Side Story" for you.

Six Flags Great Adventure - Jackson, NJ - Once a year, I trade in all that mushy sentiment for an unforgettable coaster experience. And no place I've been offers up a greater assortment of coasters than this New Jersey theme park. At last count the park had 14 coasters, four of which are among my all time favorites, with two in my top ten and two right below it.

Storyland - Glen, NH - Another wonderful White Mountain park my parents took me to four decades ago, this is a place where fairy tales come to life, and where fantasy lives. It's also a place that, sadly, my kids feel like they are outgrowing, leaving me only my memories and the hope that one day, Grandpa Mick will return with a new generation of Foley's.

Universal Studios/Islands of Adventure - Orlando, FL - My own personal playgrounds, right out the door and about a fifty yard walk from the Impact Zone. Not only is there an unbelievable assortment of rides and shows, but I even get to be the Grand Marshall of the Christmas and Mardi Gras parades. Who knows, if Vince McMahon had ever gotten around to building "Vinnieland," the theme park from my children's book "Tales from Wescal Lane" it's quite possible I would have never left.

Tags: Mick Foley, TNA, WWE