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The Rise And Fall Of ECW
''The Rise and Fall of ECW'' is a 2004 direct-to-video documentary produced by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It chronicles the history of Philadelphia-based professional wrestling promotion Extreme Championship Wrestling. The documentary features interviews with various performers who worked in the promotion including co-founder and former owner Paul Heyman as well as performers Tazz, Tommy Dreamer, Dawn Marie, Stevie Richards, Mick Foley, Chris Jericho, Lance Storm, Rey Mysterio, Eddie Guerrero, Chris Benoit, Rob Van Dam, Rhyno, Nunzio, Spike Dudley, Bubba Ray Dudley and D'Von Dudley. The documentary also featured interviews with ECW rival company executives, WWE Chairman Vince McMahon and former WCW Senior Vice President Eric Bischoff. A book with the same title was published by WWE and Pocket Books in 2006, with much of the same information and interviews from the DVD transcribed and included. A 2.5 hour version of ''The Rise and Fall of ECW'' is available on demand, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paul Heyman
Paul Heyman (born September 11, 1965) is an American professional wrestling manager, former promoter, photographer, and executive. He is currently signed to WWE, appearing on the SmackDown brand as manager for Undisputed WWE Universal Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns. Born in The Bronx to a family of Holocaust survivors, Heyman debuted in the professional wrestling business in 1986. He was the CEO and known as the creative force behind the Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) promotion from 1993 until its closure in 2001. Before running and owning ECW, he was a manager under the ring name Paul E. Dangerously in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and other promotions. He is the co-owner of the Looking4Larry Agency in New York City, and was personally named one of ''Advertising Age'' Top 100 Global Marketers. In WWE, Heyman has managed or has served as manager for a record six world champions: The Big Show, Kurt Angle, Rob Van Dam, CM Punk, Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns. Critics ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rob Van Dam
Robert Alexander Szatkowski (born December 18, 1970) is an American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam (frequently abbreviated to RVD). He is best known for his tenures in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA)/Impact Wrestling. Van Dam gained mainstream popularity in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) during the latter half of the 1990s, where he became one of the most famous wrestlers in the industry. During his time in ECW, he was managed by Bill Alfonso and had feuds with Jerry Lynn and Sabu, also forming a tag team with the latter. They would win the ECW World Tag Team Championship twice. On April 4, 1998, Van Dam defeated Bam Bam Bigelow to win the ECW Television Championship, a title he held for 700 days until he vacated the championship due to an injury on March 4, 2000. When ECW closed in 2001, Van Dam signed a contract with the World Wrestl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Direct-to-video Professional Wrestling Films
Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy was prevalent before streaming platforms came to dominate the TV and movie distribution markets. Because inferior sequels or prequels of larger-budget films may be released direct-to-video, review references to direct-to-video releases are often pejorative. Direct-to-video release has also become profitable for independent filmmakers and smaller companies. Some direct-to-video genre films (with a high-profile star) can generate well in excess of $50 million revenue worldwide. Reasons for releasing direct to video A production studio may decide not to generally release a TV show or film for several possible reasons: a low budget, a lack of support from a TV network, negative reviews, its controversial nature, that it may appeal to a small nic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2004 Films
2004 in film is an overview of events, including the highest-grossing films, award ceremonies, festivals, a list of country-specific lists of films released, notable deaths and film debuts. ''Shrek 2'' was the year's top-grossing film, and '' Million Dollar Baby'' won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Evaluation of the year Renowned American film critic and professor Emanuel Levy described 2004 as "a banner year for actors, particularly men." He went on to emphasize, "I can't think of another year in which there were so many good performances, in every genre. It was a year in which we saw the entire spectrum of demographics displayed on the big screen, from vet actors such as Clint Eastwood and Morgan Freeman, to seniors such as Pacino, De Niro, and Hoffman, to newcomers such as Topher Grace. As always, though, the center of the male acting pyramid is occupied by actors in their forties and fifties, such as Sean Penn, Johnny Depp, Liam Neeson, Kevin Kline, Don Cheadle, J ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hardcore Homecoming
Hardcore Homecoming was a series of professional wrestling events which were advertised as a reunion of talent from the defunct Extreme Championship Wrestling promotion. The tour was booked and promoted by Cody Michaels, Shane Douglas (a former ECW World Heavyweight Champion) and Jeremy Borash in 2005. The event footage was released on DVD with a companion documentary of ECW's history called ''Forever Hardcore''. History The inaugural Hardcore Homecoming event was held from 8:00pm to 11:55pm on June 10, 2005, at the Alhambra Arena, formerly known unofficially as the ECW Arena, in South Philadelphia; this was two days before the WWE produced/promoted ECW One Night Stand 2005 reunion show in New York City. The show was preceded by a fan tailgate party in front of the former ECW Arena, with several wrestlers in attendance. This was reminiscent of territorial wrestling in the 1980s, when many independent promotions would hold barbecues before and after the event. No former ECW ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wrestling Observer Newsletter
The ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') is a newsletter that covers professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. Founded in print in 1982 by Dave Meltzer, the ''Wrestling Observer'' website merged with Bryan Alvarez's ''Figure Four Weekly'' website in 2008, becoming ''Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online''. Issues are offered in print and digital. The newsletter is often considered the first "dirt sheet", which is a wrestling publication which covers the art from a real-life perspective. History The beginnings of the ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' date back to 1980, when Meltzer began an annual poll amongst those with whom he corresponded regarding professional wrestling. According to Meltzer, he was just a fan at first. A short time later, he began maintaining a tape-trading list, and would occasionally send match results and news updates along with tape updates. Meltzer stated that he wanted to keep his friends in college "in the loop" for his tape trading as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
WWE Network
WWE Network is a subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and digital television network owned by the American entertainment company WWE. It primarily distributes original professional wrestling events, films, television and documentary series, and a 24-hour linear channel produced by the eponymous professional wrestling promotion, alongside acquired programming from other wrestling promotions. The service is available as either a stand-alone service or through licensing agreements with third party services, depending on the markets. The service relied on technology developed by MLB Advanced Media and BAMTech, prior to Endeavor Streaming assuming technical operations of the service in 2019. Although operating primarily as a standalone service, the distribution model of the WWE Network varies by market, where it is often integrated within or as part of local networks. It contains a premium and a free tier. WWE Network was launched on February 24, 2014, in t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pocket Books
Pocket Books is a division of Simon & Schuster that primarily publishes paperback books. History Pocket Books produced the first mass-market, pocket-sized paperback books in the United States in early 1939 and revolutionized the publishing industry. The German Albatross Books had pioneered the idea of a line of color-coded paperback editions in 1931 under Kurt Enoch, and Penguin Books in Britain had refined the idea in 1935 and had one million books in print by the following year. Pocket Books was founded by Richard L. Simon, M. Lincoln ("Max") Schuster and Leon Shimkin, partners of Simon & Schuster, along with Robert de Graff. In 1944, the founding owners sold the company to Marshall Field III, owner of the ''Chicago Sun'' newspaper. Following Field's death, in 1957, Leon Shimkin, a Simon & Schuster partner, and James M. Jacobson bought Pocket Books for $5 million. Simon & Schuster acquired Pocket in 1966. Penguin's success inspired entrepreneur Robert de Graff, who partn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eric Bischoff
Eric Aaron Bischoff (born May 27, 1955) is an American television producer, professional wrestling booker, and performer. He is best known for serving as Executive Producer and later Senior Vice President of World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and subsequently, the on-screen General Manager of WWE's Raw brand. Bischoff has also worked with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) where he served as Executive Producer of ''Impact Wrestling''. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2021. With an amateur background in martial arts, Bischoff also sporadically performed as an in-ring competitor, becoming a one-time WCW Hardcore Champion and headlining the 1998 Road Wild pay-per-view event, teaming with "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan against Diamond Dallas Page and Jay Leno. He wrote an autobiography, titled ''Controversy Creates Cash'', which was released in 2006 under WWE Books, and a second book, titled ''Grateful'', which was released in 2022. Professional wrestling career American ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy McMahon (; born August 24, 1945) is an American media proprietor and retired professional wrestling promoter, executive, and performer. From 1982 to 2022, he served as the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling company, of which he is still majority owner and wields the majority of voting power. He is also the founder and owner of Alpha Entertainment. Born in Pinehurst, North Carolina, McMahon graduated from East Carolina University with a degree in business in 1968 and began his tenure in professional wrestling as a commentator for the then-World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) for most of the 1970s; McMahon bought the company from his father, Vincent J. McMahon, in 1982 and almost monopolized the industry, which previously operated as separate entities across the United States. This led to the development of the annual WrestleMania, which became one of the most successful professional wrestling events. W ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Devon Hughes
Devon Hughes (born August 1, 1972) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he works backstage as a producer. Hughes wrestled for Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) from 1995 to 1999 and for the WWF/E from 1999 to 2005 and from 2015 to 2016 as D-Von Dudley and Reverend D-Von. He performed with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) from 2005 to 2014 as Brother Devon and Devon. Characterized by their unorthodox ring attire, hard-hitting style and usage of tables in their matches, The Dudley Boyz are one of the most successful tag teams in the history of professional wrestling, recognized by TNA as 23-time world tag team champions, and were the first tag team inducted into the TNA Hall of Fame. They are considered one of the major teams that revived tag team wrestling during the Attitude Era. Including his two TNA Television Championship reigns, Hughes has held 25 major championships between ECW, WWE, TNA and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mark LoMonaco
Mark LoMonaco (born July 14, 1971) is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and Impact Wrestling under the ring name Bully Ray. He was previously known as one-half of The Dudley Boyz tag team under the ring name Bubba Ray Dudley during his tenures in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). Debuting in 1991, LoMonaco came to prominence when he joined ECW as a member of The Dudley Brothers in 1995. He formed a tag team with D-Von Dudley called The Dudley Boyz, who became eight-time ECW World Tag Team Champions. In 1999, they moved to the WWF (now WWE) and became eight-time World Tag Team Champions, as well as one-time WWE Tag Team Champions and WCW World Tag Team Champions. They are considered one of the major teams that revived tag team wrestling during the Attitude Era. Dudley also held the WWE Hardcore Championship 10 times before both men left in 2005. They joined TNA later that year, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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