Bruno On Ultimate Warrior’s Death: ‘A Tremendous Shock’ « CBS Pittsburgh

Bruno On Ultimate Warrior’s Death: ‘A Tremendous Shock’ « CBS Pittsburgh

Believe it or not, I do have a real job. Sometimes, it even allows me to explore my love for professional wrestling. Here's a link to a 20-minute phone interview I was able to do with Bruno Sammaratino. We discussed Ultimate Warrior, the new statue in his likeness and what it's like to watch WrestleMania with Harley Race.

When Paul Heyman Retweeted Me...

My Twitter account (@MainstreamMat) has about 250 more followers today than it did 48 hours ago. The reason is Paul Heyman.

Any thoughts, HustleTweeters? RT: @MainstreamMat Ranking @HeymanHustle's best promos isn't easy. How'd I do? http://t.co/zMuiUgEIoK …
— Paul Heyman (@HeymanHustle) April 17, 2014

Our favorite manager and master of the microphone shared my little blog post via his own Twitter account, and generated more feedback than I ever could have predicted. Thanks Paul. Now, let's take a look at what you had to say about my ranking of the Paul Heyman's Best Promos.

The Best Of Paul Heyman

At this point in professional wrestling history, there is little argument that the undisputed master of the microphone is Paul Heyman.

On the night after WrestleMania XXX, Paul was at it again. A question was asked. Was it one of the best promos of his career? Since no one seemed sure, I did a little research. I expected to compile a list of Paul Heyman's 10 best promos, but he could not be contained. Enjoy this trip down memory lane.

My 2013 Wrestleview Ballot

I was recently asked to fill out a year-end awards ballot for Wrestleview. I thought I'd share my picks. I chose to exclude my selections on the negative side. I prefer to keep things positive.

Finding Five-Star Commentary

We spend so much time as pro wrestling fans talking about the best performers in the ring, the best matches, the best shows and other superlatives. It can get a little excessive sometimes.

What occurred to me recently is that we rarely celebrate the best performances by announcers. Sure, you get the casual, widely-accepted "Jim Ross is the greatest of all time" opinion thrown around, but do those fans ever cite sources? Do they talk specifically about the matches and moments that make J.R. one of (if not the) best?

I found myself reflecting on what Jim Ross matches stand out as his best work, and that expanded to other prominant announcers in recent pro wrestling history. What are their best performances? How do you measure their quality? These are good questions to ponder.

I came up with a few candidates, but I'm going to need your help putting together a decent list. Leave a comment below or you can reach me via Twitter @MainstreamMat. We'll gather up the worthy candidates and maybe put them to a vote.

Passion And Pain: King Of The Ring 1998

This article contains accounts and quotes collected from various online sources. Most are provided at the bottom of this page. My sincere appreciation and gratitude goes out to those who shared their memories over the years and those who collected them.

Civic Arena. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. June 28, 1998.

15 years ago, this is where the legend was born.

There's only one match from King Of The Ring 1998 that fans still talk about. A little more than 17,000 people were in attendance that night. In more than a half million other places, people were watching live on pay per view. But every fan has seen that match.

In The Bleachers At Super Indy XII

It's important to support independent professional wrestling. Every fan should.

I was fortunate to be able to attend IWC Super Indy XII, and I wanted to share my impressions. It was a great show. I was really impressed by the presentation. The show was thoughtfully laid out.Technically, it exceeded my expectations.

I was also impressed by what I saw in the ring. The subtle promotional message behind all Super Indy shows is that you will see the stars of the future. You will see future pay per view main event performers. You may even see the next CM Punk or A.J. Styles. Did anyone at Super Indy XII meet that description?

Maybe.