WWE Summerslam comes to Staples Center in Los Angeles
August 20, 2009
One of the year’s biggest events, and the biggest event of the summer comes to Los Angeles as World Wrestling Entertainment presents”SummerSlam”, live on pay per view from the world famous Staples Center August 23rd. Every major superstar from Raw, Smackdown, and ECW will be in the building.In the main event, former champion John Cena looks to wrest away the WWE Championship from current titleholder Randy Orton.Also on the card,”Y2J”Chris Jericho and his newly self appointed tag team partner,the world’s largest athlete,”The Big Show” defend the Unified Tag Team belts against Shad Gaspard and JTG, known collectively as “Cryme Tyme”. But this weekend is much more than just the pay per view.In addition to the pay per view, fans in Los Angeles will have the opportunity to attend Summerslam Axxess at the Nokia Plaza at L.A. Live August 22 and 23.The schedule is as follows : Saturday, Aug. 22: Session #1 – 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Scheduled To Appear Batista, Big Show, Chris Jericho, Jack Swagger, Primo, The Great Khali, Tommy Dreamer, R-Truth, Carlito, Jimmy Wang Yang, Mike Knox, Gregory Helms, Theodore Long, Dolph Ziggler, Mark Henry, MVP, Shelton Benjamin, Abraham Washington, Jamie Noble, Chris Masters, Gail Kim, Katie Lea Burchill, Maria and Mickie James In addition, from 11:30 to 1:30 on the 22nd, Army National Guard has a special surprise for WWE Fans! Paul Teutul Sr. from the Orange County Choppers is making a special appearance on behalf of the National Guard. Session #2 – 4 p.m.-8 p.m. Scheduled To Appear Randy Orton , CM Punk, Legacy, Christian, Goldust, Kofi Kingston, Hornswoggle, Kane, Finlay, Matt Hardy , Evan Bourne, Zack Ryder, The Hart Dynasty, Cryme Tyme, William Regal, Sheamus, Yoshi Tatsu, Melina, Michelle McCool, Alicia Fox, Natalya, Eve, The Bellas and Maryse! Sunday, Aug. 23: Noon-4 p.m. Scheduled To Appear John Cena, Rey Mysterio, John Morrison, Primo, Chris Masters, Ricky Ortiz, R-Truth, The Hart Dynasty, Evan Bourne, Chavo Guerrero, Hornswoggle, Goldust, Tyler Reks, Vladimir Kozlov, Ezekiel, Jimmy Wang Yang, Gregory Helms, Paul Burchill, Katie Lea Burchill, Beth Phoenix, Rosa Mendes, Jillian, Mickie James, Melina, Alicia Fox, Layla and Kelly Kelly! Tickets for each session are only $15.00(per session) and are available at Staples Center and Ticketmaster outlets.Besides,where else will you be able to meet your favorite WWE Superstars and divas up close and personal.And remember, no one does pay per view like the WWE!!
800 | WWE celebrating its 800th show
November 2, 2008
800. Just a number, right? Well take that number and spread it over 15 years on primetime television. Now take that number and add the fact that you do not have the luxury of having any repeats or reruns from week to week. Imagine all the man hours it must take on a weekly basis to come up with new and fresh ideas with an ever evolving and ever changing ensemble cast. Now couple with that the fact that you’re going up against the standard bearers of Monday Night primetime programming, the National Football League. And, along the way, another program, from the same genre of programming, comes and attempts to take some of your audience. How do you survive?
Well, if you’re the Simpsons, ER, or Seinfeld, you don’t have to factor all these things in. In addition, most of your stars are lauded as celebrities and not just butts of jokes and quick tongue in cheek references. So again, what is the significance of the number 800? When you are World Wrestling Entertainment, it says plenty. Since 1993, WWE has presented Monday Night Raw on a weekly first run basis. Its run is more than four times as long as Seinfeld‘s. There have been more episodes of it than The Simpsons and ER combined. It’s the longest running weekly show in the United States. Despite the fact that it first aired more than 15 years ago, Raw today is as fresh and exciting as its first episode way back in 1993.
From its humble beginnings in the Manhattan Center to the arenas that it packs week in and week out, it has had its share of moments that have crossed over to mainstream media and has etched itself as a part of the fabric and culture of this country and others. Here are some quick highlights over the past decade and a half:
Stone Cold” Steve Austin and Mike Tyson have an in-ring face-off
On Jan. 19, 1998, WWE Chairman Mr. McMahon was in his glory because “Iron” Mike Tyson was on Raw and he had big plans for boxing’s controversial former heavyweight champion. But Stone Cold quickly rained on his parade, marching down to the ring and then announcing he wanted to cash in his Royal Rumble-earned title opportunity against WWE Champion Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania.
Of course, he only wanted to do that after he got “a piece of Mike Tyson’s a**.” Some “sign language” with his middle fingers sparked a brawl between The Rattlesnake and Tyson, and the Chairman was livid, screaming, “You ruined everything! You ruined everything, Austin!”
Tyson would briefly align himself with HBK and DX – but then show his true colors at WrestleMania XIV when he played a key role in Austin winning the WWE Championship. He provided WWE with some unforgettable moments, which began on Raw and his respect for Stone Cold showed that Austin was the “World’s Toughest Son of a Bitch.”
Mr. McMahon’s Limo Explodes
After Raw on the night of June 11, 2007, Mr. McMahon was quite literally the hot topic of nearly every major news source in the continental United States. His face blew up the front pages of newspapers, while his name could be found on most network news’ web pages – and the source of discussion surrounding the WWE Chairman had nothing to do with his adding more millions to his bank account, or backlash from berating high-profile public figures like Donald Trump or Bob Costas.
It was on that seemingly ordinary night in Wilkes Barre, Pa., that Mr. McMahon left the arena, stepped into a limousine and pulled the door shut. When the car door closed, that’s when things heated up.
A massive inferno lit up the sky as shrapnel from the limo - with the Chairman presumably caught inside -dispersed across northeastern Pennsylvania. The fans watching Raw live gasped as eyebrows raised and hands covered mouths. Even a tear may have been shed by the one lonely kid wearing a bad tie and ugly sports coat like his presumed deceased hero. (This incident also resulted in mass 911 calls to report incident even though it was a staged and controlled.)
The Monday Night War-DX Invades WCW
Breaching enemy lines for the first time ever, Triple H field-led a camo-clad quintet of D-Generates onto the turf of rival wrestling franchise WCW on April 27, 1998. Never before had any individual from a competing sports-entertainment promotion come so close to the frontlines, let alone acknowledge the competitor. That didn’t stop their sergeant, The Game, from leading the DX troop to The Scope in Norfolk, Va. – the arena hosting Monday Nitro that very evening.
“WCW, let my people go!” Triple H exclaimed, as he stood mounted atop a war-bound jeep with a cannon nestled between his army fatigue pant legs. With his subordinate DX soldiers at his side in their “X” labeled helmets, The Game corralled scores of supporters outside the arena and turned many WCW ticket holders into WWE diehards.
The D-Generates even tried to infiltrate the sports complex and ride their vehicle into the rear entrance of the arena, so that they might come face-to-camouflage painted face with their competitors. Though locked out, Triple H and his pack continued to bellow war cries that were undoubtedly heard by the athletes in the WCW locker room mere yards away.
Brazenly confronting the enemy and extinguishing the excitement for that night’s edition of Nitro – for fans and WCW’s roster alike – DX managed to “fire the first shot” in the Monday Night Wars. Not just the first shot, but also one of the most potent; this invasion proved to be a critical turning point in the clash for sports-entertainment supremacy in the late 1990s. And if WCW wasn’t down with that, DX had two very specific words for them.
Shane McMahon purchases WCW
March 26th, 2001.The evening of irony started in Cleveland, Ohio, where the WWE Chairman opened Raw and WCW Monday Nitro, which had been emanating from Panama City Beach, Fla. In a first-ever simulcast on both programs, WWE’s billionaire Chairman made the shocking announcement that he had acquired WCW. One could argue that WWE had long ago won its ongoing “Monday Night War” with the Ted Turner-owned competition; however, there was no debating that Mr. McMahon, with less than a week before WrestleMania X-Seven in Houston’s sold-out Astrodome, now believed that he was sitting on top of two worlds.
But the boss was a tad premature with his blockbuster proclamation. Inside the ring midway through Raw, Mr. McMahon clarified for our fans how Time Warner had “practically begged” him to buy WCW. He agreed – with the caveat that he would only seal the deal on pay-per-view, “when Ted Turner himself walks down the aisle at WrestleMania and delivers the contract to me!” Evidently, the victor of the “Monday Night War” felt no need to exhibit compassion for the vaunted “Billionaire Ted,” or for a brand he planned to forever “bury” – much like he intended to do to his own son, Shane, in their upcoming WrestleMania Street Fight.
Suddenly, the billionaire Chairman’s vitriolic tirade gave way to startled surprise as his entrance music kicked in, and the face of his offspring filled up the entire TitanTron. Shane, it turned out, was in Panama City Beach for WCW Monday Nitro, and he had just entered the ring to make a special announcement of his own:
“Dad, the deal is finalized with WCW, and the name on the contract does say ‘McMahon,’” he said. “However, the contract reads ‘Shane McMahon.’ That’s right – I now own WCW!”
Our fans were beyond elated; based on the raucous cheers coming from both venue audiences; one can logically presume that many parties took place in Cleveland and Panama City Beach that night. As for WWE’s Chairman, we’ve seen him register utter shock and disbelief many times over the years. But the expression on his face as Shane declared himself the owner of WCW… well, let’s put it this way: It was as if his entire world was a limousine, and it just blew up. Just as Shane would kick his father’s posterior at WrestleMania X-Seven, his invading WCW – allied with a Stephanie McMahon-led ECW – would get the better of Mr. McMahon for much of 2001, until WWE’s Superstars emerged triumphant in a winner-take-all match-up at Survivor Series. WCW and ECW’s rosters would become integrated into the WWE locker room, creating an elite mix of Superstars that to this day entertains our fans around the world under the Raw, SmackDown and ECW brands. Needless to say, the result of what transpired that March evening on Raw forever altered the face of sports-entertainment.
Now that’s just four memories. But anyone who has even watched RAW in passing could pick and choose at least something that intrigued or, better yet, entertained over the years. And the show has arguably produced more household names than any other primetime entity as names like The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, John Cena, and Shawn Michaels are firmly engraved in the minds of millions of fans nationwide and the world over. So tune in and witness history.800…and counting. Late
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