Matt Borne [SmartMarkVideo Shoot Interview]

The Good

At the time of this recording, about ten years before his passing, Matt Borne was seemingly pulling himself together.  He had long been a notorious drug abuser who never lived up to his potential.  In this fairly standard shoot, Borne goes over his career, the characters in it and seems pretty honest about his failures.  While he had some good runs in World Class and Mid-South, which he talks about, most remember him best as the original evil Doink.  The gimmick was over-the-top, but he really did it perfectly for the short time he was working it.  Borne definitely had a dark side that he tapped into to play the role.  Ultimately, his demons spoiled that run and he never quite got another chance as he slipped into a deep depression and his personal and professional life were in shambles.  This is lengthy interview that flows pretty quickly.  Borne has some great anecdotes and worked a number of territories, so this was interesting for an overview of the pro-wrestling scene of the 1980s.

The Bad

It seems like ripping on a shoot interview that is not full of vitriol is a bit unfair, but it certain can make them dull and uninteresting.  Borne seems at peace during this and does not want to say much about people like Rip Oliver, Buddy Rose, Bill Watts or others that he had issues with.  Thankfully, Borne is honest about his personal problems and gives the impression that he recognizes how they harmed his life, career and opportunities.  Understandably, he still had issues as his death was linked to pain medication.  This shoot is not going to blow anyone away with its insight, controversy or humor, however, it offers a glimpse into that period of the early 1980s through the mid-1990s when pro-wrestling was probably its wildest with all the sex, drugs and rock-n-roll that you could expect.

The Rating:  ***1/2

Iceman King Parsons [RF Shoot Interview]

The Good
"Iceman" King Parsons had a heck of a career and much of his success was as the token black babyface in World Class. I hate to put it that way, but it's true and he even presents it that way. Parsons gets into the racial issues he ran into with someone (by my records it was perhaps Rip Rogers) who buried him to booker Dutch Savage, he talks about Wahoo not wanting to book he an Porkchop Cash as a top tag team and little things like that. He was a good athlete, great entertainer and had something special about him that got over many places and especially in Texas. Parsons seems like a thoughtful guy who kept his nose clean, but was limited as a babyface in WCCW. He was really looking out for himself (as is the nature of the business) and he was able to get to a level that few blacks did and sadly he is not recognized for his accomplishments. This seemed like a solid shoot interview that most any fan who watched (or has later watched) the Iceman could enjoy.

The Bad
Parsons has a unique story and credits his family and those who helped him quite a bit. That humble attitude is not always so common to shoots, which means he might not be as entertaining as other blacks like Brickhouse Brown, New Jack or even his mentor Rocky Johnson . He is pretty honest about drug use (others, not his own as he apparently only drank champagne), racism he experienced and his own limitations. He did not seem bitter, but rather frustrated that he was not as savvy to the business and working while he was in it as he is now (I've heard this numerous times from people like John Tatum, Al Snow, David Sammartino and even Paul Orndorff to an extent). He was a semi-final babyface and had some hot angles, but will never be remembered alongside men like Ernie Ladd, Junkyard Dog or even Butch Reed who were top blacks in multiple places. I had to frame his career in terms of race, but unfortunately that was the norm when he was working.

The Rating: ***3/4

Sgt. Slaughter [Pro Wrestling Diaries - Shoot Interview]

The Good
I had heard a lot of positive references to the Pro Wrestling Diary shoot interviews and while it did not seem like they featured the biggest stars, I'll take a great interview with a mid-carder than a poor one with a superstar any day. Sgt. Slaughter certainly is no mid-carder and this four-hour affair drives that point home. Often pro-wrestlers who stick around can get pegged with weird legacies. He still shows up on WWE television, looks practically the same as he did during his bizarre early 1990s heel run and comes across very cartoonish. Back in the day, Sgt. Slaughter was one a helluva big bumping heel headlining against Bob Backlund and Pat Patterson in MSG, Steamboat & Youngblood in the Carolinas and delivering some memorable promos along the way. That five year run alone would have made him legend, but then he turned babyface and was one of the biggest around. This interview goes through those years in great detail and with funny anecdotes and sharp insight. The early years of Bob Remus are told as well and, in fact, him recounting about his father sending him off to follow his dreams rather than stay roofing in Minnesota is a touching story. The story of his showdown with Billy Robinson before entering Verne Gagne's camp is one I'd never heard before and there were others that when told by the Sarge himself were just priceless. His later WWF run and stints in the late 90s and beyond were covered, but thankfully not the focal point of this interview, a drawback of so many shoot interviews. By the end of this, I was convinced of Sgt. Slaughter's greatness and feel bad that he's become a cartoonish caricature of himself in the past few years.

The Bad
I had known that Sgt. Slaughter was a legit Marine and had been a drill instructor, but you'd expect that to be explored some more. While it is mentioned and he refers to aspects of that time and how it influenced his Sgt. Slaughter persona, it was not given the time or focus I expected. Many pro-wrestlers have had military gimmicks and his is legit and he is the quintessential military-gimmicked wrestler, but it is largely limited to his passing references. This could simply be an area that he did not want to discuss or it is not as defining a life experience as one might expect, but it was the glaring omission in this extensive and thorough shoot interview. Overall, this was great and I have few complaints about this and will definitely check out any PWD shoots that come out.

The Rating: *****

Billy Jack Hayes [RF Video Shoot Interview]

The Good
One of the most infamous shoot interviews of all-time with one of the most bizarre people in the pro-wrestling world. Billy Jack Haynes is in tears within the first twenty minutes of this three-hour marathon and that tells you what kind of rollercoaster this was. Haynes was sexually abused as a child and that set in motion a sequence of events that drove him into mental instability, which is evident here. This has to be one of the most revealing and disturbing interviews that RF Video has ever done. Haynes talks about drug-running and suicide attempts in such graphic detail that you have to believe there is some truth to them. While it might detract from its believability and historical accuracy, the craziness displayed in this shoot certainly makes it memorable and worth catching once.

The Bad
There is a reason why RF Video followed this up with a shoot called "Conspiracy Theories." Billy probably makes more over-the-top allegations, never-before-heard accusations and hearsay-fueled assertions than any other person who has sat in front of that RF Video banner. While there are elements of truth in many of his comments, there are enough factually untrue statements throughout that any reasonable person would call into question the validity of many things he says. Without dwelling on them too much here are a few of the most salacious morsels: Eddie Graham wanted to literally kill Dusty Rhodes after he left Florida for Crockett; Buddy Rose swindled Billy Jack out of $10,000; Vince McMahon is the "Hitler of Pro-Wrestling"; and Brian Adams "ribbed" him by inviting him to travel from Portland to Texas for a fake WWF tryout. Hopefully that gives you an idea of the kind of statements that Billy Jack Haynes is making here. While the intimacy in this is legitimate to the point of being uncomfortable at times, this has riddled with enough holes that I would recommend this for its entertainment value than its historical value.

The Rating: ****

Savage

Director: n/a

Distributor: Altux Films Production

Released: 1978?

Talent Featured

Iron Shiek, Jerry Oates, Bull Ramos, Dutch Savage, Jimmy Snuka, Jesse Ventura, The Von Steigers

The Good
An interesting little look at Portland wrestling in 1978 that is kind of just a hodgepodge of clips of matches, candid comments from fans and wrestlers and some actual promos as well. While there is not commentary on things, clearly this was edited to portray pro-wrestling in certain way. While the "fakeness" of the sport seems to be a focal point (and it would continue to be so for another twenty years), there is not really an effort to "expose" the business. The fans are clearly believers and while some look crazy for getting so angry at the heels, the ones they interview seem normal enough. The grandma who talks about making shortbread for Johnny Eagles is a classic stereotypical pro-wrestling fan, so are the toothless old man, insane lady in the front row (who cusses out one of the Von Steigers), the crazed nerdy guy and stern blue collar-looking guy. Pro-wrestling was a very different product then and its core fan base was very different as well. An interesting little glimpse into pro-wrestling of an era gone by.

The Bad
While this has some cool footage from an underexposed territory, this is nothing spectacular in the day of YouTube. I think the featuring of Dutch Savage and Bull Ramos is the most significant as those two have scarce footage floating around. This was very short, offered no real commentary and was kind of incomplete in terms of portraying the angles going on. Personally, I cannot validate watching much current "wrestling," when there is so much great stuff from yesteryear that is readily available and free on YouTube. This might not be the best example of an amazing gem, but it is certainly something that is neat to watch once and not have to go through some of the transactions that many went through in the tape trading era for something so mediocre.

The Rating: ***1/2

Raven [RF Video Shoot Interview - 2003]

The Good
Raven is always a very good interview and although he rambles and goes into seemingly unrelated rants. In this one, he looks at his career up to his ECW run (although he was in NWA-TNA at this point). If you've never heard him before, you will probably like this. He talks about growing up as a fan, breaking in with Larry Sharpe and working Memphis, Portland and Florida in his early days. Raven loves to get nostalgic about angles he was in and, I dare say, over-analyze them. In talking about his feud with Rex King that involved a few valets, you begin to think that this was probably turning the area around, when in fact that was not the case. He always makes his angles, companies and such come across as more innovative, more groundbreaking and more popular than it really was, which I think is a charming quality to his storytelling. The one thing I really liked about this was him getting into his drug issues and explaining how messed up he was during his original ECW run as Raven. It seemed to humanize this can-do-no-wrong character. I like listening to Raven, but you've got to recognize that he talks a great game and his delivery has never been as amazing as you'd think or expect.

The Bad
If you've heard Raven a dozen times (like I have), you probably know the score and may even find this redundant. He is a boaster, he is blabbermouth, he is a braggart, but it is plainly obvious. After hearing him in the "Secrets of the Ring" series, I think I prefer to hear Raven talk about pro-wrestling psychology than just reflect upon his career. I was happy that they didn't try to cram in everything in, but the flipside is they should've allowed for more time talking about Memphis, Florida and even Portland. He is such a hilariously entertaining storyteller that it is shame to just let his tales (true or not) go unsaid.

The Rating: ****

Col. DeBeers [Figure-Four Daily Interview]

The Good
I typically subscribe to Figure-Four/Wrestling Observer Online now for several month stretches every year. Typically, I follow the shows faithfully, listen to back shows religiously and put any newsletters I want to read on my Kindle for consumption when I can find the time. When I have tedious work to do, I listen to hours upon hours of a single show. Last summer, I poured over hours of Figure-Four Dailies and found a handful of them to be so exceptional that I'll be going back and reviewing them for this blog. One that was a standout was Bryan's interview with Ed Wiskowski (aka Col. DeBeers), although this predated my listening to his RF Shoot, it convinced me that this guy was a shoot master. Wiskowski's vast experiences, great storytelling and sharp insight make him one of those individuals that I'll go out of my way to listen to talk wrestling. Bryan does the standard - how'd you get in?, tell us about your athletic background (football) and all that, but is able to pull in the follow-ups that Rob never can. Although it was brief, Wiskowski talking about his experiences in South Africa were captivating and that area is so rarely covered.

The Bad
Only an hour barely scratches the surface of such a full career. Wiskowski touches briefly on his numerous European tours, which is often left out in shoot interviews with pro-wrestlers. Since he and Bryan are familiar with one another personally and have lived in the Pacific Northwest, they had a great chemistry. The Colonel, who loathes Dave Meltzer, only briefly mentioned him in talking about how Dave did not not thinking his character drew money. Bryan had him back on after Buddy Rose died, but he could probably have him on as much as Paul Lazenby, Dr. Lucha and it'd never grow old or dull.

The Rating: ***1/2