Ladies Night: Please Add These Women to the Hall of Fame

Three Hall of Fame worthy women
Elizabeth, Cyndi Lauper and Luna Vachon

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
Listen to My 1-2-3 Cents the Podcast!

Before I get too far into this post, I'm going to start off by saying I know that there are likely circumstances that we don't know about that are keeping some of these women out of the WWE Hall of Fame.  I'm not posting this as a criticism to the WWE, these are just a few of the names I'd like to see enshrined sooner rather than later. 

Randy Savage & Elizabeth at Wrestlemania IV
Photo courtesy: WWE

Miss Elizabeth was often referred to as "The First Lady of Wrestling."  I remember when she burst onto the scene in WWF back in 1985.  All of the managers in the company had been trying hard to sign newcomer "Macho Man" Randy Savage.  The Macho Man turned down the likes of Bobby Heenan, Jimmy Hart and Freddie Blassie.  Finally, Savage introduced his manager/valet, a beautiful brunette simply named Elizabeth.  She made history in the WWE and paved the way for the likes of Sunny, Sable and Marlena.

Liz saves the day
Photo courtesy: WWE

Savage and Liz were made a great pairing.  I'm sure it had a lot to do with the fact that they were married in real life.  The couple had its ups and downs and finally split during the Mega Powers explosion in 1989.  Liz faded out of the spotlight, showing up briefly a year later at Wrestlemania 6 to "manage" Dusty Rhodes and Sapphire against Savage and Sensational Sherri.  Then a year after that, the "first couple of wrestling" reunited when Liz jumped the barricade and charged the ring to save Savage from Sherri's beating.  I along with many others cheered in front of the TV as these two embraced and rekindled their romance.  Randy and Liz were "Ross and Rachel" long before Friends ever premiered.

Elizabeth confronts Ric Flair
Photo courtesy: WWE

Liz stuck by Macho Man after their TV wedding and the couple survived Ric Flair's allegations of a previous romance with Elizabeth.  The couple divorced behind the scenes a short time later, but Elizabeth stayed involved in the business after Savage appeared in WCW.  She played a role in several story lines there including one of the worst handcuff jobs I've ever seen.  Sadly Elizabeth died in 2003 at the age of 42.  I've read that surviving family members are the ones keeping her out of the Hall of Fame.  I remain optimistic that an agreement will eventually be reached and she'll take her rightful place in wrestling history.

Lauper with Wendi Richter
Photo courtesy: WWE

I've blogged before about Cyndi Lauper and why I think she belongs in the WWE Hall of Fame.  Simply stated: Cyndi was a major factor behind the Rock n Wrestling Connection in 1984.  She showed up on Piper's Pit after Capt. Lou Albano took credit for her success (Albano had appeared in her Girls Just Wanna Have Fun video).  Eventually Piper got involved, which brought in Hulk Hogan and Mr. T and leading to Wrestlemania.  In the meantime, Lauper managed Richter to her two WWF Women's Title reigns.  I was a huge fan of Cyndi's at the time and seeing her on WWF programming sealed the deal for me.  Her work in those early days have more than earned her the right to be the first female inductee into the Celebrity Wing of the Hall of Fame.  

Luna at Monday Night Raw
Photo courtesy: WWE

Luna Vachon is one of the first true bad ass women of wrestling. My first memories of her are from my Apter magazines, when they'd written up something about her and the tag team she managed The Blackhearts.  She looked just as scary and tough as the men she managed.  Later, she surfaced in WWF and joined the likes of Shawn Michaels and Bam Bam Bigelow.  She and Bigelow feuded with Doink and Dink the Clown at a time when women's wrestling frankly sucked in WWF.  She'd later return and join Goldust during a period when Goldie had gone rogue.  Luna feuded with Sable in the ring and in real life.  Despite her talent, Luna never won the women's title.  Even with her ups and downs behind the scenes, I think she too has earned her a chance at immortality in the Hall of Fame.  May she rest in peace as well.

Twinkle, Twinkle, Golden Star

Goldust vs. Stardust
Courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
Listen to the My 1-2-3 Cents Podcast here.

After this week, it's official, we will not be getting the much anticipated Wrestlemania showdown between Cody and Dustin Rhodes, better known to the WWE Universe as Stardust and Goldust respectively.  I may be in the minority when I say this, but I'm disappointed this match isn't happening on the grandest stage of all.

For years there has been speculation that the Rhodes brothers would lock up at Wrestlemania.  It seemed as if WWE Creative was headed in that direction after the two finally split in February.  But instead, six days after that breakup, a match happened at Fastlane.  Fans didn't seem to respond well to that showdown (which Goldust won) and from what I've read that's the reasoning behind scrapping the rematch for Wrestlemania.

Courtesy: WWE

I think they rushed that initial match.  I would have rather seen a six week build up to Wrestlemania, allowing things to simmer up until the point of everything boiling over at Wrestlemania.  More could have been done with father Dusty Rhodes as well.  I think the company just threw the match together and hoped for the best instead of allowing that slow burn.  (I realize six weeks isn't a slow burn, but by today's standards it certainly is)

Old school Goldust
Courtesy: WWE

Goldust is my favorite gimmick of all time.  Dustin Rhodes has spent nearly 20 years (off & on) in the role and I can't imagine anyone else being able to pull it off the way he did.  Those early years were simply amazing.  I had a hard time believing "The Natural" was under that wig and makeup. This most recent run has been a great one for him.  He's in even better shape now and if this is indeed his last run with WWE, I hope he's not just lost in the shuffle of the Andre the Giant Battle Royal. 

Stardust
Courtesy: WWE

Stardust has breathed new life into Cody's career too.  I have no doubt he'll continue be successful, but I would have loved for one more match against Dustin on the big stage.  Then add him into the hunt for the Intercontinental title.

I'm just a fan with an opinion and a forum to share it.  What are your thoughts?  Post your comments here or join us on Facebook.

Spring Break: Then and Now

Spring Break views in 1995 and 2015

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

In March 1995, a dozen of my Sigma Nu fraternity brothers loaded three different cars for a week of fun in the sun.  Our destination was Panama City Beach, Florida.  It was my senior year and first spring break getaway.  Fast forwarded twenty years, and my wife and I loaded our minivan and surprised our three kids with a spring break trip to Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

Obviously, spring break is much different when you're a 21-year-old college student compared to a 41-year-old father of three.  As I sat in the water park at our resort, I thought about how things had changed over the last 20 years.

In 1995, we all hung out at the infamous Club La Vela at night, having a good time...

In 2015, the only club I saw was the one I held during a rousing round of mini-golf at MagiQuest in Pigeon Forge.

In 1995, we paid $10 to drink all day at a place called Sharky's Beach Club.

Sharks at the Ripley's Aquarium

In 2015, we spent part of the day looking at sharks at the Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies.

In 1995, a collection of pop tabs needed to be picked up and thrown away.

In 2015, Pop Tarts' crumbs were collected that needed to be picked up and thrown away.

Both trips were a blast for very different reasons, obviously.  New memories were made this time around with the four most important people in my life.

The Undertaker's Wrestlemania History

Bray Wyatt gets his answer
Photo courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
Listen to the My 1-2-3 Cents Podcast here.

The Undertaker has accepted Bray Wyatt's challenge for Wrestlemania 31, marking the Deadman's 23rd Wrestlemania. It's quite a feat, as the Undertaker has only missed two Manias (10 & 16) over the last 24 years.  I'm sure this has been talked about before, but I'm looking back at how life was when Undertaker embarked on his Wrestlemania journey in 1991.

My senior photo (when the Streak started)

I was 18 years old, a senior in high school, on the night the Undertaker pinned the legendary "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka at Wrestlemania VII.  Who knew that night so many years ago, we'd still be talking about Taker?  I certainly didn't.  I thought he'd be a flash in the pan, but to the credit of Mark Calaway he's created the greatest gimmick in the history of the business (IMO).

When The Streak started George HW Bush was President of the United States.  Three other men have served in the White House since then. 

The national average for gallon of gas in 1991 was $1.01. 

Undertaker vs. Jimmy Snuka: Wrestlemania VII
Photo courtesy: WWE

The night after Undertaker's first Wrestlemania win, Kevin Costner's "Dances with Wolves" won the Oscar for Best Picture.

The Internet as we know it today was still about four years away from hitting computers everywhere.  Twitter, Facebook and YouTube were more than a decade away.

Bray Wyatt, Taker's opponent this year, was months away from celebrating his fourth birthday.  

NXT Women's Champion Sasha Banks wasn't even born yet.

"Stone Cold" Steve Austin was simply "Stunning", Goldust was "The Natural" and John Cena was in junior high school.

Jim Ross was the voice of WCW and Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan called Wrestlemania that year.

Courtesy: variety.com

There have been five different company logos since Wrestlemania VII.

The only thing that has remained a constant through the last 24 years is that Vince McMahon is still in charge.  I am intrigued by this matchup for Wrestlemania 31 and can't wait to see what happens that night.

Wrestlemania 31 MVP: The Invisible Man

By Chad Smart
@chadsmart & @my123cents on Twitter

So far this year, my attempts to blog more haven’t been that successful. Really need to get Kevin to let me appear on the My 1-2-3 Cents podcast (part of the Jittery Monkey network and available on iTunes) more so I can share the thoughts I have trouble getting motivated to write about.  But as we’re now on the Road to Wrestlemania, it’s about time I start writing about how I feel Wrestlemania 31 could go down as the least exciting Mania since 11.

Based on what has been announced so far for Wrestlemania 31 and on one match which hasn’t been confirmed but gets a weekly build on RAW and Smackdown, I think it’s safe to say the three top matches are the epitome of WWE’s lack of forward thinking and dismal storytelling. Not to mention that of the six competitors in these matches, only three are on TV on a weekly basis and after Wrestlemania, unless something changes, only two of the wrestlers will be wrestling on a regular basis. Let’s take a look at these three matches and let me explain why none of them interest me.

Not official

Bray Wyatt vs. The Undertaker: While this match hasn’t officially been announced, if it doesn’t happen, WWE has wasted a lot of airtime for nothing. While the idea of The Undertaker being challenged by Bray and actually passing the torch, or supernatural powers, to the next generation may look good on paper, the intrigue of this match is hampered by Undertaker’s lost to Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania XXX.  

Without “The Streak,” what interest is there in The Undertaker’s once a year appearance? Even with “The Streak,” I had grown tired of Taker’s yearly Wrestlemania match since Wrestlemania 25. Each match followed the same formula and held so little suspense that I wasn’t even paying attention to the match with Brock Lesnar when Lesnar pinned Taker.

Now that Taker has a 1 in the loss column, what does it matter if he wins again at Wrestlemania? If Bray were to beat Taker, would it tarnish “The Streak” even more to have two losses in consecutive years? Given how Taker looked last year, and how Bray has been saying Taker has one foot in the grave already, would it really be that big of an accomplishment to beat The Undertaker? Or if Bray loses, will it do more harm to Bray in the long run that he wasn’t able to beat a geriatric, half dead Phenom?  Hindsight being 20/20, this match either should have happened last year with Bray ending the streak and becoming the new Lord of Darkness, or Taker should have beat Brock. As it stands now, instead of being a meaningful match, this is just another not even part-time wrestler getting a match at Wrestlemania due to his legacy.  I see this as a no win situation for either wrestler and will do little to build for the future of WWE.

Sting vs. Triple H: Long time readers know I wasn’t impressed with the way Sting arrived in WWE. If the storyline for this match is the best that WWE Creative could come up with then it’s time to get a whole new creative team. I have no problem with Sting being in WWE. I have no problem with Sting wrestling at Wrestlemania. In all honesty, seeing Sting at Wrestlemania is the biggest reason I’d be interested in going to Wrestlemania 31. But seeing Sting battle Triple H over the death of WCW is not something I care to see in 2015.  If Sting is so upset over WWE buying WCW why did he wait 14 years to show up?  After all the power plays done by Vince McMahon, Stephanie McMahon and Triple H over the past 14 years, why did Sting decide November 2014 to be the time to stand up to The Authority?  These are questions that would be nice to get answers to but since Sting has only showed up three times so far and hasn’t uttered as much as a Stinger yell, I still don’t know why Sting is in WWE.

Kevin and I have discussed Sting being in WWE before and I also have the same comment. Having Sting’s first match at Wrestlemania is a no win situation. Well, actually that was when the general consensus was Sting would be facing The Undertaker. The only advantage I can see of having Sting face Hunter is if Sting wins he’s not breaking “The Streak” or beating a younger talent who could use the win. If Sting loses, then Sting becomes just another WCW reject in the eyes of WWE fans as someone who wasn’t good enough to be in WWE.  Seriously though, 14 years after the demise of WCW and NOW Sting shows up?

Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns: I don’t know if I even need to write anything about this one. Reigns has been put into a position he’s not ready for and if he fails it’s not his fault. Hopefully I’m wrong and Reigns will be a credible main eventer. After only two and a half years in WWE, I believe Reigns will be the fastest person to win the WWE title after only Brock Lesnar. The difference is Brock has the aura about him that screams badass. Reigns does not exude that persona.

I’ll admit I’m also one of the people who felt a Lesnar vs. Daniel Bryan match made more sense from a storytelling perspective and would have made for a more compelling David vs. Goliath match. 

While I accept someone in WWE apparently doesn’t view Daniel Bryan in the same regards as the fans, I still question the judgment to push Roman Reigns to the top so quickly. Sadly, the only interest I have in this match is to see how the fans react. Given the overall snarkiness of the typical Wrestlemania crowd, I can see this being a rehash of the Goldberg/Lesnar match from Wrestlemania XX. 

These are the top three matches for Wrestlemania 31. Why WWE feels the need to bring in part time wrestlers to fill out the major spots in the show baffles me. Not to mention that most of the rest of the roster is being put into one of two matches. The “name” talent is going into the Not-MITB Ladder match and the “not taken seriously” talent is going into the Andre the Giant Battle Royal. What happens in 3-4 years when WWE runs out of part time talent to bring back? Who is going to be the selling point for Wrestlemania then? This is a serious question and one I would hope WWE would answer before it gets to that point.

Does the use of part timers make you more or less interested in Wrestlemania? Share your thoughts on the My 1-2-3 Cents Facebook page, or tweet us @my123cents.  

Serious Thoughts on Jon Stewart in WWE

Photo courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
Listen to the Podcast


When the angle with Jon Stewart of the Daily Show and Seth Rollins started a few weeks ago, I rolled my eyes.  In fact, in my latest podcast on the Jittery Monkey Podcasting Network I dismissed the idea.  But after watching Raw this week, I don't mind the storyline.  In fact, I thought WWE, Rollins and Stewart pulled it off pretty well.

Photo courtesy: WWE

I'm still not sure that Rollins is the right guy for this role, at least with how the storyline started off.  I would have never pegged Mr. Money in the Bank as the type who would want to be a fake cable TV news anchor.  He's one of the best in-ring technicians on the WWE roster as well as one of the company's fastest rising stars.  I'm not convinced he NEEDS this angle.  But I know with the recent photo "scandal" the angle has provided a distraction from the "controversy".  

With that being said, I enjoyed what I saw Monday night (actually Wednesday afternoon on DVR). Until then, I felt like Stewart was belittling Rollins and wrestling/WWE in general with the way he spoke on the Daily Show.  There was a tone I didn't like.  Of course this was in Stewart's environment which is a comedy show.  But on Raw, I saw a different side of Stewart.  He seemed like a true wrestling fan, remembering greats like Bruno Sammartino, Undertaker and Mick Foley.  

Photo courtesy: WWE

Stewart was great (I get that he's a trained professional), but his appearance was much better than most celebrity spots I've seen.  He admitted his inadequacies to the much younger, stronger and athletic Rollins.  He put over his foe, something that many times gets overlooked in these situations.  Stewart sold the fear of being pummeled by Rollins and then performed a kick to the balls that made victims of bullies cheer out loud.

I still don't want to see Stewart wrestle as I'm having a Jay Leno flashback.  In reality, I don't think he's going to though. But I also don't see him and Randy Orton working together either as it seems inevitable that the Viper will soon turn on the Authority and feud with Rollins.  I'm not sure if the issue between Rollins and Stewart is now over or if there's more to come.  

Bottom line to all of this is I understand why WWE brings in celebrities, especially around Wrestlemania.  These storylines work much better when the celebrity is a fan of the business and understands how things work.  In My 1-2-3 Cents, Jon Stewart has accomplished that.  Kudos to him. 

Going Into March Like a Lion

Still looking...

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents

It's the start of a new month and another round of accountability from me.  I vowed to get into better shape in 2015 and I've been recording my progress through daily #AccountabilityTweets on Twitter (@kevinhunsperger) and monthly right here.  I started my journey this year with the WWE Power Series Triple H Workout.  It's a four week program.  You can look back on my work with it here.

Half marathon in February

I've been running a lot too.  On Valentine's Day I completed my second half marathon and in a pretty decent time for me.  I've also joined a gym.  I've had memberships to facilities in the past and the membership card collects dust after a few months.  I'm trying hard not to fall into that syndrome again.  It's funny because on the first day at The Hub, I was approached by someone who reads this blog.  He asked how things were going and encouraged me by saying he'd seen a bit of improvement.

Because I'm focusing on my core, specifically my abs, I've found some great and intense workouts on YouTube from Brandon Carter.  They're about 15 minutes long, but I can feel the burn.  The other big area I'm still struggling but improving with is eating.  I'm doing a pretty good job through the week of cutting out sweets like cookies, candy and cereal.  So far I have not caved and had any of the Girl Scout cookies that are currently mocking me from our pantry.

From January-March

I'm posting my progress (or setbacks) for the world to see to hopefully encourage some folks to get up and start doing the same thing.  I'm also updating you all because it's become the ultimate form of accountability.  If you haven't started yet, do it today.  Let's take this journey together.  It doesn't have to be a Monday or the start of a new year or month or even week.  When you finish reading this (and the other fine blogs available here) head out and do something.  Take the stairs instead of the elevator.  Park your car an extra row away from the front door at work.  Swap out one soda for a bottle of water each day.  Making small, gradual changes will help you adopt a healthier lifestyle and not conform to a fad diet. Good luck!