Jim Cornette’s Drive-Thru Episode 61
Release date: July 16, 2018
Recap by: Paul Briody
DIRECT LINK TO LISTEN/DOWNLOAD
Top stories/moments of interest:
• Brian Last asks Jim Cornette listener questions about current wrestling and wrestling history with great chemistry between the two.
0:00 – Intro includes fidget-gate! Get tickets to see Jim at the Keystone Comic Con in Philadelphia go to tinyurl.com/cornyinphilly.
10:32 – Jim talks about Bobby Heenan smartening his mother up to the wrestling business. When he finally told her that wrestling was worked, she reportedly said: “Well, Bobby, I knew that, how else could you be in it?”
11:30 – Funny plug for the law offices of Stephen P. New with both hosts cracking up.
16:06 – Has Jim seen the video clip of the Michael Jackson-inspired wrestler moonwalking and then DDT’ing his opponent? No!
Jim: “(It’s more) stupid s*** being done on some outlaw mud show somewhere.”
17:15 – Jim goes off on Tim Horner and a ‘Cult Of Cornette’ member who recently had a photo taken with Mr. Horner: “F**k that f**kin’ half pint.”
18:05 – Jim’s asked about the career of Danny Hodge, who has recently had a rough episode with dementia.
Jim: “He not only was the top amateur wrestler in the country, by a long margin, dominated. J.R. can reel off the statistics. Never pinned, never taken down, didn’t have a point scored against him at high school… was NCAA champion… Golden Gloves boxing champion.”
In his pro career, he was the biggest star in his home territories of Louisiana and Oklahoma because of his work ethic, believability and toughness. To publicise his matches he’d often crush an apple or bend pliers with his grip. It’s widely accepted that he’d have been a shoe-in for MMA if it had been around back then. His wrestling career ended after he broke his neck in a car crash, after which he walked to get help holding his neck in place. Tough guy.
26:27 – Jim has said that Dennis Condrey once made $63 for working twice in WCCW. What would Kerry Von Erich and Gino Hernandez make for the same show? For the spot shoes, they’d probably make double, even though The Midnights would often wrestle last because Gino and Chris Adams had complained to management that it was hard to follow a Midnights match because there was “only two of them.” The Von Erich boys were making more because they were part-owners.
31:51 – What are Jim’s opinions of Rhyno?
Jim: “I’ve always been a huge fan of his so I loved working with him… when he was in Ring Of Honor it was at my behest… I’ve always been a big fan and I thought he did great s**t.”
36:13 – When one promoter sold a territory to another, what would the buyer actually get for their money? TV contracts, arena contracts, the ring, perhaps some office staff but the roster would be entirely in the new owner’s control.
Jim: “What you really bought was the opportunity that the guy had built. You’ve made the relations with the arenas, with the television stations, with the spot show sponsors… the infrastructure in place… and all the things that make you able to run the business of wrestling.”
41:03 – Which company had the better angles during their peak – Mid-South, Memphis or Crocket?
Jim: “Which painter – was it Da Vinci, or was it f**kin’ Monet, or was it Picasso (who) has the best paintings during their peak? Or does it depend on which era it was?… You can’t compare something like that.”
Different styles too: Memphis was all about personal issues, Mid South focussed on athleticism and Crocket was “the smoother workers.”
42:36 – What wrestling magazine did Jim buy first and what are the stand-outs in his collection? He first saw that wrestling magazines actually existed when he was “on a comic-book run” in late ‘73/early ‘74 and the wrestling magazines were on the rack next to the comics. That first magazine was Big Book Of Wrestling with Jackie Fargo on the cover and it opened up wrestling in other territories throughout the USA to Corny. Concerning wrestling magazine “prized possession”, Jim cites the first issue of Wrestling Review, featuring Eddie and Jerry Graham on the cover, autographed by both.
46:14 – Did Hulk Hogan’s character ‘Thunder Lips in Rocky III expose the wrestling business, since he breaks kayfabe by posing for photos in the ring with the Balboa family following their match? A little bit but it gave Hogan a starring role so there was no way he was turning it down.
48:38 – What really “did the AWA in”? Their show on ESPN tried to be ESPN Boxing and therefore was a bland TV show. Talent raids by Vince really hurt them and was perpetuated by the talent pool not being replenished. All ground that’s been covered here before.
53:46 – On the August 19, 1996 episode of Raw Jim called Sunny a slut live on the air. Did he get any heat? Jim can’t remember saying the line but knows he didn’t get “yelled at” over it. Jim talks about getting heat for saying “I wish I could say the word ‘slut’ on television” (which was bleeped out), when talking about Sunshine on WCCW TV.
55:58 – What does Jim think about the “murder and rape” storylines of the attitude era?
Jim: “The first miscarriage, on WWF television, was the first time that I almost spit in Ed Ferrara’s face, and just did it later on over something different.”
Jim: “It’s just f**kin’ stupid… I don’t know why you have to go that far when it’s not nesessary to go that far… I think as little of that as I do of the doll wrestling and all the other s**t.”
58:37 – In the book ‘Crazy Like A Fox’, a biography of Brian Pillman, it suggests that Pillman suffered resentment from some WWF talent because of his big money contract, can Jim elaborate? Also, what’s Jim’s favourite Pillman match? Pillman had many supporters upon entering the WWF including Corny and JR. Following the car wreck he was limited physically but was such a character and wrestling-smart. Jim doesn’t remember any specific heat between Undertaker and Pillman, as alluded to in the book. His favourite Pillman match is him and Zenk vs The Midnight Express in Altuna, PA, where they shot an angle with his throat or his match against Flair in February, 1990 and his work with Steve Austin as The Hollywood Blondes.
1:06:07 – Where does Jim get his fiery temper and passion from?
Jim: “It did actually come from the Mama Cornette side of the family… My mom was the one who didn’t put up with any bulls**t, did not like to be lied to, did not suffer fools very well, always thought that things should be conducted on a fair-and-square basis… Her side of the family is noted for, let’s say, being able to display their temper effectively.”
1:07:45 – Outro
Plugs: Twitter: @TheJimCornette, @GreatBrianLast #CornyDriveThru; CornyDriveThru@gmail.com; JimCornette.com; 605pod.com; kfrpod.com; tinyurl.com/cornyyoutube; the law offices of Stephen P. New.
Review: Strong episode. Funny and interesting. Rating: 8/10
Time stamps:
0:00 – Intro
10:32 – Bobby Heenan
18:05 – Danny Hodge
26:27 – WCCW pay
31:51 – Rhyno
36:13 – Buying territories
41:03 – Mid South vs Memphis vs Crockett
42:36 – Wrestling magazines
46:14 – Hulk Hogan in Rocky III
48:38 – AWA decline
53:46 – Jim calls Sunny a slut on Raw
55:58 – Attitude era storylines
58:37 – Brian Pillman
1:06:07 – Jim’s temper
About Paul:
I’m just a guy, from England, who watches wrestling and listens to podcasts!
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