BY MICHAEL GOODPASTER
(FOUR) DAVID ARQUETTE VS. THE WORLD!
David Arquette seems like a really nice and good guy. He’s had some good success as an actor and other creative ventures. He’s obviously a huge fan of professional wrestling. Back in 2000, WCW was sucky. They had that “Ready to Rumble” movie, meanwhile the company was struggling. The decision came down and David Arquette was crowned the new WCW World Heavyweight Champion. At that point, David Arquette was collectively hated for living what I’m sure was an unexpected dream and writer Vince Russo is practically crucified for thinking out of the box. For better or worse, folks are going to always remember this one.
(THREE) FLOYD MAYWEATHER VS. BIG SHOW
I have no problems admitting that I thought Floyd Mayweather’s work with Big Show at Wrestlemania a few years ago was impressive. The size difference was really silly, but they got some good energy out of the storyline and they somehow made their match believable. Mayweather used weapons, had help, and pulled it off very nicely. Mayweather should have taken more heat to give it a bigger comeback, but for a non-wrestler he obviously took the gig seriously.
(TWO) LAWRENCE TAYLOR VS. BAM BAM BIGELOW
This was the main event of a Wrestlemania. Let’s put that in perspective. We’ve seen Hogan vs. Andre, Rock vs. Austin, Cena vs. Triple H, and Michaels vs. Hart headline the “Superbowl of wrestling”. Back in the mid-90’s, the WWF brought in LT for a great little storyline with Bam Bam Bigelow. They had a fun storyline that got a lot of press. They finally had the match and it was decent enough. It was a little slow, but LT took bumps and their story worked. Still, I think LT’s entrance with Salt and Pepper singing “What a Man” still stands out to me more than it should. It was just a weird scenario to add to an already outrageous (at the time) story.
(ONE) ANDY KAUFMAN VS. JERRY LAWLER
Andy Kaufman was one of the first celebrities to enter wrestling and not try to be something they’re not. You’d see celebs come out, wave and always look like the upstanding hero. Not Andy. Andy embraced the heel performance like a champion. He hooked with Memphis legend Jerry “The King” Lawler and the rest was history. Lawler represented wrestling, Memphis, and good and Andy was the jerky, chauvinistic Hollywood asshole. It worked perfectly and should always be remembered. They took their story to the news and really sold the kayfabe of wrestling. They did it so awesomely, that the people all bought it. That’s an awesome respect.
|
