Sawyer Paul's Blog, page 187
June 26, 2011
mudwerks:
(via Pulp International - Promo shot of British...
(via Pulp International - Promo shot of British actress Sally Douglas circa 1964)
British actress Sally Douglas, seen here in a promo shot taken during the filming of the James Bond spoof Carry On Spying, 1964.
June 25, 2011
I'm ron fucking swanson.
I'm ron fucking swanson.
I got some bad ideas in my head.
I got some bad ideas in my head.
June 24, 2011
Kevin Kelly is a xenophobic idiot
Y'all remember Kevin Kelly, right? He was an interviewer for WWE a few years ago. Now he writes for Wrestlezone and has a radio show. He might not be a xenophobic idiot in general, and he might be a nice guy other times, but he's definitely a xenophobic idiot in this article:
The WWE is trying to push some new talent to the top of the card. Several they are trying to get over are from foreign countries, as the WWE continues its global initiative. One problem… foreigners can never be top guys. Not just in wrestling but any sport.
Before we even get into the xenophobia, let's get into how offensive the sentence structure is in "Several they are trying to get over are from foreign countries." It may not be offensive in content, but it is certainly offensive to English. For a guy so dismissive of other countries, his sentence structure is suspiciously French.
Also, let's point out that the three sports Kevin Kelly uses as example are golf (a sport popularized by rich, white Americans), Tennis (where he's dead wrong: many lead Tennis players are from outside North America. Agassi and Federer are total nobodies, after all) and Basketball, a sport that holds nearly no professional importance outside North America.
Now, about that whole "foreign wrestlers will never be household names" theory of Kelly's:
Hulk Hogan, Rock and Stone Cold are household names. Macho Man is too. John Cena is close but the WWE is not what it was a few years ago and as a result, Cena is not a true household name with the American casual fan. Kids, yes but not adults. Bret Hart is close too but he was on top when the business was in the toilet. Not his fault but while Bret is super-over with hardcore fans, the business climate from his time at the top knocks him down a peg.
Now, name me one foreign wrestler that is a household name with the casual fan.
Go ahead… name a wrestler not from either the US or Canada that is a household name with casual fan.
The paragraph quoted is also offensive to English (this guy calls himself a journalist!), but it's wrong on so many levels. There are, in fact, legions of professional wrestlers from across the globe who have made a living wrestling in the United States under characters any vaguely awake adult would recognize.
Also, Canada is a foreign country to the United States, you goddamn idiot. So let's just quickly list off Bret Hart, Owen Hart, Rowdy Roddy Piper, Edge, Trish Stratus, Rick Martel, and Christian. There are so many popular, successful, and canonical wrestlers from Canada that I know I've missed a few. But this isn't even part of my argument.
Let's just rattle off a couple:
Andre the Goddamned Giant
The Iron Sheik
Nikolai Volkoff
The British Bulldog
The Dynamite Kid
Tito Santana (or does Mexico not count as foreign, either?)
William Regal
Sheamus (you can't say Sheamus ain't recognizable)
The Great Muta
Of course, the article gets worse. He veers dangerously close to total American idiot.
As we know, pro wrestling on television is a part of American culture and American culture drives global demand. One example of this… Kids from the old Soviet Union would have sold a kidney to get a pair of Levi's Jeans.
Kids from the old Soviet Union would have ripped Kelly's fat ass apart. What an egocentric, ugly-American thing to say. There may have been a time in the 80s during the US economy boom where other countries smiled upon excess consumer culture, but that was a) a long time ago, and b) largely a media fabrication.
Again, household brand names in the US are globally accepted. Just like the US currency being the benchmark for so many global transactions, American cultural commodities are the standard to casual fans in the civilized world.
I said this sentence aloud, and everyone around me spewed their coffee. Last time I checked, the US dollar was below Canada's, currently trading at 98 cents against. I'm not even going to compare it to the Euro (or the Latvian, Ghanian, or Azerbaijani dollar, all of which trade higher than the US, according to CNBC). The only place the American banking system is leading anyone is off a cliff.
You guys wanted me to attack someone who deserved it more than Alvarez? There you go. Kelly makes Alvarez look like Jon Ronson.
June 23, 2011
Wrong on any level. Stupid on every level.
The match injured...
Wrong on any level. Stupid on every level.
The match injured neither man.
The match made neither man less popular or marketable.
The match ended neither of their careers.
The match didn't make a future match between the two or anyone else they fight less interesting.
Also, bang up photo choice.
