I have caught people cheating before yes. The most common are card counters and people stealing chips from other players. I highly recommend to not get completely trashed while gambling especially if you're a male and gambling by yourself as there are certain females who'd be more than happy to steal your chips while you're not paying attention.
The only time I won't report cheating is when they're tipping. If they're a douchebag or stiff, I'll let my Pit Boss know immediately.
Vegas has very liberal rules to their blackjack games compared to other cities that have casinos. Vegas offers double deck, stand on all 17s, moving down shuffle points, etc.
I don't consider card counting cheating, but the casinos do. They are a private business. They can kick anyone off of the property for any reason unless it's illegal discrimination. The casinos don't want players to have an advantage over them.
To be honest Vegas casinos don't care about card counting unless you're playing on a double deck. You want to play a six or eight deck shoe? It's all yours. But they want no advantage players on a double deck.
I'm talking about card counting. Most card counters are douchebags because they already think they're smartemore arrogant than everyone else though so it's very rare that I'll keep my mouth shut.
It's such a waste of time to try and count cards. I never gamble, but this is what I do...go with friends, get completely smashed, expect to lose the money, and have a good time.
The usual tips? Most of the time I've dealt on a $100-$500 blackjack game. I'll usually make a couple hundred from each player give or take. I'll usually make 1-5 units of whatever they're playing with whether it'd be $5 chips, $25 chips, $100 chips or $500.
I wish. We pool our tips every 24 hours and everyone gets a share of it. I ended up making $1000 that night. We never make money like that so don't think this is a normal occurrence for us.
I did meet up with the customer at the strip club when I got off of work. One of the most amazing nights I've ever had.
The big casinos on the Strip have a lot of dealers in a 24 hour shift.
At Cosmo, on the weekdays there are about 150 dealers in a 24 hour shift. On the weekends, it can be close to 250-300 dealers and Cosmo is a small casino compared to the rest.
Technically no. The only thing the casino reminds you is to not be seen gambling with the customer at other casinos and that you're still responsible for your own actions.
At the big casinos (Wynn/Encore, Cosmopolitan, Aria, Caesars) the dealers usually make $150-$200 a night during the weekdays. On the weekends, they'll make around $200-$300+.
The medium casinos (Bellagio, Planet Hollywood, Paris, Mandalay Bay, MGM Grand) will make around $120-$150 during the weekdays, $150-$200 on the weekends.
I personally can't accept tips while at work. Outside of work, regular customers would throw me some extra cash on the side on top of whatever they gave me at the table while they were playing. The most someone gave me outside of work was $1000. It was a regular customer.
Coolest would easily be Matt Schaub. 99% of athletes are douchebags, but he's super nice and super cool. Awesome tipper too. Down to earth and extremely humble. Runners up goes to Chris Evans. Captain America can't handle his alcohol and is an arrogant prick too. "Do you know who the fuck I am?" was probably his most overheard line while I was dealing to him. 2nd runners up goes to Chef Tim Love. He's a stiff and a cry baby. Constantly boasts about all the $10,000 bottles of wine he drinks.
Really nice guy. From my experience, he plays by himself and doesn't have a huge entourage like most athletes do. Even when he loses, he doesn't have an attitude problem.
I've seen customers smash glasses, break things, punch the wall, punch the roulette readerboard, etc. They usually keep their cool most of the time, but once in a while...
"OMG WTF ARE YOU KIDDING? ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING DUDEITSPANDA! THIS IS SOME FUCKING BULLSHIT. I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS JUST HAPPENED TO ME. YOU ARE THE WORST DEALER EVER. YOU GIVE ME THE WORST FUCKING HANDS ON BLACKJACK. WHY DO I EVEN PLAY THIS STUPID FUCKING GAME!!!"
Dealers are paid the same regardless of what games they play and it's minimum wage. Yes you heard it...casinos only pay us minimum wage. We rely completely on tips.
Casinos are normally run businesses so full time employees are offered insurance, 401k, vacation time, etc.
Dealers are NOT allowed to gamble in the casino they work for. It's mainly to prevent collusion. Dealers are allowed to play slots in the casino they work for, but cannot play anything with a progressive jackpot (Megabucks, Wheel of Fortune, etc.). Dealers are allowed to play whatever they want in any other casino.
The loiters have first amendment rights basically. They changed the law this year so now whenever cards they pass out fall to the ground, they're supposed to pick them up. I was never too happy with the escort ads on the Strip. 1. The girls don't actually provide the service most of the time. They're just there to rip off guys. 2. It puts a negative light on the city.
There is plenty of flexibility on game pace. Casinos instruct dealers to deal at a moderate pace. Not too fast where you seem like a robot and not slow enough where players will fall asleep at the table.
The best scenario for you if you want to play slightly high limit blackjack are blackjack pits that are outside of high limit. It's basically high limit without the title. They're usually $100 6-deck shoe games that stand on all 17s.
Casinos have tried to implied a tip out policy as a way to subsidize other wages with dealers tips, but it has failed. Wynn Las Vegas/Encore is in court with the dealers right now over it. Wynn won initially, but it got overturned and looks to stay that way. I don't see myself making a career out of it. Casinos are now run by corporations. The way they treat their employees is ridiculous. They show no dedication to us.
Stay away from the prop box at all times. The only time I'll mess around with the prop box is if I throw let's say $1 hardways and ask to parlay at least once if it hits.
Happens all the time. I've seen dealers sweat profusely like they just finished doing cardio on the treadmill, seen dealers completely freeze up or seen dealers crack under the pressure.
I've seen a couple get in trouble because they tried to take a picture with them after they go on break. That's a huge no-no.
Physically yes. You'll most likely be on a reserved game. The customer doesn't play the majority of the time while you're on shift. So instead of dealing for 8 hours straight, in high limit you might deal one or two hours. The rest of the time you're just hanging out and watching whatever they have on the TV.
Dealers do get reprimanded and sometimes even get kicked out of high limit for a extended period of time. It has never happened to me, but one day you'll see a dealer dealing to a BIG player. They make a huge mistake and the next day they're on casino war or the Big 6 wheel.
Go to a dealers school. Learn the basics of dealing, handling chips and game protection. I learned blackjack and craps. It takes about four-eight weeks depending on how fast of a learner you are and how often you show up to school to practice. It took me about five weeks.
Once you're sufficient enough, you can apply to audition at a low end casino also known as a "break in house." Historically, casinos Downtown such as the El Cortez are well known break in houses for new dealers. Shitty local casinos are also considered break in houses as well. You don't make any money, but it doesn't matter. The whole point is to get experience dealing on a real live game.
While you're dealing at the break in house, you can learn how to deal all the other games. That's how I learned baccarat and roulette. Once you get enough experience, you start trying to move to better casinos until eventually you get a good, full time job on the Strip.
What sets me apart from most dealers is that I have the skill to deal the games properly while being quick on my feet with calculations and knowing what the players feelings are like at the time. Sometimes dealers can talk to the players while sometimes players just want you to shut up and deal. Just got to know when the situation is right for certain things.
Dealers report to Floor Supervisors. Floor supervisors report to Pit Boss. Pit Boss reports to Shift Manager. Shift Manager reports to Table Games Director.
I haven't got jumped by Joey Porter...yet. He liked me and other dealers on his game that night. I think he still wants to beat the shit out of my shift boss and pit boss. My shift boss still hasn't eaten at a Applebee's or even a Chili's yet since then.
No real memorable interactions. I just loved busting LeBron's balls before he got his first ring.
I remember before Derrick Rose got serious media attention, I remember telling him two years ago "I like how you're an amazing basketball player, but no one recognizes you right now". Not the case now.
Nope. Even though most casino managers are idiots in my opinion, they wouldn't be stupid enough to rig a game. Not only would they would lose their gaming license, the casino would get a huge fine and could possibly lose their license as well.
One thing I tell players if they're gambling...gamble only if there's a gaming commission. You don't even know how many times I've heard stories of players getting screwed over by Indian casinos or cruise ships because there are no gaming commissions overseeing them.
I don't smoke personally. It's brutal. I try to do more cardio than weightlifting to make up for it.
My allergies have gotten worse since I started dealing. Whenever I'm on a game, I just try to move the ashtrays in a certain position so I don't get hit with all the smoke.
It's mainly just being able to handle the high action. Dealers tend to freeze up a lot when they see big numbers in front of them. It's also being able to control your game regardless of who is playing on it and regardless of how much they're betting.
We get background checked when we apply for our gaming card and when we apply for a new job. We also get hair drug tested and have a credit check done as well.
Casinos only hire employees with good credit. It shows that the employees are responsible with their money and less susceptible to collusion.
It honestly becomes a grind the second you start working. It's exciting the first couple of years because you're seeing new bets or action you haven't dealt with yet on the game, but after a while it becomes the same.
Probably Rooney. I think he won like $300k. Soccer players aren't big gamblers generally. They just like to hang out at the pool, go clubbing once in a while and do a little bit of gambling.
The problem with baccarat junkets is that the players just rotate between casino to casino. They take advantage of baccarat tournaments and whatever promos they have. The junkets technically don't bring in any new business and they get paid a huge chunk of whatever the player's theoretical is.
Last updated: 2013-01-27 19:42 UTC This post was generated by a robot! Send all complaints to epsy.
Since The Weeknd is performing at the Super Bowl Halftime show, I thought it’d be nice to post a little guide to his discography for anyone interested in looking to do a deep dive into his work. I would’ve posted this the day of the event, but I assume that some people would probably like to go through it over the weekend. This shares a direct overview of his released material, talking about his career and the background of the music, the videos, the meanings and all. I’ve written this from a pop perspective, keeping in mind that his history might be fairly new for general pop fans. I also go into the storyline of the red suit character, if your interested in catching up on that narrative before the Halftime show (which will continue the story), I’ve listed the chronological order below followed by an explanation of that narrative. I wanna be clear that the interpretations/theories are not conclusive. Abel rarely shares the metaphors or meanings behind his music. This is based on widely based on fan discussion/mutual interpretation. Fans can feel free to expand on anything in the comments. It is important to know about Abel's backstory to get a certain perspective of where he’s coming from, especially when discussing the songs that deal with substance abuse. These recent articles cover his early years really well and share an up-to-date point of view of his success. Variety 2020 Billboard 2021 - Also a good source for getting to know his team. So, an essential TL;DR is this: Abel Tesfaye came from a broken home, he was born to Ethiopian immigrant parents who split up when Tesfaye was less than seven. He then lived with his mother and grandmother, only rarely seeing his father but having a nice impression of him. His drug addiction started as soon as he was a high schooler, he turned to shoplifting to pay for this need of various substances. Soon he dropped out of high school, leaving his home the same weekend, which would later inspire his stage name, The Weeknd. The name is reference/homage to the weekend his life changed. Quick side note, I didn’t think this post would nearly reach the character limit. So I’ve cut out excess detail and lists of producers (with the exception of After Hours since we’re in that era). Table of contents
XO.
House of Balloons.
Thursday.
Echoes of Silence.
Trilogy.
Kiss Land.
King of the Fall.
Beauty Behind The Madness.
Starboy.
My Dear Melancholy.
After Hours.
XO.
XO is the record label that The Weeknd and co. created in order to publish the first mixtape (House of Balloons) and the ones that would follow afterwards. XO has a lot of meanings that have to do with what went into the music and what still goes into it. XO is what the fans call themselves, popularly with the phrase XO Till We OD (shortened to XOTWOD); another way of saying “we’re ride or die for The Weeknd and his team.” While some argue that it could mean anything since there isn’t clear meaning to it, fans continue to associate the abbreviation with ecstasy (X) and oxycontin (O). That definition stems from XOTWOD, fans assume it’s true because of the team’s history of drug usage. While others take it as it’s classical definition “hugs and kisses” because of the consistent lyrical nature of The Weeknd’s songs. Overtime the definition of XO is simply known as: the fans, the crew, and the label. The Weeknd is more than just one person, he comes with XO. For the sake of clarity in this writeup, I’m going to refer to his crew as XO and the fans as “the fans.” XO still serves as a record label, the current roster is The Weeknd, Belly, Nav, and Black Atlass. It remains The Weeknd’s record label and was his first label before becoming a subsidiary of Republic Records. Throughout his career, The Weeknd has worked with Illangelo, a Canadian producer who’s work the fans adore. Carlo “Illangelo” Montagnese was one of main the producers on The Weeknd’s Trilogy, he’s credited on each track. The fan base claims his work to be some of the most notable artistry in The Weeknd’s discography. Their work together continued with Beauty Behind The Madness, Illangelo worked on seven tracks for that album. He then returned for After Hours working on another seven tracks. DaHeala, another Canadian producer, is another significant factor in The Weeknd’s music. Jason “DaHeala” Quenneville worked as lead producer on Kiss Land. He returned to work on six tracks for The Weeknd’s Beauty Behind The Madness, including the hit Earned It. DaHeala returned as a writer for six of the songs on Starboy. Then DaHeala worked on nine After Hours tracks, and worked as the only producewriter alongside The Weeknd for bonus tracks Missed You and Final Lullaby.
This is a happy house. We’re happy here. (House of Balloons/Glass Table Girls)
One of the most iconic title tracks of all time. House of Balloons is about a lifestyle of drugs, sex, and partying; all in effort to drown out self-doubt. It comes from a place of wanting to make it big while doing what you can to survive, all while pretending everything’s alright. The mixtape describes various sorts of women, how they’ve had impacted the life of someone who’s already down on his luck. Fans often refer to House of Balloons as The Weeknd’s best work. The mixtape was the first introduction the world got of XO, and it was one hell of a way to make an impression. It’s personal for the fans and Abel because it’s the only piece of work known to be based on his life. At the end of the day he’s a songwriter, with many of his albums he creates scenarios and world that he likes to explore through the music. But House of Balloons is known to be based entirely on his life. It remains The Weeknd’s most critically acclaimed work. House of Balloons was crafted through the influences of Hip-Hip/Indie-Rock with the main focus on R&B. Through the genius of Ilangelo, the record was—and is—mesmerizing capturing the essence of a lifestyle that The Weeknd described as “anti-everything.” House of Balloons assisted The Weeknd in gaining the attention of Republic Records, which would then host The Weeknd’s own label XO. Though hesitant at first, XO decided to partner with Republic after the co-founding brothers Monte and Avery Lipman kept coming back to Toronto solely for The Weeknd. House of Balloons received three videos, The Knowing, Wicked Games and Twenty Eight. The Knowing was the very first video The Weeknd made, so of course it’d be something other-worldly; it essentially reflects the song itself but in a sci-fi setting. Twenty Eight represents Abel’s life after fame but also his remorse of letting captivating women into his life. Fun fact— House of Balloons is an actual place in Toronto, it was where him and his crew lived after he dropped out of high school. They’d host parties, call girls, do drugs, and to make it less depressing they’d fill it with balloons.
Thursday consists of the same themes as HoB; sex and drugs. But there’s a twist, he’s in a semi-relationship with this girl Valerie. She’s the only one on his mind, even though they meet only one day of the week, any guesses on what day that could be? Through The Weeknd’s phenomenal voice and the insane production, we’re also presented with this story of a toxic relationship where Valerie used to have the upper hand but she no longer does when she falls for The Weeknd. While Thursday isn’t entirely about the relationship of The Weeknd and Valerie, it consists of reflections to Abel’s life after the release of House of Balloons. The song Rolling Stone notably has a double meaning, in which Abel asks his fans if they’ll stick with him when he gets mainstream appeal and decides to change his sound. The track Valerie wasn’t on the original release of Thursday, it added when Trilogy was released. Ending the mixtape with Heaven or Las Vegas meant that The Weeknd’s actions with and without Valerie were a result of his fatherless childhood, making him push anyone away. That meaning behind Thursday doesn’t change when Valerie is added to the track list, it just means that both want the toxic relationship back. The Zone (feat. Drake) was the first feature The Weeknd had on any of his work, the video for it was released in November of 2012. Rolling Stone had also received a video in October of 2012. Both were directed by The Weeknd and reflect the two different aspects of Thursday. The Zone has Valerie living it up in the House of Balloons. And Rolling Stone has The Weeknd doing a photoshoot for Trilogy, reflective of the song itself. Fun Fact— the female voice heard in Lonely Star is The Weeknd’s, he pitched his voice to make it sound like a woman’s.
Laisse tomber les filles. Un jour c'est toi qu'on laissera. [Leave the girls alone. One day it’ll be you they will leave.] (Montreal)
Out of a dark introductory into the early life of The Weeknd, Echoes of Silence is the darkest work of his Trilogy. Let’s be honest the story here isn’t entirely ethical at times but makes for one hell of a mixtape. Similar to Thursday, Echoes of Silence follows a storyline. After accumulating success, The Weeknd gains the attention of various women. There was this one woman (D.D.) who he liked but she initially rejected him (Montreal). The woman came back to him for his fame status and evidently fell in love with him (Outside), but now that he’s got the upper hand he treats him like a groupie (XO/The Host) and lets... bad things happen to her; she’s gotta pass a test before she can get with him. This test is either drugs or his crew (Initiation). He ultimately tells this woman that he’s not exactly longterm-relationship material, perhaps because her love is temporary (Same Old Song), because he’s Next. With the end of Echoes of Silence (originally ending on the title track) the listener is left to wonder why The Weeknd left her if he’d simply want her to stay. As a side note— Initiation should not be condoned. It remains true that The Weeknd is a songwriter and the progression of time has changed perspectives. But a song that makes such suggestions as Initiation should not be ethically/morally claimed or celebrated. The mixtape follows The Weeknd’s lifestyle after he’s gained all this success, he’s still the same person but now he’s gotten everything he wanted. Some tracks such as The Fall continue to emphasize his journey into stardom and his acceptance of fame being temporary. With the added Till Dawn (Here Comes The Sun), The Weeknd acknowledges the changes in his life, realizing that the old lifestyle is no longer there for him or his past lovers. Echoes of Silence is known as an underrated gem of The Weeknd’s discography, it’s well received by fans and critically acclaimed but often brushed under the rug in discussion of his work. A lot of fans and casual listeners play the mixtapes through Trilogy rather than their respective albums. This often leads to people not playing EoS either at all or only the first few tracks, this is predominantly due to the nature of the compilation being nearly three hours long. Fun fact— D.D. is a cover of Michael Jackson’s iconic Dirty Diana. Fans have named the woman in Echoes of Silence Diana because of this track. Various theories argue that the mixtape itself is based on the Dirty Diana itself with exaggerations of the truth, or whether or not it’s a story The Weeknd crafted based on the song.
Trilogy is a compilation of The Weeknd’s mixtapes, House of Balloons, Thursday, and Echoes of Silence. These three mixtapes were released 3-4 months apart from one another for free digital download in 2011, they gained quite a lot of attention from various industry executives. Prior to the release of Trilogy, The Weeknd featured on Drake’s Take Care with Crew Love. The song was Abel’s first exposure to a Rap crowd/Rap fans, more people began listening to his music after the release of Take Care. The Weeknd then featured on Wiz Khalifa’s Remember You, which served as the second single off Wiz Khalifa’s O.N.I.F.C. Following those two releases, The Weeknd released Wicked Games as the first single off Trilogy. Trilogy was formed after The Weeknd came under Republic Records’ management. The compilation album reached a debut/peak position of 4 on the Billboard 200 while reaching number one on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. It’s a well received album with the highlight said to be House of Balloons, which arguably went on to influence various sorts of R&B music of the 2010s. Videos for Trilogy
I went from starin' at the same four walls for 21 years. To seein' the whole world in just 12 months. (Kiss Land)
Kiss Land is based on The Weeknd’s tour life. Visiting unfamiliar places gave Abel horror movie vibes. A guy who used to own the city (Toronto) he lived in is now a small fish in the ocean of the entire world. The Weeknd’s first studio album was a great introduction into the sound he would soon get well acquainted with. While continuing the R&B sound with the essence of Dark Wave, the album explores emptiness and regret throughout the lyrics—or what pop fans could categorize as dark pop—. The Japanese aesthetic used for various videos and the single covers/booklet reflects the themes of feeling overwhelmed by such a loud world that there’s no point in being if you don’t belong. The album explores the real-world and the women in it as well as regrets regarding past actions, namely letting go of women who could’ve been the one in Adaptation. The Weeknd attempts to find that satisfaction in other women and past lovers, but accidentally falls for a sex worker in Belong To The World. With Wanderlust he accepts and expresses that love in the modern world isn’t entirely possible. While continuing to tour the world he enjoys these new experiences with XO (Live For feat. Drake), as well as the new women in his life (Kiss Land). And when he’s back home, he accepts the loss of the relationship he cherished. Kiss Land debuted and peaked at number two on the Billboard 200. It was fairly acclaimed but gained a massive cult following. There were four videos for made for the album, the title track, Belong To the World, Live For (feat. Drake), and Pretty. Those four songs received interesting visuals that kept up with their respective themes while Belong To the World/Kiss Land got visuals that matched the aesthetic of the album. To this day fans ask Abel for a part two to the horror-movie-inspired album after he said it’s the only album he would have a sequel for. Videos for Kiss Land Fun Fact— The video for Kiss Land on YouTube is an extremely edited version of the actual video shot for the song. The directors cut further explores the erotic-horror themes if the album.
Driving by the streets we used to walk through like a triumph. (King of the Fall)
These next few song were released between the Kiss Land and Beauty Behind the Madness era. Some fans would classify them as part of the Beauty Behind the Madness era—I’d say the same tbh—but they stand apart on the basis of success and acclaim. It’s a transition between The Weeknd being an underrated R&B musician to being a mainstream artist with massive recognition and appreciation. The first of these four songs is King of the Fall. A fan favourite and a standout in The Weeknd’s discography. This is one of The Weeknd’s few Rap tracks, it gained a lot of attention within the Rap sphere. It was the way in which XO would announce that they’ve made it, little did they know that this was just the start. Prior to the release of Beauty Behind the Madness (BBTM), The Weeknd gained mainstream attention. The Weeknd’s exposure to mainstream music was uphill, it wasn’t overnight. The first taste of BBTM came from Often, a song that reflected the themes of sex that Abel was known for. The track was released more than a year before BBTM’s release and had made it onto the trackless unlike King of the Fall. Slowly but surely The Weeknd gained exposure, his main sources of exposure were through a collaboration and a soundtrack. Most pop fans heard about The Weeknd through his hit collaboration with Ariana Grande, Love Me Harder. The collab was made through Republic when The Weeknd said he wanted more than what he had gotten through Kiss Land. Ariana and Abel had formed a real bond cough The Hills cough, their bond assisted the song in becoming a memorable hit for both artists. Love Me Harder was a top ten hit on the Billboard Hot 100. Later that year, The Weeknd was featured on the Fifty Shades of Grey soundtrack with Earned It, as well as Where You Belong. Earned It became a massive hit peaking at 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and receiving an Oscar nomination for The Weeknd; a massive milestone for XO. Earned It kept up with Abel’s signature lyrics but the production differed heavily from the sort of R&B he was known for. Videos from that era
I'm that ***** with the hair singin' 'bout poppin' pills, fuckin' bitches, livin' life so trill. (Tell Your Friends)
Following the success of Love Me Harder and Earned It, the Beauty Behind the Madness era began with The Hills. This was The Weeknd’s first number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Along with the video, The Hills became an addictive classic. The production and lyrics mirror a mature version of the sound that was originally found on Trilogy. It was truly in keeping with The Weeknd’s character, the only difference was his haircut. Next came Can’t Feel My Face, a Max Martin production that differed greatly from anything The Weeknd put out in the past. In past songs, Abel had expressed his fear of losing his following if he went mainstream simultaneously asking his fans if they’d stay. He repeats that sentiment in the Can’t Feel My Face video. The sound has changed, the lyrics stay the same but now he’s a pop-star. The song became a hit as it reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. With this massive bop previous fans still stayed, The Weeknd becoming a pop singer didn’t at all alter his image or sound; he mastered it. In The Night and Acquainted were released as singles on the same day, the were the only singles to come after the release of Beauty Behind The Madness. The former received a music video treatment that followed the theme of the song itself while also starring Abel’s girlfriend at the time, Bella Hadid. Acquainted was robbed of a video even though Abel had shown off the fact that a video was in development; the song kept in the tone of The Weeknd’s work prior to BBTM. Beauty Behind the Madness captures a Hollywood-based reality that The Weeknd came to understand: the dark aspects of your life will continue to follow you wherever you are. Real Life, Losers (feat. Labrinth), Tell Your Friends, Dark Times (feat. Ed Sheeran), and Prisoner (feat. Lana Del Rey) all capture a nihilistic view of a dream achieved. Most of the videos of Beauty Behind The Madness have a mysterious white man. He’s featured in The Hills, Can’t Feel My Face, and Tell Your Friends. That man represents the devil. Throughout his journey in those videos, (The Hills) Abel runs into the devil after his car crash, (Can’t Feel My Face) he’s at the club then lights him on fire. The significance behind the fire could be selling his soul to the devil, BBTM is about Hollywood and a popular Hollywood myth is that celebrities sell their souls to the devil in exchange for fame. So in the Can’t Feel My Face video, Abel changes his sound to Pop (from R&B) thus leaving his signature sound in order to become famous, everyone starts enjoying his music once he’s sold his soul. Then we see The Weeknd burying himself in Tell Your Friends, perhaps leaving the old Abel behind after the deal with the devil. However, instead of thanking the devil, Abel takes his revenge and shoots him. But wait, there’s more! The album trailer for BBTM features the devil burning a billboard with The Weeknd’s face on it, revealing Beauty Behind The Madness. HOWEVER, the final cut for the video features the devil being arrested while The Weeknd watches. This is a more realistic form of karma that the devil gets. Videos for BBTM
If I could, I'd trade it all, trade it for a halo. And she said that she'll pray for me, I said, "It's too late for me.” (Ordinary Life)
After the massive success of Beauty Behind the Madness, there was a lot of hype around what The Weeknd would do next; evidently he decided to explore Pop. The fandom he had gained wasn’t entirely based in the Pop sphere, his fans consisted of general Rap fans, but Starboy attracted the Pop audience. Initially, most of his older fans couldn’t get behind Starboy, it differed greatly from the previous sound. It was crazy to think that the guy who made Trilogy managed to make such a Pop-centric album. But this was Abel expressing his versatility. Since this is where most pop fans found out about Abel’s work and became fans I won’t talk too much about the singles, rather more about the album itself. His work with Daft Punk cemented this album in an efficient mix between Pop and R&B, where Beauty Behind the Madness was more R&B with Pop, Starboy was considered Pop with R&B. Beyond the genres, Starboy explores two evident themes. One being his life with fame and recognition. The next being his love life in Hollywood, this aspect of the album came from his relationship with Bella Hadid which ended after the release of the album. The cross became the symbol for that era and appeared in the album’s photoshoot as well as the videos. There was never any conclusive word on the use of the cross but there are various theories about it, something to note is that Abel was raised Christian, it could perhaps be a reflection of his past. The cross he uses to destroy his accolades (Starboy video) is assisting him rather than something that’s holding him back. Abel’s upbringing was rough but now he’s celebrating it rather than feeling bad for himself. The cross continues to come up in the Party Monster video, this time it’s in the party house he’s making his way through. Then it shows up in the video for Reminder, this time in the form of his merch, the people wearing it are perhaps representative of his fans. Then we see it in the False Alarm video, both Abel and the girl are wearing it; the notable thing being that Abel holds his cross up before dying. Then in the brilliant video for Secrets, after giving up on the girl he’s with he leaves the building to find a giant cross. And finally in the I Feel It Coming video, The Weeknd sports a shiny cross necklace, and Daft Punk find it years and years after Abel froze. The videos tell us that the cross is an evident piece of his story. This could mean that his past will always be with him, no matter what sort of fame he’s experiencing he’ll always be who he once was. Also, I’m gonna take this moment to once again the genius that is the Secrets (both the song and the video). Yes it’s my favourite song/video off of Starboy but it’s so underrated. Videos for Starboy, Secrets video bottom right Fun Fact— Most demos of the tracks on Starboy weren’t as pop as they became, they started off R&B but became pop after production.
They said our love is just a game, I don't care what they say. But I'ma drink the pain away, I'll be back to my old ways. (Privilege)
Oof (but in a good way, this whole thing is a bop). For this one I’m gonna talk extensively about The Weeknd’s relationships, which personally feels really invasive but it’s but it’s essential when talking about these sad boy anthems. Beyond that I’d just like to state that though they are part of the narrative both Bella Hadid and Selena Gomez deserve respect/privacy. So when it comes to Pop music fans I think it’s safe to say that we all know a lot about this one. My Dear Melancholy (MDM) came after the very public relationship of The Weeknd and Selena Gomez. However it’s not just about Selena, some songs reflect his relationship with Bella Hadid (whom he got back with a month after MDM’s release). My Dear Melancholy consists with The Weeknd’s exploration/mastery of merging Pop and R&B together. The EP was praised by fans for its lyrics and production, many went on to theorize that it was his most personal project since House of Balloons. The EP was the shortest album to reach number one on the Billboard 200. My Dear Melancholy and fan conspiracies; name a better duo. The first theory being that the EP is entirely about Selena Gomez which wasn’t too much of a mystery since the lyric “I almost cut a piece of myself for your life” exists. Not only did MDM come after Abel’s relationship with Selena Gomez but also after his relationship with Bella Hadid. As far as fans were aware those two relationships were the most important relationships Abel had ever been in. In theory, the songs about Bella and Selena can be categorized. Call Out My Name, Try Me, and Privilege are likely about Selena. Wasted Times, and Hurt You are likely about Bella. Leaving I Was Never There to act as an introspective look into The Weeknd’s life, basically making him hop back on his vices for comfort. Another popular theory was that My Dear Melancholy was the first of another trilogy. This rumour was widely believed due to the comma at the end of the title on the album cover. But the fans soon gained a real reason to believe this theory, since the CEO of XO (the record label), Sal had liked an Instagram post that featured the cover and alleged date. Since Trilogy is a fan favourite this conspiracy spread like wild fire, so much so that fake titles and covers were made. The name of this trilogy would be: (1)My Dear Melancholy, (2)We’re Alone Together, (3)Abel. Only one song served as a single for the EP. Call Out My Name was released nearly two months prior to the actual release of the album, it debuted/peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100. The mysterious video captures The Weeknd in various atmospheric places that reflect the tone of the EP, a haunting yet unexplained reality that the listener is to reflect on. From the cover, to the music, to the video, to lyrics, My Dear Melancholy is an introspective reflection of heartbreak. Call out my name video
After Hours comes after success but references two lows in The Weeknd’s life. The album welcomes darkness and leads the listener towards a dead-end. The Weeknd’s past two albums (Beauty Behind The Madness and Starboy) ended on hopeful notes, they left the listener with a sense of hope but all hope his lost with After Hours. Fans compare After Hours to House of Balloons—a rare occurrence considering House of Balloons’ acclaim—arguing that both albums are on the same level. Debate continues on whether or not both albums are on the same caliber. The belief that After Hours stems from reality does a lot to help its side of the argument. The era began with Mercedes-Benz commercial that featured Blinding Lights, that was our first taste of the everlasting bop. Heartless was premiered on an episode of Memento Mori hours before its release on the 27 of November (2019), Blinding Lights was released two days later. Both videos were as brain melting as promised and the served as the tip of the iceberg. After Hours was released nine days after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, there was a massive risk in releasing an album that would not have a lot of promotion after it’s release (other than magazine coverage). There was no telling whether or not people would pay attention to the album during the height of the fear surrounding the pandemic, but it was a massive success. After Hours debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, with singles Heartless and Blinding Lights topping the Billboard Hot 100. The album is layered with haunting productions that remains predominantly R&B but dives deep into Pop with some of the tracks. Max Martin produced the massive hit Blinding Lights as well as In Your Eyes, Save Your Tears, Hardest to Love, and Scared to Live which samples Elton John’s Your Song. Other notable producers include Metro Boomin who worked on the hit Heartless as well as Escape from LA, Faith, and Until I Bleed Out. With Kevin Parker on the interlude Repeat After Me. Beyond the production are the narrative driven lyrics. In theory the album references two significant events in Abel’s life, his second breakup with Bella Hadid and his arrest in Las Vegas. The latter was due to his misbehaviour; in January 2015 he punched a cop in Vegas, lmao. Which means that After Hours is a recollection of The Weeknd’s first few years in LA. He merges the concept of his breakup with the idea of being an upcoming star, feeling free in the city of lights all while diving deep into the meaninglessness of those lights. While After Hours starts with loneliness and a second chance it leads up to Abel returning to his vices of lust. In Alone Again his loneliness caught up to him and he’s asking for a second chance. He acknowledges his mistakes and situation in Too Late/Hardest to Love, in Scared to Live his ex then returns to him for a second time. He remembers his past ways in Snowchild and the way in which it lead to better days, but where do you go after such highs? In Escape From LA he faces the superficial reality of Hollywood, glad that he got that he got back with his ex, while continuing to question if it’s worth it. But he fucks up the second chance when she pulls up to the studio. Who is she? Much like the other mysteries surrounding The Weeknd’s music, we may never know. Is it all more of The Weeknd’s songwriting ability or is it driven by reality? Fans found a merge between the two to be more accurate, After Hours is about heartbreak and a return to the vices that held The Weeknd back. Heartless is when The Weeknd is once again back to his ways, he may have been in a serious relationship but after throwing that away he spirals back to the way he once was. It’s sad but it’s one hell of a song. Speaking of brilliant songs, Faith is when Abel admits that he’s back on his vices, he states that he needs his ex back with him till the end; he’s back to self-loathing. So when he says he’s blinded by the lights, there’s two meanings to it. The Faith outro tells us that he’s in a car with flashing lights, a cop car (as confirmed by Abel) to be exact. Then Blinding Lights tells us that while he’s watching the bright lights of Vegas pass him by he calls out for the girl that he regrets losing. That is the peak of the After Hours narrative. He’s behaving badly over the loss of the girl he loved and is now at the worst position trying to find her and gain her trust for a third time. Following Blinding Lights is In Your Eyes, this is where The Weeknd vows not to judge her; he can see right through her but will never do anything to make her upset. Does this mean their back together? Not exactly. Save Your Tears details a sort of moving-on that The Weeknd isn’t ready for but tries to help her move on, blind to his own inability to move on. Does it work? Not really. Repeat After Me (Interlude) shows that he’s still trying to convince himself that he’s unfazed by the loss of a meaningful relationship. Then you hear a true masterpiece. The title track is a spiral into true regret and an apology for his actions, he admits that his ex girlfriend is the only reason he lives. In a dark lonely city she’s the only one keeping him sane. But his pleas fail, Until I Bleed Out is when The Weeknd no longer wants her in his life so much so that he wants to erase his memory of anything related to her. The bonus tracks then echo the final sentiment. It’s one sad ass album, ain’t it. But here’s where the Red Suit Character comes in. Shoutout to the makeup department The album isn’t the only narrative to follow with After Hours. The videos for the album follow their own sort of narrative. The story follows an unnamed guy that goes by “red suit character” according to The Weeknd. There’s a lot of confusion and endless theories surrounding this character’s story, after The Weeknd confirmed that it’s about a decent into Hollywood culture it makes more sense… kind of. I’m gonna discuss the storyline without talking about the movies that have influenced it, this way the focus remains on the character. The order of these videos is Heartless / Blinding Lights / Blinding Lights (Live on Kimmel)* / After Hours short film / In Your Eyes / Until I Bleed Out / Snowchild / Too Late / Live at AMAs* / Save Your Tears *Though all live performances could count as part of the narrative, these one relate directly with the videos that follow. He’s is first seen in Vegas with Metro Boomin (Heartless), intoxicated on various substances. He dives deeper into his high until he licks a frog, after that he faces the true effects of this high. He’s frightened by the result and runs far away from Vegas. (Blinding Lights) He’s then found in LA, where he’s dancing in the street, hypnotized by the singer, beat up by guards, and races past all those bright lights in his Benz. Ultimately realizing the shallowness of the Los Angeles fantasy. (Blinding Lights Live on Kimmel) We then find him performing Blinding Lights live, while he attempts to find more reason in within the madness city; he couldn’t find it on the streets so he goes to the stage. (After Hours short film) Even then there’s no meaning to anything in the city, he mindlessly wanders into the depth of the subway where he’s dragged by the reality of it all and ends up possessed. (In Your Eyes) After being possessed he chases the woman whose boyfriend he just murdered, she runs into a club falls deeper into the After Hours fantasy, in a successful attempt to defend herself she beheads the red suit character and dances all over LA with his head, iconic behaviour. (Until I Bleed Out) Then in an ethereal dreamscape, red suit character finds himself in a House of Balloons. He’s trying to escape, but the people there keep pulling him in; he’s getting higher while observing Glass Table Girls. He spirals into the antarctic, the other side of the world. From Heatless to this point in his story, his vices lead him back to the lowest point in Abel’s life. Is it Hell, Heaven or Las Vegas? (Snowchild) He relives his career up until the point where his story began. Considering he’s dead, his life basically flashed before his eyes. (Too Late) LA girls find the red suit character’s head and live their best life. They wanna have sex with him so they find the best boy parts by calling up a stripper who could be the body. The stitch the head up with the body and do what they want. But now he’s brought back to life. (Live at AMAs) He’s had work done… He went in to get his nose fixed and the doctor said “you sure that’s all you want?” The red suit character’s face is healing while he tries to celebrate his life on top of a bridge. (Save Your Tears) Surrounded by a masked cult he debut’s his new face. Do they like it? Are they impressed? Not instantly, their masks translate no expression so how’s he to know? Is any of this worth it? Nope red suit character continues to die inside. He finds a maskless girl in the crowd, she’s lively unlike the rest; but even then, nothing on the inside nothing on the outside. He wants death again, somehow a second chance with this city is still pointless. He tries to kill himself via the girl and himself but it’s all a facade; theatrics. His story continues but that’s all we know so far. The videos make a lot of film references. This post by explain these references very well, as well as past album references here (part one) and here (part two). After Hours is inspired by a lot of movies, since Abel is in fact a cinephile. The main movies that inspired the aesthetic and storytelling are believed to be Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998), Casino (1995), Joker (2019), Uncut Gems (2020), and After Hours (1985). The album tells two sad narratives but remains one of The Weeknd’s best works yet. He’s expanded his videography and enhanced the interest of people who casually enjoy his music and of course his fans. But the era isn’t over, by the time this is posted his Super Bowl Halftime show is yet to happen. And it’ll continue the red suit character’s story. Videos for After Hours (so far) Fun Fact—The Heartless video features a reference to Thursday. When he’s trying to run from Vegas, a sign behind him flashes “Heartless / Heaven or Las Vegas.” This could be a reference to Abel running from his past, after all Heartless is about him returning to his vices.
END.
Thank you for reading this, again, I didn’t realize it would end up being this long. But I hope this this served as a nice refresher for any fans who wanted to revisit Abel’s work before the Super Bowl. And I really hope that anyone interested in getting into his music finds this helpful. Once again, the theories/interpretations mentioned aren’t conclusive, they’re widely based on fan discussion/mutual interpretation. Due to the character limit I couldn’t add too links to the albums, so here are some artist links. Apple Music | Spotify | YouTube | The Weeknd’s Shop | Tidal | Genius
The cannabis market right now is so similar to the start of the green energy market.. its nowhere near done being bullish. Save for some small dips, there will very likely be a huge bullish trend for 2021. EVEN NASDAQ AGREES. I’ve posted my positions a few times, and I’ll continue to do so. But this is my reasoning for investing in cannabis stocks in general for 2021.
I've been a bull on cannabis since the democrats had a strong pro-cannabis platform. But what made me go balls deep into the market was that the UN changed its classification of cannabis. Countries follow the UN closely for guidance on their own classification of controlled substances. Congress has repeatedly cited the UN’s classification as one of the reasons for not changing it. Several countries immediately changed their stance on cannabis in response to this, including Israel, which In November 2020, announced that it was moving forward with a plan to legalize recreational cannabis nationally. “The country is aiming to implement recreational legalization within nine months, and even if there are delays, that means mid-to-late 2021.” (This is my reason for investing in Canadian cannabis companies, because they are already poised to expand internationally since its legal there nationwide)
THE SENATE IS NOW BLUE! The Georgia runoffs were won by Democrats, and they can now swing the vote left with VP Harris. She promised it as part of her platform, so we know it will be prioritized. CHUCK SHUMER SPONSORED THE MORE ACT. HE WILL BE SENATE MAJORITY LEADER. IT WILL 100% BE PRIORITIZED BETWEEN HIM AND VP HARRIS.
EVERYONE predicted beforehand that the republicans would win Georgia... everyone talked down decriminalization passing the house because of they believed it would NEVER pass the republican majority senate. But the left spent more than any senate race in history to encourage voters to go out and vote. Only once the race started did it become clear that the left had a chance. Then some gains from the surprise that they won. However the gains from 1/5 onwards definitely hasn’t been priced in for all the future legislation, because some of it will be completely new legislation that wasn’t possible to consider before without a blue senate. THIS HASN'T BEEN PRICED INTO THE MARKET YET.
The government is broke post-COVID. There is a terrible image of the police. They don’t want to waste more resources on cannabis related crimes that would be fixed under decriminalization. And the tax revenue from decriminalization would be significant. Decriminalization (THE MORE ACT) opens up the borders to interstate-commerce and international import/export. This would all trickle down into Uncle Sam’s empty pockets.
New York Governor Cuomo announced on Jan 6 his plan to legalize marijuana for adult use (right after New Jersey vote, as I anticipated in my last post) as part of his State of the State agenda. The next step is a ripple out on the North East. NY didn’t want to miss out on tax revenue, neither will any of the other states in the northeast within driving distance of NJ and NY. This is Cuomo’s third attempt in three years to legalize adult-use cannabis in the state; last year, Cuomo included a legalization proposal in his state budget, but the plan was ultimately cut in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Other ongoing state legislature:
Rhode Island: Regulators have received 45 applications for six new medical cannabis dispensary licenses in the state. If all applicants meet the requirements for a license, six will randomly be selected in a lottery to operate retail locations in different regions across the state. Read more
Missouri: Rep. Shamed Dogan has filed legislation that would place an adult-use cannabis legalization measure on the state’s 2022 ballot. Meanwhile, Missourians for a New Approach has announced plans for a separate 2022 ballot initiative after an unsuccessful signature campaign to get the issue before voters in 2020. Read more
Alabama: Sen. Tim Melson plans to reintroduce a medical cannabis legalization bill this year. Medical cannabis legislation passed the Alabama Senate during the 2020 session, but failed to clear the House. Read more
Illinois: Illinois lawmakers have proposed the creation of 75 new cannabis retail licenses to give disadvantaged and minority applicants a second chance at licensing following the controversial licensing lottery to issue an initial 75 dispensary licenses. A work group made up of lawmakers and members of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s administration met this week to finalize details of the bill, which will be introduced in a lame-duck session that starts Jan. 8, before new lawmakers are sworn in Jan. 13. Read more
Minnesota: House Majority Leader Ryan Winkler is again renewing his push to legalize adult-use cannabis in the state, announcing plans to reintroduce a legalization bill this year. Winkler told WCCO that he sees “Senate leadership as being the number one obstacle,” but said that if lawmakers agreed to place an adult-use legalization initiative on Minnesota’s 2022 ballot, “it would pass overwhelmingly.” Read more
Virginia: Del. Steve Heretick has reintroduced a bill to legalize adult-use cannabis. Heretick has proposed legislation related to decriminalization and legalization in the past, and this year’s bill would legalize the cultivation, sale and consumption of cannabis in the state. Read more
Connecticut: Gov. Ned Lamont renewed his push for adult-use legalization during his State of the State address Jan. 6, announcing that it is a priority for the new legislative session. Connecticut’s 2021 legislative session opened Jan. 6, and Lamont, a Democrat, kicks off the session with increased majorities in the House and Senate, which could increase his chances of passing an adult-use legalization bill. Read more
Now that you understand why I’m going green, here’s my reasoning for my positions. TLRY (Tilray)
largest cannabis company in the world by revenue post merger. Will run out of Seattle and New York City. New York Legalization on top of senate turning blue is a big catalyst for TLRY.
Merger hasn’t completed yet, and the merger happened before the senate went blue.. that was the gamble APHA was making, and they won. The sky is the limit now. When they merge, they will reduce expenses and be much more likely to post profitable quarters. (This is why mergers have so much hype; the sum is > than their parts because they can reduce operating expenses while maintaining revenue from the two companies)
Tilray CEO Brendan Kennedy: “I think medical cannabis will be legal at the federal level, which means medical cannabis can cross state lines and be imported into the U.S., like we export cannabis from Canada and Portugal to about 15 countries now,” Kennedy said. “Anyone who thinks there’s a state-specific medical market is wrong.” As for the recreational market, Kennedy says the state-specific markets, with interstate trade banned, “are not going to last long.” Kennedy believes that cannabis will be distributed like alcohol and tobacco within two years’ time. That would require significant overhaul of US federal drug laws—and would significantly disrupt all US cannabis companies’ existing business models. Brendan Kennedy, the cannabis billionaire will step down as Tilray's chairman and CEO. Irwin D. Simon, Aphria's current chairman and CEO will take Kennedy's place.
[On December 18, 2020, just three days after the U.S. Senate adopted the Cannabidiol and Marihuana Research Expansion Act (CMREA or the Act) (more on this below), the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA or the Administration) published in the Federal Register a final rule, “Controls To Enhance the Cultivation of Marihuana for Research in the United States” (Rule), which finally paves the way for DEA to issue additional licenses to grow “marihuana” (i.e., cannabis) for research purposes.](https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/on-heels-of-senate-s-adoption-of-36129/)
GNLN (Greenlane Holdings)
One of the largest global sellers of premium cannabis accessories. Pax/JUUL/Volcano products. I’ve had Pax products, and although I prefer Arizer because of the affordability, I can’t deny Pax has quality products and is like the “iPhone” of vaporizers. I like their products, I like their branding. There’s lots of hype and loyalty, especially with their Volcano desktop vaporizer.
Strong US brands.
The main reason they did poorly was bad timing. They IPO’d during the year that JUULs started being banned. They’re actually at all those levels again. Theres a ton of upside potential.
Market cap is ridiculously low for some really renown brands all because of the JUUL flavor pod ban. Everyone knows Pax, Volcano, and JUUL. But no one knows Greenlane because of the bad timing of their IPO and the subsequent JUUL flavor ban. It’s crazy. They’ve already broke all time high for the year. But I’m holding until they break 1B market cap.
Overall i think too many people count it out just because of their IPO and subsequent decline in JUUL sales from the JUUL flavored pods ban. They definitely have the potential because of their strong branding and quality products. I’m betting on them having more high quality products in the future with equally loyal customers.
SNDL (Sundial Growers)
SNDL must close above $1 per share for 10 consecutive sessions by June 26, 2021 or it will bedelisted from NASDAQ. People see this as a fear factor, I see this as “they will do anything necessary to reach $1 for a week so they won’t be delisted”.. IMHO reverse splitter probably isn’t on the table since they could have done that in 2020, but instead applied for a 6 month extension after announcing “alternative strategic investments”. We can already see this by their predatory loan SPAC spinoff.
Rumors of a merger with CGC; SNDL also purchased a SPAC recently and entered an agreement with Zenabis, immediately claiming they defaulted. Turning that SPAC into predatory loan/debt repurchasing company. Imo if they want to complete a merger, it would be easy to sell ownership through that SPAC to the buyer.
THEY RECENTLY WENTDEBT FREE by selling off unprofitable assets in the business. This means we are much more likely to see earnings in future quarters, and they are much more attractive for mergers.
Because they are indoor growers, they are more likely to be bought up by a company in the consolidating Canadian cannabis market than fail all together. The amount of space licensed to grow cannabis in Canada is now heavily skewed toward outdoor cultivation instead of indoor for the first time, according to new data from Health Canada. A growing population of licenses for outdoor growers means that there aren’t as many indoor licenses being given out... If a company ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD wants to quickly expand into indoor growing OR into the west, they would have to purchase an existing company that has the license to quickly do so. This is WAY faster, and a guaranteed way to obtain a license rather than applying for one and waiting x amount of months and be rejected for some requirement that wasn’t met.
From my own experience, outdoor cannabis is subpar quality to indoor grown cannabis. So a growing market for outdoor cannabis doesn’t necessarily mean its better... it is likely just cheaper. I would imagine a high quality “craft cannabis” company would want to purchase SNDL, or an existing outdoor growing company that wants to quickly expand to indoor grown cannabis. With this being a Canadian company, there’s a chance a company in another country like Israel would be interested in purchasing it in the near future.
PLNHF (Planet 13 Holdings)
Biggest tourist trap in Las Vegas if you’re a stoner, casual smoker, or just wanting to try it. From my own experience, I think they will continue to be successful. If I went around the US trying other brands I’d probably be more confident in putting 5-10% of my portfolio into those picks or choosing to not include them lol. Like for example, I used to have Curaleaf. But there's tons of bad feedback on Curaleaf, a friend has tried it said the nug is really subpar quality and if I tried their nug I’d probably confirm that I wouldn’t want to invest in them. With PLNHF, i’ve seen the ambience and tried the product myself. It’s definitely a lot of hype price wise, but still quality. This is my own bias showing, but I still think they’ve got solid fundamentals and excellent location/strong US branding.
I’m well aware of other good stocks like GTBIF, CRLBF, SSPK, TCNNF, GRWG.. but these stocks haven’t been swinging as hard in response to pro-cannabis news. E.g. TLRY, SNDL, GNLN swung more than 20% some days from pro-cannabis news...I will likely reduce my current positions shortly after inauguration, after some news about the timeline for cannabis legislation, and diversify my positions more between these other good picks. 2021 is the year of cannabis boys
Best run in terms of anything and only Male Actors Jack Lemmon: Some Like it Hot, Mister Roberts, Three for the Show, Phffft, It Should Happen to You, Once Too Often, Cowboy, Hollywood Bronc Busters, You Can't Run Away from It, Fire Down Below, My Sister Eileen, It Happened to Jane, Operation Mad Ball, and Bell, Book and Candle. Max von Sydow: The Seventh Seal, Miss Julie, Ingen mans kvinna, Rätten att älska, Wild Strawberries, Prästen i Uddarbo, Kvinnlig spion 503, The Magician, and Brink of Life. Frank Sinatra: From Here to Eternity, The Man with the Golden Arm, Pal Joey, Suddenly, Double Dynamite, Meet Danny Wilson, Young at Heart, Not as a Stranger, Guys and Dolls, The Tender Trap, Meet Me in Las Vegas, High Society, Johnny Concho, Around the World in 80 Days, The Pride and the Passion, The Joker Is Wild, Kings Go Forth, Some Came Running, A Hole in the Head, and Never So Few. Gene Kelly: Singing in the Rain, An American in Paris, Invitation to the Dance, It's Always Fair Weather, Summer Stock, It's a Big Country, Black Hand, Love Is Better Than Ever, The Devil Makes Three, Brigadoon, Seagulls Over Sorrento, Deep in My Heart, The Happy Road, Les Girls, and Marjorie Morningstar. Ernest Borgnine: Marty, China Corsair, Vera Cruz, From Here to Eternity, Bad Day at Black Rock, The Mob, The Whistle at Eaton Falls, Treasure of the Golden Condor, The Stranger Wore a Gun, Johnny Guitar, The Bounty Hunter, Demetrius and the Gladiators, Violent Saturday, Jubal, The Catered Affair, Run for Cover, The Last Command, The Square Jungle, The Best Things in Life Are Free, The Vikings, Summer of the Seventeenth Doll, Torpedo Run, and The Rabbit Trap. James Stewart: Bell, Book and Candle, Vertigo, Winchester '73, The Glenn Miller Story, The Man Who Knew Too Much, The Naked Spur, Rear Window, Harvey, The Greatest Show on Earth, The Man from Laramie, Strategic Air Command, Anatomy of a Murder, The Spirit of St. Louis, Bend of the River, Thunder Bay, Broken Arrow, No Highway in the Sky, The Jackpot, Carbine Williams, Night Passage, The FBI Story, and The Far Country. Ward Bond: The Searchers, Mister Roberts, Johnny Guitar, Hondo, The Quiet Man, Singing Guns, Riding High, Wagon Master, Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye, Operation Pacific, The Great Missouri Raid, The Halliday Brand, Rio Bravo, On Dangerous Ground, Only the Valiant, Hellgate, Bullfighter and the Lady, Thunderbirds, The Moonlighter, Blowing Wild, Gypsy Colt, The Bob Mathias Story, The Long Gray Line, A Man Alone, Dakota Incident, Pillars of the Sky, The Wings of Eagles, China Doll, and Alias Jesse James. John Wayne: The Searchers, Hondo, Rio Grande, The Quiet Man, Rio Bravo, Operation Pacific, The Wings of Eagles, Big Jim McLain, Flying Leathernecks, The Sea Chase, Trouble Along the Way, Island in the Sky, The High and the Mighty, Blood Alley, Jet Pilot, The Conqueror, Legend of the Lost, The Horse Soldiers, and The Barbarian and the Geisha. Paul Newman: The Rack, The Silver Chalice, Somebody Up There Likes Me, The Long, Hot Summer, The Helen Morgan Story, Until They Sail, The Young Philadelphians, Rally Round the Flag, Boys!, The Left Handed Gun, and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Marlon Brando: The Men, A Streetcar Named Desire, Viva Zapata!, Julius Caesar, The Wild One, On the Waterfront, Désirée, Guys and Dolls, The Teahouse of the August Moon, Sayonara, and The Young Lions. Orson Welles: Othello, Touch of evil, Mr. Arkadin, Royal Affairs in Versailles, The Long, Hot Summer, The Vikings, High Journey, Ferry to Hong Kong, Compulsion, Masters of the Congo Jungle, South Seas Adventure, The Roots of Heaven, Napoléon, Man in the Shadow, Moby Dick, Three Cases of Murder, Trouble in the Glen, Disorder, The Black Rose, Return to Glennascaul, Little World of Don Camillo, Man, Beast and Virtue, and Trent's Last Case. Montgomery Clift: The Big Lift, A Place in the Sun, I Confess, Indiscretion of an American Wife, From Here to Eternity, Raintree County, Lonelyhearts, The Young Lions, and Suddenly, Last Summer. Tony Curtis: The Prince Who Was a Thief, Flesh and Fury, No Room for the Groom, Houdini, The Black Shield of Falworth, So This Is Paris, Six Bridges to Cross, The Square Jungle, Trapeze, Mister Cory, The Midnight Story, Sweet Smell of Success, The Vikings, Kings Go Forth, The Defiant Ones, Some Like It Hot, Operation Petticoat, Sierra, Winchester '73, Kansas Raiders, Forbidden, Son of Ali Baba, Meet Danny Wilson, All American, Beachhead, The Midnight Story, The Perfect Furlough, The Rawhide Years, The Purple Mask, Francis, Woman in Hiding, I Was a Shoplifter, and Johnny Dark. James Dean: East of Eden, Has Anybody Seen My Gal?,Rebel Without a Cause, and Giant. Kirk Douglas: Young Man With a Horn, The Glass Menagerie, Along the Great Divide, Ace in the Hole, Detective Story, The Big Sky, The Bad and the Beautiful, The Story of Three Loves, The Juggler, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Man Without a Star, Lust for Life, Top Secret Affair, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, Paths of Glory, The Vikings, Last Train from Gun Hill, and The Devil’s Disciple. Alec Guinness: Last Holiday, The Mudlark, The Lavender Hill Mob, The Man in the White Suit, The Promoter, The Captain’s Paradise, Malta Story, The Detective, To Paris with Love, The Prison, The Ladykillers, The Swan, The Bridge on the River Kwai, All at Sea, The Horse’s Mouth, The Scapegoat, and Our Man in Havana. Charlton Heston: Julius Caesar, Dark City, The Greatest Show on Earth, Ruby Gentry, The President’s Lady, Arrowhead, The Naked Jungle, The Private war of Major Benson, Lucy Gallant, The Ten Commandments, Touch of Evil, The Big Country, The Wreck of the Mary Deare, Ben-Hur, The Far Horizons, The Buccaneer, Three Violent People, Secret of the Incas, Bad for Each Other, The Savage, The President's Lady, and Pony Express Rock Hudson: The Fat Man, Bend of the River, Scarlet Angel, Has Anyone Seen My Gal?, Magnificent Obsession, All that Heaven Allows, Never Say Goodbye, Giant, Written on the Wind, Something of Value, The Tarnished Angels, The Earth Is Mine, Pillow Talk, Winchester '73, Tomahawk, Horizons West, Twilight for the Gods, A Farewell to Arms, This Earth Is Mine, Captain Lightfoot, One Desire, Seminole, Bengal Brigade, Sea Devils, Gun Fury, Back to God's Country, The Golden Blade, Taza, Son of Cochise, The Lawless Breed, Peggy, The Desert Hawk, Iron Man, Here Come the Nelsons, Bright Victory, and Air Cadet. Burt Lancaster: The Flame and the Arrow, Mister 880, Jim Thorpe—All-American, The Crimson Pirate, Come Back Little Sheba, From Here to Eternity, Apache, Vera Cruz, The Rose Tattoo, Trapeze, The Rainmaker, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, Sweet Smell of Success, Run Silent Run Deep, The Devil’s Disciple, Ten Tall Men, South Sea Woman, and Three Sailors and a Girl. Elvis Presley: Love Me Tender, Loving You, Jailhouse Rock, and King Creole. William Holden: The Horse Soldiers, Sunset Boulevard, Sabrina, Stalag 17, Picnic, The Bridge on the River Kwai, Union Station, Father Is a Bachelor, Submarine Command, Born Yesterday, Force of Arms, Boots Malone, Executive Suite, Die Jungfrau auf dem Dach, The Moon Is Blue, The Bridges at Toko-Ri, Escape from Fort Bravo, Forever Female, Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing, The Country Girl, The Key, The Proud and Profane, and Toward the Unknown. Cary Grant: An Affair to Remember, North by Northwest, The Pride and the Passion, Houseboat, To Catch a Thief, Indiscreet, Crisis, People Will Talk, Room for One More, Dream Wife, Monkey Business, Kiss Them for Me, and Operation Petticoat. Toshiro Mifune: Samurai Trilogy, Seven Samurai, Rashomon, Throne of Blood, Scandal, The Hidden Fortress, Conduct Report on Professor Ishinaka, Engagement Ring, Elegy, Escape from Prison, Beyond Love and Hate, Pirates, Meeting of the Ghost Après-Guerre, Fog Horn, Conclusion of Kojiro Sasaki:Duel at Ganryu Island, The Life of a Horsetrader, Golden Girl, Who Knows a Woman's Heart, Vendetta for a Samurai, The Life of Oharu, Swift Current, Tokyo Sweetheart, Sword for Hire, The Man Who Came to Port, The Last Embrace, My Wonderful Yellow Car, Sunflower Girl, Eagle of the Pacific, The Black Fury, The Sound of Waves, All is Well part 1 & 2, The Merciless Boss: A Man Among Men, No Time for Tears, I Live in Fear, Rainy Night Duel, The Under World, Settlement of Love, Scoundrel, A Wife's Heart, Rebels on the High Seas, A Man in the Storm, Be Happy, These Two Lovers, A Dangerous Hero, Yagyu Secret Scrolls 1 & 2, Downtown, The Lower Depths, Holiday in Tokyo, Rickshaw Man, All About Marriage, Theater of Life, Yaji and Kita on the Road, The Three Treasures, Life of an Expert Swordsman, Boss of the Underworld, Desperado Outpost, and The Saga of the Vagabonds. Henry Fonda: Mister Roberts, The Wrong Man, Pictura: An Adventure in Art, 12 Angry Men, Stage Struck, The Man Who Understood Women, Warlock, The Tin Star, and War and Peace Dean Martin: Some Came Running, Rio Bravo, Career, Ten Thousand Bedrooms, The Young Lions, Little New Orleans Girl, Pardners, Hollywood or Bust, Artists and Models, Living It Up, You're Never Too Young, 3 Ring Circus, The Caddy, Road to Bali, Money from Home, Scared Stiff, The Stooge, That's My Boy, Sailor Beware, Jumping Jacks, My Friend Irma Goes West, and At War with the Army. Anthony Perkins: The Tin Star, Friendly Persuasion, Fear Strikes Out, The Matchmaker, On the Beach, Desire Under the Elms, Green Mansions, The Actress, The Lonely Man, and This Angry Age. Gregory Peck: Only the Valiant, Roman Holiday, Moby Dick, Captain Horatio Hornblower, Pork Chop Hill, Beloved Infidel, David and Bathsheba, The Gunfighter, Pictura: An Adventure in Art, The World in His Arms, The Snows of Kilimanjaro, Designing Woman, On the Beach, The Hidden World, The Bravados, The Big Country, Night People, Boum sur Paris, The Million Pound Note, The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit, and The Purple Plain. Clark Gable: Mogambo, Run Silent, Run Deep, Teacher's Pet, Betrayed, Never Let Me Go, The Tall Men, Key to the City, Across the Wide Missouri, To Please a Lady, Lone Star, But Not for Me, Soldier of Fortune, The King and Four Queens, and Band of Angels. Gary Cooper: It's a Big Country, Blowing Wild, High Noon, The Wreck of the Mary Deare, They Came to Cordura, Ten North Frederick, Love in the Afternoon, Man of the West, The Hanging Tree, Friendly Persuasion, Vera Cruz, The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell, Garden of Evil, Springfield Rifle, Return to Paradise, Starlift, You're in the Navy Now, Distant Drums, and It's a Big Country. Robert Mitchum: Not as a Stranger, His Kind of Woman, River of No Return, Fire Down Below, The Night of the Hunter, Macao, The Racket, Where Danger Lives, The Lusty Men, River of No Return, Angel Face, White Witch Doctor, My Forbidden Past, Second Chance, One Minute to Zero, She Couldn't Say No, Bandido, Track of the Cat, The Wonderful Country, The Hunters, Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison, The Enemy Below, Thunder Road, and The Angry Hills. Humphrey Bogart: The African Queen, The Caine Mutiny, Road to Bali, Deadline – U.S.A., Sabrina, The Barefoot Contessa, In a Lonely Place, The Left Hand of God, Sirocco, Chain Lightning, The Enforcer, Battle Circus, We're No Angels, The Love Lottery, Beat the Devil, The Desperate Hours, and The Harder They Fall. Sidney Poitier: Band of Angels, The Defiant Ones, Porgy and Bess, Edge of the City, Virgin Island, The Mark of the Hawk, Something of Value, No Way Out, Cry, the Beloved Country, Go Man Go, Red Ball Express, Good-bye, My Lady, and Blackboard Jungle. Takashi Shimura: Seven Samurai, Ikiru, Rashomon, Scandal, Elegy, The Idiot, Ikari no machi, Boryōku no Machi, Ore wa yojinbo, Ma no Ogen, Shunsetsu, Tenya wanya, Ginza Sanshiro, Yoru no hibotan, Ginza Sanshiro, Ai to nikushimi no kanata e, Kedamono no yado, Mesu Inu, Aoi shinju, Nusumareta koi, Hopu-san: sarariiman no maki, Muteki, The Life of a Horsetrader, Vendetta for a Samurai, Nangoku no hada, The Life of Oharu, Bijo to touzoku, Sengoku burai, Oka wa hanazakari, Minato e kita otoko, Hoyo, Fuun senryobune, Tobō chitai, Yoru no owari, Godzilla, Taiheiyō no washi, Jirochō sangokushi: kaitō-ichi no abarenbō, Asakusa no yoru, Kimi shinitamo koto nakare, Haha no hatsukoi, Shin kurama tengu daiichi wa: Tengu shutsugen, Shin kurama tengu daini wa: Azuma-dera no ketto, Bazoku geisha, Mekura neko, Mugibue, Godzilla Raids Again, No Time for Tears, Sanjusan go sha otonashi, Shin kurama tengu daisanbu, Muttsuri Umon torimonocho, Sugata naki mokugekisha, Asagiri, Geisha Konatsu: Hitori neru yo no Konatsu, I Live in Fear, Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island, Shin, Heike monogatari: Yoshinaka o meguru sannin no onna, Wakai ki, Kyatsu o nigasuna, The Underworld, Godzilla, King of the Monsters!, Arakure, Narazu-mono, Tōkyō hanzai chizu, Bōkyaku no hanabira, Throne of Blood, Sanjūrokunin no jōkyaku, Kono futari ni sachi are, Yama to kawa no aru machi, Bōkyaku no hanabira: Kanketsuhen, Kiken na eiyu, Yuunagi, Dotanba, Aoi sanmyaku Shinko no maki, The Mysterians, Ohtori-jo no hanayome, Edokko matsuri, haha, Forty-seven rōnin, Seven from Edo, Ten to Sen, Uguisu-jō no hanayome, Jinsei gekijō, The Hidden Fortress, Nichiren to Mōko Daishūrai, Ken wa shitte ita, Sora kakeru hanayome, Tetsuwan tōshu Inao monogatari, Kotan no kuchibue, Taiyō ni somuku mono, Sengoku gunto-den, Kagero ezu, The Three Treasures, Beran me-e geisha, Shobushi to sono musume, and Kēdamonō no torū michi. James Mason: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, A Star Is Born, The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel, North by Northwest, Journey to the Center of the Earth, Bigger Than Life, Julius Caesar, A Touch of Larceny, The Decks Ran Red, Island in the Sun, Cry Terror!, Charade, Forever, Darling, The Desert Rats, Prince Valiant, The Man Between, The Tell-Tale Heart, Botany Bay, The Story of Three Loves, Face to Face, The Prisoner of Zenda, 5 Fingers, Lady Possessed, One Way Street, and Pandora and the Flying Dutchman. Sterling Hayden: The Last Command, The Asphalt Jungle, The Killing, Johnny Guitar, Hellgate, The Star, Journey into Light, The Golden Hawk, Denver and Rio Grande, Flaming Feather, So Big, Flat Top, Crime Wave, Fighter Attack, Kansas Pacific, Take Me to Town, Suddenly, Naked Alibi, The Come On, Top Gun, Battle Taxi, Shotgun, Timberjack, The Eternal Sea, Arrow in the Dust, Ten Days to Tulara, 5 Steps to Danger, Crime of Passion, Valerie, Gun Battle at Monterey, Zero Hour!, Terror in a Texas Town, and The Iron Sheriff. Harry Belafonte: Calypso, Carmen Jones, Island in the Sun, Odds Against Tomorrow, The World, the Flesh and the Devil, and Bright Road. Laurence Olivier: Richard III, Carrie, Father's Little Dividend, The Magic Box, The Beggar's Opera, The Prince and the Showgirl, and The Devil's Disciple. Jose Ferrer: Cyrano de Bergerac, Crisis, Anything Can Happen, Producers' Showcase: "Cyrano de Bergerac", Moulin Rouge, Miss Sadie Thompson, The Caine Mutiny, Deep in My Heart, I Accuse!, The High Cost of Loving, The Great Man, The Shrike, and The Cockleshell Heroes. James Cagney: Mister Roberts, Run for Cover, Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye, The West Point Story, Come Fill the Cup, A Lion Is in the Streets, What Price Glory, Love Me or Leave Me, The Seven Little Foys, Tribute to a Bad Man, Man of a Thousand Faces, These Wilder Years, Never Steal Anything Small, and Shake Hands with the Devil. Farley Granger: Strangers on a Train, Our Very Own, Side Street, Behave Yourself!, Edge of Doom, O. Henry's Full House, I Want You, The Story of Three Loves, Hans Christian Andersen, Senso, Small Town Girl, The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing, and The Naked Street. Bing Crosby: High Society, Alias Jesse James, Say One for Me, Anything Goes, The Joker Is Wild, Man on Fire, White Christmas, The Country Girl, Road to Bali, Scared Stiff, The Greatest Show on Earth, Little Boy Lost, Just for You, Son of Paleface, Angels in the Outfield, Riding High, Here Comes the Groom, and Mr. Music. Chishū Ryū: Tokyo Story, The Munekata Sisters, Home Sweet Home, Early Summer, Carmen Comes Home, The Flavor of Green Tea over Rice, Arashi, Twenty-Four Eyes, Early Spring, Tokyo Twilight, Rickshaw Man, Floating Weeds, and Good Morning. Ray Milland: Three Brave Men, A Man Alone, The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing, A Woman of Distinction, A Life of Her Own, Copper Canyon, Dial M for Murder, Lisbon, The Safecracker, The River's Edge, High Flight, Something to Live For, Jamaica Run, The Thief, Close to My Heart, Rhubarb, Bugles in the Afternoon, and Night into Morning. Alan Ladd: The Badlanders, The Big Land, Branded, Captain Carey, U.S.A, Shane, Botany Bay, Boy on a Dolphin, A Cry in the Night, The Man in the Net, Island of Lost Women, The Deep Six, The Proud Rebel, Saskatchewan, Drum Beat, The McConnell Story, Desert Legion, The Red Beret, The Black Knight, Santiago, Hell on Frisco Bay, Red Mountain, Hell Below Zero, A Sporting Oasis, The Iron Mistress, Thunder in the East, and Appointment with Danger. Ben Johnson: Wagon Master, Shane, Rio Grande, Fort Bowie, War Drums, Slim Carter, Wild Stallion, Oklahoma!, and Rebel in Town. Walter Brennan: Rio Bravo, A Ticket to Tomahawk, Singing Guns, Bad Day at Black Rock, The Far Country, Good-bye, My Lady, The Way to the Gold, Tammy and the Bachelor, God Is My Partner, Glory, At Gunpoint, Sea of Lost Ships, Come Next Spring, The Proud Ones, Surrender, Curtain Call at Cactus Creek, The Showdown, Return of the Texan, Best of the Badmen, The Wild Blue Yonder, Lure of the Wilderness, Along the Great Divide, Four Guns to the Border, and Drums Across the River. Ralph Meeker: Kiss Me Deadly, Paths of Glory, Jeopardy, A Woman's Devotion, Glory Alley, Somebody Loves Me, Teresa, 4 Num Jeep, The Naked Spur, Big House, U.S.A., Run of the Arrow, The Fuzzy Pink Nightgown, Code Two, and Desert Sands. Edmond O’Brian: The Turning Point, The Hitch-Hiker, 1984, The Girl Can't Help It, Julius Caesar, The Barefoot Contessa, The Greatest Show on Earth, Denver and Rio Grande, Pete Kelly's Blues, The Rack, The Restless and the Damned, The World Was His Jury, Sing, Boy, Sing, A Cry in the Night, The Big Land, Stopover Tokyo, Up Periscope, D-Day the Sixth of June, The Shanghai Story, Shield for Murder, China Venture, The Bigamist, Cow Country, Man in the Dark, Backfire, 711 Ocean Drive, The Admiral Was a Lady, The Redhead and the Cowboy, Between Midnight and Dawn, Silver City, Warpath, and Two of a Kind. Lee J. Cobb: The Left Hand of God, On the Waterfront, 12 Angry Men, The Brothers Karamazov, The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit, Party Girl, The Trap, Green Mansions, But not for me, Man of the West, The Garment Jungle, Miami Expose, The Three Faces of Eve, The Racers, Day of Triumph, The Road to Denver, The Fighter, The Family Secret, Yankee Pasha, Gorilla at Large, The Man Who Cheated Himself, and The Tall Texan. Karl Malden: Baby Doll, A Streetcar Named Desire, On the Waterfront, The Hanging Tree, I Confess, The Gunfighter, Halls of Montezuma, Where the Sidewalk Ends, Diplomatic Courier, Time Limit, The Sellout, Bombers B-52, Ruby Gentry, Phantom of the Rue Morgue, Ruby Gentry, Take the High Ground!, and Operation Secret. Rod Steiger: The Harder They Fall, Cry Terror!, Teresa, On the Waterfront, Oklahoma!, The Big Knife, Jubal, The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell, Al Capone, Back from Eternity, Run of the Arrow, The Unholy Wife, and Across the Bridge. Aldo Ray: The Marrying Kind, Pat and Mike, Let's Do It Again, Battle Cry, God's Little Acre, Nightfall, The Naked and the Dead, Men in War, The Siege of Pinchgut, Three Stripes in the Sun, The Barefoot Mailman, My True Story, and Never Trust a Gambler. Richard Conte: I'll Cry Tomorrow, The Fighter, The Sleeping City, Hollywood Story, The Raging Tide, The Raiders, The Blue Gardenia, Desert Legion, Slaves of Babylon, Highway Dragnet, New York Confidential, The Big Combo, Mask of Dust, Full of Life, The Big Tip Off, Little Red Monkey, Bengazi, Target Zero, The Brothers Rico, This Angry Age, and They Came to Cordura. Tab Hunter: They Came to Cordura, That Kind of Woman, Gunman's Walk, Damn Yankees, Lafayette Escadrille, The Lawless, Gun Belt, The Island of Desire, Battle Cry, Track of the Cat, While We're Young, The Steel Lady, Return to Treasure Island, The Sea Chase, Fear Strikes Out, The People Against McQuade, The Burning Hills, The Girl He Left Behind, Mask for the Devil, Forbidden Area, Hans Brinker and the and Silver Skates. Robert Ryan: Born to Be Bad, The Secret Fury, Flying Leathernecks, Hard, Fast and Beautiful, Clash by Night, On Dangerous Ground, The Racket, Horizons West, Beware, My Lovely, Bad Day at Black Rock, The Naked Spur, Best of the Badmen, Inferno, City Beneath the Sea, About Mrs. Leslie, Alaska Seas, Back from Eternity, The Tall Men, House of Bamboo, The Proud Ones, Her Twelve Men, Escape to Burma, Men in War, Odds Against Tomorrow, Lonelyhearts, Day of the Outlaw, and God's Little Acre. Charles Laughton: Witness for the Prosecution, The Blue Veil, O. Henry's Full House, The Strange Door, Salome, Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd, Young Bess, and Hobson's Choice. Lee Marvin: Teresa, You're in the Navy Now, The Big Heat, Gorilla at Large, The Caine Mutiny, The Glory Brigade, The Stranger Wore a Gun, Bad Day at Black Rock, Gun Fury, Attack, Seven Men from Now, Raintree County, The Rack, The Missouri Traveler, Violent Saturday, I Died a Thousand Times, Not as a Stranger, A Life in the Balance, Pillars of the Sky, Shack Out on 101, The Wild One, The Raid, Down Among the Sheltering Palms, The Duel at Silver Creek, Hangman's Knot, Eight Iron Men, Seminole, Diplomatic Courier, and We're Not Married!. Marcello Mastroianni: Lulu, It's Never Too Late, Black Feathers, Sunday Heroes, The Mute of Portici, The Most Wonderful Moment, Fathers and Sons, Sand, Love and Salt, White Nights, Girls for the Summer, The Bigamist, Piece of the Sky, Three Girls from Rome, The Eternal Chain, Il viale della speranza, Schiava del peccato, Tom Toms of Mayumba, The Island Princess, The Miller's Beautiful Wife, Too Bad She's Bad, House of Ricordi, Lucky to Be a Woman, The Law, Ferdinando I, re di Napoli, My Wife's Enemy, Everyone's in Love, Love and Troubles, Big Deal on Madonna Street, Doctor and the Healer, Chronicle of Poor Lovers, A Slice of Life, Days of Love, Sunday in August, A Tale of Five Cities, The Accusation, Tragic Return, Eager to Live, Barefoot Savage, Paris Is Always Paris, La valigia dei sogni, Against the Law, A Dog's Life, and Hearts at Sea. Glenn Ford: The Big Heat, Blackboard Jungle, 3:10 to Yuma, Appointment in Honduras, The Violent Men, The Man from the Alamo, Plunder of the Sun, The Americano, Cowboy, Don't Go Near the Water, Trial, Jubal, The Fastest Gun Alive, Ransom!, It Started with a Kiss, The Sheepman, The Teahouse of the August Moon, Imitation General, Torpedo Run, The Gazebo, Human Desire, Interrupted Melody, The White Tower, Convicted, The Redhead and the Cowboy, The Secret of Convict Lake, The Flying Missile, Follow the Sun, The Green Glove, Young Man with Ideas, Time Bomb, and Affair in Trinidad. Walter Matthau: The Kentuckian, Bigger Than Life, The Indian Fighter, King Creole, A Face in the Crowd, Slaughter on Tenth Avenue, Onionhead, Voice in the Mirror, and Ride a Crooked Trail. Jeff Chandler: Broken Arrow, Female on the Beach, Deported, Away All Boats, Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion, The Desert Hawk, Double Crossbones, Two Flags West, Sign of the Pagan, Taza, Son of Cochise, Drango, The Tattered Dress, Pillars of the Sky, The Lady Takes a Flyer, Man in the Shadow, Jeanne Eagels, Ten Seconds to Hell, Stranger in My Arms, The Jayhawkers!, Thunder in the Sun, Raw Wind in Eden, Foxfire, The Toy Tiger, The Spoilers, East of Sumatra, Yankee Pasha, Girls in the Night, War Arrow, The Great Sioux Uprising, Iron Man, The Battle at Apache Pass, Smuggler's Island, Meet Danny Wilson, Flame of Araby, Bird of Paradise, Son of Ali Baba, Because of You, Yankee Buccaneer, and Red Ball Express. Vincent Price: While the City Sleeps, Serenade, The Ten Commandments, Son of Sinbad, The Fly, The Vagabond King, The Baron of Arizona, Adventures of Captain Fabian, Pictura: An Adventure in Art, Champagne for Caesar, His Kind of Woman, Curtain Call at Cactus Creek, Born in Freedom: The Story of Colonel Drake, Dangerous Mission, House of Wax, The Tingler, House on Haunted Hill, The Big Circus, The Story of Mankind, Return of the Fly, The Bat, Casanova's Big Night, The Mad Magician, and The Las Vegas Story. Joel Mccrea: Wichita, Stranger on Horseback, Stars in My Crown, The Outriders, Frenchie, Saddle Tramp, The San Francisco Story, Hollywood Story, Cattle Drive, Rough Shoot, The Oklahoman, Black Horse Canyon, The First Texan, The Lone Hand, The Tall Stranger, The Gunfight at Dodge City, Fort Massacre, Trooper Hook, Gunsight Ridge, and Cattle Empire. Van Heflin: 3:10 to Yuma, Shane, Gunman's Walk, The Prowler, Tomahawk, Week-End with Father, South of Algiers, Tanganyika, Black Widow, Woman's World, Wings of the Hawk, The Raid, They Came to Cordura, Tempest, Patterns, Count Three and Pray, My Son John, and Battle Cry. Fred Macmurray: Woman's World, Borderline, Pushover, The Rains of Ranchipur, At Gunpoint, There's Always Tomorrow, Quantez, Gun for a Coward, The Oregon Trail, The Shaggy Dog, Good Day for a Hanging, Face of a Fugitive, Day of the Badman, Fair Wind to Java, The Caine Mutiny, Callaway Went Thataway, A Millionaire for Christy, Never a Dull Moment, The Far Horizons, and The Moonlighter. Zbigniew Cybulski: A Generation, Ashes and Diamonds, Wraki, Kariera, Tajemnica dzikiego szybu, Trzy starty, Krzyż Walecznych, Night Train, and The Eighth Day of the Week. Sam Jaffe: The Asphalt Jungle, Ben-Hur, The Day the Earth Stood Still, I Can Get It for You Wholesale, The Barbarian and the Geisha, Main Street to Broadway, and Les Espions. Richard Widmark: Panic in the Streets, Hell and High Water, Warlock, The Tunnel of Love, Pickup on South Street, Don't Bother to Knock, Halls of Montezuma, Time Limit, Night and the City, Take the High Ground!, No Way Out, O. Henry's Full House, Destination Gobi, The Frogmen, Red Skies of Montana, My Pal Gus, Backlash, A Prize of Gold, The Trap, The Law and Jake Wade, The Last Wagon, Saint Joan, Garden of Evil, The Cobweb, Run for the Sun, and Broken Lance. Yul Brynner: The King and I, The Ten Commandments, Anastasia, The Brothers Karamazov, The Buccaneer, Solomon and Sheba, The Sound and the Fury, and The Journey. Jack Warden: The Asphalt Jungle, From Here to Eternity, 12 Angry Men, That Kind of Woman, Darby's Rangers, The Sound and the Fury, The Bachelor Party, The Man with My Face, Red Ball Express, Run Silent, Run Deep, Edge of the City, You're in the Navy Now, and The Frogmen. Fred Astaire: The Band Wagon, Funny Face, Silk Stockings, On the Beach, Daddy Long Legs, The Belle of New York, and Royal Wedding. Anthony Quinn: La Strada, Viva Zapata!, Lust for Life, Wild Is the Wind, The Brave Bulls, Mask of the Avenger, The World in His Arms, Funniest Show on Earth, Fatal Desire, East of Sumatra, The Magnificent Matador, Attila, Seven Cities of Gold, The Long Wait, City Beneath the Sea, Seminole, Ride, Vaquero!, Warlock, Last Train from Gun Hill, The Black Orchid, Hot Spell, Van Gogh: Darkness Into Light, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Ride Back, Man from Del Rio, The Naked Street, The River's Edge, Angels of Darkness, Ulysses, Ulysses, The Brigand, and The Wild Party. Donald O'Connor: Francis, Curtain Call at Cactus Creek, Double Crossbones, The Milkman, Francis Covers the Big Town, There's No Business Like Show Business, Anything Goes, The Buster Keaton Story, Walking My Baby Back Home, Francis Joins the WACS, Singin' in the Rain, Francis Goes to the Races, I Love Melvin, Francis Goes to West Point, Call Me Madam, and Francis in the Navy. John Gavin: Imitation of Life, A Time to Love and a Time to Die, Quantez, Behind the High Wall, Four Girls in Town, and Raw Edge. Richard Basehart: Fourteen Hours, Time Limit, Moby Dick, Tension, Outside the Wall, The House on Telegraph Hill, Side Street, Titanic, Avanzi di galera, Le avventure di Cartouche, The Restless and the Damned, The Brothers Karamazov, Jons und Erdme, The Intimate Stranger, Love and Troubles, Golden Vein, The Stranger's Hand, La Strada, Canyon Crossroads, Miracles of Thursday, Il bidone, Decision Before Dawn, Angels of Darkness,Fixed Bayonets!, and The Extra Day. Arthur Kennedy: Bright Victory, Peyton Place, The Lusty Men, Trial, Impulse, The Man from Laramie, The Ten Commandments, Twilight for the Gods, The Rawhide Years, Some Came Running, Home Is the Hero, The Desperate Hours, A Summer Place, The Glass Menagerie, Bend of the River, The Girl in White, Red Mountain, Crashout, and Rancho Notorious. Andy Griffith: A Face in the Crowd, No Time for Sergeants, and Onionhead. George Sanders: All About Eve, King Richard and the Crusaders, Ivanhoe, I Can Get It for You Wholesale, Black Jack, Assignment – Paris!, Call Me Madam, Journey to Italy, The King's Thief, That Certain Feeling, While the City Sleeps, Never Say Goodbye, Jupiter's Darling, The Scarlet Coat, Witness to Murder, The Light Touch, Moonfleet, From the Earth to the Moon, Rock-A-Bye Baby, The Seventh Sin, The Whole Truth, That Kind of Woman, and Solomon and Sheba. Jack Hawkins: Mandy, Angels One Five, Twice Upon a Time, Fortune Is a Woman, The Prisoner, The Intruder, The Seekers, Front Page Story, The Bridge on the River Kwai, The Man in the Sky, Ben-Hur, Gideon's Day, The Two-Headed Spy, Touch and Go, The Long Arm, Land of the Pharaohs, The Cruel Sea, The Planter's Wife, Malta Story, The Elusive Pimpernel, The Black Rose, State Secret, No Highway in the Sky, The Adventurers, and Home at Seven. Spencer Tracy: For Defense for Freedom for Humanity, The Actress, Bad Day at Black Rock, Broken Lance, The Old Man and the Sea, Desk Set, The Mountain, The Last Hurrah, The People Against O'Hara, Plymouth Adventure, Pat and Mike, Father's Little Dividend, and Father of the Bride. Sonny Tufts: Gift Horse, Cat-Women of the Moon, Run for the Hills, The Seven Year Itch, Serpent Island, No Escape, The Parson and the Outlaw, and Come Next Spring. David Niven: The Moon Is Blue, Separate Tables, Happy Anniversary, Ask Any Girl, My Man Godfrey, Bonjour Tristesse, Around the World in 80 Days, The Little Hut, Oh, Men! Oh, Women!, The Birds and the Bees, The King's Thief, The Silken Affair, Happy Ever After, Carrington V.C., The Love Lottery, The Toast of New Orleans, The Lady Says No, Appointment with Venus, Soldiers Three, Happy Go Lovely, and The Elusive Pimpernel. Off of Personal Preference Glenn Ford, Gene Kelly, and William Holden are my top three.
Going through old issues of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter and posting highlights in my own words, continuing in the footsteps of daprice82. For anyone interested, I highly recommend signing up for the actual site at f4wonline and checking out the full archives. • PREVIOUS • 1987 FUTURE YEARS ARCHIVE: The Complete Observer Rewind Archive and 2002 by daprice82
Bruiser Brody was stabbed by José González, known better by his ring name of Invader #1 (fuck Invader #1), and died early Sunday morning in a hospital in San Juan, Puerto Rico. González was arrested and charged with first degree murder before being released on bond. As to the motivation, this appears to be the first time in the history of the business that business reasons have been the apparent motivation for the murder of a professional wrestler. Brody had just turned 42 in June and was one of the biggest wrestling stars in the world. The San Juan police have released no official information, and various sources have conflicting details. Yeah, this is obviously going to be an evolving situation as more information comes further and then we get to the trial, so the story will shift somewhat as things become clearer.
Near as Dave can put together at this stage, this was the known context to any issues Brody and González/the promotion may have had: Apparently, during one of Brody’s most recent tours of Puerto Rico there was an incident where Brody and promoter Carlos Colón nearly got physical with one another over a match in which Brody teamed with Rocky Johnson against the World Wrestling Council’s tag champions Kendo Nagasaki and Mr. Pogo back in January. Brody ran roughshod over the champs and didn’t let either of them get anything in due to the presence of Japanese photographers at ringside. As a leading star for Giant Baba, Brody didn’t want any photos of either Pogo or Nagasaki getting anything in on him because they worked for New Japan and weren’t even main event level talent in New Japan, so it would weaken his drawing power for Baba to have images of him getting beaten up by them printed in Japan. Anyway, fast forward to the day of the stabbing, and they scheduled Brody to wrestle Danny Spivey (who’s being pushed as a top heel in Puerto Rico) in a tournament semifinal and González, who books for the promotion, layed out what the promotion wanted in the match and an argument broke out. Up to this point, all accounts that Dave has heard agree. After this point, however, the stories diverge. The account Dave considers most reliable at this stage (a clearer picture emerges starting next week) says that González and Brody kept on arguing over the finish and Brody packed his bag and was about to walk out, when González asked for him to come back and then stabbed him twice in the liver. It took nearly an hour for an ambulance to arrive at the stadium to bring Brody to the hospital 9 minutes away, and the rest of the show went on as scheduled and González even worked his scheduled match (can we talk about how eerie and uncomfortable a similarity it is that both WWF and WWC decided to let the show go on when Owen Hart died in the ring and Bruiser Brody lay dying on the locker room floor until an ambulance could get him, and that Brody’s murder happened within a week of Owen making his debut as the Blue Blazer?). Brody died on the operating table the next morning from bile poisoning, and is survived by his wife Barbara, whom he met during a wrestling tour of Australia, and his seven-year-old son Geoffrey.
At this point, Dave provides a brief obituary for Brody, real name Frank Donald Goodish. He covers Brody’s pre-wrestling career playing football and basketball in high school, playing football at the University of Iowa (shoutout to me and Big E as UIowa alums) and West Texas State University (alma mater to Ted DiBiase, Stan Hansen, Dusty Rhodes, Tully Blanchard, Dory Funk Jr., Terry Funk, Manny Fernandez, Tito Santana, Dick Murdoch, Barry Windham, and Barry Duncum Sr.) and eventually for the NFL for the Washington football team. He then became a sportswriter and bouncer in Texas before beginning his pro wrestling career in 1973, where he was an instant attraction. Until 1976 and his stint in the WWWF, he wrestled under his real name. Vince Sr. gave him the name “Bruiser” Frank Brody and put him in main events against Bruno Sammartino, which launched him to superstar status and led to his debut for All Japan in 1979, where he was a smash hit. Some have said Brody was the last truly independent attraction in wrestling, the last remnant of a version of the industry that no longer exists, able to bring down six figures for himself without giving in and submitting to a single promoter or a demanding schedule. He had a reputation for almost never doing jobs, yet remained well respected because of his incredible ability to draw and bring a big payday for the rest of the card. As much of a hit as Brody was in the ring, he became almost legendary for his out-of-the-ring activities. His move from All Japan to New Japan in March 1985 was front page news in Japan, and in December of that year he was again the biggest story when he no-showed the big tag team tournament championship match over a dispute with Inoki over an unpaid “finder’s fee” (more detail on that next week). Inoki had promised the fee for Brody hooking him up with Fritz Von Erich for talent exchanges, and this dispute almost killed his career in Japan at the peak of his popularity. Brody’s status in Japan following that was off-and-on until last year, when he returned to All Japan as a replacement for Ric Flair and rapidly ascended once again to his status of being the most popular foreign wrestler in Japan. But that’s not going to be all for a Brody obituary. 60% of next week’s issue (and in reality 90% of the actual content) is a comprehensive overview of Bruiser Brody’s life, career, his final days, his stature within the pro wrestling industry, and the potential ramifications of his death on the pro wrestling scene. So we’ll talk about the full-length obituary next week.
A few new details have come out about the car accident that resulted in the deaths of Adrian Adonis, David McKigney, and Pat Kelly. Pat Kelly was driving the minivan and swerved off the road to avoid hitting a moose. The swerve caused them to hit a rock that threw Mike Kelly and Adonis out through the windshield. McKigney and Pat Kelly drowned in the vehicle, while Mike Kelly’s legs were badly crushed and Adonis died in the hospital. Investigators have found that Pat Kelly had a blood alcohol level of 0.06, under the Canadian legal limit of 0.08 and well under the U.S. legal limit (in 1988) of 0.10. Mike Kelly has undergone surgery to repair his legs, but it’s pretty much a given that his wrestling career is over.
UWF’s incredible popularity in Japan may very well change the nature of the business in Japan, and that has New Japan and All Japan concerned. Last week, Dave reported that the UWF sold out their August show in under 6 hours to take the largest one day gate sale in wrestling history, and a top seven overall live gate for any pro wrestling event. This popularity has gotten the attention of the Japanese media, and they’re orienting their coverage of wrestling to make UWF a major focus. Gong magazine found themselves struggling with features of All Japan and foreign talent and eventually bowed to the market and started featuring UWF more prominently, picking up sales as a result, while the daily papers that cover wrestling are still primarily featuring New Japan and All Japan, though that’s mostly because of their more frequent schedules allowing for more material to be published at a daily schedule. Baba and Inoki have made significant changes in response to this popularity. Inoki made his comeback a few weeks early on the July 16 show during a prime-time tv special, and they’ve rebuilt August 8 in Ariake Coliseum as a tournament show with the winner facing Fujinami for the IWGP title in the main event. As an additional element of heat for the show, Inoki has declared that if he doesn’t win the title he’ll retire. As for All Japan, Baba’s putting on a major show on August 29 in Budokan Hall with a series of dream matches voted on by the fans. When this was announced, it was expected by everyone that Bruiser Brody vs. Stan Hansen would be voted to be the main event. Sadly, well, you read two paragraphs up and know why it can’t happen now. Dave doesn’t know it just yet, but this event will be rebuilt from the ground up as a Bruiser Brody memorial show.
At this time, Dave still doesn’t have final numbers from the Great American Bash ppv. He’s heard two very different figures: a 1.9 buyrate and a 4 buyrate. 1.9 would be a disaster, while 4 would be in line with expectations and came to Dave in “a roundabout way from a TBS source,” while 1.9 came from a source Dave has found very trustworthy and accurate in the past and would apparently be the result of the show doing buyrates of 4 to 5 in areas where Crockett is strong, while everywhere else they did much worse with sub-1 buyrates on the west coast. Dave also notes that there are two different ways to calculate buyrate (percentage of homes out of the total subscriber base of the cable company or percentage of homes which have addressable converters, the latter calculation method being the one Dave reports from), so it’s technically possible both numbers could be correct and it’s a matter of correctly assigning number to method. The difference, financially speaking, is that Crockett could either have an unprofitable total of $3 million, or a very profitable gross of $6 million.
No news on the TurneCrockett negotiations. Internally to the Crockett camp, it seems all disagreements have been smoothed out, so they’ll be presenting a united front when it comes time to resume negotiations.
Bam Bam Bigelow has quit WWF. Apparently it’s because WWF has made the travel schedule harder again (they’re making the wrestlers drive for any trips under 600 miles) and cutting back on payoffs. He also wasn’t being used well and he was unhappy with his direction and that his misuse kept him from getting over as much as he and WWF had expected. Dave expects he’ll strike out to Japan and may do a few dates in Continental, since he and Paul E. Dangerously have an association - even before he became a wrestler, Norm Keitzer’s Wrestling News Magazine featured the first national press on Bigelow written by one Paul Heyman.
Owen Hart has re-injured his knee and will be out of action for a few weeks. Dave thinks if he returns, he’ll come back without the hood.
Rick Rude has debuted new tights with Cheryl Roberts’ face on them at the recent tv tapings. The audacity of Rude’s character here is just amazing, and I love it. In other news from those tapings, Hogan and Savage came out unscheduled and destroyed the Brother Love set and Demolition vs. the Hart Foundation was announced for Summerslam. Terry Taylor made his debut teaming with Sam Houston, with Taylor turning heel on Houston after the match. Despite the strong start, Taylor has been jobbed out to Iron Sheik’s camel clutch every night since. He’s not the Red Rooster yet, though. Right now he’s “Terrible” Terry Taylor, and his finisher is the scorpion deathlock.
The July 9 Chicago Bash show saw the Road Warriors and Dusty Rhodes beat Flair, Anderson, and Blanchard to claim the vacant NWA six-man tag titles in a cage match where surprisingly nobody bled.
Dave has a question about the WarGames matches from this and last year. “Have you ever wondered how come in 19 War Games matches this year and three or so last year,” he ponders, “that in each and every match, the heels win the coinflip to gain the man-advantage situation? If you did, you are incapable of being a first-rate wrestling fan. But they ought to investigate that coin.** Well, Dave, 32 years from now you’ll get the chance to have some thoughts on the faces having the nominal advantage to start.
Crockett will be beating WWF to having the first wrestling show at the new Charlotte Coliseum, debuting in the building on August 27.
To show that the Alliance to End Hulkamania was just Hogan ripping off Dusty, recent NWA tv has been teasing a “council” made up of all the heel managers working together. And they have one goal: to rid the NWA of Dusty Rhodes. If it did end up happening (I'm honestly not sure it did and a quick search didn't help me figure that out), too bad the wrestlecrap from this wasn’t as memorable as the Doomsday Cage match or “Ah! It’s not hot!”
Mike Renfro, a wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys, owns a horse he named Dr. Death. Yes, the horse is named for Renfro’s favorite wrestler, Steve Williams, and it’s winning more often than he is, too.
[NWA] The Greensboro Bash on July 16 went big with a pair of excellent matches and a $100,000 gate. Dave gives ratings from two of his sources. The reporters gave the Fantastics vs. the Midnights 4/3.5 stars and the wargames match 3/4 stars.Also, the July 14 Chattanooga Bash’s wargames match got a 5 star in the report and Dave reprints that and endorses it.
Those in charge in the NWA seem to have recognized how over Sting was on the ppv, and are preparing to push him after the Bash tour concludes. The plan is to put him in a feud with Windham as a co-main to the FlaiLuger rematches.
AWA had a very successful show on July 9 in Columbus, Nebraska. Curt Hennig was scheduled to main event against Washoo McDaniel but no-showed, so they changed the main event to Ricky Rice and John Paul vs. Diamond and Tanaka, while putting McDaniel in a team with Baron Von Raschke vs. Tijo Khan and Soldat Ustinov. Other no-shows included Jerry Sags and Brad Rheingans, the latter of whom Dave didn’t even know was back in AWA.
In a first, AWA had a wrestler turn out to be available when not advertised, when Jimmy Snuka was available for the July 16 tapings in Las Vegas. Two weeks ago on tv they announced that Snuka would not be there as originally advertised due to commitments in Japan. Snuka does have Japan commitments, but they’re not until late August. AWA being AWA, they didn’t use him. As for the taping, the program advertised Snuka, Roddy Piper, and Sgt. Slaughter as coming to AWA, and Dave really doubts that Piper’s actually going to work there. Anyway, there were a couple significant happenings, none of which were supposed to happen. Medusa beat Brandi Mae and was supposed to roll her up from behind off a distraction by Curt Hennig, but it didn’t really work right. Rocky Mountain Thunder came out to Brandi’s aid, and Hennig clotheslined him off script, which got him a chewing out from Verne. The other main events for each show of the taping all ended in over the top rope disqualifications. Oh, also Rice and Paul are going by the Top Guns rather than the New Midnight Rockers. AWA might want to check what happened in the leadup to Lethal Leap Year last year before they stick with that. Next month’s card is advertising Hector, Chavo, and Mando Guerrero vs. Diamond, Tanaka, and Diamond Dallas Page.
[OWF] Billy Jack Haynes and Kevin Kelly are feuding over both the OWF title and who has the best full nelson. Yeah, that’s a storyline that’ll keep them afloat. They’ve recently lost Blackstud Williams, Rip Oliver, Ricky Santana (didn’t even last a week), Johnny Ace (for a bit, he’ll be back in August), and Steve Gatorwolf (fuck Steve Gatorwolf). Rip Oliver was the booker, so now they have Dale Gagner (our future Gagne family impersonator) and Mike Miller booking for them. And if you wanted a good sense of how much effort Haynes is putting into his promotion, he’s only working the tv tapings in Oregon City and doesn’t work the road shows. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’d think a performer running a small promotion should be working every show, if for nothing else than to show the roster that you’re in it with them.
Black Bart was a last minute replacement for Bruiser Brody during a weeklong tour of Austria where he did the honors for Otto Wanz in a match for Wanz’s version of the world title on July 9. Brody had been originally scheduled to work with Wanz and do the job, but Brody worked out that Japanese press have been heavily covering Austrian wrestling because Masaharu Funaki is working there right now, and so he changed his mind and canceled his appearance because he didn’t want all the Japanese wrestling magazines featuring photos of him losing. In case you get any ideas and are going to ask in the comments, no, taking this booking wouldn’t have saved Brody’s life, because the tour didn’t overlap with his Puerto Rican dates. I checked.
[All Japan] Ashuara Hara suffered a big cut on July 5 and returned to action on July 9, but reinjured and is out for the rest of the tour. They’ve changed the July 29 tag title match to have Tatsu and Tsuruta defend against Stan Hansen and Terry Gordy instead of Tenryu and Hara as a result.
[New Japan] Inoki returned in a 6-man tag match on July 16, and it looks like he came back way too early. He teamed with Yoshiaki Fujiwara and Shiro Koshinaka to beat Cuban Assassin, Manny Fernandez, and Buzz Sawyer. Not only did Inoki not look good, but it’s reported that privately even he admitted that he was returning before he was ready because he needed to counter Maeda’s publicity.
[UWF] Maeda’s opponent for the August 13 show will be Gerald Gordeau (Dave writes Goldor), the World Karate Association superheavyweight champion in savate. His record is 55-5, with 46 knockouts.
[All Japan Women] The July 5 show saw the Crush Girls over the Fire Jets (Yumiko Hotta and Mitsuko Nishiwaki) and Bull Nakano and Dynamite Jack (the future Aja Kong) over the Jumping Bomb Angels. How far Dave’s opinion on the Angels has fallen, because he’s given them the nickname the Stationary Bomb Angels.
Another new women’s promotion is forming in Japan, to be called the NWA (Nagoya Wrestling Association). They’re aiming to do UWF style with women’s wrestling and are set to start on July 23. Given that the only other references to this promotion I can find are basically other recaps of this issue, I’m going to take a guess that this goes nowhere.
USA Pro Wresting has renamed The Mercenary, who is managed by the former Masked Shogun Ron Wright, the Storm Trooper. I’ll give you two guesses as to whether he carries a c. 1935-1938 Wehrmacht command flag (because if you're going to Nazi, you might as well do it as ostentatiously as possible) to the ring. First guess doesn’t count.
”A former WWF TV personality is suing the federation for $5 million over unauthorized use of his work without his consent in a videotape.”
Apparently NWA’s original plans before giving up on the Midnight Rider were wildly different from what we got. Tully Blanchard would have won the US title and defended it against the Midnight Rider in a mask vs. title match at the Bash ppv. Tully and Arn Anderson weren’t supposed to have been the tag champions, but that changed when they turned Windham heel without having an actual plan. After turning Windham, they put the belts on Arn and Tully, which led to them deciding that Windham would win the U.S. title tournament.
NWA Clash of the Champions III has been announced for September 7.
Ray Miller, a pro wrestler in Dom DeNucci’s stable, died of a heart attack following a match this past week. Miller was only 24 years old and was doing some kind of Arabian gimmick, as Dave understands it.
The first letter this week is from our graduate student in Radio and TV at Auburn University who wrote in about Wrestlemania and Clash I back in April. He praises Jim Ross extensively, offers thoughts on the matches, etc. He also offers several thoughts on production quality and where NWA has improved and where they still need to put work in. They could have done with some cuts to bits in the dressing room for interviews and showing Flair and Luger preparing for the main event, he suggests. Post-match interviews are nice too. Lots of options to avoid the dead tv time of putting up the tower of doom, where some of these things could have fit in nicely. An aerial camera in a cherrypicker or something similar could have made the tower of doom more palatable to watch. He concludes by saying he hopes Turner does buy the NWA because that’ll get some people with a great deal of experience in television production involved, and that should significantly improve the NWA’s production quality to suit the level of show they’re attempting to put on now.
The finish to the FlaiLuger match at the bash is almost universally panned in several letters this week. One points out the irony of the Maryland commission, which prohibits blading, allowing the blade for this match “just so they could exercise their pretend authority and get on television.” He’s got a great point, Sting.
The other big theme in the letters is sadness at the loss of Adrian Adonis. One writer hopes that WWF does some kind of tribute to Adonis and his career, given the fact that he and Jesse Ventura were once partners (spoiler alert: WWF will not even acknowledge Adonis’s death at all). Surprising to that same writer is that his death has gone unnoticed in the media.
Another writer observes that Dave ran down a recent AWA tv taping despite many of the wrestlers being guys Dave’s raved about in the past and sees this as an inconsistency. Skimming through, some of the other points being brought up are “AWA is a business a family relies on” so you can’t be too harsh on them, and “they never geared up for war with other promotions” so concepts like marketing and promoting are new for them, cut them some slack. At the end, the writer asks Dave if he’d take a job as a booker if given a guaranteed salary for 2-3 years.
Anyway, Dave actually responds at length to this one and addresses all the questions. The show Dave went to was terrible, and that opinion was shared by literally every other person Dave talked to, readers and wrestlers involved alike. It doesn’t matter if the performers are great performers. If they shit the bed, they shit the bed. Moving on, Dave doesn’t feel sorry for the AWA. “Most of its problems were self-inflicted, they destroyed their promotion by not treating talent fairly and more importantly, not treating fans fairly.” Dave’s never been here for falsely promoting appearances you know won’t happen, and AWA makes a routine of that. They’ve had four years to get with the times. Being unprepared may have been a reasonable excuse in 1985, but it no longer serves as an excuse for failure at this point. He points out that they market themselves as the only serious place for real wrestling, but then you’ve got Madusa, Brandi Mae, Iron Man Miller, Rocky Mountain Thunder, and a bunch of others who utterly contradict that image. His ultimate point? “If the AWA was a successful promotion, I’d be a lot more complimentary to them. They have to decide exactly what they want to be and what they can afford to be. If they can’t afford to play with the big boys, they should concentrate on being the best minor league promotion around, develop good talent and don’t run off the few bright spots like Dangerously or the Rockers that you stumble into. They have to make a commitment to a solid product, maybe push some lighter weight guys and smaller guys like Memphis and Stampede that Titan wouldn’t be as quick to steal and promote the fact they’ve got the fastest and most high flying wrestling around. More importantly, they have to get a young booker to give the wrestlers gimmicks that the young fans can relate to and try to instill a week-to-week soap opera on TV so viewers will be drawn to being regular viewers.” But the AWA? They’ve got Verne. They continue to make laughable claims about being the major leagues. The majority of their talent is either a joke, in their twilight years, or both, and most of the roster needs to go. Finally, Dave says no to being a booker and nobody should speculate that such a thing will ever happen. One reason is he has too much heat with people in the business for that to ever be offered to him. Secondly, he doesn’t believe he’d ever be able to actually effect any change anyway because the wrestlers wouldn’t take direction from an outsider. And besides, Dave’s a writer, not a booker, so who’s to say he’d even be good at it anyway, he asks. Still, DAE Dave is on the WWF payroll to provide biased reporting against the AWA?
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