21- 28th October news/possible spoilers

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

The Identity Of Torrie Wilson's 'Father' Seen On SmackDown!

Have you ever wondered who the guy who plays Torrie Wilson's father actually is? Well, now you do, it's Al Wilson, Torrie's real life father!

When he was asked to work several SmackDown! tapings a few weeks back, he jumped on the offer!

"I get a few phone calls at home," said Al, a resident of Boise, Idaho. "But I think what shocked me was when I got here to the airport. Two or three people came up to me and wanted my autograph! That's never happened before. Then they wanted my picture. I thought they were kidding."

"Sometimes I think that's where Torrie got her ambition," Al said, referring to his acting experience. "She's fulfilling my dream."

When he was asked about the 'scene'; in the show with Dawn Marie last week, he said "I wasn't actually thinking anything about it," "I was just trying to think about my part."

Al says about Torrie Wilson "We go out to dinner. We have lunch. We hang out.

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

Playboy Playmate At No Mercy Last Night

Tracy Dali is just your average college co-ed, or so she was until she contacted Playboy about a possible modeling job.

"One night spent in the Playboy mansion changed my mind," Dali told WWE.com backstage before No Mercy kicked off.

Although she never posed completely nude, she did appear in Playboy's "Book of Lingerie" and "Girls of Summer" publications.

She admitted that before being contacted by WWE to play in her current role with The Undertaker, she hadn't followed WWE since way back in Hogan's 'peak' days.

"Everyone here is so nice," she said. "It's fun. It's really a soap opera for men. It's amazing how much people follow this. I've been acting for 12 years now, and since I've been here, people recognize me on the street. People out of nowhere will yell out, 'Hey, there's Tracy!' And my e-mail has doubled. It's amazing."

Dali said she hopes to continue working with WWE while other projects are being worked on.

"I'm an actress," she said. "These women are trained professional athletes. I don't know how they take the falls on their back that they do. I'm 5-foot-6, a buck 10. What kind of damage could I do?"

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

What You Didn't See On No Mercy Last Night

Thanks to reader Troy Littledeer for sending along the following:

I attended WWE's "No Mercy" Pay-per-view at the Alltel Arena in North Little Rock tonight, and there really wasn't much that happened before or after the show.

After the show went off the air, Brock Lesnar climbed the Cell, which was shown on the PPV, and stayed up there for a while posing with the Championship belt on all four sides of the Cell before climbing down. Lesnar kept wiping blood on the belt in between poses.

All this was happening as the refs and a trainer tended to the Undertaker, who (if he wasn't really hurt) was selling the injuries pretty good.

Lesnar and a Bloody Heyman stopped on top of the ramp and Lesnar held up the title again, before finally leaving the arena.

The Undertaker took a while to even get out of the cage and once he did collapsed on the ramp way.

The fans, along with JR, gave Taker a standing ovation as he finally exited the Arena.

Other notes: I think the one of the biggest pops was for Torrie Wilson's father using the old Bill Clinton line (Hey, the show was in Arkansas). They were also really into the Angle/Benoit vs. Mysterio/Edge Tag-Team Tournament match. The fans were nowhere near being into the Cruiserweight title match, as there were "Boring!" chants.

Also, half of the top sections of the arena were tarped off. That's always a point of interest for some readers.

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

Shane McMahon's New WWE Role, WWE Firings Update

The following news is derived and re-written from the Pro Wrestling Torch newsletter.

When Shane McMahon is backstage during WWE events, which are usually only pay-per views and the RAW the night after, is said to mainly be used for "putting out fires" when arguments arise between wrestlers, or wrestlers and writers. One example would be when Shane McMahon calmed down X-Pac and Kevin Nash when they had a dispute with writer Brian Gerwertz over a planned storyline. Other than that, many claim Shane has little to no other purpose as far as formal role is concerned.

Many claim the reason Mike Awesome was released from WWE when the company dumped Shawn Stasiak and Horace Hogan, along with Awesome, was because of Paul Heyman's status as a top SmackDown! writer. Heyman was said to be less than fond of Awesome, whom he had heat with stemming back from when Awesome left ECW for WCW and the controversy over the ECW world title belt which Awesome held at the time. Others argue that saying Heyman worked with Awesome like nothing ever happened during the initial "invasion" run when WCW merged with WWE.

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

Hulk Hogan's TV Return, Undertaker Injured, McMahon, more

Hulk Hogan will be making his return to television on the upcoming syndicated version of The Hollywood Squares. The show will air next week, check your local listings for time and channel.

Apparently, Undertaker will be needing either staples or stitches to close the huge gash he suffered during his Hell in a Cell match last night.

Stephanie McMahon's appearance on Howard Stern last week will air on the E! channel this coming Wednesday, 10/23, at 11:00pm eastern time.

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

Undertaker Taking Months Off; Wife About To Give Birth

Undertaker's wife, Sara Callaway, is expected to give birth to their child literally any day now. This will be a contributing factor to Undertaker taking quite a long absence in WWE.

Undertaker has been battling with an elbow injury for a while now, and it's to the point where even if his wife wasn't pregnant, he would be taking time off anyway.

It is expected that WWE will use the 'broken hand injury' as a way of explaining his television absence. At this point it's debated back and forth as to whether or not Undertaker will work the European tour this coming weekend, which includes the UK-only Rebellion pay-per view, a show in-which he is in the main-event.

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

Confirmed Matches For Tonight's RAW

The following matches are confirmed for tonight's RAW:

-Triple H & Ric Flair vs. Kane & Rob Van Dam

-Booker T, Goldust, & Trish Stratus vs. Chris Jericho, Christian, & Victoria

-Al Snow vs. Tommy Dreamer (Singapore Match)

-Jeff Hardy vs. Christopher Nowinski

-Plus, HBK will do an interview live from The World in Times Square, New York!

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

Confirmed Matches For This Week's NWA-TNA Show

The following matches have been confirmed for this Wednesday's NWA-TNA show:

NWA World Heavyweight Title
Ron "The Truth" Killings (c) Vs Curt Hennig

X Division Title
Syxx Pac (c) Vs AJ Styles

Superstars Collide
Scott Hall vs Jeff Jarrett

Intense Grudge Match
Jerry Lynn vs Sonny Siaki

NWA World Tag Titles
Chris Harris & James Storm (c) Vs The Hotshots

Five Man Elimination X Division Match
Red Vs Kid Kash Vs SATs Vs Elix Skipper

BG James vs Brian Lawler

Jorge Estrada vs Ace Steel

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

Terry Taylor Tells How He Ended Up With WWE Again

In an interview with WWE.Com, Terry Taylor had the following to say...

When asked how he ended up back in the WWE:

"I think that's going to be one of the mysteries that people will never figure out. I've been here a few times. In November of 1999 when I left, it was kind of a misunderstanding, and plus my dad was sick. He'd be in a coma for a year and had just come out. I went back to WCW so I could be closer to him. Then when WCW was bought, they had a certain number of office positions, and there wasn't one for me. So I spent the last year and a half being off. And actually it's really been good because for 22 years I was on the road 20 days a month."

When asked what the misunderstanding was:

"In November of '99, Vince was taking WWE public, and he was flying all over the country with the IPO (initial public offering), selling the idea of the stock to different investment houses. He would fly all night and then come to the office. He didn't sleep. So Vince was doing the IPO, (Vince) Russo and (Ed) Ferrera left, which kind of left Vince in a lurch, because, "What are we going to do? Two writers are gone." J.R. (Jim Ross, senior vice president of talent relations) had given me what's called a good-faith pledge, which said you wouldn't work for WCW for a year if you left WWE under any circumstances. And my only concern was I wanted to talk to Vince before I signed it because I didn't have a contract. Our deal was a handshake. And his word's good; I know that. But we never talked about terms. And I just wanted to talk to him. J.R. gave me the paper and said, "You've got to have it (signed) by Friday." And I said, "Well, can I talk to Vince first?" Well, Vince wasn't around until after Friday. So is that part of the misunderstanding?

Usually we worked really close together, but we didn't talk much Monday or Tuesday (at TV tapings). And then Wednesday, I went to his office for a 15-minute meeting. I walked in with five pages of ideas and storylines because I wanted to be the head writer. I'd been sitting in with Russo and Ferrara and Vince for a year, and I felt like I had an idea of what Vince (McMahon) wanted. When I walked in to lobby for the head writer job, Vince understood that I didn't sign the no-compete contract. The first thing he said was, "It didn't work out. Sorry." I just started laughing, and he goes, "What are you laughing about?" I said, "I love life. There's so many swerves and curves, and you never know what's next. I came in here to be your No. 1 guy, to roll up my sleeves and get knee-deep in the blood and guts of writing. And I come here and you tell me it didn't work out. It's the swerves like that that make life worth living." It wasn't really good thing, but Vince was great. He thought I had talked to WCW, which I had not. But he said, "I'll pay you until you get a job." He didn't have to do that. I stayed in there for two and a half hours and we talked.

When it was over with, we hugged, and he said, "If you ever want to come back, the door's open." Linda said the same thing. We hugged to say goodbye. He and I have no problems."

When asked how his relationship with Vince McMahon is now:

"Well, he's the one who gave me this opportunity, so I thank him for that. My life's different now..."

The full article is up at WWE.Com

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

Kane Speaks On HHH, Hulk Hogan, Rock, & More

The following are re-written interview highlights with Kane:

On his injury status ...
» Kane said he was sore from head to toe after his match with Triple H at No Mercy. He mentioned that he landed on his head during the Pedigree finisher, so that is another body part that isn't up to par. Overall, he is feeling alright.

On his No Mercy match ...
» Kane commented by saying he felt the match was good. He liked the intesity from himself and Triple H, and felt it added to the emotions in the match. He mentioned a few botched spots, but said that's something that just happens, and he felt they worked around it well, especially during the finish. He felt overall, people got their money's worth.

On his 5 year anniversary in WWE ...
» Five years ago this month Kane debuted with WWE, and he feels like it was just yesterday. He mentioned that he was giving advice to a young talent in the locker room by telling him what an old-timer would do. He said Undertaker then corrected him by telling him that they are old-timers. He feels his career has been tremendous and it doesn't feel like it's been 5 years at all.

On his career highlights ...
» He enjoyed working with Undertaker, both with and against him. He loved winning the WWE Championship from Steve Austin, multiple time WWE tag-team championships, and the Intercontinental championship when he beat Triple H in the WWE's first-ever chain match. Above all else, he vividly remembers his promo with The Rock and Hulk Hogan from just a few months ago. He said everyone grew up impersonating Hogan's catch-phrases and style, and thought it was great that he got to do it on camera.

On his character development ...
» Just a while ago Kane wasn't even talking, since then he's gone through major character development. He was scared at first, just because his gimmick was to be the silent monster. He felt that ran its' course and he is pleased with where he is headed now because he gets to show pieces of his real-life personality through his character now.

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

Trish Stratus/Stacy Keibler Autographs, Dreamer, & More

- The following are a few live appearances for this week.

Wichita, Kan. Oct. 26 - Jacqueline and Tommy Dreamer will be signing autographs from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Kansas Coliseum, just prior to a WWE event at the facility.

Toledo, Ohio Oct. 26 - Trish Stratus, D’Lo Brown and Jacqueline will be signing autographs from 3 to 4 p.m. at the Toledo Sports Arena, just prior to a WWE event at the facility.

Waterford, Mich. Oct. 27 - Stacy Keibler will be signing autographs from 2 to 4 p.m. at Kmart, 3541 Highland Road.

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

Undertaker Head Injury, War Games Match @ Survivor Series

Source: Various

-- After Sunday’s No Mercy event, The Undertaker needed staples in his head to close the wound which opened up causing all the blood to spill from his head.

If you saw the Pay Per View, you will’ve noticed that it was no ordinary blade job, and that Taker either hit a vane when doing the blade job, or was bled the hard way – a real life cut. This can be determined because the cut Brock Lesnar took had cleared up by the time the match had ended, as with Paul Heyman’s, but The Undertakers wound still left blood pouring from his head.

-- And finally, Eric Bischoff announced last night that at Survivor Series there will be a match that will make the blood bath we saw on Sunday during the Hell In A Cell match look like a walk in the park. At the moment, there is a VERY large possibility that WWE viewers could experience the first ever WWE War Games match, something created and coined by WCW.

The match, called The Elimination Chamber by Bischoff last night, is in a huge Cell, with two rings. Every two minutes a new participant enters, with it being handicap rules, and when all 10 men are in the ring Submissions and Pins become effective. It is very much like the old school Survivor Series matches, where the winners are the team with a member remaining at the end of the battle.

One possibility to make the match more of a blood bath than the Hell In A Cell, would be to have weapons littering the inside of the cage. No names have been released as to who will be participating in this match, but expect it to at least include somebody who will be willing to take a huge bump.

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

Test Gives In To WWE, New Promotion Starting, more

Source: Various

-- Thanks reader to Gareth Blake for the following:

"Hey Dan, im back with some more news. Ivory and Bradshaw will be signing autographs at Hamleys in London [England] (188-196 Regent Street, London W1B 5BT.) from 3pm until 5pm on Friday 25th October, this Friday.

Unlike other events, it isn’t ticket only, so anybody can get in. It is first come first served though, so I advise getting there about an hour to an hour and a half early to stand any chance."

-- Thanks to reader Ryan Smith for the following:

"Hey Dan,

Just thought I would pass along this info to ya. Just a little more info on Jake "The Snake" Roberts promotion in the United Kingdom. Honky posted this earlier today on his site, www.thehonkytonkman.com

Honky says: "Jake Roberts is putting together live shows in the United Kingdom under the promotional name of Real Stars of Wrestling. Roberts, Brutus Beefcake, Hacksaw Duggan, The Honky Tonk Man, and Doink The Clown are advertised on the promotion's website. British workers James Mason, Jonny Storm, Phil Powers, Skull Murphy, Martin Rowlands, and The UK Pitballs are also in the loop. The group has three shows scheduled for the weekend of 11/1-11/3 in Hants, West Sussex, and Essex. ""

-- And finally, with Test reverting to tight pants last night as opposed to his old black trousers, it seems that he has given into the WWE’s wishes for him to change, in order to get himself out of the dog house.

In past weeks, it has been reported that Test’s super huge push has been halted due to two issues. Firstly, himself and Christian refused to shave their hair in order to make the Un-Americans look "alike" to each other. Christian and Test have since been expelled from the Un-Americans, who now consist of just Regal and Storm.

The second problem that had occurred came about with the ring attire. Christian and Storm both wear tights as opposed to trousers, and WWE wanted Test to convert to these also in order to make the group have a group feel to them. Even though he is no longer an Un-American on air, it seems that he has given into this WWE wish in order to put himself back on WWE RAW, as opposed to jobbing to a WWE developmental talent in a Dark Show, his role on RAW last week.

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

WWE Comments On HHH/Katie Vick Video Footage

The following is a message on WWE.com:

In a blatant attempt to create controversy and further enhance the character of RAW’s chief antagonist Triple H, last night’s Monday night RAW on TNN (rated TV-14 LVD) presented an alleged act of necrophilia.

Triple H, poorly disguised as his chief adversary Kane, presented a skit in a funeral home using a mannequin that simulated the body of Kane’s former girlfriend Katie Vick.

WWE Executive Producer Kevin Dunn, stated that numerous warnings to WWE viewers about sensitive subject matter did air prior to the segment. “While the subject matter is sensitive, on balance this was an attempt at dark humor capitalizing on the popularity of programs such as CSI, Six Feet Under and X-Files,” said Dunn.

-We will be calling TNN to see if we can get word on their thoughts on the segment as the last time WWE "raised the bar" with the HLA segment, TNN went balistic. It's safe to say, last night's Katie Vick/HHH video raised the bar a lot higher than "HLA."

[Stephanie McMahon's sidekick!]

What You Didn't See On WWE RAW Last Night
Story By: Daniel Edler
October 22, 2002

-- Thanks to reader Chadwick Flatt for the following:

I just returned from the WWE's latest attempt at producing a good wrestling program. Just thought I would pass along a few observations. The arena was about 2/3 full. They had a very large section blocked off with a tarp on the hard camera side and most of the upper level was empty with a few folks sprinkled in. Before RAW began a local radio station held a spinaroonie contest with the winner getting to meet Booker T. Some little kid won with a decent looking spinaroonie.

Heat tapings and several dark matches were held. Charlie Haas and Mark Jindrak looked good in their matches.

Then it was time for RAW! Like most all RAW shows in recent memory it was a mixed bag. The crowd popped for Triple H, Flair, Hardy, Stacey, RVD, Trish, Booker, Goldust, and Kane. The Dudleys also got a decent reaction. It did seem that the crowd was more interested in seeing themselves on the Titan Tron than the action in the ring. I was lucky enough to be sitting behind a girl with a sign with her 3 friends names on it. She felt the need to hold it up for the entire night. As did the guy with the I love Trish sign. I mean I love Trish too but I honestly believe that holding up a poster board with those words on it will not win her affection.

I contemplated making a "Test needs a haircut" sign but decided it was more trouble than it was worth. As I'm sure most folks will agree, the Triple H "videotape" left people shaking their heads and wondering who thought this was a good idea. The show kind of lost steam after that tape aired. I have never been so excited to see Al Snow coming to the ring. Anything to take my mind off that idiotic, tasteless video. In a even more sad note, the highlight of the night could very well have been the video package that aired earlier in the evening with Kid Rock's Lonely Road of Faith serving as the soundtrack. I never tire of seeing this great classic footage.

Will the WWE ever realize what a gold mine they have with their old footage as well as the older WCW footage? The Big Show was traded to Smackdown. Wonder who RAW will get in return. I can honestly say that I was in attendance for Show's last televised WCW match, his WWE TV debut, and the night he was traded to Smackdown. And the people on the front row at the first WrestleMania thought they were lucky. Bischoff's announcement of the Elimination Chamber at Survivor Series sounds like it could be interesting if it doesn't turn out to be some electric chair frying somebody or something stupid and WCW-like. At this point nothing would surprise me. Anyway, it was good to see the legendary Nature Boy again even if he is not the same Ric Flair that I grew up watching. After the show went off the air RVD posed for the crowd. Overall a decent show with the glaring exception of the videotape fiasco.