All Purpose Podcast/Shoot Interview Thread

[bruins309]

New episode on Turkey Day with a look at the WWF on TBS(!) from 01-05-1985! Andre the Giant gets a haircut that has biblical implications, Hulk Hogan has a strange match, Stumblin' Freddie Miller, a look at the WWF's foray into Georgia and how they got bailed out, and a glimpse at the bawdier version of your host!

 

[bruins309]

I also did a podcast ranking the first 12 Survivor Series with my pal Steve (whose Sports-Casters pod is very good, non-wrestling)

Included: my love for the 1988 show, why Steve liked '98 far more than me, Sid fulfilling all my hopes and dreams for him in '96, and my surprising love for the 1995 edition. Plus: a fun "analysis" of Demolition Ax at the 1990 Survivor Series....has anyone ever cared less about anything ever?

 

[bruins309]

New episode of Greetings From Allentown on NWA (WCW) Worldwide from June 24, 1989!

The phenomena of the Great Muta and Scott Steiner, Luger hates the top 10 rankings, "improving" the Dynamic Dudes, Sid Vicious visits a blackjack table, Rick Steiner has fun with an official, a subpar evil laugh, bad mobile websites, proper consumption of Starburst, and more!

 

[bruins309]

New Greetings From Allentown out on WWF Mania from January 30, 1993!

- Taking stock of Ric Flair’s overall WWF 1991-93 run as it comes to a close
- Setting the tone for RAW with the Flair-Perfect match and how it differed from all prior WWF TV matches
- How Todd Pettengill may have saved the promotion a ton of money
- An era of change stunted by the return of Hulk Hogan
- What happens when you call the 800 number of WrestleMania IX tickets?
- Kamala forgets how to end matches as a babyface
- Tatanka as a “moments” guy and rebooking his match with Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania
- Sean Mooney takes a pun-based challenge
- The Undertaker awkwardly chips in on behalf of Headlock on Hunger

Plus:
- Explaining why Savage went for a pinfall at the 1993 Royal Rumble on Yokozuna
- George H.W. Bush yakking on the Japanese prime minister
- Pondering a trip to London, England
- Dustings of light racism litter the show
- Rob Schneider SNL characters
- Why the Match Game from the 1970s is so rewatchable
- Sports moments of ’93: Stanley Cup OT winners, Leon Lett, Chris Webber, how Notre Dame got screwed over in ’93, and an alternate seldom-heard PBP call!

 

[bruins309]

Greetings From Allentown is heading to Florida(!) for some PWF (Professional Wrestling Federation aka Florida Championship Wrestling) action from April 30, 1989!

- Dusty Rhodes and Terry Funk renew their rivalry with brawls, boxes, and hilarious promos defining a “Dusty”
- The Nasty Boys plagiarize a once and future rival
- A Florida edition of “According to Larry”
- The appeal of wrestlers in the “before” phase
- A musical tribute to Fred Ottman’s PWF character
- Dick Slater as the perpetual “backup running back” to Terry Funk
- Oliver Humperdink: enough is enough
Plus:
- Inventing a backstory for Drake Maverick and the Authors of Pain
- Pondering WWF President Jack Tunney as the Event Center host
- Sports moments of ’94: AC got OJ in the car, Nancy and the black stick, Cheney and Calipari, two point conversions, and Karl “Tuffy” Rhodes
- YouTube Comment Theater!

 

[Shoalzie]

Really good episode of TIJ with Meltzer talking about Dynamite Kid. I'll fully acknowledge that I only knew of him by name...never seen him wrestle. His best years were probably right before I got into wrestling. I'll look up his matches when I get a free moment. Outside the ring, I've read all that's been said or posted about him...far from a nice person. I think you can still appreciate the work in the ring just like you could be with Benoit.

 

[bruins309]

New Greetings From Allentown covering the 1988 pilot of the TV sitcom "Learning The Ropes"! Examining Lyle Alzado's acting ability, wrestler cameos & what the theme song sounds like. Plus: Dispatches from Indiana, YouTube Comment Theater and Vinnie Vegas Corner!

 

[Engebretson]

I just downloaded a podcast called "83 Weeks with Eric Bischoff". It's hosted by a guy named Conrad Thompson and they basically go over WCW PPV's where Thompson questions Bischoff about the event. It's like 3 hours long, so they go pretty in depth. I'm just through the first bit of their Starrcade '97 episode (really excited to see what gets discussed here) and Thompson actually pulls an Observer article from just before the show and goes over it with Bischoff.

One thing I learned, Bischoff clearly thinks Meltzer is mostly a fraud and he shoots down a lot of what Meltzer put in his article about WCW at that time or says it was more minor than Meltzer made it out to be. While I do think that Meltzer gets things wrong or embellishes from time to time, Bischoff himself doesn't exactly have the most stellar track record of not being full of shit. You can really feel the vitriol from Bischoff in some of his reactions and its kind of entertaining.

 

[Kimi]

Option A: Go with Meltzer who has had a great track record a spectacular reputation during his career, including talking to Bischoff regularly where he'd be asked for advise on wrestling.

Option B: Go with Bischoff, the guy who stopped talking to and started hated Meltzer for well over a decade because Death of WCW was released. A book that Bischoff didn't read, nor was Meltzer involved in writing at all. He only found out the truth last year when someone was trying to put him and Alvarez on a together at All In.

 

[GarbageGoal]

I just downloaded a podcast called "83 Weeks with Eric Bischoff". It's hosted by a guy named Conrad Thompson and they basically go over WCW PPV's where Thompson questions Bischoff about the event. It's like 3 hours long, so they go pretty in depth. I'm just through the first bit of their Starrcade '97 episode (really excited to see what gets discussed here) and Thompson actually pulls an Observer article from just before the show and goes over it with Bischoff.

One thing I learned, Bischoff clearly thinks Meltzer is mostly a fraud and he shoots down a lot of what Meltzer put in his article about WCW at that time or says it was more minor than Meltzer made it out to be. While I do think that Meltzer gets things wrong or embellishes from time to time, Bischoff himself doesn't exactly have the most stellar track record of not being full of ****. You can really feel the vitriol from Bischoff in some of his reactions and its kind of entertaining.

It's no different with Conrad's other podcast with Bruce Prichard (Tony Schivone less so). If you follow Meltzer on Twitter he points out exactly what he said and when he said and flat out says both of them lie. The great thing about it is Conrad gets about all of his research from the Observer and the Torch and can't say enough good things about Uncle Dave so it's funny to hear the Bischoff and Russo fanbois try to troll Meltzer on Twitter when they listen to podcasts almost entirely scripted based on what Dave reported.

The bottom line is when it comes to booking Dave is beholden to reporting on the whims of people who hot shot week to week. Even now, no one can get straight what the plan for Mania is this year. But numbers/sales are hard data and Dave usually gets that right.

 

[bruins309]

New episode of Greetings From Allentown, a tribute to the late Mean Gene Okerlund with a look at his WWF debut show Wrestling At The Chase from 01-01-1984!

How Okerlund's arrival made everyone more effective, the return of Hulk Hogan, Dr. D says hello & more debuts/returns! Plus a NFL divisional round edition of Vinnie Vegas Corner!

 

[Engebretson]

It's no different with Conrad's other podcast with Bruce Prichard (Tony Schivone less so). If you follow Meltzer on Twitter he points out exactly what he said and when he said and flat out says both of them lie. The great thing about it is Conrad gets about all of his research from the Observer and the Torch and can't say enough good things about Uncle Dave so it's funny to hear the Bischoff and Russo fanbois try to troll Meltzer on Twitter when they listen to podcasts almost entirely scripted based on what Dave reported.

The bottom line is when it comes to booking Dave is beholden to reporting on the whims of people who hot shot week to week. Even now, no one can get straight what the plan for Mania is this year. But numbers/sales are hard data and Dave usually gets that right.

I just thought it was funny to hear Bischoff bitch and rant about Meltzer. I hadn't really heard any real criticism of Meltzer from that side of the curtain before and it's quite entertaining so far.

 

[Scandale du Jour]

I just thought it was funny to hear Bischoff ***** and rant about Meltzer. I hadn't really heard any real criticism of Meltzer from that side of the curtain before and it's quite entertaining so far.

Bruce Prichard often shits on Meltzer as well.

Prichard's criticizism is kind of fair though. He says that Meltzer does have sources, but ends up connecting the dots more than he has real solid info. That's fair. Bruce will however go on and on about how Meltzer made a small factual mistake on something as trivial as a date of a show of something therefore he is unreliable. That's unfair and probably exagerated for entertainement.

Honestly, I think that's part of Conrad Thompson's schtick. He plays the fan. And all of us read dirtsheets at some point. Conrad uses dirtsheets to build his questions. He often catches Eric, Tony or Bruce in a lie. He'll call them out on it, they'll either shit on the source (Meltzer or Alvarez or whomever) AND/OR pretend they cannot remember everything (Bischoff ALWAYS does that). It gives pretty funny moment. Bruce's Meltzer rants are pretty funny. Conrad makes those shows to be honest. He is a very good interviewer. Bruce is also much more entertaining than Bischoff.

 

[Engebretson]

Bruce Prichard often ****s on Meltzer as well.

Prichard's criticizism is kind of fair though. He says that Meltzer does have sources, but ends up connecting the dots more than he has real solid info. That's fair. Bruce will however go on and on about how Meltzer made a small factual mistake on something as trivial as a date of a show of something therefore he is unreliable. That's unfair and probably exagerated for entertainement.

Honestly, I think that's part of Conrad Thompson's schtick. He plays the fan. And all of us read dirtsheets at some point. Conrad uses dirtsheets to build his questions. He often catches Eric, Tony or Bruce in a lie. He'll call them out on it, they'll either **** on the source (Meltzer or Alvarez or whomever) AND/OR pretend they cannot remember everything (Bischoff ALWAYS does that). It gives pretty funny moment. Bruce's Meltzer rants are pretty funny. Conrad makes those shows to be honest. He is a very good interviewer. Bruce is also much more entertaining than Bischoff.

Oh, Bischoff definitely does a lot of the "that was so long ago I can't remember" stuff but then seems to recall really specific details of other situations too. Part of that is I think that Bischoff also doesn't want to validate Meltzer or the dirt sheets. It's like when he does acknowledge they got something right, he makes it seem like it wasn't a big deal. It's kind of funny to listen to and Bischoff has definitely made the comment that Meltzer is just "connecting the dots".

 

[Engebretson]

So, Bischoff’s reasoning for the circus that was the main event at Starrcade ‘97 was that he and Hogan met Sting earlier in the day and felt he was unprepared. He wasn’t tanned, hadn’t been hitting the gym as hard and looked like he had no energy for the match. So, they overbooked the hell out of it to make up for Sting’s perceived lack of preparation. Bischoff said it had nothing to do with Hogan pulling strings and Conrad immediately called BS, which was hilarious.

Such a wasted main event

 

[JackSlater]

I find Bischoff's podcast pretty much impossible to listen to. You want to hear inside things, but usually he pleads that he doesn't remember or obviously lies about something to spin it in a positive way for himself. The problem is that he often contradicts not only reports from the time, but even quotes that he made at the time or shortly after. Having Conrad there doesn't help in regard to how easy it is to listen. Pritchard has a better show in that I think a lot of his information is accurate, though he's a stooge for WWE through and through so you have to look at it through that lens. Late era WCW is very interesting behind the scenes, much more than WWF post-screwjob even, but Bischoff isn't reliable.

 

[Scandale du Jour]

I find Bischoff's podcast pretty much impossible to listen to. You want to hear inside things, but usually he pleads that he doesn't remember or obviously lies about something to spin it in a positive way for himself. The problem is that he often contradicts not only reports from the time, but even quotes that he made at the time or shortly after. Having Conrad there doesn't help in regard to how easy it is to listen. Pritchard has a better show in that I think a lot of his information is accurate, though he's a stooge for WWE through and through so you have to look at it through that lens. Late era WCW is very interesting behind the scenes, much more than WWF post-screwjob even, but Bischoff isn't reliable.

I rarely listen to 83 weeks because of exactly that. Bischoff mostly complains about others being liers and doesn't offer much information. He sounds like a grumpy old man most of the time.

Bruce Prichard, even when dodging question or lying, is usually funny and entertaining. His podcast is fun and entertaining even when not insightful.

 

[GarbageGoal]

I’ve never liked Bischoff so I’m not interested in his podcast.

Schivone’s was okay for a time but his “that was the booking committee” answer is tiresome and fantasizing all the WCW gals from 25 years ago.

I’ve listened to Prichard less and less. It’s one of those podcasts where they’re doing the same schtick over and over, stories become repetitive and doing “favorite bits” like a morning shock jock zoo. I’ve had some favorite podcasts (non wrestling too) that I burned out on because eventually every episode becomes about “getting your shit in” and this is no different.

 

[Engebretson]

Bischoff constantly denies whenever Conrad insinuates that a booking decision happened due to someone pulling strings behind the scenes. It’s like he never wants to admit that he didn’t have full control of the show and constantly blames the problems on corporate interference. I also love how he pats himself on the back whenever he brings up one of the few positives from the dark days of WCW.

It’d be great if I felt like Bischoff was actually being honest but at least Conrad doesn’t just accept his BS as gospel.

Oh, he hates Alvarez too, lol.

 

[Engebretson]

I'm checking out the Bischoff podcast covering the Fingerpoke of Doom and I think this is going to be my last podcast with Bischoff. It's like he's still trying to cover his and Hogan's ass for the crap that went down back in 1999 and beyond. To this day, Bischoff still defends the Fingerpoke of Doom storyline and blames the poor ratings thereafter on creative's hands being tied by corporate sponsorship. The only thing he won't defend is the decision to have Schiavone give away the Foley title change that night and says it was a bad decision and takes the blame for giving that order.

The only redeeming quality of this podcast is Conrad's ability to sniff out Bischoff's BS answers and call him out on it. My favorite part of this podcast after Conrad calls Bischoff out for a bad booking decision:

Bischoff: "Says the guy who's never booked a show in his life"

Conrad: "What are you booking these days, buddy?"

Bischoff: silence

 

[Scandale du Jour]

I’ve never liked Bischoff so I’m not interested in his podcast.

Schivone’s was okay for a time but his “that was the booking committee” answer is tiresome and fantasizing all the WCW gals from 25 years ago.

I’ve listened to Prichard less and less. It’s one of those podcasts where they’re doing the same schtick over and over, stories become repetitive and doing “favorite bits” like a morning shock jock zoo. I’ve had some favorite podcasts (non wrestling too) that I burned out on because eventually every episode becomes about “getting your **** in” and this is no different.

Prichard is great, but yeah, it can get repetitive. Conrad fishes SOOOOOOO much for their little tidbits (chocolate titties, X r Us, top 5, etc). The other problem is that many stories/events intertwine after a while and they direct you to other episodes. They have mostly been touching on the late 80s through about 2000. So I guess that once they explore 2000-2008 (when Bruce was fired) in more depth, we are going to get new stuff.

 

[bruins309]

New Greetings From Allentown: Climb aboard the Mothership for a look back at WCW Saturday Night from June 28, 1997!

- The WCW midcard in 1997: a diverse playground with something for everyone
- Nobility is out the window as The Blue Bloods explode
- Jeff Jarrett has delusions of grandeur
- Appreciating Meng’s theme and pondering a trip to Tonga
- Ric Flair steals the one bit that Lex Luger was the best at
- Categorizing enhancement tag teams
- Konnan in wrestling purgatory
- Playing the Mean Gene hotline promo guessing game

Plus:
- Introducing a wedding wrap-up show segment
- Karate Kid 2: The WCW of the Karate Kid series?
- Braves baseball on TBS roundup!
- Sports moments of ’99: Pedro Martinez, Troy O’Leary, Eugene Robinson, Brett Hull, and an OT winner!
- Vinnie Vegas Corner NFL Conference Championship Edition!

 

[Engebretson]

I took some of your advice and checked out the Bruce Prichard podcast with Conrad Thompson. Holy hell, that's way easier to listen to than the Bischoff podcast. I've already listened to them go over the 1992 Royal Rumble, 1998 SummerSlam and 1988 Survivor Series. The chemistry between Conrad and Prichard is also way better than the Conrad/Bischoff dynamic.

I think the problem with the Bischoff podcast is that it comes off as an autopsy of old WCW shows. It seems to set unrealistic expectations for the listener because you expect to get real answers and instead you get Bischoff either saying his hands were tied by corporate, that he doesn't really remember, or that he'd do it the same today (or he yells about Meltzer making stuff up). The way Bischoff answers some of these questions,it almost feels like Bischoff is still living in 1998 and is trying to keep his job in WCW.

The tone of the Prichard podcast is way better as Prichard goes through the mindset of creative on old shows. When something comes along that Conrad questions him on, Prichard gets lets defensive than Bischoff but it seems like he also has a very common excuse of "that's the way Vince wanted it". I mean, he's probably right, but it doesn't feel as satisfying as when Conrad questions Bischoff. At least Conrad rips into Bischoff for having crappy answers (although, Prichard's answers are less crappy).

 

[bruins309]

It's the 100th episode of Greetings From Allentown, looking at the RAW from June 1, 1998!

- The peak of the Mr. McMahon character trading jabs with his top stars
- A Nation vs DX six man tag all-star game!
- The Undertaker begins his evolution by dressing poorly
- Taka Michinoku and Bradshaw: like a 1960s TV comedy pairing
- Shamrock and Severn: division killers?
- How and why Val Venis could only exist from 1998-2000
- Admiring the outfit of newcomer Jacqueline
- The unselfish Terry Funk risks major injury against Mark Henry
- Double J contradicts everything he said months earlier

Plus:
- A tongue in cheek promo for the charitable Mr. McMahon
- What do you do when “Godwinns’ Law” goes bad
- Revealing the top 5 from my PTBN GWWE tag team ballot
- A method of remaining calm when your team is in a tense playoff game
- Sports moments of 2000: Rams/Titans, Pedro/Roger, an ugly incident in Vancouver, the “HC of the NYJ”,
- Hatching a diabolical plan to go to WrestleMania in New Jersey

 

[GarbageGoal]

Congrats on 100 shows