So I'm watching some of the monthly programming on WWE 24-7 when I come to an episode of Stampede Wrestling from back in the day.
OK, I think, should be interesting -- I've never actually seen an episode, though I've read some pretty incredible things.
It's a fun show, ridiculous themesong notwithstanding -- the ring action isn't terrible, there's a promo from a very young Brian Pillman promoting his first Stampede match and there's build-up for a big title match between Owen Hart and Makhan Singh.
And then they come to a Makhan Singh promo in the ring.
You may know Makhan from one of his other personas -- Norman the Lunatic, Friar Ferguson or Bastion Booger, among others. As Makhan, he was quite a physical presence, and, I must say, he cut a decent promo.
But this is one promo you have to hear to believe.
Makhan is in the ring with several others, including the massively muscled Ted Arcidi, who apparently was feuding at the time with the also massively muscled Bill Kazmaier in a series of matches that no doubt won Match of the Year honors that year.
Anyway, Singh's cutting a promo on Kazmaier -- and mid promo, he pulls out a needle and basically says that Kazmaier's muscles are all injected! And then, he says that Arcidi's muscles are all natural, which announcer Ed Whalen questions!!!
Yes, this is a promo on an 80s wrestling show where the guys are turning steroid use into a storyline -- being replayed by a company that's been trying to shake the steroid thing for decades!
I did a double-take when I heard the thing. More like a triple- or quadruple-take.
Isn't anyone screening this stuff before it goes on the air?
Comments (21)
Well its not like he killed anybody or anything.
I don't think they screen ANYTHING they put on 24/7. About three months after Benoit killed his family, their Nitro replays were showing the angle where Woman starts cheating on Kevin Sullivan with Benoit.
It was not a good thing. To say the least. And something you think WWE would have caught and stopped airing, but I guess no one is watching.
Well we all know they don't like to hire wrestling fans as writers, who knows if they hire wrestling fans for video editing either?
Well they did cut Benoit out of the MNW shows after the tragedy. Only recently have they begun leaving Benoit's image on Nitro's but I don't think they have aired any of his matches. Many fans wish they would stop censoring the show.
You'd have to think steroids were a problem in your company in order to screen out references to them, but as we know, WWE is the king of See, Speak, Hear No Evil (and I ain't talking about Kane's movie).
Did you know steroids are bad for you? Hell, they're very likely to kill you, or cause you to bust out into a blackout rage and murder your family and anyone around you. Ben Affleck told me that in an after school special.
Also, marijuana will cause you to eat brains.
Um, I recall seeing Benoit on the MNW replays in the immediate aftermath of the murders, when even the mainstream media was still talking about it. So they might have caught it eventually, but definitely not at first.
I don't know if that's good or bad in the end. I suppose it's wrong to take him out entirely. People can choose whether or not to watch his matches, so just pretending he never existed and erasing him from the company's history seems like the wrong thing to do.
You now what, i think that wwe 24/7 should be left unedited. if it happened, show it. no matter how awful, ridicules, or tasteless its is. I think one you start editing the product, it becomes pointless to watch.
Agreed. This doesn't really bug me that much.
Regarding Benoit on the MNW programs right after the murders: On-Demand programs are often fed to cablers in advance, since you're pulling the program from your cable provider's head end and not directly from WWE like when you watch a live (or live-to-tape) program through a network. I don't know what the lead time is on sending out programs, but since they do things on a month-to-month (or at least biweekly, in some cases, like MNW) basis there's going to be a gap between the stuff sent before Benoit went nuts and when they get the scissors out.
It is very doubtful anyone screens the audio to make sure it has not become tasteless over time, and I base that conclusion on an unedited WWE 24/7 airing of Saturday Night's Main Event from March 1989, featuring a pre-match interview with the Blue Blazer, citing he would attack from all angles - "even (flying down) from the rafters if I have to."
They definitely screen audio on 24/7. If you listen to half the old WCW ppv's and even some WWF ones they have entrance music and ring introductions dubbed over. Its acually pretty laughable as they have some dude who doesnt even sound like Gary Michael Cappetta doing WCW intros with the dubbed theme music. At least they still have the Fink around to dub the WWF stuff.
Maybe WWE thinks it's smart broadcasting: they show back in the old days steroids was a problem, but can now say they have realized the mistakes of the past and their new wellness program eliminates steroid and drug use.
I thought of a great heel gimmick where before a match the heel plants steroids in his opponents gym bag and gets them suspended and thus wins the match by forfeit.
that would be a great angle for someone like CM punk and Jericho to have.
I just watched this promo and found it pretty laughable.. For them to even use the steroid angle is absolutely ridiculous, considering Ted Arcidi looks like he had a side serving of steroids with each meal. If anything they could have done the angle with a small wrestler as opposed to a guy the size of a horse.
Of course they screen their programming. EVERY mention of "WWF" is edited out. I feel bad for the poor schmuck that has to go through and do that, but it shows that they are going through (at least some of) their programming with a fine toothed comb.
Besides, if they edited out everything offense, we wouldn't have any footage.
I dont find this any different than watching an old episode of All In the Family where Archie would talk about the "coloreds" Its just they way it was back when it aired and shouldnt be compared to today's broadcasting standards
Who really cares? Its amazing that people who work for newspapers are always the first to want something censored. While were at it, lets edit out the scene of Ivan Drago taking steroids in Rocky 4. After all, we do know some of the actors and actresses have admitted to doing steroids and taking drugs. Its just stupid.
Actually, they miss some WWFs.
If you get a chance to watch the 10/20/97 episode of Monday Night RAW on WWE 24/7 (posted 10/30/08), then check out the opening where Vince McMcMahon brags about "FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION REIGNS SUPREME" at the WWF events - and at the same time, they're blurring a sign on the screen.
Gotta love the irony!