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Kendrick leaves; other news, notes, DVDs

BY JIM VARSALLONE
jvarsallone{at}herald.com

Brian Spanky Kendrick gave his notice to World Wrestling
Entertainment. Kendrick left on his own since he wasn't used much
lately on Smackdown. He will compete in Japan. Kendrick was trained by
Shawn Michaels.

• According to the Wrestling Online Newsletter, WWE Smackdown referee
Mike Sparks was released by the company.

• Tough Enough winner Maven was injured on Friday, Jan. 16 during a
live event in Des Moines, Iowa. Maven recently returned to WWE after
taken time off to be with his mother who has cancer, also according to
the Wrestling Online Newsletter.

• Former WWE and WCW star Kevin Nash had preliminary talks with
NWA/TNA.

• The Federal Court of Canada issued an injunction prohibiting bars in
Canada from illegally showing WWE pay-per-view events.

In a case against 37 bars in Canada, the court issued an injunction on
Jan. 6, 2004, against the bars from continuing their illegal use of
WWE pay-per-views. It also ruled each bar must pay WWE treble monetary
damages plus court costs of CAD $1,500. A hearing to determine damages
will be in the next few weeks with an award possibly in excess of CAD
$1-million.

Carl DeMarco, president of WWE Canada, said the bars in question shown
WWE pay-per-views illegally. Efforts by WWE to get bars in Canada to
pay for the events and cease showing them illegally failed, forcing
WWE to take the case to court seeking monetary and injunctive relief.

DeMarco said it is easy for a bar or other commercial establishment to
obtain a license to show WWE pay-per-views legally, and he encouraged
all bars in Canada interested in showing WWE pay-per-views to enter
into a legal agreement to do so.

''WWE likes to be a good business partner, and we welcome the
opportunity to work with bars or other commercial establishments in
Canada to license our pay-per-views,'' said DeMarco in a press
release.

In South Florida, Flager Dog Track in Miami and Hollywood Greyhound
Track legally show WWE pay-per-views, paying an annual fee to WWE.

The Canadian case is part of WWEs global efforts to crack down on the
illegal use of its programs, products and intellectual property, said
Ed Kaufman, WWE Executive Vice President and General Counsel.

''We are very serious in our efforts to protect WWEs intellectual
property assets as well as the interests of those who choose to engage
in business with us and legally obtain rights or licenses to the world
recognized WWE brand,'' Kaufman said. ``We are gratified that our
efforts in Canada will put an end to this type of piracy and intend to
take similar action whenever and wherever we find people engaging in
illegal activities to steal or counterfeit any WWE intellectual
property.''

• The (Florida-based) Sunshine Network will be adding new wrestling
programming to its network starting Feb. 6 including a wrestling block
to the station on Friday nights.

NWA/TNA's Xplosion is 10 p.m., followed by IWA Puerto Rico at 11 p.m.
and Major League Wrestling Underground TV at midnight. Headed by Jeff
and Jerry Jarrett, NWA/TNA runs weekly pay-per-views Wednesdays.

MLW's Underground TV will return to midnights Mondays on March 26
following the college basketball season.

Florida independent MXPW will debut a weekly Maximum Impact TV show on
March 8. Women's Extreme Wrestling and MMA promotion King of the Cage
also air regularly on the network.

• MLW returns to its South Florida home 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 13 at
the War Memorial Auditorium, 800 NE 8th Ave. in Fort Lauderdale.

Global Tag-Team Crown Title Match: The GTC Champion The Extreme
Horsemen CW Anderson and Simon Diamond managed by J.J. Dillon vs. GTC
Carnival Champions The Stampede Bulldogs T.J. Wilson and Harry Smith.
Dragon's Gate Six-Sided Ring: Sonjay Dutt, Los Maximos, more TBA.

Also scheduled are Champ Steve Corino with J.J. Dillon, Gary Hart
presents Low Ki, Teddy Hart and the Hart Foundation 2.0, Juventud
Guerrera, Mike Modest, P.J. Friedman, Ray Gordy, Havana Pitbulls, Chad
Collyer, The Samoan Island Tribe, Raven, Sabu, Rich Criado, Norman
Smiley and more.

Tickets are on sale at all Ticketmaster outlets and the War Memorial
Auditorium box office or charge-by-phone at 954-523-3309 or online.
General admission tickets are $10. Ringside reserved tickets are $30,
and general reserved seats $15.

• MLW invades Tabu, 46 N. Orange Ave. in Orlando, FL at 7 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 14. The Extreme Horsemen with J.J. Dillon vs. the
Samoan Island Tribe and A Dream Partner. Gary Hart presents Low Ki.

Also, World Junior Heavyweight Champ Sonjay Dutt, Teddy Hart and the
Hart Foundation 2.0, Juventud Guerrera, Los Maximos, Mike Modest, Ray
Gordy, Havana Pitbulls, Chad Collyer, Rich Criado, Norman Smiley and
more.

Tickets are on sale at all Ticketmaster outlets or call 407-839-3900
or go online at TicketMaster. Tickets are $15 for age 18 and older
only.

• MLW Underground TV will begin airing throughout the United Kingdom
on a weekly basis on The Wrestling Channel at 9 p.m. when The
Wrestling Channel launches on SKY Digital in the UK on March 15.

MLW Underground TV can also be seen on the Sunshine Network midnight
Fridays. MLW returns to its regular Monday time slot (11 p.m. to
midnight) on March 29 with replays throughout the week.

MLW Underground TV can be seen weekly on Fox Sports Digital Net
Atlantic. Check local listings for day and time including the New York
City area.

For replays, check local listings in Florida and nationwide -- also
available on DirecTV and the Dish Network. Philadelphia midnight
Mondays on WGTW Ch. 48. Dayton, OH 10:30 p.m. Fridays on DATV Ch. 20.

• NWA Florida'a Uptown Frankie Capone was signed to work May 14 for
Extreme World Warfare in Oxford, England. Capone debuted in 1999 for
EWW and also toured with the group in 2000 and 2001.

In 2000, Capone turned his back on the English fans in Halifax by
joining the Demonic faction the Dead Souls. During the 2001 tour,
Capone dismantled former ECW star Nova in a steel cage, and WOW
magazine ran a 4-page editorial on them.

• The Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum sets events for
the 2004 gala celebration.

PWHF Dinner of Champions: 6:30 p.m., Saturday, March 6 at Ilio
DiPaolo's Restaurant in Blasedell, New York. Cost is $35. A list of
those in attendance will be posted soon. Call 716-825-3675 or
518-356-3473.

PWHF Bowling Tournament: 7 p.m., Friday, March 12; 6:30 p.m. and 9
p.m., Saturday, March 13; and 2 p.m., Sunday, March 14 at Rolling
Greens Bowling Lanes, 217 Mohawk Ave. in Scotia, New York. Tickets for
5-person teams are $75 per team. The tournament is a No Tap format.
For information call Fran Lawyer at 518-381-4848.

PWHF Induction Weekend: Friday-Sunday, May 7-9 at the Holiday Inn, 100
Nott Terr. in Schenectady, New York. For information on the induction
dinner, wrestling convention, meet-n-greet or golf outing call
518-356-3473 or 518-725-5272.

For information on the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum
contact Tony Vellano at 518-356-3473, tvellano{at}msn.com or Mike Capano
at 518-725-5272, mcapano{at}nycap.rr.com.

• Who deserves to be in the main event of WrestleMania XX? E-mail
jvarsallone{at}herald.com with your response, complete mailing address
(with zip code) and phone number, and you will be eligible for a
wrestling prize.

• The Mick Foley DVD Greatest Hits & Misses: A Life In Wrestling was
released Jan. 20. The 2-disc DVD set (five hours) features Foley
matches from WWE, WCW and even from the recently purchased ECW
collection. This will be the second Foley DVD, with the first one
being Hard Knocks & Cheap Pops.

The new release includes footage from WWE, WCW and ECW. Cactus Jack
vs. Big Van Vader (WCW Saturday Night, April 17, 1993); Cactus Jack
and Maxx Payne vs. Nasty Boys (WCW Spring Stampede 1994); Cactus Jack
vs. Sabu (ECW Hostile City Showdown 1994); Cactus Jack vs. Chris
Candido (SMW, Nov. 18, 1994); Cactus Jack vs. The Sandman (Texas Death
Match, ECW, Feb. 4, 1995); Cactus Jack and Raven vs. Terry Funk and
Tommy Dreamer (ECW November to Remember 1995); Cactus Jack vs. Mikey
Whipwreck (ECW Big Ass Extreme Bash 1996); Mankind vs. Shawn Michaels
(WWE Mind Games 1996); Cactus Jack vs. HHH (WWE Raw, Sept. 22, 1997 -
the MSG show); Mick Foley vs. Terry Funk (WWE Raw, May 4, 1998); Dude
Love vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin (Over The Edge 1998); Mankind vs. The
Undertaker (Hell in a Cell match, King of the Ting 1998); Mankind vs.
The Rock (WWE Raw, Jan. 4, 1999); Cactus Jack vs. Triple H
(streetfight WWE Royal Rumble 2000). The extras include Cactus Jack
vs. Sting (WCW - June 20, 1992); Cactus Jack vs. Sabu (ECW - Sept. 30,
1994); Jack Foley and Les Thornton vs. The British Bulldogs (an old
episode of WWF Challenge where Foley made his debut; Sept. 13, 1986);
Plus the Birth of Mr. Socko; the Las Vegas vignettes with Al Snow; a
feature from WWE Confidential, and some classic promos.

• Mike Graham hosts The Best of Classic Championship Wrestling Volume
2 on DVD. Graham discusses each clip to give some history one each
segment.

Don Muraco vs. the Mongolian Stomper (3:05 aired, 11/74).

NWA-Florida Champion Dusty Rhodes vs. Bill Watts (Watts wins title,
3:36 aired, 11/74).

NWA-Florida Tag Team Champions Mr. Uganda (Ciclon Negro) and Pak Song
vs. Joe LeDuc and Dusty Rhodes (2:45 aired).

Dick Slater and Bob Roop vs. Killer Karl Kox and Jimmy Garvin for the
NWA U.S. Tag Team Titles (5:39 aired, 12/5/78).

Dusty Rhodes vs. Ivan Koloff in a ''30 days in a hole'' match for the
services of Sir Oliver Humperdink (2:33 aired).

Bobo Brazil and Bubba Douglas vs. the Masked Assassins (1:16 aired).

Mr. Wrestling II promos.

Dusty Rhodes vs. Missouri Mauler (NWA-Florida Title tournament
semifinals, finish only, 1½5/78).

Dusty Rhodes vs. Bob Roop (NWA-Florida Title tournament finals, finish
only, 1½5/78).

NWA-Florida Tag Team Champions Mr. Uganda (Ciclon Negro) and Pak Song
vs. Joe LeDuc and Dusty Rhodes (finish only, 1978).

Key West Carnival highlights (1980).

Women's Tag Team Champions Judy Martin and Lelani Kai vs. Vicki
Williams and Joyce Grable (Williams and Grable win titles, 1:48
aired).

Dick Murdoch vs. Harley Race (3:19 aired).

NWA World Heavyweight Champion Jack Brisco vs. NWA U.S. Champion
Johnny Valentine (3:29 aired).

NWA-Southern Heavyweight Champion Killer Karl Krupp vs. Ciclon Negro
in a No Disqualification match (2:00 aired).

NWA-Florida Title match: Bob Roop vs. Rocky Johnson in a Lumberjack
Match (2:15 aired).

Pepper Gomez vs. Abdullah the Butcher (2:00 aired) Note: NWA-Florida
Tag Team Title Match.

Dusty Rhodes and Andre the Giant vs. Larry The Ax Hennig and Bob Roop
is listed on the back cover but is not on the DVD.

The cost is $9.99. Add Classic Championship Wrestling Vol. 1 DVD for
an additional $5. Visit www.cwfarchives.com.

• FYE offers classic wrestling DVDs in stock. Best Buy listed them on
its web site, but they are not available in its stores yet. They're
also listed on Amazon. Cost is $9.99 each.

Takedown Masters: Dream: Dusty Rhodes and The Haiti Kid vs. Bobby
Duncum Sr. and Gary Hart [5:28]. Dusty Rhodes and Eddie Graham vs. Bob
Roop and Bob Orton Jr. [7:44]. Eddie Graham and Paul Jones vs. Chris
Markoff and Buddy Colt [11:51]. Dusty Rhodes and Bill Watts vs. Dick
Murdoch and Buddy Colt [9:00]. Harley Race vs. Dusty Rhodes [8:29].
Dusty Rhodes vs. Lars Anderson [6:45]. Harley Race vs. Dusty Rhodes
[5:43].

Takedown Masters: Turnbuckle Dreams I: The Black Ninja vs. Prince
Iaukea [6:17]. Hector Geurrero vs. Lex Luger [9:55]. Kevin Sullivan,
Maya Singh and The Purple Haze vs. Tony D'Amata, Jim Backlund and Mike
Allen [5:06]. Kendell Windham vs. Mark Benedict [10:39]. Ric Flair vs.
Barry Windham [2:05]. Blackjack Mulligan vs. La Amenaza Roja and The
Marauder [4:08].

Takedown Masters: Turnbuckle Dreams II: The Sheepherders vs. Sam Bass
and Crusher Canard [3:39]. The Dusty Rhodes/Tully Blanchard $100,000
Challenge [3:45]. Mike Rotundo vs. Colt Steel [2:59]. Kevin Sullivan
and Dory Funk Jr. vs. the Mulkey Brothers [4:29]. Paul Jones vs.
Johnny Valentine [10:09]. Ed Gantner vs. Louis Estaya [3:10]. Bugsy
McGraw Video [4:22]. The Cuban Connection vs. Jim Backlund and Johnny
B. Good [5:41]. Mike Graham and Steve Keirn vs. Teijo Kahn and the
Tahitian Prince [3:48].

• IPW and NWA-Florida presented the first Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup
last year at the Florida WrestlePlex in St. Petersburg, FL. To say
these shows more than lived up to the hype would be an understatement.

The wrestlers delivered a tremendous show, and a lot of money was
raised for cancer research in the memory of a great man. The event --
available on DVD -- featured some of the best cruiserweight action.

The show includes a 10-bell salute to the late Jeff Peterson, a Macho
Man Randy Savage interview, Naphtali vs. Seijin Akki, Jason Cross vs.
C.M. Punk, Tony Mamaluke vs. Jerelle Clark, B-Boy vs. Steve Madison,
Sedrick Strong vs. David Babylon, Reckless Youth vs. Sonjay Dutt,
Ruckus vs. Roderick Strong, Justice vs. Colt Cabana, Ruckus vs. Jason
Cross, Naphtali vs. B-Boy, Reckless Youth vs. Tony Mamaluke, Sedrick
Strong vs. Justice, Reckless Youth vs. Naphtali, Sedrick Strong vs.
Ruckus, Florida Unified champion Billy Fives vs. Lex Lovett,
NWA-Florida tag team champions Mike and Todd Shane vs. Danny Doring
and Steve Corino, Reckless Youth vs. Sedrick Strong.

The DVD-R version contains an additional 30 minutes of bonus footage
from non-tournament matches Chaos vs. Kubiak vs. Havoc in a three-way
hardcore match (finish only), Naturally Marvelous vs. Danny Doring and
Mikey Tenderfoot (finish only), Lex Lovett vs. Agent Steele (finish
only), Double Deuce (Frankie Capone, Pat Powers and Pat McGroin) vs.
Comic Book Guy Anderson, Pretty Fly and Mark Zout as Stone Cold Mark
Austin (finish only), Agent Steele vs. Navy Seal (finish only), Steve
Madison and Sonjay Dutt vs. Roderick Strong and Jerelle Clark, Scoot
Andrews and Agent Steele vs. Colt Cabana and C.M. Punk.

• WWE SmackDown! Here Comes The Pain for the PlayStation2 computer
entertainment system is available at top retail outlets nationwide.
Created exclusively for PlayStation 2 by Yukes Co., Ltd. of Japan, WWE
SmackDown! Here Comes The Pain is the next installment in one of the
most successful video game franchises of all time.

World Wrestling Entertainment licensed video games have sold more than
$350 million in the United States since 1999 with last years WWE
SmackDown! game selling more than 700,000 units in its first eight
weeks at retail.


--- Internet Rex 2.29