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So, "Ring of Hell"...


Bix

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DVDVR discussion starting here.

 

I don't have my copy yet (I blame Media Mail) but from talking to those who have it and reading those posts, it sounds incredible, with tons of previously unreleased information that borders on scary at times. Through the grapevine, I've heard that there's a bunch of NJPW dojo stuff (including a detailed passage about Hiromitsu Gompei's death as well Benoit being tortured and then going on to torture others when he became an estabished star), the truth about Dave Lagana's firing, Dean Malenko feeding Eddy Guerrero drugs, and a bunch of other fucked up material. I'll post a full review after I read it.

 

Anyone here get it yet?

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Not that this is news to anybody here, but going through that DVDVR thread makes me, at times, shake my head about how some wrestling fans still want to live in their world of denial.

 

I'd upload SLL's Benoit Apologist Bingo, except I'm at work and I saved the image on my home computer.

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I have a copy. Will be finished soon enough. It is very good. I have known Matthew for years and his writing style is something that is very unique and frankly "fits" when telling a story as fucked up as the one he is telling in the book. It will rub a lot of smart fans the wrong way, which is a good thing. He takes a lot of shots at the sort of hyper fanboy culture that creates a hallmark line of Benoit clones, i.e. workrate "freaks" who slowly commit suicide as a testament to their commitment as workers..which deep down has more to do with being a mark for the business and themselves than anything else. I'm going to try and get Mooneyham to read it and do it a write up on it in the paper down here. Mike would probably have a stroke looking at a lot of the shit in the book, but I think there is a really interesting and serious argument to be had about the things Matthew raises in the book.

 

One other thing. It is listed as a True Crime book at Barnes and Noble, so don't go looking in the Wrestling section. I'm staff rec'ing it down here so it gets more visibility (yes I work at BN).

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One other thing. It is listed as a True Crime book at Barnes and Noble, so don't go looking in the Wrestling section. I'm staff rec'ing it down here so it gets more visibility (yes I work at BN).

Man I wish I had read this before going to Barnes and Noble. Nothing weirder than asking the clerk in the customer service section, "Hey can you help me find the Chris Benoit book?"

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He takes a lot of shots at the sort of hyper fanboy culture that creates a hallmark line of Benoit clones, i.e. workrate "freaks" who slowly commit suicide as a testament to their commitment as workers..which deep down has more to do with being a mark for the business and themselves than anything else.

So how much does he mention ROH in the book? Or does he?

 

How much is the book? I'll probably get it if they have it at BnB.

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I just got it from Amazon for about $21 with shipping.

 

What's cracking me up so far is of all the things I've heard are in there, people on DVDVR getting incredibly shook over the apparent revelation that Dean Malenko was Eddy's drug hookup even post-rehab. I guess by virtue of being alive, Dean inherits the mantle of greatest wrestler ever who can do no wrong. It never surprises me what horrible acts some fans will accept as fact and what seemingly far less fucked up things get the "OMG NO WAY THATS A LIE" treatment.

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What gets me is that people are saying that without even having looked at the fucking book. I don't want to turn this into "I know the author, I am kewl!" shit, but I have know Randazzo for years and argued with him bitterly at times over everything from the quality of Jawbreaker albums to the merits or Christopher Hitchens writing. Matthew can be abrasive and stubborn as shit, but he's not a liar. He is actually remarkably straight forward by the standards of most net personalities. He wouldn't go to print with anything that was bullshit. He is far too meticulous and it's not his style anyhow (not to mention, you know that shit was vetted by Phoenix books legal staff). I would venture to say that anyone who has dealt with him on the net or in person over the years would say the same.

 

Really though he is going to get a ton of shit for this. He'll be called a mark version of Jim Wilson by the sort of douches who hero worship Dean Malenko for merely staying alive (by the way, lets be honest..all of Deans friends were hardcore drug addicts..what are the odds a guy working a similar style, running the road with them, and being closer than "brothers" wasn't a pill popper himself..seriously). He won't give a shit of course, but it is sad. The very folks who should read this book and take a second look at the nature of the business either won't read the book at all or will take a tough tone toward the messenger instead of the message.

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Guest KÄSE

Book looks awesome and is in the mail

 

but

 

I'm not quite sure who's the one getting trolled between Chubb Rock and dudes who pretend he's a real poster, but I'm getting increasingly sure it's me. And that pisses me off. It would be really nice if the obvious Kaiju material could be kept in Kaiju/post-Kaiju.

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So who is this Matthew Randazzo? Just asking cause I've never heard of him except the link that Bix has been spreading everywhere.

 

As for the people that should read this book that won't, Fuck them. If Benoit killing his kid didn't change them, nothing will.

Can you elaborate on what you're saying here please?

 

Who are the people that should read this book?

 

Why should these people read the book?

 

Why do you think some of these people that should read the book will not do so?

 

Why so angry at them if they don't do so?

 

 

How was Benoit killing his family supposed to change these people?

 

What are these people now supposed to change to?

 

How could this book possibly help change them?

 

 

For me, the book sounds interesting but as with other books I won't be able to afford it. The DVDVR thread though is sad because of some of the people there who are obsessed with anything negative. I've seen some of these posters make blatant, nonsensical jumps in "logical assumption" and even present them as facts just to prove to themselves that the world is 100% corrupt. For example, if someone saw Dean Malenko give a sad face to a baby they would than assume Malenko kills babies and than present it as fact. They also have a problem of believing things are more evil than they are. People who rip tags off mattresses are EVIL. So it's hard to take anything they say seriously when it comes to anything that discusses something in a negative sense. Sleaze junkies is a good word for it. They should start their own Jerry Springer type talke show. It's hilarious how they're so quick and gullible to believe anything negative. They're complete marks for that.

 

If one of those people reads this, they'll probably say something stupid like ?You Think DA wrestlers are good people cuzz DEY good wrestlers in ring when really they suxx cause they have EVIIIL hearts in real life". Since not only do they believe all wrestlers are dumb and evil but they think (or I should say want to think) all people are too except for those that look down at people along with them. It's a weird world. Anyway, I look at things objectively and call a spade a spade.

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Are you comparing supplying drugs to your recovering drug addict best friend to ripping the tag off of a mattress or frowning at a baby? Just want to make sure there's no confusion.

It appears that he is, along with the fact that we're ghoulish creeps for wanting to read about it, whereas he's not for comparing the appeal of moonsaults to vaginal bleeding or something.
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Book looks awesome and is in the mail

 

but

 

I'm not quite sure who's the one getting trolled between Chubb Rock and dudes who pretend he's a real poster, but I'm getting increasingly sure it's me. And that pisses me off. It would be really nice if the obvious Kaiju material could be kept in Kaiju/post-Kaiju.

Speaking on behalf of the CKC community, I can assure you we are working day and night trying to figure out which one of us "remember chubb rock" is. Because really, he has to be one of us.

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The problem with most people in general is that, when they get their own images of a person and worship the ground that person walks on, they will always be in denial that said person could possibly do anything bad, no matter how strong the evidence may be.

 

There were people in denial that O.J. Simpson could have possibly killed Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman, and people in denial that Michael Jackson could have possibly molested a young boy. They may have been found not guilty in the particular criminal cases they were tried for, but there is still plenty of evidence to show that both Simpson and Jackson are screwed-up individuals.

 

That doesn't mean, though, that we have to simply dismiss everything else they did. I still listen to Michael Jackson's music and appreciate his talent there. I just don't put it on a pedestal and believe that, because his music is good, that he can do no wrong no matter what.

 

It's the same way with Malenko. I respect his wrestling talent and he was very good at what he did in the ring. But I don't put him or any other wrestler on a pedestal and think of them as a "hero" or "role model."

 

Some people do that, though. And those are the people that are always going to have a problem accepting that Malenko could have possibly done something that was, in a word, wrong.

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