On this episode of the Invizible Web, I interviewed Timothy Wyllie, formerly Father Micah of the Process Church of the Final Judgment. We talk about the history of the sect and its de-facto leader Mary Ann de Grimston, as well as his new book that tells its story,Love Sex Fear Death: The Inside [...]
It is a new season on the Invisible Web. After blatantly ripping off Torchwood’s approach of a mini-season, I return with Paul Karasik, a comic archivist, associate editor of Art Spiegelman’s RAW comic anthology, and contributor to the New Yorker and Nickelodean Magazine. In 2003, with sister Judy, he co-authored [...]
Happy Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, Perchtenlauf, Requiem of the Dead, Tongzhi, Christmas, Yule or Winter Solstice. On this episode of the Invisible Web Cast, I interview the only court certified historian of the combat sports, Karl Stern once again for the first half of the show. We discuss DC vs Marvel Comics continuity, 52, Annihilation, [...]
The Invisible Web Episode 21 (0302) - Fighting 63 in Japan On this episode of the Invisible Web I interview Roxanne Modafferi, who is one of the headliners for the inaugural GCM VALKYRIE MMA show on Saturday, at Tokyo’s Differ Ariake (doors open 1:00 PM Tokyo and 2:00 is bell time). We discuss the etymological [...]
The Invisible Web Episode 20 (The Incredibly Strange Interview) [caption id=”" align=”alignnone” width=”170″ caption=”The cover of Beer Blood Cornmeal (C) ECW Press”] On this episode of the Invisible Web, I interview Bob Calhoun, also known as Count Dante of Incredibly Strange Wrestling, who released his book, B […]
Update Sat June 26: Elite XC play by play here: http://invizweb.wordpress.com/2008/07/26/elite-xc-coverage/ Combat sports galore. The RAW Draft, Triplemania, and other fun stuff. And remember to vote for Rupert the AntiChrist for President in the 2008 US Presidential election. Xanshin @ Green Destiny Flash CMLL Juicio Final results by Kris Zellner Better lat […]
On this episode of the Invisible Web I celebrate Midsummer’s Day with the odd synchronicities of the holiday. I also review two movies an episode of a legendary BBC Science fiction television series. BAD WOLF~! Gylfaginning featuring Fenrir, from Snorri’s Prose Edda. Fenrir @ Godchecker Happy St. John’s Day, from Cryptomundo Happy Solstice/ […]
An update on my so-called life, Alvarez and Meltzer merge (Melvarez?), Street Fighter IV, Metal Gear Solid IV, Friday the 13th, and more. Notes: Capcom: New Street Fighter IV Boss Character! Concept Art For New Old Characters. WELCOME TO THE NEW WRESTLINGOBSERVER.COM/FIGURE FOUR ONLINE Two good news from Art of War FC (China) Shoot Boxing Standing Vale Tudo’ […]
Cauliflower Alley Club Director Les Thatcher joins the show to talk about his illustrious career the in the Professional Wrestling. What and when is the Cauliflower Alley Club Reunion? Who was his trainer Tony Santos? Where is his Wrestling Weekly co-host Doc Young? Plus discussion of Jr Heavyweight wrestling, Michael Hayes’ suspension, [...]
While combating audio nightmares and the lack of meals, Alexandra Chica Bruce, a long-time writer for DisInformation journeys through time and space (three-time zones to be exact) to shoot on various subjects in the second part of our story on Retro UFO 3. Who is Chica Bruce? Where is she currently? How did [...]
In 1952, wrestling magazines were as important to professional wrestling as television. As a 10 year old kid I living on Dory Funk Sr.’s Flying Mare Ranch in Umbarger, Texas we had no wrestling on television. My main source of information was the wrestling magazines published in New York.
I was shocked when I read the front page of Wrestling Review and saw a picture of Killer Kowalski and Yukon Eric. The headline read, Killer Kowalski kicks off Yukon Eric’s ear.
Kowalski was 6′ 6″ tall and looked like the most amazing athlete I had ever seen. I could imagine Kowalski’s boot coming down on Yukon Eric’s ear and knocking it right off his head. Killer Kowalski was the top heel in the country at the time.
Twelve years later, my father received a call from Jim Barnett, Wrestling Promoter in Sydney Australia asking if I would be interested in coming to Australia for three months. As I got off a Quantas Airlines 707 at Sydney International Airport people were talking about professional wrestling on television and “Bad Guy” Killer Kowalski.
They told me of an interview on a national TV show where the host asked Killer Kowalski if it hurt when he stomped his opponent in the face with his size 16 wrestling boot. Killer replied, “No it doesn’t hurt at all. I wear special thick soles and it doesn’t hurt my foot at all.”
The value of a professional wrestler to a promotion is his box office appeal. My first match was in Sydney Stadium, only a short walk from our hotel in Kings Cross. Sydney Stadium held 17,000 people and it was packed to the rafters for the main event, Killer Kowalski against Tex McKenzie. That same week Killer Kowalski and Tex McKenzie sold out Melbourne’s Festival Hall, 12,000 fans, Perth Australia’s National Stadium 25,000 people and Brisbane sold out to the tune of 8,000 people. Killer Kowalski was the biggest star in one of the best territories in the world, Australia.
We worked five days a week and traveled first class from one end of the country to the other. Killer Kowalski was the top heel for Jim Barnett’s Promotion. First class is the best way to describe Killer Kowalski as a person. It was such a thrill on the end of the tour to have the opportunity to wrestle the person I had been so impressed with as a child.
SAN FRANCISCO—Del Martin, a pioneering lesbian rights activist who with her lifelong partner became a symbol for the movement to legalize gay marriage, died Wednesday morning. She was 87.Martin died at a San Francisco hospital two weeks after a broken arm exacerbated her existing health problems, according to Kate Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights.
Her partner of more than 55 years and wife of just over two months, Phyllis Lyon, was with her.
“Ever since I met Del 55 years ago, I could never imagine a day would come when she wouldn’t be by my side,” Lyon, 83, said in a statement Wednesday.
“I also never imagined there would be a day that we would actually be able to get married,” she added. “I am devastated, but I take some solace in knowing we were able to enjoy the ultimate rite of love and commitment before she passed.”
Martin and Lyon exchanged vows at San Francisco City Hall on June 16, the first day same-sex couples could legally wed in California, after being together for more than half a century.
Mayor Gavin Newsom, who officiated the wedding, singled them out to be the first gay couple to be declared “spouses for life” in the city in recognition of their long relationship and their status as pioneers of the gay rights movement.
“The greatest way we can honor the life work of Del Martin, is to continue to fight and never give up, until we have achieved equality for all,” Newsom.
Someone sent me a link to a site that is promoting a re-enactment of the protests at the Democratic Convention of 1968. While some of my older activist friends and I kinda like the idea of a ritual in remembrance of this day, the first question that popped in our heads was “What’s the point?” Their mission statement says:
“40 years ago this August, the streets of Chicago became a bloody open forum on the politics of power and resistance, as the Democratic National Convention lapsed into chaos and protesters in the streets were met with the gas and bayonets of Law and Order. The ghosts of this unresolved history haunt us to this day. We meet on August 28 in Grant Park to peacefully purge these ghosts and to make sense of our past through ritual reenactment, a living history lesson for the city of Chicago which asks, where were we then?, and where are we now?”
Although it may be an interesting and memorable history lesson, these are very different times, and re-enacting a violent day in history will do nothing to change the status quo. But the questions are being asked in order to gain some perspective. This led me to question how activism has changed during the past 40 years, and to wonder where it will go from here.
…Things had just started to get rolling (i.e., the fucking had commenced) when I looked behind me and saw two men I didn’t recognize.
“Who are you?” I asked quietly, knowing that the performers couldn’t see them from their vantage point and not wanting to disturb the fantastic handjob in progress.
“L.A. Vice,” the one in front responded, and he flashed his badge. It looked pretty real to me. I didn’t want to stop rolling, so I led them away from the bedroom into the dining room.
“Do you have a permit?” the vice cop asked.
“Yes, I do,” I said. “I’m not sure where my production manager is—he must be getting lunch. Um, let me look for it.” I started looking through the production binders somewhat frantically as the officers rolled their eyes at me.
“You’re going to have to stop filming until we see a permit,” the first cop said firmly.
“It’s here somewhere, I swear.” They continued to look skeptical. At this point, they clearly did not believe me…
AULL has announced that there will be a special benefit show for Scorpio Jr. on 9/20 at Arena Lopez Mateos featuring their regulars and top independent stars like Black Terry, Intocable, Fuerza y Juventud Guerrera, Rambo, Super Calo, Toscano, and others.
Shocker and EMLL directors are on shaky terms again and he isn’t being booked right now due to philosophical differences as Shocker wants to reform the Guapos by bringing in Zumbido but that isn’t in the plans right now. Shocker is an independent contractor so he can pretty much work wherever he wants.
Solar I stated yesterday that he knows he is going to be facing some tough foes tomorrow in Tultitlan in the big 10 man steel cage match with the loser being either shaved or losing their mask but he is going into the match very confident. Solar said that he has put his mask up on many occasions and has survived every time so he thinks that this should be no different and he feels extra motivated this time after touring England last month. Solar said that the fans in London were great and they made him feel like a hero so it has revitalized him and he plans on taking someone’s mask tomorrow and not losing his.
Zumbido said yesterday that leaving EMLL four years ago was a big mistake and that he has been in talks with people in the offices about a return but wants to meet up with Paco Alonso face-to-face to seal the deal. Zumbido said that EMLL was his home and that he hopes that Paco will understand that he made a mistake and would take him back hopefully by January. Zumbido then said that if that doesn’t happen then he would still work independent and hopefully get some random bookings for EMLL to build back their confidence in him.
Giordano Bruno has been called a martyr to science and an occultist, but a new book argues that the brilliant philosopher’s unconventional behavior did him in.
Aug. 25, 2008 | The bronze figure of Giordano Bruno that stands at the center of Rome’s Campo de’ Fiori may be the most successful commemorative monument in the world. The average statue in a park or square usually rates no more than a glance: Either you already know who the guy is, or you don’t care. But the hooded and manacled effigy of Bruno, with its haunted stare, immediately catches the eye, and the gruesome story attached to it — Bruno was burned at the stake in that very spot, for the crime of heresy — cements him in memory. Practically every tourist who comes to Rome tromps through the Campo and hears that story, even if they’ve never heard of Bruno before. The students who commissioned the statue in the 1880s, as an emblem for freedom of thought and the division of church from state, really got their money’s worth.
But who was Giordano Bruno, and why was he executed in the Campo de’ Fiori in 1600? A common misperception mixes him up with Galileo, who ran into trouble with the church 16 years later for embracing the Copernican model of the solar system instead of endorsing the Aristotelian belief that the sun revolves around the Earth. (In fact, the two men shared an Inquisitor, the implacable Cardinal Robert Bellarmine, canonized by the Catholic Church in 1930.) Bruno, too, thought that the Earth circled the sun, and subscribed to many other than heterodox ideas as well: that the universe is infinite and that everything in it is made up of tiny particles (i.e., atoms), and that it is immeasurably old. But as Ingrid Rowland demonstrates in her new biography of the renegade thinker, “Giordano Bruno: Philosopher/Heretic,” Bruno was no martyr for science. What got him killed was a murky mixture of spiritual transgression and personal foibles, combined with a large dose of bad luck.
An African Grey parrot already adept at warbling tunes as diverse as Beethoven’s symphonies and the Misson Impossible theme has added an imitation of a Dr Who Dalek to his repetoire.
Exterminate: Leonard the African Grey parrot has mastered the Dalek expression
Leonard, an African Grey parrot, imitates noises made by people and things around him and has developed perfect comedic timing, say his owners, Maya and Ian Brandt.
The couple run an antique shop in Bristol and the loud-mouth bird often has customers in stitches.
Mrs Brandt, 50, said: “We have taught him certain things, but other things like music he picks up – he just likes to imitate what he hears.
“We listen to Radio 4 a lot and he always joins in the pips before the news. He also copies noises before you even realise you are doing them.”
She said the eight-year-old parrot has mastered the characteristic “exterminate” of Dr Who’s enemy the Dalek thanks to coaching from one of the couple’s nephews.
Our September 21st Ohio debut is less than a month away, and tickets are moving fast already! With only 200 seats in-house, and a chunk of them already sold, there’s no better time than the present to head to our online store and snap up your advance tickets! Plus, there are specially priced tickets for kids, so feel free to bring the young ones for an afternoon of luchatastic fun!
We’ve got two of the afternoon’s 8 matches already locked in and announced for your review:
~First Meeting Ever~
El Oriental [AAA] vs. Claudio Castagnoli [CHIKARA]
The -63kg Medal Ceremony is still going on at 5:17 EST so I probably will not be sleeping at 6:00 Am today I guess. NBC commentator is still putting over the American Bronze medalist. Hamaguchi’s team mate, Kaori Icho is pretty photogenic when she is trying to fix her hair. Now NBC is emphasizing Japan only has 2 Gold so far in Wrestling stead of 3.
And so begins the conclusion of the tale which is Women’s Wrestling in the 2008 Olympics.
EMLL confirmed today that Mistico suffered a fractured collarbone last night in Guadalajara and will be out of action for 3 months. Mistico was rushed to Hospital Obregon in Mexico City last night after the show where he underwent surgery and Dr. Jorge Alonso Orozco announced this morning Mistico’s prognosis.
EMLL also confirmed today that Hector Garza had surgery at Hospital Obregon on his right knee this weekend after being injured Friday night at Arena Mexico and he will be out of action for at least 3 weeks.
Luchas 2000 is reporting that Sean Waltman could be on his way to EMLL with Marco Corleone being his go-between with Paco Alonso. Waltman had decided to quit working AAA recently due to being upset with the backstage scene that interferes with his recovery from drug rehab. More on this as it comes.
Scorpio Jr. was also taken to Hospital Obregon on Friday night with two bleeding ulcers that he underwent surgery for on Saturday. There really isn’t a set prognosis for a return to the ring yet.
RESULTS
AULL 8/20 – Centro de Convenciones de Tlalnepantla
1. Kilvan & Pequeno Demonio beat Hormiga Atomica & Rey Krystal
2. Juan el Ranchero/Psicopata/Super Panda defeated Las Traumas I y II/Tortuga Mutante
3. Cerebro Maligno/Epitafio/Herejia beat King Star Tiger/Quimico/Yakuza
4. Mascara Purpura/Terry Dos Mil/Volador Jr. defeated Black Warrior/Rey Bucanero/Sadico
5. L.A. Par-K/Mr. Niebla/Villano IV (subbing for Villano V) beat Blue Panther/Dr. Wagner Jr./Marco Corleone – Par-K & Doc threw out mask challenges after the match.
IWRG 8/17 – Arena Naucalpan
1. Anubis & Avisman beat Eragon & Halcon Dos Mil
2. Epidemia & Heavy Boy defeated Jack & Judas el Traidor
3. Los Oficiales (AK-47/Fierro/911) beat Mascara de Oro y Plata/Mascara Magnifica/Super Mascara
4. Ciclon Negro/Dr. Cerebro/Negro Navarro defeated Centauro/Fenix/Freelance
5. Intocable/Multifacetico/Ultraman Jr. beat Emilio Charles Jr./Monsther/Scorpio Jr. by DQ when Scorp fouled Intocable.
IWRG 8/21 – Arena Naucalpan (Festival de Mascaras)
1. Heavy Boy beat Eragon
2. Los Oficiales (AK-47/Fierro/911) defeated Aeroman/Freelance/Zatura
3. Black Terry/Capitan Muerte/Shu el Guerrero beat Los Cadetes del Espacio (Solar I/Super Astro/Ultraman Jr.)
4. Halcon Ortiz/Mano Negra/Pantera defeated Hijo del Cien Caras/Mascara Ano Dos Mil Jr./Negro Navarro
5. El Audaz/Dr. Wagner Jr./Rayo de Jalisco Jr. beat Los Hermanos Dinamita (Cien Caras/Mascara Ano Dos Mil/Universo Dos Mil)
Monterrey 8/24 – Arena Coliseo de Monterrey
1. Tequilita beat Trivial
2. Divino Narciso/Dulce Paola/Mercurio defeated Poseidon/Bella Rubi/Rosa Salvaje
3. Sangre Chicana Jr./Simbolo Dos Mil/Vaquero Romo beat Estrella Dorada Jr./Golden Boy/Hijo del Huracan Ramirez
4. Alejandro y Valente Fernandez battled Centurion Negro & Karonte to a double countout.
5. Hator/Sangre Chicana/Toscano defeated Aventurero/Humberto Garza Jr./Stuka by DQ.
UPCOMING SHOWS
EMPRESA MEXICANA DE LUCHA LIBRE
8/26 – Arena Coliseo de Guadalajara
1. Thunder Boy vs. Milenio
2. Metatron vs. Guero Loco
3. Leon Blanco vs. Pequeno Damian 666
4. Occidental Tag Titles: Rayman & Sagrado (c) vs. Damian el Terrible & Hijo del Texano
5. Marco Corleone & Mistico vs. Atlantis & Ultimo Guerrero
8/26 – Arena Mexico
1. Sombra de Plata & Starman vs. Inquisidor & Semental
2. Angel Azteca Jr./Metalico/Tigre Blanco vs. El Bronco/Hooligan/Loco Max
3. Fabian el Gitano/Flash/Metalik vs. Arkangel de la Muerte/Escandalo/Nitro
4. Alex Koslov/La Sombra/Valiente vs. Euforia/Nosferatu/Sangre Azteca
5. Dos Caras Jr./Hector Garza/Shocker vs. La Peste Negra (Heavy Metal/Negro Casas/Mr. Niebla)
8/29 – Arena Mexico
1. Mascarita Dorada/Mini Fantasy/Pequeno Olimpico vs. Pequeno Black Warrior/Pequeno Damian 666/Pierrothito
2. Hijo del Fantasma/La Mascara/La Sombra vs. Felino/Heavy Metal/Misterioso II
3. Parejas Increibles Suicidas: Lady Apache & Amapola vs. Marcela & Princesa Sugei
4. Atlantis/Negro Casas/Ultimo Guerrero vs. Chris Sabin/Alex Shelley/AJ Styles
5. Mascara contra Mascara: Mictlan vs. Dragon Rojo
6. Dr. Wagner Jr./Mistico/Shocker vs. Los Guerreros (Black Warrior/Mr. Niebla/Rey Bucanero)
8/31 – Arena Coliseo
1. Molotov & Trueno vs. Artillero & Super Comando
2. Metalik/Tony Rivera/Sensei vs. Apocalipsis/Halcon Negro/Loco Max
3. Lady Apache/Luna Magica/Marcela vs. Amapola/Medusa/Princesa Sugei
4. Blue Panther/Dos Caras Jr./Hector Garza vs. Hijo del Texano/Los Villanos (IV y V)
5. La Peste Negra (Heavy Metal/Negro Casas/Mr. Niebla) vs. Los Perros del Mal (Averno/Damian el Terrible/Mephisto)
IN THE FLESH EROTIC READING SERIES
AUGUST 21st at 8 PM
AT HAPPY ENDING LOUNGE, 302 BROOME STREET, NYC
(B/D to Grand, J/M/Z to Bowery, F to Delancey or F/V to 2nd Avenue, http://www.happyendinglounge.com)
Admission: Free
Happy Ending Lounge: 212-334-9676
Summer heats up as In The Flesh celebrates the release of host Rachel Kramer Bussel’s latest anthology Spanked: Red-Cheeked Erotica, with readings from contributors M. David Hornbuckle,Andy Horwitz, and Madlyn March. Also featured are novelist Jessica Anya Blau (The Summer of Naked Swim Parties), comedian and playwright Julie Klausner (Wasp Cove), erotic poet Monica Day (host of A Taste of Sex) and filmmaker Tony Comstock. Copies of Spanked will be available for sale and the book trailer will be shown. Hosted and curated by Rachel Kramer Bussel (Spanked, Rubber Sex, Dirty Girls). Free candy and cupcakes will be served.
I Iove a good sex survey, so when I arrived with my friend Denise to a preview of the play My First Time,we eagerly filled out the questionnaire left on each seat in the theater: Are you a virgin? How old were you when you lost your virginity? Where were you? What was your partner’s first name? Do you still keep in touch? Did you feel pressured by anyone to lose your virginity? Did you plan your first time? Did you use contraception? How would you describe your first time? Afterward, we swapped cards and read each other’s answers before an usher collected them from us.
My First Time (myfirsttimetheplay.com), which opened July 28 at New World Stages, is billed as “a play in the style of The Vagina Monologues,” where four actors share both brief snippets and detailed stories about first-time sexual experiences without costume changes, props, or sets. The stories are culled from more than 40,000 posts on myfirsttime.com, a website launched in 1998 by Peter Foldy and Craig Paddock. The duo originally created the site to do research for a teen-movie script they were working on, and it quickly became a phenomenon. Ken Davenport, who adapted the play from the site and produced and directed it, told me, “I’ve clipped things out and fixed some grammar, but otherwise not a single word has been changed.”
The stories range from funny and touching to sweet, sexy, and silly to downright disturbing. In fact, the darker tales—of date rape, coercion, and incest—are the most complex and compelling. “It’s one of the very few things that almost every single person has experienced no matter where you come from or where you live,” says Davenport. “To me, it’s a unifying experience. But for so many reasons, it is one we rarely talk about.” He has clearly made a conscious effort to represent a fair amount of diversity, with stories from both straight and queer voices of different ages, backgrounds, and abilities. The two men and two women in the cast embody the imagined identities behind the very personal postings with skill and grace. One actor, Josh Heine, was so convincing in both his recounting of the first time with his cousin’s pretty friend in a basement on a pile of laundry and the first time with a boy he sat next to on the bus ride home from school that I left the theater questioning his sexuality. I was struck by the range of feelings and emotions on display in the narratives: love, hate, lust, curiosity, ambivalence, anger, confusion, denial, anxiety, and hope—all of which we still can experience through sex beyond that first go around.
The most crafty and powerful part of the play was the juxtaposition of two stories: One is by a sweet high schooler telling the story of his girlfriend going to the prom with the boy her parents hope will be her future husband, the bishop’s son. The bishop’s son rapes her in a car and leaves her bruised on the side of the road. The other is told by a sleazy bartender played with a brilliant mix of subtlety and terror by Bill Dawes. The bartender gets his friend’s girlfriend drunk and high and fucks her, even though she clearly says no. This play has the potential to make people not only reflect on their first time, but to see what complicated terrain sex can be. “I thought it would attract a hip young crowd, but the audiences are much more diverse than I expected,” says Davenport. “I have seen families with their teenage daughters, all filling out the survey side by side. Hopefully, the play will start a discussion between parents and kids.”
Several Internet and broadband companies have acknowledged using targeted-advertising technology without explicitly informing customers, according to letters released on August 11 by the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
And Google, the leading online advertiser, stated that it has begun using Internet tracking technology that enables it to more precisely follow Web-surfing behavior across affiliated sites.
The revelations came in response to a bipartisan inquiry of how more than 30 Internet companies might have gathered data to target customers. The revelations came in response to a bipartisan inquiry of how more than 30 Internet companies might have gathered data to target customers. Some privacy advocates and lawmakers said the disclosures help build a case for an overarching online-privacy law.
“Increasingly, there are no limits technologically as to what a company can do in terms of collecting information . . . and then selling it as a commodity to other providers,” said committee member Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), who created the Privacy Caucus 12 years ago. “Our responsibility is to make sure that we create a law that, regardless of the technology, includes a set of legal guarantees that consumers have with respect to their information.”
