3/26/03

Is there a better television show out there than '24'? I think not.  Anyway... 

On Wednesday March 19th I flew out to Stamford CT, well actually-into JFK airport.  A long flight meant I got to watch a movie on the plane!  Airlines haven't been very good about that lately, especially American Airlines-so I usually bring my own.  In this case, they showed 'Analyze That' which I had seen and enjoyed before-and I brought 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding', a flick I had not seen before.  What a great movie-it was hysterical.  Anyway, it had been a long day and I ended it by having dinner/drinks with Coach and one of the producers at WWE, Todd-along with their local friends who all made it a lot of fun.  It was at the bar where we watched the Special Report regarding the beginning of War.  I spent most of the night watching the news channels and the reporters who were out in Iraq with the troops.  I think it's so weird how they're covering war in 2003-who would have ever thought we wouldn't have to go by the official updates for news, but instead we could watch the events unfold?  

The next day, Thursday-I woke up and went to Titan Tower for the first time.  In my past trip to CT, I had gone to the WWE Production Studios which was a really neat place, and this trip called for the same...therefore having some time to go to the Tower meant that I had to do it.  I thank Phil Speer from WWE.com for the opportunity.  Phil and I (and his roomate's cute girlfriend who's name I can't think of) had lunch at the Tower, followed by a great tour of the building.  It was definitely cool to see the WWE gym where the old ICO-PRO commercials were filmed (yea the slightest things amuse me).  I got to meet some of the WWE personnel that I had not met before, such as Linda McMahon-so that was cool.  I was also given magazines, DVDs, and even the new Hardy Boyz book which so far is a great read.  Speaking of great reads, Phil Speer writes a ton of columns on the website, and also in the magazines so make sure you check them out!  I had a great time at the Tower and I thank Phil once again-he's a great guy and a very talented writer---the interview on my website-reprinted from wwe.com was done by Phil.

After the tour, I went to the Production Studios where I met with more WWE personnel and discussed expanding my horizons and possibly working behind the scenes.  I thank Palma, Mary, and Jordan for taking the time to explain the different production aspects.  It was at the studios where I ran into Josh Mathews-who I did a number of indy shows with, and some of the other great people at the company.  I've become a fan of WWE's Byte This and egged Dr. Tom on for some Tommy Rich impressions and of course I asked to hear his Iron Sheik--as I suspected-he's good.  Thursday night I had dinner with a friend of college who lives out east-which was cool, and then Friday was a travel day once again.  We were delayed quite a bit, but hey-it happens.  Next up is Toughman in Cedar Rapids, IA--if you're anywhere near the area-check it out-Cedar Rapids is always a fun show, and I believe the ring girls will once again be aspiring models/actresses :)  

Lastly, I want to send my condolences out to the family of Portland Oregon's Brian "Rage" Cox...Not that his family would be reading this, but still...I worked with Brian in Bozeman, MT a few years ago on an AWA show.  We kept in touch for a little while after that, and it's sad to see another young guy go-he was a great worker who's life was cut short...That list is getting too long...

Thanks for reading and please sign the guestbook --JxR

3/13/03

What's up...I think I'll start off with Tucson, AZ and my appearance on the KRQ JohnJay and Rich morning show.  They had the Hot or Not contest live on the radio featuring laser pointers, the friendly salon/stylist male judge, the friendly female news anchor judge, and the-well-"Simon"/brutally honest/'bad guy' judge.  Guess which one I was :)  I love being a ring announcer and a total 'good guy' but every once in a while it's fun to change-and for this contest, I was the bad guy.  A bunch of contestants showed up hoping to win the Las Vegas vacation and we also had a great live audience.  For any contestants reading this, I do apologize if you were offended-but hey-it was part of the game.  Thanks to everyone who played, and to everyone who listened.  Also a big thanks to Obi, JohnJay, Rich, and Colleen for making it so much fun @ 6am on 45 minutes of sleep.  

The past two nights I worked the IZW shows in the Phoenix area.  The shows were really well written if I may say so myself...Navajo Warrior and I met after the radio appearance to put together the 'soap operas' that would begin Tuesday night and end Wednesday.  The AZ wrestling scene has always been great, but after working so hard on the two shows and having egos get in the way of pulling the shows off correctly-to get the storylines across-I just don't know anymore.  I've seen a lot of guys come in and learn a little bit which makes them think they're ready to take over the industry.  There are a lot of guys who could get very far in this business if they would be team players.  Unfortunately I left last night's show with a bad feeling towards a lot of guys-which makes me lose interest in working shows in the area.  I learned years ago before I got in to WWE-when working with The Rock on an indy appearance-if The Rock who's at the top of the game doesn't have an ego, nobody deserves to have one.  Anyway, besides the guys who are marks for themselves-the past two shows had some really good talent who cannot only  perform well, but can keep a level head.  I was impressed with the California crew that came out-including James Lucash, Tony Stradlin, MTV Real World's "The Miz", as well as Kenny King from Tough Enough II, J-Rod, LT, Erica Porter and Jimmy Snuka jr-just to give some examples.  I don't know what the future will bring for IZW, I think the 'management' needs to work as a team and reconsider side deals for talent that doesn't belong on a wrestling show...and they especially need to focus on advertising--maybe the outsiders to the business should ask more questions before taking action.

Anyway, I have some indy dates scheduled, as well as Toughman in Iowa--as far as WWE I don't know when I will be doing any shows for them anytime soon, but I will be there in CT next week about possibly exploring other avenues within the company.  I enjoy the "WWE Family" so hopefully everything will go well...that's about it for right now-thank you for reading and please sign the guestbook so I know you guys are reading this.  Thanks! J

2/14/03

Happy Valentine's Day.  I have finally been able to obtain the software needed to update my web site, so now that I have gotten it I will have to try and remember what I wanted to discuss here....

I want to start off with what I think is most important to me as of late.  This is the passing of "Mr.Perfect" Curt Hennig.  I was a huge fan of Curt growing up.  I always hope that when I meet someone  I looked up to as a kid, that it's not a disappointment.  With Curt, it was definitely not a disappointment and I am glad that as I got into the wrestling business I was able to work with him and able to know him.  I think the following paragraph best describes my feelings...this is taken from a piece I wrote for ChicagoWrestling.com's reaction/tribute to Curt....

--I was/am saddened and extremely shocked when I found out about Curt.  As a kid I only watched GLOW, until I caught a segment of Saturday Night's Main Event with Mr. Perfect, Hulk Hogan, and Bobby Heenan.  It was just that one segment that sparked my interest in WWF.  Since then I had always been a huge Curt Hennig mark going as far as working a tour as a referee when I found out he was included, since they already had an announcer.  I didn't know how to ref, but I learned...which got me to work with "Mr. Perfect."  Since that tour I ran into him a few times, everytime being the same...Curt ribbing me for looking like Tom Zenk and telling me stories about how he stood up to bullies for Zenk in highschool.  My last memory of Curt is when he bought me a beer, which was of course-The Perfect Beer....He was a  very cool guy, and I am thankful for the opportunity to work with and to get to know Curt Hennig....--

Curt Hennig will be missed...

  Moving on, it has been a while since updating the site and not too much has really happened.  I worked Toughman contests in  Des Moines, IA and Jackson, TN.  I also worked a show for IZW in Phoenix.  All of those events were a lot of fun.  Toughman is always unpredictable and entertaining.  IZW was a platform for the IZW crew to show off how far they have come as of late.  Navajo Warrior, Mike Nox, Hollywood, Frankie Kazarian, The Ballard Brothers and more were on fire.  "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka was on the show as well and still knows how to entertain a crowd.  Lots of great matches on the show and lots of improvements across the board.  

The last time I was at WWE-I stopped by Raw in Phoenix, where I got to see a lot of the guys I had not seen since my first tryout.  Jimmy Kimmel was there to promote his new tv show, so I had the opportunity to meet him along with some of the talent I hadn't met before such as Trish Stratus who was very cool.  The next night I was in Tucson for Smackdown where I decided since I had pictures with everyone I worked with in the indies-I may as well take pictures with the Smackdown roster (see the pictures page).

I have talked with a wrestling promotion who is interested in having me announce for them, but nothing has been finalized just yet...lots of things are up in the air right now.  As a big fan of Comedy Central, it was cool to hang out with Norm McDonald the same weekend that I met Jimmy Kimmel.  Now I'm really trying to think of the other topics I wanted to discuss, but as always-I can't.  When I can, I'll be back.  Take care and thanks for reading-please sign the guestbook and send me any questions or comments...JJ

SIGN THE GUESTBOOK! CLICK HERE

1/2/03

Happy new year everyone...I don't have too much to discuss here, just wanted to update my site. My computer had been 'in the shop'and now it came back,missing everything inside. Since I don't have my web page editor I am updating this manually (html) and I don't know what I am doing, so I hope this works.Anyway, thank you for all of the emails about last week's Smackdown and Velocity shows.It's hard to hear the microphone at tv tapings, so I did not know how well or poor my announcing would sound until I watched the programs.The last time I did tv, my voice was going too low, into that fake announcing voice that I did not mean to do :).After watching the shows,I was happy that I sounded better (to me at least), and I was pretty much using my real voice.There was never really pressure in the indies or Toughman shows, so it was easy to announce.At WWE, I knew it would take some time to be comfortable with working tv tapings so hopefully last week's improvement means something for me in that aspect.The tag team announcement was a cool surprise. I had my lines down, but then they changed last minute,so I hope it came off ok. This whole html thing is confusing me so I'm going to end this pretty quickly...Thank you for all of the Birthday emails and again for all of the Smackdown/Velocity/Afterburn feedback-I appreciate it.I like watching my tapes so I know what to improve on, but I am missing the Velocity from October 12 I think where it was Chuck Palumbo v. Chavo Guerrero in the main event. If you have that video please let me know. If you live in Des Moines, Iowa or Jackson, TN come out and see my return to Toughman. As far as WWE shows, I am not sure when my next show is, but when I know I'll let you guys know. Thank you for reading and feel free to write/sign the guestbook.

12/23/02

What's up everyone...Thanks as always for checking out my site and I hope you are all doing well...I returned today from Tulsa, OK where I  announced WWE Smackdown and Velocity last night.  It was great to be back at WWE and to see everybody.  I flew out Sunday morning and went straight from the airport to the arena.  One of the first guys I ran into was Josh Mathews, formerly of Tough Enough and currently a commentator for Velocity.  We worked a good number of indie shows together and had not spoken for a while, so it was cool to meet again, especially under these circumstances.  One of the many highlights of working WWE tv tapings is the catering, so after the production meeting I caught a small lunch and a big ice cream sundae.  They had every imaginable topping, so it was really cool.  I ate with Al Wilson who is getting married next week to Dawn Marie and tried to get him to make a good sundae, but he just went with the pie-probably so he wouldn't have trouble with his wedding tux :)

Throughout the day I made my way around the arena to talk to everyone, and even met with Pat Patterson, who explained an angle that would be part of the show that I would be involved in.  The show started at about 7--we had a couple of dark matches, Velocity, then Smackdown.  By 10pm we were just about done, and I spent the rest of the night hanging out with everyone and meeting fans.  

I recently found out that my contract is being renewed and that I will most likely have a regular schedule in the upcoming weeks.  I definitely look forward to my next WWE show as well as my birthday which comes up on the 29th of December-but doesn't change anything (I don't think(there are very few that do)), and I also look forward to working some Toughman events in January and maybe even February.  This will be my third annual show in a row for Des Moines, IA and Jackson, TN-both are very fun with great crowds.  

What did I used to talk about in my commentaries that made them somewhat long, because I'm having trouble trying to think of what else to write? :)  Well, I don't know, but I probably will remember once I upload this....anyway happy holidays to all of you and be safe.  Feel free to sign the guest book and send any questions or comments my way-take care and don't forget to watch Smackdown and Velocity this week! Thanks for reading- "Jason"

11/04/02

Hello.  Last Wednesday, I worked my last IZW show in Tempe, Arizona.  As always it was a lot of fun and the card was filled with  people that I really enjoy working with.  When I signed with WWE I had already agreed to work this show, so I was given permission to fulfill my obligation.  At the show, (ref) Danny B came out and said that he wanted my announcing spot...I told him I like it too much and I would remain the IZW announcer.  Frankie Kazarian, "The Future"(which is a fitting name, since I believe he has a bright future ahead of him) came out with what he called a copy of my WWE contract and pointed out the section that mentioned that I could only work WWE wrestling events.  CC Starr, the commissioner stepped in and gave me a farewell speech that was very cool and told me he didn't want me to get in trouble with the WWE and congratulated me for reaching the big dance and I should move on and let Danny announce in IZW.  Since I knew Danny wanted to do this, we set it up where he now had the opportunity.  After of course I made him and CC dance for the fans.   I think the storyline flowed well, it just went on too long :)  We accomplished our goal though-we turned Danny from a hated manager into a likable ring announcer-well at least a ring announcer...and we explained why I would not be a part of future IZW shows. 

Chris Hero came out from the KY area, and put on a hell of a match with Mike Nox and Derrick Neikirk.  They did a great job working a 3-way with two 'villains' and one 'Hero' :)  There were a lot of show highlights and I really hope more fans will start coming out to these events.  During the week I went out for dinner with a bunch of the guys like Hero, Navajo Warrior-who is still out with a broken ankle, Storm and Lexie Fyfe who was also in from the Midwest for the show.  It was good seeing everyone again and especially good having them there as I said goodbye to IZW.  I haven't been on the road for a couple of weeks and look forward to going back asap, because I miss it!

I have been getting a good amount of hits on the site which is great, and I thank you all for coming, but probably 1% of you guys are signing the guestbook-and that's not cool! I want to know who's stopping by, so please take a second to sign it--thanks!  I'm sorry this is so short, but when I don't post right after an event, I forget all the good stuff by the time I type this!  Thanks again for reading-J/J

10/22/02

USA chants and wrestling shows go together like popcorn and movie theaters.  Ever since the first wrestling show I watched on tv and the first event I attended live, the fans have chanted "U-S-A, U-S-A."  Until last week.  It was my first trip to Canada and the first time attending/being a part of a wrestling event outside of the country.  It was also the first time where the Americans were seen as the villains, by the fans.  In the states, we don't even think twice about booing guys because they are from a different country--we are used to it.  Lance Storm, Christian, and Chris Jericho were all part of our Smackdown house shows in Edmonton, Calgary, and London.  Being the hometown heroes, they were naturally well-received.  What was odd in their matches for me was the chants of "CAN-ADA" and "USA SUCKS".  I had never been exposed to that before and it really got me thinking.  The first thing I thought about was The "UnAmericans" from RAW, how they were so hated in the US but possibly the heroes to Canadians and everyone outside the US.  I don't want to keep rambling on here, so I'll just say that it was a weird experience, but a good one to bring me into reality.

The trip was a lot of fun.  Once again I was on the road with Tony Chimel going through house show training, and I am still convinced Tony is the funniest man on earth.  I feel like I should talk about him, just so I could tell him he is on the site-since I know he won't use the internet if his life depended on it :)    Anyway, I learned a lot and he was a great coach.  Smackdown's other #1 announcer, besides Tony, Funaki, was to cut a promo as the referee for a bra and panties match.  When he was done he asked ME, Smackdown #18 announcer to introduce Torrie and Dawn Marie.  I still don't get it, but he did give me an EVIL INDEED t-shirt so it's cool.  The house shows I have been working were a lot of fun and VERY enjoyable to sit and watch.  I am extremely happy to be a part of WWE and look forward to good things to come in the future. 

Everybody involved with the production has been helpful and I continue to learn and improve at each event.  I have been involved in the business for six years and I have learned everyday since I began..and I will NEVER know it all-or even close to it, so I look forward to taking in as much as I can and using it to my advantage.  I worked the past two weeks on house show and tv tours and I am unsure of when I will be going back.  It could be good that I am not at Velocity this week since Albert nearly caught me in the ring and maybe he will forget about that with time.  While I do not know when I will be working next for WWE, I do know that I will be on the IZW show next Wednesday in Tempe, AZ at Bash on Ash.  I am under contract to work exclusively for WWE, however they are allowing me to work this show Oct.30 since I had committed to it before signing.  I guess this is my last indy show, so I am glad it is with guys like Navajo Warrior, Mike Nox, Hollywood, Rob, Lee, and the rest of the gang.  These guys are awesome and if you live in AZ I suggest you show up to give them a chance and keep IZW around.  Because I waited to write this, I have forgotten what else I wanted to talk about:(  I'll end it by saying how great the people were in Canada and what a cool place it was to visit.  Thank you for reading and please sign my new guestbook-JJ

10/11/02

I haven't written for a few weeks, so it's about time I give my first commentary update since starting with WWE.  I am writing part of this while on the road, and I will finish as soon as this trip is over.  I began my WWE career in Billings, Montana observing Howard Finkel at a non-televised house show.  The following day I observed Lilian Garcia at RAW in Denver, CO and even announced a couple of dark (non-televised) matches.  The next night I was in Colorado Springs, CO filling in for Tony Chimel as the announcer for dark matches, SMACKDOWN, and Velocity.  I think the shows went pretty well and I had a great time.  I got a lot of great advice from both Howard and Lilian and had a lot of fun.  The WWE crew is a tight group filled with hard workers that do their best to provide high quality events everywhere they go. 

After I did the t.v. tapings, I was off for a couple of weeks until this past Saturday.  Saturday night I met with Tony Chimel in Kansas City, MO.  Tony is by far the funniest person I have met in a long time.  It wasn't what I was expecting at all, as I thought he would be very serious.  I had a lot of fun just following him around, because he is constantly cracking jokes.  He gave me a lot of advice and ran me through the house show process as Howard did a few weeks ago, but with his style.  After he told me how things work, I found out that I would be announcing.  So Saturday night I announced my first house show and it was a lot of fun.  We had a great crowd and an awesome card.  As I type this now, I am on my way to San Angelo, TX.  I was recently here with Toughman so I look forward to returning.  After San Angelo I will be in Tucson, AZ for another house show...(I have not been to Tucson since I graduated from U of A in May) and then I get to go to t.v. tapings in Phoenix, AZ-home of WSW/MSPW/IZW which should be cool.  Speaking of IZW, I am working my final show for them October 30, in Tempe.  IZW is always a great show and a lot of fun.  I really thought my commentary would be better by this point, but it's not-so I will take a break and come back to this when my trip is complete on Wednesday.

Part II, I am home and getting ready to go back on the road.  With my schedule for the past 22 years, I have done a LOT of sleeping in which should be good as I will be needing that sleep for the sleep I won't get while away :)  I don't mind the lack of sleep because I am having fun.  San Angelo was another fun show, as was Tucson.  The people who I have been traveling with are great and we all keep each other entertained.  It was good seeing Navajo Warrior, Mike Nox, Hollywood, and Ghostwalker backstage at tv on Tuesday where the uninjured three had the opportunity to workout in the ring before the show and sharpen up their skills.  I started off the show with two dark matches and then Velocity-so make sure you check it out Saturday night on the new TNN.  Also check out the A-Team as long as you are watching TNN.  Confidential, which follows Velocity is an AWESOME show and I suggest you check it out whether you see it live or tape it-if you are a fan you will enjoy.

I'm not sure how many thousands of things I am forgetting, so I will add them as I remember, but I am going to get ready for Tomorrow's trip to Canada!  This will be my first time going and I am psyched!  Thanks for reading and please sign the guestbook!  JJR

  9/13/02

dr.evil:It got weiRD.

On Saturday nights in Chicago as a little kid babysitting along with my sister, I had the chance to discover quality TV shows.  Once we found shows that we liked, we stuck to watching them religiously.  Shows like  American Gladiators, Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling, Golden Girls.......the list goes on, but it concluded with Saturday Night Live and Showtime at the Apollo.  One night instead of the usual SNL "Following Presentation" message, the WWF Saturday Night's Main Event logo popped up.  This was not cool.  We liked G.L.O.W., but WWF wrestling, well we did not want to give it a chance and we changed the channel.  When my sister left the room later in the night I flipped to WWF.  I remember Bobby "The Brain" Heenan hiding behind the blue entrance curtain while Mr. Perfect and The Genius took care of Hulk Hogan.  I don't know what it was, but something about that angle grabbed my curiosity. 

It wasn't too much later on my 11th birthday in December, 1990 when I was swimming in the pool of my Wisconsin hotel with some friends and this somewhat sketchy kid who was kind of with us ran into the pool area to tell us all of these professional wrestlers were upstairs in the lobby.  Not knowing too much about wrestling, but curious enough to get out of the pool and make sure this kid wasn't lying like we expected, we ran upstairs and saw two larger than life human beings.  They were each on a payphone, one wearing overalls with long brown hair and huge arms....the other, long brown hair and a jean jacket with images of his face all over.  The overalls guy, came over and said hello and signed autographs for us.  Unfortunately I could not read what it said.  The other guy, I recognized from TV. so I wanted his autograph...it was the Ultimate Warrior.  Unfortunately, Warrior only signed one autograph and proceeded to the hotel restaurant...with the promise that he would catch us after he ate.  I went over to their limo driver who explained that the overalls guy signed Kerry Von Erich on my paper.  He was the "Texas Tornado" in the WWF.  I was still psyched because Warrior would sign autographs when he was done eating, or so I thought.  We patiently waited for them to finish dinner and kindly asked for Warrior's autograph as he left.  He wasn't so kind in denying us the request. 

The next week I began watching "Superstars" on Saturday morning hoping to catch the two wrestlers I had just met.  Superstars led to Challenge, then Primetime Wrestling, then all the other shows that the WWF put out.  I was hooked.  My cousin took notice to this and mentioned that he worked security for the Rosemont Horizon and he could get me backstage when WWF came to town.  Right before Wrestlemania 7, my friend Adam who knew a promoter invited me to the Horizon with his family.  I was dying-it was awesome.  Soon, I was buying tickets to every Chicago WWF show there was and once in a while my cousin was working security and got me backstage to meet the wrestlers. 

Not only did we get to go to WWF, but we also got to sit next to Fox's Rich Koz who took my school picture and put it on his fridge of fame on TV.

My classmates at school had all gotten out of their 'wrestling stage' and teased me about my openness of being a wrestling fan.  That's in front of the other kids of course...when no one else was around, I was the one everybody came to with their wrestling questions and concerns.  Everybody was a closet fan from 5th grade to senior year of high school.  By senior year, it was 'cool' to like wrestling and even steal wrestling catchphrases to use in the hallways.  But anyway, ...

I did everything possible to get backstage or at least just try to meet the wrestlers while they were in town. Sadly, the one person who could attest to this, Mike Lima tragically passed away in the past week.  Mike was the guy that I always saw bringing kids backstage for 'meet and greets' as he called them.  While everyone else just sat there and watched these kids go backstage, I was the only one to catch Mike and ask him about getting in the back myself.  For some unknown reason, Mike took a liking to me and hooked me up with autographs, WCW  tickets later on, and an occasional meet and greet.   I will talk more about Mike as my story goes on. That man worked his butt off promoting wrestling in the Midwest and I only have millions of good things to say about him.  As I said, I will talk about Mike in a few paragraphs.

Shawn Michaels and little JxR

In 1996 Dave Prazak ran a respectable 'wrestling hotline' in Chicago.  I wanted to go on just one time and record the news message.  He wouldn't let me-so I called a kid who happened to go to my high school and ran a really bad hotline.  This kid let me read my 'wrestling news' that I found on the internet and voice it on his hotline.  This hotline became somewhat popular and brought me to hook up a deal with Brian Schenk's off the top rope hotline.  We would promote each other.  Prazak's hotline advertised Schenk's, so a deal with him lead me to the best of both worlds.  After recording the hotline for a number of months(with Brian 'Stone' Martinov), I heard that Sonny Rogers who I remembered as a WWF preliminary wrestler, was running an independent show in Waukegan, IL.  I guess my head was big enough to think that I was now somewhat of a known personality locally in Chicago and perhaps I could be part of the show.  I wanted to be a wrestler, but I knew that I wasn't big enough and not anywhere near the condition my body would have to be in.  I had small bones-you could see my ribs....it wasn't going to happen.  I would ref, but I needed training for that.  I would love to manage, but I couldn't just jump into that.  I knew that Dave Prazak was a ring announcer for Sonny's PWI and since Dave and I were no longer on good terms, I thought hey-I could ring announce on a pro-wrestling show which would be sweeeeet...and at the same time get revenge on dp for not letting me on his hotline.  In 1996 at the age of 16, I called the two guys who I knew that knew Sonny and asked them to find out about maybe announcing one match at his show.  Brian Schenk and Lou Tufano both talked to Sonny who said yes. 

As a junior in high school with a dream to be on a wrestling show, I was going to make this happen.  At the Fiesta Palace I announced a 6 man tag match and the Battle Royal.  I was so pumped and SO bad.  But I didn't know that.  And no one told me, although "Scrap Iron" Adam Pearce's uncle in the front row kind of hinted at it.  PWI ran about one time every 4-5 months and decided to bring me back as their ring announcer as dp disappeared and went on to other promotions, since he could actually get work...being the good announcer that he was.  I wasn't as good and just stuck with the one promotion that I knew would use me.  Sonny Rogers gave me that first shot to go in the ring and announce and I will never forget that.  He ran shows with guys who I would become friends with later on in my wrestling journey like Adrian Lynch, Adam Pearce, Ace Steele, Danny Dominion, Randy Ricci, Eric Freedom, and more.

Ace and Danny students of PWI with their students Colt Cabana and CM Punk

From 1996-1998 I was PWI Ring Announcer, Enzo Reed...yea I left that name part out......in 1998 I went to college in Arizona and read on a wrestling website that Dale Gagne would be running shows under the AWA name, with the first taking place in Bullhead City, AZ.  I had no clue where that was but figured it must be close.  I contacted Al Isaacs who posted the 'news' and he got me Dale's email address.  Dale and I spoke and hit it off really well.  He had big plans for the AWA, and told me to send him a tape.  Uh, I didn't have a tape, so I took clips of my anchoring of a high school TV show and added clips of my announcing at PWI including promos that King Kong Bundy cut with me.  He was the one big name I got to work with in my 1st two years of indies and was always willing to help me out and talk with me.  Supposedly, Dale never watched my tape, but brought me on for this show.  He flew me to Las Vegas and took very good care of me.  The next two summers I announced Dale's summer tours and occasional shows between April 99 and May 02.  Working for Dale taught me a LOT, gave me a ton of exposure, experience, and opportunities.  He also gave me the title of 'most charismatic ring announcer'.  I got to work with so many guys I grew up watching on television and even current guys like The Rock.  I no longer had to wait 4-5 months to work, I was working every week or almost every month. 

Dale Gagne

In 1999 I also met the Navajo Warrior (at Dale's show) who in my opinion is the King of the Indies in the Southwest.  An honest, hardworking guy that you can depend on to book you talent and come through for anything...a guy who became a very good friend of mine over the past 3 1/2 years.  Nav got me booked on numerous Arizona, California, New Mexico, and Utah shows.  I started building up a pretty good reputation of being a good announcer for the main reason that I have an outgoing personality and I am a fan at heart so I can relate to all the fans at the show.  I have fun, so they have fun.  I started taking on responsibilities in addition to announcing such as running the music-since I was always a huge fan of WWF theme music....and later on writing shows. 

Steve Gligorovic let me promote and write his WWZ show last October in Chicago.  He flew me in to announce, but I wanted to help out as much as I could to see Steve succeed.  Steve and his brother Larry are Heaven N Hell aka Twin Turbos.  Those two guys looked out for me when we were on the road with AWA and I will never forget that.  The road trips in the independent wrestling promotions have been fun.  Traveling with Sin,CC Starr,Danny B,Nav,Mike Nox,Lee Pasko,Lynch,Pearce,Dominion,Cabana,Punk,Gallo(Satanic Southpark is very scary to car nap to),Jonnie Stewart,Ace,Randy,Eric,Dale,Ballards, Lexie Fyfe,Melissa and many more--plus the legends gave us opportunities to exchange stories and bond. 

Nox,Nav,Lee

15 hr road trips, plane trips, show days with no sleep, setting up and tearing down a ring early in the a.m. and late at night with no sleep on tours, learning about the business from guys who have lived it longer than I have been alive, asking questions, and doing anything I could to continue to grow and learn are all part of paying dues.  I even traveled with former WCW/WWF announcer Gary Cappetta for a month where I had the opportunity to pick the brain of an announcer who 'made it'.  I always attended local WCW and WWF shows hoping to get my foot in the door at some point and sent out numerous tapes to both companies, and ECW as well.  I talked to cameraman Jackie Crockett at WCW who told me the next time I saw him to bring a tape.  I did and he was giving it to Tony Schiavonne.  Nothing happened and I gave it some time, with the same results.  We through a frat party at school which attracted a lot of WCW talent.  Arn Anderson told me to send him a tape, but when I did, I found out that he did not work at the WCW office, so I tried Terry Taylor.  I sent him a tape and he told me that he would like to introduce me to Eric Bischoff.  But then WCW was bought by WWF.  Any other groups I sent tapes to already had announcers who were usually office guys that wanted to be on TV so I did not have a chance. I also tried to get just one show with UPW in California for the one opportunity to be exposed to WWE scouts, but they wouldn't let me :)  So I just sent a new demo to WWE every time I made one.

To backtrack, in 1999 I called Toughman on FX after seeing them on TV. and asked if they needed an announcer.  They did not, but it didn't keep me from calling them again in 2000.  They were coming to Tucson and had me meet with a producer and proceed to sit at ringside for a Friday night show.  Founder/TV announcer Art Dore handed me the mic mid show and said "Do your thing".  I went in there and did just that, which got me a gig announcing for house shows across the country from 2000-2002.  Again, Art was the TV announcer and since he was the founder/owner I had no chance of getting TV exposure besides the occasional highlight clip from a house show.  With no TV exposure from any of the groups I work for, I figured WWF would never take me seriously.

In every  show from 1996-2002 from California to New York from Wrestling to Toughman, I have learned so much.  I have had a ton of fun.  I lived the dream of getting in a ring.  I lived the next dream of slapping fives and signing autographs.  I lived the dream of performing in front of indie crowds of 0-5000 people. I lived the dream of getting a call from what is now WWE and getting asked to tryout in front of live crowds at their Raw and Smackdown shows.  From there I got to go to the WWE studios and see where all of my shows that I grew up watching were filmed.  WWE, formerly known as WWF got me through school.  It gave me something to look forward to as I didn't watch other sports and couldn't look forward to super bowls or world series games.  I was the only 16-22 year old kid I knew, juggling high school and college with a ring announcing gig-getting flown/driving to random cities and states.  I loved every minute of it.  After graduating from Arizona this year, I still only wanted to work for WWE and had no idea what else I could do.  In May 2002 when I worked my last AWA show, Dale knew that I wasn't the same kid he hired in 99.  We were talking as my entrance music (insert laugh here) was playing and I said "Ope, that's my music-I better get out there."  Dale told me after the show "Justin, there were almost 5,000 people out there and you casually said you were going out there and stepped through the curtain like it was nothing."  I thought that was cool, because I really do feel comfortable going out there and 'doing my thing'.

It's cool to put my story into typed words here for anyone who cares to hear the story of another kid with a far out dream, but for those wondering where I am going with this, this is for you.  I have had so much fun and I thank EVERYONE who I have met on my journey.  Thank you to guys like Mike Lima, Justin Credible, and Tony Devito who talked to me when I was a little kid with TONS of questions.  Thank you to guys like Sonny Rogers, Dale Gagne, Navajo Warrior, Steve Gligorovic and everyone who helped get me work.  Thank you to guys like Adrian Lynch, Jonnie Stewart, George Steele, Jimmy Snuka, Eric Priest, Adnan Al Kaisy, Robert Herrara, Chuck Campbell, Blackjack Brown, CM Punk, Colt Cabana, Ballard Brothers, Mike Hettinga, Robert Gallo, and Danny Brock for the fun road trips and of course the Sheiky stories(Im sure I left out a bunch of names-Im sorry).  I have so many of my own now, I want to write a book.  A special thank you to Tony Devito and Howard Finkel for taking all of those phone calls over the years. Thank you to WWE guys like Steve Regal, Paul Heyman,Rock, Sue, Mr. D, Steve Austin, Coach, John McC, HHH, Spooner, Bruno and many more who were cool to me and made me want to be a part of WWE even more.  Thanks Webkat for all of your computer help, which makes this site possible:).  Most importantly I want to thank my parents who never disapproved of juggling school with wrestling and have ALWAYS supported me...including this awkward time of graduating college with the only hope of getting to work for WWE. 

It's all of this and all of these people who made what's about to happen, possible.  Where am I going with this commentary? I'm using this as an introduction to announce that I will be working sporadically as a ring announcer for WWE beginning this week.

I called Mike Lima when I got the first call to tryout and I wasn't sure what he thought of that since he was working with XWF.  I found out that he called a mutual friend and commented how happy he was for me.  Mike was there for me as a little kid to help me out, he was there when I ran my own show at the beginning of the year with promoting tips, and I wish he could see this once annoying little brat announcing for WWE.  He never admitted that I annoyed him as a young fan, but maybe it's because I did not, or maybe he just thought that I would grow up to take this business that I love so much seriously, and maybe the business would take me seriously.  I hope he watches from above with a smile....

Thank you for reading my story, and as I close this huge chapter of my young life, I hope you will join me as I write my next chapter, and I thank WWE for offering me this opportunity to work for the number one wrestling promotion.  I hope I do well and make them happy with their decision.  Feel free to sign my NEW guestbook or email any comments.  Again thank you for reading...and as I always say, "If you want something bad enough, go for it and you will get it, no matter how far out it may be."

JxR

8/19/02

After a pretty busy schedule, it has been nice taking a break from airports (We're sorry, we need everyone to deplane and miss your connecting flights), planes (I'm sorry that seat doesn't recline), and rental car counters (I'm sorry the car we had reserved for you is not here).  It seems that every week there was at least one flight that was delayed, cancelled, or messed up.  Any travel days that seemed easy usually turned into 9-12 hr ones...not so fun...but the shows were great.  Toughman in Lawton and Muskogee, Oklahoma as well as in San Angelo, Texas were all a lot of fun.  By the way, it was good seeing former WCW interviewer Scott Dunlap there...The Tempe, AZ debut show of IZW was pretty cool as well-we had a great group of guys that don't get the recognition in the sheets that the East Coast guys get, but they put on a helluva show and deserve much credit.  As I mentioned, it has been nice resting up from a long period of weekly shows, since the traveling aspect can really take its toll on somebody, mentally---there are tons of unpreventable/unexpected events that can make a trip very frustrating.  I can't say that I miss being the "random guy" every week at the security checkpoints(believe me-I am ALWAYS randomly selected, even when I don't wear belts, boots, or jewelry-which set off the alarm), but I  miss going out in front of the fans and doing what I love to do.  I am keeping busy away from the rings, but there may be some pretty big plans in the works for my career in the near future...so we'll see what happens.  As of right now I have been contacted about some dates, but the only one I am posting is September 4 in Tempe, AZ-so if you are around, check out the Bash on Ash for an evening show.  I have been getting a lot of emails, and I appreciate all of your kind words...please sign my guestbook if you have a chance and thank you for reading...JxR

7/16/02

What a month.  In June at this time, I was in Northern California where I had the opportunity to show WWE what I could do as a ring announcer.  Today, I was @ WWE studios in Stamford, CT furthering my tryouts.  I met with "Coach" Jonathan Coachman last night at the Continental Airlines Arena in New Jersey.  I had the chance to see a lot of the great people that I had met last month, and also the chance to see an awesome RAW.  After the show, we went to Stamford so we could get some sleep for today.  

This morning, we grabbed breakfast and arrived at the studios.  Coach gave me a tour and introduced me to all of the hard workers that put  the shows/packages together and everything else that is seen on television every week.  It was really cool walking through hallways and seeing the studios that I recognized from watching during my childhood.  From the sets of "Primetime", "Mania", Lord Alfred Hayes' "Control Center", and "Livewire" to current sets such as "Afterburn" and "Confidential".  I talked to John McColl who has been there for all of these shows and more, which was really cool because he told me a lot of stories from over the years, and even filled me in on the character "Jameson".  Look for the pictures of this in the photo gallery. 

Coach and I taped some interviews and commentating, which were both new for me and hopefully I did okay.  I figure the ring announcing is a lot stronger for me since I have six years experience, but I'm always willing to try something new.   Overall, I just think that it was great having the opportunity to get in the Raw and Smackdown rings in front of thousands of people to ring announce and it was just as great getting to work in the studios that have so much history...studios where all of my favorite shows as a little kid were taped.  Once again ALL of the WWE staff that I met in the past two days were awesome.  Everybody is very respectful to each other, and everyone works to help in any way that they can.  I hope to be a part of the WWE family sometime in the near future.

Last week I had the chance to work for Roland Alexander's All Pro Wrestling in Hayward, California and in Napa.  They asked if I could use some of my impersonations for a couple of the matches and despite knowing that it would not go over (from previous experience), I tried it and gave them what they asked for.  There are a lot of hard workers involved in the production and some really good talent.  Tony Kozina, American Dragon, Samoa Joe, Chris Daniels, and Super Dragon were just some of the talent on the Napa show.  I'm used to dealing with one or two people running a show and letting me know what to do, but APW kind of reminded me of Office Space....did you get that memo....lots of people involved.  We had some fun out there and I look forward to working for APW again.

I am currently on the plane (and WOW is there a lot of turbulence), and have time now to rest and plan out the next two days, which involve tomorrow's wrestling show in Tempe, AZ and Thursday, when I leave for Toughman in Lawton, OK.  I think this is going on too long, so I want to close by saying thank you to everyone who made my WWE experiences so enjoyable and thank you to everyone who gave me advice...and a special thank you to Coach for everything.  Thanks for reading...please let me know you're all out there by signing my guestbook.  Feel free to write---JxR 

6/24/02

"6 planes, 5 shows, 2 Hulks, and 1helluva time"

It's been a very busy week, but an awesome one at the same time. I worked a dark match for Raw last week, and 2 for Smackdown which was a really huge and exciting opportunity.  The people @ WWE were very cool and they really made me feel welcome when I was in California Monday-Wednesday.  I talked to a ton of cool people from the arena security to WWE security to the talent to all of the people that make the huge production possible and give it the quality that you can sense every week.  

I announced the dark match Monday between Prototype and Shelton Benjamin-both very cool guys who put on a great match that grabbed the crowd.  I had sat down with Lillian Garcia earlier in the day who explained the basics of her job and she gave me the format for announcing the match.  She and I walked down the ramp before International Heat where I would sit next to her and observe.  When I went out there, I wasn't nervous, because for me-the more people out there, the easier it is.  After watching a tape on Tuesday of Monday, I noticed that I did not put out the energy or deliver like I typically do at an event.  I got a lot of good feedback, but I knew that on Tuesday, I would have to go out there and be myself.  I think that the problem was too much thinking while I was in the ring, so by Tuesday I was comfortable with their format and did not have to think so much.  I walked out with Howard Finkel-who is THE MAN.  I rarely put over ring announcers, but he is so great at what he does-he is really the man-I can't say it enough.  He was very cool throughout the day, explaining all different aspects of the company to me and answering my questions.  After he welcomed the crowd, he introduced me and again I introduced Proto and Benjamin who worked another great match.  After that the crowd was in for a surprise.  I introduced Sho Funaki was destroyed hours earlier by Billy Kidman backstage playing the new Smackdown for PS2(which is a sweet game).  Anyway, his opponent came out with a hood and mask-turning out to be Rey Mysterio Jr. making his first appearance.  The crowd went nuts and I not only got to fulfill my dream of announcing for WWE, but I also got to introduce Rey Jr-which I always wanted to do since he, like Juventud Guerrera both have awesome names....and now I have worked with both of them in the past 2 months.  I have not seen a tape of Tuesday, but I feel if they liked Monday's work, Tuesday blew Monday out of the water.  I want to thank everyone @ WWE for the opportunity to go out there and show them what I could do...and I want to thank all of the great people who took the time to talk to me, teach me, and make me feel welcome.  I especially want to thank Coach for everything and all the pretape guys and of course Howard Finkel.  It was cool sitting in on interviews in the room with Hulk Hogan, Torrie Wilson, and RVD.  I even helped translate for Tajiri who spoke Spanish with me.  

After I came home on Wednesday, I quickly left for Oklahoma, which was a really cool place.  I had Toughman shows on Friday and Saturday, and they were both a lot of fun.  I got to talk to a lot of the Toughman fans throughout the weekend and everyone seemed to have a good time.  I look forward to heading back that way in July.  On the plane back from Oklahoma, I met Lou Ferrigno (The Incredible Hulk), the 2nd Hulk that I grew up watching, the 2nd Hulk I met this week.  He is still huge and I have a picture with him that I will post when it's developed.

There are SO many details that I left out, I apologize but I can't think of anything else right now, and probably won't until I post this.  I will re-post if enough topics enter my mind.  Thanks for reading and to answer many emails, YES that was me @ ringside with Howard Finkel on Velocity, Saturday night on TNN.  Feel free to write/Sign the guestbook--thanks again-JxR

6/5/02

Hello.  Ever since pre-school, it was-go to school-weekends and holidays off, winter vacation, spring break, summer vacation and back to school.  For the first time since I was 5, the cycle has ended.  I officially graduated college after attending the University for four years on May 11th, 2002.  Since then, I have moved and attempted to look for a job, or a career-whichever came up first.  Whenever people ask me what I am looking for,  I'm honest.  I tell them that I would like to work for WWE.  It's kind of like someone saying "I want to be famous."

Well this crazy dream that I've had since I was a little kid has taken a turn.  I received a phone call from WWE inviting me to tryout.  I don't know if they just want to see what I can do, or anything else---I don't know what they are looking for---I just know that I always wanted one opportunity to perform in front of their scouts to show them what I can do.  I will get this opportunity in a couple of weeks, announcing dark matches before the Raw and Smackdown cameras begin rolling.  This is all I could ever ask for and it's a dream come true to walk out there and show them what I've got.  If they like what they see--AWESOME!  If not, well-I don't want to think about that.  Anyway---that's my big news.

We had a really cool MSPW/IZW show in Globe, AZ May 31st.  It was a big reunion of a great group of people and everyone went out and put on an awesome show.  There were about 400 fans, which I think is great for not advertising any "big names".  The crowd LOVED the entire event and chanted for a return, which they will be getting July 12th.  If you live in the Phoenix area, Globe is only 90 minutes away.  The shows will only get bigger and better.  Congrats to Mike Nox for winning the heavyweight title--he deserves it.  Native Blood won the tag titles from the Ballard Brothers...and the other results are @ mspw.net.  If you thought that show was good-which it was-make sure you see the next one :)

I had a lot of other things to write, but over the past few weeks, I have forgotten:(.    If I remember, I will update once again.  Coming up is the WWE tryouts, Toughman in Muskogee, Oklahoma (that same week), and Pro-Boxing in Phoenix, AZ (right after Toughman).  Feel free to write and if you have not already--sign the guestbook!!  Thanks for reading-JxR

5/6/02

Whattup everyone...I have been keeping busy with wrestling for the past couple of months since Toughman has slowed down a little bit, but Toughman was going strong a couple of months ago when wrestling was slow, so I am glad to be able to work with both 'sports' as the combination keeps me busy.  

I just came back from California where we had a huge show for Cinco de Mayo on the 4th.  It was an AWA event and featured Navajo Warrior, Shannon Ballard, Josh, Chris, and Taylor from Tough Enough, Konan, Tito Santana, Danny Dominion, Jonnie Stewart, Adara James, Tygress, Evan Karagias and more.  There were many highlights on this show including the crowd of over 5,000 people, but one that stands out....I got to introduce Juventud Guerrera.  You may wonder if I wrote this because he is a great wrestler, and yea he is and he pt on a hell of a match-BUT-I always wanted to work with either Juvi or Rey jr. because they have awesome names to introduce-and if I can say it-his intro did sound cool :)  The crowd had enjoyed the event as did I and it's always a blast working with the AWA crew.  It was an added bonus to work with legendary referee Jesse Hernandez, since I grew up with the Bodyslams movie.

A couple of days prior to California, I was in Northern Arizona for an AWA event.  I had been in bed for over a week with tonsillitis and could not talk let alone announce.  I was in a ton of pain all week so when I finally got better the night of the show, I decided that I would rather fully recover than take a chance of getting sick again.  Dale Gagne was very understanding and for the 1st time, I did not announce a show that I was scheduled for.  I still showed up and had a different kind of role in the show.  I don't know what came over me, but I ran in the ring with a ref shirt and cause Danny Dominion to win the AWA title from Evan Karagias.  It must have been the medicine, so I stayed out of the ring on Saturday and did not interfere with Evan's rematch.  He won that one and got his belt back, so he and I are cool again :).  

Other notes: the Ladies show in Scottsdale, AZ was fun...Cheerleader Melissa and Erica D'Erico had a great match and then teamed up against Chainsaw and Shannon Ballard in another good one....Sierra Vista was a great show with Gangrel and Luna Vachon who are awesome and Norman Smiley/Disco, and Konan.  

I finished my college career in December, but figured I would graduate on time rather than early since I was not in a rush to leave school.  This Saturday is the official graduation ceremony and then I am officially in the real world.  The big question is "What are you going to do (brother)" and to that I have no response!  So we'll see what happens!  Thanks for reading and please sign the guestbook so I know who's out there.  JxR

4/12/02

It’s time to write again…when I last wrote I was psyched because I was getting over being sick…that never really happened like I thought it would.  I have worked all of my scheduled shows but I have been at about 80% while pretending to be 105.7%.  After going to he Doctor AGAIN today, hopefully I will find out what’s wrong.

I will work my way backwards in this commentary…Tuesday night and Monday I was at the WWF shows in Arizona.  I got to meet Vince McMahon, Stephanie and a lot of really cool people who make the WWF the company that it is.  Everybody was really cool.  Ref Danny B and his bully Dale Gagne joined me on Monday for the show and drinks with some of the guys following the event.  We had a great time Saturday as well in Prescott, AZ.  The show had a cool setup with a lot of talented wrestlers.  I look forward to our return to that area-in Cottonwood May 2^nd.  Casa Grande’s show was very fun as AWA allows us to go out there and have a good time while doing our jobs as we are supposed to.  Tonight is the Ladies Wrestling event in Scottsdale and next weekend I will be in Sierra Vista, AZ for a good show.  I have gotten a lot of emails and guestbook signatures, so thank you and please continue to write---JxR

3/18/02

It's been a busy month.  While I would normally look forward to working every weekend, and then a vacation...getting sick kind of puts a damper on things.  I have been away with Toughman every weekend recently from Thursday through Sunday.  I would come home, do laundry, rest for a day, and then re-pack and head out for early flights.  I had a great time in DesMoines, and again in Cedar Rapids, and again in Northwest Arkansas.  The only thing is, the snow storm in Cedar Rapids played a part in me getting sick.  I was in bed for a week after the Cedar show and got out only to go to the doctor and to get on a plane for Arkansas...which once I landed on Thursday,  I stayed in my hotel room through Sunday leaving only to work the 2 weekend shows.  I don't know what came over me both nights as the show started, but I was able to announce with no problem and have a good time, but more importantly the crowd had a good time.  

Sunday morning I left Arkansas for my final Spring Break.  Although I have completed my college requirements, my official graduation is not until May, so technically I am still allowed to go on Spring Break.  I was sick throughout the vacation week but I still managed to have a good time, but now I am paying the price.  I will see the doctors once again tomorrow and hopefully get cured before Friday's show in Arizona.  This, along with the next few shows should be fun since they are with the West Coast crew.  We always have a great time and enjoy working together.  Speaking of that I have just been notified that the Ballard Brothers updated their commentaries which is more rare than...um...I don't know but it's rare.  So check out www.Ballardbrothers.net !  I am going back to bed..thank you for reading and feel free to sign the guestbook/send email!  JxR

3/4/02

MSPW has made it's debut in Arizona!  The first event on February 18th was a lot of fun.  The event featured great talent working in great matches in front of a great crowd.  This first show, really left a big mark in Tucson.  We got a ton of positive feedback from all those who attended and we look forward to our Tucson return to Skate Country on Monday, March 25th, 2002.  For more info check out MSPW.net.  

I have been very busy recently with working on MSPW at the beginning of the week and then traveling with TOUGHMAN from Thrs-Sun.  Des Moines, IA was a lot of fun with a good crowd and Cedar Rapids was an even bigger and louder crowd, despite a snowstorm for both shows his past weekend.  We had a near riot situation which wasn't fun, but o well-it happens.  There were a ton of cool people that I got to meet in the past couple of weeks traveling and I look forward to seeing everybody again next year at the same time.  I will be in Fayetville Arkansas this weekend for TOUGHMAN once again and then I will be taking a brief break, right before the next MSPW event.  

The site has changed quite a bit, and I hope it's easier than ever to figure out.  Hey, let's do an experiment...try to find the "sign the guestbook" section and see if it really works! :)  Thanks for reading and feel free to write, JxR

2/9/02

Whattup everyone...I usually update before a month passes, but this time I could not make it in time.  I have been extremely busy with MSPW (http://mountainstrength.tripod.com), and working hard to provide a great show next Monday the 18th.  If you will be in the area or have friends near Tucson AZ, please spread the word! 

I have had a couple of weeks off to rest my voice and work on MSPW, but I look forward to announcing in Tucson and then working weekly for Toughman.  I am heading off to DesMoines, Iowa and Cedar Rapids, Iowa and Fayetville, Arkansas following that.  

The locker room should be fun next week with a reunion of awesome talent that enjoy what they do and enjoy working with each other.  Hopefully the show will do very well so I can run a show in the Tucson area once a month.  Native Blood and The Ballard Brothers will be a great match, Mike Nox and Dude should be fun, and there's even a rumor that Lexie Fyfe will be a part of the event.  Running every aspect of the company is a challenge, but I enjoy it and want to thank everyone who has offered to help.  There's nothing too exciting besides MSPW at this time, and I hope to see a lot of you there!!  Feel free to write and sign the guest book...thanks for reading...JxR

1/3/02

Happy new year!  If the past few days are any indication of what's to come in 2002...things could be good.  I recently worked in Chicago for the AWA and we had a great show with awesome matches and interesting storylines.  Road Dogg Jesse James and Josh Matthews joined a ton of the top midwest talent like Adrian Lynch, Danny Dominion, Ace Steele, Colt Cabana, CM Punk, Vic Capri, Brandon Blayze and many more.  The show was very interesting and I look forward to returning to the cold on February 6.  

I also unexpectedly worked with the XWF on their first house show in Hammond, Indiana doing some jobs that if are not done right could effect the smoothness of the show.  Everybody  there was extremely cool to me and I hope to be working for them in some form in the future.  They had a big crowd and the crowd loved their great show.  I think that the future looks bright for the XWF.

I talked to Jeremy Borash about working with the WWA, but so far I'm not-I'll keep yall posted.  I have a ton of shows coming up for Toughman which will be cool, but February 18th, things will liven up in Arizona.  Mountain Strength Pro-Wrestling (mountatinstrength.tripod.com/splash.html) will debut on this night in Tucson, Arizona with an awesome event.  If you are in the AZ area, check it out.  Check out Planes, Trains, and Automobiles on the left side of the screen to find out if I will be announcing in your state...and feel free to sign the guestbook!  Thanks for reading JxR

12/1/01

As the year comes to an end, I would like to look back and put a long summary into a short paragraph.  This year saw the rise of a great promotion in Phoenix, AZ and then a sudden disappearance of that same promotion when the building ended their contract with Western States Wrestling.  Hopefully 2002 will see the return of WSW and all of the great talent and fans that the promotion brings together.  I returned to the AWA for a few shows and will have one more with them later this month, which should be a fun show.  Independent wrestling has been pretty slow this year and to keep me from getting rusty, I have been working a lot of dates for FX Toughman.  I've learned how to have a good time with the Toughman shows and finally figured out how to entertain the Toughman fans, which makes the shows easier to get through.  World Wrestling Zone had a great start this year, but they need to run more to keep the momentum going.  I've talked to a new national promotion, which already has a ring announcer, but I am hoping to act as a back-up in case there were two shows on the same day.  The end of this year also marks the end of my school years.  Ever since I was four years old I was enrolled in some type of school, and in a few weeks I graduate from college which means it is time to move on and hopefully UP in this business.  I have talked with the WWF, but currently, there are no spots for new announcers.  2001 was a great experience that taught me a lot about wrestling, Toughman, and people.  As always, thank you for checking out the site, have a happy new year and please sign my guest book to let me know what you think!  JxR

11/5/01

Jonesboro, Arkansas.  What a trip!  Okay, so I had to travel 12 hours Friday, shoot out to the arena and announce a LONG show.  Announce again Saturday night and then travel 12 hours on Sunday morning...The Toughman shows on Friday and Saturday made up for the overtime involved in this trip.  We had about 2,000 fans and according to all of the people who approached me in town, throughout the weekend, everybody had a great time-including myself.  For some reason during my live commentary during the fights I was funny and had the crowd laughing.  Since I enjoy making people laugh, I continued the jokes and kept the crowd into the fights even though they continued until midnight.  I guess the article @ JONESBORO describes the night better than I could. 

During one of my many layovers, I ran into One Man Gang (Akeem) @ the airport and talked to him for a littler bit, until my plane was ready to leave.  I was definitely tired when I came back, but I am used to long car rides and plane days and enjoy my job too much to complain.  I look forward to working with ICW this weekend in Tucson, AZ.    Myself, Navajo Warrior, and Chainsaw hope to make an impact with this new promotion and I really hope that they do well.  

That's about it for this update...Still having fun and still open to work on Monday nights, JxR

10/22/01

 After coming back home yesterday in the very early hours of the morning, I finally settled back in and got this chance to update my site.  First off, last weekend, before I went to Phoenix for Toughman, I was a guest on the Chris Click television show in Arizona.  I enjoyed talking to all of the wrestling fans that called in.  

The next day I headed out to Phoenix for Toughman at the Celebrity Theater where Art Dore and I split up the announcing.  We had a great time Friday and Saturday night and saw some really good fights.  After Saturday's show I hung out with my new friends from sincityclubs.com and some of the fighters from the event.  I always enjoy announcing Toughman and hanging out in the nearby towns when the events are finished.

This weekend I was in Chicago, IL and Hammond, IN for the World Wrestling Zone.  This was the first time I  put together a show and I am really pleased with the way that it turned out.  I had dinner on Friday night with The Hardcore Legend, the unbelievable Terry Funk and Roadkill Ron.  Terry is a hell of a guy and we had a lot of interesting discussions at dinner and then again when he and I rode up to the show together on Saturday.  Not only is he a great person, but he showed the crowd that he is still a hell of a performer when he had a great match with Tommy Capone.  Josh Matthews from WWF/MTV Tough Enough also made his independent wrestling debut on this show when he defeated Rapid Delivery Rory Fox, from the MTV special-I want to be a Pro-Wrestler.  There were some really good matches and a lot of good guys on the card.  Tony Denucci, Heaven and Hell, and Big Daddy-just to name a few.  We all had a great time and I look forward to the next WWZ event.  After the show, I hung out with Tony Denucci and we caught up on old times...it was a great trip.  Coming up next is a huge Toughman show in Jonesboro, AR and some wrestling in Arizona and possibly Wisconsin.  Feel free to write and sign the guestbook...and thank you for reading....JxR

10/01/01

On October 20,  return to my former home, and place where it all started...Chicago, IL.  I look forward to getting there before the snow and seeing some old friends.  The show should be fun as it will contain a huge mixture of talent of all ages and from all different indie promotions.  I don't have much to say in this commentary, so I would like to share the advertisement for the World Wrestling Zone show right outside of Chicago @ The Hammond Civic Center in Hammond, Indiana...

Saturday Night, October 20, at 7p.m., the World Wrestling Zone presents a spectacular show @ The Hammond Civic Center, in Hammond, Indiana--right outside of Chicago!
      In Hammond, you will see a HUGE variety of talent including the "Hardcore Legend", a man who has done it all in this business and one of the stars of "Beyond The Mat", the one and only Terry Funk!
      From WWF/MTV Tough Enough, the 20-year-old, 5'9" finalist with the biggest heart in the business, Josh!  He has taken on Al Snow, Tazz, and many of the WWF stars, how will he do in the WWZ?
      You will also see the MIDGETS, former AWA tag-team champions, Heaven and Hell, AWA champion, "The Underwear Model" Eric Priest, Even Colder 3:16, "Shootfighter" Len Walker, "Sexy" Ace Steele, Luscious Lisa, Alexis, Tony Denucci and much much more, including "The Guardian of Chaos", as seen on Jerry Springer, Big Daddy as well as Pro-Wrestling and the FX network's TOUGHMAN ring announcer, Justin Roberts.  
      The event begins @ 7pm, but make sure you come early to check out the autograph session.  Wear your Hallowen costume for the dress up contest!  A portion of the proceeds from this event, will be donated to the Red Cross.  This is one event YOU DON'T WANT TO MISS!!  For more information, check out www.WorldWrestlingZone.com

9/14/01

First and MOST important...Words cannot describe what happened on Tuesday September 11, 2001.  My thoughts are with the innocent victims, their family and friends, and the heroes who are working their asses off in New York.  It's been a rough week for our country and we need to stick together to prevent anything like this from ever happening again and also, as Superfly would say-we've gotta "take care of business" when it comes to finding the individuals responsible.  Thank you, and now on to some notes...

Tonight, I will join John Popper and Blues Traveler, my favorite music group in Tucson, Arizona at the Rialto Theater.  I am honored to acknowledge the awful tragedy from Tuesday, and introduce John Popper, who will play the National Anthem on his harmonica.  John is really cool and will put on a hell of a show, at a time where we could all use some cheering up.  Last week, I was in Tucson for Toughman along with the television announcer and founder, Art Dore.  We had a great time and I look forward to joining Art once again in Phoenix, Arizona next month.  As a huge fan of Saturday Night Live, I was thrilled to meet one of the show's funniest actresses, Victoria Jackson.  We hung out for a little bit and took some pictures.  Victoria was very cool and I wish her well on her tour.  Luckily, after Blues Traveler tonight, I have some time off as I am not feeling up to running around the ring and working up the crowd.  That's what I love to do, but just not at this time.  Thank you for reading, and feel free to write and sign the guestbook too:)

9/2/01

I have been lucky in the past two weeks, to work two phenomenal events.  Last weekend, I made my Florida debut, announcing for FX Toughman in Ft. Pierce, FL.  Not only did we have two highly attended shows, but the crowds in Florida were awesome.  I incorporated some humor in my live commentating, and I got a lot of positive feedback from the fans over the weekend, throughout Ft. Pierce.  I definitely look forward to returning to Florida in the near future! 

This weekend, I went to Gallup, New Mexico with The Navajo Warrior, Ghostwalker, and Referee Danny B.  On Friday afternoon, we spoke at Gallup High School's all-school assembly about the importance of 'saying no to drugs'.  The students heard us all and hopefully learned from us.  I discussed my life and revealed that I never touched a drug in my 21 years of existence.  If there's pressure, forget about it-it's cool to say no.  Native Blood shared some very interesting stories and really made a positive impact on the High School students.  Following the assembly, we went to numerous autograph sessions throughout town, where we had a chance to meet the great fans of New Mexico and sign a LOT of autographs!

Saturday night, I returned to the AWA.  The Red Rock Ringside Rampage event featured some of the top superstars of Pro-Wrestling.  This would be my first time working with "The Mouth of the South" Jimmy Hart, Jerry "The King" Lawler, and "Grandmaster Sexay" Brian Christopher.  In addition, the event/autograph session included Chyna, Tygress, Sgt. Slaughter, Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Native Blood, "The Illustrious" Jonnie Stewart, Tony Denucci, Chainsaw, "Outlaw" Mike Nox, Eric Priest, Bruiser, and Danny Dominion.

I, along with the the fans at the show had a great time and it was cool seeing a lot of the guys I had not seen for a while.  Sgt. Slaughter and Hacksaw Jim Duggan were very cool as always, and Jimmy Hart-was a huge fan of the fans and proved it throughout the day and night.  Jimmy did anything he could to make sure the fans all received autographs and had the chance to chat with him.  Jonnie Stewart was by far the funniest man on the show, and probably the funniest man in this business.  He has an incredible talent for entertaining and showed it throughout the night at this event.  He may not have a six-pack stomach, or a 6'8" body, but he has a personality that makes up for it.  Native Blood was extremely popular and now they hold the WSW,FCW, and AWA tag-team belts.  "Outlaw" Mike Nox had a great match with Hacksaw and Danny Dominion had a very good match with Brian Christopher.  AWA champion Eric Priest was also very good, and for a young guy-he wrestles like he has been training for more years than he possibly could have.  AWA puts on entertaining shows with entertaining angles, and the crowd really dug this one. 

This weekend I have FX Toughman in Tucson, Arizona where I will be working with television announcer, Toughman founder-Art Dore.  Art's a cool guy and the events should be fun! Thanks to all of the great fans that I met in Florida and New Mexico in these past two weeks who have emailed me, and checked out the site.  Please come back soon and don't forget to sign the guestbook!  Feel free to email any questions or comments!

8/22/01

The end of the Summer has arrived, and I am back in business.  In the past few weeks I had the chance to rest and recuperate from the past couple of months.  I was happy to jump back into wrestling by working the WSW show in Scottsdale, Arizona.  The morning before the show, I joined Navajo Warrior, Ghostwalker, Hollywood, Dude, and Ref Danny B at NBC studios in Phoenix, where we were on the live morning news show promoting the event.  The newscaster got out of hand, and Hollywood put him in his place-it came off really well on t.v.  The next morning, I was invited as a guest on the Fox news station, again to promote that day's event.  Both programs went really well and came off with the clear message that WSW was one show Phoenix fans would not want to miss!  I am preparing as I type this to leave for Ft. Pierce Florida tomorrow where I have Toughman shows on Friday and Saturday.  Next week I will return to Gallop, New Mexico, the site of last year's tour and work a huge wrestling event at Red Rock-the coolest venue in the world.  I was given a bunch of dates today for upcoming Toughman shows, so check out the Planes, Trains page to find out if I will be at an arena near you!  Toughman is really entertaining to watch. 3- 1 minute boxing rounds of everyday people going at it.  Besides working with some old friends last week, and next week-nothing else cool is going on, besides getting picked up by two agents today...so maybe I will start branching out into new lines of work.  Thanks for reading-please send any questions or comments-and sign the guestbook!  JxR

8/6/01

So things don't always go as planned...

I finally got my computer back today, as I have been without the internet for quite some time.  I am also enjoying some relaxation time in the mountains after a busy month with the Bodyslams tour.  On July 26th, Gary Michael Cappetta and I discussed some differences we were having during the tour and I ended up leaving  in Valparaiso, Indiana.  I learned a lot from Gary and had a lot of fun and some cool experiences.  I thank Gary for all of that, plus the opportunity.  I wish him the best of luck with the rest of the tour and I hope everyone goes to meet Gary in person or to Bodyslams.com to buy the book.  If you're a wrestling fan, you'll like it.

After I left, I worked a wrestling show for Bobby Fulton's Big Time Wrestling at the same event in Valparaiso.  They had WWF monster trucks and wrestlers such as Lexie Fyfe, Hawk, Greg Valentine, Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Matt Borne(Doink), Bushwhackers, and many more.  I really enjoy working in Indiana-I like the fans out there.  This Saturday I'm with my favorite "undercard" in Scottsdale, AZ and then Florida for Toughman and New Mexico for more wrestling.  Check out Travel Dates, and please sign the guestbook!  Thanks for reading-JxR

7/22/01

What began as a simple plan of a BodySlammin' Book Tour has turned into an incredible journey.  Since leaving the non-stop action of New Jersey, former WWF/WCW announcer Gary Michael Cappetta and I have hit Indiana, Wisconsin, Iowa, Michigan and look forward to our next stops in Ohio and Chicago.  The picture above was taken in Michigan where WPON-Detroit Wrestling Radio brought their live two hour broadcast to the Bodyslams tour booth.  The tour has been busier than ever, traveling from state to state and working all day long.  Sure it's a lot to handle, but as I have mentioned before, it's great meeting wrestling fans from around the country and promoting the book BODYSLAMS! that I really believe is an awesome book.  I appreciate all the fans who have approached me over the past few weeks and told me about the shows they had seen me announce over the past few years. 

This past Friday, I was a guest on Mike Lano's Cable Radio Network wrestling show to promote the tour.  I was on the line with Cowboy Bill Watts, on the same show as Jim Ross, Paul Bearer, and Michael Hayes.  I was on for the Body Slams interview, which was awkward because the theme was for a Terry Gordy tribute. 

We look forward to all of our tour stops, but especially the CHICAGO Barnes and Noble (on State and Elm ) Wrestling Insider's discussion set for August 1st.  I'm looking forward to going to my hometown of Chicago and seeing family, friends, and fans.  I also want to mention the upcoming indie shows we will be attending-which are the AAW and ACW.  We were at their shows last week and had a great time, and these next two shows should be just as cool.  Thanks to all who have stopped by the tour and for those who have not yet done so, check out the planes/trains section and come out and say hello.  Thanks for reading and please sign the guest book.  JxR

7/10/01

   After quite a long journey, not only did I make it to New Jersey, I also made it through the rigorous Meadowlands event.  Let me begin at the top...I left Arizona early morning on the 26th of June to check out UPW in California.  I went down with a couple of workers, one of whom was booked on the show.  I basically felt like a kid going to a wrestling show for the first time in a while.  There were some good workers on the show, and they attempt to run a professional operation.  Right after the show, we bolted out and drove through the night, allowing me to catch an early morning flight to New Jersey, with 45 minutes!  After quite a long two days, I landed in NJ and met with former WWF/WCW/AWA/NWA ring announcer, Gary Michael Cappetta.  Since then, Gary and I have been outside of Giants stadium at the Meadowlands Fair, promoting his book--BODYSLAMS!  I'm very happy to be out there promoting such a good product to wrestling fans on the east coast and throughout the midwest.  We leave tonight for Pittsburgh and Indiana, which is where we begin the midwest leg of the tour.  Meadowlands was a lot of fun, but we had mostly very long days and nights with little sleep.  I want to mention that I said anyone may be joining us at anytime, and that has been the case so far.  In the past 10 days, we were joined by, Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka, "Sunny" Tammy Lynn Sytch, The Road Dog-Jesse James, The Iron Sheik and many more.  Everybody was VERY professional and made the event even more fun.  Sunny even dragged me on the rides, while Road Dog rode a mini bicycle around the park as Sheik bribed security with his 8x10s.  I encourage everyone to check out the dates of our tour on the Planes, Trains area of this site and to meet Gary and I, because every stop will be just as fun as the Meadowlands!  I heard about what's been happening on tv, but I have not watched a minute of tv in over 2 weeks.  I mean no tv...I miss E!, SNL, A-Team...but it's part of being on the road, and with that, I am off to Pittsburgh...please sign the guestbook and feel free to write me!  JxR 

June 24, 2001

What a busy Summer so far and it's still June. First off, I created my site from scratch a long time ago on AOL. Since then I have encountered many problems and recently put a ton of time into transferring my site from an AOL host to a Tripod host---the only reason I mention this, is for anyone who bookmarked the site, please return to JustinRoberts.net and rebookmark:). Colorado with WSW and the NWF was a blast. CC Star is by far the coolest person to know AND work for in the wrestling industry. We did not get much sleep on the trip, but we had a lot of fun! The following weekend I was a somewhat crooked referee for a Lucha Libre show in Phoenix, AZ. A lot of the WSW guys were on the show and even Lexie Fyfe returned to the area. This past weekend I worked for FX Toughman in Odessa/Midland, TX. The shows on Friday and Saturday were very cool and the crowd had a great time, which means the fighters and myself all did our jobs. This Wednesday, I head out for New Jersey where I will meet up with former WCW/WWF Ring Annoucer and author, Gary Michael Cappetta. This marks the beginning of our two month tour where we will be promoting Gary and his book, Bodyslams! I really enjoyed the book and could say that it's one of the best wrestling books ever and holds nothing back. Check out the dates page to find out if we are coming to an area near you. If we are, well...come on out and meet us. The site may not be updated for a while, due to the tour, but I will try! As always, feel free to write and SIGN THE GUESTBOOK! Thanks!  J

June 8, 2001

I want to update the site quickly, becaue I have been having more problems with the site and I hope this update will turn out!  After getting over strep throat, I returned to Chicago, Illinois where my career began.  In my journey I went to the House of Blues downtown and thanks to The Mix, we got a private and public concert from Eve 6. They were very good and we had a lot of fun.  A personal dream came true when in Chicago, as I finally met a Golden Girl. I was invited into the trailer of Bea "Dorothy" Arthur where we spoke, took a picture, and exchanged autographs.  I was very happy to say the least.  The Chicago trip ended after Heaven and Hell's World Wrestling Zone show.    The show brought back memories of the randoms who show up at every Chicago show looking for work and getting on a card through state connections.  The state always shows up to take money and leave. Very weird. Anyway, it was a good show with entertaining storylines and some talented workers. The twins did an awesome job building their 'arena' and advertising all over the place. I wish them the best of luck and hope the future is filled with many more successful WWZ shows.  Tomorrow I leave with the gang for Olathe, Colorado.  We have a show on saturday afternoon with Navajo Warrior, Honky Tonk Man, Jimmy Snuka, Mike Nox, Ghostwalker, Ballard Bros. and some of the WSW guys. Should be a fun trip.  I think the 16th show is cancelled, and after that I have Toughman in Texas on the 22nd and 23rd.  Feel free to write and SIGN THE GUESTBOOK! Thanks!  J

May 22, 2001

After spending much time in the desert heat, I took a trip to West Allis, Wisconsin for Mid-American Wrestling.  I was invited by CM Punk and Colt Cabana, two VERY young, talented workers from the midwest.  Since MAW has had the same regular announcer for the past 112 years, I knew I would not be announcing, but I could hang out w/ CC and Punk and have a good time.  We met up at Ballys and then took a nice, scenic/scratch -n-sniff, mall break. After that, it was up to Milwaukee for the show.  We decided that I would manage Punk, Ref Scott Demarc, and Manager Dave Prazak in a handicap match against shoot-fighter Adrizn Serrano.  So, for the second time in a month, I would be the personal ring announcer and manager that isn't as friendly as the typical Justin Roberts.  I still complimented the crowd, but in a less-flattering way, which got me a loud string of boo's the whole time I was on the mic.  The match went real well, and we all had fun out there.  After the match, I went out to see Colt Cabana's match.  I haven't seen the guy work since last summer, and as I predicted, even in the small amount of time-he has gotten awesome.  Punk and Cabana were both very good when they started, but now....they're awesome.  We had a great time on the road and at the show, and I hope to work with them again in the near future.  Ian Rotten worked the main event in a hardcore match, and this guy doesn't mess around.  Flourescent light bulbs, thumbtacks, stapleres and more, contributed to making Ian's back bloodier than anything I have ever seen before.  I was invited to join Prazak, Cabana, and Punk on the road to Kentucky for Ian's show as his announcer could not make it, but due to illness, I could not go.  It would have been fun, but oh well-we'll do it for WSW!  WSW had another great show.  The crowd was good, the matches were better, and the workers gave it their all, once again.  Why does the crowd hate Referee Danny B so much?  I look forward to next month's show, it's gonna be a good one with midgets from AAA and a female tag match and a lot more!  That's all the news here, please sign my guestbook!  Justin

April 29, 2001

Welllllll, it's been a long weekend.  Although, it was a fun one.  I went to Phoenix Thursday for Friday's Western States Wrestling show.  I caught Tom Green's new movie and man was it dumb-----but soooooo funny-I reccomend it.  Friday's show was awesome. The best WSW show I have ever seen--each show progressively got better, but this went above and beyond improvement.  Cheerleader Melissa had an awesome match with UPW's Looney Lane. This was Looney's first match and the ONLY reason I know this, is because she told me.  I never would have guessed it--great job----Navajo Warrior was suspended, but still managed to work with Samoa Joe.  Ghostwalker took a huge bump off the second story, through a table.  Sin lost his belt to Outlaw Mike Nox, who will make a hell of a champion.  Even though he lost, Sin was awesome.  He has improved since the last time I saw him and has finally gotten to the aggressive point that he should be at.  I was happy to announce for WSW, though it was sad when CC Starr got his mullet shaved off.  The next night, I reffed for ICW in Sierra Vista, AZ. This was my 1st time working with Barbarian and Prince Iukea---o yea and WCW announcer Dave Penzer.  Ballard Bros, who were very entertaining this weekend(as always) had a great match with Ghostwalker and Navajo Warrior, and the show was pretty good overall. Nox and Sin had a rematch and both guys put on a helluva show.  I have some things coming up in the near future and hopefully I will get good news, or bad news regarding my announcing future in the next couple of weeks.  I want to give some shout outs--Ref Danny B:  This kid has come a long way in reffing.  He's only been reffing for a short time, but is so comfortable, he looks like he was born with stripes.  The hardworking ref helped everyone throughout the weekend and worked hard on setup/teardown, when certain patriotic people who actually worked both shows stood around and watched.  Ref Jo Durt---very nice guy, glad he came into WSW.  Mick---Hilarious, but need to learn that he is not allowed to ref Ballard/Melissa matches.  CC--Will do anything for a show, he and Kris are awesome to work for, I wish this biz had more people like them.  Ghostwalker, Sin, Starrman--totally improved since the last time I saw them, and will continue to progress because they try hard and care.  Ballards, Navajo, Nox---PLEASE get these guys under contract so everyone could see what I talk about.  The whole country should get to see these entertaining/talented workers.  And to all the fans I met this weekend-you guys are awesome.  Talk to yall soon--J

March 25, 2001

Again, it has been a while since I have written, but there is not much to write about at this time.  I have been talking with Gary Michael Cappetta (see Feb 26 article) and it looks like we will be touring this summer.  Huge news came around a couple of days ago when the WWF announced their acquisition of WCW. I don't know what this means for my future, but hopefully they can use an additional announcer who is discussed throughout this web site--hint hint.  Western States Wrestling continues to grow and will have another great show April 27th.  Good ol WSW happens to run on the dates that I'm not open for every month, but I reccomend checking out their site-www.theshowwrestlingradio.com.  This Arizona softball deal I have been doing has turned out to be really cool--those girls do a helluva job and it's great to be a small part of their team.  I have been very busy lately, and will continue for another two months or so, but as soon as anything in my career develops, I will post it.  In the mean time, thank you all for checking out my page and thank you for all the nice emails you have been sending. You guys are the coolest --feel free to write anytime-JR

February 26, 2001

I got back today from Des Moines, Iowa where I announced two very successful Toughman shows. The shows were filled with thousands of people both nigts and the fights were incredible. There was more blood than ECW.  The weekend had a lot of plane delays and other travel problems, and it's good to be home!  I have some open dates on my calendar which is nice and I will be taking a vacation as well.  I finished reading BODYSLAMS! A book written by former WWF and WCW announcer, Gary Michael Cappetta. Talk about not holding anything back-if you want to read a book that tells you what really goes on in Pro-Wrestling, read this one!  I know as a ring announcer, you see everything that goes on and have the opportunity to wander around and be involved in more situations than other people working a show.  I am able to relate to a lot of things that Gary mentioned in his book about situations he has been in, as well as wrestlers that he talks about.  If you want to hear some REALLY interesting and no hold barred comments on some of the top guys in this business, check out www.Bodyslams.com

That's about it for now, take care and support your local wrestling shows! JR

February 1, 2001

Ok, so I'm no the best at keeping this updated, but 2-3 times a month isn't so bad.  Last thursday night I was a guest on the Chris Click television show in Tucson, Arizona.  The show went real well and we took numerous caller questions.  Following the show, I came home to messages that my clip was played on WWF's Tough Enough segment.  As I stated on the main page here, I was told to send out my demo tape just for the exposure to the WWF/MTV producers. I had no idea that they would put it on television (I didn't even fill out the release forms!). Well they did, and that's ok-exposure is exposure-so we'll see if this goes anywhere. The next morning, I flew to Tennessee for another booking with FX's Toughman.  I worked friday and saturday night and it was great.  These shows are a lot of fun, and in this case I had to work extra hard to get some reactions out of the audience.  By the main event on saturday night, everybody was on their feet cheering-so it was a success.  I return to Toughman in the third week of February, again as the solo announcer.  Women of Wrestling called me last month for my materials, and I sent them out immediately.  Apparently, they never got the materials-so I resubmitted them again.  They didn't get the second package either.  I'm happy to say my materials will be hand-delivered at the end of the weekend to WOW, so hopefully I could get some work out west.  Western States Wrestling has turned into a hell of an organization, as I knew it would.  It's unfortunate that I have to miss their next show, as well as a couple of ICW shows as all of their events are running the same day as Toughman in Iowa.  The talent improves at every show, and despite a couple of workers who believe they are people that they are really not, these guys will continue to attract a bigger crowd each time.  We had a lot of fun at the last show with referee Danny B making his debut, and Navajo Warrior, Mike Knox, Ballard Brothers, and Melissa on the show.  We had a couple of guests as well, Candy Seuss was there taking pictures left and right, as well as Kevin Nash's Web master, WebKat.  EVERYBODY had a great time and I look forward to returning to WSW.  Check out their web page off my links section.  That is it---be back soon! J

.January 14, 2001

It's been a very busy couple of weeks for me as I have finally gotten situated back in the west. Since coming back to the west, I have bookings every weekend which is pretty cool. I worked Toughman this past friday night in Battle Creek, Michigan. The crowd was great--around 3,000 people. I was there along with tv announcer, Art Dore. He was there to make sure that I could run the show without him-coming up in two weeks-in Tennessee. Saturday, I was able to meet up with my good friend, BlackJack Brown from the Chicago Sun-Times. We had a great day talking wrestling and catching up. Saturday night, we went to WWF @ the Joe Lewis Arena. We came through the back and said hello to everyone and then watched a great show. Afterwards, I met up with a friend of mine who wrestles for WWF and spent a couple of hours talking and "getting smartened up," as this is the type of guy who when he talks, I listen. He's a very wise man, a hell of a worker-and a man who deserves the push that he's getting. I always walk away a smarter individual after talking to him. Trust me, after seeing "Dude where's my car," I needed a little bit of smartening. There's some big things chillin in the horizon right now, and I'm doing everything possible to bring at least one of them into a reality. I have not slept much in the past few days, so I think I'm going to try that now, JR

December 22, 2000

On Tuesday the 19th, I worked my first show with the midwest's NAWF.  There was a lot of great talent on the show who know their way around the ring, now it's time to start working on appearance. When this happens, NAWF will be one hell of a group.  Jerry Lynn , one of the greatest wrestlers today, in my opinion was on the show, and he had a great match with Adrian Lynch. It was good to see Lynch, because I have not worked with him since last February in Nevada. It was also good to see Eric Freedom and Rockin Randy who I haven't seen in ages, because they never showed up to Nevada in February:).  I heard the Ballard Brothers had a good match with Lita and the Hardyz-so I hope to see a tape of that, and also congrats to NAv for keeping his belt.  That's really all the excitement here, as I enjoy a nice vacation.  Happy holidays to all-feel free to write and sign the guest book-JR.

December 11, 2000

Just a quick update here.  As I have discussed previously, I worked for Toughman in the early Fall. I announced for the friday night show in Tucson, but attended saturday's show as a guest.  I promoted/ set up the main event between the two frat guys for saturday's tv taping.  I was in the audience cheering on the under dog that I got into the event and can be seen this friday, December 15th on the FX network's TOUGHMAN.  As I've said before, I may be announcing for them in Tn next month and DesMoines Iowa in February.  If you are near the Il/Wi area, check out NAWF December 19th, I will be announcing.  Feel free to email any ?s or comments-the link is on the left side of the page and also while you're there, sign the guest book.

This is taken from Kevin Harvey, I couldn't agree any more:

"Issue #1: Presentation/Personal Appearance

I'm sure many of you out there know what an ideal professional wrestler's look should entail. Usually there are tights or spandex of some kind, something made to look unique. Hopefully, there will be wrestling boots or some variety of wrestling shoe with a professional looking kick pad.

If your audience sees a group of wrestlers with no unique look to them whatsoever, they will barely respond, if they do respond whatsoever. Each wrestler on the card needs some sort of look to attract attention. If they don't look like a wrestler, then they will not be treated as one.

This same concept also applies to the ring announcer. A ring announcer should look like a consummate professional. A suit, tie, and dress shoes are very appropriate. If the announcer has a personally higher budget, then maybe a tuxedo will be in order. Whatever the case, the announcer must look clean, well groomed, and poised.

If your audience sees a radio DJ in a pair of jeans and his station's T-shirt, they will respond to him as such.

Would you rather have a person in T-shirt and jeans dressed like every other person there, or a person in suit and tie in front of your viewers? Which are the fans likely to pay more attention to?

One would think the latter.

Issue #2: Here's a Quarter, Buy a Clue

The ring announcer for any show must have some knowledge of how ring announcing should be done. If they have never ring announced before in their life or even watched wrestling for that matter, they will likely sound like an idiot and make your show look bad.

If they don't know how the business works, they will be lost if anyone tries to explain anything to them. If they are lost, so shall be those who purchased tickets.

Issue #3: Sound

On the independent scene, most shows are run in very small venues. There's no way you can duplicate the sounds and sights of a 25,000-seat arena in a two-level nightclub. I don't care how many disco balls, laser lights, and sub woofers you have. It's impossible to duplicate the sensory overload one might get at a World Wrestling Federation show.

Now, the question is what's one way to kick a small show up a notch? The answer is one word: sound. Wait, didn't I just say something about sub woofers? Yes, but they don't do a bit of good if they drown out the name of the character the fans are supposed to boo and cheer.

This is where a ring announcer comes in. The ring announcer must have a sound that does two things. 1: Their voice must be loud and articulate enough so fans know who the person in the ring even is and 2: Their voice must have sound that will catch attention. During ring introductions, the announcer has his or her one and only time to shine. This is the one time the fans are paying attention to them.

If you sound like an annoying DJ introducing caller number 13 who just won movie passes, you'll get a negative reaction. On the radio, people can change the channel. In the venue, they can't change the channel, but they can certainly tune out what the ring announcer is saying.

If a ring announcer has a strong voice, the fans will pay attention. They really do want to know the name of the person they will be chanting for. Lots of people may know from an independent group's web page. But, let's face it. The majority of wrestling fans are still not online. Even if they are, they may not have any idea where to find the promotion's URL, much less the profile links found within.

For most of the fans, the only experience with (wrestler) and knowledge of (wrestler) is right there in the arena.

The choice for a promoter in a ring announcer is this. Do I want the fans leaving this venue not knowing