The Jim Cornette Thread

[Big Boss Man]

Plus AEW is already more successful than TNA. TNA never had a buyrate even close to Double Or Nothing. I doubt they ever had as large of a venue sold out (maybe those UK shows were big, I don't remember. But they maxed out at like 2,000 tickets in the US. The one TNA show I went to didn't even have 1,000. It also sucked.)

Kurt Angle/Jeff Jarrett did 8,100 in 2009 at Wembley Arena which was their highest ever attendance. Domestically their highest was 6,700 in 2013 in San Antonio for Bully Ray/Jeff Hardy

http://oswreview.com/history/tna-attendance-records/

So yea the comparisons with TNA are really a moot point as Tony said they did 2000 WCW business with the PPV buys with Double or Nothing. There was (to my knowledge) no papering of the audience either (may have been some comps) so it was a legit sellout. All Out tickets sold out in record time too.

As for his argument regarding 18-34 males majority of their core audience right now is this demographic. Which of course was the same during the Attitude Era. Looking back at old Raws and PPVs you don't seen many if any families or older folks in the crowds either. But once AEW hits TNT and the audience grows you'll see a much wider range of ages etc. So I think it's Jim being negative and contrarian just for the sake of it and it keeps him relevant.

[Matisfaction]

MLW is good. But to act like AEW doesn't also have good talent is absurd.

Cornette has never said that, in fact he's put over a lot of the talent on the roster, some who also work for MLW.

In this week's experience, he put over a bunch of guys including Jungle Boy, Luchasaurus and even the Bucks.

It's people like "Jelly Janela", Joey Ryan and Orange Cassidy that he has a problem with, as he feels like it brings the rest of the show down.

I've said before that I think Cornette has a legit point, that Battle Royal was an embarrassment, especially as it's the kind of stuff that AEW fans give WWE grief for doing.

Did Corny & RF make a baby?

MJF also has a stable in MLW, they were involved in a ladder match and they find out that MJF is afraid of heights.. it's great stuff

[Bandit]

Well, that's good that he realized he was wrong about Luchasaurus. Although he really didn't have a choice after it was revealed Dusty co-created the gimmick.

The thing with Janela is that he's basically just a shorter Mick Foley. An out of shape guy who cuts good promos and will take any bump you ask of him. And Jim likes Foley matches so I don't get it. And I remember the older fans saying the exact same complaints about Foley in the mid-90s then they say about Janela now. "Oh he's a fat slob who just does stunts. This is kililng the business." I'm not saying Janela will be as big as Foley, since Mick was one of the biggest stars of the second most popular time in wrestling. But I think if you like one you have to like the other.

Ryan and Cassidy aren't even in AEW, so he shouldn't still be mad about Cassidy doing 30 seconds in a battle royal. I agree with his dislike of both, I hope they never come back. Pillman Jr. was the only good "guest star" in the battle royal. And I don't disagree the battle royal was bad, but they haven't brought back anybody he or the fans complained about. They highlighted MJF, Jungle Boy, Page, Spears and Luchasaurus in the match and Cornette likes them, so they appear to be doing what he wants. And that's the difference between AEW and WWE. AEW appears to have listened to the fans and Vince has had Baron Corbin in the main eventer tier for a year.

[Dr. Zoidberg]

[Bandit]

Starr would fuck Cornette up. This isn't Joey Janela or the Young Bucks, David Starr is a legit shooter with credentials. And if he doesn't like David Starr then what does he actually like in 2019?

[Dr. Zoidberg]

[Bandit]

That's an excellent point. I think Jim's perception is skewed by having grown up in the South, the region wrestling was always most respected, but especially in the 60s and 70s when he was a kid. If he'd grown up in the northeast where boxing was so much bigger and they'd laugh at the idea that Bruno was a legitimate fighter. I remember being a kid when Flair was at the peak of his career in the late 80s in a big territory for him, and if you think he was thought of as any different than wrestlers today to non-fans you're crazy. He was just as big of a joke with them saying the stuff Cornette says about Omega today.

[Bandit]

lol they're threatening Chris Dickinson? They're so ignorant about what they're supposed to be mad about. These Cornette fans are becoming worse than the idiot Russo fanboys.

[Big Boss Man]

Cornys is either deliberately trolling or he's trying so desperately hard to stay relevant by insulting anything and anyone he doesn't like because it's not in line with his antiquated views on 'wrasslin' and it's gone beyond a joke now.

I think he would actually be an asset as a historian/archivist with his collection of memorabilia but he comes across as a repugnant individual who has burnt any possible bridge to AEW, Impact etc because of how he acts. I can't see how anyone can defend him, no need for him to go at Jordyanne Grace. She was stating her opinion and had every right to. It's not the 1970s anymore and the talent are more than just wrestlers nowadays so she was actually stating facts. I don't think Jordyanne or anyone else he targets should give them a second of their time, just don't give him the attention he craves. Him challenging people to fights is the most ever, he's all hot air and as soon as someone steps to him he'd call the cops.

[Bandit]

Cornette could probably beat up Joey Janela and Joey Ryan while fueled on his rage. But David Starr and Chris Dickinson would kill him. Plus he'd probably like both of them if he watched them. Both guys are old school grapplers and very good. They just haven't made it because they are short. But both have great matches and can also cut great promos. I don't know why AEW hasn't signed them.

[Big Boss Man]

He's a 57 year old man so no police officer will look favourably at the guy who does kick his ass, however much he runs his mouth and it's justified for them to do so. Cornys clearly got serious anger management issues, but again I think it's all just hot air. It's not like he's some legit tough guy either like Harley or Bruno, but they conducted themselves like gentleman. Jim Cornette's conduct is an embarrassment to be frank. Why doesn't he have a real fight with Vince Russo to squash their beef (I don't think Russo even cares) he might not be so angry then.

[Matisfaction]

Like I've said before, he's AEW's biggest heel, they even reference him on the shows.

It's funny looking at the smarks online blowing up over Cornette for "still thinking that wrestling is real".

Cornette doesn't need bookings, in fact he's turning stuff down these days. I honestly think that he enjoys fucking with the indie marks more than actually working shows at this point.

[Big Boss Man]

Whats ironic about this is that if he was more progressive with his views on modern wrestling and didn't insult Kenny, The Bucks etc they'd no doubt brought him in. Him with MJF would have been cool, but he's burnt that bridge.

Did he have that same energy when he was with the WWF and they had Duke The Dumpster et al and in WCW with the Ding Dongs, Dynamic Dudes, Oz etc. I don't think he did, so I think his "gimmick" of hating modern wrestling is put on.

If he was a historian of the business he'd appreciate how great this years G1 was but doesn't he hate Kota Ibushi because he wrestled a blowup doll in DDT?. But he was in the WWF & WCW with the cartoony gimmicks and in Memphis they had a wrestling Mummy but



I actually doubt he's turning down bookings. If he was that hot property then he'd be back with WWE in some capacity. Fact of the matter is he's burnt every bridge (apart from MLW maybe) and insulted majority of today's talent and no one wants to do business with him. There's the real truth to the matter I believe. He's alienated himself with his obnoxious attitude and unless you're bringing in the Midnight Express for an indie shot he doesn't really serve a purpose.

What's a shame is if he had moved with the times and conducted himself professionally he'd actually be an asset to AEW, Impact, WWE etc. But I highly doubt any major promotion will hire him because of how he conducts himself. No one wants to associate with a guy who acts up like he does. He's 57 so it's embarrassing how he drops f bombs and acts like a troll on Twitter and his podcast, in actuality he should grow up and act his age.

[Big Boss Man]

Now Dutch is getting involved too

[Matisfaction]

I actually doubt he's turning down bookings. If he was that hot property then he'd be back with WWE in some capacity.

He still makes "selected" personal appearances and conventions, but as far as actual bookings, he's not interested. He hated working for the WWE in the late 90's, he'd hate it even more now.

Cornette does not need the money, I honestly believe that he's just getting a kick out of playing heel because it's practically impossible to generate any kind of genuine heat in a ring these days. Like I said before, he's AEW's biggest heel, he's got the fans and the actual AEW roster raging about him.

[Bandit]

I agree with him on like 75% of what he says. I don't like dumb comedy stuff like magic dicks, invisible men, invisible grenades, etc. But he's just too over the top about it. None of that hurt the business, because everyone who saw it is a smark who watch wrestling for what it is. If WWE had Joey Ryan doing his dick spot with Roman Reigns that would be one thing. At Bar Wrestling or whatever Joey's promotion is called they draw 150 people and 90,000 people might see a clip on twitter. It doesn't mean they can never take wrestling seriously again. They're the ones spending the most money on it. They're the people coming to Wrestlemania Weekend and the AEW events.

For two reasons

1) WWE already made dumb comedy what wrestling is thought of 30 years ago. We've had world title feuds over a man being angry another man put laxatives in his burrito that made him shit his pants on television. We've had a manager murdered by having concrete poured over him. We've had celebrities beat pro wrestlers in matches. We've had Vince McMahon admit he jerked off in his limo on the way to a show and another time his limo exploded. So is a guy doing a comedy match with a blow up doll really worse than the shit Vince McMahon thinks is funny being put on international television? But Cornette rarely talks about WWE.

2) UFC forever killed the idea that pro wrestlers are legitimate fighters besides a few who did MMA or have amateur wrestling credentials. Nobody watches Seth Rollins and Kofi Kingston thinking they were the best fighters in the world. They watch them because they do cool things you can't do in a real fight. So wrestling has adapted to the world with MMA. That means more spots that aren't realistic at all because UFC fighters can't do a Shooting Star Press or a Spanish Fly. In old school wrestling when they'd trade punches for half of the match, you just can't do that now unless you want to stiff each other. MMA is on cable 24 hours a day to show what real punches are now. And that's where I disagree with Cornette the most, wrestling did the right thing by being what UFC can't be.

[Big Boss Man]

If he didn't hate on Kenny et al he could have turned up in AEW as MJFs mentor and he could have been their heel announcer so he could have got a good payday out of his heel work.

Tweeting out insults etc is what anyone can do and I don't think Twitters monetised like YouTube so it's actually him burning bridges for no reason. He might have saved his money and is comfortable enough to sit on the sidelines but my point was he still could be a big part of mainstream pro wrestling if he wasn't so highly strung. I used to listen to his podcast back in the day but now I just find it boring because he's hating on things for no logical reason and isn't interested in changing his point of view.

There is a place for comedy in wrestling, if it's done right and it's not overkill. Things like that NJ parody are hilarious just by looking at the pictures alone. Which is their goal to entertain and make folks laugh. That's the whole point of wrestling to begin with, to entertain. Has anyone ever quoted Roland Barthes to Corny?



I believe he wrote that back in 1957 and in my opinion that still stands true today. Wrestling is a spectacle and should be presented as such. It's much more a performance art than a sport.

Jims also contradictory in the sense that he says he is a big wrestling fan but hasn't watched the 7 star match between Kenny and Okada. Whereas if you love the sport of wrestling as much as he claims then in theory that would be top of the list of must see matches. It's like ranting about Hackenschmidt/Gotch being real wrestlers and not watching anything post that era. Or only listening to Robert Johnson as its real Delta Blues music and nothing beyond that. But there's no changing Jims mindset which is a shame because there's probably matches he would enjoy if he quit the gimmick for a hour or so.

[Bandit]

The thing with Corny is just that being raised on watching the Memphis territory warped his view on how many people believed it was real. That was a Southern thing and also exaggerated even then. Which is funny because Memphis had so much comedy compared to WWWF and Georgia. Memphis influenced Vince Jr. a lot. Vince Sr. wanted zero show biz, just presenting the champion as the ultimate tough guy who can't be beat, be it Bruno, Pedro or Backlund. Jarrett and Lawler were far more campy. And I'm not knocking them since a lot of Memphis stuff was great. But it inspired what you see today.

[Bandit]

[Big Boss Man]

Yea with wrestling in the South, a lot of fans bought into it as real so as soon as the more showbiz type product came around that disjointed their views on it. Nowadays with legit competition like MMA you can't really reinvent the wheel and present wrestling as a real sport because most non fans are smartened up that it's all a show. Unless they have UWF/UWFi style worked shoot bouts but there's no real place for that type of product since you can watch UFC, Bellator etc to see a legitimate contest.

Yea Memphis also influenced ECW through the Eddie Gilbert connection at first when it was the Tri State Wrestling Alliance if I'm correct. There was some hokey gimmicks in the Memphis territory but on the whole it's enjoyable and the CWA/Memphis library if they sort out the legal entanglements and ownership issues would be a solid addition to the WWE Network.