27Submitted by RD Reynolds on Thu, 30 July 2020, 20:00
Syndicated TV Show, 1989 I was very saddened to hear this week of the passing of someone I’d classify as true show business legend: Regis Philbin. I was never an avid watcher of any of his shows (my schedule didn’t really jive with the original airings), but any time I would catch him with Kathie Lee or Kelly Ripa, I Continue Reading...
16Submitted by Art0Donnell on Thu, 23 July 2020, 20:00
Movie, 1949 Between Roddy Piper in the ‘80s and The Rock today, a lot of wrestlers have crossed over into Hollywood to become not only household names, but genuine movie stars. Not every wrestler who has tried to make the jump onto the silver screen has succeeded, though. One superstar, a bleach-blond WWE Hall of Famer who was the most Continue Reading...
30Submitted by RD Reynolds on Thu, 16 July 2020, 19:11
TNA, 2007-2008 Not sure how many folks are aware of it, but every Wednesday night I do a live chat of AEW Dynamite. I don’t advertise it here on the site so pretty sure only like a dozen people on planet earth even know I do that. But yes, each and every week, I yuk it up with my friends Continue Reading...
16Submitted by Art0Donnell on Thu, 09 July 2020, 20:00
WWE Books, 2006 Big Apple Takedown was the second and last official WWE novel. Like the Kane biography Journey Into Darkness before it, the book struggled to find an audience mature enough for its adult content but immature enough to read a novel about what TV wrestlers might do in their spare time. To clarify Big Apple Takedown’s intended audience, Continue Reading...
27Submitted by RD Reynolds on Thu, 02 July 2020, 20:00
WWF, 1993 The trope of a brave American protecting his country from evil foreigners inside a wrestling ring may be as old as the business itself. It wouldn’t surprise me in the least if our pal Karl Stern dug up stories of Abe Lincoln hitting a stove pipe driver on someone named Sombrero Sam during the Mexican-American war in the Continue Reading...
22Submitted by Art0Donnell on Thu, 25 June 2020, 20:24
TV show, 2007 Trish Stratus left wrestling at the top of her game, retiring the Women’s Champion in her hometown. So naturally, she wanted to parlay that momentum into a career in law enforcement – and CBS wanted to make that career change a reality. In December 2006, Trish and four other celebrities joined the Muncie, Indiana Police Department for Continue Reading...
21Submitted by RD Reynolds on Thu, 18 June 2020, 20:00
WBF-WWF, 1992 This may come as a shock to you, but I think it is possible that Vince McMahon has something of a muscle man fetish. I’d attempt to explain further, but instead, let’s just go with this legendary GIF to best showcase it: I know, I know, we’ve all seen it 1,000 times. But in many ways, it really Continue Reading...
37Submitted by Art0Donnell on Thu, 04 June 2020, 20:00
WWE, 2019 Wrestling has a long history of whodunnits: Who ran over Austin? Who drove the white Hummer? Who leaked those Paige sex videos? This week, we’ll explore one of the more recent mystery storylines in WWE. The story began at the 2019 Raw Reunion, a night of nostalgia held in honor of Raw’s 1,365th episode. Among the attendees was Continue Reading...
32Submitted by RD Reynolds on Thu, 28 May 2020, 22:13
WWF – CHSC, 1995 Going to go out on a limb here and guess that a lot of you are seeing the title of this induction and thinking of skipping out without reading it. If you fall into that camp, all I can say is your really owe it to yourself to hang out for this one. There is a Continue Reading...
21Submitted by Art0Donnell on Thu, 21 May 2020, 20:52
UWF, 1991 Herb Abrams was a big-time wrestling fan, and a wealthy one, at that. Abrams was one of the first to prove what a dangerous combination that was, launching the Universal Wrestling Federation in 1990, signing up all the big names he could and putting them on TV before their paychecks bounced. But if Abrams wanted the UWF to Continue Reading...
33Submitted by RD Reynolds on Thu, 14 May 2020, 20:04
TNA, 2004 Not sure I’ve ever mentioned Fred, my buddy from high school on here before, but if ever he need to be brought up, today’s the day. Because Fred was just about the biggest “Macho Man” Randy Savage fan I’ve ever met. He also was a huge influence on my early wrestling fandom, which led to this site, which Continue Reading...
29Submitted by Art0Donnell on Thu, 07 May 2020, 20:00
WWF, 1992-1995 When the new XFL folded mid-season due to the global pandemic, it was not the first time that a Vince McMahon venture had fallen victim to bad timing. Back in 1991, Vince McMahon launched the World Bodybuilding Federation just before scandal erupted regarding steroids in the WWF. Now, far be it from me to compare a federal investigation Continue Reading...
36Submitted by RD Reynolds on Thu, 30 April 2020, 19:32
WWF, 1986 Unless you lived through the era, there is no way for you to understand just how gigantic a star Hulk Hogan was in the mid 1980s. I was never the biggest Hulkamaniac, but one of my fondest memories in all of wrestling history was being at a WWF house show in Cincinnati when Hogan came out. No idea Continue Reading...
18Submitted by Art0Donnell on Mon, 27 April 2020, 20:00
WWE, 2019 Mike Bennett arrived in WWE in 2017 with the gimmick of an embarrassing wuss who – if you can wrap your head around this concept – loved his wife. He loved his wife so much that he even took her last name, debuting in the company as “Mike Kanellis” like some beta male. Pathetic. A few months into Continue Reading...
29Submitted by RD Reynolds on Tue, 21 April 2020, 19:50
Former Rewriting The Book author Jon Milne wanted to jump in and give his two cents on the very worst of all the Gooker winners…so without further adieu, Jon take it away! Even despite the massive public health crisis that has massively impacted the world recently, there’s been a great sense of déjà vu about the kinds of stuff Continue Reading...
34Submitted by RD Reynolds on Thu, 16 April 2020, 19:42
WCW, Early 1990’s It may sound weird coming from a guy who has written two books about its demise, but I loved WCW. And over the years, in retrospect, my adoration for the product has done nothing but grown. Rose colored glasses? Perhaps. I mean, don’t misunderstand me – I remember all those horrible Nitros and Thunders, as well as the Continue Reading...
27Submitted by RD Reynolds on Sat, 11 April 2020, 07:49
We can’t believe it either – WrestleCrap.com has been around for TWENTY YEARS! And we’ve decided to celebrate with every single one of you in a very special way. March Madness may not have happened this year…but we’ve got something better. Behold the WrestleCrap Madness Tournament! SIXTY FOUR (!!!!) of the very worst characters are vying to become the pinnacle Continue Reading...
10Submitted by Art0Donnell on Thu, 09 April 2020, 20:00
WCW, 1992 They weren’t all classics, but Wrestlemania 36 featured a record five women’s matches, with a total of fifteen competitors. Had the battle royal not been scrapped, that total would have been higher still. Those figures are mind-boggling compared with the sparse WWF’s women’s wrestling scene in the mid-90s. Back then, the women’s division typically consisted of two competitors: Continue Reading...
12Submitted by RD Reynolds on Thu, 26 March 2020, 20:00
WWF, 1993 I remember it like it was yesterday. I hadn’t been living in Indianapolis for very long, and had very few friends. While working at a market research phone center, I met a guy named Casey. I thought he was pretty funny and liked chatting with him at lunch time. One day, just goofing off, I came at him Continue Reading...
13Submitted by Art0Donnell on Thu, 19 March 2020, 20:24
WWE book, 2005 As you’re probably aware, Kane released an autobiography recently. Sure, the life story of a WWE wrestler who participated in many if not most of the company’s most ridiculous storylines and wound up mayor of a major county sounds like a good read… …but you might be disappointed to learn that it’s not actually an autobiography of Continue Reading...
11Submitted by RD Reynolds on Thu, 12 March 2020, 20:00
Syndicated TV Show, 1990 While one could argue that 1990 wasn’t the most stellar year for the World Wrestling Federation, it seemed as if they had no real issue getting their talent on the talk show circuit of the era. And more often than not, their go to seemed to be The Arsenio Hall Show. For the uninitiated, the man above Continue Reading...
15Submitted by Art0Donnell on Mon, 09 March 2020, 20:19
WWE, 2018 The topic of tonight’s induction may be only a year or so old, but for me, it’s still long overdue. As a long-time critic of urine in wrestling, I see the leaky misadventures of Drake Maverick as a golden opportunity to rail against WWE’s gratuitous use of pee-pee. The story began at Survivor Series 2018, when Raw Tag Continue Reading...
30Submitted by RD Reynolds on Thu, 27 February 2020, 20:00
TNA, 2011 Before I type another word, let me say one thing, and let me say it emphatically: I LOVE RIC FLAIR. Some of you may fail to grasp that concept, especially considering I am inducting his final ever match into WrestleCrap. That’s insane, right? The WrestleMania XXIV match against Shawn Michaels was in many ways amazing. And of course Continue Reading...
17Submitted by Art0Donnell on Thu, 20 February 2020, 21:50
VHS, 1987 In 1987, the United States Hot Rod Association released “Blood, Sweat & Gears,” a 37-minute tour-de-force of souped-up engines and general vehicular carnage. There were tractor pulls… …monster truck races… …a car being dropped onto a bunch of other cars from a giant crane… But this VHS didn’t just feature the heavy-duty car-killing machines of the USHRA; it Continue Reading...
43Submitted by RD Reynolds on Thu, 13 February 2020, 20:00
WWE, 2011 If there’s one thing I never, ever want to hear again, it would be “what is your pro wrestling Mount Rushmore?” What a stupid question. Trying to nail down the four best wrestlers in the history of man is a fool’s errand. And is that even the question? Are they the BEST wrestlers? My FAVORITE wrestlers? The wrestlers Continue Reading...
22Submitted by Art0Donnell on Thu, 06 February 2020, 20:38
WWE, 2019 When you think of dream matches from the Attitude Era that never happened, Goldberg vs. The Undertaker has got to be at the top of the list. Both men were the biggest stars of their respective companies during the Attitude Era: bald, no-gimmicks badasses in plain black trunks… except for The Undertaker. Granted, such a match likely would Continue Reading...
37Submitted by RD Reynolds on Thu, 30 January 2020, 22:18
WWE, 2019 I know it’s something of a running gag, but I really do love Kurt Angle. From the time I brought up my fandom for him on an early WrestleCrap Radio to us actually doing “Move Set Radio” to mock me for talking like the uber nerd I am, I’ve been a mark for the guy ever since his Continue Reading...
25Submitted by Art0Donnell on Mon, 27 January 2020, 20:29
WWE, 2017 As hinted earlier, this induction is about Balls. LaVar Ball and his sons Lonzo and LaMelo Ball, to be specific. You remember LaVar Ball, don’t you? The overbearing basketball dad who’d make ridiculous boasts about his son Lonzo? He was certainly a character, in much the same way that Mr. McMahon was a character during the Attitude Era Continue Reading...
69Submitted by RD Reynolds on Thu, 16 January 2020, 20:00
WWE – 2019 Gooker Award Winner It was close. It was very close. This year, I decided to eyeball the Gooker voting from start to finish. I generally don’t do that, but there was a morbid curiosity as to what was going to take the feathery crown. Confession time: I will admit some years there are “filler” nominees – stuff that was Continue Reading...
21Submitted by Art0Donnell on Thu, 09 January 2020, 22:29
WWE, 2016 It’s not uncommon for WWE to utterly waste a wrestling legend, nor is it unusual for WWE to try and fail at political satire, but in 2016 the company managed to do both simultaneously. One night in May, WWE’s announcers informed the viewers that Darren Young, formerly of the Prime Time Players, had for the longest time been Continue Reading...