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The Wrestler
Television's red-headed stepchild: pro wrestling
by Brad Trechak, posted May 3rd 2009 6:06PM
Having only recently caught the movie The Wrestler on DVD, I was thinking about the relationship between television and pro wrestling. Since the inception of the boob tube, professional wrestling has appeared on television. At first it was an inexpensive way to fill the hours, usually for several hours per week. Then, it became much bigger than that and is now one of the biggest ratings draws on cable television. So, why doesn't the television media or blogs such as ours cover it more (except for when it intersects with other television shows such as The View)?First, wrestling has its own cult following with a myriad of websites and news sources that cover it exclusively. Anything done on a television website would seem redundant. Secondly, despite the ratings, mainstream television has never taken wrestling seriously. Wrestling is a carnival atmosphere that blurs the line between fantasy and reality and is difficult to treat with dignity and respect for those who don't understand it.
So, I ask of you: do you think more television websites should cover wrestling?
Rourke's Globes speech makes NBC's censors' heads explode - VIDEO
by Joel Keller, posted Jan 12th 2009 8:36AM
See that picture to the right? That's Mickey Rourke accepting his Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Drama for The Wrestler... with his hand down his pants. But that's just the beginning of the fun we heard and saw during his acceptance speech, which I'm sure made the steam come out of the ears of NBC's standards and practices folks.Suffice to say, Rourke made the most interesting speech of the night. And by "interesting," I'm not even talking about his striped hair or the beard that makes his boxing-worn face look even weirder. No, all he had to do was open his mouth. He said the word "balls" twice, and then said something else that sounded like it was beeped.
Finally, he affectionately called his Wrestler director, Darren Aronofsky, a "tough son of a bitch," prompting Aronofsky to kiddingly flip Rourke the finger... on camera.
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