Hard Hit Prince
Not really working as a
WRESTLEZONE INTERVIEWZ
PAPA PILLMAN
Hey everyone and welcome to the first edition of the WrestleZone Interviewz, as you've probably figured out my first guest is the one and only Mr. Papa Pillman! He was kind enough to send me a little bio about himself and that'll be down here in the quote tab. Hope you guys enjoyed it and hope to read your feedback on it as I would most likely get my second choice from you good people.PAPA PILLMAN
1. Hey Chuck! That was a dope presentation and let's start with the matter of professional wrestling - you mentioned your dad was the one that got you started on it - so, what companies were you watching at the time and what's really your first wrestling memory?
PP: My Dad wasn't a fan at all of the WWF, he always said that he liked his wrestling to "look more real"(to be fair he was more of a boxing guy really). He watched everything else though, a lot the syndicated stuff- World Class, Mid-South/UWF, JCP, USWA, the Memphis stuff when we got it. I guess you'd say all of the southern based companies. I loved it all too, especially WCCW because of the Von Erichs, and anything JCP because of Flair.
But I also watched WWF as a kid, it was like cartoons for me. I remember ordering WrestleMania V on my Eighth birthday. I loved Macho man, and my brother(who was nine) loved Hogan, so we were rooting against each other.
2. As a 33 year old man, what you think is the big difference in watching and enjoying professional wrestling from when you were just a teen? Is it something you're "publicly" known for enjoying? What's your girlfriend's take on it?
PP: Most people definitely know I'm a wrestling fan(if for no better reason than I wear wrestling t-shirts). And people that have been around me for years have surely seen me watch it. A lot. My gf doesn't like wrestling but she'll go to shows with me to look at the wrestlers(and she would leave me for Jay Briscoe).
The thing that I miss most about wrestling in the 90s is the enthusiasm for the alternative. In the late 90s you had three major national wrestling companies who had completely different styles and approaches(although WCW had its most successful run due to stealing from the WWF, and WWF had its most successful run due to stealing from ECW). WCW was challenging and even overtaking the WWF, and ECW was a giant by '99 compared to what TNA and ROH are now. In the modern wrestling environment, there is no one to push WWE, so the gradual shift toward a more crowd pleasing style of professional wrestling is only hitting the national scene at a snail's pace compared to what's been happening on the indies, and in Japan, Mexico, and the UK.
Despite the modern communication environment, where everyone can have everything at their fingertips instantaneously, people (in sizable mass) are unwilling to seek out better pro wrestling alternatives and many just quit on wrestling if they quit on the WWE. And that's sad, because there's wrestling out there to suit everyone's taste. On the bright side, for a wrestling junkie, the modern high speed internet era is awesome. Watching NJPW online in 2015 beats the shit out of searching for(and often overpaying for) All Japan bootleg VHS tapes in the mid/late 90s.
3. I really enjoyed your last answer, so let's take a small break from wrestling. You talked about working on a restaurant, being the manager really, so what's that like? Was that something you wanted to do, or just an opportunity that appeared and you went along? Are you having some success with it?
PP: The restaurant is seasonal, we had a great year, but now its the off season. So I get a bit of a well-earned break, currently I'm just working mornings as the breakfast chef at a Peruvian restaurant. Also, as with every good job I've ever had- it's all about knowing the right people.
4. Now, I'll try and get a little pit personal, but it's okay if you don't feel like it, but you mentioned you went through a divorce and that must have been tough. How are you these days and how much contact do you have with your (ex-wife)? What was your family's reaction to it and is your current girlfriend fine with that, or does she sometimes feel some jealous?
PP: Whoa there Barbara Walters. My ex and I split peacefully and I didn't lose quite everything. We do live really damn close and do still see each other, but it's not a big deal, we're both happier now. And my girlfriend has always handled it all better than can be expected.
As for my family; my mom, brother, friends, etc. really only care that I'm happy. And my dad actually never got to meet my ex-wife because he died the same month that I met her.
5. Barbara Walters would die of jealous of this opportunity. Who gives a shit about interviews with Taylor Swift, right? Ah, let's imagine you're trying to convince a foreigner European member from this boards to move to the USA (yeah, what a challenge). What's the state you would recommend and why?
PP: Definitely Washington. I especially think that any European members would find that the Pacific Northwest feels a lot more like home than what they probably imagine America to be, and not just because of the weather. Liberal politics and legal Marijuana are a nice touch too.
6. While we're on it, tell us, who's your personal favorite poster on WrestleZone Forums? And who's the guy you really can't stand?
PP: I like a lot of you bastards, and respect a lot of your opinions. I don't know if I have one favorite. I respect IDR a lot as a poster, JMT and Thriller are a couple of guys I've always agreed a lot with, KB is one of the only guys who does wrestling reviews on the internet whose reviews I actually put any stock in (and the only one I'll read who doesn't use star ratings, speaking of, I also miss Xfear, and speaking of people I miss there's also Butcher lately). I can't forget to mention Sally, one of the most pleasant people to ever interact with on these here interwebs, we've always had a lot of mutual respect for each others' posts, and I value the appreciation from someone as good as her. And you sir get props from me for rocking the Nakamura sigs for so long.
There is no one that I flat don't like. One thing I've always dug about WZF is that, while outsiders would look in and think this board is slow or dead, in reality I like to think that this board just weeds out the idiots quickly. I like Dragon Saga, but I wish his critical presence in the Impact Support thread hadn't too often turned it into a flame war (but that's not all his fault). Is that close enough to controversy for you?
7. You're way too nice. Should be up for the award of nicest poster who you would like to mee in real life. I've got to get some ScreaminNormanSmilley on this shit, he'll take care of each and everyone of us. So, going back to wrestling for a moment, you mentioned meeting Chris Benoit. Damn. How was that like? Describe that day and the event you went watching.
PP: Brian Pillman Memorial Show 2000. I had third row seats. I also got to hang out around the backstage area for a couple hours before the event, and i met a lot of the guys who worked the show(all of the Radicals, Vampiro, and D-Lo being the most notable I got to actually interact with) there's a bit of a story behind all of this that I won't go off on a tangent into the details of, but once again... Its good to know people. Also on that show Chris Benoit(who had just jumped ship to WWE) and William Regal (who was training WWE developmental talent at the time) had the best wrestling match that I've ever seen live. I got to talk very briefly with Chris before the show- mostly just hellos and handshakes, but he was nice to me and everyone else I saw him interact with.
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8. Now, some popcorn questions -
- If you could've attended any wrestling show from the past, what would your number one choice be?
- If you were a wrestler, what's a fancy nickname you would give yourself?
- Who's your current favorite wrestling promotions and wrestlers?
- What's your favorite movie of all time?
- What's the best song going on right now?
- Why the name "Papa Pillman"?
PP: Is this your own personal Proust questionnaire?
- Show: No Clue. Mania 17 is the first thing that pops into my head.
- Nickname: The Most Dreaded(I have giant dreadlocks and I like plays on words).
- Promotion/wrestler: The favorite promotion changes month-to-month. 2013 it was probably mostly PWG, early last year it was ROH, TNA had the best TV product in the Summer/Fall, the winter I was focused on the builds to Final Battle and Wrestle Kingdom. As for wrestlers, too many. NJPW- Nakamura, Ishii; TNA- Joe, Ki, Aries, Roode, Wolves; WWE- Rollins, Bryan, most of NXT; ROH- O'Reilly, Jay Briscoe; other indie guys like Ricochet and Hero; yada yada etc. and more.
- Film: Something by Tarantino or Kubrick(Shining, Clockwork Orange, Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill 2, something like that).
- Song: Right Now? Probably the title track off the Royce and Primo collab album- "PRhyme".
- User name: The play on words, because people like to get too excited or heated on the internet. Also as a tribute to Brian Pillman.
9. I wanna thank you a lot for being my first guest and it was really nice to meet you. Hope we can still have some cool debates over at this damn boards. Is there anything else you want to say to our fellow, WZ forum readers?
PP: All I have to say is I better not be the first and last of ya'll motherfuckers who does this.
Oh, and if anybody was assed to read this whole thing and found it interesting at all, let me know, because you'll have rep coming from me, because I still can't imagine why anyone would care about any of this shit.
