This week...Curtis Comes Home...and Paul Heyman goes into the gutter...

First off, the good...from early reports, it appears that The "Curtis Comes Home" show was a success, with over $30,000 raised for Brian Hildebrand's medical expenses.

Thanks to Cody Michaels and all concerned for organizing such this event to help one of wrestling's own.

Lots of thank yous go out for those who helped publicize the event all over the Internet...to Indigo from Wrestling Online; Allan Barrie from WHOOWrestling, Al Isaacs on SCOOPS, Mark Madden from WTAE/Pittsburgh and WCW, Dave Scherer, Georgianne Makropoulos, and Bob Ryder of 1wrestling.com. Others included WrestleBoard, Big 3, LordsofPain.net, iwrestling.com, 316news.com, ECWCWWF.com; and countless other newssites, and even promotional websites as far away as Calgary's Stampede Wrestling.

Thanks to Julio 'the Latin Dragon' Sanchez, Frank Parker, Lord Zoltan, Domenic DeNucci, Mick Foley, Dick Flanagan, Sheriff Steele, Billy Kidman, Eddy Guererro, Shark Boy, Ted Petty, Johnny Grunge, Bo James, Roger Anderson, 'Hugh Morrus', Allan 'The Duke of New York' Barrie (doing double duty), Cody Michaels, Jim Cornette, Al Snow, D-Lo Brown, Cactus Jack, Chris Jericho, Terry Taylor, Tracy Smothers, Tim Horner, and Chris Candido, Tammy Lynn Sytch, Dean Malenko, Chris Benoit, and Shane Douglas for working last night's show, apparently without compensation, in order to ensure that the maximum amount of money was raised.

Thank you to the hundreds of fans who've written me, Allan Barrie, Indigo, and the others who've attempted to help, in our small way, a person that so many of us have such so much respect for. It is truly appreciated by all of us who have the privilege of knowing Brian...and it is appreciated beyond words by Brian and Pam Hildebrand.

Now...for the not so good...hell, the revolting...

A week ago, Joel Gertner made scripted remarks about John Kennedy Jr., Carolyn and Lauren Bissette on ECW TV. The remarks were disgusting enough that MSG resfused to air the portion of the show on which it appeared. They were disgusting enough that WGTW-TV 48, the broadcast affiliate for ECW in Philadelphia, got 300 calls in protest over the remarks.

For those of you who dismiss this as typical over-the-edge ECW, check out these excerpts printed in this week's Pro Wrestling TORCH. (I'll warn any readers that these remarks are damned offensive):

"...For a story about an unfortunate death, this unfortunately is the story that won't die. First, they tell you all about the cockpit. Oh yes, it was a cock-pit, indeed. Then they tell you about the size and how small it is.

I am personally not here to attest to the size of John-John's cockpit or John-John's John-John, but perhaps you could ask the Bissette sisters about that. After all, attitude wasn't the only thing going down that night. You know, a Piper Saratoga isn't really when the two passengers are both sitting in the pilot's lap.

If John Kennedy Jr. were found right now, he'd probably have his pants around his ankles and be covered by both Bissette sisters, the corpse of Marilyn Monroe, and the chick from the Chappaquidick River just because she was curious who the better Kennedy was.

And if John F. Kennedy Jr. were found alive today, he would echo my sentiments and praise my wisdoms, and he would say (Gernter then makes a noise like he's underwater) which translates to 'I wish I had never dumped Darryl Hannah, because in that movie Splash she has mermaid fins, and I would have been able to grab on and swim my way to the top".

Disgusted yet? If not, here's more:

Paul Heyman and ECW were universally condemned by nearly everyone, ranging all over the landscape from Bob Ryder and Dave Scherer on 1wrestling.com to TV Guide Online.

Instead of doing the intelligent thing, and keeping his mouth shut, Paul Heyman was quoted, again from this week's TORCH, as follows on the controversy:

"Yeah, it's a helluva controversy...I think it's great. I don't believe the Kennedy family watches ECW, and we don't have clearance in Hyannisport".

So much for ECW's "apology" earlier in the week on its website.

Does this strike anyone else as Paul Heyman and ECW having a deathwish? What in the hell was Paul Heyman thinking when he allowed, let alone scripted, such remarks to air on TV?

Does Paul Heyman think TNN hasn't heard about such remarks? Does he think that the national TV coverage that so many have worked so hard to achieve can't be lost? Outright slander of the Kennedy and Bissette families like this wasn't "hardcore". It wasn't "extreme". It wasn't "shock TV".

This is FAR from the first time that cheap heat has been used on ECW TV. One of the first episodes was in 1993 when Paul Heyman referred to an ECW employee (without her prior knowledge) as a "nymphomaniac" as one of the "Top ten reasons to attend the [1993] November to Remember." The excuse he used when questioned about it in 1993 was that his TV was "shock TV... just like Howard Stern".

That kind of statement was utter, total, and complete bullshit six year ago, and it is utter, total, and complete bullshit now.

What was allowed to air shows an incredible lack of judgement on the part of Paul Heyman and all parties concerned.

Paul Heyman has enough creative talent to do better than this. He needs to show an equal amount of human decency coupled with business acumen and common sense in the future; and never allow something like this to happen again.

Until next time.....

If you have comments or questions, I can be reached by e-mail at bobmagee1@hotmail.com