Also in this issue:
Ospreay vs. Takagi, Dontaku coverage and New Japan COVID issues explained.
Notes on the upcoming AEW & WWE PPV shows.
Saturday s UFC coverage.
The life of Randy Savage, what was and wasn t covered by A&E, aspects that were and weren t true.
AAA Rey de Reyes coverage and a major bout of international stars set up with Omega vs. Andrade.
Debut of a new promotion with lots of international stars coming to PPV.
Dragon Gate Dead or Alive coverage.
Lots of new info on exactly how people watch the major wrestling shows.
How many different people actually tuned in to see the different wrestling shows last week and why it s far more than people realize.
That frequent use and the passage of time create wear and tear on the basswood horses.
That s where restoration curator James Hardison steps in.
Since the early 1990s, Hardison has been painstakingly restoring the horses, the carousel s two Roman chariots and the scenery on panels that decorate the structure covering the ride s motor.
So far, he s restored 50 of the wooden horses, which were built in 1928 by the Philadelphia Toboggan Co. for Hull s Paragon Park, which closed in 1985. Probably the most thrilling thing is to watch three, even sometimes four generations of a family come through and talk about their experiences, Hardison said, and what it looked like when grandma was riding it as a kid and appreciative of what I ve been doing with it.
The story of Jim Crockett Jr., and the rise and fall of Jim Crockett Promotions is the lead story in the current double-sized issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
We look at the death of Crockett, the Crockett s family original involvement in wrestling, how Jim took over the moves he made in building a small market territory into one of the big three companies in the U.S., original plans and why they changed, the rise of Ric Flair, where Jm was a Hall of Fame promoter, the fight with Vince McMahon from 1984-88, getting the TBS deal, what led to JCP selling to Turner, the framework of the NWA in the 70s and 80s, the rise of the super show concept, mistakes made at the end, what happened when TBS took over, attempts to get back in wrestling and life after wrestling.