Sunday, January 8, 2012

An Open Letter To Those Who Think They Know The Business - You Have No Idea What You're Talking About~!

by
Michael Barton,
Director of Social Media & Online/Print Advertising
Catskill Wrestling Academy, llc.

I love it when these supposed smart marks think they know what this business is all about. Brian Pillman said it best when he said the following in his initial appearance in ECW in 1996:

"You know what a smark mark is? A smart mark is a guy who'll spend his last $20 on crack cocaine. A smart mark thinks OJ didn't do it...."

I have a secret to tell you - and it's another quote from someone many dislike, namely New Jack:

"Good publicity bad publicity fuck it - Imma stay on the news."

The point is, TNA doesn't give two shits about who you like or dislike, who you cheer or boo or even who you want to set on fire, aka Vince Russo or Eric Bischoff or Dixie herself, they are in a business of marketing, and everyone in the company has made enough of a dent in an incredibly tough business to feed their families during what could be deemed the harshest economic climiate since The Great Depression. And what you don't realize is the best part - i'll give you all a few guesses until I tell you the TRUTH!

C'mon smart marks - you wanna shoot lets shoot with someone who knows what the fuck he is talking about - don't get scared now!

Because the truth is, every time you bash TNA Wrestling, you're still talking about them. Every time you hate or love Bischoff, Russo, Hogan whoever - you giving them free publicity. You don't even realize when you are being worked, and you consider yourselves smart? Let me try to explain it with a non wrestling story.

You know how stars seem to randomly do incredibly stupid things in the entertainment business, and the world laughs at them for a minute? Do you get what the point of their idiocy even is?

No, you don't. But I am going to fucking school you right now! The point is, and it's a reality many of you dreamers never notice, is that every time their name comes out of your mouth, you're making the irrelevant relevant again!

Think about it - i'll wait.....

Not everything in the entertainment/athletic world is always what it seems, and before you criticize you better have walked a mile in their shoes, otherwise you really are just fucking idiot marks who are helping a company you are supposedly trying to condemn. The more you say TNA, the more the name gets out there to the potentially millions upon millions of fans who have no clue they exist. Better yet, when you write stories about them for free, you're actually promoting them.

The wrestling business is much more complex than most of you will ever understand, but if you haven't figured it out yet, you never will.

Rant over fools.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

10 Questions with Michael Barton

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen - it is time for some straight shootin' if you will here on my blog. This is a new feature where, thanks to the advent of social media networks, answering ten random, honest-to-goodnees Kay Fabe questions can now be accomplished.

Well, who's first? I'll be sharing this everywhere - dont need your name - just two initials even if not real - and you share this as well. People want to know what really goes on in professional wrestling? Talk to me here - I ONLY PROVIDE THE TRUTH~!

Monday, October 10, 2011

10/10/11 3:52 A.M. - The Evolve Process Begins

Sorry - It's been an interesting few weeks in my life. I know what I have to do now, and it's a process that is going to not always be the prettiest of things. But it has to be done. What am I talking about? Evolving from being someone with a gift who only writes about professional wrestling and MMA to becoming more dynamic and writing about other issues outside of that small piece of the world - evolving into politics, issues like world hunger, issues like The Broken American System (something that I plan on trying to make an e-book out of available at amazon or other outlets) but I am getting ahead of myself. Wow, this is going to be interesting for sure.
I am an intelligent person who has often made bad decisions. But I don't need to make bad decisions or have my feelings validated by anyone anymore. So I was going to quote a song, but it's 2011 and I really don't need to do that, do I?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocDlOD1Hw9k

More to come in the following days, weeks and months. When and where I have no idea, because all I have is this moment to live in, but I assure you things of quite a different nature are going to be written about and discussed here - important things that not only affect us living in the here and now, but the future generations we are all too eager to bring into this world at an alarming rate.

Thanks for taking a moment to check this out - it really does mean a lot to me. I feel like my entire universe is being thrown upside down on one hand, but I will still write about wrestling, too - just not all the time. I cannot really dedicate that much time to wrestling anymore - she is a drug like any other - and it may be hard to quit but it can be done. And it needs to be done, not only for me, not only for you, but for people who aren't even being considered yet, if that makes sense.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Time Is Time And Doesn't Flucuate

Time is Time and Doesn't Flucuate
by Michael Barton
michaelbartonfreelance@yahoo.com
www.facebook.com/MichaelBarton12701
www.twitter.com/BARTONMICHAEL
@C 2011 10/6


I loved you like no other but times make it changed
Used to be my lover now as friends its rearranged
But I'm coll with this deal as long as you are happy
Doesn't matter what I feel nothing matters but the future
And as yours is variable mine is structured
2 plus years left of school until I can begin to9 change the world
One sad child at a time
do my best to make them happy once again
perhaps even innocent
And you are a healer as well
but in the physical sense
So we're on the same page now
we're just best friends now
and I am totally cool with that
respect to you and yours
and a toast to figuring it all out
I'm sitting on the sidelines like a 2nd string quarterback
Just waiting for that change
To come into the game by some sort of karmac faith
And take this to a place no one could ever believe
Ryan keeps the faith for this
And I sit quietly and live and breathe
Something only you and I understand

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Running With The Book - Michael Barton's Wrestling Storyline Ideas~!

Wrestling is simple. One guy is the hero, the other is the anti-hero. Sometimes, the good/evil lines are blurred. But it is not a complex dynamic in this situation. What happened on Sunday was absolutely amazing, on a level with the Hogan WCW/NWO turn in 1996 - but Monday may have been the worst angle in the history of professional wrestling. Why am I so frustrated? Let me explain.
I understand that they finally heard our voices and knew that things needed to change. But the major problem is this - instead of looking at wrestlings past for an angle that draws money, they think the issues need to be complex and odd. A Vote of Confidence? This makes the worst of Russo's gimmicks look decent to even, dare I say, good! The problem with it? Okay, ill write it out for you.....this one time.

Professional Wrestling Angle
Miz and R-Truth do the beatdown angle on Sunday HIAC PPV
Monday Night Raw starts with Trile H talking and "His Microphone Shuts Off" !!! He loses it, and on the tron are Miz and Truth, in what they wore Sunday Night, telling him there is a hostile takeover about to happen, and they will not be responsible for any innocent victims....
Next segment is, amazingly, a match between Evan Bourne and Jack Swagger. Bourne wins by submission, and goes heel on the ref after the match....(Bourne, sick of the size matters deal, joins Miz and Truth in this Hostile Takeover.)
Next out is....Nigel McGuinness and Kevin Steen!!!...Kill Steen Kill and Nigel are here for retribution for WWE raiding ROH's talent roster.....Cary Silkin appears, and is highly concerned about his workers behavior....Impromptu Match - Nigel McGuinness destroys Jerry Lawler, saying he is taking his rightful spot.(Nigel is the new third man on commentary now for raw, replacing josh mathews....Nigel is also Team Takeover, and plays the evil heel announcer role....)
Triple H comes out and says to the crowd...."Due to these random attacks and strikes - not at our workers" but really at the fans. One man, 37M, was hit with enough shrapnel that his dental records were needed to identify the victim....
WWE Goes on a one week hiatus.....The Show that is not live is a taped show with everyone discussing their feelings with us one on one.....Some very interesting candor between The Rock and John Cena, especially about The Rock's marital status and other private things!!!!

End Part One
"Part Two with Finale up next!"

Friday, September 16, 2011

The Problem with America Today

New day is dawning, and we are losing the global battle to China, who is going to own the good old USA soon. I await responses to this question:

What are you going to do when your debt is worth more money than you have ever seen, much less knew existed?

Friday, August 26, 2011

2011 Panini Threads Box Break and Review

2011 Panini Threads Box Break and Review
by Michael Barton (aka MonticelloCards on Sports Card Forum)
michaelbartonfreelance@yahoo.com



Welcome to my first of what I hope to be many reviews in the sports card and collectibles marketplace. This morning I was delivered a box of 2011 Panini Threads Football, and this item did not disappoint in the slightest. Panini (www.paniniamerica.net) - since purchasing Donruss - has become a leader in the sports card marketplace, and this is another product that delivers a touchdown.

Base Cards
The base set design is breathtaking! The horizontal full photo on the card front certainly makes each card feel like you have just personally taken a photograph at the game. The card backs employ the same photo with last year's stats as well as career stats and other pertinent information.

Regular Rookie Cards
There is one rookie in every pack, something that I personally feel needs to happen in every product in this day and age. There is a nice mixture of draft picks as well. One of my big problems in the past was a product like Leaf Rookies & Stars, which would deliver one rookie card per pack with all late round picks. Plus, I am a big fan of the defensive player, so to pull base rookies of 1st Round Picks like Jimmy Smith, Cameron Jordan and Aldon Smith made me very happy.

Rookie Autograph Letter Patches
The staple of Threads, I was lucky enough to pull a Stevan Ridley "L". I have loved this concept since it first debuted on the scene a number of years ago, so to pull an autographed rookie card made my day.

Memorabilia
I pulled three memorabilia cards - A Chris Johnson "Franchise Fabrics", an Antonio Gates base card 2 color patch parallel, and a dual jersey card of Christian Ponder and Kyle Rudolph dual rookie jersey card.

Parallels
Four parallels were found in my box, two of which were rookie parallels. The holographic finish is easy to denote compared to it's basic counterpart.

Inserts
Gridiron Kings returns as an insert with multi tiered levels. I pulled a Steve Smith framed parallel numbered to only 25, which was sweet. The other insert sets provide any collector with a smile, as there is a perfect mixture of yesterday's legends, today's stars and tomorrow's future stars!

Collation
Not a double to be found in the box, something that is a gigantic pet peeve of mine typically.

Overall
It comes down to this - if you want a fun box that provides great value at a mid-range price per pack, Threads is something that will make you happy from the first pack to the 24th.