Dave Meltzer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
David Allen Meltzer (born October 24, 1961) is the editor of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (WON), a newsletter for the world of professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. WON has grown from an underground publication to one that now commonly circulates around the industry and its fans. It is known for revealing events inside the business by breaking kayfabe. Meltzer has a cult following from Internet wrestling fans and is often given the nickname "The Meltz".
Contents |
[edit] Early life
Meltzer was born in upstate New York before eventually relocating to San Jose, California. He showed an interest in pro wrestling early on in his life. Dave wrote several publications that predate WON, dating back to 1971. Meltzer states that he was just a fan at first and started a tape trading newsletter. The Observer started from Dave wanting to keep his friends in college "in the loop" for his tape trading as well as the happenings in the business. He started writing the Observer full time in 1987.
[edit] Wrestling Observer Newsletter
The Wrestling Observer Newsletter started off as a way to keep fans informed of various wrestling regions that readers may not have been aware of or had no access to. The Observer's earlier years were also marked by revealing insider news and various behind-the-scenes happenings in the industry, a groundbreaking approach in a kayfabe-heavy era.
Since major wrestling promotions would never acknowledge the existence of any dirt sheets, Meltzer had to find other ways to advertise his newsletter. Adverts were often posted in kayfabe and semi-kayfabe publications such as Wrestling Main Event magazine and Wrestling Eye magazine. Meltzer was also able to advertise his publication during various guest appearances on wrestling radio shows and guest editorials in various national newspapers.
With the ubiquitous emergence of the internet and wrestling web sites that are able to provide news in real time, today's Observer differs in the way it covers the wrestling scene in that it provides more of an editorial on the news and what impacts it could have on the business. Wrestlers have noted seeing copies of the Observer on Vince McMahon's office desk and it is believed many, if not most of the biggest stars in WWE and other major promotions are subscribers, although few would admit it publicly. Meltzer's newsletter has led to a loyal fan following, radio shows, and even a brief stint working for the WWF as a researcher in 1987.[1]
In his first autobiography, Mick Foley claimed that even when he was just starting in the business, people as influential as Jim Crockett would sometimes change the booking direction of an entire promotion based on the opinions expressed in the WON.
[edit] Impact
[edit] Rating system
Meltzer popularized the "star rating" system (originated by Jim Cornette & Norm Dooley), which rates matches on a scale of one to five stars in a similar manner to that used by many movie critics. As in the field of film, a rating is a largely subjective affair that may take into account the amount of action, as opposed to restholds ("workrate"); the difficulty and variety of moves used; the history of the workers and their feud; the development of an in-match storyline based on the wrestling moves and how they affect the wrestlers; and the overall reaction of the crowd. A classic example of a "five-star" match is the battle between Mitsuharu Misawa and Toshiaki Kawada on June 3, 1994, in All Japan Pro Wrestling.
Five star matches are extremely rare. Before 2004, the last match rated five stars in the US was in 1997. Since then, Ring of Honor has promoted three matches that received five stars from Meltzer: Samoa Joe vs. CM Punk on October 16, 2004, Samoa Joe vs. Kenta Kobashi on October 1, 2005, and Dragon Kid/Genki Horiguchi/Ryo Saito vs. CIMA/Naruki Doi/Masato Yoshino on March 31, 2006. Total Nonstop Action Wrestling has one five-star match: Samoa Joe vs. A.J. Styles vs. Christopher Daniels at the Unbreakable pay-per-view on September 11, 2005. Four WWE matches have been given five stars by Dave Meltzer:
- WrestleMania X: Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon (Ladder match)
- SummerSlam 1994: Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart (Steel Cage match)
- WrestleMania 13: Bret Hart vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin (Submission match)
- In Your House: Badd Blood: Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker (Hell in a Cell)
[edit] Impact on wrestlers
Despite the history of recurring tension between those employed by wrestling promotions and those who cover the field as reporters, by most accounts, numerous people in the business regularly read WON. Mick Foley credits a writeup in WON for boosting him from a "no-name independent" wrestler to one whom a national federation would consider.[2]
[edit] WON Hall of Fame
The Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame is not a physical place, but nonetheless, it is a respected honor in the world of wrestling. Every year, Meltzer conducts a poll of selected "insiders" and wrestlers to determine new inductees into the WON Hall of Fame.
[edit] Wrestling Observer Live
Dave Meltzer currently hosts Wrestling Observer Live, a popular wrestling radio show. Co-hosting the show with Dave is Bryan Alvarez, editor of the Figure Four Weekly newsletter. Dave and Bryan host the show every Sunday night from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. EST on the Sports Byline Radio Network. Due to the show airing on Sunday nights, replays are played on nights there are WWE pay-per-views. The show debuted in October 1999 and aired five days a week on the internet radio channel, eYada.com. eYada closed its doors on July 9, 2001, with Wrestling Observer Live, its highest rated show, being the last show to broadcast on the station. Wrestling Observer Live was picked up by Sports Byline on March 17, 2002, and has stayed in its current position ever since. The WWE does not allow its talent or employees on Meltzer's show as a guest.
[edit] Notes and references
- ^ Johnson, Mike; Dave Sherer (2000-05-05). Wrestling Observer Live 5/04 recap with Jim Thomas of New York State Senator Tom Libous' office regarding legislation of Drug Testing of Wrestlers. (English). Daily Lariat. Retrieved on May 19, 2006.
- ^ Foley, Mick (2000). Have a Nice Day, 1st ed. paperback, New York: Avon Books, p. 155. ISBN 0-06-103101-1.
