You know, there was a time when WWE releases didnât receive the coverage it gets today. It most certainly wasnât posted on the official WWE website.
Now that it is a high-profile business move, letâs boil it down to the no essential.
It sucks to lose your job.
It sucks on any level. Iâve been laid off a couple of times. Uncertainty and fear set in immediately. However, there is a special level of pain when that termination is from a job you worked so hard to attain. A job that was a passion for you. Years of toiling at a lower level to find yourself under a bright spotlight. Thatâs not to say that the most recent WWE releases wonât find work on the indy level, TNA or back in WWE someday.
Today, it just sucks.
No matter how you feel about their abilities in the ring, Shannon Moore, Nunzio, Domino, James Curtis, referee Nick Patrick, Big Daddy V, and Braden Walker/Chris Harris all deserve a certain level of sympathy. Walker/Harris just debuted and V was suffering from pneumonia.
In my own âwrestling career,â it took me nine years to call it a full-time gig. Years of cartooning and writing for PWI resulted in a gig with WOW and ECW Magazines in 1999. I worked from home, made good money, and traveled to the big shows. The business was hot at the time and we were livinâ the dream.
Two years later, our publisher went bankrupt. WOW, in spite of some revisionist history, was still doing well on the newsstands. Sadly, the âpowers that beâ were losing too much money in other areas. Yet, it was sold off, ironically to the publishers of PWI. I did other writing to pay the bills, but it would never be the same.
Losing the dream was devastating. It wasnât so much the job or the money. It was the team of talent that we built to make a successful magazine that I miss to that day. There was energy and dedication. Everyone was telling us what we couldnât do and we turned around and did it.
But, I digressâ¦
Regardless of their perceived talents or lack thereof, my heart goes out to the recent and all WWE releases. The hard work and dedication it takes to get there takes its toll. Theyâll find gigs on the indy circuit, main eventing in the title match against the local hero or villain. Far too many small promoters out there would love to bring them in. Note to those promoters: Do not be screwing around with their payoffs and transportation.
You can carve out a living on the indy circuit. For those who want to get back to their roots, itâs rewarding. For those in the mid-card, they can be the main event attraction. If you have ever seen a former WWE wrestler at an indy show, it can make a fanâs heart soar. Yet, when I have seen it, it has made my heart sink at times.
Schlepping for Polaroids and autographing various memorabilia was not why a lot of these men and women got into the business in the first place. And while the promoter may love them, the other guys on the roster may resent the larger-than-usual payoff and the siphoning off business from their merchandise table. And donât get me started on some of these indy promoters. THAT is for another column.
Wrestling is a business and not an easy one to maintain a career. Talent combined with the fine art of politicking will get you far. But when the bean counters decide that you are expendable, youâre out.
And, boy, does it suck.
