Who Was That Masked Man?

It's that time of the year again. Pick out a mask and either ask for candy, pass out candy, or just go to a party. It's a long-standing tradition. For some in the wrestling business, a mask is part of their livelihood. From American stars like The Destroyer and The Masked Superstar, Japanese names like Tiger Mask and The Great Sasuke, to the many masked luchadores of Mexico, wearing a "hood" has helped create many a wrestling legend.

It's often been said that masked wrestlers have to work all the harder. After all, facial expressions cannot be seen outside of a mask. The masked wrestlers must utilize other ways of expressing themselves. The Masked Superstar is a great example of this. While many would say that his in-ring work spoke for him, no one can forget his intelligent yet calculating interviews. Bill Eadie worked hard to make what could have been a forgettable masked heel exactly the opposite. Before the matches even began, fans knew that Superstar's heroic opponent was in for a true battle. In the opposite direction, Mr. Wrestling II worked a similar way. Throughout most of his run, Wrestling II was able to capture the hearts of fans rather than strike fear into them. Famously captivating the mother of President Jimmy Carter as one of his biggest fans, the charismatic Mr. Wrestling II became a staple of southern-based wrestling promotions for over a decade.

Sometimes two is better than one, and in the case of The Assassins it meant double trouble. The familiar black and yellow masks were honestly a bit unsettling to begin with and their in-ring work backed up their villainy. There were a few wrestlers under the Assassin masks over the years, but Tom Renesto and Jody Hamilton are probably the most celebrated. Younger fans will remember Hamilton for his involvement with WCW as The Masked Assassin in the mid-1990s. Hamilton also released a great book about his many different roles in wrestling, including running a WWE developmental territory.

It's Mexican wrestling that is probably best known for masked stars. Lucha libre was built upon superhero-style grapplers who took to the mat and the air equally. It's hard to imagine in the United States, but several legendary luchadores became God-like in their popularity in Mexico. El Santo is one of those stars. Wearing his famous silver mask, El Santo ruled both lucha libre and Mexican pop culture for decades. Appearing in the ring and starring in many motion pictures, comic books, and other media, his popularity was so that his funeral in 1984 is said to have been comparable to a president or other top state figure. Both he and his legendary rival Blue Demon have had their masks handed down thus continuing their mysterious legacies.

Another masked luchador, Mil Mascaras, has seen popularity in Mexico, the United States, and Japan. While he garnered a reputation of being somewhat difficult to work with, it should not take away from his in-ring legacy. As has been discussed before on this very blog, Mascaras is the classic masked luchador who has been merchandised the most outside of Mexico. Thanks to an omnipresence on the covers of 1970's wrestling magazines and a glut of merchandise from Japan, the many masks of Mil Mascaras have been seen the world over with no end in sight.

Japan has created its own masked stars as well, with the look and style fitting well into the wrestling culture of the far east. Tiger Mask, in various incarnations, has been thrilling wrestling fans for over thirty years. As originally portrayed by Satoru Sayama, Tiger Mask toured around the world, perhaps most famously in matches against the equally agile Dynamite Kid. Jushin Liger, with his horned mask and long black hair, became another popular lightweight star and is still gaining fans such as in his recent NXT appearance. Both of these characters were ripped from the pages of Japanese manga books, thus instantly producing real life super heroes.

Of course, it was Rey Mysterio Jr. who carried the masked legacy into the modern day mainstream world of ECW, WCW, and WWE. Mysterio's underdog personality and fighting spirit made it easy for him to connect with fans. It could even be argued that Mysterio's lowest career point was a brief stint where he was unmasked. Once again, the mask became an irreplaceable part of a wrestling career and legacy, not to mention a huge cash cow for WWE once Mysterio was properly introduced by the company's legendary marketing machine.

WWE has not fared well in trying to recreate the Mysterio magic. Still, the popularity of Lucha Underground and other recent outlets prove that it can still be done in the United States. I would love to see the return of a Masked Superstar-style star. A masked villain who is as heelish as he is mysterious. It could be done, and would actually be a fresh idea after being on the shelf for so long.

Who were those masked men? Maybe you'll be inspired to hit the Halloween streets dressed in honor of one of them. After all, many wrestling masks were designed to instill fear in the hearts of opponents. Other wrestlers had faces that were designed perfectly to be right on masks themselves...

Happy Halloween, pencil-necked geeks!

A "New School" Hope For "Old School" Figures

 Ever since Mattel took over the WWE toy license, collectors have been taken on a roller coaster ride regarding figures of past stars. At first, hopes seemed bright as Mattel would have been crazy to not capitalize on the success of Jakks Classic Superstars line. The company did put out three series of "old school" figures in their Legends line, but then decided to make future releases available through their online shop. When that did not work out as they had hoped, the legends were then relegated to occasional "Flashback" releases in their "Elite" series. I was not the only collector who gave up hope when this last change occurred.

For whatever reason, Mattel has seemingly gotten back into the swing of things regarding legends over the past few months. The "Flashback" Elite figures have increased in number, and even the "Basic" figure series are often peppered with a legend or two. I recently took a look at the return of the legend-based Defining Moments line and the incredible Hulk Hogan figure that recently hit shelves. Even the Wal Mart exclusive Superstar Entrances series now includes Rowdy Roddy Piper.

The most recent Elite series to hit stores as of press time includes one of the most popular stars of the 1980's, the Junkyard Dog. Although the figure greatly resembles the effort by Jakks a decade ago with the same white tights/blue and red stars design, it holds up on its own with fantastic detail and a slightly trimmer waste line. Perhaps this is the pre-WWF version of JYD. The chain is a lot longer than the one included with the Jakks version, and helps recreate images of the Dog where he seemingly had it wrapped all around his massive shoulders.

Also in that series is a Flashback figure of X-Pac. While the Attitude Era isn't necessarily nostalgic for me, I do appreciate this figure. The Jakks version was a disappointment, being way too tall and bulky. If Mattel does one thing right, it nails the smaller wrestlers down perfectly. The same could be said for the Flashback Rey Mysterio Jr. figure from the previous Elite series. Each of those figures included a "classic" belt as well, being the European and Cruiserweight championships respectively.

Perhaps my favorite recent "old school" inclusion by Mattel are their latest representations of two stars who are still popping up on WWE programming, the New Age Outlaws. I was actually not that big of a fan of Billy Gunn and the Road Dogg until their WWE returns a few years ago. Now I find myself rooting for the twosome in both their on-screen stints and their work behind the scenes, as Billy Gunn works as a trainer at the WWE Performance Center while Road Dogg is a WWE producer/road agent.

Although both received the "Elite Flashback" treatment last year, a modern
representation is now one of Mattel's latest "Battle Packs." I particularly like the Road Dogg from this set, complete with short hair and "New Age Outlaws" t-shirt. It was a treat to see the two regain the WWE Tag Team Championship last year live at an otherwise lackluster Royal Rumble. And yes, even though I was not always a fan of the "schticky" duo, I have been known to throw a crotch chop or two in their presence.

Even with all of those figures, Mattel has thrown us the greatest hope for future legends figures with their Target-exclusive WWE Hall of Fame line. The first series debuted earlier this year with Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Ultimate Warrior, Sgt. Slaughter, and Trish Stratus. It was recently revealed that those four will be joined by Hulk Hogan, Eddy Guerrero, Yokozuna, and Tito Santana. A Four Horsemen set including Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, Tully Blanchard, and Barry Windham will also be released.

Does it get any better than that? It could, but we're a step in the right direction. As I've said time and time again, Jakks Classic Superstars line was the ultimate because it included superstars from all facets of the business. For every figure of Bret Hart and Dusty Rhodes, we got figures of men like Ron Bass and Danny Davis. It was a wide variety covering all levels of the business. Whether it be Mattel or a company such as Figures Toy Co. (who recently expressed interest in producing a new legends line), the "unsung" heroes of the business deserve their figures, too.

Signature Moves: Wrestling Autograph Evolutions

Collecting autographs is as polarizing as a hobby can get.  Is it real?  How do I know it's real?  Where did you get it?  Throw wrestling into the mix and a collector should be prepared to tear his or her hair out.  I'd never speak ill of wrestling fans and collectors considering that I've been one myself for the better part of three decades.  It's the, shall we say, "eccentricity" of the collectors that can sometimes make you wonder why any wrestler would agree to sign an autograph after being in the business for a certain amount of time.

Most collectors are respectful and are simply looking to build their collections.  The real problems seem to be the same across the board of autograph genre: authenticity and the means of obtaining the autographs.  If you're like me you don't have much of a problem with either.  Aside from a few favorites that I did not have the opportunity to meet, 95% percent of my collection was obtained directly by me.  Buying something pre-signed, although necessary in some instances, just doesn't have the same feeling of getting the signature yourself on an item that you have specifically chose.

With as many autographs as I own and the thousands more that I've seen signed in person, I've developed a good eye for authenticity.  There are also highly respected companies that will authenticate your autographs for a fee.  Are they 100% right all of the time?  They are not, nor am I, nor is anyone else.  Although 99% are obviously authentic, there's only one absolutely foolproof way of authenticating an autograph: obtaining it yourself.  The human eye and instincts can be duped.  There are documented cases of autograph collectors having successfully fooled the grading houses.

That being said, there are often factors of autographs that go unobserved by collectors.  Sit down.  Grab a sheet of paper and a Sharpie.  Sign your name 100 times.  Is every signature the same?  Of course not.  What if, around the 60th signature, we tell you that you have thirty seconds to finish?  You may begin to rush and abbreviate.  Perhaps you're simply a "Living Legend" and your signature stays the same over fifty years or you're a "Common Man" with a variety of autograph styles.  Regardless, these are the things that we'll be taking a look at in this entry.

As noted above, autographs can change for a variety of reasons and in a variety of time spans.  WWE sponsored "appearances" are notorious for rushing fans along.  The educated collector will arrive hours before the scheduled start time and usually leave with at least one thing to show for it, but often not much more.  The casual fan will see a scheduled two or three hour appearance window listed and is often turned away at the door.  Because of the high volume of fans that show up at these sessions, handlers often rush the talent as much as they rush the fans.  These Rey Mysterio autographs shown were obtained just six years apart, but differ because of the aforementioned reason.  "Rey 619" vs "Rey Mysterio 619."  Both authentic and attractive but also both very different.

Some TNA talent have adapted their signature because of TNA's high level of fan friendliness.  Nearly every TNA show includes some sort of organized autograph session.  Although she is no longer with the company, Angelina Love is one of the biggest examples of this.  A few years ago, Love went from signing her full name to a simple "A. Love."  Her new signature even appears in the newer autograph examples in TNA trading card sets, but my best guess is that she originally shortened it for ease at signings.

Some stars seem to be able change their autograph at will, depending on mood, the item they're signing, or other factors.  My all-time favorite, "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, is a great example of this.  A variety of legitimate Dusty signatures are out there from the quickly scribbled (sometimes crammed together as one word!) "Dusty Rhodes" to "The American Dream Dusty Rhodes."  I have even seen the former NWA Champion sign an item that already has a facsimile signature on it and copy that exact "classic" Rhodes signature.  My observations were, of course, in public.  If you will.

Other times it's one little thing that changes in a signature while the rest stays the same.  Anything from a change in wrestling gimmick to the stars personal life can be a factor.  "The Heartbreak Kid" himself has made a small change over the past twenty years since he broke out as a singles star.  While in the early '90s Shawn Michaels included a heart with his very recognizable signature, these days he has changed it to his abbreviated nickname of "HBK."  Hands off the merchandise!

And how about a signature that hasn't changed over the better part of fifty years?  That would be none other than "The Living Legend" Bruno Sammartino.  A coveted signature for any fan, those of us lucky enough to live in Pittsburgh know that Bruno is one of the most generous signers to ever come from the world of professional wrestling.  Evidently it's been that way for a long time, as many photos of Bruno signing autographs survive, as do the classic signatures themselves.  The amazing part?  It's still exactly the same.  Mr. Sammartino has always presented himself as a creature of habit and his signature greatly reflects that.

The moral to the story?  Just because an autograph fails to match another one that you own or have seen means absolutely nothing.  Depending on the situation, star, or various other factors, it could still be (and probably is) 100% authentic.  As always, happy collecting and for a look at hundreds of authentic wrestling autographs, don't forget to "Like" our Facebook Fanpage!