ECW's first pay-per-view events
After a series of struggles (such as the aforementioned "Mass Transit Incident"), on April 13, 1997, ECW finally broadcast its first pay-per-view wrestling card, Bar...
ECW's first pay-per-view events
After a series of struggles (such as the aforementioned "Mass Transit Incident"), on April 13, 1997, ECW finally broadcast its first pay-per-view wrestling card, Barely Legal, highlighted by Terry Funk winning the ECW World Heavyweight Title from Raven.
That June, the company's Wrestlepalooza '97 event featured Raven's final ECW match before leaving for WCW. In this match, Tommy Dreamer finally beat Raven, his long time nemesis. Dreamer's celebration was short-lived, though, as Jerry Lawler, along with Sabu and Rob Van Dam showed up to attack Dreamer. This set up a match between Tommy Dreamer and Jerry Lawler at the company's second pay-per-view, 1997 Hardcore Heaven, on August 17, which was won by Dreamer.
ECW continued through 1998 and early 1999 with a string of successful pay-per-views.
[edit] The Mike Awesome World Title controversy
In April 2000, Mike Awesome made a surprise appearance on WCW Monday Nitro -- aiding the New Blood faction by attacking Kevin Nash -- while still reigning as ECW World Champion. Awesome's friend Lance Storm has said that Mike had refused to sign a new contract with ECW until Paul Heyman paid him overdue wages.[8] There were rumors that WCW Executive Vice-President Eric Bischoff wanted Awesome to drop the ECW World Championship belt in the trash can on television, as had been done previously with the WWF Women's title by Alundra Blayze when she jumped from the WWF to WCW. Due to concerns over legal issues, WCW refrained from having Awesome appear on Nitro with the ECW belt, but did acknowledge him as the ECW Champion. Eventually, a compromise was reached which resulted in one of the more bizarre moments in professional wrestling history. Awesome (a newly signed WCW employee and the reigning ECW champion) appeared at an April 13, 2000 ECW event in Indianapolis, IN, accompanied by WCW's head of security,[9] where he lost the title to Tazz (a former ECW wrestler, who was working for the World Wrestling Federation).[10]
[edit] Conflict with XPW
In 2000, ECW made its West Coast debut, holding its annual summer pay-per-view Heat Wave in Los Angeles. At the time Los Angeles was home to Xtreme Pro Wrestling, and its owner Rob Black purchased six front row tickets for the show. The tickets were given to a cadre of XPW talent, and their mission was to make it clear that ECW was on enemy turf. This was not a storyline. At the beginning of the main event, the XPW contingent donned shirts emblazoned with the XPW logo, gaining the attention of security and ECW wrestler Tommy Dreamer. Security ejected the XPW group from the building and later, a brawl broke out in the parking lot between members of the XPW ring crew and the ECW locker room. The XPW wrestlers were not involved in the fracas, during which the ECW wrestlers brutalized the XPW ring crew with several of the ring crew members left in pools of their own blood.[11]. Initial reports claimed that XPW valet Kristi Myst had somehow touched ECW valet Francine Fournier and that this is what prompted the incident, but Fournier herself has since gone on record as saying that she was never grabbed or in any other way touched by any of the XPW crew, and other eye witnesses support the story that Fournier never had a hand laid on her. XPW was not acknowledged by ECW announcer Joey Styles during the pay-per-view telecast. The XPW contingent who had sat a ringside consisted of wrestlers The Messiah, Kid Kaos, Supreme, Kristi Myst, Homeless Jimmy and XPW announcer Kris Kloss.
[edit] Television deal with TNN
In August 1999, ECW began to broadcast nationally on TNN (for what was initially a three year contract). Despite no advertising and a low budget, ECW became TNN's highest rated
but RIP
but to kids out there, don't fuckin do that shit. hard lesson.
1. put your finger on your nose
2. hold your breath for 5 seconds
3. say the name of your love
4. that person will ask you out on the next Friday
5. you will have the best day tomorrow
6. if you don't copy and paste to 2 other videos you will have bad luck and die in 2 days