WWE Daily

Jim Ross has posted the following on his JRSBarBq.com about Jerry “The King” Lawler running for Memphis Mayor. Lalwer will be quitting the WWE, because the mayor’s position is an full time job.
It looks as it the King is actually going to run for Mayor of Memphis as a special election is apparently going to be held in Memphis in about 90 days. The position of Mayor of Memphis, Tennessee is a full time position and one cannot hold another job, as I understand the matter. Jerry has often talked seriously, yes we did talk seriously on occasion on our many, many road trips together, about how he would like to do something positive for his hometown. Jerry certainly isn’t running for Mayor for the pay day but as an old school, public official who genuinely cares for his hometown and wants to make it better for all who live there. I heard an interview that the King made on a Memphis radio station where he talked about the grueling, weekly travel we undergo about 51 weeks a year for WWE and how that can wear on a person. ( I can definitely relate to that.) Point being is that Jerry has been announcing on Raw since 1994, with the exception of a short interruption in service along the way, logging some staggering miles. Plus, the King will be 60 this year and I can easily see Jerry Lawler being at the right place at the right time of his life to be a galvanizing force for the apparent racially divided Tennessee city of Memphis.

For Monday Night Raw fans, if Lawler wins the Memphis Mayoral race he will have to come off Monday Night Raw which would certainly end an amazing era that started 15 years ago. Jerry and I had approximately 12 great years together sitting at ringside every Monday night during the hottest period ever in WWE but as in all phases of our lives things change.

World Wrestling Entertainment has issued the following press release of hiring fomer NFL executive Jim Connelly:

Jim Connelly, Former NFL Executive, Joins WWE®
July 7, 2009

STAMFORD, Conn., July 7, 2009 – World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. has named Jim Connelly as Senior Vice President, Consumer Products. Connelly will oversee WWE’s Global Licensing, Home Entertainment, Book and Magazine publishing. He will report directly to Donna Goldsmith, Chief Operating Officer.

Connelly spent nearly 25 years with the National Football League, where his last position was Managing Director of NFL Europe/NFL Europe League (EL). His responsibilities included all NFL business, brand, marketing, media, fan and player development initiatives in the UK and Europe including the launch of two new EL franchises.

Connelly also held the position of SVP of Consumer Products, where he negotiated first time license agreements with the three largest global footwear/apparel makers and positioned the NFL as the first sports league to introduce a TV home shopping program on QVC. In addition, he served as VP, International Marketing, and Senior Marketing Manager for Corporate Sponsorships.

“We are thrilled to be able to tap into Jim’s extensive experience in marketing, consumer products and branding,” said Donna Goldsmith, COO, World Wrestling Entertainment. “As a proven and recognized business leader both in the U.S. and in Europe, Jim’s business acumen will be an asset in furthering our consumer products business globally.”

After leaving the NFL in 2007, Connelly was a founding partner with The Convergence Network executive search group and also Brand Art LLC where he was appointed the global licensing agent for St. Andrews’ new golf and lifestyle product businesses.

Connelly has a MBA from The College of William and Mary and a BA from Georgetown University.

-FoxBusiness has an featured article on World Wrestling Entertainment and General Electric Company for WWE selling Raw to Donald Trump. This has an BIG issue to it all, because GE owns USA Network, thus USA newtork sent out an fake press release stating the fact that WWE had sold Monday Night Raw to Donald Trump. You an read the whole story here.

-Roddy Piper was a guest on WBCN radio in Boston. Listen to the story here, with few stories of him and Ric Flair on the road. Mentions that WWE just called him fo ran return.

-Pure movies.Co.Uk has an contest on john Cena’s recent movie “12 Rounds”. The winner of the contest will receive baseball cap, T-shirt and dog tags. Just one simple question, How many times has John Cena held the WWE Championship? You can enter the contest here.

-SOBE Entertainment has filed an lawsuit against Paul “Big Show” Wight and World Wrestling Entertainment. To make an long story short Big Show, Paul Wight signed an 5 year contract with SoBe Entertainment to be an performer, entertainer, actor, boxer, wrestler, athlete and celebrity person covering March 1, 2007 through February 27, 2012.

Since Big Show returned to the WWE in 2007, SOBE claims he has not fullfilled his contract duties. To read stipulations on the lawsuit and WAY more, head on over the our friend at PWInisder.com.

-ECW WWE Diva Tiffany has new photos in her WWE Studio photo shoot.

-WQAD is running a contest for tickets to this Saturday’s WWE Raw house show in the Quad Cities area at this link.

Box Office Mojo is reporting that John Cena’s “12 Rounds” did an estimated $1,750,000 in sales last night, putting it in sixth place on the current movie list.

Canada’s Business News Network’s website has an interview with Linda McMahon and Stephanie McMahon-Levesque from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, where they appeared yesterday. The funniest part of the interview was when Steph was asked about the creative process and she gave all the credit (some may say blame….I kid) to Vince McMahon. She said managing him was a full time job. They also talked about the status of the company in the current economy and pushed “12 Rounds”. When asked about competition with UFC, Linda said that they were entertainment and UFC was a sport. She said anything you had to reach into your pockets to buy tickets for was their competition (what, UFC gives their seats away???). Linda was asked about whether WrestleMania would return to Canada and she said not at present but they had a PPV scheduled there for September in Montreal. Linda couldn’t remember the name of the show and Steph quickly jumped in and said that it was Unforgiven. Steph said don’t count Canada out for Mania but you do have to bid for it, emphasizing the importance of the show. Steph definitely came across well, very businesslike

The following press release was issued yesterday on WWE helping former wrestlers who may need assistance:

FORMER TALENT REHABILITATION ASSISTANCE
March 24, 2009

Beginning in September 2007, WWE distributed its first rehabilitation assistance offer to all former WWE contracted talent. The goal of the initiative is designed to help any former talent that may have a substance-related dependency problem. The WWE distributes an annual letter to all former talent notifying them of the program and relevant details. In March 2009, more than 535 former talent letters were sent out. The WWE has a confidential hotline where former talent may call and seek admittance to a certified treatment center, with all expenses covered by WWE. In addition, the WWE maintains regular contact with talent who have entered a rehab program or reached out for WWE assistance. To date, 3.1% of former talent have accepted assistance.

To read the annual letterformertalentassistanceletter32409_0
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TNA Wrestling iMPACT ***SPOILERS*** (3/26)

Earlier this month, MyNetworkTV assured World Wrestling Entertainment fans that SmackDown would survive a restructuring of the channel’s business model, a shift from the traditional broadcast template to a hybrid that more closely resembles a cable network, only with broadcast affiliates.

While MyNetwork plans to shrink its broadcasting day, paring its weekly programming load down to 10 hours from an even dozen—Saturday is being returned to its 180 affiliates—SmackDown will remain in place, serving as the channel’s beefy saviour in transitionary and recessionary times.

At present, SmackDown will stand as the lone original series on the MyNetwork schedule when the fall season begins, as the bulk of the current lineup will be stripped out and replaced with syndicated fare like NBC Universal’s Law and Order: Criminal Intent. More on the Article>>>>>

PWInsider.com reports:

Hollywood actor, writer and producer Freddy Prinze Jr. has departed the World Wrestling Entertainment creative team. Prinze had been working on the Smackdown brand in recent months and was well liked by the wrestlers since he was such an avid, passionate fan of the business. He had hardly been around in recent months and One talent toldsaid they hadn’t noticed Prinze at a TV taping in about two months.

Prinze joined the company in July 2008 and had been a regular at a ton of major WWE events for years before that.

The following press release was issued from WWE.com:

WWE Outperforms

February 13, 2009

STAMFORD, CT, February 13, 2009-World Wrestling Entertainment® (NYSE: WWE) stock outperformed both the broad market indices and other entertainment companies in terms of total return* for the calendar year 2008. Specifically, WWE stock surpassed the S&P 500, Russell 2000, and the S&P Movies and Entertainment index by 31%, 25%, and 42% respectively. A significant component of WWE’s relative performance is its $1.44 per share dividend to the Company’s public shareholders. At the Company’s current price, this results in a dividend yield of 15.5%.

“We believe WWE is the best value in entertainment for our networks, promotional partners, consumers and shareholders,” said Linda McMahon, CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment.

WWE has announced that it will release its Q4 and full year 2008 earnings on February, 24, 2009.

* Total Stock Return is defined as the change in stock price and value of reinvested dividends over a given period, i.e. 2008 in the above example. Investors should note that past returns are not a guarantee of future performance.

Additional information on World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: WWE) can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com. For information on our global activities, go to http://www.wwe.com/worldwide/.

WWE is looking on hiring a few good people. Feel like one of them people who can work for one of the worlds leading wrestling companies. Head on over to http://wwe-careers.com/wwe/jobboard/listjobs.aspx

FolioMag has got an article on Print Magazines. Why would anyone at this time of economic crisis would anyone print such an magazine.

Here is an exceprt from the article on why WWE launched WWEKids Magazine.

Some titles prove print can still connect with a younger audience. WWE launched WWE Kids in April 2008 as a way to build its fan base. “Research shows that the earlier the introduction to the brand, the more likely people are to stick with it,” says publishing director Bob Lee. “When we went out to introduce the kids magazine, we spoke to some of our partners and the question wasn’t why, it was more like ‘Why have you waited so long?’”

In October 2008, WWE launched WWE Kids UK and in early 2009, the company will debut WWE Kids Mexico and WWE Kids Spain. “We’ve got four to six others in the works that we anticipate launching at some point in 2009,” says Lee.

WWE® MUSIC DEBUTS AS # 1 SOUNDTRACK
February 10, 2009

STAMFORD, CT — February 10, 2009 – World Wrestling Entertainment®’s VOICES WWE The Music, Vol. 9, debuted at number one on SoundScan’s Soundtrack Chart surpassing the soundtracks for Slumdog Millionaire, Notorious, Twilight, Mama Mia and High School Musical 3, among others.

VOICES WWE The Music, Vol. 9 also enters the Billboard Top 200 best-selling albums chart at #11 outselling artists such as Metallica, Mariah Carey, Lil’ Wayne, Pink and Akon. Having sold more than 6.0 million CDs worldwide, the WWE has had six music albums debut in the Top 15 of the Billboard 200.

Additional information on World Wrestling Entertainment Inc (NYSE: WWE) can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com. For information on our global activities, go to http://www.wwe.com/worldwide/.

WWE has issued an statement Via TMZ on /chris-jericho-incident-in-canada-video/”>Chris Jericho’s incident in an WWE House show in Victoria, British Columbia. WWE says that Chris Jericho was attacked by am mob.

WWE issued this statement to TMZ:

“After leaving a live event in Victoria, British Columbia on Saturday evening, Chris Jericho’s car was attacked by a mob when he was stopped at a stop sign. Unable to proceed, Chris Jericho exited his car to ask the crowd to clear a path so he could continue through the intersection. A man and a woman physically and verbally assaulted Mr. Jericho. Arena and WWE security arrived to establish enough order to allow Mr. Jericho to re-enter his vehicle and depart. The local police arrived minutes later. Mr. Jericho was unharmed in the incident. The WWE is working with local authorities who are investigating the incident to identify the man and woman who fled the scene.”

The following is from Wrestling_Radio.com:

The UK Broadcasting rights to World Wrestling Entertainment are up soon after 4 years and Sky (Sky Sports) may have a fight on their hands to secure a new deal with WWE. Virgin Media and Setanta Sports are both in line to battle for the rights to air the weekly broadcasts of RAW, Smackdown! and ECW as well as the monthly PPV’s and specials. WWE Joined Sky Sports fully in 2002 after many years airing on the UK’s fourth terrestrial Channel 4. The demise of WWE on Channel 4 was credited due to a number of things during the live edition of Royal Rumble 2000 Mae Young exposed herself live and soon after Channel 4 imposed a live delay on the PPV’s this pretty much lead to a non-renew of contract and an outbid from Sky Sports. The Channel also aired commercials during the PPV which become increasily unpopular with fans.

WWE’s tenure with Sky has not always been smooth sailing in 2003 Sky controversially refused WWE Armageddon making it the first WWE PPV not to be shown on Sky in years. Due to a contractual dispute with WWE (although the problem actually goes back as far as December 99′ when Channel 4 outbidded Sky for 4 PPV events including Armageddon), Sky refused to broadcast the show, which meant that UK WWE fans weren’t able to see it. However several weeks later a new WWE Box Office package was released and it still exists in the same form today in which UK fans pay for several of the PPV’s such as Wrestlemania, Summerslam (£15/$30) etc while a nice number are free! in recent years Sky Box Office has began 3 for 2 offers toward the end of the year on PPV’s. Sky Sports airs all WWE specials such as Saturday Nights Main event, three hour RAW’s and one hour promotion clips from upcoming DVD releases. If that was not enough Sky airs WWE Vintage collection which replaced Heat in the UK in 2008.

Recently WWE announced ‘This Week in WWE’ and ‘WWE Vintage Collection’ will be moved to Eurosport in all its European territories excluding the UK further sign that Sky might win the rights. Setanta Sport are becoming a bigger threat to Sky signing many large football broadcasting contracts and not to mention being the UK home for UFC. Virgin Media on the other hand seem to be the less likely candidate although they did express interest several years back in fight Sky for the rights but that was when the company was known as NTL before Virgin purchased them in 2006.

Whoever gets the broadcasting rights to WWE has a heck of a lot of programming on their hands plus replays! only time will tell.

The following press release is from WWE.com:

WWE® RALLIES YOUTH COMMUNITY
February 4, 2009

STAMFORD, CT —February 5, 2009—WWE is proud to announce WWE Community Champions, a program that celebrates youth who display outstanding community spirit. Selected youths will be featured in exclusive WWE videos to appear on WWE.com and WWEKids.com.

With its newest program, WWE Community Champions, WWE is looking to hear from parents of extraordinary youths and teens, grades 1-12, who are giving back to their community, whether it’s by helping to rebuild a dilapidated park, starting a reading program at school, or creating a recycling drive to clean up their city. WWE will review the youths’ stories on how they have made positive changes in their community to share with the WWE Universe™.

WWE Community Champions is the latest addition to WWE’s stable of youth outreach programs. These include Get R.E.A.L. (Respect, Education, Achievement and Leadership) READ, a nation-wide program in which Superstars promote literacy, and Circle of Champions, a joint effort with the Make-A-Wish® Foundation and other wish-granting agencies. Since 1982, Circle of Champions has brought together WWE Superstars and more than 5,000 youths with life-threatening illnesses across the world.

Parents of youths interested in becoming a WWE Community Champion should submit their stories or videos by mail to WWE Kids, Attn: WWE Kids Community Champions, 1241 East Main St., Stamford, CT 06902, or by email to CommunityChampions@wwe.com. If WWE chooses to feature a youth’s story, he or she may be interviewed by WWE in a video to run on WWE.com and/orWWEKids.com.

Additional information on World Wrestling Entertainment Inc (NYSE: WWE) can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com. For information on our global activities, go to http://www.wwe.com/worldwide/.