Jonathan Coachman has been taking a lot of heat recently because he is not doing near that job that JBL was doing and doesnât offer much. An incident happened a few weeks ago where the Undertaker was brawling by the announcers table, and Coach stayed in position when the action came close when he was suppose to run away to sell danger. He was punished by having to go to the ring after a show and take several main eventersâ finishes. He took a tombstone from Undertaker, a spear by Batista, and a shillelagh shot from Finlay.
Speaking of the commentary on WWE television, Vince is giving the announcers a new direction while calling matches. Vince wants more storytelling and less calling holds. Instead of screaming during major angles (like they do on TNA) he wants the announcers to lay out and not say anything. The feeling is that the programming will feel more ârealâ and not as âstagedâ with fewer/weaker voices. Joey Styles in particular has been told to announce more low-key and not to raise his voice, and to stop calling moves so often. This is basically a 180 degree direction from what made Styles so popular and such a good announcer. Jim Ross has also been given similar direction.
Multichannel News has an article up about WWE’s marketing efforts for WrestleMania XXIV. The article talks about how they have saturated the marketplace by doing aerial advertising, TV commercials, video-on-demand sn*ppets, direct mail, bus wraps, in-store toy displays, radio promotions, a sweepstakes for a customized motorcycle, and renting a patch of land near the Orlando airport so arriving planes will see the WWE logo depicted on the plot.
Brian Fritz of the Orlando Sentinel has a new column online about Ric Flair retiring this year. It mentions that his last match is likely at WrestleMania XXIV.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is currently trying to get the role as a villian in a new James Bond film. Johnson was quoted as saying, “I would love to be a Bond baddie. I am a big fan of the films.”
