Ringside Review: Real or staged, wrestling’s fun

By Dandy Dave

Last week, a young fan of pro wrestling asked me, “how do wrestlers get beat up, and still come back the next show?”

Most of us know that pro wrestling is a mixture of illusion and reality, but a whole lot of slamming and jamming goes on during a match.

The wrestlers are put in awkward positions and abused in ways that would cripple or kill lesser humans. If all the moves were real, even the biggest, toughest men couldn’t hold up under the pain and destruction.

The pile driver is a great example of a move that is both real and staged. If a wrestler really suffered a pile driver, he probably wouldn’t survive. His neck would likely be broken. Stone Cold Steve Austin had his neck hurt badly when Owen Hart lost his grip on his legs a few years ago.

There is magic in pro wrestling, and it’s what keeps fans coming back for more. Even when fans know that the illusions are there, many of them love to figure out what is real and what is staged — for these fans, figuring out what’s going on behind the staged show is what watching wrestling is all about.

It can be hard to separate the reality from the scripted moves. Most fans simply settle back and enjoy watching their favorite, and their most hated, wrestlers meet in the middle of the mat. For the duration of the action, they willingly suspend their sense of disbelief.

Accept pro wresting for what it is — the most action-packed live entertainment form available today — and enjoy it. Think about the hard work good wrestlers put in to give you the most bang for your buck. Good wrestlers deserve full credit for all they do to entertain the fans.

• The Daily News Journal of Murfreesboro had a short story on Dr. Jody Jones, a dentist in Smyrna, in last Sunday’s paper.

You see, the good doctor is the dentist of The Undertaker, Chyna and Gangrel.

Dandy Dave is brought to you by Advance America. Call them at 473-9390.