The changes to the RAW and SmackDown broadcast teams appears sudden, but the case of Jerry “The King” Lawler being moved from RAW to SmackDown, WWE officials have wanted to remove him from the broadcast booth at RAW for a long time.
“They wanted to get rid of Lawler on RAW for a long time, but after the heart, they figured they couldn’t,” stated Wrestling Observer editor Dave Meltzer on the F4WOnline.com message board Thursday night in a thread about the announce team changes. “This relaunch of SmackDown gave them the chance.”
Beginning this Monday, Michael Cole, JBL and Booker T will be the broadcast team for RAW. Then when SmackDown debuts next Thursday on Syfy, Cole, Lawler and Bryon Saxton will call the action – Tom Phillips is off the announce team. The broadcast team for the WWE pay-per-views will continue to be Cole, Lawler and JBL.
WWE Hall of Famer Booker T will be replacing WWE Hall of Famer Jerry “The King” Lawler on tonight’s RAW. Lawler was recently hospitalized with diverticulitis. Booker T sent out this tweet:
No #RAW pre or post show for me tonight. Don't worry though, you can get your Booker T fix on RAW! I'm doing commentary! DIG THAT SUCKAS!
WWE Hall of Famer Jerry “The King” Lawler was hospitalized due to diverticulitis. Lawler is expected to be released some time within the next several days.
According to the Mayo Clinic, “diverticula are small, bulging pouches that can form in the lining of your digestive system. They are found most often in the lower part of the large intestine (colon). Diverticula are common especially after age 40, and seldom cause problems. Sometimes, however, one or more of the pouches become inflamed or infected. That condition is known as diverticulitis.”
The condition causes a lot of abdominal pain, nausea, and even a fever. It is a serious issue that needs treatment right away, especially for someone of Lawler’s age (65).
Brock Lesnar was out for months while in UFC due to diverticulitis.
It is currently unknown if Lawler will be out of the hospital and will appear on RAW tonight, but if not JBL and Michael Cole could probably handle the show as a two-man team. WWE also could use Tom Phillips or Renee Young if there is a need for a third person. Booker T replaced Lawler on WWE Main Event this past week.
Legendary Memphis Area Wrestling announcer Lance Russell who is in Memphis this week for Memphis Wild Fire Wrestling’s event tonight “Long Live The King” which will celebrate the career of Jerry “The King” Lawler, will be attending RAW on Monday. Wrestling Observer Newsletter is reporting that there is some talk of having Russell introduce Lawler to the live crowd before RAW hits the air but Lawler reportedly wants to walk out to the announce table with Russell.
Memphis Wild Fire Wrestling’s event “Long Live The King” is tonight in Memphis, Tennessee at Minglewood Hall. The event is to celebrate the career of Jerry “The King” Lawler. Those scheduled to appear are Lance Russell, Dave Brown, Referee Jerry Calhoun, “The Boggie Woogie Man” “Handsome” Jimmy Valiant, “Superstar” Bill Dundee, Grand Master Sexay” Brian Christopher, PG-13 (J.C. ICE & Wolfe D), The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express (Robert Gibson & Ricky Morton) & Koko B. Ware. It starts at 7pm E.
The main event will be Jerry “The King” Lawler VS “Dangerous” Doug Gilbert.
If anyone is going to be attending the event we would like to hear from you about the event & we would like photos & videos from the event to share here on DTRTWrestling.com
Memphis Wild Fire Wrestling in Memphis, TN will be having a event at Minglewood Hall on September 18 at 7pm called “Long Live The King.” The event is a celebration of the career of Jerry “The King” Lawler. Of coarse Lawler will be there for this big event celebrating his career.
Memphis Wild Fire Wrestling has announced that the legendary announce team of Lance Russell & Dave Brown will be there. Also announced to be there is “The Boogie Woogie Man” “Handsome Jimmy Valiant, “Superstar” Bill Dundee, referee Jerry Calhoun, “Grand Master Sexay” Brian Christopher, PG-13 (J.C. ICE & Wolfe), The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express, Koko B. Ware, “Dangerous” Doug Gilbert (who has issued a challenge to Lawler for a match) & other past stars of Memphis area wrestling from back in the day.
Memphis Wild Fire Wrestling has announced that headlining the event will be Jerry “The King” Lawler VS “Dangerous” Doug Gilbert
Below is a message from Jerry “The King” Lawler about the big event:
Jim Ross appeared as a guest on the ESPN show Highly Questionable. One of the stories he shared involved Jerry “The King ” Lawler & wearing white wrestling tights when asked what was the grossest thing he has ever seen in a wrestling ring.
Jerry “The King” Lawler’s return to RAW on Monday has caused a lot of controversy. More on the controversy part later, as it is the intent here to focus on the real story. That story being that Lawler returned to work two months after facing a nearly fatal heart attack and the fact that he has improved to the point of being able to not only appear on RAW but to sit at the announcer’s table and do his job. This is nothing short of a miracle from God.
If you were watching RAW the night of the heart attack, you probably thought a couple of things. Either you were concerned that Lawler was not going to make it or you thought that the whole thing was a work by the WWE. As time passed and with footage of Lawler in the hospital and with reports from his girlfriend and others, it was obvious that “The King” had faced death’s door.
To hear his music play last night and to see him come from behind the curtain, is one of the feel good news stories of the year – and not just in the wrestling world. Seeing and listening to him talk about all the support, including mentioning the prayers that went out on his behalf – is a touching side of the business that we don’t get to see very often.
This first 4 minutes of this video is what the real story is!
Now for the controversy. At the 4:00 minute mark in the video, CM Punk’s music hits and Punk and Paul Heyman head for the ring. Punk does the classic heel routine and gets a lot of well deserved heat from the crowd. To long time wrestling fans, this part really shouldn’t be a surprise as Lawler and Punk had a well publicized feud prior to the heart attack – they had even been involved in a match earlier that night before Lawler slumped to the floor from his chair while doing commentary.
The next part was totally unnecessary and where many who are upset probably get totally irate. Heyman faked having a heart attack and Punk pretended to be concerned and was calling for help. There was already enough heat without this little stunt, and it really was just plain stupid.
Not everyone thought that the Heyman “heart attack” part of the segment was the only offensive part though. In an article at Wrestling Inc.com, they quote Lawler’s former business partner Jerry Jarrett from Jarrett’s Facebook page,
“I watched WWE last night. Jerry Lawler was returning after surviving a life threatening heart attack. I sat watching the television with a feeling of pride that they were honoring the return of such a great wrestler. I sat thinking, “now this is real class”. Just when I was appreciating the class WWE was showing, it ended suddenly with a juvenile cheap heat angle.”
“I turned the television off and starting thinking about Linda McMahon’s hard work and great expense running for the Senate. It is exactly this kind of programming that prevented her from becoming a Senator. Wrestling should have some limits and boundaries. If you offend great portions of the audience, it is a bad angle.”
When you read in the comments below the story you will see a mixture of opinions on the matter.
The other part of the controversy was very real, no story line – but footage of the timeline from the time Lawler fell from his chair until the ambulance pulled away from the arena. If you are a little sensitive to watch someone being treated for a heart attack as it is happening, then just skip this short video.
Some believe that this qualified in the TMI (too much information) category. It certainly was an up close and personal viewing of someone who could very easily have passed away while the cameras were rolling.
Did the WWE over step the boundaries by having Punk do his heel routine at Lawler’s expense? Was Heyman’s fake heart attack more than was necessary? Could you have done without seeing the EMT’s and doctor doing heart compression’s and using the paddles on Lawler? You can decide those things yourself.
What would be good to know is how “The King” feels about the entire situation and if he’s ok with it all. If he is, it would be good for him to let the WWE Universe know that, and put this controversy to bed.
Now back to the opening part of the article and the REAL STORY here – watch those first 4 minutes of the first video again and thank God in Heaven for sparing the life of Jerry “The King” Lawler.
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