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If you read my articles on a regular basis you have seen me mention Charley Fulton. He was a great worker in the days when being able to work actually mattered. I can’t deny that what went on behind the curtain still wasn’t political but being able to work played a much larger part. The only comments you ever heard personally or professionally about Charley were positive ones. I never had the pleasure of wrestling Charley but I made sure some of my friends did when I was booking shows. I did travel with Charley a good bit I considered him a friend and still do. When he walked away from the business he had health issues. I heard John Studd say “what a shame about Charley and the office liked him”. I can remember being in a meeting with legendary booker George Scott when I asked him about Charley. He said people would ask me all the time why I kept Charley around. He said I told them no way I am letting that guy go.
I mention Charley today because when I heard that Dave Taylor had been released I thought to myself, WHAT????? Who in the world makes a decision like this? How do you let a guy like this go? A wrestler like Dave Taylor is capable of mentoring younger kids and helping them to learn how to work. In the days of pushing William Regal and Fit Finlay how does a guy like Dave Taylor get his walking papers? In days when MMA and Ultimate Fighting are getting a lot of attention why let go a guy who is a legitimate shooter? If the truth was told I believe that you could put Regal, Finlay and Taylor in the ring against any three other guys and the other guys would be fighting for their lives. It is just another in a long line of questionable decisions made by a company that isn’t sure what the public really wants.
I simply can not understand the constant misconduct and embarrassing behavior that WWE stars subject the company to. The latest incident involves someone that I find to be entertaining Santino Marella. In so conceding that Santino is “funny” I have to say that he should be ashamed of his behavior. If we are realistic here is a guy who was given a job even after that incident with Jim Cornette where Cornette slapped him. I am an old school guy Santino did something wrong. I don’t believe that Cornette should have slapped him but I can also see where poor judgment made by Santino pushed Cornette over the edge. If Santino was around years ago the same reason that Cornette slapped him for would have probably gotten him blackballed for years ago.
If we are honest about it Santino Marella is a talented guy who if his nose was kept clean could maintain a job if he was just the lucky guy that someone liked. In light of the current situations he should be released immediately. Why continue to employ people like this when you can find anyone to do the same job. The role Santino holds is never going to drive company revenue so why condone it by keeping him on your books? When you allow this type of behavior to take place with no repercussions the message you send is clear. The wrestling business has always been very political and for that reason Santino Marella can stay employed. You can hear all the stories you want about Board of Directors and how the WWE is run. If you have any common sense at all and understand Vince McMahon you would realize it is a military dictatorship.
The picture for this article is of Joe and Don Muraco from WrestleReunion 2. It wasn’t to hard to convince Don to take the long trip from Hawaii being given the chance to team with his son. The other motivation was being given a chance to work with Bob and Brad Armstrong.
