David Allen Meltzer (born October 24, 1961) is the editor of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (WON), a newsletter for the world of professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. WON, which is regarded as a dirt sheet, had grown from an underground publication to one that now commonly circulates around the industry and its fans. It is known for revealing events inside the business by breaking kayfabe.^[1] Sports Illustrated senior writer Frank Deford has praised Meltzer's work, saying that "Meltzer, I believe, is the most accomplished reporter in sport journalism."^[2] is the 297th day of the year (298th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Editing is the process of preparing language, images, or sound for presentation through correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications. ... A newsletter is a regularly distributed publication generally about one main topic that is of interest to its subscribers. ... For the video game, see Pro Wrestling (video game). ... For the fighting styles that combine different arts, see hybrid martial arts. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... In professional wrestling, kayfabe (pronounced KAY-fayb; IPA: ) refers to the portrayal of events within the industry as real, that is the portrayal of professional wrestling as not staged or worked. ... The first issue of Sports Illustrated, August 16, 1954, showing Milwaukee Braves star Eddie Mathews at bat in Milwaukee County Stadium. ... Frank Deford (born December 16, 1938, in Baltimore, Maryland) is a senior contributing writer for Sports Illustrated, author, and commentator. ...

Meltzer also has covered MMA for the Los Angeles Times and FoxSports.com. He currently covers MMA for Yahoo! Sports. This just IN !!!:paris hiltons new dog. ... Yahoo! Sports was launched on December 8, 1997. ...

Early life

Meltzer was born in upstate New York before eventually relocating to San Jose, California.^[3] He showed an interest in pro wrestling early on in his life. Dave wrote several publications that predate WON, dating back to 1971. Meltzer states that he was just a fan at first and started a tape trading newsletter. The Observer started from Dave wanting to keep his friends in college "in the loop" for his tape trading as well as the happenings in the business.^[4] He started writing the Observer full time in 1987.^[3] This article is about the state. ... For other uses, see San José. Nickname: Location of San Jose within Santa Clara County, California. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Largest metro area Greater Los Angeles Area  Ranked 3rd  - Total 158,302 sq mi (410,000 km²)  - Width 250 miles (400 km)  - Length 770 miles (1,240 km)  - % water 4. ... Year 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ...

Wrestling Observer Newsletter

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter, a dirt sheets-style publication started off as a way to keep fans informed of various wrestling regions that readers may not have been aware of or had no access to. The Observer's earlier years were also marked by revealing insider news and various behind-the-scenes happenings in the industry, a groundbreaking approach in a kayfabe-heavy era.^[5]. Dave states that this new approach to covering wrestling earned him scorn from virtually everyone within the wrestling business. As the business evolved along with the newsletter he became more accepted.^[6] This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

Since major wrestling promotions would never acknowledge the existence of any dirt sheets.^[5], Meltzer had to find other ways to advertise his newsletter. Adverts were often posted in kayfabe and semi-kayfabe publications such as Wrestling Main Event magazine and Wrestling Eye magazine. Meltzer was also able to advertise his publication during various guest appearances on wrestling radio shows and guest editorials in various national newspapers. Radio broadcasts have been a popular entertainment since the 1910s, though popularity has declined a little in some countries since television became widespread. ...

With the ubiquitous emergence of the internet and wrestling web sites that are able to provide news in real time, today's Observer differs in the way it covers the wrestling scene in that it provides more of an editorial and analysis on the news and what impacts it could have on the business^[6]. Wrestlers have noted seeing copies of the Observer on Vince McMahon's office desk and it is believed many, if not most of the biggest stars in WWE and other major promotions are subscribers, although few would admit it publicly. Meltzer's newsletter has led to a loyal fan following, radio shows, and even a brief stint working for the WWF as a researcher in 1987.^[7] It has been suggested that this article be split into articles entitled Editorial and Op-ed. ... Vincent Kennedy McMahon (born August 25, 1945) is an American wrestling promoter, occasional professional wrestler, on-screen personality, former play-by-play announcer, and film producer. ... World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. ...

In his first autobiography, Mick Foley claimed that even when he was just starting in the business, people as influential as Bill Watts would sometimes change the booking direction of an entire promotion based on the opinions expressed in the WON.^[8]. Michael Francis Mick Foley, Sr. ... Bill Watts, (born May 5, 1939 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma), is a former American professional wrestler and promoter. ...

Impact

Rating system

Meltzer popularized the "star rating" system (originated by Jim Cornette & Norm Dooley), which rates matches on a scale of one to five stars in a similar manner to that used by many movie critics.^[3]. As in the field of film, a rating is a largely subjective affair that may take into account the amount of action, as opposed to restholds ("workrate"); the difficulty and variety of moves used; the history of the workers and their feud; the development of an in-match storyline based on the wrestling moves and how they affect the wrestlers; and the overall reaction of the crowd. A classic example of a "five-star" match is the battle between Mitsuharu Misawa and Toshiaki Kawada on June 3, 1994, in All Japan Pro Wrestling. James (Jim) Cornette (born September 17, 1961) is an American professional wrestling manager, commentator, promoter, and booker. ... A professional wrestling feud is a staged disagreement between two wrestlers or factions of wrestlers over a purported slight or insult. ... Mitsuharu Misawa ) is a Japanese professional wrestler. ... Toshiaki Kawada ) is a professional wrestler who is most known for his work in All Japan Pro Wrestling. ... All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) (全日本プロレス, zen nihon puroresu) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion established in 1972. ...

Five star matches, as rated by Meltzer, are extremely rare. Before 2004, the last match rated five stars in the US was in 1997. Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For the band, see 1997 (band). ...

Since then, Ring of Honor has promoted three matches that received five stars from Meltzer: For other uses, see Ring of Honor (disambiguation). ...

• Joe vs. Punk II: Samoa Joe vs. CM Punk
• Joe vs. Kobashi: Samoa Joe vs. Kenta Kobashi
• Supercard of Honor: Genki Horiguchi, Dragon Kid and Ryo Saito vs. CIMA, Naruki Doi and Masato Yoshino

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling has one five-star match: Nuufolau Joel Joe Seanoa (born March 17, 1979), is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name, Samoa Joe, and currently performing for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). ... Phil Brooks[4] (born October 26, 1978), better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) on its Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) brand where he is the reigning ECW Champion. ... Nuufolau Joel Joe Seanoa (born March 17, 1979), is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name, Samoa Joe, and currently performing for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). ... Kenta Kobashi ) is a professional wrestler who currently works for Pro Wrestling NOAH. He has previously worked for All Japan Pro Wrestling. ... Hiromasa Horiguchi is a Japanese professional wrestler, better known as Genki Horiguchi, or simply Horiguchi. ... Nobuyoshi Nakamura (born February 2, 1976) is a Japanese professional wrestler who wrestles for Dragon Gate. ... Ryo Saito, is a Japanese professional wrestler who currently wrestles for Dragon Gate. ... Nobuhiko Oshima, better known by his stage name CIMA (pronounced Shima), is a Japanese professional wrestler who currently wrestles for Dragon Gate. ... Naruki Doi , born October 4, 1980 in Ikoma, Nara, Japan) is a Japanese wrestler for Dragon Gate. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) is an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Jeff Jarrett and his father Jerry Jarrett in May 2002. ...

• Unbreakable: Christopher Daniels vs. Samoa Joe vs. AJ Styles

Four WWE matches have been given five stars by Dave Meltzer: Unbreakable was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event held by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. ... Christopher Daniel Covell (born December 24, 1970) is an American professional wrestler, best known by his ring name in the United States, The Fallen Angel Christopher Daniels. ... Allen Lloyd Jones (born June 2, 1978), better known by his ring name The Phenomenal A.J. Styles (also written AJ Styles), is an American professional wrestler currently working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is currently one half of the TNA World Tag Team Champions with Tomko. ...

• WrestleMania X: Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon (Ladder match)
• SummerSlam 1994: Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart (Steel Cage match)
• WrestleMania 13: Bret Hart vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin (Submission match)
• In Your House: Badd Blood: Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker (Hell in a Cell)

WrestleMania X was the tenth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event from the World Wrestling Federation. ... Michael Shawn Hickenbottom (born July 22, 1965) is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Shawn Michaels. ... This article is about the professional wrestler. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... SummerSlam 1994 was the seventh annual SummerSlam professional wrestling pay-per-view event from the World Wrestling Federation. ... This article is about the professional wrestler. ... Owen James Hart (May 7, 1965 – May 23, 1999) was a Canadian professional wrestler who was most known for his time in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). ... Kane bloodied in a cage match with Edge on Raw, showing the current WWE Steel Cage. ... WrestleMania 13 was the thirteenth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event from the World Wrestling Federation. ... This article is about the professional wrestler. ... Steven James Williams (born Steven Anderson on December 18, 1964)[2] better known by his ring name Stone Cold Steve Austin, is an American actor and former professional wrestler. ... Many types of matches can be found in professional wrestling. ... WWE Bad Blood (originally Badd Blood) was a World Wrestling Federation professional wrestling pay-per-view event that was held in 1997, 2003, and 2004 typically in the month of June. ... Michael Shawn Hickenbottom (born July 22, 1965) is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Shawn Michaels. ... For the Combichrist song, see Everybody Hates You Mark Calaway (born March 24, 1965[2][3]) is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name The Undertaker. ... Hell in a Cell (sometimes referred to as Hell in the Cell) is a type of professional wrestling match seen in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) in which the ring and ringside area are surrounded by a roofed steel cell which stands 16 feet (5 meters) off the ground. ...

Impact on wrestlers

Despite the history of recurring tension between those employed by wrestling promotions and those who cover the field as reporters, by most accounts, numerous people in the business regularly read WON. Mick Foley credits a writeup in WON for boosting him from a "no-name independent" wrestler to one whom a national federation would consider.^[8] Michael Francis Mick Foley, Sr. ...

WON Hall of Fame

Main article: Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame is not a physical place, but nonetheless, it is a respected honor in the world of wrestling. Every year, Meltzer conducted a poll of selected "insiders" and wrestlers to determine new inductees into the WON Hall of Fame. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (WON HOF for short) is a professional wrestling hall of fame that exists only on paper. ...

Wrestling Observer Live

Dave Meltzer is the host of Wrestling Observer Live, a popular wrestling radio show. Co-hosting the show with Dave is Bryan Alvarez, editor of the Figure Four Weekly newsletter. Dave and Bryan host the show every Sunday night from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. EST on the Sports Byline Radio Network. Due to the show airing on Sunday nights, replays were played on nights there are WWE pay-per-views. The show debuted in October 1999 and aired five days a week on the internet radio channel, eYada.com. eYada closed its doors on July 9, 2001, with Wrestling Observer Live, its highest rated show, being the last show to broadcast on the station. Wrestling Observer Live was picked up by Sports Byline on March 17, 2002, and had stayed in its current position ever since. The WWE does not allow its talent or employees on Meltzer's show as a guest. Bryan Alki Alvarez[1] (born June 12, 1975 in Bothell, Washington) is a professional wrestler and the editor of Figure Four Weekly, a newsletter that has covered professional wrestling since 1995[2]. Alvarez credits his pro wrestling training to Buddy Wayne, and is credited with training Ring of Honor (ROH... Internet radio (aka e-Radio) is an audio broadcasting service transmitted via the Internet. ...

As of September 30th 2007, Bryan Alvarez became the host of Wrestling Observer Live as Meltzer had an increase of workload covering UFC for FOX Sports and couldn't host the show full time anymore. With the change, the radio show will go on during WWE pay-per-views which it had never done before.

Bibliography

• Tributes: Remembering Some of the World's Greatest Wrestlers (Winding Stair Press , 2001, Hardcover) ISBN 1553660854 ISBN 978-1553660859
• Tributes II: Remembering More of the Worlds Greatest Wrestlers (Sports Publishing, 2004, Hardcover) ISBN 1582618178 ISBN 978-1582618173

Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 2001 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Notes and references

1. ^ Meltzer, Dave (2004). Tributes II: Remembering More of the Worlds Greatest Wrestlers, 1st ed. Hardcover, Champaign IL: Sports Publishing, back cover flap. ISBN 978-1582618173. 
2. ^ Deford, Frank (2007-08-22). A deadly phenomenon. Sports Illustrated. Retrieved on 2007-08-25. In this article, Deford also states "...wrestling is a sport. No, not legitimate in the competitive sense, but it is certainly legitimate athletic exercise."
3. ^ ^{a b c} Dean S. Planet's Celeb Interviews. (English). Dean S. Planet's. Retrieved on 2007-07-11.
4. ^ Benaka, Lee (1991). The Lee Benaka Interviews - Dave Meltzer. (English). Benaka, Lee (reprinted on the Death Valley Driver Video Review website). Retrieved on 2007-07-11.
5. ^ ^{a b} Funk, Terry; Williams, Scott (2005). Terry Funk: The Hardcore Legend, 1st ed. paperback, Champaign IL: Sports Publishing LLC, p. 125. ISBN 1582619913. 
6. ^ ^{a b} Eisenberg, Joel (2004). Aunt Bessie's How to Survive a Day Job While Pursuing the Creative Life, 1st ed. Paperback, Northridge CA: Topos Books, 103-106. ISBN 0976757508. 
7. ^ Johnson, Mike; Dave Sherer (2000-05-05). Wrestling Observer Live 5/04 recap with Jim Thomas of New York State Senator Tom Libous' office regarding legislation of Drug Testing of Wrestlers. (English). Daily Lariat. Retrieved on 2006-05-19.
8. ^ ^{a b} Foley, Mick (2000). Have a Nice Day, 1st ed. paperback, New York: Avon Books, p. 155. ISBN 0-06-103101-1. 

Frank Deford (born December 16, 1938, in Baltimore, Maryland) is a senior contributing writer for Sports Illustrated, author, and commentator. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 234th day of the year (235th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The first issue of Sports Illustrated, August 16, 1954, showing Milwaukee Braves star Eddie Mathews at bat in Milwaukee County Stadium. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 237th day of the year (238th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 192nd day of the year (193rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 192nd day of the year (193rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Dave Scherer is the owner and head writer of the professional wrestling website PW Insider. ... Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full 2000 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 125th day of the year (126th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 139th day of the year (140th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Avon is a paperback imprint of HarperCollins. ...

See also

• Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards
• Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame

This is a list of Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards, current and defunct. ... The Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (WON HOF for short) is a professional wrestling hall of fame that exists only on paper. ...

External links

• Home of the Wrestling Observer Live radio show
• Official website of the Wrestling Observer
• Pick My Brain interview with Dave Meltzer
• DeathValleyDriver interview with Meltzer
• Dean S Planet interview with Meltzer
• Bryan Alvarez's Figure Four Weekly official website
• "Observer Star Ratings List WWF/WWE 1986-present, ***+ ratings
• "List of matches that have received five stars from Dave Meltzer