Monday notes

A lot of wrestling "smarks" like to dis Bill Goldberg. He's got a rep as being difficult in the locker room, limited in the ring, and that he has a huge ego. They don't like seeing him booked as an unstoppable monster, but they hate when he shows any weakness in the ring. Well, since he apparantly didn't renew his contract with WWE, they don't have to worry about him anymore. But I have a different view.

Goldberg isn't a smark's delight like, say, Chris Benoit. He's a mediocre ex-football player (3 years with Atlanta) who just knows the power moves. He was "discovered" and handed a massive push right from day 1 with the old WCW, and WCW was famous as a toxic locker room. What Goldberg brings to the table, though, is an undisputable charisma. He has the "big time" aura around him and the intensity that comes from a background in "real" sports. And despite his reputation, during his year in WWE he did everything they asked of him. He let them get out-talked by the Rock, posed in a wig-wearing skit with Goldust, and booked into a broken-ankle gimmick when he finally feuded with Triple H and got his title run. Even then, though, the feud was booked to be more about Triple H (his attempt to get rid of Goldberg) than about Goldberg as champ.

The point here is that Goldberg's still managed to keep most of his aura intact despite all sorts of misuse. And he's done the job when asked, been OK with his promo work, and good enough in the ring when he's had to be (besides his usual spear-jackhammer-pin squash finishes). WWE doesn't have enough main-eventers like that, and they ought to re-sign him. My only other comments on wrestling for now are that it was nice to see Chris Benoit finally get his due with a Triple H Invitational (I mean, World Title) victory. It's also good to see Eddy keep Smackdown's title for a while longer. Eddy-Angle has the potential to be a good feud that'll carry for a few months if they let it. It was also interesting to turn Trish heel for a change. I'm looking forward to tomorrow's taping (we have really good tickets) in Boston, even if Brock Lesnar quit.

While I work on my presentation for Saturday's training session (see www.bnug.org for details), I'm listening to my latest musical discovery - Nellie McKay. She's a 19-year-old who's a cross between a torch singer, Tori Amos, and Eminem, with a healthy dose of They Might Be Giants' sense of musical humor. Terrific talent, and her debut album is available for $11 on the iTMS.

The new French Toast Pop-Tarts suck. Truly suck.