WWE Fan Robbed of History - Thought this was Interesting

craigscott

Found this on my everyday visit to Rajah.com

WWE Fan Robbed of History
By: Derek Greser 11/15/08

This past Sunday at WWE Armageddon 2008, history was made. In a shocking conclusion to the event, Jeff Hardy captured the WWE Championship. This would mark the first time that the high-flying Superstar would capture what is considered to be crown jewel of the sports entertainment business. Any fan of the WWE and/or Jeff Hardy can tell you this has been a long time coming. The event emanated from HSBC Arena in Buffalo, NY. The event marked the 2nd ever Pay-Per-View event in the city and venue's history, as well as its first major title change.

29-Year-Old Tom Griffith attended the event, and had front-row seats. Tom has been a 20-year tenaciously loyal fan of the WWE. I know Tom personally and I can say that without question, the WWE is one of the biggest passions in his life. Tom has attended over 25 live events in Buffalo, Toronto, Philadelphia and Rochester. He has purchased countless WWE DVD's and box-sets (many on their release date), video games, memorabilia, clothing, and roughly $7000 dollars on pay-per-view events.

Unfortunately for Tom, he was not able to witness history. Prior to the main event, Armageddon featured a mid-card bout between Batista and Randy Orton. Tom, an avid fan of Randy lead his friends in a raucous chorus of boos Batista's entrance. They even dared to direct a naughty hand gesture (The same that mega-star Stone Cold Steve Austin used on television for years) at the 300 plus lb. powerhouse dubbed "The Animal". Batista himself made eye contact with Tom and his friends, and got right in their face before ascending the ring apron. Due to the quality of Tom's seats, this was clearly visible to fans at home as well as in the arena.

Tom then received a signal from one of the cameramen working outside the ring. This WWE employee made the "slit the throat" gesture at Tom which universally means "cut it out". Tom nodded, and decided that he had expressed himself enough. Minutes later, approximately 8 imposing looking men dressed in gray suits asked if they could speak with Tom in the aisle. Tom obliged and was then walked out of the arena, concluding in the gray suits tearing his ticket up in front of him. The explanation Tom was given was "The person renting this building tonight has requested you be removed from it". Tom spent the rest of the event outside in the freezing rain waiting for his friends who were still inside to drive him home.

In the past, WWE has encouraged their fans to express themselves. Vince McMahon has encouraged fans to bring signs to their support, or anti-support of his performers. This leads to the question; why was Tom removed? He was not involved in an altercation with anyone performing at or attending the event. He was not publically intoxicated. The only possible reason Tom was removed is that the powers-that-be at WWE wanted to protect the image of their Superstar Batista, who is presented as a fan-favorite.

The right thing to do here is to refund Tom's ticket price. In the interest of fairness, this should be the very minimum. The best case scenario is to give Tom priority seating at the next WWE event at HSBC to make up for this obvious mistreatment of a great patron and fan. This article will be sent to World Wrestling Entertainment as well as HSBC Arena and Tickets.com. The ball is now the court of these companies. Will any of them step up to right this wrong?

I am asking for the support of the Pro-Wrestling community to please let Tom's story be heard. Let's protect the right to express ourselves as fans, and paying customers.

- Derek Greser

krudler

Bit over the top no? Either the family friendly tone is being extended to audience members too, or big Dave took offense

jeffk

krudler wrote: »

Bit over the top no? Either the family friendly tone is being extended to audience members too, or big Dave took offense

Defo over the top when say you look @ wwe basically setting up cena for much worse @ ons in the hammerstein ballroom.
Much as wwe likes to change the names to universe or whatever it is now they cant control fans.
It wasn't anything major like throwing stuff @ him etc

I even read @ the same show i think a fella jumped a barrier to get cenas hat and was thrown out.
But im sure someone has more info on that!!!

D.Q

craigscott wrote: »

The ball is now the court of these companies. Will any of them step up to right this wrong?

HA!!
The chance of that happening, I mean, I think its a noble cause and all, but jesus christ... do you really think Vince cares about Tom and his plight? I'd say that happens alot as well to be honest. I mean, Vince is notorious for his attention to detail, and every tv show is going to be a well thought out (ish!), visual package... He cant have fans messing that up!! The good guys have to appear exactly that! Pity about Tom, but as far as Im concerned, business is business.

CMpunked

I would love if this turned into a huge world-wide boycott of the WWE.

I know it wouldn't happen, but dam it would be funny.



But a little explanation by the staff over what exactly happened would be more reasonable. Obviously by the sounds of it, the security staff were event staff and not the ones WWE has, so it wouldnt be that hard to get an answer out of them surely....

ShawnRaven

It's Rajah, big bucket of salt.

Cactus Col

The chap doesn't deserve any kind of compensation. Got kicked out for acting the maggot. Plenty of times I've been watching wwe to see **** in the crowd, often I've hoped to see them kicked out. I say well done to the HSBC Arena staff for kicking him out.

jeffk

Cactus Col wrote: »

The chap doesn't deserve any kind of compensation. Got kicked out for acting the maggot. Plenty of times I've been watching wwe to see **** in the crowd, often I've hoped to see them kicked out. I say well done to the HSBC Arena staff for kicking him out.

So if you paid say €70 into the 02 and slagged batista or cena and got thrown out and lost €70 you'd be ok with that?

krudler

Cactus Col wrote: »

The chap doesn't deserve any kind of compensation. Got kicked out for acting the maggot. Plenty of times I've been watching wwe to see **** in the crowd, often I've hoped to see them kicked out. I say well done to the HSBC Arena staff for kicking him out.

huh? so we as fans cant boo or cheer who we want? fair enough he stuck his middle finger up at him but its not like WWE have ever shown anyone that gesture before, just smacks of Dave throwing his toys out of the pram( if it was him who asked for the guy to be removed), he looked pissed that the crowd were booing him in London recently too

Cactus Col

jeffk wrote: »

So if you paid say €70 into the 02 and slagged batista or cena and got thrown out and lost €70 you'd be ok with that?

I've paid plenty of money in the past to attend events and have never seen any reason to slag any wrestler.

krudler wrote: »

huh? so we as fans cant boo or cheer who we want? fair enough he stuck his middle finger up at him but its not like WWE have ever shown anyone that gesture before, just smacks of Dave throwing his toys out of the pram( if it was him who asked for the guy to be removed), he looked pissed that the crowd were booing him in London recently too

You can boo or cheer whoever you want. All I'm saying is that if people are acting the maggot and go overboard then yes, they do deserve to be kicked out. How long he's been a fan for is irrelevant.

jeffk

well if you don't like someone then you slag em over it.I mean if everyone sat on their hands and didn't chant die rocky die etc would he have been turned heel?

I take it you probably turn your nose up to the real ecw and their chants?

MikeHoncho

If his friends were allowed to stay then he must have done something worse than they were doing so it wasn’t just for booing a wrestler.

There’s a difference between booing and cheering and sticking your finger up at someone. That’s an aggressive gesture meant to provoke a reaction. Wrestlers accept that they might be cheered or booed but they don’t need to put up with blatant aggressive behavior. The guy was trying to get a reaction. Looks like he got one but it bit him in the ass.

jeffk

I mean this sort of thing goes on @ matches and you don't see hundreds of people that do it dragged out.
Wwe again trying their best to tell people who to cheer or boo!

MikeHoncho

jeffk wrote: »

I mean this sort of thing goes on @ matches and you don't see hundreds of people that do it dragged out.
Wwe again trying their best to tell people who to cheer or boo!

If he and his friends were booing etc as stated in the article why was he the only one ejected? Surely if WWE was trying to tell people who to cheer and who to boo his friends would have been ejected too. This guy must have crossed a line.

jeffk

MikeHoncho wrote: »

If he and his friends were booing etc as stated in the article why was he the only one ejected? Surely if WWE was trying to tell people who to cheer and who to boo his friends would have been ejected too. This guy must have crossed a line.

Thats true,so someone is being economical with the truth so?

D.Q

jeffk wrote: »

Thats true,so someone is being economical with the truth so?

+1

it sounds like an over emotional, dramatised version of some guy acting the arse and being deservedly thrown out.

Dancor

Maybe it was the naughty hand gesture. Doesnt matter if Steve Austin used it, He hasnt been on TV regualry or relevent in many years.

Endaaaagh

craigscott wrote: »

........Due to the quality of Tom's seats, this was clearly visible to fans at home as well as in the arena....

Do we have a youtube link to this??

Red Sleeping Beauty

That's lousy...

Surely though it should read "WWF fan robbed of History" ? If he's been a fan for 20years that is.

No chance of him getting his money I reckon, mgmt reserve right to refuse et cetera coupled with rubbish consumer rights.

dreamers75

get caught on camera making gestures to sportsman in any event in the world see how long you last.

Guy was a dumbass for doing it and rightly got chucked out.

Red Sleeping Beauty

dreamers75 wrote: »

get caught on camera making gestures to sportsman in any event in the world see how long you last.

Guy was a dumbass for doing it and rightly got chucked out.

CMpunked

alan dunne 27 wrote: »

Was just thinking that myself actually.

Its simple.

WWE is now PG!

The finger is not PG.

He made it in (what we assume to be) shot. They're could be thousands of people giving dave the finger, the fingers, the thumbs up, the thumbs down, the ass wiggle, backs turning on him, girls flashing.. whatever, but we wont know because the producer/director will see it in the gallery and just not show that camera.

This guy expressed his view in a non-PG way on a PG show.

Red Sleeping Beauty

Comic-Book-Guy wrote: »

Was just thinking that myself actually.

Its simple.

WWE is now PG!

The finger is not PG.

He made it in (what we assume to be) shot. They're could be thousands of people giving dave the finger, the fingers, the thumbs up, the thumbs down, the ass wiggle, backs turning on him, girls flashing.. whatever, but we wont know because the producer/director will see it in the gallery and just not show that camera.

This guy expressed his view in a non-PG way on a PG show.

The last 3PPVs released by Silvervision were rated 15s and I'm assuming they got a similar rating in United States of America. American' PPVs I'm assuming are exempt from certain broadcasting limitations as they've always been were you get the edgier stuff even going all the way back to 97/98.

I don't think this guy would've been ejected purely because he gave the finger.

D.Q

Comic-Book-Guy wrote: »

This guy expressed his view in a non-PG way on a PG show.

nah man i dont think its pg just yet.

sure the guy with the DEEP and SERIOUS voice still says something along the lines of "post watershed production, may contain scenes....yadda yadda yadda.."

I imagine it has more to do with batistas supposed good guy image than the gesture being offensive.

Fozzy

WWE PPVs are all rated "TV-PG" these days. Look at the symbol at the start of the show

D.Q

Fozzy wrote: »

WWE PPVs are all rated "TV-PG" these days. Look at the symbol at the start of the show

jaysus!! forget my above post so! I never noticed!!

CMpunked

alan dunne 27 wrote: »

The last 3PPVs released by Silvervision were rated 15s and I'm assuming they got a similar rating in United States of America. American' PPVs I'm assuming are exempt from certain broadcasting limitations as they've always been were you get the edgier stuff even going all the way back to 97/98.

You would be slightly right. But i will refer to wiki here:

• TV-PG (Parental guidance) This signifies that the program may be unsuitable for children under 10 without the guidance of a parent and similar to the movie rating of the same. Various game shows and most reality shows are rated TV-PG including Supernanny, Wife Swap and American Idol for their suggestive dialog, suggestive humor, and/or coarse language. Some prime-time sitcoms such as Everybody Loves Raymond, The Simpsons "King of the Hill" and Seinfeld usually air with a TV-PG rating. WWE's Raw, Friday Night Smackdown, and ECW programs went from TV-14 to TV-PG in late 2008, in an attempt to draw in more children and families, although their content has remain largely unchanged. The only late night talk show to carry this rating is Late Show with David Letterman. Prime-time programming on children's netwoks such as Cartoon Network such as Total Drama Island, Naruto, 6teen and Star Wars The Clone Wars and a movie of Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends were rated TV-PG as they are more apt to want to draw in both adults and children with their dialouge and language. Many feature films originally rated PG-13 and some R-rated films edited for network or basic cable are rated TV-PG.According to ABC Family multiple episodes from Step by Step use the TV-PG rating though 6 episodes are TV-PG D because of flirty dialogue.The rating may be accompanied by one or more of the following sub ratings:
  • V for moderate violence (mild references of violence, either physical, mental, or featuring mentions and use of weapons)
  • S for suggestive crude humor
  • L for mild to moderate language
  • D for suggestive dialogue (used in Total Drama Island and 6teen on Cartoon Network with parental discretion warning before program)

The main part of that:

WWE's Raw, Friday Night Smackdown, and ECW programs went from TV-14 to TV-PG in late 2008, in an attempt to draw in more children and families, although their content has remain largely unchanged.

TV-14 is the equivalent to our 15s, so they have said that WWE programming has been lowered, so for here that would be:

• PG - 'Parental Guidance' - Parental guidance is recommended for children under the age of 12.
• 12A - 'Parent supervision required for children under 12' - A person over 18 years of age must accompany a child under the age of 12 when seeing a film theatrically. This is very similar to the 12A certificate that the BBFC introduced in August 2002.
• 15A - 'Parent supervision required for children - A person over 18 years of age must accompany a child under the age of 15 when seeing a film theatrically.
• 16 - Films classified in this category are considered to be suitable for persons of sixteen or over. Children under this age cannot be admitted to screenings. Violent content, crude and sexual content, and depiction of violence may be stronger than in films designated 15A.

15A/15 and PG in the us is pretty much the same when you look at it.


And some PPVs are exempt as you pointed out, but you must remember, this wasn't a PPV, it was a live edition of raw.

D.Q

Comic-Book-Guy wrote: »

And some PPVs are exempt as you pointed out, but you must remember, this wasn't a PPV, it was a live edition of raw.

It was armageddon according to OP no?

I dunno, either way, regardless of ratings, I think it was deserved.

To do that to a guy whos putting on a show for you, is just a pretty ignorant thing to do.

Booing is less personal, because youre lost in the crowd like. But making yourself noticed with an ignorant gesture, at a live ppv, is really thick IMO.

Red Sleeping Beauty

My point that he wasn't thrown out to keep the show "pg" still stands.

Surely you have to be over 18 or be paying the bill or have a credit card to order a PPV in the states no ?

D.Q

alan dunne 27 wrote: »

My point that he wasn't thrown out to keep the show "pg" still stands.

Surely you have to be over 18 or be paying the bill or have a credit card to order a PPV in the states no ?

+1

hmmm. thats a good point. Its on earlier there though. Like 8pm isnt it?
so kids watching the live show would be common id imagine, regardless of whether or not they officially ordered it.

Red Sleeping Beauty

Anyway, one middle finger gesture is hardly enough to bring the whole "PG image" into disrepute.

ShawnRaven

alan dunne 27 wrote: »

Surely though it should read "WWF fan robbed of History" ? If he's been a fan for 20years that is.

Why? It's the same company. It's just a few dumbasses who refuse to let the old name go. WWF fan implicates an advocate of the fund.
Considering the fact that Vince was never supposed to use the name in the first place as the Fund had been established at the time the promotion was called WWWF.

rvd156

He may have got confused and thought he was at an old ECW event!!

Now at an ECW event you could chuck you beer all over a wrestler and never get thrown out!!

This is modern day WWE!! Theres no way they gonna stand for that crap!! But still it sucks that ya can't express yourself!! :rolleyes:

happyoutscan

Batista's rubbish anyway.

Red Sleeping Beauty

ShawnRaven wrote: »

Why? It's the same company. It's just a few dumbasses who refuse to let the old name go. WWF fan implicates an advocate of the fund.
Considering the fact that Vince was never supposed to use the name in the first place as the Fund had been established at the time the promotion was called WWWF.

There was one of them crowd on the news there the other day. I'm just hardcore, WWF till the death :pac:
Jared Leto won some MTV award a while ago and he said that the stage looked like "the WWF". His band mates did look like animals in fairness ...

rvd156 wrote: »

He may have got confused and thought he was at an old ECW event!!

Now at an ECW event you could chuck you beer all over a wrestler and never get thrown out!!

This is modern day WWE!! Theres no way they gonna stand for that crap!! But still it sucks that ya can't express yourself!! :rolleyes:

You could also throw your chair at them. But in return you risked being struck with a flamey chair