THE Z-MAN CHANNEL

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

TOM ZENK/JOHNNY GUNN VS HOLLYWOOD BLONDES

From 2/6/93, the Hollywood Blondes (Brian Pillman and Steve Austin)continue on their quest for tag team gold, but Tom Zenk and Johnny Gunn stand in their way!

Can-Am Connection vs The Islanders

Can-Am Connection (Tom Zenk and Rick Martel) vs The Islanders -Haku (King Tonga) and Tama (Tonga Kid)

Shortly after WrestleMania, the Islanders were scheduled for a match on the WWF Superstars of Wrestling. Their opponents were the popular Can-Am Connection (Rick Martel & Tom Zenk), in what was billed as a scientific match.

Manager Bobby Heenan appeared at ringside during the bout, seemingly surprising both teams, the referee, and the commentators. The confusion allowed the Islanders to attack the Can-Ams from behind, giving the Islanders a countout win. Tama's gave a flying headbutt to Tom Zenk on the arena floor as Bobby Heenan gloated over his new tag team. A summer feud with the Can-AM's, the most popular tag team in the federation was just on the horizon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFEMy0DRipI

Sunday, March 16, 2008

GREATEST TAG TEAM EVER?

ASK THE EDITOR:
WWE excluded the Dudleys from Greatest Tag Team Ever - justified or not? By Wade Keller, Torch editor Mar 15, 2008

PWTorch.com reader Nick Alba asks: I just finished reading the Greatest Tag Teams listed on WWE's "List This" column and I gotta wonder who the Dudley Boyz pissed off over there! I agree that the Road Warriors - that's right - not Legion of Doom are the greatest, but the Dudleys are nowhere to be found, not even as a Honorable Mention and Paul London & Brian Kendrick are! I hope you guys can either look into this or maybe explain how this happens.

WWE's list is as follows: (1) The Road Warriors; (2) The Hardy Boys; (3) The Hart Foundation; (4) Edge & Christian; (5) The Freebirds; (6) Demolition; (7) Harlem Heat; (8) The Samoans; (9) The Rockers; (10) The British Bulldogs.....

Politics did play into their list in other ways, such as the high inclusion of the Freebirds (who didn't do much for WWE, but Michael Hayes is a top writer for the company now) and the exclusion of the Steiners from even an honorable mention.

Based entirely and exclusively on what tag teams did while in WWE (thus the exclusion of the Freebirds and Harlem Heat from my list) in the WrestleMania years (since WWE.com excluded any teams from the pre-WrestleMania years in their list except for The Samoans), I would rank The Hart Foundation, British Bulldogs, Hardys, Dudleys, and Demolition as the top five (in no particular order).

This is based on my totally subjective ratings of being good workers or having good matches, having a decent-length run, being prominently featured to the point of being historically relevant, having their best years in WWE, and being in memorable feuds.

My second tier of five would be: Edge & Christian, New Age Outlaws (excluded by WWE.com, also), The Rockers, The Road Warriors, and The Dream Team of Brutus Beefcake & Greg Valentine (also a gross exclusion from WWE's ranking).

The third tier would be: Strike Force, APA, The Brain Busters, Barry Windham & Mike Rotunda, and Money Inc.The fourth tier of five would be: The Steiners, The Smoking Gunns, Can-Am Connection (Tom Zenk is on the persona non grata list, also, after his anti-WWE blog in the early 2000s), The Quebecers, and Paul London & Brian Kendrick (good team, but never pushed as a money act at all).

I admit this list would be different if I were asked a week ago, but I doubt anybody would jump more than one tier up or down. Any such list is subject even if I had all of their stats in terms of how long they teamed and how high on cards they were featured, but I think my list is a lot more reflective of a sensible criteria than WWE's.

Friday, March 14, 2008

Tom Zenk and Rick Martel - the Can-Am Connection vignette

Tom Zenk ('Am') and Rick Martel ('Can') compare Canada and America to establish the Can-Am Connection

Jessie The Body interviews Zenk and Martel - The Can-Am Connection

Wrestling challenge pre Wrestlemania III

Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Austin 3-DVD set a worthy Legacy

By JASON CLEVETT - SLAM! Wrestling
WWE has scored with The Legacy of Stone Cold Steve Austin, a three-disc set focusing on matches from Austin’s career going back to WCW। While many WWE discs falter in using matches found frequently on other discs, this set wins with several unique choices of fantastic matches that are not readily available on DVD. .......
The DVD is fairly comprehensive, going back to Austin’s WCW days. Included on the DVD is a steel cage match with Brian Pillman against Dos Hombres. The Hombres were meant to be Ricky Steamboat and Shane Douglas under masks, but as Douglas was fired from the company, Tom Zenk was under the mask pretending to be Douglas. Two other WCW matches highlight the disc -- great Clash of the Champions matches against Pillman and Ricky Steamboat.......From a match quality standpoint, this is a phenomenal DVD. Twelve of the matches are absolute classics that are a must see for any fan. .....The Legacy of Stone Cold Steve Austin is an early candidate for DVD release of the year. If you are a fan of Austin (What?!) then hurry up (What?!) and get your copy today (What?!).

Friday, February 22, 2008

Tom Zenk & Sunny War Cloud vs Ronnie & Jimmy Garvin

The Garvin Brothers, "Gorgeous" Jimmy & "Hands of Stone" Ronnie Garvin take on Tom Zenk & Chief Sunny War Cloud - go here for video

Sunny War Cloud recalls that "Tom Zenk était bon sans plus dans ce temps là et à quelque part dans un magazine Américain , il était classé comme le 2ième plus bel homme après Tom Selleck."

"...... somewhere in an American magazine, Tom Zek was ranked as the 2nd most handsome man after Tom Selleck."

Sunday, October 14, 2007

CAN AM vs SHIEK and VOLKOFF

Saturday, October 13, 2007

CONGRATULATIONS .....

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Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Brian Pillman/Tom Zenk vs. Londrick NM

Brian Pillman/Tom Zenk vs. London and Kendrick

Rematch

Part 1

Part 2

Z-Man Tom Zenk vs. The Diamond Studd

Z-Man Tom Zenk vs. The Diamond Studd
Clash of Champions 17

Z-Man Tom Zenk vs Mike Rotunda

Z-Man Tom Zenk vs Mike Rotunda
Halloween Havoc, 1989

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Saturday, September 22, 2007

WWE offers drug treatment to all ex-contracted workers

source: Pro Wrestling Torch

World Wrestling Entertainment is sending letters to formerly contracted performers offering to pay for drug and/or alcohol treatment.

The letter is printed on WWE stationery and is hand-signed by Vince McMahon himself.

Here is a transcript of the letter WWE is sending out to their ex-performers:

"Over the last ten years, an inordinate number of wrestlers have passed away. Some of those deaths may in part have been caused by drugs and alcohol.In an effort to prevent such tragedies in the future, the WWE is willing to pay for drug and/or alcohol rehabilitation at a certified treatment chosen by WWE for any performer with a prior WWE booking contract who may need this service.

The WWE will pay for this service in full.There is no cost to you or your family.

Help will be provided regardless of the circumstances of your departure from the WWF or the amount of time you performed for the WWE.

If you do not have a drug and/or alcohol problem, but know you know a former WWE performer who does, we are asking you to try to help them by encouraging them to take advantage of this opportunity.

Liz Difabio has been appointed as a representative in this matter. Liz has been with the company for over 24 years and has been directly involved with the majority of WWE performers who have received treatment for substance abuse. She understands emotions that individuals and family members go through in this process. Any conversation you have with Liz will remain confidential and will not be released to the public.

In many instances, an individual in need of help is in denial and will not want rehabilitation.

There are professional intervention companies that will help persuade that person that they need treatment. Liz will be able to facilitate such interventions, should they be necessary. An intervention and treatment will be at the cost of WWE exclusively.

This service is being provided for performers with a prior WWE booking contract only.

No family or friends.

Please reach out to Liz if you think you might have a drug or alcohol problem or if you know someone who does. We all need to do anything we can to help prevent another tragedy.

Sincerely,

Vincent K. McMahon
Chairman,
World Wrestling Entertainment

Friday, September 14, 2007

Tom Z-Man' Zenk and Van Hammer vs Vinnie Vegas and Richie Morton

Tom Z-Man' Zenk and Van Hammer vs Vinnie Vegas and Richie Morton at Superbrawl 2 (PPV)

Part 1

Part 2

Thursday, September 13, 2007

Lex Luger's confessions of a drug-abuse survivor

These days, Luger needs a cane to get around because of a hip problem.

Lex Luger (Larry Pfohl) reflects on his drug taking past and getting his life back together. Go Larry!

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/news/story?id=3016179

Sunday, September 9, 2007

Clash of the Champions 17 - 'Z-Man' Tom Zenk vs. The Diamond Studd

'Z-Man' Tom Zenk vs. The Diamond Studd
Clash of the Champions 17

'Z-Man' Tom Zenk and Flyin Brian Pillman vs Freebirds

Z-Man' Tom Zenk and Flyin Brian Pillman vs Freebirds
Wrestlewar 1990

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Tuesday, September 4, 2007

Tom Zenk Z-Man vs Tommy Angel, 1989

Tom Zenk Z-Man vs Tommy Angel, 1989

Part 1

Part 2

Thursday, August 30, 2007

Zenk/Pillman/Simmons/Big Josh vs Eaton/Anderson/Zbyszko/Rude

Tom Zenk, Brian Pillman, Ron Simmons & Big Josh
vs Bobby Eaton & Arn Anderson & Larry Zbyszko & Rick Rude
WCW Worldwide

WCW Worldwide - Bobby Eaton & Arn Anderson & Larry Zbysko &
Uploaded by kas09

Tom Zenk vs Cactus Jack

Tom Zenk vs Cactus Jack
WCW Main Event

Cactus Jack vs Tom Zenk
Uploaded by CrossFaceChickenWing

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Tom Zenk on Family Feud

Tom Zenk on Family Feud

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Zenk/Pillman/Horner vs Iizuka/Kobayashi/Koshinaka

The Z-Man (Tom Zenk), Flyin' Brian Pillman,and Tim Horner (Lightning Express) vs Shiro Koshinaka (NJPW), Kuniaki Kobayashi (NJPW) and Takayuki Iizuka (NJPW) - WCW-New Japan Pro Wrestling STARRCADE '91 at the Tokyo Dome

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

The Z-Man Tom Zenk and Flyin' Brian vs Midnights (Robocop)

The Z-Man Tom Zenk and Flyin' Brian vs Midnights
Capital Combat '90 - for the US Tag Titles

"Best Match of the PPV: The Midnight Express vs. Tom Zenk and Brian Pillman (WCW).
There are three brilliant matches in that one PPV, but in my opinion this one was the best. The Doom vs. Steiners match was good, but not AS GOOD as this one, and while the Luger vs. Flair match was on par with this one, the finish was terrible. This match is something special and worth checking out if you haven't seen it before." (Matt Adamson, 'The Best Of Times in 411mania 2.28.08 )

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

The Powerdriver Review:
Clash of the Champions #11
NWA Capital Combat 1990: Return of Robocop
May 19, 1990
Washington, DC
DC Armory

U.S. Tag Team Champions: Brian Pillman & Tom Zenk (2/12/1990)

NWA U.S. Tag Team Champions Brian Pillman & Tom Zenk vs. The Midnight Express (w/Jim Cornette)

Keep in mind that Ole Anderson was hired as booker a week or so prior to this show. Cornette’s supposed to be locked inside a cage Houdini-style at ringside, but the Midnights attack to try and take everyone’s attention off that fact. Pillman and Zenk, however, clear the ring of the Midnights and make sure Cornette is locked inside the cage. Eaton starts off with Pillman and takes a couple dropkicks after running the ropes. STEREO MONKEY FLIPS on the challengers! To think I just saw Bobby Eaton in a tag-team match with Barbarian last night at a church! Pillman hits both Midnights with Air Pillman! Back in, Lane hits Zenk with some savate kicks, but the Midnights have some miscommunication problems. Lane goes to the floor and gets some advice from Cornette. Pillman locks up with Lane next and delivers a sunset flip for two. Lane pokes Pillman in the eye and tags in Eaton, who comes in and gets stuck in an armbar. Eaton breaks free, but Pillman FLIPS out of a monkey flip and puts Eaton down with a dropkick. Lane gets a tag and nailed with an atomic drop into Eaton. The Midnights head out to get some more advice from Cornette because this isn’t working. Back in, Lane has more savate kicks for Zenk. Eaton tags and dumps Pillman, but he comes back with a top-rope sunset flip for two. That’s followed by double-backdrop delivered to Eaton. Lane grabs Zenk from the apron as Eaton charges, but Zenk ducks and backdrops Eaton clear out to the floor. Back in, Pillman and Zenk go back to work on Eaton’s arm. Eaton escapes and avoids a crossbody block from Pillman to send him crashing out to the floor. Eaton follows out and delivers a swinging neckbreaker on the floor. Pillman climbs back onto the apron, but Lane runs into him for the famous Pillman chest bump on the guardrail. The Midnights finally turn the action in their favor as they punish Pillman with double-teams like the Curt Hennig running neck snap/elbow drop combo, which is pretty sweet. Eaton hits a BEAUTIFUL slingshot backbreaker on Pillman. Next up, the Midnights deliver a drop-toehold/elbow drop combo for 1-2-NO! Zenk makes the save. They go to the floor again where Lane sends Pillman into the guardrail. Back in, Pillman gets a desperation sunset flip for 1-2-NO! Eaton tags and he’s ready to put this kid away, so he climbs up and delivers the elbow drop. That gets 1-2-NO! Eaton stays on top and tries to power Pillman’s shoulders to the mat, but Pillman won’t give it up. Desperation inside cradle on Lane gets two. Eaton tags and tries to power Pillman down again, but it’s not happening. Eaton heads up and Pillman is there to meet him. Eaton pokes him in the eye and comes off to the top to slam him down to set up the ALABAMA JAM (guillotine leg drop). KISS IT GOODBYE! 1-2-NO!! Eaton tries for a tilt-a-whirl slam, but Pillman whirls out of it and slams Eaton to the mat. Semi-hot tag to Zenk! He goes for the Z-LOCK (sleeper hold) on Lane, but Eaton breaks it up. Side Russian legsweep from Lane sets up the ROCKET LAUNCHER! It connects! Cover, 1-2-NO! Eaton whips Zenk in the corner, but he totally misses the charge. Eaton reverses a cross-corner whip, but Zenk comes out of the corner with a crossbody for 1-2-NO! Lane saves, which brings Pillman in the ring. Ref Randy Anderson sends Pillman to his corner while Lane sneaks in an enziguri on Zenk into an inside cradle from Eaton for the 1-2-3! The Midnight Express regain the US tag titles! (20:22) This was basically the end of the Pillman/Zenk connection, as Ole decided to job these two very talented guys to almost every big man who walked into the NWA. Sure, Pillman went on to become a superstar after Ole, but outside of winning the TV title for a very short time, Zenk never really seemed to recover from Ole’s unnecessary de-push. ***¾