Jim Ross retires.

[Waylon Mercy]

Jim Ross likely has what is called '**** you money.' Which is when you've achieved a level of financial stability and are comfortable enough with your professional achievements, to the point that you'll be content if you have no more in this field, that you can afford to be dismissive of any criticism you get. So, I'm guessing Vince McMahon talked to JR about the 2k Symposium and said that this shouldn't happen again, what you should do if Flair or someone else goes off the rails, etc. etc. and then JR in, probably the most diplomatic way possible, probably told Vince '**** you' and that was that.

I don't think it was just about Flair going off the rails it was quite clear JR was quite intoxicated
himself and you can't have a long time employee represent a fortune 500 company like that
especially when it's a symposium with a brand new business partner. If it was any other fortune 500
company Ross probably would have been let go the next day but since it's the WWE most people
got a kick out of it and Ross will probably be back in his limited role sooner rather than later.

I don't know if JR was drunk or not but I don't think that was really an issue. The first half of the panel, the only problem with it is that it was pretty boring. And if the second half had been like that I don't think anyone would've complained other than it being a little boring.

Well it was apparently an issue to WWE who seemed to be quite embarrassed. We've heard Ross
for 20-30 years and you could tell he was into the sauce and I'm not talking about BBQ sauce lol

[skbucks1985]

Maybe I'm not as acoustically perceptive as you are. Regardless, no one was talking about JR and whether he was drunk or not afterwards. And as I said, if Flair hadn't taken over the panel and made everyone super uncomfortable(except apparently for the 2k people who loved it) there was nothing remarkable about the panel and we wouldn't be talking about it.

[HarthorneWingo]

He certainly and at the very least was being a little bit snarky at that conference. Drunk, no, but perhaps buzzed. Maybe things with him and Vince were already in motion?

[Waylon Mercy]

Maybe I'm not as acoustically perceptive as you are. Regardless, no one was talking about JR and whether he was drunk or not afterwards. And as I said, if Flair hadn't taken over the panel and made everyone super uncomfortable(except apparently for the 2k people who loved it) there was nothing remarkable about the panel and we wouldn't be talking about it.

No one was talking about JR and whether he was drunk or buzzed or not? Youtube Drunk JR
he was slurring his words and kept on making multiple alcoholic beverages references. After the
roster reveal him and Flair said they were going out for drinks. WWE wouldn't be pissed off at
him just because he couldn't contain Flair.

[skbucks1985]

The only things I've read have alluded to anger towards Flair and the reason Stephanie McMahon was so angry and later apologized was because of Flair. Again, the first half of that panel there was absolutely nothing about it that was noteworthy and if the rest of the panel had proceeded like that I can guarantee you we wouldn't be talking about it. Is it possible, if he was drunk, that his state of inebriation reduced the likelihood that he would've been able to keep Flair under control and WWE was upset with him because of this, perhaps. But that doesn't change that it was Flair's behavior that is the reason that panel became so noteworthy.

[Waylon Mercy]

The only things I've read have alluded to anger towards Flair and the reason Stephanie McMahon was so angry and later apologized was because of Flair. Again, the first half of that panel there was absolutely nothing about it that was noteworthy and if the rest of the panel had proceeded like that I can guarantee you we wouldn't be talking about it. Is it possible, if he was drunk, that his state of inebriation reduced the likelihood that he would've been able to keep Flair under control and WWE was upset with him because of this, perhaps. But that doesn't change that it was Flair's behavior that is the reason that panel became so noteworthy.

I watched the symposium live and people in the chat were cracking jokes about JR being drunk
before the panel came out and was introduced. While it was clear Flair was the main culprit of
the situation I'm pretty surprised you think JR is completely innocent in this situation.

[skbucks1985]

But again, the story out of this and the reason Stephanie McMahon apologized was Ric Flair. I think, even if JR was drunk, he is still innocent because his state of inebriation in and of itself didn't produce any negative results. And, even if JR had been completely sober, or Michael Cole or Josh Matthews had been leading the panel the result would've been any different. Ric Flair was a drunk gasbag and no one in that situation was going to stop him.

[Mr.Raptorsingh]

Y'all have to admit, Flair was freakin' hilarious at the symposium lol. He even had Austin rolling.

[Dunthreevy]

I don't believe I've seen video of this incident.

[travisjordan]

I believe Jim Ross is the best announcer of all time, however my world didn't end when he was no longer at ringside full time. He's had a long career in the industry, has a great passion for the sport, and his contributions should be celebrated.

As great as he is/was as an announcer, I could see where his personality would be off-putting to some. If you watch some the Legends of Wrestling discussions you can see more of his actual personality coming out. I don't totally blame him for the Ric Flair debacle. It wouldn't have mattered who was leading the panel discussion, if Flair want's to go off the rails, he's going to and obviously doesn't care what you think about it.

He'll get a nice severance package for his years of service and will continue to make money from his BBQ business. I hope he gets a chance to "smell the roses" and enjoy life away from the wrestling business.

[Stanford]

The following are highlights from some new Jim Ross Q&A on his official website:

On if he has interest in joining TNA: "No interest whatsoever at this time. Moving on to other things."

On if wrestlers should be fined for giving/receiving chair-shots to the head: "Yes they must be protected from themselves. Chair shots to the head are ignorant."

On if he has a legends contract with WWE now: "Why is this matter relevant or any of your business? No offense..."

On if Hulk Hogan could end up back in WWE once his TNA contract expires: "Don't know....don't care as it a non issue to me. Some day Hogan making a WWE appearance won't surprise me."

Check out more JR Q&A on his official website, JRsBarBQ.com.

I'd fire Jim Ross too. He's a huge douche. Why even address these questions on your blog if you're only going to give snarky non-answers to what are obviously fans of yours?

[skbucks1985]

Since he left WWE, JR's blog has become a must read.

[jr lucosa]

http://www.sbnation.com/longform/2014/4 ... er-profile

This article is incredibly long, I'm only maybe 20% through it, but it seems like a great read if you have a nice chunk of time to spend on it.

[SDM]

He's doing a show here in Toronto, but I can't imagine it being anything but hopelessly boring + a total sausage fest. I've tried to find some reviews by non-smarks, can't find any, and the smarky reviews all say there's basically no multimedia... just Ross talking with a special guest or two (guessing we'll get Edge). Love the dude, and maybe this makes me a jerk, but I don't want to watch him talk on stage for 90 minutes. It seems like a really barebones production, put together quite quickly.

[skbucks1985]

There's probably nobody alive who has the depth and breadth of experience in the Pro Wrestling industry as JR. We're taking literally 40 years of experience and someone who has had extensive contact with pretty much everyone of note in the industry over these last 40 years. If you don't have interest in hearing that guy talk extemporaneously for 90 minutes, that's fine and I can certainly understand why someone wouldn't find that appealing. But, his shows are aimed at those who would find that appealing and I think there are more than enough people in these markets he's going to that would and that's why it is that bare bones type production because if you don't need the bells and whistles there's no point in having the bells and whistles.

[SDM]

No, I get all that.

My gripe is that it's being advertised as a one man show but it doesn't appear to resemble any one man show I've ever seen. It's misleading... if he's speaking for 90 minutes, it would be more appropriate to tour colleges and universities and bookstores and advertise the shows as speaking engagements.

The hall he's performing in, it's an iconic concert venue... stage, screens, balconies, huge PA system, fits a couple thousand.

I see many people who didn't do their research, looking at the venue, reading about a one man show, and being super disappointed. There's certainly enough people here who would be interested in a pure speaking engagement... so why not advertise it as such and hold it in the appropriate places?

[skbucks1985]

The venues are chosen simply to accommodate whatever audience they think they'll get both in terms of size and demography.

I don't think there'll be a ton of people who will be disappointed. He did a couple of shows in NYC a few weeks ago and some in, I want to say, London a while back and I didn't hear a lot of bad things especially not the complaints you seem to think would arise. I heard a few people, and this is about the NYC show, complain that the moderator did a poor job or that they were somewhat disappointed that Ross spent too much time on a particular subject and didn't touch on a subject(s) they were interested in. But just in general, if you buy a show for this event I feel like Jim Ross talking extemporaneously for 90 minutes about his life and experiences in wrestling is what you'd expect and that's what you're going to get.